Custom Tank / Fenders

[BlackBeast]

Got bored with the look of my Banshee, and wanted to change it up a bit. Obviously there are a few companies out there that make new plastics, but they all pretty much look the same.

 

 

Since this thing will eventually be a show-bike and ridden on the street, I wanted something really wild and different. Extra fuel capacity would be nice, too. :baseball_w00t:

 

I'm going to post updates on the entire rebuild of my Banshee from the ground-up, but it will probably be a long, slow, and painful process.

 

A word of warning: I've never messed with sheet metal before. If you have any advice at all on how to do this better, PLEASE let me know!

 

Anyhoo, here's how it all starts:

 

 

I basically free-handed the stencils out of construction paper, and designed it one piece at a time. It was easiest to start with the backbone (the big square piece in the middle), then add the rest of the shapes from there.

 

When it was all done, I used masking tape to hold it all together. The paper mock-up tank gave me a pretty good idea of how it would turn out.

 

 

I used a Dremel tool to cut the shapes out of 22# steel, then made the bends and tack-welded it together. It's a bit sloppy for now, but gives a good idea of what the shape will be.

 

 

 

Here's another shot:

 

 

Here's a shot of it on the Banshee:

 

 

And a side-shot...

 

The new tank comes back a few inches further than the original tank, and is about 8 inches wider overall. This will require a new seat.

 

I plan on making a stepped-design, similar to a sport-bike. This should give it a really aggressive profile when it's all done.

 

[Hollister_Hitman]

good luck, How long is it going to take?

[BlackBeast]

So far, it hasn't been too bad. It took about a day to do the template out of construction-paper, another day to trace the pieces onto sheet metal and cut them out, then tonight I did most of the welding.

 

All in all, I've been at it for about three days, maybe 4-5 hours each night.

 

The whole project I probably won't have finished until January if I'm lucky. A lot of that has to do with cash flow more than anything else. It's hard to finish projects like this without shelling out the dough. :sad:

[Polish]

That some sick a$$ $H-t bro...............looks goood!!!!

[Cotton eyed Joe]

Are you using an English Wheel to crown the panels or are you just kind of hammering them around a cylinder to get a decent shape?

[BlackBeast]

I dont have any fancy tools for shaping sheetmetal, so I tried to keep everything geometric. The way the curves all flow, the pieces automatically take the desired shape when you weld them together.

[BlackBeast]

Grrrrr.... bad news. The welder is burning right through the 22#, and its warping like a mother f$@%er.

 

Basically Ive wasted the past three days, and about $50 in materials....

 

Going to pick up some 20# or 18# and start over.

[SandShots]

Grrrrr.... bad news. The welder is burning right through the 22#, and its warping like a mother f$@%er.

 

Basically Ive wasted the past three days, and about $50 in materials....

 

Going to pick up some 20# or 18# and start over.

 

how about adjusting the welder or using diffrent wire?

[BlackBeast]

Welders on the lowest setting, and Im using 0.025 wire... Not sure that I can go any lower on the wire, but Ill check with the welding shop tomorrow and see what they say.

[nunyabinness]

that is pretty bad a$$. i think it will be forkin' awesome when it is done.

[ClimbAnyHill]

Looks like we have a new aftermarket company coming up! I'll be waiting for the matching fenders.

[BlackBeast]

Thanks guys...

Apparently I can go down to a .023 wire, but not sure that would help much. I think I'm going to go ahead and bump up the metal to 18#. It's going to be a lot harder to form, but will be much stronger and easier to weld. This way I also won't need to keep refilling my Ar/CO2, which is a pain in the arse, and should be able to put it together much faster.

 

I'm going to transfer the poster-board templates to plywood, which will let me trace the patters with my plasma cutter instead of using the dremel. This will definitely be nice since I'm cutting thicker metal now.

 

As an added benefit, it will make these easier to reproduce since you guys seem to like it so much. :thumb:

 

I won't start on the front fenders until the tank is done. I'll have to do some thinking on how I want it all to flow together.

 

As for fuel capacity, the rough measurements indicate that it will be just a little short of twice the stock fuel capacity.

 

The only real downside for trail riding are the sharp corners. On a bumpy ride, they might start to dig into your leg a bit if you're not wearing thick jeans. Maybe I'll chamfer the edges near the seat, that'll help a bit.

 

-Tim