Flat Deck project.

Oldschool

Oldschool

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Well the weather is no longer fit for riding so the winter project season is underway.
I went camping this past summer with the bike. It was brand new and I did not want my gear,(tent air mattress and sleeping bag to mess up the shiny paint. Specifically the grab handles and tail section. I spent hours covering the surfaces with clear protective tape. It worked and when the trip was over I peeled it all off except the top of the tail section. Too many airbubbles and seams for it to look good staying on. I came across a post on the other forum where a member with a Gen 2 like mine bolted a topcase bracket in place of the rear seat. It gave me an idea. Being a former trucker that hauled flatdeck, I decided a flatdeck was exactly what was called for. I still wanted the weather protection for the tails contents so.... I bought another rear seat and took it apart. I saved the foam and cover should I ever damage mine. I kept the original seat intact so I have the option of taking a passenger.

The plan is to make an aluminum "deck".With aluminum spacer posts and bolts. Attach it to the plastic seat pan, making swapping it out for the seat a 10 second job. This will keep "freight" off the paint and make securing it much easier. I made the cardboard template today and will in the following weeks fabricate the aluminum deck and have it powder coated.

Pictures will follow to show the progress of the project. Cost so far; $97.00 for Yamaha rear seat.
 
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Keeping busy.

FZ1inNH said:
Sounds like a great plan. Self-made products are awesome! :D
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How awesome remains to be seen, but I am very particular so it should turn out good. Also a side note, I ordered my Pazzo levers today, Gold shorties with Titanium coloured tabs(switches). Should be here by next weekend ! :party0011:
 
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That's a great idea for carrying the extra gear. I remember that post from the other forum.

As for the Pazzo levers, you're going to love them, especially on the clutch side since now you will have adjustment there too. I don't have small hands and I always felt that the clutch lever was way too far out. I know I could just have bent the lever back a bit, but that just not my style. The Pazzo's add some bling too :D
 
Flat deck stage 2

Oldschool said:
Well the weather is no longer fit for riding so the winter project season is underway.
I went camping this past summer with the bike. It was brand new and I did not want my gear,(tent air mattress and sleeping bag to mess up the shiny paint. Specifically the grab handles and tail section. I spent hours covering the surfaces with clear protective tape. It worked and when the trip was over I peeled it all off except the top of the tail section. Too many airbubbles and seams for it to look good staying on. I came across a post on the other forum where a member with a Gen 2 like mine bolted a topcase bracket in place of the rear seat. It gave me an idea. Being a former trucker that hauled flatdeck, I decided a flatdeck was exactly what was called for. I still wanted the weather protection for the tails contents so.... I bought another rear seat and took it apart. I saved the foam and cover should I ever damage mine. I kept the original seat intact so I have the option of taking a passenger.

The plan is to make an aluminum \\\\\"deck\\\\\".With aluminum spacer posts and bolts. Attach it to the plastic seat pan, making swapping it out for the seat a 10 second job. This will keep \\\\\"freight\\\\\" off the paint and make securing it much easier. I made the cardboard template today and will in the following weeks fabricate the aluminum deck and have it powder coated.

Pictures will follow to show the progress of the project. Cost so far; $97.00 for Yamaha rear seat.
Click to expand...

Stage two completed: Aluminum (1/8") deck cut. Bent the sides and front down 30 degrees and welded the joint on the sides. Bent the rear up 30 degrees. Cut the slots and drilled the mounting holes. Cut the 3/4" square spacer tubes, after carefull measuring. Test fit the unit on the bike. So far so good !

Next will weld the spacer tubes to the deck plate's underside and powder coat.
Cost total at this point $175.00 Cost estimate for powder coating, $5.00
 
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Looking good so far. You may want to put a piece of rubber molding (door edge molding) around the edge closest to the rider so that it wont hurt you or your gear.
 
Thought about that

NJFZ1 said:
Looking good so far. You may want to put a piece of rubber molding (door edge molding) around the edge closest to the rider so that it wont hurt you or your gear.
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I agree, and had thought about what I was going to use there. Might Carve and cover a chunk of rubber into a small backrest. Amazing what you can do with a hockey puck and a dremel, and a bit of leather.:shine:
 
That looks awesome!!! wonder how hard it would be to do an aluminum back rest that you can either weld on or make it so you can take it off :tup:
 
Thanks

Etroze said:
That looks awesome!!! wonder how hard it would be to do an aluminum back rest that you can either weld on or make it so you can take it off :tup:
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Aluminum is fairly easy to work with and light. The reason that I put the bends along the sides was for esthetic reasons as well as functional. Aluminum is fairly strong at 1/8 " but the bends dramaticaly improve that. They also work for bungee cord attachment points and give it a nicer overall look.

I just finished up with the welding of the tubes and will do the final clean up tonight. Depending on the powder-coating place it should be done by tomorrow afternoon. I did add a piece under the rear spacer tube to spread out the load and strenghen the rear attachment point. It could easily carry the weight of a person, no different than the seat.

If I were going to attempt a backrest I would use steel. But looking at the seat tray it could be done. Depends on your fabrication skills, and patience.
 
