Yvonne Bike: the story
This project
started out with a $700.00, rusted out hulk that was very hard on the
eyes.
I was approached
by a young lady named Yvonne. She got the bike from a cousin or something
and thought it was a good deal. I wanted to find a fast way to the back
door! But she brought the bike over and I starred at it for a month or
so trying to figure out what to do with it. One day, I happened to park
a Champion framed XS650/750 Yamaha behind the rusted P.O.C.! What I instantly
saw was the Iron Sportster motor with a Champion bodywork silhouette!
Hmmmm! That looked pretty good. So I set about carving up the frame,
making a swingarm, and fitting up the new Champion seat and tank.
Mark's Performance Products twisted up some trick stainless header pipes that attached to a set
of used Storz mufflers. I got some XJ650 Turbo Yamaha triple clamps and forks
tubes, and installed them with TX750 Yamaha sliders. Gremeca (Lockheed
type), calipers and a set of Spondon brackets gave the front end the
look of authority. I had a used TZ250 front wheel that got stainless
spokes and everything polished up.
I went through the motor completely, as in a standard rebuild with some
mildly more aggressive cams. The frame was powdercoated gloss black,
the engine side covers wrinkle black and the body work got a vintage “Racing” type
paint scheme by Dennis Wells. Custom wiring and plumbing finished it
off! It went to a couple
of shows and then hit the road. I gotta say, that this bike was a blast
to ride and the handling was very “neutral”!
It had a proven front end and Works Performance rear shocks to keep everything
going straight, so I couldn’t miss!
