Going where no man has gone before

Today I got the crankcase cracked open, it was quite a moment, as neither Bubba or I had ever torn this far into a motor.  It wasn't to hard to get it open; 18 bolts, a little heat, and a few minutes of whacking. 

End of March Update

 Well things have been busy the last few weeks.  I took a week vacation to go snowboarding in Salida, Colorado for spring break, then returned to a shitload of school projects. Between sculpture and metals, I've hardly had any time to work on my bike, but I did manage to work on it wednesday (disassembled the rockers, and started cleaning the head)

Heres some pics of my metals project, it is a form inspired by kustom mercurys, created using die forms and hand forming out of copper.

I also got started on hand forming the gas tank, I carved out a cavity in a log to help get the shape right.

'76 Yamaha XS650 Bobber Build

So for one week now Ive been disassembling my project bike. We got the motor pulled, top end disassembled, bead blasted the cylinders, started polishing tappet covers, clutch pulled, and alternator pulled. Next up motor wise is to crack the crankcase to access the crankshaft for rephase, and check bearings. This motor will be fully rebuilt so I know it will last for many years to come.  Framewise, I fabricated a motor mount brace so that the backbone and bottom rails could be chopped. However, Im now thinking of building a new backbone, so the brace may be obsolete.

Big thanks to Bubba Ward and Rattpiss officionados for the help and letting me use his shop and tools!

Bubba hooked me up with this front end of unknown origin (he thinks its off a honda or yamaha). Either way it fits perfect, is much cleaner and shorter than the original forks.

2012...Stepping things up

Its been a while since my last post, and alot has happened since. I have left my blacksmithing apprenticeship in order to focus more on my own work. I've begun producing sprocket bolo-ties, belt buckles, and collar tips. And even more exciting, I just started a custom motorcycle project.