DISCLAIMER

The bike kinda builds itself,
all I do is put it together.

DISCLAIMER
The contents of this blog is a record of work carried out by the author and other third party information and pictures gleaned from various sources on the internet. It is published for academic interest and entertainment only. It is neither suggested or intended that any work or modifications shown here are to be carried out by any party reading the blog.

The Hitchcock Rigid Conversion

Mission Statement

This blog has been set up as a record of my attempt to build a cool Bobber style bike out of the Royal Enfield Bullet. With the cost of genuine early British and American bikes and parts spiralling upwards in the face of the current global economic climate, building a retro style custom is rapidly becoming cost prohibitive. Initially, there will be a period of accruing parts and information as the bike I intend to re-create is my daily rider.
I have heard so many horror stories about the Indian made Bullet from people who's mate used to have one, that I have lost count. All I can say is that I have covered over 20,000 miles on mine in the last three and a half years, and feel happy that it is quite capable of doing another 20.
So if you like the idea or just curious, you are welcome to come along for the ride.

Saturday 3 July 2010

More pix from Mulligan Machine

Chop 667 did a bit more digging out there on the virtual highway and came up with some more shots of the blue bob job. He found them at Mulligan Machine a quick e-mail to Derrick over there got the clearance to use them on here, thanks Man.


Using the cut down top yoke, not a thing that I thought would work but it doesn't look bad at all. There is a school of thought that says cutting down the standard casquette leaves it too weak, difficult to tell whether this is a standard unit or not, although judging by the amount of metal around the fork leg tops it may well be a custom piece.


The classic early Sportster tank, still a fine looking tank but kinda flogged to death on custom bikes by now. It does raise the question of tank choice though, a narrow number would probably suit as it would emphasise the bulk of the motor.


An overview, showing the cobby lines of the bike. The hardtail is interesting, these pictures were originally posted in August 2009. Too early to be a Hitchcock's unit, but there are unused lugs at the rear of the lower chain stays, suggesting that it is not a one off.
The angle of the gearbox post can be seen here, which is going to be a problem. The angle matches nothing else on the bike, and, to my eye, looks incongruous. Maybe a wrap round dummy oil tank/battery box in there, not sure but it's an area that needs sorting.


Flanged alloy rims will do it for me every time, a bastard to clean but worth it. There are hints that the forks may well have been shortened by a couple of inches, looking at The Madras Marauder, albeit on the centre stand, the shrouds finish two inches above the rim. More food for thought


Nice bit of Flat Track inspiration with the little tail unit. The convoluted shape of anything to fill that space beneath the seat can be appreciated better in this shot, interesting times ahead.
Not sure about the liberal use of a drill for lightening holes everywhere though, Bullets ain't the heaviest bikes in the world and, personally, I don't think they're necessary.

2 comments:

  1. a Kenny roberts Yamaha Flattrack or a Harley XR flattrack tank wouldnt go amiss on that.... Oh or even a craig vetter hurricane type thingey, now there is a thought!!

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  2. what's the go with the paintwork? That back guard is just wrong. Look at the bike and imagine that rear guard having a paint job that uses any of the tank colours and it's a whole different aesthetic. The frame also looks to fat/dropped in the guts for the otherwise nice narrow lines. The brushed alloy yolk/handlebar/headlight set-up is sweet as.

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