OCDetails
04-11-2009, 03:27 PM
So I'm back on two wheels again. I'm very excited! I bought a 2006 Suzuki Boulevard M50. It is about 805cc, so it is plenty of bike for what I need it for. I don't plan on going on any long road trips, so a larger bike isn't really necessary. It will be a cold day in hell before anyone rides on the back of the bike too, so that is another reason I didn't go for the 1100 or 1300.
Actually, I considered the V-Star 1100 and the VTX 1300 for a bit. I settled on the M50 because it has everything I loved in both of those bikes plus a couple real advantages. It is fuel injected, liquid cooled, and shaft driven. The only thing it doesn't have that I wish it did is the heel toe shifter and floor boards, but I'll survive. I haven't ridden with those before anyway, but they just seem to be so much more comfy.
I'll have to post better pictures of it all cleaned up. I took a lot of it apart today and polished it up, but it is so cloudy outside that the pictures I took just don't do it justice. Here are a couple from when I bought it.
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y42/OCDetails/bike1.jpg
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y42/OCDetails/bike2.jpg
I de-stickered it except for the warning sticker on the fuel tank. They always make those things so stinking hard to get off. I think I'll just cover it with something else instead. Better that than a scratched up tank. The only stickers I had to pull off were the Suzuki sticker on the back and the M50 stickers on the side covers. Piece of cake. Then I polished it all out with Danase Swirl Abolisher 2. There weren't really any swirls to speak of, but I wanted to make sure I gave it a good polishing regardless. Then I preped it and sealed with the Wolfgang combo. I just gotta use Wolfgang on blue this color. It is a must.
The bike already had the Cobra pipes installed on it, but I got the stock pipes with the bike, so you never know what I'll do with those. I love the sound of the Cobra pipes and I can't really imagine taking them off and going back to stock. The stock pipes look great too though. The top pipe sticks out further than the back tire and they are slash cut. Very stylish. I'm thinking I might put them up for sale and get a windshield or something. I like the look without the windshield, but I can definitely appreciate the benefit of having on on those really bad headwind rides.
Here are some post polishing pictures I took with my cell phone. I'll get better pictures posted when the sun comes out and I've got my good camera. The battery was dead... lol I'm just full of excuses today, eh?
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y42/OCDetails/Photo0250.jpg
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y42/OCDetails/Photo0251.jpg
Guess I gotta check the cell phone lens for fingerprints next time. lol
Anyway, it is good to be back on two weeks again. I look forward to talking bike detailing more in here this year as well as detailing in general. I've had a wild last six months with job changes and all sorts of strange stuff, but God willing I'll be doing a lot more detailing this year and will have a lot more going on with OCDetails.com.
Actually, I considered the V-Star 1100 and the VTX 1300 for a bit. I settled on the M50 because it has everything I loved in both of those bikes plus a couple real advantages. It is fuel injected, liquid cooled, and shaft driven. The only thing it doesn't have that I wish it did is the heel toe shifter and floor boards, but I'll survive. I haven't ridden with those before anyway, but they just seem to be so much more comfy.
I'll have to post better pictures of it all cleaned up. I took a lot of it apart today and polished it up, but it is so cloudy outside that the pictures I took just don't do it justice. Here are a couple from when I bought it.
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y42/OCDetails/bike1.jpg
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y42/OCDetails/bike2.jpg
I de-stickered it except for the warning sticker on the fuel tank. They always make those things so stinking hard to get off. I think I'll just cover it with something else instead. Better that than a scratched up tank. The only stickers I had to pull off were the Suzuki sticker on the back and the M50 stickers on the side covers. Piece of cake. Then I polished it all out with Danase Swirl Abolisher 2. There weren't really any swirls to speak of, but I wanted to make sure I gave it a good polishing regardless. Then I preped it and sealed with the Wolfgang combo. I just gotta use Wolfgang on blue this color. It is a must.
The bike already had the Cobra pipes installed on it, but I got the stock pipes with the bike, so you never know what I'll do with those. I love the sound of the Cobra pipes and I can't really imagine taking them off and going back to stock. The stock pipes look great too though. The top pipe sticks out further than the back tire and they are slash cut. Very stylish. I'm thinking I might put them up for sale and get a windshield or something. I like the look without the windshield, but I can definitely appreciate the benefit of having on on those really bad headwind rides.
Here are some post polishing pictures I took with my cell phone. I'll get better pictures posted when the sun comes out and I've got my good camera. The battery was dead... lol I'm just full of excuses today, eh?
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y42/OCDetails/Photo0250.jpg
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y42/OCDetails/Photo0251.jpg
Guess I gotta check the cell phone lens for fingerprints next time. lol
Anyway, it is good to be back on two weeks again. I look forward to talking bike detailing more in here this year as well as detailing in general. I've had a wild last six months with job changes and all sorts of strange stuff, but God willing I'll be doing a lot more detailing this year and will have a lot more going on with OCDetails.com.