Not too bad for $1800.

[unionthug]

I finally finished last years (2011) winter project. It is a 2007 XB12stt. I have been riding it sice late Spring but it wasn't sufficiently done to call it complete and it still needs a little cosmetic work - I need to do a little buffing on the frame / swing arm and I need to trim the deutsch connectors off the right side of the bike noe that I have decided to go without a sprocket cover but not bad for a bike I have $1800 (US Dollars) invested in.

I have more photos in my gallery.

http://i589.photobucket.com/albums/ss333/customdeuce/DSCN7566.jpg

http://i589.photobucket.com/albums/ss333/customdeuce/DSCN7567.jpg

http://i589.photobucket.com/albums/ss333/customdeuce/DSCN7565-1.jpg

[Applepooh]

That is really clean man. Love the style, simple, sleek, to the point beauty! [up][up][up]

Very nice sir.

[thrstrmech]

nice:D

[BigEasy]

Nice[up] I'll give ya $2,000.00 for it today[cool]

Ya I know, HA!

Looks very nice, good work.

BTW what seat is that?

[buellbradski]

its a corbin you can tell because it says corbin on it;)

[ChuckieE]

Super clean and super nice !!!!!

[Kuntreeboy]

Nice!! Dont leave it parked round me you'll come out and find that Corbin replaced with my old seat!!!! Accidentally of course and I will beat BigEasy and give you $2,100!!! Seriously looks good though!!:D

[ATFIII]

Beautiful bike, brother!

[jakestolar]

Bitchn!

[UH60CrewDawg]

its a corbin you can tell because it says corbin on it
[up][up]

[Bossanova]

Looks good thug. ESPECIALLY the polished rear sets and heel guards! Change your mind on the belt guards?

[Dave A]

Well Done![up]

[Burton]

beautiful bike! great work!

[anrkizm95]

beautiful bike! great work!
[up]

[bobaganoosh]

what is up with the drive sprocket? did you have it drilled out to save weight? it looks sweet

[Blue xb12]

I'm lovin' it !!!!

[sak1782]

I love your seat. How do you only have 1800 bucks into all that though???

[unionthug]

$1800 was what I have out of pocket... The rest of the story includes finding a guy Chino Hills in December of 2009 with a 1994 Sportster for trade or best offer. The bike was a 2000 mile cream puff and thought I would pick it up for my wife who was away on business.

I called the guy and we worked out a deal for a .357 / .44 magnum Desert Eagle and a Walther P99 which together I had about $1300 into.

My buddy and I went down and did the deal while she was out of town. When she got back she was like wtf... That isn't my Christmas present is it??? Long story short she hated it and hated I went to SoCal with out teling her. Mostley I think she hated that I went to Taco Nazo without her. In any case the bike sat for a few months. I hated to molest it but I ended up doing a retro cafe thing to it with lots of brass bits. I sold the like new sportster pieces I took off for enough to cover about half of the cost of the parts I used in the build so between the $500 I made in take off parts and the $500 I was out of pocket the cost of that bike was $1800.

Me on a sporty is not unlike a monkey #$%^&$% a football. I ended up posting the little bike locally for $5,000 (not kidding) and sold it in 3 days to an executive chef in the San Francisco Bay Area.

So $1800 and a bit of elbow grease became $5000 and I needed a new project. I knew I wanted a Buell thought I had never spent any time on one, having focused my attention on HD stuff I knew I wanted something in the XB lineup and being a big guy who wanted to drive up and down stairs and race the occasional golfcart (on the golf course I decided an urban assault bike was for me. The Super TT seemed ideal.

Looking around the SF Bay Area $5k is about the minimum buy in for a cookie cutter TT that ran. Los Angeles seemed to have a few more choices and lower prices but getting there from Northern California was a pain in the a$$ and made no sense for something I couldn't see ahead of time.

I was open to damaged bikes, salavged bikes and roached bikes within reason knowing all the plastic was going to come off as was the exhaust, bars, risers, mirrors controls to make it my own.

I finally found the 2007 shown above (and below). It had a decent service history and while it had been dropped was not suffering structurally but needed a lot. It was perfect for my needs.

