Swap Meet Special

by Kevin
(Oceanside, CA)

My name is Kevin, and I decided that I was going to build my first Harley from the ground up after I got back from Afghanistan. I got the ok from the wife and off I went with the rest of my marines. I picked up a custom built bike, made out 3 different frames and titled as a 1985 Kawasaki. It fortunately had a Harley evo engine and an old fxr tranny. While in Afghanistan, I bought a few parts here and there and let them pile up at my parents house. When I returned from afghan, I saw my "custom" bike, and turns out the only thing I can use is the engine. After being told that the new frame that I ordered was 34 degree rake and 2" out, I ordered forks for that.....well the frame is actually 30 degree rake with no stretch. So I offed the forks and found a set of custom Springer forks 2 hours away from home for 150 bucks! I was like hell yeah. So I scooped them up. They look great even though they are raw steel and have some surface rust. As of right now, I’m starting to tear down the engine just to see if it’s any good, or if it’s an 800 dollar paper weight. The build is going SOOOOOOOO slow, partially from not exactly knowing what I’m doing and having to go back and fix all the parts that I’ve already bought to make them work.