Murdered out m50 with 17inch apehangers

[apehanger]

I want to put some apes on my bike but could use some advice on where to get extended cables for my 08' M50, any pointers??

Sorry it took so long to reply havent been on here in awhile. as far as the cables just go tto your local bike shop, they have to be custom made usually. for 17in apes i needed 14 inches added to what was stock on the bike.

[Motorcycle Forums]

MotorcycleForums.net is the original Motorcycle Forum! Registered Users do not see these ads. Please Register - It's Free!

[apehanger]

Love the bike. Gotta ask if you did the paint yourself or sent it to a shop. I want to murder out my bike real bad. Love the rear fender and the black rims. Great job!

did the paint on the bike myself with the help of a friend. we just used house of color sealer on it. it is normally clear over so we just skipped that step.

[apehanger]

nice lookin' right down to the sideways mount plate (which some state troopers don't like).

although I'm not sure how far I would want to drive with the handlebars that far up.

no worries on the troopers man, got a brother to cover me in that department. and they are so comfortable man i got a bad back and they just let me lean back. no stress on my back. road 800 miles in 4 days in 08 and was fine the wwhole time.

[apehanger]

The bike...beautiful man!! I was curious about that side mount license plate frame, I really want to get one similar for my C50 and wondered how/where did you run the wiring for it? Can you hide it pretty good? Is it lit with an LED and did you need to get like a load equalizer or anything to run it? Rock on!

well my buddy did that part, we just took the stock wiring harenes and extended it. used the plugs and put it on the break light wiring. ran the wires down the swing arm and onto the license plate bracket that my other buddy custom made for me. wrapped the wires in black electrical tae and zi tied them to the round bar. kind of getto but i wanted and easy way to take them off if need be. blends right into the black bracket cant even see it. no equalizer at all. and its just a 6 dollar trailer brake light from autozone but it give it that old school look.

[rico7424]

Thanks for the info! Will have to check into it

[OCDetails]

The whole 'rat' look is really in vogue right now. I was in Vegas for SEMA this year and there were a lot of cars painted that way. It used to be cool to have a shiny car with a flat stripe, but now it is the other way around. I don't know if I could do it though. It looks too much like an unfinished project to me. But then again, I am a detailer, so shiny appeals to me.

To me, a clean bike says you ride it and take pride in keeping it clean. I've got 30K miles on my '06 and I'd challenge anyone to find something on it that needs to be cleaned or polished after I'm done cleaning it. Primer black says you are too busy with other things to worry about cleaning something when you are done with it. That isn't a bad thing I guess. You have said pretty much the same thing in this thread anyway, so I would expect that you don't disagree with that. You feel that flat black says get out of my way and who cares if your bike is shiny. Nuttin wrong with that. Just remember that not all bikes that are shiny are trailer queens. Some of us ride the %%%% out of them.

The thing I like most about the M50 is that it isn't overly chromed. Really just the forks (including handlebars and speedo), whatever that is on the tank with the gas cap, air filter, valve covers, and pipes. I could see taking everything that is currently painted already and making it flat black, but I'd definitely keep my chrome. I like the contrast too much.

The ape hangers can get you in trouble if they are above your shoulders. Most motor vehicle codes will state that, so while you may not necessarily get pulled over for it, riding that way is still just giving them one more reason to harass you. To me (and this is just my personal taste and not meant to be offensive) ape hangers on motorcycles are like big spoilers on cars. It doesn't really add that much function to the experience and it is more about the 'look at me' factor. Nobody with ape hangers is going to tell you that they don't feel more bad ass when they are riding that way compared to normal handle bars. You know it gets looks and there is a certain stigma attached to bikers that ride that way. You also know you'd look like a douche if you rode that bike wearing a suit or anything other than leathers. c'mon... admit it. You'd laugh your ass off at a yuppie riding a bike like yours. It is an image thing when you rat out your bike and put ape hangers on it. Not a bad thing. As long as it is is something you like and that is look you wanted. A+ for originality.

[OCDetails]

Oh, sorry... last comment.

I agree about painting your forward controls black. The problem with painting so much of your bike is that now anything shiny stands out like a sore thumb. I'd paint any and everything silver on that bike black so it really blends in. I agree that risers would be a good thing for the handlebars to bring them more in line with the forks and probably offer a more comfortable ride. I've never been long distance with ape hangers, but I've put a couple hundred miles on a bike with them and it was pretty painful. Anything that can be done to make it a little more comfortable is a good thing.

[fargoben67]

OCDetails - i agree with you on the image people attempt to portray when riding with ape hangers.

but! as to the rat rod look. i love it. i have loved it for long time, before it was in vogue. people try hard to get and keep that look. some just as hard as you might to keep your bike clean. i have a 67 chevy c10 that is a rat rod project (unless someone wants to make a trade for something even older!!). mechanically, everything is 100% working. its just the exterior completes the look and is unique to me. unfortunately the rat rod look is becoming too popular. im not one that likes to be "main stream." i have always liked the rat rod because it is "rebel", unconventional and uncommon. i like to be different. once i get my M paid off my current plan is to purchase a raider but still keep the M. the M50 has very good potential for a rat rod bobber. thats the route i'd like to take it in a few years. and i bet it would look damn good in the back of my truck

[Marka77]

How many feet of pipe wrap did you use ???? 1" or 2"??? Thanks

[Woogie]

Personally not big on the apes, and I'm too crazy about the m50's stock rear fender to pull a switch like that. But it's unlike any other M I have seen. I can dig the flat black. Glad you like it, and thanks for sharing. Regardless of whether anyone likes your mods or not, it's an inspiration to other modders out there.