Looks like a great transformation you have going on! Cant wait to see the end result!!

 

Some minor updates and set backs: I had to take the bars back off the bike and return them to the powder coater. I was in the process of wiring them when I noticed the coating chipping off at the center hole where the control wires come out. When I took a closer look I could tell that something around the hole affected the finish and it was chipping quite extensively. Glad I caught it when I did and not after I had everything buttoned up. I dropped them off this morning and the fellow who does the work for me was really apologetic and promised to get them re-done right away. They do great work and have done dozens of parts for me so one out of 40-or-so aint bad. And as long as they make it right I'm still a loyal customer.

Another thing I wanted to share is minor but I felt the info might be useful to someone working on their jiffy stand.

Part of my changes is swapping from floorboards to forward controls. I decided to move on to that given the set back with the bars. My new controls re-use my existing jiffy stand and I was a little worried about the removal. Some time ago during a rainy night I took a wrong turn and slammed into a pot hole that was covered in water. I had my ex on the back so the impact was pretty jarring and it knocked the spring loose from the jiffy stand. Thankfully we were next to a custom paint shop and the owner happened to be working late and saw us and offered to help. We got the bike in his shop and while I sat on it holding it up he muscled the spring back on with a pair of vice grips. It was quite a struggle so I worried how I would manage to remove the spring.

The service manual simply says "remove the spring from the jiffy stand and bracket" as if it's just a matter of doing so. I figured the problem out differently.

First I removed the pretzel clip and top bushing off the pin. Because it's under tension, the pin will not just ease out. I used the socket end a 1/4 ratchet extension on the end of the pin and tapped it out with a hammer. Once the pin was out enough to clear the top of the mounting bracket, the jiffy stand tilted outward from the bracket. This released the tension on the spring when then came right off. With the spring removed I simply re-aligned the jiffy stand into the bracket which relieved the tension on the lower part of the pin, allowing me to remove it the rest of the way.


(You might be able to tell what I mean about the jiffy stand angling out of the bracket when you work the pin out far enough. However, this in turn puts tension on the pin near the bottom so you have to remove the spring at this point and then align the jiffy stand back into the bracket to finish removing the pin.)


(The un-assembled unit. I honestly don't know how Harley expects that you can simply remove the spring without following any other procedures. If any of you out there have other information please share it.)

Another bit I wanted to share about the jiffy stand is maintenance and inspection. For the last six months or so I felt that my stand operated pretty rough and didn't really stay perfectly in the retracted position. I keep lubricating it but it didn't help. I did notice that what I thought was a washer at the top of the pin under the clip wanted to pull through the hole. When I worked the pin free I saw small pieces of copper colored metal fall out. I figured something was seriously wrong with the stand. Turns out that the washer was not a washer but a bushing and there is one on each end. Both of the bushings had completely disintegrated over time. I picked up a new set along with a new pretzel clip and cleaned all the old grease and dirt off the stand and the pin. I'll post pics soon of the installation of the jiffy stand and the new forward controls.


(Here is what the stock pin looks like along with the original bushings and clip. You can see how bad things were when compared to the new bushings on the right. When I picked up the new parts the service guys said that most riders tend to neglect really checking and servicing this critical item. I always lubed my stand but after 63k miles, the bushings had simply had it and no amount of lube was going to make things operate smoothly!)

 

SON-OF-A...!

You've no idea how I'm dying inside to get riding again!!!

Time will tell if I was brave or FOOLISH!

 

I saw that first pic and thought,I had that back fender! But,I see you put 2 REAL fenders on it! Nice!!!

 

Looking Killer Skeez!
Nice to see those pipes working out for you. They do look Killer in gloss!

 

Hey Bud! Thanks!

I'm sure you noticed between this post and my responses elsewhere that I ended up with a Shadetree fender after all. The opportunity to buy it at a good deal sort of fell in my lap here on the forums. That said, having purchased it confirmed my thoughts that using something like a fender from Led Sled and making my own mounting system not only would have been cheaper and not too difficult to make, but the end result would probably be better and more durable. Of course the kit I got has the older style mounts that Kyle first put out and I understand that they've been improved upon greatly. However, I gone through it all in my head numerous times and can envision much more elegant and durable mounting solutions. For now I'm going with this fender since I've put he money into it. I even plan on running the existing mounts but I will be making my own struts and tag bracket which I think will go far in making it more durable.

 

Right on man! I don't have the time nor the skills to do that myself.
I am banking on Kyle's (STF) word that this is far from where he started years ago with the neg. reviews. I'll be rocking a sissy bar as I need to have a place to tie down luggage, and prefer the wife to stay put (most of the time)
Fingers crossed it al works out!

 

Right on!

I'd be interested to hear from someone who actually rides a passenger directly on the fender. I don't know that I would trust it despite the addition of struts. My brother owns a 2008 Rocker C which as you know has a swing arm mounted fender. We took it off recently to give it a fresh coat of clear. We were both amazed at how stout it was made. However, we both felt like it made sense that Harley developed two different passenger seat systems that both kept the passenger off the fender and connected directly to the frame.

As I stated in my original post, I plan for this to be a solo ride. That said, I am way to fond of having a pretty gal on the back of my scoot while tooling around. As such I plan to use one of the two aforementioned Rocker passenger seat options for the occasional two-up romp. I actually had the idea a long time ago and purchased to sets of the Harley rocker seat set ups from a fellow on Craigslist for a song. I sold one off and made double my money back and kept the second set with this current modification to my Bones in mind. Since then I have seen at least one or two people use this very system on their Crossbones bobbers. Not the best look for the bike but I KID YOU NOT that had it not been for my ability to take on a passenger on my Bones, I'd have missed out on at least a couple of opportunities to "hook up" with some very pretty women over the last couple of years.

 

Holy $h!t man,
how did I miss the whole Rocker seat thing? I need to google more!
If you got any links please share. My wife doesnt ride often. And I consider a passenger seat a tool. It doesnt have to be pretty, it has to work.

 

Great write-up description and fantastic work. From one X-Bones owner to another, "you're the man."

BTW: when you take off and add a new gas tank did you ever have the gasket go bad such that gas leaked out, and then you had to replace the gasket? I know you have to put in a new gasket every time the tank is removed.

Sorry to hear about the wife leaving.