Anyone want a Harley-Davidson?

[Gil]

Hi Alan,

Nothing like showing off..., of course something like that needs to be shown off.

So, does that make you a "Shown Off"?...,

Beautifully executed in all respects!...,

Best regards, +Gil

[eatcrow2]

Absolutely amazing looking wheels.. Hard pressed to find anything modeled better then that. Can't beat that look.

[whulsey]

Looking great, photographed a 1915 HD yesterday that is similar.

[racepaper]

Hello Alan
a fantastic work

[AlanG]

Thank you gents. Whulsey, I'd love to get up close to one of these (even a new-fangled 1915 version), but I don't know where I might do so in these parts (eastern England). By 1915 things had moved along quite a bit from "my" version - modified frame, improved engine with mechanical inlet valve, chain drive - but it still shows a strong family resemblance. That was soon to change.

Volker, good to hear from you. How is your fantastic work, the 1:1 chopper?

This is where I am:



I do believe I might get this finished some time in the next six months!

Alan

[JohnO]

Alan,
This has been a fantastic build. Are you taking names yet?
Also a dumb question but I have seen many paper modelers that include that checkered cube in the photos, different colors. What's the story behind that?

[sjsquirrel]

This build just gets better and better. I sure hope you release a kit some day because I'd love to build this beauty.

Great work Alan, as always.

Steve

[cdavenport]

Your joinery is quite precise. Do you have a specific technique for making the curved tube joints that you can share?

Just joined in the thread.

[AlanG]

Charles, thank you for your comment about "curved" pipes. As it happens, your post came just as I was about to form the handlebars, so I have taken a few extra photographs of the technique I am using in this particular case. In practice the method has to be fitted to the parts supplied by the designer - in particular the size of the tube and whether it is constant throughout, and how the seam joins up from one piece to the next. In this case the tubes are quite small (about 2mm diameter), and since I am the designer I can choose a fairly simple method with a continuous seam.

The part is drawn as a single long tube, but with markings where slices need to be removed to make the bends.



The first thing to do is roll up the whole thing on a mandrel. In this case a piece of 1/16 inch brass tubing was just the right size, but if need be I use sticky tape to build up to the right diameter.



The lens-shaped cutouts for the bends are already drawn on the tube, so they are then cut out by rolling it underneath the scalpel blade.



At this stage I like to add the extra bands for the grips and the fork joint, while the mandrel is still supporting the tube.



Then the bends are edge-glued, a few at a time. It is a great help to have an orthographic view as a guide to the finished shape.



The remaining joints are made, and end caps added to the grips.



Now it will be put on one side until everything else is done, as it will be very vulnerable once attached to the forks.

Alan

[rjm]

Looked at the 3rd pix and thought, "he should have left the
rod in". Then the 4th pix, "of course he did"!