Seat cowl....

First topic message reminder :

Ive been looking for a cheap seat cowl .Plenty of cheap cowl on E-bay but of cause none for a 1250 .
To get a solo rego i guess the pillion seat has to be plastic or fibre -glass to pass .
Since the 1250 seat is in two parts ,what about removing the seat from the bike .
Remove the front rider seat from the base .
Cover the rear section with a thick plastic bag tightly.
Fibreglass over the top of plastic covered pillion seat .
Pull fibreglass when dry ,trim ,sand ect .
$10 seat cowl

Sounds easy ????

Geez gus. you're a bloody genius

I've been looking for a hand on a stick for you Gus but you have beaten me to it

First off they are Tomarto Plants .
Needs another coat of paint in a couple of days , and maybe a rubber pad on the vertical bit . But overall not a bad result .Ventura rack fits over the
top which i'm not sure it will on the E-bay $179 one .

Start manufacturing Gus

When's the solo reg test?

Gus, that is brilliant.

To paint it gloss it would have to be a better job than i did as the gloss shows up all the dips and high points . Also there is the colour match
problem and a decent polish job . I'm not THAT keen ,thats when you buy one .

Thats ace Gus! Man of many talents.......but the hand on a stick - GENIUS I tells ya!

Seriously, just like 2WA says....when's production starting?

I've been banned from fibreglassing at home , and fare enough .I used to make surfboards at home and it kind of invades the house .

Looks good mate & did you polish your TB's?

Kind of .Metal polish and a toothbrush .2 min job .

Another stupid question!!
Did you just use the resin and not the glass sheets/woven mesh covered in the resin?

PLaced two layer of 6oz cloth over the seat allowing it to hang down past the edge of the seat .Add resin ,get rid of air then another 6oz cloth
If you go 3 layers straight off it awkward to get the resin to penertrate all the way through .I used a 2 in brush to work it through .
Remember i did this kind of thing for a job so i've learnt a bit from all my stuff ups . If you use Laminating resin (doesnt fully dry) you can do
1 layer at a time , a bit easyer but slower .

I do recall you mentioning your glassing experience .
Now you pointed out that theres sheet hangin out, I see it . The cowl looked so transparent, didnt look like there was sheet there. Love your work Gus , tips and tricks most welcome

Its only clear until you sand it .I used a good quality surboard resin .Genaral purpose resin is just as good (and cheaper, but not as clear ) as you are going to
paint it .Fibreglassing is all about sanding .If its as rough as guts ,lots of sanding .Nice and neat ,not much .
As they say inte trade ,if your glassing is rough ,you will be getting a visit from the sander .Everone works sub contract so he wants as neat as possible
so he can earn a wage .

Glassing room
Steel box bottom RHS sucks the fumes out .Glass rack (2 rolls ) slides along to each stand .


Finish coat time .

Is that a dirt floor in there Gus?

River Sand . Resin drips off boards onto the sandand turns solid.After a while you pick it up and dispose of it .Also stops the floor being slippery .
In the end i got sick and tired of having to wear a mask ,yet alone the health issuewith all those chemicals and dust .

gus wrote:River Sand . Resin drips off boards onto the sandand turns solid.After a while you pick it up and dispose of it .Also stops the floor being slippery .
In the end i got sick and tired of having to wear a mask ,yet alone the health issuewith all those chemicals and dust .

the sand on the floor is a good idea /there was a boat builder opposite one of my works who didn`t use it & had to chip it up with shovels when it got too thick .

Ended up having to remove foam padding on pillion seat .Pulled all the staples out and expected the foam to be glued in place .Luckily is
was just sitting in position .Put fiberglass mold in position and drilled two holes either side through the seat base and attached via 4 metal threads .
Inspection tomorrow morning at licensed mechanic . $70 .Carnt see any problems as i went to see him today .

fingers crossed !

All went without a hitch so now have solo rego .
Price for 6 mths Rego and CTP (compulsory ) DUELL seat Qld = $211
" " " " " " " SOLO " " = $120 .
SO now to put grab handle back on ( thats legal )
How about covering the fibreglass cowl in the original seat vinyl so it looks stock ?
Solo plate is on sub frame .


Best mod EVER if you dont carry a pillion . Thats half the rego cost !!!!!!

I cover the fiberglass cowl with the original vinyl and ended up with this .Now THATS a GREY AREA .LEGAL or NOT ?. NO FOAM and will break if
sat on but LOOKS like a seat ???????

gus wrote:I cover the fiberglass cowl with the original vinyl and ended up with this .Now THATS a GREY AREA .LEGAL or NOT ?. NO FOAM and will break if
sat on but LOOKS like a seat ???????
https://2img.net/h/i1128.photobucket.com/albums/m496/gus60/IMG_2779.jpg

Be prepared to argue your case Gus but strictly it qualifies I would think.
Many a tag that says "no seat" could work
I like it but would prefer some storage instead. How hard would that be?

Not hard at all , i nearly did it with this idea .You see the near vertical section directly behind the rider seat ,cut a section out of that to gain access.
Stick on some velco tabs around edge .Get a piece of foam rubber with the opposite velcro tabs and cut it to look like a bum ,back pad over the slot .

There is not as much space in that area as it looks .Remember you have the base of the seat in there.May be a light spray jacket at most

gus wrote:I cover the fiberglass cowl with the original vinyl and ended up with this .Now THATS a GREY AREA .LEGAL or NOT ?. NO FOAM and will break if
sat on but LOOKS like a seat ???????

Not a bad job Gus we`re looking for another trimmer at work.

gus wrote:I cover the fiberglass cowl with the original vinyl and ended up with this .Now THATS a GREY AREA .LEGAL or NOT ?. NO FOAM and will break if
sat on but LOOKS like a seat ???????

you could use contact adhesive to get the vinyl to follow the true shape of the cowl which might make it look less like a seat

great job however