Nearly Complete

Oldschool said:
Stage two completed: Aluminum (1/8\\\\") deck cut. Bent the sides and front down 30 degrees and welded the joint on the sides. Bent the rear up 30 degrees. Cut the slots and drilled the mounting holes. Cut the 3/4\\\\" square spacer tubes, after carefull measuring. Test fit the unit on the bike. So far so good !

Next will weld the spacer tubes to the deck plate's underside and powder coat.
Cost total at this point $175.00 Cost estimate for powder coating, $5.00
Click to expand...

STAGE 3: Cleaned up and fine tuned the corners, making sure that there were no sharp edges, including around the strap slots. Used a grinder wheel on a dremel. Bead blasted this morning when I got to the shop in preparation for powder-coating. Ran it over to our handy neighbor and it was powder-coated in Black, with a fine metalic flake, 1 hour later. Still warm when I picked it up. Will paint the carriage bolt heads and do final assembly tonight. Cost for powder coating - $10.00 (bit more than anticipated) Total cost this far: $185.00
Will add pictures tonight.
 
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Done

Well after the test fit and photo shoot last night. I'm happy with the project. Solid as a rock, fits as good as the stock seat and sitting on the bike it doesn't rest against my backside. Even in full gear I doubt I will ever notice it back there unless I am shifting around on the seat and slide back further than I usually do. The front edge and corners were rounded off carefully. After the powder coating it was even nicer. I don't even feel the need for any protective rubber moulding. Best to keep it simple. I did feel the need to stick on some fancy decals from Alpinestar and Pazzo. I never stick decals on the bike , but the deck was OK.

Total cost for all materials: $185.00
Labour: who cares, it was fun!
 
I think it looks awesome. Great job Oldschool!! Thinking of producing more? Thats how many guys start off. You'd be able to get the price down and make an affordable, and useful part for GenII owners. Not to mention that you could make some spending loot to fund other things......like more mods!!!:yes:
 
The thought

FZ1riderNY said:
I think it looks awesome. Great job Oldschool!! Thinking of producing more? Thats how many guys start off. You'd be able to get the price down and make an affordable, and useful part for GenII owners. Not to mention that you could make some spending loot to fund other things......like more mods!!!:yes:
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The thought had crossed my mind. The priceyist part of the project is the seat from Yamaha. I doubt if I could ever get that cost down. The rest would be cheaper in quantity.
I was thinking that it would make a great mounting spot for 1 or more cameras. Mounting them would be a breeze as the slots all fit 1/4" bolts. The finish is smooth enough to allow suction cup mounting, but why would you when you have bolt mounting, adjustable slots. It will also come in handy when I am picking up mail order parts for the bike.:sinister:
 
Oldschool said:
The thought had crossed my mind. The priceyist part of the project is the seat from Yamaha. I doubt if I could ever get that cost down. The rest would be cheaper in quantity.
I was thinking that it would make a great mounting spot for 1 or more cameras. Mounting them would be a breeze as the slots all fit 1/4" bolts. The finish is smooth enough to allow suction cup mounting, but why would you when you have bolt mounting, adjustable slots. It will also come in handy when I am picking up mail order parts for the bike.:sinister:
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Then just sell the flat deck and leave it up to the consumer to have a spare seat. I think it's a great idea. Most of these guys that sell parts started somewhere, probably just like this. Good luck. If I had a GenII I would definitely pick one up.
 
Nice work on the seat plate Oldschool! I like the fact that you ran the two front bolts directly into the front mounting hooks on the seat pan.

I am following the idea of Granite Gray at the other FZ1 forum who attached his Pelican case to the seat pan (as pictured earlier in this thread). Granite Gray's design had the case bolted to the pan, but not directly through the mounting hooks. If by some odd chance the seat pan would crack it is possible the case could break away from the bike.

Incorporating your design feature of having the bolts attached directly between the case and mounting hooks on the seat pan eliminates any worry of the case coming off if the seat pan were to crack. Great stuff!

I dont have any metal working tools or skills, so I am planning to cut some 2x4 to create mounting spacers to place between the seat pan and Storm case. I can handle wood working!
 
bsly said:
I dont have any metal working tools or skills, so I am planning to cut some 2x4 to create mounting spacers to place between the seat pan and Storm case. I can handle wood working!
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I don't see that Lee bolted through the seat mounts... Hmmmm.....

Now regarding the wood... That will expand, contract and, given the small pieces, possibly crack under stress of the case and the ride conditions. You can work just as easily as wood with hockey pucks which will not succumb to the stress conditions and are already weatherproof. :D
 
If you look at his pics above you can see he has three bolt points that connect his top plate to the seat pan. The two front brackets beneath the top plate are bolted to the seat pan using the same bolts that hold the two front hooks used to anchor the seat pan to the motorcycle. Looking at the second pic (side view) you can see the top plate support running down to the front corner of the seat pan, and just beneath the edge of the pan you can seat the hooks I am talking about.

His design might use two different bolts but they are connected by a metal bracket and located directly above one another, this offers a solid mounting point without having to drill new holes into the seat pan.

I'll get me some hockey pucks to make my spacers! Thanks
 
I'd say you are on to something here. I always thought the rear seat was more to make the feds happy than something to use but as a platform for putting your touring gear on I think your idea is the best mod I've seen on this site. Is this something you might turn into a second endeavor to market to your fellow FZ1 riders? I'd like to fit mine with the same type of platform.
 
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