[Need4Speed]

Putting the Mesh on my Kat

So I went out last nite, to Tractor Supply, they dont have the gutter mesh at all..then I go to Lowes, and they dont have it in sheets, only sizes to fit gutters, so then I go where I was planning on going in the first place, Home Depot, and they were able to hook me up with a 10ft x 5ft sheet for $7.00 . So im good to go. Thats what I get for being lazy, should have just went to home depot in the first place.

So today, Im taking the plastic off the bike, and of course there is 50,000 allen bolts to hold it all on!! :rant: So here is the pics of my naked Kat. As soon as the other half gets home, we'll start putting on the mesh on the plastic. I could have started it now, but I left it in the truck of her car :bonk:

Oh and of course just my luck, I get all the plastic off, and find out that my left headlight bulb is burned out on the low beam :smash: ..so now I gotta hit up our local dealer, Action Motorsports and pick up 2 new bulbs. I figure I might as well replace both of them since all the plastic is off. knowing my luck and past experience, when one bulb goes, the other isnt far behind. Also gave all the plastic a good washdown, and vacuumed out the cooler and rinsed it down too.

 

[Need4Speed]

yeah i've about had it with allen bolts for 1 night...got most of the mesh, its setting right now, in a couple more hours, I'll take some pics and put them up.

yeah, its a camera phone..dont have a digital anymore..and wanted to put the pics up..i'll try and borrow one for the finished product so its better quality pics.

Yeah, im definately looking at the hyper whites..love the look and the light is staggeringly bright!! :dthumb:

 

[Need4Speed]

Can't wait to see the finished product. It's gonna look great. Washing the plastic was a good idea.

btw jdog, i was using the pics you put up awhile ago of the mesh, for reference. Thanks!

one quick question though, the most rear cutout, has some foam padding around it, ...did you have many problems with the expoxy messing up the foam cushioning ? those 2 small cutous are all thats left..the other 4 are finished.

 

[Need4Speed]

Duct tape??

Hey, I was just talking to a buddy of mine, told him what I was doing, he said why didnt you just use duct tape to hold the mesh on ???? I was like, wont that melt with the heat of the engine? he said he recently worked a friends bike who used it to hold on the mesh, and its been 2 years since the guy put it on, and hasnt had a problem since??

 

[Need4Speed]

Matt....Duct tape???? Not sure about that. I put mesh on one of my first bikes. And I used zip ties but that wouldn't work for your application.

I'm thinking JB Weld, maybe even a glue gun!! Also, as said before, any type of epoxy would work great!

Are these comments you are looking for Matt? If I was there I would love to help out with the mod. I love doing these type of cheap, yet cool mods!!!

yup, thats what I needed to know..im using JB weld on it..I tried to find welders epoxy, but Home Depot was out of it!! and the JB weld was in such small tubes I had to buy 3 packets of it and still dont have quite enough to finish the last cutouts. Im gonna check out a few other places tomorrow morning when Im out getting the bulbs..and see if I cant find a bigger tube of the stuff.

I dont know about the duct tape either..I just assume not have to this again next season.

Update..the JD weld is nearly set..so by tomorrow nite, we should be back in business..just in time to rain on tuesday!! :rant:

 

[Need4Speed]

Cool, thanks for the info chris!! Geez I hate knowing that I cant ride to work tomorrow! but atleast Im getting my first official mod completed. next up is that previously mentioned stock can.. uke:

oh yeah, working on that magnet as well to see if it really helps at the lights..just have to figure out where to mount it..

 

[Need4Speed]

Stage 2

OK, the project is 2/3 of the way done..just have 2 cutouts to put the mesh on tomorrow...ran out of JB Weld, so Im kinda at a standstill. Why arent Home Depot's open 24 hrs???? :crazy:

Ah well, here the pics up to date..and yeah, its still my crappy camera phone, but when they are done tomorrow, I'll have a digital camera to take the final pics of.

