So i got some ape hangers. 12″ apes with Harley soft tail chrome controls. Traded my drag setup for this setup. Not a bad trade except its going to take me a bit to figure out a new clutch cable. The one that was on was rigged beyond belief. Fucking ricans can’t do a dam thing correctly….ever. So for now, the bike is sitting awaiting me to get moving on splicing wires, clutch cable and shorty risers. Hopefully soon everything will be done.
How the bike looks now
I cannot believe its been since 2007 since i have updated this blog. I got bored and upgraded the software and the look of the pages.
This is how the shadow looks now. I’ve installed a rake kit, struts, home made seat, risers….3 years is a long time to remember everything. OH yea … and a new light kit.
I ordered and received my low profile seat last week. 2″ thick hand made solo seat by Gator. What a difference sitting on that thing, wow. Sinks me right down into the frame of the bike. With the lowering kit and fork extensions, this was a great addon.
I’ve also added Kuryakyn ISO grips and longhorn pegs to the bike. Bling Bling!
Ride report on the latest mods: Got to take the bike out with the lowering kit and fork extensions, as well as the solo seat. The changes i made to the suspension aren’t even noticeable while riding. The bike does feel a little more stable at speed and there is a VERY minor difference in low speed handling, nothing to even bother me. After slapping the solo seat on, the ride is alot more comfortable now. Since it dropped me 4″ or so lower in the seat area, i could probably get away with 5″ forward controls now lol. I won’t, because i will be swapping seats between the solo and mustang depending on how long of a ride i will take on any given day. Solo seat is very comfortable, but after 50 miles it starts to numb my ass like the stock seat or that of the GZ i used to own.
Pics? Sure thing
Finally an update!
I picked up a set of 3″ fork extensions and a 1.5″ lowering kit for the bike last week. Fork extensions took maybe 30 minutes to install and the lowering kit about 20 minutes.
The lowering kit is only 1.5″ so its not all that noticeable (as if i were to stuff that tire up into the fender). But it did drop the rear and doesnt look like the tire and fender are opposite magnets trying to separate from each other.
The fork extensions sure kicked the front wheel out some and lifted the front of the bike some. Ok, so its not choppered, but it looks alot better than stock. Sitting on the bike now, i can feel the change in the angle of the bike, feels much much better. I can actually see in my mirrors now without having my arm in the view. That, and i wont scrape pegs having the rear lowered. Fork kit did a great job.
Havent gotten to test drive it yet, although it IS 65 out today (dam mud in my yard). I MIGHT get it out and update this with a ride report.
For now, here’s a pic
After alot of work i have updated my motorcycle gallery to a brand new format. The new and improved Dupo’s House – Photo Gallery is now open for your viewing pleasure. You can also register an account and have a single album to upload your own photos to in the members section. So drop by, sign up, post your ride and rate some of my pics 
#1. The bike has been put away for winter. I had it outside but couldnt bear to see it get fucked up outside under the cover. So i sacrificed a little kitchen space and put it in there. Atleast when im bored i can clean it! It will be there until we start seeing 50 degree weather again in March.
#2. I got my custom front fender in last month, but have yet to do anything with it. Now that the bike is inside, i might get to paint it. I have to get some Duplicolor paints which are becoming hard to find. I got a tip that A&A carry them so i’ll have to get over there and see what they have.
Other than that, dead slow because of winter.
New cold temp riding record set today. 27 degrees. Wasnt even dressed for it lol. Face got a little numb on the way, hands got it on the way back. Still was only 9 blocks each way…not like i went on the highway. Wasnt too bad over all. With some winter gear i’d be kicking it a little more in the cold air. Really doesnt bother me as much as i thought it would.
Watch for a fender update. My custom fender came, will post pics soon. Probably as i am preparing to paint it….. stay tuned.
