Manco Thunderbird chopper build.

Pops58

New Member
#5
Well, I made the sissy bar today out of a 4 foot length of 1/2 round bar. Also reinforced the engine mounting plate and added a small round plate to the bottom of kick stand. I then cut the foot rests off and welded up a small plate to the remaining stub from the frame to accept bolt on old skool folding motor cycle foot pegs.

At the end of the day my parts showed up from OldMiniBikes so I'll able to finish the mock up stage by getting it running before deciding on a color.
Hopefully it'll be running by the end of the weekend : )


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Pops58

New Member
#6
I made good progress today. First, I spent a few hours fitting and mounting the seat, and fitting the foot pegs. After lunch I mounted the engine and clutch brake. Next was to mount the throttle and adjust everything.

I took it for a ride after dinner and was pretty happy with the way everything turned out. I'll make a few more adjustments and then fabricate a full chain guard, move the on/off switch up to the dash, replace the broken speedo with "something" cool and then add a few extra do-dads before I tear it all down for paint prep. I also ordered new tires and a front mag wheel. Still can't decide on a paint color but it'll come to me soon enough...
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#8
I spent the day painting. It went pretty good all considered. I used the "formula" provided by member I74 which worked out great


Looks real good man...I went a different approach with my Thunderbird...more drag race style...built engine..10 inch offset wheels..drag bars...and a functional light..I'm the only person I could find that took that approach with a Thunderbird...I'm problly going to stretch the frame and put a live axle in the rear
 
#9
That's what mine looks like as of today..waiting on tires to come in tommorow so I can mount the "10 inch rims... from there I'll decide whether it'll need a wheelie bar or stretched...most likely stretched IMG_20191021_092653350.jpg IMG_20191021_092703487.jpg IMG_20191021_092644844.jpg IMG_20191021_092653350.jpg IMG_20191021_092703487.jpg IMG_20191021_092653350.jpg
 

Harquebus

Well-Known Member
#14
That turned out nicer than I expected. A good clean, "aesthetic" look, nothing out of place and the right details. A longer seat that touched the gauge cluster would be my only "fix".

What wheels and tires are those? I admire the beefy look they give.
 
#15
That turned out nicer than I expected. A good clean, "aesthetic" look, nothing out of place and the right details. A longer seat that touched the gauge cluster would be my only "fix".

What wheels and tires are those? I admire the beefy look they give.
Thanks, I'm really happy the way it turned too. I thought about a longer seat at first but I was sort of shooting for the solo seat old school chopper look. Surprisingly, when I ride it, the sissy bar keeps me right in the center of the seat nicely. It should be perfect for my grandson when he grows into it.

The rear wheel is a stock Manco 8" rim and the front mag wheel is the same size from OldMiniBikes. The tires are closest tread design to the old school tires I used to run as a kid in the late 60's early 70's and are overseas mfg. from OldMiniBikes.
 
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