Originally Posted by
34nineteen
Probably the easiest way to do it is to post it up for sale/trade with someone who has already chopped theirs. There is a lot of people out there who wish they never chopped theirs and would love to get a clean stock one.
How I did it.
Remove license plate light, turn signals and cheese grater mesh.
Cut off most with hacksaw/sawzall/grinder with cutting wheel.
Smooth to
Shape with 4" grinder with grinding wheel.
Smooth with 4" grinder with 240 grit flapper wheel.
Dremel any tight or hard to reach areas.
There is a Duplicolor "Perfect Match" spray paint available at your local oreilly/autozone/pep boys that is almost a spot on color match for those silver side rails.
Be careful as you get to the end of grinding. My current bike had a couple of air pockets in the casting, that you don't know about until it's too late. Luckily you can just fill them with epoxy or body filler before you paint.
There should be more than a few pictures on the web of people who have done this and how they mounted their license plate/turn signals afterwards.
Also, I think there is someone who will do this for you for a nominal fee. Probably worth it.
I'd still recommend asking around before you start chopping. You may wind up making money in the end.