Malibu Wagon Update

Tommy has been a busy man, as he approaches his retirement (Only 5 days to go pal!). He has been working hard on the '80 Malibu Wagon, with almost no help from yours truly (sorry about that again pal). The big block is in and running, and we finally figured out the torque converter issue. He peg-legged it around the block....but I will wait to the first real burnout to get some picz. You should see how far he has gotten....look at these:


He ran his fuel system and is in the process of installing his new 4.11 rear with custom trailing arms.






Check out his new wheels and the slicks. The front end got new springs and 2" drop spindles to lower the ride. The big block springs were WAY too high. The rear tires look like a tight fit; we will try the spacers, but a mini-tub job may be in order.

Buell/CBR Tail swap

I've been receiving a few request for some details on the Buell/CBR tail swap, so I went back to the garage to take a few pics. The tail fairing also needs the side panels that connect to the front of the fairing and seat. The front of the side panels is connected to the frame under the gas tank by simply drilling one hole in the frame webbing and pushing the plastic tab on the side panel through. It's not a perfect contour fit, but it is close enough. The rod that was welded to the read frame sits in the pocket of the fairing with rubber hose as cushion.




I also made a small storage area that is hinged under the rear seat cowl and locked with a cotter pin. The pin also keeps the tail fairing secure to the frame. I added plenty of rubber bumpers (vacuum hose) so that the rear cowl was not scratching the fairing. The rear fender eliminator was just a piece of steel bent at the ends and welded up to connect to the frame. All the wiring is stock with the exception of the LED lights in the top license plate bolts. The LED taillight is from the stock CBR and requires nothing special, just plug it in!

The seat bracket is a small piece of rod with a washer welded to each end. It is welded to the stock seat tab with a small spacer to raise it up about 1/2 inch. The seat slips on and holds the rear fairing snug. I unbloted the ignition module (I think that's what it was) from the right side of the bike and fastened it to the top of the frame with zip ties, just behind where the seat is.