Paint (the ORIGINAL plan): Dark base coat with a few flecks of cobalt flake, the
impression of a few stars in a sky. Front fender art: a romance novel portrait of John and I
as pirates. Tank top: full moon ocean scene, with a ship
and cliffs silhouetted by clouds, bordered with a few jasmine
flowers and leaves. The tank sides: "Jasmine Wind"
in gold leaf. Saddlebag sides will show underwater scenes: Atlantis ruins, dolphins, reef, sharks, and ?
Of course, this is all subject to change!
March Updated Plan: And of course, it HAS changed!!
After getting
the basic ideas for the art, it started to morph into all kinds of ocean
references to things that are significant to me. Although the test
panels with dark base and cobalt flake looked great, it just wasn't
right for this project. We are now doing a white base with Kustom Shop
Sapphire Blu Diamond Crystal Pearl - OMG, the test panels are
absolutely gorgeous!!
Here's the final artwork plan...
Front of front fender: John and I in "olde time" photo
(sepia tones) as pirates with a gold frame, overlapping a "treasure map"
of Key West with an "X" where we got married. There are a few gold coins
and jasmine blossoms scattered on the map. Rear of front fender: a starfish just like the one's I've
seen in FL with my EDA text. Tank sides: gold pinstripe bordering black and blue
insert with "Jasmine Wind" lettering in gold, and a dolphin silhouetted
by the moon. Tank top: porthole moonlight ocean scene, ship and cliffs
in background, and a mermaid in the foreground looking towards the ship
- her tail hangs OUT of the porthole onto the tank top! Sidecovers: left shows a dolphin Mom and baby, and the
right has an octopus. Saddlebags: left depicts a dolphin Mom and baby looking
at Christ of the Abyss (in the Keys), surrounded by reef edges and black
to a gold pinstripe. My spiritual side - I find God in many places.
Right bag shows a hammerhead shark overlooking the ruins of a theatre in
Sicily (I found photos of the theatre online and wanted to add the
Sicilian ruins because John is Sicilian). There are also 3 Queen
Triggerfish by the ruins - there are 3 kids in my family, 3 in John's, 3
in my Mom's, 3 in my Dad's, and I loved watching the incredibly
beautiful fish when I went snorkeling in Maui! Rear fender: between the luggage rack and the tail light:
a pirate skull with bandana and the words: "what happens on ship, stays
on ship".
There will also be a few jasmine blossoms scattered here and there on
the bike.
7/5/07:
Let the mods begin! We had the bike home less than 45 minutes,
and we were already pulling the passenger seat, luggage rack,
and emblems off of her!
10/08:
Ordered the LED tombstone taillight, teardrop taillights to use
as turn signals, illuminated plate frame, 2 drybag saddlebag
liners, wide levers and the front fender tip.
Also ordered the cobalt flake for the paint.
10/08:
John fabbed some
spacer bars for my highway pegs...shiny and perfect! I used to have to
kick my legs straight out to reach the highway pegs, almost
hyper-extending my knee (NOT good), but now I can RELAX my legs!
Here's a quickie "mockup"
of the future base coat with just a bit of flake (pre-artwork) and the
rear lighting-to-be. I'll probably end up going
with a much deeper blue or black for the basecoat. I'll make a decision
after we do some test panels. (Edit:
the panels looked great, but as you read earlier, I made a
decision to change the base color in March.)
12-07
- 1/08:
The rear lighting has been removed from the fender, and
the holes have been patched and welded. The teardrop's
installation holes have been cut into the bags - they
look
SWEET! The tombstone light and luggage rack have
been fitted to the welded fender.
ABOVE:
Bella, the Quality Control
Expert, inspects John's work.
VIDEO: How We Cut Down the Windshield
2/16/08:
We spent the afternoon cutting down the windshield, as it was as tall as
a skyscraper and I couldn't see over it at all. That can be dangerous if
you ride through rain at night.
DISCLAIMER: I do not
advocate or recommend cutting shields. This demo was done on a
National Cycles Switchblade polycarbonate shield, which is very
durable compared to other shields (check out their video comparing polycarb to other shields on their website). We are not liable for any
damages or injury to you, your bike, or accessories if you decide to cut
your shield. Any shield modifications will VOID your warranty!
March: Reshaping the seat. Purchased gel insert, and vinyl to recover the seat.
Seat will be white with a blue insert, with dolphin graphic stitched
onto the insert. We're also adding a custom seat rail that a friend was
nice enough to create for me. We'll put together a seat video after the
seat is completed.
March:
After doing test panels, I decided to scrap the dark paint. I really
liked the blue flake on the black, but it's just not quite right for the
artwork that is going on this bike. The bike will now be painted white
with a blue pearl finish. FINALLY...I've started to
airbrush the artwork! :) This is just a very rough mock up of the "bike-to-be" in white.
3/13/08
Tank top (part of the mermaid tail is coming out of the porthole, but
it is masked off in this picture). CLICKABLE
3/13/08
Tank sides done. The tank will be white - there is gold around the artwork
because there is a 1/4" gold pinstripe taped off around the art.
3/14
& 15: Front of
front fender, and an example of the many pieces of masking
necessary to create the details of this piece.
Custom Search
March 16:
Bags and tank are now white with pearl. We will just barely knock down the nibs of the intercoat with a white
scotch brite pad before taking the parts to the clearcoater. Rear of front fender (6"
starfish with Eclectic Dawn Arts lettering - only detail of starfish
shown), and rear fender (skull and lettering fits between the tail light
and the rack). Right
saddlebag with white, pearl and gold pinstripe. Tomorrow I'll be
finishing up a few jasmine flowers scattered on the bike parts, and then
off to the clearcoaters...
