We met Evan Dewitt at the Lowbrow Holeshot. He and his buddies trucked in from Fenwick, Michigan, to mix it up on the dirt track at Western Reserve Motorcycle Club's facility in eastern Ohio. Evan's XS650 was underpowered, but he rode with enough tenacity and skill to take fourth in the main. Here's what the 24-year-old new-school chopper fanatic has to say about his first hand-built bike.
Year, make, model of frame: 1980 Yamaha XS650
Year, make model of fork: Stock, lowered 2 inches, shaved and polished
Year, make, model of motor: 1980 Yamaha XS650, Mikuni 34mm carbs, PAMCO ignition, performance coil, starter removed
Custom-fabbed parts and modifications: The frame had all the ugly taken off: tabs, stock neck gusset, rear loop, etc. New neck gusset welded in; early Sportster tank installed. I lowered the rear two inches with Burly Super Slammer shocks. The rear shock mounts are in the stock location, I just cleaned them up and rounded them off. The seat rails were lowered a bit and angled up in the front. The rear fender is the stock model cut down and bolted onto the swingarm. I moved the battery below the swingarm. 7/8" Tracker handlebars, Magura quarter-turn throttle, cheap eBay headlight and a NAPA trailer tail light
Size and specs of front wheel and tire combo: Stock XS650 hub laced to a 21" dirt bike rim; Avon Speedmaster
Size and specs of rear wheel and tire combo: Stock 16" mag painted black; Shinko Classic rubber
Paint: rattle canned it myself
Upholstery: Kevin Wilbanks, Main Street Interiors, Ionia, MI
Volunteers: Andy, who welded the neck gusset in; my uncle; Doug Robbins for his 650 knowledge, parts stash and machining of the lowering spacers for the forks and bushings to make the rear shocks fit; Ed at E&V Engineering in Howard City, MI, for lacing the front wheel
Thanks: All the guys I ride with: Rutledge, RV, Doc, Freestyle, T and Murray, who put up with the bike breaking down during rides after I first built it; My dad for having a kickass shop and my girlfriend Lauren for putting up with the many hours I spent in the garage
TS
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