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Dia's Dream Machine
To begin the project, the bike was stripped down to the bare bones, with only the engine left on the frame. They then cut and split the frame at the saddle, expanding it to accommodate a widened chrome swingarm that would allow for a 180/16" rear tire. Coupled with a new low profile fat rear tire, Mark installed 11" Progressive Suspension shocks with full covers and a White Brothers lowering kit onto the swingarm.
Dia's Dream Machine Fender
Mark's friend Brandon helped out by machining a set of hollow studs from the head bolts of a small block Chevy. These studs allowed Mark to use the fork stops as turn signal mounts below the bottom trees. The headlight is from the Springer family and required the wiring harness to be reworked and relocated under the new gas tank.
Next on the list was the interior mounting tabs of the oil tank and battery box, which were repositioned to fit closer to the frame. This got them out of the way of Dia's legs when she has her feet on the ground. The oil filler neck was also cut down so the cap was nearly flush with the tank. Like an artist, Mark searched for the right look for the bike. The sheet metal changes started with a swap meet find of a prototype rear fender made for a Softail. The fender had a frenched-in taillight and license plate pod already in place. The taildragger portion of the fender was cut off and the fender reshaped to fit the now-spread fender struts. A Pro-Street front fender was also cut down and mounted onto the front end. Finishing off the sheet metal, was a stretched tank with flush mount caps. This rounded out the short, fat, and minimalist look Mark was after. The bike was now reaching the short, squatty look Dia had wanted.
With the front end removed, the lower legs were chromed and a set of widened triple trees machined to fit the 39mm tubes were obtained from IEI in Illinois. The widened forks now allowed for a 130/16" front tire to be mounted on a 5" rim. Dropping from the stock 19" to a 16" wheel also lowered the front end another inch or so.