I have a few left over bits from this project if anyone needs or wants them. They include the STT air box cover, fly screen, lower chin fairing (black),
fork protector shields, number plates with most of the hardware, front peak and rear fender, belt gaurd and a carbon fiber belt gaurd and front sprocket cover and heel protectors with the black foot peg mounts (installed once but never run).

The OEM stuff is almost free $20-50 ea. or all for like $200. The carbon pieces I can do for a deal - make me an offer but please don't be crazy silly the carbon is new from American Sport Bike.

http://i589.photobucket.com/albums/ss333/customdeuce/DSCN7525.jpg

[bobaganoosh]

drive sprocket info please?

[unionthug]

Baker 26 tooth aluminum. Revs faaaaasssst looks pretty cool too. You will need to use an adjustable tensioner if you go with the Baker, or at least I had to but it allows a 3-4 tooth adjustable range.

Here are the bits I have left over for those interested. The mirrors are from Germany but stood up too high for my taste. The carbon belt and sprocket guards are new from ASB. The heal protectors are both Buell.

http://i589.photobucket.com/albums/ss333/customdeuce/DSCN7575.jpg

[kmp00k]

pm'ed

[unionthug]

The flyscreen is somewhere around here. Still debating selling the chin fairing. Make me an offer if you want something. [email protected]

[winnetka]

Very nice! [up]

If you keep trading stuff, pretty soon you might end up with a house (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One_red_paperclip).

[unionthug]

Haha.

Thanks for the appreciation. The last two bikes I've put together have been counterpoints to high dollar bikes we hear about built for people by other people with more money than cents. The first bike was the 2004 Deuce seen in the background in the photo above and were inspired by my first Harley that I bought in 2006.

It was a 2004 Fatboy the original owner bought new at our local stealership in late 2003 at the peak of HD hysteria he paid 18,500 for the bike and rolled it back to the parts counter and dropped another $18,000 on. After tax license and the like he spent $42,000 on the bike. I picked it up with 1200 miles on it for what he spent at the parts counter. It is freaking beautiful but it was stupid. I never ride it it is too nice.

That was 2008's winter project. The goal that year was put together a late model big twin with fewer than 10,000 miles for under $10,000. It turned out nicer than a lot of bikes people I ride with have spent 2-3x that on.

I documented that bike at HD forum in 08. Last year one of the biker mags used the idea for a contest. Most of the "winners" put together mid 90's evos. I was flattered but they ripped off my idea and I didn't even get a tee shirt. It was a great idea and a lot of fun and I am flattered they used it.

[unionthug]

The OEM parts are sold. Thanks Scott... That brings the net cost of this bike down to $1625.

The mirrors and the carbon bits are still available. (carbon belt guard, sprocket cover and heel protectors.

[unionthug]

Thanks Bossanova, I got those from you didn't I? I don't think the polished belt guards will work on the long bikes (STT and Uly) so they are still new in the package waiting for me to find an S or an R to use them on and to be honest I like this bike a little raw.

I think in time more of this bike will get stripped and then maybe polished. Next for me is to get the Deutsch connectors cleaned up off the right side and maybe install a catch can breather.

[joser]

pm'ed

[unionthug]

I've been asked about the carbon left over from this project. I'd let it go for half of retail.

The heel protectors are from Buell. The pully cover and lower belt guard are from American Sport Bike. Retail on the heel protectors was $95, lower belt guard $150 and the pully cover was $190. I have $434 in them and tax and shipping. I'll let them go for half of retail and $10.50 for USPS Priority Mail for all three.

Better yet buy all three and you can have them for half - shipping included, so $217. shipped to you in the USA. I'll ship elsewhere for actual cost.

Fitment is for a 2007 STT. The heel protectors fit all but the pully cover is specific to 06-07 XB's and in this case the lower belt guard is specific to the long bikes, Ss, Stt and X.

[unionthug]

I finally got a chance to clean up those oh so convenient but unsightly deutsch connectors that live under the pulley cover. This was a cheep mod that really made a difference.

I would reccomend owning a good soldering iron (at least 35 watts) before you start. Aside from that you need a little solder, wire shrink, electrical tape and maybe a some wire wrap to protect the exposed voltage regulator wires as they run under the cam cover.

