Byrdmans "SCUD" cafe project

[byrdman76]

I have the same bike! I'm planning to cafe it as well and this is total motivation. :-D



what year is she?

Thanks for all of the comments. Good luck on your project! Plenty of people on this site ready and willing to help you along the way.

She was a '79 GS550L

Byrd

[Mike_H]

Seriously nice looking bike man. I can only hope mine turns out as well. Course, if it does, I might not want to sell it...

[AOD]

The wife and I found out that our first pregnancy turned out to be a double header!

CONGRATS!

You best work on the bike before you can't...heck, get another one to finish before the kids come!

Excellent work on that thing, it's a beaut! I'm doing similar work on my CB500 project, except I'm going to keep the stock flat seat for now. I love your paint!

~Adam

[jetta90]

byrdman76 - that is a stunning piece of work, man!!
Well done.

[byrdman76]

Go back to the first photo and look above the tail section...

CONGRATS!

You best work on the bike before you can't...heck, get another one to finish before the kids come!

Excellent work on that thing, it's a beaut! I'm doing similar work on my CB500 project, except I'm going to keep the stock flat seat for now. I love your paint!

~Adam

We introduced Corbin Daniel and Emma Grace into the world on Friday the 10th of Aug. During the weeks leading up, I nearly burnt myself out trying to get the bike to a somewhat complete status and also trying to get everything else in my life taken care of before the big day.

Needless to say were both still walking on air. We never found out what they were during the pregnancy so when one of each came out we both nearly lost our minds. I know I did.

Ive got a 71 CB750 waiting for its transformation now. Building an 836 motor with late model front forks and a late model rear but I will retain the dual springs only upgraded to reservoir versions. I want to build something that resembles the new Norton Commando. Unfortunately Ive found that there is seriously not another web site around like the GS resources for older Hondas. The step by step builds and information on this site make you realize that you have gotten pretty spoiled when you begin to look around for information about bikes.

Keep up the great work!

Byrd

[cvmgtwowheels]

Sharp looking bike, looks fast standing still. Were are you so I can send you my bike to get done? HA HA!!

[humblepie]

all you need left is some spoke rims and you'll be good..



do you still have that mold for your tail?

[byrdman76]

all you need left is some spoke rims and you'll be good..



do you still have that mold for your tail?

I would love to find some spoked rims for this bike someday. Right now im just happy its back on the road.

The tail and seat pan was a one off that I carved and shaped from layers of plant foam material. Check out some of BHPPY101's threads as he has some near step by step instructions on how to make your own.

[Druro]

H*nda site.

There is the following site for H*nda SOHC bikes.

http://www.sohc4.us/forums/index.php

I have a little CB350F 4cyl (rare... so tough to find parts) that these guys have helped with in the past.

[bhppy101]

=D> Very well done Byrdman!!!

It looks amazing!!

[Guyver]

That is simply one of the most beautiful, well-thought out and perfectly executed custom bike jobs I have seen. I liked the gold pin-striping you had going originally as well. I don't know where you have found the time and I can tell you that with kids now you won't, especially with twins. Heaven help you, your life as you knew it is now officially over...but in a good way. Enjoy your blessings!

[Sunburn]

I have two year old twins and a 6 year old. All boys.

Its hard at first. It will get better as time goes on. :-D

Or you just get used to it. :shock:


That is real nice looking bike.

At first I thought it was going to turn out lame.

You did a nice job!

[pickardracing]

byrdman, since you referred me to this thread, I wont feel bad about asking a question in it.

How did you go from the foam mock up to the final product? How's the seat feel?

Any pics of this you can share?

[byrdman76]

Ask me anything you want...

byrdman, since you referred me to this thread, I wont feel bad about asking a question in it.

How did you go from the foam mock up to the final product? How's the seat feel?

Any pics of this you can share?

Just don't hold me accountable :-D

You can go to this link and see a few shots of the form that I made for the tail.

http://s170.photobucket.com/albums/u245/byrdman76/?start=0

Couple of suggestions though from my experience. Use tape, aluminum foil, or something that will not allow the fiberglass resin to eat the foam. search for some of bhppy's posts. I wrapped the tail section in cloth that I have seen used in creating speaker forms and custom door panels - don't do this. I was trying to smooth the form out (like batting material on furniture) and hide transitions. It ate some of the foam material and created valleys that I had to fill in with Dyna glass. They were probably no more than 1/4" deep but it could have been avoided.

Also use the "non" woven fiberglass. The woven is great for flat surfaces but curves and angles become difficult since the material will not lay down as it should. It tried to crease instead.

Use plenty of hardener - don't go over board but don't try and get slack when mixing the ratio. In addition mix a small amount of what ever your using at a time. Fiberglass, Dyna glass, and Bondo should and will begin to harden and become worthless if you take to long to get it worked into your project. Baby steps until you get comfortable with the product.

Make the seat pan area as thin as possible to allow for more padding. I made my seat pan almost 2" tall to sit over the frame rails. That left me with an inch of padding :shock:... I used some black motorcycle specific padding from a custom upholstry shop that was shape-able. Pretty cool stuff that I hadn't seen before, it looks like ground up neoprene. That saved me but it would be nice to have a little more. Don't use the foam from Michaels or other furniture grade foam - you want the automotive specific foam.

And most importantly good luck and have fun!:-D

Byrd

[snowbeard]

wow!!! that paint's so perfect it looks like an airbrushed light highlight!! =P~

great work!