Clotho's Bike

I was asked in the Introduce yourself thread to post pictures so I dug around and these were the best that I had. They are about 4 years old but the bike looks basically the same today. I have added a Thudbuster shock absorbing seat post, which I really like. Also there is no longer an air valve on the rear wheel. I grew tired of flat tires but I liked the white walls so I purchased a 'NoMorFlats' tube and installed it on the rear wheel. It gives the ride a slightly mushy feel, sort of like riding on an under inflated tire. However I feel it is an excellent compromise since flat tires are a thing of the past and I have put a many miles on it since the change.

The bike itself is a Jeep commemorative edition. Sadly I have not seen another one and I don't know who the actual manufacturer is. The engine fits it perfectly without need of spacers.

The motor shown is a 49cc I purchased through the local newspaper and thus of unknown Chinese origin. I have modified it a little. The plug wire is an automotive one and it is longer which allowed me to hide the ignition box under the motor in the V of the frame. I polished, ported and matched the intake and exhaust. Since the motor was aluminum I polished it as well.

I wasn’t happy with how the tank fit on the frame so I carved a couple of plugs from bondo, created a mold from them and formed the fiberglass pieces you see here. The chrome rear fender seemed out of place now so I formed a new fender out of fiberglass over a foam core. Unfortunately the mold for the centerpiece is now in storage a thousand miles away so I could not craft another one even if I wished to. So far the fiberglass parts have proven durable and have caused no difficulties.

One tip I may offer (if it hasn’t already been mentioned) is the use of color-coded zip ties to manage all the wires and cables. I was fortunate to find a batch of green ones that matched the bikes color nicely. Also the gas tank sports a strip of chrome door guard protector and finishes it off nicely.

I used to live near the outskirts of my city and I spent a great deal of time tooling around the countryside. This bike has performed excellently and I have had a blast riding it and solving the few problems that were presented. I have many more plans for it and many more modifications to make. This is in-fact what brought me here!

Thank you in advance for all the knowledge and camaraderie that is at this site.
 

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You could market that fender body panel if you still have the mold.
That is killer.
Just killer.
 
I am currently designing a tadpole trike, and plan to use foam/fiberglass forming for my fenders and fairing. I've done foam core body molding work in the past, but in the interest of lightness I've been considering either lost foam, or resinated spandex skins.

I really like what you've done there - do you have much experience with foam core work?
 
Thank you very much for your kind words.

This was my first experience making a fiberglass mold. I do have experience as a sculptor however and I have worked in bondo before. I think that if I had known beforehand how much work it was going to be I wouldn't have started. It was an enormous amount of work. I am pleased with the result though.
 
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