Who built this one? GL custom in Oklahoma

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CrazyJerry
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Re: Who built this one? GL custom in Oklahoma

#241

Post by CrazyJerry »

CrazyJerry wrote:
5speed wrote:
Track T 2411 wrote: I'm guessing that is a rear turn signal housing...
I was guessing a shot glass for the jack. anim-cheers1
RAT wrote:Too small for beer

Gord(most containers are)Jones anim-cheers1
Giving credit where it's due:
5speed nailed it!
Track T 2411- A shot glass is pretty close and so is the jack - partial credit - good job!
Rat was actually correct but changed his mind - lol!
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CrazyJerry
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Re: Who built this one? GL custom in Oklahoma

#242

Post by CrazyJerry »

This Goldwing cried every night because the critics said, "These bikes are too big and bloated to ever be a Cafe Racer!". So after lots of collaboration and counseling, I've managed to change the mood from sad to happy by elevating the "wish" from "Cafe Racer", to the "goal" of "Buffet Racer"! And the look of excitement on that bike was priceless!!! How cool to not be limited by just Cafe's alone - now anyplace that serves food is totally a valid (and likely) pit-stop!!!
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Continuing with this theme, we arrive at our next custom lighting conversion. The donor fixtures are none other than vintage aluminum, clear bottom Wisconsin Beer Stein Salt-N-Pepper shakers! :
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All four shakers will be converted with LED's to be used exclusively for the front and rear turn signals:
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The clear plastic bottoms will then be covered with the orange lenses from the bullet lights that came with the bike when purchased:
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From the side, here is one mounted under the front seat:
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These are also wired to provide 4-way emergency flashers which may come in handy in the event slow speeds are required after over-doing it at an "All you can eat buffet", or, if said buffet has caused such internal pressure that every second counts in the "Race to the Restroom" (yes, alot of thought has been put into this!):
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Here's another mounted on the front fork:
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And it looks great when lit up:
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Conversion of the Salt-N-Pepper shakers was quick and easy. These should provide many years of trouble free service.
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These shakers fit right into the the "Buffet Racer" theme that currently sports a vintage aluminum salad bowl on the gas tank nose, and an early 1900's Wear-Ever aluminum coffee pot for the headlight/speedometer housing, and an overflow bottle dispenser.
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"Buffet Racer" as a theme is now making more sense. It may be hard to visualize at this point but when completed, "Buffet" will be apparent in all the details, "Racer" will underpin the appearance.
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The look will be vintage and retromod, with a splash of excitement from the "Art Deco" era. Going forward, she will be known as "Bon Appetit"!
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ericheath
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Re: Who built this one? GL custom in Oklahoma

#243

Post by ericheath »

That’s gonna be better than the current title.
Whatever I suggest here should be given ample time for a moderator to delicately correct. I apologize in advance.
77 WING, 1200 engine with 77 heads, cams, gl1100 foot pegs, Magna V65 front end, 764A carbs, [-gone Suzuki M109 monoshock--, replaced with gl1100 shocks] gl 1200 swing arm, gl1500 final drive, wheel and rear brakes Valkyrie seat, Meanstreak tank, Sportster pipes, Power Arc ignition off crank.
77 Wing. black
83 Wing, in pieces
"Continuing education is important even if the subject matter is fairly useless (as in this case)."---Greg Foresi
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5speed
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Re: Who built this one? GL custom in Oklahoma

#244

Post by 5speed »

CrazyJerry wrote:
5speed wrote:very cool.
I gotta ask..what is the story on the car..I've been trying to figure out what breed it is.
5speed - that little car has an incredible story... I have a build competition thread located on another site and I'll post a link after this Goldwing story closes.. Stay tuned!
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~CrazyJerry~
awesome..I love build threads..and I'm a die hard gear head.
1982 1100 standard. (sold)
1986 Yamaha FJ1200
2000 Yamaha Roadstar
1976 GoldWing. running but not on the road
1978 Goldwing. future cafe project.
2019 Can-Am ryker (boss's new ride)

2002 Shadow American Classic(sold)
1983 Shadow 500. (sold)
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CrazyJerry
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Re: Who built this one? GL custom in Oklahoma

#245

Post by CrazyJerry »

sparkyrasmus wrote:Dang, This is fun to watch. I love your creativity. The original owner, whoever it may be, has to be dazzled to see his dream in the hands of a kindred soul.
Thanks sparkyrasmus! This bike certainly deserved to be finished - and finished it will be!!
:crosso
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CrazyJerry
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Re: Who built this one? GL custom in Oklahoma

#246

Post by CrazyJerry »

5speed wrote:
CrazyJerry wrote:
5speed wrote:very cool.
I gotta ask..what is the story on the car..I've been trying to figure out what breed it is.
5speed - that little car has an incredible story... I have a build competition thread located on another site and I'll post a link after this Goldwing story closes.. Stay tuned!
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~CrazyJerry~
awesome..I love build threads..and I'm a die hard gear head.
5speed - I like the build threads too and the one for the car won't disappoint - it's as entertaining as it is a great story!
lolol
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Re: Who built this one? GL custom in Oklahoma

