BTR sickness begins

[TheOtherChris]

After building a 54 Panther framed (borderline rat) HT bike and a basic Wally World Schwinn, I decided to give a 4-stroke a try.

So, I bought a perfectly good Worksman frame and cut it up.

Decided that there is no point trying to pass it off as a "moped" that is under 50cc so I also picked up a Predator 212cc and plan to register this one as a motorcycle.

I know it has been done before but the plan is for a 1912 Indian single.
I will be doing a leaf spring front fork as well.

The additions to the frame are .120 tube and I gotta say that rolling that with a HF bender is an interesting experience.
Frame was stretched 4.25".
I turned the ends of the inserts on the lathe so they would slip into the frame to help with alignment. It is tacked and now I need to TIG it up.

Wish me luck,

 

[hsvmick]

hi chris,that's a great looking start to your build and would like to see your 54 panther if you have a picture of it cheers

 

[TheOtherChris]

hi chris,that's a great looking start to your build and would like to see your 54 panther if you have a picture of it cheers

The panther was my first but has kind of 'evolved' in the last year.
The extended exhaust is EMT conduit that crosses over under the bottom bracket to exit pedal side.

 

[hsvmick]

cool thanks for sharing and will be following your new build good luck with it

 

[truckd]

Just outta curiosity what did the Worksman frame,time and material cost all together?
Your drop loop has a nice look and I see you've straightened out the upper rear frame stays, Nice job so far!

 

[TheOtherChris]

I think the frame was about $225 shipped and the tubing around $10. I don't count time on my own projects.
The rear stays didn't look right with the curve.

 

[chainmaker]

Cool start for a build.

 

[Lurker]

Awesome start! I cant wait to see how this turns out.

 

[curtisfox]

AWESOME! Like Lurker says got to watch this. Do you have a picture of the inserts?.......Curt

 

[LabRat]

TheOtherChris, "After building a 54 Panther framed (borderline rat) HT bike and a basic Wally World Schwinn, I decided to give a 4-stroke a try."

Wow~!!! what a great name for your build ..... you said it bet you missed it ....

BORDERLINE RAT

 

[TheOtherChris]

"Borderline Rat". That IS a good name.
I think I will use it as the Panther continues to evolve.

Thanks

 

[TheOtherChris]

Thanks for the kind words everyone. I have a long ways to go.

Curt- To lengthen the frame I used .120" wall steel tubing and turned the ends down at the lathe to fit inside the Worksman frame.

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This is the first one I turned but it wouldn't maintain good alignment with the frame so I increased the length of the nipple to about 1.5" and that made a big difference.

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They just slip inside the frame tubing so I can keep everything straight while welding them up.

To mate the drop loop to the frame, I couldn't really turn it before bending because I didn't know for sure where it would end up (and turning after bending was out of the question) so I turned an insert out of solid barstock that would fit inside and allow both tubes to seat flush.

It meant a little time machining but saved me some heartache with the welder.