Shadow Shack
06-15-2006, 05:27 AM
This is a question that has popped up from time to time over the years at various Rebel forums. While I make no claims at being an expert in the field, I am currently on my third chopper and the venerable Rebel has become the latest victim for the chopping block, so I'll go ahead and fire away.
First off you have to decide which way you'd like to go with your project: old school bobber or long wheelbased chopper (or perhaps an amalgamation of both). Before you begin undertaking any such project, you'll need to get a few things squared away. First and foremost, a work area. Chances are you won't be aquiring everything before the first wrench gets turned, so you'll be experiencing some considerable downtime and you won't want to be leaving this partially assembled contraption out in the elements. Next up is a selection of hand tools: at the very least a good set of sockets and socket wrench, a set of combination open end/box end wrenches, screwdrivers, allen wrenches, a hammer and/or mallet, and some pliers, channel locks, and a vice clamp wrench. I picked up a set of the ratcheting wrenches and those are a Godsend, great for tight qarters as they don't take much movement to click unlike a standard socket wrench that requires much greater movement arcs. A torque wrench is a good idea for any serious work such as engine, axle, triple tree, and swingarm replacement. A bench mounted vice is very useful, although I've managed to get by so far without one. A drill press is also handy, but a hand drill will suffice. Last up is the electrical or air powered tools, at the bare minimum you'll want a cut off wheel and a grinder, a full arsenal will include a paint gun, air blower kit, polishing wheels, and a powered ratchet wrench. If you are blessed with welding skills and equipment, there is little you won't be able to accomplish here.
I'll start this off with the bobbers. First a bit of history...back in the early days of motorcycling guys were looking for ways to get their rides to move faster, like any other powered hobby motorcycles were not immune to the hot-rod effect. Once all the options for increasing engine power and delivery were explored, the only possibility left to increase speed was to lighten the load. If it wasn't necessary, it was shelved. If it was sticking out too far, it was cut. If it was too large, it was shortened. If it was heavy, it was lightened. Pillion seats were tossed, along with mirrors, lights, and other street legal & factory extra items (of course today's vehicle inspections may prevent some of these mods, so you may need to look into local laws to see how far you can go on yours). Levers, sprockets, and rotors were lightened by drilling concentric holes. Handlebars were cut more narrow, large tanks were swapped out for smaller ones (less fuel = less weight), and if the fenders weren't removed they were shortened, or "bobbed"...hence the term bobber.
So you want to convert your Rebel to a bobber, do ya? Read on, as this section is tailored just for you. Keep one thing in mind for this mod: LESS IS MORE. In other words; simple, not complicated. Lean, not bulky. The most common bobber mod is to remove the rear fender and side rails to be replaced with a flat "tire hugging" fender mounted to the swingarm rather than to the frame. This gives a clean look and now the tire and fender move together, rather than the tire moving up into the fender, giving the bike an illusion of being lower than it is as there is no longer anything drawing attention away from the rear. There are many styles out there, J&P Cycles or any of the plethora of HD aftermarket accesory catalogs carry them. A 5½" wide fender will suffice unless you want to go for a larger rear tire (generally frowned upon by the old school crowd). A trailer fender is even cheaper from your local boating & marine shop. A rear support can also be had from the catalogs, that mounts to the rear tip of the fender and to the swingarm. The front can be attached via some fabricated brackets or evenoff the shelf right angle brackets to the forward section of the swingarm. Of course now with the OEM fender gone you'll need to do something about the seat, you can either fabricate the OEM pan with a bracket that mounts to the frame somehow or go for the more old school appealing sprung solo seat, affixing the rear spring bracket between the upper shock mount frame horns. Cut off any excess frame behind the seat if so desired, and keep in mind this makes the mod irreversible. The front fenderis up in the air, some guys like to remove them and others prefer to bob them. Myself, I'll bob it and remove it for those lengthy weeks of predicted clear skies, and reattach it for any storm systems that may be coming soon. But if you want to go full tilt on the removal (meaning permanent), take a grinder to the mounting nubs on the lowers for a clean smooth look (and now you'll have an excuse to polish the lowers as well).
