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Extreme Softail Makeover - Tech

Turning This Tired Old Softail Into A Respectable Street Machine
By Courtney Halowell
Photography by The Street Chopper Staff
Softail Makeover Softail
1. This...
Softail Makeover Softail
2. ...to this.
Softail Makeover Teardown
3. We won't bore you with... 
   
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Softail Makeover Teardown
3. We won't bore you with the teardown, but we will tell you that with the internal fork stops in the Hawg Halters kit, it was necessary to replace the bearing race in the lower section of the neck.
Softail Makeover Stock Race And New Race
4. This is why: that is the... 
   
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Softail Makeover Stock Race And New Race
4. This is why: that is the stock race (far) and the new race (near) with the part that hangs down and slips into the slot in the piece that bolts to the lower triple tree.
Softail Makeover Triple Tree
5. After the race was pressed... 
   
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Softail Makeover Triple Tree
5. After the race was pressed into the neck, the other half of the steering stop was bolted to the top of the lower triple tree.
Softail Makeover
6. Then the stem was fed... 
   
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Softail Makeover
6. Then the stem was fed up through the neck and the upper triple tree was threaded on. It was a blind upper tree (you cant see any of the hardware) so everything threaded into the bottom of the upper triple tree.
Softail Makeover
7. The fork tubes also threaded... 
   
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Softail Makeover
7. The fork tubes also threaded into the bottom of the upper triple tree, and then the hardware on the back of the lower tree was tightened to lock it all down.
Softail Makeover
8. With the forks in place,... 
   
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Softail Makeover
8. With the forks in place, Jeff installed the bars and risers.
Softail Makeover
9. This is where an extra... 
   
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Softail Makeover
9. This is where an extra set of hands comes in handy: One set to pull the guide wire, and the other to fish the wires through the bars for the hand controls.
Softail Makeover
10. After the wires were... 
   
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Softail Makeover
10. After the wires were through the new RSD bars, the supplied caps were glued in place to give them a finished look.
Softail Makeover
11. With the new Mid-Glide... 
   
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Softail Makeover
11. With the new Mid-Glide we decided to see what the stock headlight would look like-to tell you the truth, it wasn't bad at all, so we went for it.
Softail Makeover
12. While we were putting... 
   
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Softail Makeover
12. While we were putting on the headlight, the new Harley-Davidson floating rotor was being bolted to the Landmark wheel.
Softail Makeover
13. The axle and spacers... 
   
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Softail Makeover
13. The axle and spacers were then attached to the hub, the wheel was put up between the fork legs, and the caps were tightened down.
Softail Makeover
14. The new 6-piston Performance... 
   
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Softail Makeover
14. The new 6-piston Performance Machine caliper was bolted to the left fork leg with the proper spacers to align it with the rotor.
Softail Makeover
15. A closed-end wrench was... 
   
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Softail Makeover
15. A closed-end wrench was then used to attach the brake hose and tighten the banjo bolt. We used a closed-end wrench because this type of bolt is prone to rounding off if an open-end wrench is used.
Softail Makeover
16. We still had to button... 
   
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Softail Makeover
16. We still had to button up a couple of things like the wiring and getting the correct upper banjo fitting, but for the most part we were done with the frontend in a few hours.
Softail Makeover
17. Now it was time to move... 
   
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Softail Makeover
17. Now it was time to move to the back end. It all started with the removal of the seat and the rear fender strut covers.

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Softail Makeover  Softail Makeover
Softail Makeover  Softail Makeover

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