New World Datsuns...

We did about 6 hours yesterday. Mostly fabbed a bunch of brackets for the C-monster. Also some more layout and planning on the electrical front. Zero got fired up and did a few runs up and down the driveway. I decided I'm going to try using the old front fender as a rear fender so I sectioned it but still need to make the mounts. I'm going to try to whittle a seat base too but only got as far as a cardboard template.
We'll probably spend a couple hours on Tuesday or Wednesday night and hope to get the majority of the welding done on Marc's bike. The nice weather compounded with recent progress has really gotten him excited about getting to the finish line. My recent adventure at Salmonberry has me itchy to get them done too.

Didn't really think to take photos as we made progress last night and now Marc's CX is stuffed in a corner.
-Changed the oil and filter.
-Welded up a license plate holder that mounts to the LS swingarm.
-Mounted the little LiPo battery in a cavity below and behind the engine.
-Welded on a support bracket for the shock reservoir.
-Welded on the rear tank support bracket.
-Welded in mounts for the rectifier and ignitors.
-Started rerouting the wiring and located the bulk of the excess in a void under the rear of the gas tank (where I'm pointing).

The plan for our next session is to finish mounting the seat, fab some rear fender brackets, mount the starter solenoid, lengthen 4 or 5 wires and conceal them.
Maybe at some point I'll actually do some work to mine too .

I really should have snapped a pic before we stuffed it in the corner. It's really starting to come together. Looking more complete yet more stripped down at the same time. Reminds me of an old track bike. Just needs some oval number plates. You'll all see in about a week and a half.

ok,, ill wait, but I tend to have a lot more patience with my own builds... than with ones I want to read about. lol

Short work session last night. Finished my frame extension and painted it.



^^Small nod to Jerod and his former career as Cat mechanic.^^
I also blasted and painted my tail light / plate bracket and my headlight mount.

Marc got a pile of new parts for the C-monster. Pics on that later.

We spent 6 hours working on Marc's C-monster. No pics because it looks exactly the same buuuut now it runs!

Since I need to do some pre-swap meet prep, we loaded it in his truck so he could work on it at his house at his own pace.

Now time to get on yours.

After getting the swap meet stuff ready of course.

In the grand scheme, mine doesn't really need much else. A couple full Sundays would have it pretty much wrapped up.

I don't even technically own it yet. The tags renew in March so I've been waiting to transfer the title into my name so I get the benefit of the extra months. Cheap bastard.

Lengthened my kickstand.
Finalized the Sportster exhaust install.
Installed LED flasher.
Mocked up rear fender.
Hauled ass up and down the driveway a dozen times.

What's left?

Weld up the cargo rack.
Install rear fender.
Mount front turn signals.
Gauges? (maybe no gauges at all)
Paint.
DMV (probably tomorrow)

There is a chance that I may drop the engine and pull the front cover. There is a noise in it that I suspect might be the oil pump chain. Might be nothing to worry about but there's only one way to find out.

DMV done and hassle-free. Got my tag and the title is in the mail.

Talked to Marc yesterday. He's taken care of a bunch of loose ends and was getting ready to tackle the carb rebuild. After that, he wants to bring it back over for some welding to mount the rear fender and finish the seat mount. He's hoping to have it running and mobile by April 1st.

We did about 8 hours yesterday. Got the seat and rear fender mounted on the C-monster. Marc got to ride it for the very first time up and down my street at about 7:30 last night. The throttle tube sticks and really needs to be replaced -- he has a new one already. It needs a little tuning still and is obnoxiously loud. There's some electrical issues to work out as well. He's getting in a hurry to get it "finished" and is caring less and less about the details.
Zero is nearing the end too. I puttered away on my seat base and have a tentative plan plan for my rear fender mount. That rear fender has been a real sticking point. I've spent hours staring at it and mocking up different mounting methods. Have an idea for something interesting but not sure how well it'll work out. My target date for completion is June 1st (same for the El Camino) so the next few weeks are going to be busy. In my mind we're still on schedule so I'm trying to not get in too much of a hurry and get sloppy toward the end.
Since they don't actually look a whole lot different, I took no pics. We'll put in a couple more hours on Tuesday night. Maybe pics after that.

Edit: We've been talking about some trips too. We know a guy with some acreage above Scappoose and plan to shake them down with some light off-roading up there, then commute them a bit until we feel confident that they're relatively bug free. The next stage will be some day trips followed by an overnighter or two. There are a lot of back roads in the coast range. The eventual goal is to toss them on a trailer (it'd be a looong ride on these little bikes) and haul them over to Idaho where we'll meet up with Jerod. Jerod's grandpa was a game warden in the Owyhees and he spent his summers as a kid along with many, many hunting trips over there. Jerod offered to be a guide and run a chase vehicle (quad). We'd like to spend a couple days around the reservoir, on some of the abandoned service roads, see a couple ghost towns, etc. Honestly, if we do half of what we talked about, it'll be a busy summer.

that sounds like just straight up good times!
ive done a couple attacks on washugal river road, then back thru girlscout lake, over the powerlines into jones creek and back through Vancouver is an awesome loop, a half day ride with alittle of everything. I have rarely had as much fun as that, maybe never.

Thanks, man. I'll definitely add that to the list of day-rides. I've gone out Washougal river road up to the the end of the pavement at the falls and wondered about riding beyond.

I will try and find my scribbled up map of the area, but if you go as far as the hatchery, there are some cool trails back to the Vancouver side.
Little envious that your even planning a trip like that lol.
Me and my brother james( grease monkey) took dads ct110s out for adventures a couple times. I rode one north to castle rock and back on a whim, taking forestry roads and such. I've been trying to come up with a way to make that my job ever since.

I think we've reached the point on these bikes where the dramatic stuff is behind us. We're still making progress but it's mostly detail work at this point. The C-monster was a runner until it experienced a catastrophic battery failure. Marc's $150 LiPo battery melted down. We got the seat mounted along with the rear fender. Then he pulled the valve covers to have them blasted for a different look. Next step will probably be to mount the rear lighting and do some wiring. Still on the fence about what to do on the gauge front.


Zero finally got the front turn signals mounted. I ended up drilling and tapping the mirror mounts and fishing the wiring down the looms for the hand controls. More tedious than it sounds. Also changed up my mirrors. I liked the bar-end style but thought they might be too vulnerable hanging out there. Of course the new one needed to be cut down and rethreaded to fit the bike...another one-size-fits-nothing part.

The seat is a total experiment. I wafered and contoured 3 pieces of wood as a base. It's been sealed with urethane to help it hold up to the elements a bit better, at least I hope. I have some high density foam and some fabric cut but not yet put together.

The fog light effect was done by using some amber film. It looks okay from a distance but I'm really not happy with how it came out at all. There are a ton of wrinkles that I couldn't work out. It's coming together and with the exception of mounting the rear fender is basically rideable. Once the seat and fender are done it's time for some paint.

haven't been on the forum in a bit. Glad I got a chance to see the progress. Looking good so far man. Is that seat just a blue print? Like are you going to build something else into that shape or add foam and such to that?

I have foam and fabric but haven't put it on yet. Like I said, it's a total experiment and mostly just to get it on the road. I don't even have it done yet and already want to change it .