Okay, last update for now -- FANGS!

I HATE HATE HATE HATE helmet buffeting. It is evil. It is worse than having no windshield at all. (yes, I apparently do have strong opinions, sorry if that offends anyone). I wanted a glass-smooth ride. I'm planning on riding this thing everywhere, starting with a 4,000 mile round trip to the motherland for the 115th Anniversary. I've got the windshield, but the buffeting is just too annoying, so I needed me some fangs (aka Fork Wind Deflectors).

Nobody makes fangs for the Fat Bob. Don't exist. But, fortunately, I've got a drill, and how hard could it be to make some work? I found an ebay auction where Denali Harley in Alaska was selling a pair of brand-new Paughco gloss black fangs for $50. <ka-ching> buy-it now, and they showed up.

To my delight, they weren't too far off. It took drilling one hole, and cutting one notch at the top front, and -- they fit. Here's what the surgery looked like:


I was glad to see the top hole was already notched for quick assembly and release. I'm trying to keep all my temporary mods quick-release, so I can build the bike up for touring and then strip it down to streetfighting configuration in just a couple of minutes. As such, I intend to hacksaw a slot leading to the new hole I drilled, so that the fangs can be quick-release. With a slot, you could literally loosen the windshield bolts, slide these under the rubber washers, and tighten 'em back down, and voila - fangs. Loosen the bolts to remove the windshield, and the fangs will slip right off too.

But - fangs? On a Fat Bob? And especially fangs from a touring bike? Won't that look ridiculous? Originally I didn't care what it looked like, as long as it solved the helmet buffeting (and they do help quite a bit). So I didn't care, I put 'em on. And then, when I was taking the windshield off, I looked at it and thought -- I don't know if I hate this, or if I love it... because the fangs, in black... they kind of just make the Fat Bob look even madder, meaner, and more pissed off than before. They look like big bulky shoulders, so it makes the front of the bike look like a big burly pitbull or something. I don't know. I think I like it. Anyway, here's what it looks like with the fangs on and no windshield:

 

Shoot those fangs suit it too man and remember never go full retard Fat Bob.
And yes "Chrome is a H8 crime" ha ha.

 

Oh, and you can also see in that picture that I ditched the amber turn signal covers and replaced the bulbs with Custom Dynamics LEDs, and used smoke lenses. Looks so much better, and the lights are insanely brighter. Massively brighter, like -- it's hard to believe how much brighter they are. I did the same with the back, so the turn signals in back have smoked lenses, they run red as taillights, and they light up double-bright as brake lights. Great upgrade, very happy with them.

I tried to capture a picture showing how much brighter they are, but it's hard, I mean, taking a photo of a light just usually means seeing a blown-out light. So what I did is I swapped out one of the rear lights, and left the other one stock, and then took a photo of their reflection on a white card. I don't know if this will get the idea across or not, but the left side is the LED, the right side has just a pathetic little tiny splotch of light -- that's the stock rear turn signal. Just no comparison. I think it's a great safety upgrade, should be much more visible to drivers on the road.


Revzilla part # was 1047217, Custom Dynamics kit # GEN-KITBCM-1 . Found it on sale somewhere for like $150, Revzilla price-matched it and shipped free, so you gotta love that. Great value for the money, great lights.

 

Now that I look at the front of the bike in that fangs picture, all I can see are bolt heads everywhere... and I sorta hate it, but I sorta like it -- it has an industrial vibe to it. But I ordered a set of Kuryakyn Kool Kaps in black, so we'll see what it looks like when I try capping off some of those bolt heads... I'll brass what I can, and black the rest...

 

I'm thinking about getting an engine crash bar, but I can't stand the gigantic loops that are out there. I know people have them, I know people love them, I'm not saying they're bad, I'm just saying ... I don't know, those gigantic loops look like training wheels to me. But I want to take a lot of advanced rider courses, and I don't want to drop the bike and thrash it, so a crash bar seems like a good idea. I found one that's brand new on the market, isn't even on their website yet, but the guys sent me pics of what it will look like (and they even modeled it on a Fat Bob):





I dunno, to me that looks hella cooler than a big loop. Looks like a highway peg bar. Just concerned that maybe the bottom section might compromise lean angle maybe? Should be available from them in a few weeks.

 

 

The cruise works great -- it's just like a car's cruise control. There's one button/switch added to the left grip controls. Push it in to turn cruise on/off. Push it down to set cruise, or to decelerate; push it up to resume or to accelerate.

 

 

 

That's the one. It's a shame the pillion seat is so damn ugly. It really spoils the look of the bike, but I am going to have to order one nonetheless to keep my wife happy.

At least when she's on the bike her *** should cover some of it! And she doesn't ride with me very often, so most of the time that seat will lurk in the garage like a big old beached whale....