Kawi2strokes.com Forum

have a 140 amp mig w/bottle, its plenty for what we need, never have to take it over 75% power. 110 circuit, 40 amp breaker. Its a hobart handler. AND you can do aluminum with it if need be. and yes, i have done it.
and yes it worked very well (better than expected)

whole rig cost me like 750 bucks, including full bottle, auto helmet, etc

beleive it or not, tractor supply had it the cheapest, and they still sell the same unit.

^Mark's setup is nice. I have a 100-amp Lincoln that I use for pretty much everything. If you can only get one welder, I'd get MIG. But it's easy to be complacent like me and just use that--I've only used my TIG once, and that was just playing around.

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YAMAHAS RULE!!!!!

TIG is much more versatile than MIG, so I'd have to say that if you have only one welder, it should be a decent AC-DC TIG machine. Cost and time to learn could sway you to MIG though. Deals can be had. Check for one in your area.

http://philadelphia.craigslist.org/bfs/3439659414.html

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If it surges, that's normal, upshift.

+1 Jim. And with tig you know your welds are strong. With those 110v mig machines I find they're almost always maxed out. Even with my Lincoln 212 im still around the fifty percent mark most of the time. In the end its all what's in your means, who am I to say hey go out and drop a few grand.. But what I would seriously recommend is go pick up an old arc welder, and convert it, regulator, bottle, 3 piece cable tig torch with shut off an d you're set for steel.

Sorry a little off topic. Wicked cool bike Cody keep it up man.
Skye

Interesting. Do watch for open circuit voltage if you convert one. TIG machines usually have an OCV around 70V, and that's rare with non-TIG machines. I've been told that converting machines with lower OCV doesn't give as nice a result.

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If it surges, that's normal, upshift.

Just a scratch start tig. Used alot in industrial applications where high freq messes with electronics. Just reverse polarity. I don't know the difference in quality, probably isn't much. I personally love having foot control.
Skye

thanks Guys..

A nice Miller 180 SD TIG was on MPLS craigslist 2 weeks ago for $1000.00 (with bottle/pedal/cart/consumables), but I just wasn't quite ready to pull the trigger. Hindsight being what it is, I am now kicking myself as I think that would have been a pretty good welder for me.

Funny how things figure themeselves out over the course of a project like this.....

So, After messing about with trying to figure out the front and rear fenders, I now know without a shadow of a doubt that this bike is getting modified (Stainless) early H1 fenders.
Once the front was sorted, I moved on to the rear...

Before I continue, let's back up about 11 months to last February when I posted these pics. Original plan for the oil tank and rear inner fender, which was nothing more than a chopped late H1 plastic fender. Never super happy about the fender, but figured with a fresh coat of paint, it would look fine and do its job.



Fast forward to Saturday...

While mocking up the rear trying to sort out a mount, the lightbulb went off. Why not just weld the sucker to the oil tank?? This elimanates the need for any front mount, and looks like it is just hanging in thin air...



And now that the tail loop is finished on the frame, I still needed to figure out a "filler" panel for behind the oiltank (to keep road-dirt off the seat-pan from the rear tire) Instead of welding separate tabs to the frame for a little "filler", why not do the same to the rear? (weld it to the tank)... and why not make it a tool tray??



And since there is no way I am set-up (or remotely skilled enough) to weld thin sheet metal (YET!), I gave Jake a call (built the board-track H1 and made the original oil-tank for me).. Showed him what I wanted, and once again he did a fanstastic job.

Had to beef up the mounting tabs a bit to carry the extra 1lb of static weight, plus wind/vibration (will have rubber grommets/steel sleeves), and had to move the oil tank banjo fitting to the center of the tank due fitment (you can see the patch in one of the pics, and yes, the hose will get a grommet where it passes through the fender), but it's like it was meant to be. The stock H1 fender was (coincidentally) the EXACT same width of the oil tank...

All in all, I'm very happy with how it all worked out. And believe it or not, the whole thing weighs 3lbs 7oz, which is a mere 7 oz. more than a stock early h1 oil tank does alone.
The oiltank, tool tray, and tire-side of fender will be powdercoated to match the frame. The top side of the fender will be Polished like a mirror. I did a "quicky" polish tonight, but once I get it back from powdercoat, I'll hit it hard...

on to the pics!









oh... and the frame/swingarm goes out to powdercoat tomorrow...

Looking real trick Cody.

Is the oil cap vented?

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