The frame has a 45^o rake, a bolt on hard tail that's been bolted and welded, and a lot of tabs that need to be cut off to give it the clean look I want. The springer has an additional 12 inches to give the bike a great stance with the rake of the frame. A 45^o rake is pretty extreme and kicks the front tire way out there, but look at the pictures folks. It sits purty as hell.

Now sitting there looking at it has got millions of ideas running thru my brain. Long skirted rear fender, maybe a stretched sportster peanut tank, 8 inch risers with drag bars, going radical and painting the springer and having the actual springs rechromed (thats a cheap, very cool option), powder coating the engine to match the color of the bike. Colors, I thought originally about a pearl white, but a bike this radical needs a radical paint color to really make it pop. Maybe Corvete red with some silver tribal frames. Or a dark, dark blue with some pearl white flames.

As you can see Brendan is almost as excited about the chopper project as I am. Now getting him away from the playstation 2 usually takes the threat of explosives, but he surprised me. I think I actually found something we can do togother. We've been brain storming ideas on paint schemes. He's leaning towards solid black with white skulls. Of course he is only 11 years old but some of his ideas sound pretty good.

Of course, everything I've mentioned so far is nothing more than cosmetic changes. The big step is to get it running regardless of how it looks. So I'm back surfing eBay looking for the countless parts and pieces we'll need. Ideally we can run across a running engine with a great tranny that is all complete. I know some of you wont understand but even if I do get a running engine we're still planning on ripping into it and rebuilding it anyway. Call me silly but I just like the thought of knowing that the bike is 100% realiable should I decide to go for an extended weekend ride.

It may look like we have a lot there already (and we really do) but there are a ton of things we still need. And since I'm still a poor person it will be a long process but the big thing is we have gotten a great start. So for all you folks out there with old british bike parts just getting in your way, send them on to us. We'll put them to use for you. Here's a partial list of items we're looking at on eBay:

• Engine (early 70s model Triumph 650 Bonnie)
• Gas tank (stretched peanut tank)
• Oil tank (spun aluminium tank)
• Handle bars (1 inch drag bars)
• Seat
• New tires
• New rear hub for using disc brakes or complete rear rim (16 inch)
• Rear disc brake set up
• Final drive chain and new sproket
• Clutch, brake handles, throttle
• Headlight (I'd love a 7 inch Headwinds)
• Tail light (side mounted)
• Fork bearings
• Riser caps
• Motor mounts
• Sissy bar (still debating on the height)
• Exhaust (maybe some fishtail pipes)
• Full rear fender
• And on and on.

As you can see from the pic of the bike without me or Brendan on it, there is a lot of rust on the front end. A pretty common issue with older springers. But it's not something we can't handle with a little work. You'll also notice on the expanded image (just click on the smaller shot) that there are forward control mounts already welded onto the down tube. Since I plan on using foot boards those will have to be cut off. You may also be asking yourself "self, is that a lock hasp welded to the frame?" Well you would be right. It looks like it might have been a cheap way to hinge a solo seat. Once again, that will be hacked off with a cutting wheel. The rear fender is not the one I plan on using so we'll not go into that.

Of course building an older Triumph poses a few new problems for a one legged man with a bad back. First off, Triumph was not forward thinking enough to include electric starters on their bikes. That means I'll be kicking. Normally you kick with your right leg but I'll need to awkardly kick with my left. Since it's not a simple (or even possible) option to move the kick lever to the other side of the bike I'll have to get used to it. If I can drive a car using only my left foot, this should not be to much more to get used to. The second problem is that the older Triumph's (as well as older Harley Sportsters) have the rear brake and shifter lever swapped sides. So your bike has the shift lever on the left side, mine is on the right. But not to fear. I have come up with a nifty solution to this problem. I started thinking about jockey shifting (using my hand) but that posed more problems, then while reading my latest copy of Easyriders it seems someone has come up with a push button set up that mounts to the handle bars that works an actuator on the frame that simply shifts up or down for you. Problem solved. I need to check on prices for them to see if it's something me and my tight budget will allow, but to be honest with you, I really dont see how I can get by without it so I'll have to find a way to pay for it somehow. Anybody need to buy a slightly used kidney?

So like I said, we're off and running. The first step is to tear down the springers and start knocking some of the rust off. I'll also keep checking eBay to see if it will be cheaper to buy some new springs (new to me) that are in great shape or to have mine bead blasted and rechromed. The rest of the forks I'm just going to have bead blasted and painted to match the bike. I know it sounds odd and really strange coming from me, "The King of Chrome" but take a look at the picture to the left (click to enlarge) and see just how hot it looks. Painting the headlight bucket like the one in the picture is something I've always wanted to do as well.

The bike to the left by the way is a Jesse James (West Coast Choppers) creation. And before you think I'm stealing his ideas, dont. I think his shows on the Discovery channel are pretty good, but I'm not real fond of his style of bikes. Our bike will be very original and also about $75,000 cheaper. And I can bet you that it will turn just as many heads when we're finished.

So just keep checking back to watch the progress. As the money allows we'll be buying more shiney bits and adding them to the pile.

Well, the cactus is still thriving in our summertime heat but the little Honda that could, is now a fixture in the bed of my truck. I did so much damage to the bike that she's not really worth more than a parts bike now. I was half hoping someone would steal it out of the truck so I could collect the insurance money but no luck so far.

I escaped with the normal bumps and bruises you would expect from a high speed high side and the added embarrassment of having my 9 year old daughter pluck spines out of my spine. I had thorns in other spots too but since they were in a more sensitive location I let my wife get those.

So what's going to become of the Rebel? I'm not sure. The wife informed me that I've been in the hospital far to much in the 15+ years we've been married (its pretty true) and that I can no longer ride those two wheeled death traps. I put on my saddest face and gave her the big blue puppy dog eyes but she did not fall for it. So an idea struck me. She said I could not ride motorcycles anymore. So I quickly asked, "Does that include trikes?". She gave it a quick thought and gave it her blessing. Albeit begrudgingly. She also said I could not buy any more bikes but that I did not have to sell the ones I own now.

Some of you may remember I have a lovely chopped 67 Triumph Tiger frame with a 12" over springer sitting in my dining room. That makes a perfect start on building my new project. A bastardized VW/Triumph Trike. I used to have a bastardized VW/BSA Trike that I stupidly let go for a couple of grand about 6 years ago but that's OK, I love turning wrenches and I'd like to build something new anyway. Although it is going to pretty much kill me to put a sawzaw to that rigid Triumph frame. It may come down to rigging up that springer to fit in the Yamaha frame. I hate that bike anyway.

So if anyone has an old VW Bug cluttering their yard and wants to have it towed off let me know. I don't even care what kind of shape it's in since I only want the frame from the data plate back, the transaxle, and the engine if it's still there. I'll even toss down some grass seed when I pull it off where the car used to be so you can have more to mow later. Ain't I such a nice guy?

Well I'm off to do what ever it is I do. Until my next post keep the rubber side down (unlike me) and watch out for those rare Alabama Roaming Cactus. They're a killer.