Winter Project, Nirve Switchblade

[silverbear]

Even if the fender did not look great, which it does, there are too many reasons to have a fender to leave it off. Maybe if a person only does fair weather riding over pavement it is okay to do without it, but if there is ever rain, puddles, dirt, sand, etc. in your travels a fender makes a lot of good sense. I always ride with fenders even though I like the look of going bare. You sure did a nice job on it, Tom. That bike is going to be a winner. Does the wife still think the original paint was just right?
SB

 

[2door]

Thanks for the votes, guys. The fender comes off and goes on so easy that it's a moot point actually. It will probably come down to my mood and if there could be puddles on the days I ride.

Char is beginning to see the light. I've done so much grinding off of the original gold paint where I've welded stuff that she knows it won't stay. She asked yesterday what color I was going to paint the frame. I showed her, she shrugged and said, "I guess, but I thought the gold with the black pin stripes was pretty."

I've never checked with Nirve but I think this bike is powder coated with a clear coat on top. The pin striping and Nirve logos are tough to get down to. Under the gold is a grey layer then a black layer before you reach metal. I have to wonder if all Switchblades aren't first done in black then they add a layer of the other colors they come in. Whatever the stuff is it's hard to rough up and it really stinks when grinding it or if the weld area gets too close to it. Funny thing is that it chips off really easy. I dropped a small wrench on the frame just behind the crank and a chunk of whatever it is came off all the way to bare steel. Weird stuff, that's for sure.
Tom

 

[The_Aleman]

My Nirve was the same way. They really did an odd job on the frame paint!

 

[killercanuck]

eep @ the chincy powder.(I meant powder) If you want 'authentic' (for show, or cruise night), take it off. But for actually riding, even Peter Fonda's replica has a fender. Your's looks better though.

source article

Uh oh, sorry, now you need to paint your helmet too. Heh heh, jk.

 

[Tinsmith]

Very nice Tom. I am enjoying this thread alot.
Dan

 

[2door]

Thanks, Killer. That's a classic photo. One to save, for sure.

Thanks for your continuing interest and support, Dan.


The frame is stripped down amd I have a cardboard box full of parts that was the bike. I'm sanding and getting ready to prime the frame and giving the upholstery guy the time he needs to do the seat right. It was 72 today, but they're predicting 38 and snow tomorrow. Looks like another day with the garage door closed and the heater on. Rats!
Getting really tired of winter.
Tom

 

[2door]

Frame in primer. More sanding to do. I'm really tired of sanding.

Tom

 

[NashOpel]

Wow great work again.
All the cool kids have choppers!!!!!

George

 

[mapbike]

Looking good Tom, can't wait to see the finished product.......

 

[Dogtown Burner]

Another small project done today. The Switchblade has a Nexus 3 speed internal hub with a handlebar twist shifter. I wanted to keep the ape hangers uncluttered but I also wanted to retain the shifter so I found a way to mount it to the bars and keep them clean.
I bought a pair of 'bar ends', the kind the roadies use that give them a different place to grip. I mounted it down low, cut off the excess length and mounted the twist shifter to it. Now, if I ever need to change gears the shifter is easy to reach but not taking up space out near the throttle/brake/clutch levers.

inessence, the first MB suicide shift! nice

 

[2door]

Shot the frame yesterday. Today I'll get several coats of clear on it and then let it rest for a couple of days. It's getting warmer outside but still cool enough that the paint will need some extra set up time.
No word from the upholstery guy. I'll check in with him mid week.
I'm going to detail the engine today. I'll use a Dremel and some buffing compound to brighten up the case. The side covers are done but the case needs some help.
I'll keep you posted.
Tom

EDIT: Clearcoat drying. It's not chrome like the real Captain America bike but it's silver. Dupli Color, Toyota, Silver Frost and about six coats of Top Flite model airplane clear. It will have to do.

Tom

 

[mapbike]

Looks good to me Tom, as long as you like it thats all that matters......gonna be a beautiful bike..... Green with envy I am.....LOL!

Peace, Map

 

[2door]

Thanks, Shan.
I'm getting anxious to finish this one. It's been fun but now I want to ride, not sand and paint anymore. It's supposed to be in the high 60s and low 70s for most of the week here. I'm going to drag the old Norton out and get some riding in. I've spent too much time in the garage.
Tom

 

[steampunk]

call me tom...maybe i can quiet down the beast and go for a putt with ya

 

[silverbear]

Worked on the exhaust pipe today. 3/4" EMT buffs up pretty good with a little work.
I'm engineering on that fishtail tip. I think I know how I'm going to make it. The muffler goes on first then, well, I'll keep you informed.

