After a Bunch of Fails, went all in on a Corvette, now Im having second thoughts??

Progress on the 58 Vette

So long story short. This is going to be my 3rd motorbike.

1st Fail was a Micargi Stretch, frame broke 3 different times. Parts Bike now

2nd Fail was a Chinese Cruiser w/PK80. Rims went to crap fast, coaster brake went kaput, fenders all broken now. Parts bike #2.

3rd Attempt: Picked up a 1955 Schwinn Corvette frame. Bead Blasted, painted. Shopped for parts and it was fast becoming a money pit. Spare Frame Bike now.

Last Attempt and Final hopefully. I picked up this 1958 Schwinn Corvette originally for my father so he could get out and exercise. Pops didnt want it, so I decide its time to motorize it since it is all there.

Bike has everything, nothings missing and the bike itself was pretty flawless. A perfect start I thought. So I was going to use the S7 rims only to find out, No adapter will fit this thing and went ahead and ordered a Works-man Rear rim. MM engine mounts are next to be ordered.

Here is where I am stuck. Decided to "clean it up" new decals and just make it look nice again. Problem is, it turned out so nice now, im actually second guessing putting an engine on it. Take a look, tell me your thoughts.

I bead blasted the bike, sanded it smooth, Used a good etch from Dupont then PPG Base Black Met, and PPG Clear DAU. Awesome automotive paint.

Decals are next as i just picked up the Micro Set and Micro Sol for it today. Then ..who knows.

Thoughts please?

here she is as brought home.



Dis assembly pretty clean so far.


All bead blasted, cleaned, sanded and repainted. I didnt like the original Red Met color so I went with black since I figured it was going to be a daily rider.
Paint looks as if it was just dipped in a bucket of paint, its sexy smooth to the point it looks like it has a coat of glossy plastic on it. You can almost see the metallic come thru in the last pic, i didnt want to get too 70s with the metallic so its very low key.

Re: After a Bunch of Fails, went all in on a Corvette, now Im having second thoughts?

Havent had a chance to work on her yet. Holiday season has kept me exceptionally busy. The next step is to apply the decals, the Worksman rear wheel should be here next week im told. Then a MM Rear adapter and im half way there.

The S7 rear hub is 2.3" if im not mistaken. Cant recall off the top of my head, but at any rate, MM says that was just too big to make an adapter for according to their website. Was really hoping to get the Engine Mounts as well from Manic Mechanic, but was told by BerryBike, seems production from MM has slowed way down and parts are now hard to come by.

Will keep everything updated as I make progress.

Re: After a Bunch of Fails, went all in on a Corvette, now Im having second thoughts?

Ok progress has been slow, but I have finished the Decals and the Rear Wheel has arrived.

The entire Decal process was a lot to learn, but the results were surprisingly good. I had a small issue with the Fork darts sadly. Contrary to popular belief, putting decals on is not the same as putting them on models like when I was a kid.

The rear wheel is from Works-man, 11G SS. What a beast it is, but the rear axle seems almost too tight. The rear hub adapter is from Sportsman and is top notch worth every cent workmanship.

I tried MM, but never got any reply at all. Then I stumbled on Sportsman. Have not regretting it since and am glad to have found it.

Next step is polishing the bearing races, some SS nuts and bolts, and tires n tubes.

If I wasn't married and didn't have to work, progress would be soooo much faster, or so i would like to claim lol

The Frame:


Here's the top tubes drying:


Chain guard in all her glory


The fork, you can see the mistake if u look closely


And finally my Rear Works-man Wheel ready for duty

Re: After a Bunch of Fails, went all in on a Corvette, now Im having second thoughts?

Heres where I am as of today. Front rim still has not come in yet. So the original S7 is on there for now. Have a rear rack coming which will be where the gas tank and milk crate sit.

Shes looking real nice so far but progress is so slow its painful. I am going to be making some motor mounts with the help of a friend and his Mill.

The rear adapter is a Sportsmans, is this the correct fit? That small gap makes the adapter sort of wobble, instead of being perfectly co-centric (hope I spelled that right).

Also the custom headbadge, inspired by my youngest and his favorite movie.