Latest Whaletail Tank Bibs

[Spinner]

Here are the latest 2 bibs I have made for a custom request from a couple of gents in England.

5/6oz W & C leather, decorative double buckstitch and triple loop laced edges with 12mm domed rivets running between. At total of 23 yards of 1/8" kangaroo lace and 30 rivets on each one.

The pocket was a new design for me, moisture is a big concern over there so I designed the pocket to have no 'gutters' for water to sit in, all seams are either covered or downward facing and the lid has long gussets to ensure water stays out. When I asked how often they rode in the rain, their response was, "if we didn't ride in the rain, we'd never ride!" One of the guys wanted a pocket, the other wanted just the bib itself. They also chose different wrap styles.

Finish is a bit more hardcore than usual because of this. After dying & burnishing, I used neatsfoot oil, then tan-kote, then Pecard's leather conditioner followed by Pecard weatherproof leather dressing (2 good coats of the last).

Enjoy!

Chris

P.S. - you might notice some bowing on the wider bib in the photos. This is because I didn't want to bolt down the speedometer and possibly put scratches in the bib before it was centered and attached with the velcro underneath.

Once the owner mounts it on his bike, bolting everything down won't be an issue and there won't be any bowing.

Edited October 10, 2010 by Spinner

[dscott]

nice work

[dirtclod]

Nice work Spinner. I really like the way you carried the gusset up on to the top to make it watertight when the top is closed.

[Thumper]

I love it.!!!

I would love to make one like that for my VTX.!!!!

My only change would be to take the leather all the way to the front of the speedo housing. On most VTX'x, the speedo housing vibrates from the engine vibs causing the housing to 'rattle". My idea is to bring the bib all the way to the front and make it slightly thicker at the front to provide a "pad" for the housing so to help cut down or out the rattle noise.

Hey Chris.....how'd you make the pattern for this tank bib? I need to make one for my bike and I'm so new at all this that I'll have to make a pattern to go by first.

[Spinner]

Thanks for the kind words DS and Dirtclod.

Thumper, my design is based on the Peaceful Cruisin bibs that a lot of VTX folks used to buy (PC retired this year from custom work). They actually only went 1/2-3/4 on their bibs as well and I've read that this will solve the speedo buzz VTXs have. I have 5 different patterns for these bibs depending on the style the customer wants, so definitely make yourself one.

What I did was to tape some duck cotton/light canvas fabric onto my gas tank with blue painters tape, find the center line and mark the line. Once you have the center line, draw your design for one side and make sure to do the full wrap and everything (just don't stretch the fabric otherwise the pattern won't be true). Once it's all wrapped around the tank and your design is drawn, fold the pattern in half at the centerline and then cut it out; this should give you a full pattern. Transfer that to leather and put center line registration marks in areas that won't show so the leather can be lined up. Case the leather really well (you should be able to manipulate it anyway you want). The lay the leather on the tank, line it up to center and tape the top down to the tank under the speedo to keep it from stretching down too much. Once it's in place and secured, start at the leading edges and wet mold the leather to the tank working both sides evenly back towards the center. I use medium sized binder clips with a piece of scrap leather between the clips and the bib leather to avoid marks. As you make your way around the tank, clip that area to the tank seam and keep going. If the leather bunches up under the tank, just keep moving the bunch towards the center (near the tank bolt) as this will be trimmed/hidden by the seat. Once it's all formed and clipped, let it sit in a warm area (but out of direct sunlight) until the leather feels room temp. At this point, you should be able to remove the binder clips and finish molding the lip & edge. Use a bone folder to define the line where it wraps over the tank seam, get everything folded and tight underneath, etc. At this point you can also cut a V-shape out over the tank mounting bolt at the seat and use that relief to get wrinkles/edges tight underneath. Once your satisfied with the bottom edge, let it dry completely.

A couple of tips:

* When you make your pattern, add two little tabs at the underside of the leading edges. This will be for velcro to secure underneath the tank.

* If you are going to do any tooling, lacing or stitching, punch the holes before doing the wet molding. It's much easier to do when the leather is flat and the holes won't stretch out of shape if the leather is cased properly.

* Make a felt version of the pattern (only the part that covers the top of the tank) before wet-molding. Tape the felt to your tank with blue painters tape and wet mold over the felt. The reason for this is it will create an air pocket under the bib so when you glue/stitch the felt to the back the bib still fits properly. Otherwise it will be really tight and not fit well when fully assembled.

Let me know if you want me to send a photo of my pattern to give you a starting point. It won't fit your bike, but you'll understand what your pattern should look like.

Hope this all makes sense!

[TroyS]

Looks awesome!

[Big Steve]

Hey Spinner, nice work dude, i'll keep a look out for these at rallies, the" how to " part was also interesting what part of England are they going to ?

Regards, Steve.

[Spinner]

Thanks Troy!

Thanks Big Steve. These two were bound for Hertfordshire. Not sure where that is in relation to where you are.

That would be pretty cool if you ran into them though.

Chris

Edited October 18, 2010 by Spinner

[Big Steve]

Thanks Troy!

Thanks Big Steve. These two were bound for Hertfordshire. Not sure where that is in relation to where you are.

That would be pretty cool if you ran into them though.

Chris

Chris, England aIn't that big mate, Hertfordshire its not far from Nottinghamshire if i find them i will let you know,

Regards, Steve.