From something old and unfinished, to looking ahead at promising things to come.

Two weekends ago I had the pleasure of meeting Mike, known as MB on Do The Ton. He's got an older motorcycle frame that he needs some work done, and I picked it up and brought it to my "shop."

As you can see in the photo below, all my stuff is currently crammed in a corner of a two-bay attached garage. Some people might not think much of it, but this . . . this is heaven. =) 

My stuff is crammed in a corner because space is being made for me to occupy the large space by the doors to the garage. I don't even have to do any heavy lifting of other people's stuff! Isn't that lovely? I think so. I really do. =) 

This is Mike's frame. A lovely frame, as far as I can tell, covered in some leftover paint and Aircraft Remover. 

This is Mike's tank. A lovely tank . . . Ok, I'm not going to be intentionally redundant (much). 

I love CAD. Who doesn't? Most people don't think they can afford, it, but, with the miracles of modern science, now you, too, can afford to use CAD to mock up your parts! Take a look at the fine model that Mike and I used to get a good idea of what he wants and needs for a seat pan!

You may be thinking to yourself: "WTF is he on about? CAD? That's just a cardboard template." And if you think that, you would be correct! Cardboard Aided Design is the latest thing in fashioning all sorts of components from scratch! low cost an fast modeling times that assure a near perfect fit are the wave of the future! 

I'll be tweaking the original CAD mockup for precision based on the discussed dimensions for the components that need to fit between the battery box and the seat pan, and working out some other details to make sure that everything fits and looks just as Mike has in mind!

Soon to be added to the space are a worktable and a bead roller. I'll use the work table to mount my spare vise (a heavy sucker that will hurt immensely if it drops upon your toes), which will hold a bead roller, which will be of great use in stiffening the seat and battery pans! I'll also be trimming some tabs, welding a few spots and welding on a loop on the back of the seat. I am looking forward to getting this project rolling soon.