 

[Need4Speed]

1 more...

So far, Im quite pleased with the way it looks !!

 

[Need4Speed]

That looks really nice Matt. Did you use all JB Weld or what? Hopefully I can come out and see it first hand!!!

Yeah so far its all JB weld..but of course I ran out of the stuff, so Im leavin here shortly to go out and get the new bulbs and some more JB weld goop

yeah if you guys come down this way, we'll definately get that first official TWF meetup that Shan has been mentioning :thumbs:

 

[Need4Speed]

ok...all the mesh is on and is currently setting as we speak..should be able to start putting her back together tonite when I get home, and if I dont finish it tonite, should be good to go tomorrow. Also got 2 new headlight bulbs, just got the stock bulbs..I wanted to go with hyper whites or an equivilant but that'll have to wait as we've got some birthdays and my anniversary coming up in october..so i'll add those to the list for over the winter/mods.

BTW..im borrowing my bro's digital camera tonite, so I'll have some decent pics to put up by tomorrow of the finished product.

 

[Need4Speed]

Was able to get her back together this morning, started up like usual, no probs, headlights work (both new bulbs) signals all good.. Look pretty sweet if you ask me. CrunchieJD is picking up a digital camera tonite so we can take some pics when I get home, and put them up as the finished product, tonite.

Total Mod cost:

22.00 for both Mesh & Adhesive.. :thumbs: and about 2 total days to complete (that includes time to allow the ahesive/epoxy to set) Not too bad!!

 

[Need4Speed]

Couple of em..

I've got 0 luck when it comes to cameras it seems...the pics w/ the dig. just didnt come out clear it all, and since it isnt mine, im gonna have to check w/ my bro and make sure Im working it correctly, but as per the old standby( uke: ) camera phone, here are a couple of em just taken this morning...

 

[Need4Speed]

Nope, wont rust..I was checking w/ the Home Depot guy there, and he said im good to go, and actually the stuff he sold me, was the same type of stuff he used to use when putting mesh on cars, in the performance shop he used to work in awhile back...just a different pattern.

 

[Need4Speed]

Looks almost as good as mine. LOL. Nice job bro.

Thanks jdog & everyone..I really like the looks of it...I road to work today, and all seems well. Finally got the first mod done !! I got the fever for it now even more!! :dthumb:

 

[Need4Speed]

REally depends on the type of mesh you get..some of it has the smaller holes that it would be harder to get a screwdriver thru..mine has a bit larger holes so that its still pretty easy to slip one thru it if necessary.

Its a real easy mod, and looks way cool!! :dthumb:

 

[Need4Speed]

I'll probably start doing mine in the next couple weeks. I think i'm going to use some metal putty for mounting so i can drill and tap it. Then i can screw the mesh to that for easy removal later on. Might be tough but i like a challenge, i see what happens when i get into it. I will post some pics though.

yeah definately start up a thread with your pics, and the progress you've made. The good thing is, since this is all on the underside of the plastic..it doesnt really matter how much you mess it up on the inside, since lookin in from the outside will look sweet either way. There isnt a whole lotta room between the plastic and frame/engine so becareful how much do to it when you get started.

 

[Need4Speed]

yup, good luck..its a real easy mod, and very inexpensive to do. You'll really like the results when your done! I know I do.

Keep us up to date on your progress! :thumbs:

 

[Need4Speed]

Do you mean the mesh on the bike??? If so, looking at the pics Matt has of his bike before and after look ok in pics but if you see it in person it does look alot better. You have to really see it to know how good it looks.

I think Chris is more talking about the need for idle adjustment and making the mesh removeable..but I could be way off too..LOL

 

[Need4Speed]

I think Chris is more talking about the need for idle adjustment and making the mesh removeable..but I could be way off too..LOL

Great minds think alike chris...and so do ours.. :lol:

 

[Need4Speed]

LMAO..yup, .that's the first time I think i've done that..my bad, was trying to quote chris...oh well,