Hey all,

I am looking to Un-Dress my Road King meaning I want to remove the items from the bike that really make it look like a dresser. In this part, I am looking to clean up the looks of the fenders, and go for more of a custom look.

I have run into some concerns about it. I need to do this on as small of a budget as possible, as I'm not rollin in it yet, I'm still a Graduate student.

I've noticed that the items I want to remove (Chrome caps on both front and rear fenders, as well as rear skirt on the front fender) They have holes in the fender where they are connected.

Logically, I'd say replace both front and rear fenders, while that is likely the best way to do things, its certainly not the cheapest. 1 or 2 years from now if I am not already into a new StreetGlide or RoadGlide Custom, I'll replace the fenders when I re-paint the bike, but for now I want to find a way to cover up these holes with something decent.

SO, from what I can see my options are:

1. Find a small, nice emblem to put over the front and rear holes.
2. Cap them with some sort of black plastic cap
3. Boddy filler, sanding and painting (might as well replace them)
4. Find some cheap black SG or RKCustom Fenders (they're out there, but finding black ones is harder)


Are there any other options? Does anyone know of any nice small emblems that might cover those holes up? What would be a good way to do this on a budget?

I appreciate all your responses in advance.

 

filling and painting may not be as bad as you think. I needed a new rear fender for my RKC and had the same problem finding one, most of the touring bikes had the hole. Well, a local painter had a RK Classic fender that he welded the hole and painted vivid black for $250. I forget the break down on price, but I want to say $150 for the fender and $100 for the weld and paint.

Not sure what your price range is but it may not be as expensive as you think. I would at least call around and get prices before deciding that painting isn't an option.

 

I know exactly what you are looking for because I had to fill some similar holes on my black 09 RK Police.

Go to the specialty hardware section of your local Orchard Supply and look for plastic hole caps. The come in 3/16", 1/4", and 5/16" sizes in either black or white. They are not listed on-line nor can they be special ordered so you may have to go to a couple of Orchard Supply stores to find the right ones.

Good luck,
Murph

 

Damascus, I thought about those things, and it might come down to that as a temporary fix. The holes in the front and rear are in a sort of recess, which might make this out of the question.


cbrenthus, I guess I always thought it would be really expensive, but perhaps it wouldn't be so bad? the skirt on the rear of the front fender has holes along the bottom,but someone who does body work should be able to fill them and sand them down properly.


Thanks for your suggestions so far!


You know, my brother-in-law owned a body shop not too long ago before he moved to Alaska, I wonder if he could patch them up, paint em and ship em back to me? I'm not even sure if he has the stuff required up there in the Fridgid north.

 

I have almost exactly the same bike as you. And I also have started the process of de-blinging the King.

I was super lucky and found a brand new vivid black SG fender on Craigslist for $50!! I prefer to go this route because I just took my entire original fendor and packed it up for storage in case I want to put it back to original condition (like to sell it).

I too have the laced wheels, but I switched to blackwall tires with the new SG front fender (E3 tires ROCK!, but that's another thread). I have removed the rear rubber bumper and frame and replaced with the appropriate brace you can get from HD for about $40.

I too would like to get rid of the rear bumper tip light, but I admit I like the extra illumination. So I am considering this kit from HD; Tri-Bar Lighted Rear Fender Extension Kit # 91067-07 (see attached photo). I however, would like to have it painted vivid black instead or chrome (did I really say instead of chrome? ). I would also consider putting on a SG rear fender if I could find one cheap. There is also just the little sticker plate that they put over the rear bumper hole like on RG's.

I have also put on SG small rear bullet turn signals to get rid of the huge light bar. Much cleaner.

Unfortunately I don' have any current photo's to post. I will work on that.

Good luck!

 

Pumba11

That is exactly what I am looking to do. I am going to pick up a SG fender extension/filler panels, and use the fender light included, I don't like the ones that come with RKs, but I do like the ones that come with SGs. I don't have a fender light now, just a chrome cap. I already have the appropriate brace rather than the bumper, so thats a good thing.

I reacted the same way when i decided to de-chrome the bike, but honestly I am seriously considering doing some blacking out.. not completely, but just the right combination of chrome and black.

I plan on picking up a set of used 16" SG Wheels, and going with a 160E3 in the back and a 130E3 in the front. I hate the white-walls. I know a lot of folks love them, but I'm not them. And to each their own. Later I'll get an 18" SG wheel for the front because i really love the look, but I don't I can afford one of the 18"ers yet, as theyre still very expensive.

Anyway, in terms of the fenders I'm down to just watching craigslist for a really low cost one, or taking some lessons from y brother in law on how to use body filler and get the bike painted next year.

I'm also going to be removing the giagantic light bar and going with an SG style light bar, and removing the chrome visor on the light. I honestly have tried to like it, but it just aint happening.

Pumba, your response was really great, and I enjoyed seeing that someone other than me is doing the same thing!

Here is a couple pictures of the bike, this is when I got it. I've changed bars to Heritage bars, I'm selling the Chubbys. (I know, sortof a downgrade, but the WO518's hurt my back, and gave me the wheel-barrow feel)

 

Johh, yeah my friend jokes that I building a Street King! I would love to put SG wheels on my bike, but it's a '99 with the 3/4" axels and I understand its a beyotch to convert the newer 1" axel wheels. I could be wrong. I would also like to get the Kuryakyn bullet lights for my front light bar to matach my rear turn signals. Never ends does it. I will try to snap some pics for you. Had to winterize it here in MN but its just in the garage.

I see your last name is Griggs, one of my former best friends was a "Griggs" originally from NC, God rest his soul. He took his life a few years back.

Sorry for the downer. I also see your are a falconer...very cool! My wife is a eagle watcher. We have many here in MN where I like to ride the HD.

 

I recently released my Harris Hawk so i could concentrate on other things in life, but I hope to be flying again here in a year or two. Its a fun lifestyle, but very very time consuming. Most of my immediate family is in the western US, but I understand we have many distant relatives in the east.

I think thats exactly what I'm building, a Street King. I'll even get the fairing, but keep it removable. I'm calling my bike "Project Ultimate Convertible"

I want to have components that i can add for every situation, from Summer custom style, to full touring, to winter riding, I've got a list somewhere in a spreadsheet with potential combinations, but right now I'm working on the "Base" setup.

I plan on removing the light bar during the summer, because honestly I don't ride at night, so I'd go with Street Glide style mounted Bullet style, but I'm also going to have the bullet style mounted on the light bar for winter, when I ride to work in the dark.

 

I have built my own detachable fairing from OEM parts. Its nice to have the options.

 

Ohh, I have also removed the rear crash bars. Also cleans up the look. HD has a kit for that but I think the SG/RG parts are cheaper.