Vulcan 900 Trike Build

[burkbuilds]

WW, I've had a few projects going at work that took a lot of my time and I somehow managed to get the fenders on but I just couldn't seem to find an hour or so to download everything and post updates, sorry.

When I realized the fiberglass body kit was not going to work, I opted for fenders and saddle bags to fill the space between the fenders and the bike. I wanted to make a support bracket that would be welded onto something solid, but I also did not want to weld near the bearings in the axle housing because the heat can really distort the shape of the steel and cause problems. I decided that the 1/2" plate steel that holds the brake calipers in place would provide an good place to weld to, and it bolts onto the axle housing, so I was able to remove it and do all my welding away from the bike and then just bolt it back in place.



I drew out a rough sketch of the brackets and then cut my pieces out with a porta band saw I borrowed from a neighbor. (It's nice to have neighbors like that.)
Each bracket was unique since I was having to deal with that wheel offset situation. One had to move out away from the caliper plate and the other needed to move in from it.


Once I got them welded I used a grinder to smooth up all the welds and then sanded and cleaned everything and degreased it. I then sprayed them with a self etching primer I've decided I like to use more than the standard grey primer. It just seems to bond better and it lays down nicely.


I then used a Rust-O-leum auto paint and painted everything black before mounting it to the bike.




I ordered fenders from a trailer supply and welded pre-cut backing plates to the back of each fender. Once I got everything welded up and ground down smooth I primed them with the same self etching primer and then used truck bed liner to coat the underneath side so they wouldn't get dinged up easily and start rusting on me.







I pre-drilled mounting holes in the brackets so I could use those holes as a guide to mark the fenders for drilling. Then I bolted them on using Stainless steel bolts and acorn nuts on the inside towards the bike. These are definitely just some "plain jane" fenders but they should do the job. One of my neighbors builds custom bikes and after he saw this sitting in my driveway today he offered some great ideas on making those fenders really cool. He showed me how I could have cut the back side flange and bent the radius in so it would have "hugged" the tires better and he also suggested ways to make them dressy by cutting a pattern shape in the front and back of each fender. Great suggestions, and if he'd made them before I got this far along I would have done that, but at this point I'm not willing to undo all that work, so these will just stay plain.






I got my wife to snap a shot of me sitting on the bike after I got the fenders on.


I think I may change the exhaust system later, but for now I bought some 12" "Mufflers" and welded them on and then put the OEM Chrome shields back in place. Kinda loud but the mufflers were cheap ($58 Pair) and I am chomping at the bit to get riding again.




I took some time this morning and put about 20 miles on her riding around the area. I ran it up to 70 mph on Highway 27, and toured through part of the Chickamauga Battlefield, spotted about 30 dear grazing around the road. Three of them came on across the street right in front of me, but I spotted the buck and slowed way down while the doe and fawn followed him across. The rest of them just turned and stared me down as I went on past them. I'll have to put some major hours on this thing before I feel as comfortable on it as I did on two wheels. It will take some getting used to turning the handlebars to go around curves and it shakes me a lot more going over bumpy roads than the bike did, but overall it was great to be back out riding with the wind in my face and the bike underneath me. :2tup: