My build thread - KZ440

[Gas Man]

You going to hard tail it?

[ontwo]

Yep. Tubing should be here Monday. Was planning on all straight tube, but now that I'm gonna add about 6", I'm thinking I will need to bend the bottom tube. Kinda dreading that, but I'll figure it out.

[Dnyce]

nothing to say, cept i like where this is going

[ontwo]

Ok, so I got a little more done last night in the heat.

First, made a jig to keep the alignment of my wheels.



Measured for a possible 6" or 8" stretch



Next, cut away the swingarm while keeping the axle plates



Decided on the 8" stretch to give me plenty of room under the seat for the battery, electrical. Fixed a block in front of the rear wheel to keep it in place at my measurement.



After blowing up my POS grinder and a trip to Lowes for a new one, lots of grinding



My hardtail "kit"


First piece cut and set in place for a look.





That was as far as I got last night. Tonight will be more cutting and fitting. Anybody got advice on notching the tubing to the axle plates? The way I'm doing it just doesn't seem right.

[Gas Man]

Try crushing it in a press.

Otherwise it all looks good. I am worried about the overall look with such a stretch. But I'm interested to see what u come up with.

[Avatard]

http://www.harborfreight.com/pipe-tu...her-42324.html

[ontwo]

Originally Posted by Gas Man

Try crushing it in a press.

Otherwise it all looks good. I am worried about the overall look with such a stretch. But I'm interested to see what u come up with.

The stretch looks really severe with it stripped down. By the time I put the seat, fender, and tank back on, it gives me just enough room to be comfortable. Also, once I get the hardtail on, I will run the forks back down in the triples. Right now it looks like the front end is mashed in.

Originally Posted by Avatard

http://www.harborfreight.com/pipe-tu...her-42324.html

That looks cool. Thanks for the link

[Amber Lamps]

Question; wouldn't it make your life a lot easier if you took the engine out of the frame? Plus it would give you an opportunity to clean it up and possibly brighten it with polish or paint. Just asking.

[ontwo]

Originally Posted by Amber Lamps

Question; wouldn't it make your life a lot easier if you took the engine out of the frame? Plus it would give you an opportunity to clean it up and possibly brighten it with polish or paint. Just asking.

Yes, yes it would

[Amber Lamps]

Originally Posted by ontwo

Yes, yes it would

Oh okay... I hope you don't think I was being offensive. I actually thought you had some really good reason for leaving it in so I hesitated to ask and look stupid...