There's also the option of aftermarket styled fenders, keep in mind the width of your stock ones and the radius of the tire when mounting to the existing hardware (fender rails etc). A springer-styled fender would look good on the front, narrow and stubby. I also recently found out that a 1987-98 Kawi 1500A Vulcan front fender fits perfectly on the OEM rear tire, lop off the fork mount tabs and shorten to desired tire coverage and you can go for a flat tracker look. Aside from the aftermarket, perhaps you just want to stick with the bob-job and modify the existing rear fender, like mentioned on the front fender above. The Reb's duck-tail fender is a timeless style in the chopper cult, so why not stick with it? Cut the forward portion of the rear fender and rotate the duck-tail portion around, ditching the pillion along the way. Might as well fill in all the holes with Bondo since they'll be useless now, including the tail light holes (as the OEM light will only serve as a bat-signal now). Pull the rubber grommets out of the underside and you have a nice section to mount a vertical plate or a repositioned cat-eye light, or just cut away all the excess tabwork from the underside for a clean-up. Drill new holes and tac-weld a lock nut for the OEM seat bolts, or rig up your own sprung seat if feasible. Or you may opt to just cut off the ducktail portion and go for a straight bobbed look, shaping the rear to your tastes. On that note, when bobbing any fender you can take the lopped off tip and lay it over the remaining portion of fender, trace the OEM shape onto the existing portion with a marker, and cut the fender to keep the factory shape yet shorter stance. Or you can get fancy and create your own fender tip shapes such as flames, Maltese Cross, Ace of Spades, etc. Just keep in mind that you can always cut off more, but once it's cut it ain't going back on without some welding.
Now that the major fender work is out of the way, it's time to examine lighting possibilities. If you retained your fender rails, a set of wedge-shaped marker lights will look good against them. If you tossed the rails and didn't shave the rear frame horns and the rear holes aren't being used for a sprung seat bracket, there's another spot to mount a set of directionals. A popular tail light amongst the bobber crowd is the Sparto light, a 90º curved housing that loops up and back from the fender with a single small round red light, and a plate to mount your tag (aka "limp ____" light by the backstreet chopper crowd). Keep in mind a Sparto isn't DOT approved, but if you incorporate a white light to illuminate the plate or simply relocate the plate with an illuminating light it can get by most inspectors. Another popular item among the chopper crowd is the side mount plate & tail light, to be mounted either on the axle or the lower shock mount, or even to the frame or swingarm if needed. If you just need to mount a plate only (with a separate tail light elsewhere) a side mount is relatively cheap and easy, I once utilized a 99¢ L-bracket and plumbers strap to mount one to a chain guard, and cut the OEM illuminating light to be attached to the strap-work. One more option becoming more popular on the solo chops is a "sissy bar sans pillion", extend from the fender support of your trailer fender (or attach to the fender rails) and you have one more location for lighting and/or license plate. Front directionals can be swapped out freely as well.
Next up is a handlebar exchange. The 80's vintage Rebel buckhorns will look right at home on a bobber, but if you want to change the personality even further a zany set of Z-bars, a racy drag bar, or a wild ape-hanger can do wonders to your overall flow. Just keep in mind you'll need to order bars according to their OEM diameter (7/8" on the 250 or 1" on the 450), unless you want to swap out everything else as well (risers, switchboxes, grips, controls, master cylinder) to match the new size. Keep in mind taller bars may require longer lines and cables. Motion Pro or Barnett Clutch & Cable are your source for any needed lengths of throttle, clutch, and choke cables or brake lines (and you might as well upgrade to stainless steel on the brake line while you're at it). If you need to stretch the electrics, I advise to make the splices in different locations so you don;t end up with a pair of wads under the replacement harness lum. Better yet, if you can snag a set of switchboxes cheap enough from E-Bay then you can cut the wiring off at the box end and then cut the connector ends off your existing wires, and then splice in the extra needed lengths (again at different locales for each wire to prevent the chunky gob).
So now we have the big stuff covered: fenders, seat, lighting, and handlebars. I won't get into pipes and intake mods, that's up to you and covered elsewhere. So on with the smaller details. First on the list is going to be paint. Black is very fitting on a bobber (and also the fastest color), but any solid color base will do. Add some restrained flames or pinstriping, or even try your hand at gold leaf. Just don't get carried away as a bobber theme is very clean and simple, it shouldn't get overly complicated and busy. Two tone works just as well, especially withthe classic tank oval in a contrasting color. White wall tires look fantastic on a bobber. After that you may opt for swaps like mirrors, pegs, and grips. Just watch out on the bolt-on gear, as already mentioned a bobber isn't complicated so don't clutter it up any more than you have to. Once again, less is more...everything on a bobber should be functional over form.
That's about it for now in the way of bobbers, I'll no doubt add stuff in later I may have overlooked but feel free to drop me a PM with any questions. Read on for the long wheelbase chopper mod and frame geometry explained. Below is a pic of my bobber project, it's not a Rebel but the same principles have been applied, and it will give you an idea about the general direction of this mod.
http://pages.prodigy.net/shadowshack/_uimages/RebornFenders.JPG
Top pic: stock VLX w/bobbed OEM fender
Bottom pic: same bike, lopped off rear frame section and tossed OEM fender, bobbed front fender and rear trailer fender.
