Bumble Bee (BB)

Stage One
The rear shock

How does a redneck raise the rear of his bike? Now you know. I have a bulldog jackstand of course, but to replace the shock you have to support the bike by the frame.

The new and old rear shocks One of these is better than the other. Can you guess which one? ;-) The newer one on the left came off of an 05 GSXR 750. It's stiffer and should help performance in the turns. The stock shock was originally designed for a 140 lb man. Keep in mind that I'm slightly past that weight.

To get the new shock to fit I had to cut the existing battery box. This has the side effect of having to slightly relocate the battery and computer. Which led to even more cutting. I have plans to cover the battery up in the future. Maybe this winter, maybe not.

All done. I didn't have to sacrifice my tool pouch (which I use to store my cargo net) and the new shock actually looks good. I'm truely happy that the new spring matches the paint. What were the odds.

Stage Two
Gauges (The "filler" stage)

I ordered this gauge cover from a member on SVRider.com. I just wanted a new look and I like it. He also offers different color gauge LEDs but I think this will be enough.

Stage Three
Rear turn signals (Another "filler" stage)

When I put on the highmount last year I bought some cheap, LED, Flushmount turnsignals. The problem was that you could only see them from the rear at night. So I decided to remount the originals a slightly different way. Someone on SVRider.com mentioned doing this a while back, but I can't remember who. It might've even been a fellow member here in Louisville, but either way now it's visible on group rides.

Stage Four
The headlight brackets

Well, the new headlight brackets have come in. I found them extremely cheap on ebay and they'll support 80% of my plans for the front end (everything except the suspension).

Looks TOTALLY different now, doesn't it. I have some dual headlights on bid, but as of posting this stage the end-of-auction is still 2 days away. I'm still trying to figure a way to mount the stock gauge.

Stage Five
The Headlights

Ah... The new headlights came in. This is 90% of the finished product. Here's whats left: -Those turnsignals HAVE TO go among other things- -Need rear view mirrors- -I need to grind down and paint that gauge mount (matt black)- -Stiffer front springs and thicker fork oil- Unfortunetly everything but the forks will wait. I'm over my budget for this winter and only have $$ set aside for the springs so I'm putting the fairing back on for now.

Continued Here