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Message started by Ruttly on 08/05/22 at 12:42:19

Title: What/ Who are your influences
Post by Ruttly on 08/05/22 at 12:42:19

When your doing a build , What or Who has influenced the build from the very get go ? Motorcycles are very personal. A blank canvas to be styled , shaped & colored. Every little thing you personalize came from you seeing it first either on another bike or in your head or maybe necessity/innovation.
So search the far reaches of your brain , really think about it you might be surprised to learn what or who has influenced your build. Could be different influences for different builds. I was totally surprised , it was a no brainer.
But still surprised me , out of all my motorcycle heroes , all given the same considerations , only one stood out , answered a ton of questions I had about myself not just about the build. It’s in your head think about it !

Title: Re: What/ Who are your influences
Post by Fast 650 on 08/05/22 at 13:27:20

That's an easy one. A couple of relatively unknowns, Ben Hardy and Cliff Vaughs, were my main influences for styling.

Title: Re: What/ Who are your influences
Post by wheelbender6 on 08/05/22 at 18:40:01

Yaffe.

Title: Re: What/ Who are your influences
Post by Ruttly on 08/05/22 at 20:17:47

Senior or Junior ? Very cool , wasn’t expecting that one here. But that’s what I’m after. I don’t give a dam about your personal likes or dislikes of motorcycles I’m after influencing factor that makes you want to build bikes. I want to hear from many more here. I find it interesting to learn things about yourself you never knew !

Title: Re: What/ Who are your influences
Post by Ruttly on 08/06/22 at 03:55:00

Fast650 , And what style would that be ? I noticed your in Florida , all the American influences and Caribbean influences too.

Title: Re: What/ Who are your influences
Post by Fast 650 on 08/06/22 at 11:56:11

537475756D78010 wrote:

Fast650 , And what style would that be ? I noticed your in Florida , all the American influences and Caribbean influences too.

I thought that you would have caught that one Ruttly, those guys were practically in your back yard in the 60's. Those two were the guys who built the bikes for the famous Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper movie. :)

Title: Re: What/ Who are your influences
Post by jcstokes on 08/06/22 at 13:20:18

The people in the Suzuki factory, who styled it so it could be left alone to enjoy.

Title: Re: What/ Who are your influences
Post by wheelbender6 on 08/07/22 at 05:38:09

I agree with that, except for the tail light. It looks light a big cheap afterthought.

Title: Re: What/ Who are your influences
Post by wheelbender6 on 08/07/22 at 05:52:01

486F6E6E76631A0 wrote:

My desire to build bikes really goes back to my teen years when I rode dual sport bikes. It was kool to see the innovations in long travel suspension. I wanted to build a streetable dirt bike that could win enduro events.

Quit riding when I had kids and started back when they were grown.

I would still ride dual sports but I'm in my 60s now and it takes longer to heal after a good fall.

Title: Re: What/ Who are your influences
Post by SoC on 08/07/22 at 22:00:31

So my parents took me to a movie theater when I was 9 years old to see Easy Rider, with them (could not find a baby sitter I guess). Funny thing was I thought the bike Billy rode (Dennis Hopper) was much cooler then Captain America (Peter Fonda), so that was my original ideal.

Forward to today, I became fascinated by the builds of Bourget. That said I guess the designers at Honda did also, and hence the Fury. I set out to do mods to make my first LS Furyous. Some what for the second S40, you can never devalue old school Harley as well, so attempt was made to incorporate that, the 883 being a template.

Most of mods on the Suzuki's has been "bolt on", which requires a lot of sub fab. I did buy a Fury for the inspiration, a 2010 with the metallic blue paint, which I love, and color was only available in the early years.

To achieve with a Savage the perspective of length, is a challenge. It seems no one is really willing to weld frames anymore, at least in NJ. I have a frame and the full outline from Fast 650 to do a down tube stretch, just no one willing to take on job locally. And the old saying goes something to the effect of "only an idiot rides a frame he welded himself".
Not to say if you are a certified welder not to do it, but if you are a hack with no frame jig and limited skill ?. So, I am looking for a welder.

So to sum up, the bike Billy Rode in Easy Rider and Bourget.

Title: Re: What/ Who are your influences
Post by TheSneeze on 08/16/22 at 15:40:52

For me it was Ricky Graham and Bubba Shobert. Always loved the flat track racers. I was really big into road racing back in the 80's and 90's. too. I attended five of the 500cc GP races at Laguna Seca in the late 80's and early 90's watching the likes of Kenny Roberts, Freddie Spencer, Randy Mamola, Wayne Rainey, Eddie Lawson, Wayne Gardner, and Mick Doohan to name a few. Also attended a lot of superbike races watching Wes Cooley, Eddie Lawson, Dale Quarterly, etc.

Title: Re: What/ Who are your influences
Post by kirsties40 on 08/20/22 at 10:42:08

I like the retro look with a single round headlight and I love the shape of the gas tank. Perfect as it is.

Title: Re: What/ Who are your influences
Post by Needles on 08/28/22 at 07:15:52

Whenever I get an older bike (Mine is an '02.), I let form follow function. I don't like high bars, so the first thing I did was to take off the buck horns and put on a low rise "drag bar". I added aftermarket mirrors and grips, and will be adding a shield. I did the cam chain tensioner upgrade (Thanks, Verschlagen.), added back the left side engine cover gasket, and the shifter shaft seal--- I still get a drop once in a while, but I can't tell from where. I found a tach with electronic pick-up that will fit between the risers. Brakes were spongy so I swapped in a SS braided line and added a Superbrace--- I'll have the disk drilled eventually, because I don't like the slip-then-grip undrilled rotors do when they get wet. I did add popsicle orange paint and an aftermarket megaphone muffler, but those are not major changes in looks. Most of what I do is supposed to make it ride and work better. I leave the wild and beautiful to people who do it better.

Title: Re: What/ Who are your influences
Post by Ruttly on 09/05/22 at 11:19:45

Alright here we go , Twas 1971 I was 11 years old and had been riding for 4 years on now my second mini bike. It was the height of the dirt biking craze. It was a Saturday afternoon and me and my buddies are going to the movies. It was a very special time growing up if you were a dirt biker it wasn’t just here it was everywhere. A worldwide craze , everyone I knew had a mini bike or a motorcycle , you were weird if you didn’t ride. So off to the old El Camino Theatre to see “On Any Sunday” and “Evel Knievel”. OAS captures the era and what everyone was doing at that time , if you haven’t seen it , watch it. And then Evel Knievel and there it is as corny as they come , maybe not an Idle of mine like all the rest of my motorcycle heroes. But he held all the points to why I built a street tracker. #1 his Triumph and Harley all had at that time was on point flat track styling. I remember watching Wide World of Sports back then and I bet their best ratings is when EK was gonna attempt a jump , seems like time stopped when his front tire starts up the ramp. Can’t remember how many jumps I watched on WWS. I did see him jump & crash at the Cow Palace in San Francisco , CA. Made the jump then lost it before going thru the doors on the wet polished pavement. It the COOLEST thing to witness. Everytime I could get air underneath my tires I did. This is why me and the sportster love a good launch over the RR tracks. So you have it in a nutshell , Evel Knievel is a huge influence in what I build and how I ride. Corny yes but nonetheless it a obvious winner in my world. There are still at least ten others rider/racers that also influence me. But hands down , it’s Evel , RIP !