First off you have to decide which way you'd like to go with your project: old school bobber or long wheelbased chopper (or perhaps an amalgamation of both). Before you begin undertaking any such project, you'll need to get a few things squared away. First and foremost, a work area. Chances are you won't be aquiring everything before the first wrench gets turned, so you'll be experiencing some considerable downtime and you won't want to be leaving this partially assembled contraption out in the elements. Next up is a selection of hand tools: at the very least a good set of sockets and socket wrench, a set of combination open end/box end wrenches, screwdrivers, allen wrenches, a hammer and/or mallet, and some pliers, channel locks, and a vice clamp wrench. I picked up a set of the ratcheting wrenches and those are a Godsend, great for tight qarters as they don't take much movement to click unlike a standard socket wrench that requires much greater movement arcs. A torque wrench is a good idea for any serious work such as engine, axle, triple tree, and swingarm replacement. A bench mounted vice is very useful, although I've managed to get by so far without one. A drill press is also handy, but a hand drill will suffice. Last up is the electrical or air powered tools, at the bare minimum you'll want a cut off wheel and a grinder, a full arsenal will include a paint gun, air blower kit, polishing wheels, and a powered ratchet wrench. If you are blessed with welding skills and equipment, there is little you won't be able to accomplish here.
I'll start this off with the bobbers. First a bit of history...back in the early days of motorcycling guys were looking for ways to get their rides to move faster, like any other powered hobby motorcycles were not immune to the hot-rod effect. Once all the options for increasing engine power and delivery were explored, the only possibility left to increase speed was to lighten the load. If it wasn't necessary, it was shelved. If it was sticking out too far, it was cut. If it was too large, it was shortened. If it was heavy, it was lightened. Pillion seats were tossed, along with mirrors, lights, and other street legal & factory extra items (of course today's vehicle inspections may prevent some of these mods, so you may need to look into local laws to see how far you can go on yours). Levers, sprockets, and rotors were lightened by drilling concentric holes. Handlebars were cut more narrow, large tanks were swapped out for smaller ones (less fuel = less weight), and if the fenders weren't removed they were shortened, or "bobbed"...hence the term bobber.
So you want to convert your Rebel to a bobber, do ya? Read on, as this section is tailored just for you. Keep one thing in mind for this mod: LESS IS MORE. In other words; simple, not complicated. Lean, not bulky. The most common bobber mod is to remove the rear fender and side rails to be replaced with a flat "tire hugging" fender mounted to the swingarm rather than to the frame. This gives a clean look and now the tire and fender move together, rather than the tire moving up into the fender, giving the bike an illusion of being lower than it is as there is no longer anything drawing attention away from the rear. There are many styles out there, J&P Cycles or any of the plethora of HD aftermarket accesory catalogs carry them. A 5½" wide fender will suffice unless you want to go for a larger rear tire (generally frowned upon by the old school crowd). A trailer fender is even cheaper from your local boating & marine shop. A rear support can also be had from the catalogs, that mounts to the rear tip of the fender and to the swingarm. The front can be attached via some fabricated brackets or evenoff the shelf right angle brackets to the forward section of the swingarm. Of course now with the OEM fender gone you'll need to do something about the seat, you can either fabricate the OEM pan with a bracket that mounts to the frame somehow or go for the more old school appealing sprung solo seat, affixing the rear spring bracket between the upper shock mount frame horns. Cut off any excess frame behind the seat if so desired, and keep in mind this makes the mod irreversible. The front fenderis up in the air, some guys like to remove them and others prefer to bob them. Myself, I'll bob it and remove it for those lengthy weeks of predicted clear skies, and reattach it for any storm systems that may be coming soon. But if you want to go full tilt on the removal (meaning permanent), take a grinder to the mounting nubs on the lowers for a clean smooth look (and now you'll have an excuse to polish the lowers as well).
