In Pursuit of a Major Motorcycle Rebuild

I don't suppose the Raider is a quarter of the way through it's likely life span. She's carried me on a lot of roads in the dress she wore when she rolled off the Star Motorcycle Assembly line back in 2008.

I have a hunger to tailor her to better fit the current "Me" that has evolved ... or some might claim "De-Volved" the past few years.

While I haven't solved the big question yet; "Where's the dinero for her Makeover gonna come from?", I am zeroing in on what the makeover is going to look like. :)

... and some of it just might mean I've got another meal of crow feathers coming! :)

There's a few issues I'm looking to address. After many miles, all sorts of weather and the changes of thinking that life carries, I've decided I want to change from Leather Saddlebags to Fiberglass Hard bags. The Tsukayu Coners are currently standing at the head of the line, and will most likely be the Vinyl Wrapped variety.

To do that though, I must first swap exhaust pipes to make room... and here I'm waffling between Vance and Hines and going a bit different direction with Hard Chrome Black Ceramic 3" Res-Tec drag pipes...(their websites is dinged up so I can't show the link)

Then... up on the front end... the possible source of the Crow Feathers meal... another Tsukayu product...

Yeah... I know... Naked Motorcycle... It's pretty much been my Mantra... What can I say... maybe it's time for a change! :) I want the tunes and a few of the niceties in my old age!

The other major thing I would really LIKE to do... is custom paint... I'm still working on that... I've had a sketch I drew up, for a long time, of what I would like to do... time will only tell if I manage to pull the trigger on that...

This is... sort of... the color... I'm thinking a deep, metalic, burnt umber sort of Orange... hard to find in a colored pen! ;)

... and then the smiling Skull... and "Flames" that are sort of a hybrid between fire and dreadlocks :)... sure to offend some... :) ah well, If I quit offending it likely means I've died... so I'll live with it.

The base paint is the most likely... and then possibly as a "Phase II" the airbrush work... if somebody feels the need to read enough of my "westerns" to permit all that anyway! :) not to mention the grips, mirrors, shift linkage, tail light (making the turn signals integral) and a few other odds and ends...

The hardest part after finding the cash to shine her up... is the taking her off the road for the amount of time it will require to get it all done! :( ...

Ah well... if you're gonna own horses... there's a lot of shoveling that has to be done.

Grab Your Handles and Ride!
Brian

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