
Then mark the guard. You can easily make this instrument to mark a square line on the edge. Base is ½" square tube. The marking line (RHSide) is equidistant from each end...

Guards and tanks are pain to secure while you cut. Jett's guard is held in this Chopper Shed special clamp, made from some water pipe, the clamp itself will be recognised by anyone who has lapped their valves... an auto valve compressor welded to the frame...

Wheel is mounted and axle pulled tight to the front of the axle plates. This ensures the wheel is centred, so the guard can be centred over the wheel. Wheel is then removed and we drill holes in the cross member and guard. A couple of threaded 8mm plates are welded to the inside of the guard with everything assembled. Mounting holes in cross member are drilled oversize to allow some movement for final alignment...

With everything bolted up we tackle the sissy bar which is the rear mount for the guard...

A pair of bottom mounting tabs with 10mm holes are made. The sissy bar will on the inside of the tabs so keep things straight and narrow otherwise the tabs would be threaded. Tabs here are being aligned for welding. A 10mm rod is passed through the tabs and measured from the rear of the axle plates (Red arrows). Yellow arrow shows chamfers ground into axle plates and tabs so weld will penetrate whole of metal and can then be ground flat...

Some discussion follows on sissy bar height. The most comfortable height for the pillion is padding up to the shoulder blades... and he wants a happy honey on the back doesn't he. He doesn't want to go too high, so a slight compromise is made. Jett has some medallions he wants to use on the bike, one of which is this belt buckle for the sissy bar. A narrower top would have looked better, but a wide curve is needed to accommodate the buckle... so we draw out the sissy bar on the floor. As Da Prof always says... "begin with a centre line and use a set square to keep both sides even"

I have a number of formers for making sissy bar tops, but none fits Jett's requirements, so we knock up another one for the collection and get to work heating the 16mm stainless round bar. There is a bit of a knack to getting the curve even... a bit too involved to explain here.

A close up of the former... a large piece of pipe, and two pieces of angle iron...

Marking for second set of bends...

Getting the nest set of bends takes care and patience...

First set being checked...

All bends completed and being checked...

This is how it will look. "Marvellous!" says Jett...

Ends being marked for trimming. Double checked with tape measure from centre of top curve...

A flat needs to be cut into the bottoms of the sissy bar. Here, set square is used to get them vertical...

Getting cuts parallel...

Flat is blacked with texta...

Then set in place and marked with a scriber. They will be drilled and tapped to M10 x 1.75 to suit a couple of stainless button head bolts. Stainless fasteners come in only the coarse thread of each size...

Guard/sissy bar bracket is made from some stainless angle. Engineer's ruler here is being used to make sure the bracket is evenly located on each sissy bar leg...

Bracket being heated and shaped to fit curve of guard...

A piece of paper is ideal for measuring around curves, here being used to mark mounting holes that will be an equal distance from each edge...

Guard blacked and marked with a scriber...

Bracket welded to sissy bar. Don't weld around the bar as it will weaken it. This is especially true of stainless. I have built up some extra weld to leave a flowing line. It also reduces a potential stress point by the weld being at an angle and not straight across...

Threaded plates being welded under guard...

Bolts done up lightly...

... and final square checked before tightening. We had to run a long bar through the top of the sissy bar and give it a bit of a twist to get everything into final alignment...

Next job is to build seat and pad it so we can set up the mid controls. Jett also has a very cool tail light which he have been modifying an will mount soon..