Um... Yeah... so... about having things buttoned up in the next day or so...

Yeah... Not gonna happen. It's kinda becoming the refinish that won't quit.

While waiting for paint to dry ;) so I can put a hopefully last coat on and bring the saddlebags to a uniform finish... I decided to back up a couple of steps and change some things around.

Fact is, I've never been really happy with the built in turn signals on those Tsukayu Coner Saddlebags. The way they're fit in there... IDK... they just haven't "worn" well on me...

*The bags in 2012*

 They don't seal tight either so dirt gets in there and just looks wrong around the fringes of the lens.

I also decided I didn't like the license plate hanging down under, and the way I had to get a wire to it...

So... I decided I'd take out the factory signals... order a new set from J&P cycles... as well as a replacement Radiantz license plate frame, to replace the existing one which broke a wire.

There's a lil problem with that simple fix.

The factory signals are set into pockets molded into the fiberglass... But that's shouldn't really be a problem, not with me being such a whiz Body Man... Right?

NOT! ...

I gave some thought to just covering the old lights with ... something... but that would be double tacky... so then the real brainstorm... this is going south in a hurry...

"I'll just cover those recesses over, body man and all"... right? ha ha ha... yeahhhhh...

Just pull the lenses... cut out the LED boards inside...

And cover over the recesses with fiberglass...

... and some bondo...

and some paint... Easy... Ha Ha Ha....

The plan was/is... to just set the fiberglass on that ledge just below flush with the surface of the bag. I don't want to have to deal with blending fiberglass into that surface if I laid it across the top of the pocket. So I'll just lay it up to the edge of the pocket.

I should have plenty of surface there on that ledge for a secure bond...Then just level it up with a thin layer of bondo and sand her smooth.

Soooo... I scraped and sanded off the paint and primer down to the gel coat... and hung some glass...

I brushed some resin onto the ledge... then put a layer of resin saturated glass mat in. Stuck the old lens in there for a bit of rigidity... and then another layer of glass mat over that... all bonded to that wide ledge.

I'd thought a mite about cutting out the pockets.... but to be honest... I'm not sure how it's set into the body... or what I'd get into with that hole... and having to deal with the carpet liner inside the bag (cuz I'd have to put glass on both sides)... so I just decided that pocket ain't takin' up much space. ;)

 You mix the resin and you've got maybe ten minutes to get things where they need to be before that stuff sets up. Sometimes trying to get a little piece of glass cloth to lay where you want it while you try to cover it with more resin is like trying to untangle a birdsnest knot of fishing line in your reel... with your toes... drunk...

... on a windy day... while riding to town on a pogo stick...

Well... I've got fiberglass curing now... I'll smooth that up a bit, bondo and sand... and I'll be ready to re-repaint. ;) and then...

...When the new lights and License Plate frame get here... hang them on there and get 'em wired in.

At that point the scooter will be street legal again with some fresh makeup.

... unless of course... in the time between then and now... I change my damned mind again...

Grab Your Handles and Ride
Brian