Yes, I know, the real Captain America had two pipes. I only have one cylinder.

Tom

Tom,
A question about your EMT exhaust. I did some looking on the net last evening for conduit benders and see that there is thin conduit and rigid conduit which I assume is thicker walled. What did you use? I also see that some benders are for thin wall and others are appropriate for rigid, so I need to know what I'm looking for. Your pipe remains an inspiration.
SB

 

[mapbike]

Yep, you need a break Tom, you been hitting it pretty hard on that project, it will do you good to just get out and ride to clear the mind of things a bit and relax in the sun and the warmer breeze, plan to do that myself today some.

Gonna be low 80's Today here in central Texas, chance of rain the rest of the week so I'm gonna get some riding in today, gonna take the Karaoke into town for a trip to the Bank, it's a good ride of about 16-18 miles round trip, may run by the bike shop and pick up a couple bike Mirrors while I'm in town also, have so many things I want to do, I'm not sure where to start actually...LOL!

Stuff I want to do to my bikes,stuff I need to do around the house, stuff I want to do to the old Yamaha Maxim, need to get a new battery in my riding mower, need to clean up my current work area in the old shop building, need to clean up some of the clutter in what my wife calls my ''junk pile'' I call it all my good stuff, ya know all my old bikes and related things....LOL!

Wish we weren't 100's of miles apart Tom, it would be a pleasure to take a nice MB cruise with you......Have a great day sir and enjoy the ride.

Peace, map

Thanks, Shan.
I'm getting anxious to finish this one. It's been fun but now I want to ride, not sand and paint anymore. It's supposed to be in the high 60s and low 70s for most of the week here. I'm going to drag the old Norton out and get some riding in. I've spent too much time in the garage.
Tom

 

[2door]

Tom,
A question about your EMT exhaust. I did some looking on the net last evening for conduit benders and see that there is thin conduit and rigid conduit which I assume is thicker walled. What did you use? I also see that some benders are for thin wall and others are appropriate for rigid, so I need to know what I'm looking for. Your pipe remains an inspiration.
SB

SB,
I use the thin wall stuff. It has served me well on several bikes. The rigid pipe is way overkill for a bike exhaust. Besides being extremely hard to bend, it weighs a ton. Rigid conduit is about the same as plain old black pipe you'd use for water. It's just galvanized.

Welding EMT, thin wall conduit takes some care. Thin wall means, well, it's thin, and you have to be careful or you'll burn through it. I like to use TIG But I'll tack weld the pieces together with my MIG machine then complete the weld with TIG. Also you need to be aware of the toxic hazards when welding any galvanized material. But you know that
Tom

 

[silverbear]

SB,
I use the thin wall stuff. It has served me well on several bikes. The rigid pipe is way overkill for a bike exhaust. Besides being extremely hard to bend, it weighs a ton. Rigid conduit is about the same as plain old black pipe you'd use for water. It's just galvanized.

Welding EMT, thin wall conduit takes some care. Thin wall means, well, it's thin, and you have to be careful or you'll burn through it. I like to use TIG But I'll tack weld the pieces together with my MIG machine then complete the weld with TIG. Also you need to be aware of the toxic hazards when welding any galvanized material. But you know that
Tom

Thank you, Tom.

 

[2door]

I've been trying to keep this build as clean as possible. The ignition wiring is always a challenge to keep it from looking junky. Even with heat shrink tubing and tie wraps, I don't like the wire connections to show.

I was looking for a way to hide them on this bike and I stumbled on this really neat little steel can with a screw-on lid. Actually it contained pellets for my air rifle that I shoot at squirrles with. When I peeled the lables off and polished it up it looked good. I made a bracket to hold it on using some extra long screws from the CDI on the other side and a couple of rubber grommets for where the wires enter and here's what I came up with.

If I ever need access to the wiring connections, which are soldered and heat shrinked, I only have to unscrew the lid and there they are.

Also here's a couple of shots of the whole bike. No seat yet and I haven't installed the tank, but it's coming together.
Tom

 

[RicksRides]

Tom, What about running the wiring in the frame?