There's also the option of aftermarket styled fenders, keep in mind the width of your stock ones and the radius of the tire when mounting to the existing hardware (fender rails etc). A springer-styled fender would look good on the front, narrow and stubby. I also recently found out that a 1987-98 Kawi 1500A Vulcan front fender fits perfectly on the OEM rear tire, lop off the fork mount tabs and shorten to desired tire coverage and you can go for a flat tracker look. Aside from the aftermarket, perhaps you just want to stick with the bob-job and modify the existing rear fender, like mentioned on the front fender above. The Reb's duck-tail fender is a timeless style in the chopper cult, so why not stick with it? Cut the forward portion of the rear fender and rotate the duck-tail portion around, ditching the pillion along the way. Might as well fill in all the holes with Bondo since they'll be useless now, including the tail light holes (as the OEM light will only serve as a bat-signal now). Pull the rubber grommets out of the underside and you have a nice section to mount a vertical plate or a repositioned cat-eye light, or just cut away all the excess tabwork from the underside for a clean-up. Drill new holes and tac-weld a lock nut for the OEM seat bolts, or rig up your own sprung seat if feasible. Or you may opt to just cut off the ducktail portion and go for a straight bobbed look, shaping the rear to your tastes. On that note, when bobbing any fender you can take the lopped off tip and lay it over the remaining portion of fender, trace the OEM shape onto the existing portion with a marker, and cut the fender to keep the factory shape yet shorter stance. Or you can get fancy and create your own fender tip shapes such as flames, Maltese Cross, Ace of Spades, etc. Just keep in mind that you can always cut off more, but once it's cut it ain't going back on without some welding.
Now that the major fender work is out of the way, it's time to examine lighting possibilities. If you retained your fender rails, a set of wedge-shaped marker lights will look good against them. If you tossed the rails and didn't shave the rear frame horns and the rear holes aren't being used for a sprung seat bracket, there's another spot to mount a set of directionals. A popular tail light amongst the bobber crowd is the Sparto light, a 90º curved housing that loops up and back from the fender with a single small round red light, and a plate to mount your tag (aka "limp ____" light by the backstreet chopper crowd). Keep in mind a Sparto isn't DOT approved, but if you incorporate a white light to illuminate the plate or simply relocate the plate with an illuminating light it can get by most inspectors. Another popular item among the chopper crowd is the side mount plate & tail light, to be mounted either on the axle or the lower shock mount, or even to the frame or swingarm if needed. If you just need to mount a plate only (with a separate tail light elsewhere) a side mount is relatively cheap and easy, I once utilized a 99¢ L-bracket and plumbers strap to mount one to a chain guard, and cut the OEM illuminating light to be attached to the strap-work. One more option becoming more popular on the solo chops is a "sissy bar sans pillion", extend from the fender support of your trailer fender (or attach to the fender rails) and you have one more location for lighting and/or license plate. Front directionals can be swapped out freely as well.
Next up is a handlebar exchange. The 80's vintage Rebel buckhorns will look right at home on a bobber, but if you want to change the personality even further a zany set of Z-bars, a racy drag bar, or a wild ape-hanger can do wonders to your overall flow. Just keep in mind you'll need to order bars according to their OEM diameter (7/8" on the 250 or 1" on the 450), unless you want to swap out everything else as well (risers, switchboxes, grips, controls, master cylinder) to match the new size. Keep in mind taller bars may require longer lines and cables. Motion Pro or Barnett Clutch & Cable are your source for any needed lengths of throttle, clutch, and choke cables or brake lines (and you might as well upgrade to stainless steel on the brake line while you're at it). If you need to stretch the electrics, I advise to make the splices in different locations so you don;t end up with a pair of wads under the replacement harness lum. Better yet, if you can snag a set of switchboxes cheap enough from E-Bay then you can cut the wiring off at the box end and then cut the connector ends off your existing wires, and then splice in the extra needed lengths (again at different locales for each wire to prevent the chunky gob).
So now we have the big stuff covered: fenders, seat, lighting, and handlebars. I won't get into pipes and intake mods, that's up to you and covered elsewhere. So on with the smaller details. First on the list is going to be paint. Black is very fitting on a bobber (and also the fastest color), but any solid color base will do. Add some restrained flames or pinstriping, or even try your hand at gold leaf. Just don't get carried away as a bobber theme is very clean and simple, it shouldn't get overly complicated and busy. Two tone works just as well, especially withthe classic tank oval in a contrasting color. White wall tires look fantastic on a bobber. After that you may opt for swaps like mirrors, pegs, and grips. Just watch out on the bolt-on gear, as already mentioned a bobber isn't complicated so don't clutter it up any more than you have to. Once again, less is more...everything on a bobber should be functional over form.
That's about it for now in the way of bobbers, I'll no doubt add stuff in later I may have overlooked but feel free to drop me a PM with any questions. Read on for the long wheelbase chopper mod and frame geometry explained. Below is a pic of my bobber project, it's not a Rebel but the same principles have been applied, and it will give you an idea about the general direction of this mod.
http://pages.prodigy.net/shadowshack/_uimages/RebornFenders.JPG
Top pic: stock VLX w/bobbed OEM fender
Bottom pic: same bike, lopped off rear frame section and tossed OEM fender, bobbed front fender and rear trailer fender.