#247

Post by CrazyJerry »

ericheath wrote:That’s gonna be better than the current title.
Thanks ericheath!!!
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Re: Who built this one? GL custom in Oklahoma

#248

Post by CrazyJerry »

Mirror-mirror on the bike - there ain't any of the like - guess it's time to make some!
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New York State inspection does require at least one but visually, two balances the handlebar area better.
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The pieces used to create the mirrors are:
1) 3" Convex Mirrors (Quantity 2, available at most autoparts and other fine stores).
2) 2 round CCTV mounting bases
3) A pair of vintage Schwinn 10-speed brake levers
4) Two old dinner forks
5) Aluminum hobby wire
6) Small pack of saw-tooth picture hangers
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The handlebars don't have anything extra on them and they look good this way, so the mirrors will be mounted in a different location.
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The mirrors are attached to the CCTV mounting bases using shortened/bent saw-tooth picture hangers. By cutting them to a length, we can bend them around as sort of a "crimp" that will hold the mirrors to those CCTV bases.
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The CCTV mounting bases are then bolted to the dinner fork handle ends (about 4 inches of the fork handles were used), and finally, those are aluminum wired to the bicycle brake levers. When completed, it all looks like this ( and the last pic shows them with the saw-tooth picture hangers crimped in place):
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The bicycle brake levers compliment the curve of the handlebars nicely. They will also serve as as perches for the new gauges. We're not quite there yet but closing in real fast!!!
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5speed
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Re: Who built this one? GL custom in Oklahoma

#249

Post by 5speed »

aluminum steam punk.
1982 1100 standard. (sold)
1986 Yamaha FJ1200
2000 Yamaha Roadstar
1976 GoldWing. running but not on the road
1978 Goldwing. future cafe project.
2019 Can-Am ryker (boss's new ride)

2002 Shadow American Classic(sold)
1983 Shadow 500. (sold)
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CYBORG
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Re: Who built this one? GL custom in Oklahoma

#250

Post by CYBORG »

5speed wrote:aluminum steam punk.
That's what I was thinking.....steam punk
1978 custom GL1000
1977 custom with 1200 engine
1985 gl1200
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CrazyJerry
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Re: Who built this one? GL custom in Oklahoma

#251

Post by CrazyJerry »

The front forks on this buffet racer are Honda perfect, but a little plain for this build. Something with a little more pizzazz would be nice!
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The lower area is fine and the recesses they have match those on engine's timing and valve covers. It's the upper tubes that really stand out and get a bad wrap but in just 20 minutes, they are transformed with a good wrap. Yes, here we have yet another cameo appearance by the aluminum hobby wire!:
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So easy to do and the wire adds an additional point of interest to some otherwise plain forks! Just for fun, they are reversed spiral wrapped in relation to each other. The pics were taken a day before the front were salt-n-pepperized (rears were done).
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We're on the homestretch - actually it's more-like a sprint to the finish line!
The next two posts will be pure eye candy and need an advanced level of skill.
These will also signal the completion of the build (less any small odds-n-ends).
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This where it all comes together folks!
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Re: Who built this one? GL custom in Oklahoma

#252

Post by CrazyJerry »

