Now that the Savage is all back together and the wife is happy with it, it's time for a makeover! Once again, here she is after the rebuild.

All in all, the bike is in OK shape, except for the fading paint, fading chrome, and dull aluminum. It has new tires - that's gotta count for something!  Had a few ideas I wanted to try out. First, LEDs - tailight, signals, accent lighting, etc. Next, exhaust wrap - really retro and cool if done right.  Fork gators - every bike should have a set.  Also, I wanted to convert this to a solo rider as my wife will never be carrying a passenger. Lastly, bling - can't get enough chrome!

Day 1: Teardown

Like all good projects, this one starts off with taking everything apart.

Next, the decals are removed, dents filled and modifications made to the rear fender.  Several things will need to be done to smooth out the rear fender - the first item on the top of the image is the mount for the rear seat - I decided to leave this as it lies under the front seat and will afford the option to attach a rear seat at some point in the future if I want to.  Next is the mount for the voltage regulator - which must be relocated under the front seat. There is a raised flat platform that is stamped into the fender which must be recessed and curved to conform to the shape of the fender. I made relief cuts in the fender to allow me to work the area without distorting the surrounding areas. Below that are two raised platform that the rear seat sits on - these too are relieved and recessed into the fender.  The hole in between the two platforms is for the taillight wiring to run under the fender to the taillight.  The next area used to be a bracket that the rear seat clipped onto which has been removed. Below that area are four holes used to mount the rear taillight which will be filled in.

Here's the fender after all the metal forming is complete and ready for filling - I used fiberglass mat along with fiberglass reinforced filler to finish the rear fender.

Starting underneath, fiberglass mat is laid down over the holes and relief cuts and coated with filler.

Next, filling can begin on the top of the fender. Starting with tight, light coats and continuing until final shape is achieved.

Next, sanding and shaping until everything is smooth. Primer is applied and a finish glaze is spread to fill in low spots and sanding scratches (this is old-school, but it works well for me).

After the glaze dries, it is wet-sanded - here you can see where glaze remains are all low spots and sanding scratches that would otherwise look like crap after painting if not addressed properly.

Minor work on dents and scratches to the front fender and gas tank.  I have found that gas tanks and other steel panels with decals will actually etch all the way down to the metal - if you are not super diligent about sanding and filling - you will always see a "shadow" of the old decal in the new paint. This tank was no exception.

End of Day 1 - all parts are primed and ready for paint.

Day 2 - Paint

The paint scheme is a two-tone black and black cherry pearl. Only the tank and fenders will be two-toned; the side panels will be black cherry only.  First, the black base coat is applied - here's the first and second coats.

Next, the black is masked-off so the black cherry pearl can be applied.

Finally, the clear coat is applied.

While the paint dries, I do a little work on the front end. Here's the new mirrors, headlight and fork gators installed.

Day 2 1/2 - Graphic Design

I took an hour to polish the tank and lay out the graphics with my wife - we needed to decide where the graphics would be applied and what color pinstripe to use.  Here the progression of the tank. First, wet-sand the orange peel and dust out of the clear coat. 

Next, buffing and polishing.

The tank decal is applied.

Two pinstripe choices - one red and one white.

Day 3 - Project Completion

The front and rear fenders and side panels are wet sanded and polished. Pinstripe is applied and the parts are installed. Lastly, the decals are applied.

Here's the front fender with the chrome guard and decal installed.

Here's the rear fender with the solo luggage rack and decal installed.

Here's the all-in-one cateye LED taillight installed.

And finally, the finished product!

And of course, boogie lights...