Frankenbike

2k primer, wet sand 600, base coat, clear coat. Needs a good foundation.
 
my original brackets put the flat tail of the the fairing parallel to the bottom of the tank... the short L bracket sit on the front tank wings and the tank stud holds them in place....

Frankenbike
 
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850commando said:
my original brackets put the flat tail of the the fairing parallel to the bottom of the tank...
Click to expand...
I may have to find new brackets for the wings.

I know they make fairing brackets that attach to the down tubes of the frame. That will allow me to raise the fairing.

EDIT: The picture didn’t come through the first time I saw this. So you’re saying that those two small brackets mount in the holes where the tank attaches?

Is that original PR or aftermarket?
 
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Norcoastal said:
Because I’m crazy, I mocked it up.
Click to expand...

No, you're wrong there.

There's 2 choices:

1)go with what's already been done by other "kits" made in the past and endure (temporarily maybe) the set up that may or may not work for a person of your size.

2) OR,... Mock it up! and make the necessary adjustments. (recommended)


I have the honda dunstall fairing on my bike. It's not as small as your fairing. I wanted more coverage in the wind while I was sitting more upright so that's the fairing I chose (thanks GP). I did not want to have a fairing that I needed to be in a race position to get some of the wind off my chest at hiway speeds.

I mocked up the fairing with the parts I had. I sat on the bike and worked out how much I wanted to adjust the fairing's position, based on my body position and where the handlebar position fell inside the fairing's cut outs. I computed that I wanted to go forward one inch and upward one inch from the "mock up" position. I got my awesome welder friend involved and we cut the yoke bracket up and made the adjustments. (at the same time I changed it from a unicorn bracket into a forked bracked so I could see the ammeter in my headlamp.

I also designed a bracket for the downtubes to support the wings of the fairing and had my welder buzz it together right on top of the full sized drawing I made on a piece of 1/4" plywood. I think there's a picture of that somewhere on the site here.

In the end, there's compromises because there are things you can't change, like being a tall person or how far backward having an interstate tank moves your seat which causes you to lean forward more. You should expect a few compromises.

Here's the link to the image of my lower fairing support:
https://www.accessnorton.com/attachments/lower-fairing-bracket1-jpg.11466/

You can see my bike's progression from stock here:
https://www.accessnorton.com/NortonCommando/pictures-of-your-norton-commandos.5804/page-81

So, ...Mock it up. Sit on it. Get a sense of what things you want to adjust. Make the adjustments. Ride it...
 
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o0norton0o said:
No, you're wrong there.

There's 2 choices:

1)go with what's already been done by other "kits" in the past and endure (temporarily maybe) the set up that may or may not work for a person your size, who may want to make adjustments...

2) OR,... Mock it up! and make the necessary adjustments.


I have the honda dunstall fairing on my bike. It's not as small as yours. I wanted more coverage in the wind while I was almost sitting upright. I did not want to have a fairing that I needed to be in a race position to get some of the wind off my chest at hiway speeds. I mocked up the fairing with the parts I had. I sat on the bike and worked out how much I wanted to change the fairing's position, based on my body position and where the handlebar position fell inside the fairing's cut outs. I computed I wanted to go forward and inch and upward and inch. I got my awesome welder friend involved and we cut it up and made the adjustments. (at the same time I changed it from a unicorn bracket into a forked bracked so I could see the ammeter in my headlamp.

I also designed a bracket for the downtubes to support the wings of the fairing and had my welder buzz it together right on top of the full sized drawing I made on a piece of 1/4" plywood. I think there's a picture of that somewhere on the site here.

In the end, there's compromises because there are things you can't change, like being a tall person or how far backward having an interstate tank moves your seat which causes you to lean forward more. You should expect a few compromises.

Here's the link to the image of my lower fairing support:
https://www.accessnorton.com/attachments/lower-fairing-bracket1-jpg.11466/

You can see my bike's progression from stock here:
https://www.accessnorton.com/NortonCommando/pictures-of-your-norton-commandos.5804/page-81

So, ...Mock it up. Sit on it. Get a sense of what you want to adjust. Make the adjustments. Ride it...
Click to expand...

Thanks for the response and the information. I agree, no way to know otherwise.

