Oil tank.

The stock tank just won't work. Well, It work's, in that it doesn't leak, oil goes in the top, and comes out the bottom when needed, but it just won't work.

Cruddy, hideous thing (it did clean up, and looks nearly new now)

I'd picked up a car alloy catch tank, thinking this was along the right lines, it's not. I then thought perhaps an earlier model steel tank rather than the ugly plastic stock tank would work, but at the time, I couldn't find one without paying silly money, and even sillier money to ship it from the states.

Shapes nicer, and this one is on ebay at reasonable money for a change

I stumbled on a petrol lawn mower fuel tank on ebay, the only bidder with a .99p start price. It was kinda what I wanted, a steel tank at least.

Worth a punt at 99p

The mower tank got me thinking, and I ended up with this! It's a bit wider than I want. In fact twice as wide as I want, but I could work with it, and I love the glass fuel bowl.

I've got to use that fuel bowl somewhere

Brave enough to try welding for real, the tank was cut in half, a new peice of steel cut to shape, and welded back in place. Ok so there was some splatter, but it's air tight! I had hoped to use the other half, trimmed, re-shaped, and re-welded, as the base for a battery tray, but if I'm honest, I blew a bloody great hole in it with the welder, so that's binned.

I'm happy with the end result though. Bobber style in side profile, all steel, and look's better than the plastic original.

LED Tail light's been ordered, delivered and fitted. Look's sweet.

Now, I need to start on the exhaust.

Although not in the picture, the original header pipe has been cut, two bends cut and shaped, and ready for tack welding. Lot's of work to get the tail pipe where I want it still, and brackets need fabricating.

Bum perch......................

Well I've not been entirely idle.

I've spent hours, cutting, grinding, brushing, rubbing down and painting the old seat pan. Carefully shaping it to fit flush with the frame, maintaining the original hinges (I'm still hung up about accessing the two stroke oil tank) and giving it a coat of hard black paint, after removing the gold Hammerite, and the rust underneath.



Don't like it! I thought I'd like the seat to have a little kick up at the rear. I don't. The hinges don't sit flush with the frame, protruding 7mm. Looks wrong, even though the exhaust will cover it up.

Plan B then.

I cut the first seat pan out of some left over alloy chequer plate I had. I then pondered for ages over how I was going to fix it to the frame. Without a welder, I'm limited to making bracket's and hinges that will rivet or bolt on. In the end, I realised I'd cut it 30/40mm to short, and the rear was just a bit to squared of. Without any more alloy, I turned to some sheet steel. The second cut (after I did what I should have done and used some card for a template) and I'm happy.

Now as I've already cut the seat subframe down, and needed to make good, and I would ideally like to weld the seat pan, and the expansion chamber I bought would need cutting and welding, and I'd need to fabricate some hangers for it, and weld them on, and.......................... I bought a MIG welder.

It's a pretty basic, 4 setting 130amp welder, hopefully it will do what I want

Not easy welding, is it? Armed with a useless instruction manual, and after watching two or three really bad "how to weld" instructional's on You Tube, I've locked myself away, with some off cuts of mild steel, and welded......and welded, and, sadly, not very well.

The steel pan is quite heavy. A bit more so than the stock pan, so, armed with some hole cutter's, I've (to quote the late Colin Chapman) added lightness. Although it wont be seen (but I'll know it's there) I've then bolted on some Stainless Mesh I'd had in my garage for more than 20 years (bought to make an MG Midget Grille, but never used) I'll then wrap the underside of the foam in a contrasting vinyl - orange sounds good - before adding a black seat cover.

Just ordered some flat head socket screw's, which will look better

The "Hook" is 30mm od pipe, cut and welded. There's zero sideways or forward movement.

Tabs hold the mesh firmly in place. The seat pad will cover all this.

I've been busy with the welder, fabricating an oil tank. I'll get that posted tomorrow.

The disc conversion is in place, bar the pipe, which I'll not fit until the final build, and the flat bars ordered are also fitted.