March 18th:
I saw the first layer of clear on the fender...woohoo, the
pearl just SINGS!! And that was just in the paint booth. I can't wait to
see her in the sunlight. :) Everything but the helmet
and gas tank are in Freddy's hands now.
Oh man, now I need to paint my
HELMET!!!
March 21:
The tank has been touched up, and my helmet is now painted. Both will
go to the clearcoater tomorrow.
The big news is that my custom seat rail is done! A friend created it
from 1/2" diameter stainless steel rod. The seat will be white
with a light blue inset. The inset will have a double dolphin graphic
stitched on it.
March 22:
Well, the tank and my helmet are at the clearcoater's now. John
started detailing the frame and the chrome tidbits all over the bike
while the parts are still off.
Here's a shot of the tank top porthole, and a preview of
the kanji and jasmine flowers on my helmet. We
also picked up the Kury ISO grips today. All that's left to purchase are
the new tires...yeeeaaaaahhhhh, right...I'm sure Matty (short for "Matsurika") has more farkle
in her future, after all, pirates are always looking for baubles and
booty!
March 28: The seat is done, and it is beautiful. Mike did an
incredible job shaping the seat and sewing the cover. The
dolphins stitched on the inset are sort of "3D" which really
adds something special to the seat. Check out the video at left
of the entire seat customization. Updated March 30th, 2008.
April 2:
Picked up the rear
fender from clear coat, installed the tail light and illuminated plate. Fender
and seat are on. I will pick up the rest of the parts tomorrow.
With the white, the whole attitude of this bike has CHANGED.
I'm
so happy that I'll be riding soon. Perhaps this weekend!!
<<<<< Wow,
look at the sparkly pearl! This picture is just about life-size.
April 3:
Picked up the rest of the parts from X-clu'sive. Freddy is such
an awesome guy, he really goes the extra mile to make things
look perfect! Bags are wired, and all parts are on...we just
need to hook up the wiring and install the front fender and
windshield. Wow, this bugger looks HUGE now that she's white!
Check out the detail of the 3" ship on the gas tank...you can
see the crow's nest and climbing ropes.
4.6.2008:
IT LIVES!!! Watch the short video at left to see the maiden
voyage of the Jasmine Wind! What
an exciting day! I thought it
might take a while for me to get used to the big beast again,
but as soon as I cracked open the throttle on the first curve, I
was in love with the T all over again. *happy girl*
The full project
video is at the top of this page. View the entire project from
the day we brought her home, through the customization, to her
maiden voyage on 4/6/2008.
We also added
saddlebag luggage racks and a headlight visor since the
video was completed (shown at right).
Thank You:Johnny V (fabrication, mechanical, and muscle,
Mike Lyles (upholstery), Freddy and Jerry (clear
coat), Dean (seat rail), and everyone who kept
cheering us on throughout the project!!
All our bike and helmet projects are
clear coated to a perfect finish
with Glasurit products by the fine
folks at X-clu'sive Collision Center in Danville, Virginia.
Phone: 434-791-4288 Tell Freddy and Jerry that Dawn sent you!
Here's how the
bike looked for her maiden voyage on April 6, 2008 (at
right).
Since the maiden
voyage...
June 2008, Matty wins 2nd place at the
Crane Tire Bike and Car Show.
June 2008,
added $6 camera mount constructed of PVC pipe pieces. IT
WORKS GREAT! (see my
Youtube channel for the Roanoke and BRP trip with Dad for the first
video taken using the mount with my Panasonic/Lumix DMC-FX07
digital camera)
July 2008, added Cobra swept floorboards
(at right) - wow, do they make the ride COMFY! Also
snagged a MATCHED set of Hopnel saddlebag rail bags from
a fellow Tourer rider, Stony, on ebay (it's almost
impossible to find that left bag anywhere, so I was very
tickled to win that auction).
December 08, Matty appears in Hot Bike Baggers magazine (link at the
top of the page).
1998 Honda 1100
ACE Tourer
Project
10/08:
Ordered the LED tombstone taillight, teardrop taillights to use
as turn signals, illuminated plate frame, 2 drybag saddlebag
liners, wide levers and the front fender tip.
March:
After doing test panels, I decided to scrap the dark paint. I really
liked the blue flake on the black, but it's just not quite right for the
artwork that is going on this bike. The bike will now be painted white
with a blue pearl finish. FINALLY...I've started to
airbrush the artwork! :) This is just a very rough mock up of the "bike-to-be" in white.
March 16:
Bags and tank are now white with pearl. We will just barely knock down the nibs of the intercoat with a white
scotch brite pad before taking the parts to the clearcoater. Rear of front fender (6"
starfish with Eclectic Dawn Arts lettering - only detail of starfish
shown), and rear fender (skull and lettering fits between the tail light
and the rack). Right
saddlebag with white, pearl and gold pinstripe. Tomorrow I'll be
finishing up a few jasmine flowers scattered on the bike parts, and then
off to the clearcoaters...
March 22:
Well, the tank and my helmet are at the clearcoater's now. John
started detailing the frame and the chrome tidbits all over the bike
while the parts are still off.
April 3:
Picked up the rest of the parts from X-clu'sive. Freddy is such
an awesome guy, he really goes the extra mile to make things
look perfect! Bags are wired, and all parts are on...we just
need to hook up the wiring and install the front fender and
windshield. Wow, this bugger looks HUGE now that she's white!
July 2008, added Cobra swept floorboards
(at right) - wow, do they make the ride COMFY! Also
snagged a MATCHED set of Hopnel saddlebag rail bags from
a fellow Tourer rider, Stony, on ebay (it's almost
impossible to find that left bag anywhere, so I was very
tickled to win that auction).