The riding position was terrible. I like Your down tube brackets. I wonder if you can buy them anywhere. I’m sure you can.
 
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This coil bracket just kicked my ass. It was a pain in the ass to remove it and add the steel bar that held the wings, but it was too low. So I had to take it all apart again to remove the steel bar and replace the coil bracket yet again.

That probably took an hour for one little bracket.

Anyway, I needed to raise the fairing so I have a better seating position and I’m not lying on the tank.

I did it and raised the clip ons and now it feels a lot better.

Now I need to find a better fairing bracket for both the front and the wings.

I’ll find one, I’ll use this one now temporarily just to mock it up.

This is better...

Frankenbike
 
My downtube bracket was a homemade, incorporating those rubber mounted U bolts from Mcmaster-Carr to grip the downtubes without crushing them. I also made a horizontal return on top of the bracket plate, so I could get extra long bolts from the gas tank support wings to triangulate support for the bracket and also pinch my dual dyna coil in place between the tank wings and the bracket. If you were a midget, you could do a chin up on my fairing. It's very solidly mounted.

Edited to add:

There's a lot of shit that can screw you later down the road in the build, so the more stuff you check with your mock up, the less potential issues later. Mount your instrument cups to make sure they clear your fairing. I think the smaller fairings usually abandon the stock cups for a mounting plate. (but I'm not sure)
Things like the wiring harness will be stretched if you move the headlight shell forward more than an inch, so be wary of that too... lots of stuff to consider... Trust me, I've already gone through it.
 
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o0norton0o said:
My downtube bracket was a homemade, incorporating those rubber mounted U bolts from Mcmaster-Carr to grip the downtubes without crushing them. I also made a horizontal return on top of the bracket plate, so I could get extra long bolts from the gas tank support wings to triangulate support for the bracket and also pinch my dual dyna coil in place between the tank wings and the bracket. If you were a midget, you could do a chin up on my fairing. It's very solidly mounted.

Edited to add:

There's a lot of shit that can screw you later down the road in the build, so the more stuff you check with your mock up, the less potential issues later. Mount your instrument cups to make sure they clear your fairing. I think the smaller fairings usually abandon the stock cups for a mounting plate. (but I'm not sure)
Things like the wiring harness will be stretched if you move the headlight shell forward more than an inch, so be wary of that too... lots of stuff to consider... Trust me, I've already gone through it.
Click to expand...
Appreciate the advice. I will be mocking up everything. I’m sure I’ll put things on and take them off many times.
 
Plus - mocking up is fun ! Most of us do this for enjoyment , so do whatever it takes to keep you smiling.
 
Norcoastal said:
I may have to find new brackets for the wings.

I know they make fairing brackets that attach to the down tubes of the frame. That will allow me to raise the fairing.

EDIT: The picture didn’t come through the first time I saw this. So you’re saying that those two small brackets mount in the holes where the tank attaches?

Is that original PR or aftermarket?
Click to expand...

dunstall
 
if you are serious about this fairing setup can i suggest you skip the stock instruments and go with a modern digital gauge package alla ~ https://www.trailtech.net/digital-gauges/vapor/752-x .... you loose a lot of weight and rotating cable , if i hadn't already had my clocks rebuild i would have gone this way... thin wires and electrons take up little space and can be hidden all over the place...
 
850commando said:
if you are serious about this fairing setup can i suggest you skip the stock instruments and go with a modern digital gauge package alla ~ https://www.trailtech.net/digital-gauges/vapor/752-x .... you loose a lot of weight and rotating cable , if i hadn't already had my clocks rebuild i would have gone this way... thin wires and electrons take up little space and can be hidden all over the place...
Click to expand...
I didn’t even knew these existed. Very cool and pretty reasonably priced given the functionality. I have to check them out. Thanks
 
So these things should come with and instruction manual.

I wish I knew that you should install the chain guard BEFORE you add the Z-Bars.

Busted up a few fingers tonight trying to get the little bolt and nut on at the front of the guard.

Also, how do you tighten the shock bolt that sits inside the chain guard?

It’s fun adding a little bling.

Frankenbike


Frankenbike
 
A small screwdriver between a bolt flat and the guard to hold in place, then tighten nut.
 
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