Motorcycle USA was both excited and nervous when we learned we were going to be a primary sponsor of the Ultimate Builder Custom Bike Shows being held in conjunction with the International Motorcycle Shows. As a sponsor, we would be giving away a custom 2011 Honda Fury, which we were excited about. We've had a bunch of parts off our prior Honda Fury project laying around the office with killer old-school gold metal flake and pinstriping by the talented troupe up at Cutting Edge Illusions out of Eugene, Oregon, just begging to be put on display. The paint catches every glimmer of sunlight and the striping is edgy and clean.
Unfortunately, we had to return our prior project before we had a chance to get everything reassembled, so we were excited for a chance to finally see the parts actually on a bike. But we were nervous because we only had three weeks to get the bike up to our HQ in Oregon from LA and get the work on it done. This didn't allow for much time to scramble for parts, get some powder coating done, and get everything put together in time to deliver the bike to San Mateo for the first round of the Ultimate Builder Custom Bike Shows.
The stock 2011 Honda Fury fortunately came with a black frame and wheels, which matched up well with the gold metal flake, so we had a solid starting point. Our first goal then was to tidy up the look of the rear end. For this, we looked to our friend Chris Hagest over at Low and Mean for a little help. Low and Mean is at the forefront of creating aftermarket parts for metric cruisers and came through in a big way by sending over the L&M Honda Fury Lowered Rear Spring, its Honda Fury Reaper front fender, rear fender, and LED brake light.
To keep the new fender clean, we ditched the stock turn signals sticking out on both sides for Low and Mean's Honda Fury LED brake light because the rear fender is already cut to accommodate the thin LED strip. What a difference. The rear end looks ultra-clean now and the LED strip is almost unnoticeable until you hit the brakes or flip on the turn signals.
The final touch was relocating the license plate holder from hanging off the rear fender to the left side and replacing the stock one for an Accutronix side mount license plate holder. Attaching the Accutronix license plate holder required removing the swingarm bolt and washer so we could slide the mounting block and small spacer onto the swingarm, but the Accutronix plate holder uses the stock mounting bolt and washer to simplify the process. The wiring was then routed up and under the seat where it was attached to the factory license plate light wires.
The stock master cylinder mount had to come off, too, and then the wires to the brake light switch had to be cut. This allowed the brake line adapter to be installed and the braided line to be attached. The controls were then screwed into place and Loctited down.
The brake hose was reattached to the master cylinder and wire terminals were attached to the wires we cut earlier so they could be heat shrunk and plugged into the new brake light switch. After that, the brakes were bled and the brake lights were checked to make sure we hooked everything up correctly. Installation on the shift side required removal of the big plastic transmission side cover before we could start.
The swap overall was fairly straight forward with a little finesse required to thread the shift linkage and lining up the heim joints. But what a dramatic difference the Accutronix foot controls make. The “Night Series” means they're black and tie in perfectly to the color scheme of the bike, they make the bike look classier, and action at the new shift lever is smooth and deliberate.
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