I didn't spring a leak... I was installing an oil pressure gauge at the same time and some must have gotten on the muffler. Doh.

http://i589.photobucket.com/albums/ss333/customdeuce/DSCN7578.jpg

[Applepooh]

Do you still have the airbox cover? (white)

[netty2424]

What exhaust do you have on there?

[unionthug]

The OEM parts are sold. I still have a carbon belt gaurd, pulley cover and heel protectors. The muffler is a Jardine Ti. The brake and shift levers are Precision Engineering.

[unionthug]

Finally done...

http://i589.photobucket.com/albums/ss333/customdeuce/DSCN7599.jpg

[unionthug]

Well all good things come to an end and while I am quite sure I will own another Buell I am done with this bike. I have offered it up and had it accepted as a trade for a piece of real property, a one half acre parcel in a resort community 2 hours from where I live looking out over the 5th tee of a private golf course and Mt. St. Helena. It is likely I will be deleting the photo bucket that supports the photos.

See you all again soon.

M

[unionthug]

The exhaust is the Jardine Ti..

[unionthug]

A few of you have asked how all this turned out and it's been a little bit of a process but so worth the effort.

It turned out the owner of the parcel was underwater in back taxes and property assessments from the home owners association. He owned it but he owed as much as the property was really worth so there was no deal on the bike.

It took a little while but I ultimately found something to give him that at least helped him get over the idea he was going to lose the property if he didn't find someone to cure the debt so I got the parcel for back taxes and fees.

While I was up there looking at the property I found a second parcel that was one lot away listed for sale for $4900. Hmmm. $4900. It seemed like a steal considering it sold last in 2004 for $55,000. So do I sell the bike and own two parcels? Would the owner want a bike?

As it turned out the owner was 90 years old and in poor health. He was just interested in getting out form under the hassle of owning real property so I wound up buying the property for very little. Essentially about $2500 and some real estate comissions so call it $3300.

Now my gears are turning. I'm in to one acre of land in a resort community for $6500 but the parcels are separated by a third parcel. Who owns it, would he sell? If he finds out I've just bouth the adjoining parcels he will want more than the land is worth despite what I've paid for the two others.

Well it worked out. The seller wanted to sell and I had a buyer for the Buell both in the same week. In the end I put had to put about grand in on the deal (the difference between what I ha in the bike and what I paid total for the three parcels). In the I got not one but three 1/2 acre parcels on a hillside in a gated community in Lake county, Parcel #1 sold last in 2006 for $50k, parcel #2 sold last in 2004 for $55k and parcel #3 sold last in 2007 for $61k. So call it a $165k. trade...

I might have forgotten to mention the property overlooks one of the best rides through the Napa Valley and Lake County, Butts Canyon.

Here is a youtube video of Butts Canyon and some photos of the area... [up]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6RR5q-brkfg

http://i589.photobucket.com/albums/ss333/customdeuce/Lakeridge1.jpg

http://i589.photobucket.com/albums/ss333/customdeuce/Lakeridge2a.jpg

http://i589.photobucket.com/albums/ss333/customdeuce/Lakeridge3.jpg

http://i589.photobucket.com/albums/ss333/customdeuce/Lakeridge4.gif

[Loki]

I have no clue whats going on but it seems like you had some good luck!

[wanta6thgear]

Cool name.I'm in the sheetmetal workers union Monterey bay.youve got a nice bike and good luck.if youre in napa and have a tattoo itch my nephew works for hot ink.hope work is good for you guys up there.keep the shiny side up.

[unionthug]

Thanks 6thgear,

I've managed to get through 46 years without ink and think I am good. I grew up in Napa, what a great place to set up shop.

Well Loki, I started this thread to chronicle how I wound up with a 2007 Buell and the crazy way it wound up in my garage. In the end what started out as a trade for a .357 / .44 Desert Eagle for a 1994 Sporty which with a few bucks and a little cutting got me into cosmetically challenged 2007 XB12 STT which led me to a trade for a piece of land (that fell through) which led me to buying a piece of land which led me to finally selling the bike and buying a third piece of land that connects the first two.

In the end a $1600-$1800 trade became 3 parcels overlooking a golf course with just a little bit of money thrown in the deal and a lot of legwork.

I found out yesterday that because the development is priavte (not only are cops not let in without a reason) helmets aren't required either.