December 23rd and it was 60 today. Well i just had to take the bike out for a bit. What aweseome weather. Went out for only an hour and a half but wow it was beautiful out. Hit some back roads i havent been on in a long time and almost got lost (like for-real lost) haha. I have a feeling sooner or later we are gonna get hit by snow and freezing weather for 3 months and have a late spring. For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. Snow is on the way!!
Well lets see. Its getting f’king cold! I thought i could handle this weather. I think i thought wrong lol. Dam the low 40s feel cold lol. I really need to get some cold weather gloves, thats first on the list. I also need to go get myself some very thick sweat shirts to layer up with. A tshirt, long sleeve, sweatshirt and jacket just isnt enough. I need to bundle up more!
I missed a ride on saturday with the Patriot Guard Riders (dammit). There was a ride to Saylorsburg for a soldier killed while on leave (car crash). Looked to not be a big turn out till the last minute .. tons of riders showed up. I kinda had gotten stuck in some plans anyways, but still i wanted to go. Would have been my first ride with them. Wondering who they are? Go to Patriot Guard Riders Home Page and find out more. These are also the guys who line up as a buffer against those whacko assholes from Kansas who protest funerals because “god is punishing these people for tolerating gays”. Fucking morons. Anyways, these guys go to soldier funerals to pay respect to them. They escort the body to the funeral home, form a standing line of flag holders while there, a flag line when the body is taken out and an escort to the cemetary. Once there, they form yet another line of flags. Very awesome sight. Read their website and make sure to read the thank you letters.
I am contemplating when to bring the bike into the house. I think soon if this weather keeps going south for another week or two. Then its time to bring it in and take the fenders/tank off for some customizing. I am going to paint this myself with Duplicolor. They’ve redone their entire line of paints to get professional results out of a can. Ive seen some of their vid as well as some forum members who have used it and i must say, it comes out beautiful. I think im going to base coat the bike yellow again with a heavier metal flake. Then decide what to do about a design (leaning towards some tribal thing in deep purple outlined in red). Then as many clear coats as i can get on it. Going to take it one step further and paint the radiator cover yellow too. Theres a few bikes out there that have a custom cover that was made by honda .. its kinda swooping design looks really cool and is painted the color of the bike. Since i cant get my hands on one of these, im just going to paint the stock cover yellow to add some depth to the bike in the front.
I am also looking into lowering the bike about 2″ come january. Going to use progressive shocks and front lowering kit to accomplish this. This will require a side mount plate and brake light (and i will loose my bags because of that). So i am not sure if i want to go the full 2″ or maybe 1.5″ and keep the cateye brake light under the fender. I really like the ’slammed’ look of a lowered bike, but i use my bags ALOT in the summer. So we will see.
This ofcourse, is pending that i dont chop the front end instead. I can go 7 degrees for $700. Which isnt much of a chop at all, not sure if its worth it yet. Id rather do 9 degree, but the only kit i can find is a whopping $1700 ( i dont understand why so much, its the same kit as the 7 degree, different company). Choices choices. Chop it or lower it. Hmmmm.
Also during the winter, thinking of reshaping my fenders for a more custom look. Thin out the front some for a harley type fender look and level the rear out some (very hard to explain, but same fender i can buy for $299, id rather just make my own).
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Put the baffles back in too. Noticed with the dense cold air that the bike is alot louder than it was when it was warmer out. Baffle-less it was giving me a headache. Especially on the ride up to Jim Thorpe train station for some pictures. Weird how warmer air affects the sound like that.
Updated my photo album too! I included two new rides from the past few weeks. Shadow Album
As promised, heres the info for Toy Run…
What: 2006 Toy Run
Where: Walmart in Trexlertown
When: Saturday November 18th 2006 (registration at 10am, ride at 12pm)
Ride: Starts at Walmart – Ends at 7th/Union St in Allentown
Sponsors: ABATE & WZZO
Fee: Bring a toy unwrapped for child under 10
Link: http://lehighvalley.abatepa.org/ToyRun_06.htm
