XS650 project

Moving on to the sheet metal, I decided not to use the fender I had on the bike during mock-up. It is a Suzuki T250 fender that I'd modified and used on my SR500 for awhile. I like it, but it is just too full of a fender for this bike.


Here is more of what I want, on an XS650 from a show earlier this year. I wanted to make the front a little longer to add clamps for the brake lines, but this is pretty much the look I'm after.


I dug through some fenders I had, and I'm going to use this Suzuki GS850G fender. This is from a GS I had, which I'd put an SR500 fender on, so I knew the mountings were fairly close to the Yamaha. I test fit it and put some masking tape where the brake lines run so I'd leave the front long enough.


One nice thing about this fender is it has fairly sturdy bracing, unlike the T250 fender, which should help handling a bit.


Here is a quick way to get the first rough cut fairly close. Cut a piece of paper the same width as the fender.


Fold it in half.


Cut the folded paper to the rough shape of the desired fender cut.


Unfold and tape it in place.


Use some spray paint as a marker.


Do the same for the other end, and ready to cut.


Here is the rough cut.


I put it in place without bolts and pushed it against the tire, then put some masking tape across the top of the fork mounts.


Then lifted it up to where the bolt holes line up, and you can see the clearance. It could go a bit lower, but looks good to me right here.


Here is how close the fork and fender mounts are. I just drilled the fender holes out a little bigger to fit it.


I drilled holes to use some small cable clamps for the brake lines. These are just so they won't rub.


Next is to remove the paint with Rust-Oleum aircraft stripper.


Then I filed the cuts smoother, and it is ready to sandblast and paint.