The factory Honda gauges aren't bad looking and they're easy on the eye. At nearly 40 years old, some of them are starting to become lazy, and their luster is waning. The real reason for not using them on this build was that they didn't have the look that would really blend with the aluminum over black theme.
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The search for suitable gauges was addressed by Speedhut - who not only sells a complete line of gauges, but allows for extensive customization of them within their handy online website. There are font styles/colors, background colors, pointer colors, night led lighting color choices, etc, and all documentation is available online so you can see what you're getting into before your purchase... In addition, a GPS speedometer would eliminate the stock Honda speedo cable, and the electronic tachometer would get rid of that cable too.
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Like anything else, these can be pricey - and there is about a 6-8 week lead/build time for their customized gauges (Speedhut provides a progress status along the way within one's account dashboard). The finished look though makes it all worth the wait!
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The gauge set is analog style and here's that actual order sheet (less the pricing):
- GPS Speedometer / Tachometer combo (with programmable shift indicator light)
- Coolant temperature gauge (electronic with sender and programmable warning light)
- Oil pressure gauge (electronic with sender and programmable warning light)
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If lots of wires causes anxiety, then the wiring for all the gauges can certainly be intimidating.
* The speedometer / tach has a GPS antenna lead, and wires for high beam indicator, left and right directionals, and wires for an "inverter" used for the dimmable led night lighting within the gauges. Lighting to the other gauges is supplied through the use of an additional daisy-chain harness with built-in connectors.
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* Positive and negative leads for all three gauges.
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*Both the temperature and oil pressure gauges have their own multi-wire sensor whip/connector.
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The Speedometer, all of these wires, along with the turn signal flasher unit has to share the the coffee pot with the headlight (and its wiring)... Things can get a little "busy". The white terminal block was used during intitial hookup and to keep track of everything. Once determined everything worked, the terminal block was eliminated in favor of space-saving crimp/shrink wrap connections:
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The stock Honda coolant and oil pressure sensors have to be removed and replaced with Speedhut's. As of this writing, if anyone goes with these gauges for their GL1100, visit your local Autozone and grab the following item which contains the correct metric adapter(s) for using the Speedhut oil sender to into the Honda GL1100 block.
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The oil sender swap is very straightforward with the correct metric sender adapter. The coolant sensor can be a bit more challenging mostly due to lack of room between the sensor and a boss that protrudes from the engine block.. It's almost impossible to get a normal socket around the sensor unless it's thin walled:
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When Speedhut's coolant sensor is screwed into the adapter, it's longer overall than the stock Honda unit but poses no installation issue in the GL1100:
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Speedhut coolant sensor (left) - stock Honda coolant sensor (center) - metric adapter (right):
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During the gauge install, a custom control switch panel was also installed. This control panel will house most of the functions (and a couple optional ones) that are typically found on stock handlebar controls (high beam, coils, signal, fan switch over-ride, etc..)
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The switches themselves are a common long-shaft ceiling light switch rated at 5 amps each. These will be hearty enough to engage the directionals, coils, etc. One exception is the factory Honda cooling fan which is now activated by a common 12 volt/30 amp automotive lighting relay. In the event the fan needs to be turned on manually, one of those ceiling light switches only has to supply a tiny amount of current to trip the relay to energize the fan. The housing for the switches is an old bicycle chainring spacer and the cup it's mounted to is a wheel bearing grease cap which fits perfectly into the center hole of the chainring spacer (I know what you're thinking 'cause I was thinking it too when I put this together - lol!!):
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Here is the functional but unfinished gauges and control panel:
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The gauge housings are black plastic which would be fine for an in-dash mounting but on this build we don't have a traditional dashboard, and we don't want the back of the gauges to remain exposed. The speedometer housing is well hidden within the coffee pot but for the oil pressure and coolant temperature gauges we need to create a backing that will make these look finished.
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For this we volunteer another one of my beloved cooking items: A "Happy Home" egg pan.
It's going to take quite a shopping few trips to the dump to replace the kitchen items used on this bike but that's part of the fun!:
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Those little domed inserts fit perfectly around the gauges and their finish should hold up well to bug splatter. If not, some non-stick cooking spray should do the trick!:
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And the front salt-n-pepper shaker ends that were not used were mounted on the domes are attached:
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The center of the control switch panel uses the top of a vintage spice shaker (hence all the little holes). It was needed to mount the little black knob seen in the center of the entire cluster - which is the dimmer for the internal gauge night lights!
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This photo was taken before a nice custom aluminum perimeter ring was added (but can be seen in the photos above!
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The next post is a goodie and will tie the entire bike together from end-to-end and is exclusive to this build!
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~CrazyJerry~
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5speed
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Re: Who built this one? GL custom in Oklahoma

#253

Post by 5speed »

kitchen steam punk. anim-cheers1
1982 1100 standard. (sold)
1986 Yamaha FJ1200
2000 Yamaha Roadstar
1976 GoldWing. running but not on the road
1978 Goldwing. future cafe project.
2019 Can-Am ryker (boss's new ride)

2002 Shadow American Classic(sold)
1983 Shadow 500. (sold)
User avatar
CrazyJerry
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Re: Who built this one? GL custom in Oklahoma

#254

Post by CrazyJerry »

ericheath wrote:You’ve got to leave some of the details out, you’re going end up encouraging hoarders!

Looking forward to the “finish.”
Lol ericheath! I might be one of the hoarders!!
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Track T 2411
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Re: Who built this one? GL custom in Oklahoma

#255

Post by Track T 2411 »

5speed wrote:kitchen steam punk. anim-cheers1
Buffet steam table punk, lol!
"I have no special talent. I am only passionately curious." - Albert Einstein

"He that is good with a hammer tends to think everything is a nail" - Abraham Maslow

"If you can't take the time to do it right the first time, how are you ever going to find the time to do it over?" -Unknown

Current Rides:
'Grumpy' - '81 Standard, now fully dressed.
'Layla' - '81 Standard w/dealer installed fairing and Hondaline bags.
'Scarlett' '76 'Survivor' nekkid as a j-bird!

Under Construction:
The 'Jalopy' '78-'79 Mash-up
'Quikie' '81 gl1100I back on the lift, project with the step-son!

In The Shed:
'81 gl1100I barn find aka "Josie, the farmer's daughter." (almost comatose build)
'77 gl1000, roller parts bike.
'82 gl1100I, 'Old Crusty' titled roller parts bike (free!)
'82 gl1100I, My first 'Wing, and an expensive lesson!
New2U Bike? Read Me.
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