Hey kids! I did a little upgrading to my '97 Trail-Breaker this spring. She's like a new machine now, and I've fallen in love with her all over again. Here's the scoop:
Not too long ago I read over at the RokonWorld site that Maxxis had just introduced a taller version of their "Bighorn" tire that would fit 15" rims that some side-by-side UTVs are sporting. It just so happens that's the rim size of the hollow aluminum drum wheels on the Rokon and... well... I just had to get a pair. The stock Goodyear may look classic but the traction isn't so hot, and is essentially non-existent while sidehilling. So anyhow, after I had got her some new shoes, I decided to really go whole hog and resto-mod the old girl.
I bought a pair of surplus 40mm ammo cans from Sportsman's Guide to convert into hard bags for my Trail-Breaker. I sanded them thoroughly inside & out and hit the outward-facing 3 sides, bottom and the entire inward-facing sides with 3 coats of Dupli-Color truck bed liner, (I had over half a can leftover after undercoating my Jeep Cherokee.) I painted the remaining portions of the ammo cans & lids with 3 coats of Krylon satin black, with a light rubdown of "0000" steel wool in between to help each coat stick.
While I was at it I removed the rear fender and stripped it with a wire-wheel and slathered it top & bottom with multiple coats of the truckbed liner stuff. It's hardened up nicely and should be fairly stone-proof now. I also whacked the edges of the rear fender outwards with a rubber mallet to accommodate the larger width of the Maxxis Bighorns (they're an inch or more wider than the Sure-Grips, and the actual tread footprint is almost 2" wider.I'm hoping it will reduce the mudslinging somewhat! When re-mounting the fender, I put little rubber washers between it and the mounting points to reduce metal-to-metal rubbing and help eliminate any rattling.
Using some lengths of scrap metal I found at work I fabricated mounting straps that utilize the stock rear seat mounting holes and these straps run the full height of the cans from top to bottom. During the assembly I again used rubber washers in between the cans and the mounting straps to help eliminate vibrating noises while riding. I used stainless steel hardware to help fight rusting later on down the line, plus I coated the threads with anti-seize compound for good measure.
In order to make the ammo can on the left side fit I had to modify the exhaust pipe. I took the whole thing into work one night and used the giant bandsaw back in our Fabrication Department to cut out the 45 angle, then cut a 4" length of heavy gauge tubing and slid it over the exhaust pipe, butt-welded the joints then slid the tubing piece over the seam and welded it all the way around at both ends. I shot the newly-chopped exhaust with 4 coats of high-temp paint and re-installed it.
While I had the side covers off I peeled the scuzzy stock decals off and removed the gummy residue left behind with Goof Off (smelly stuff, but it works great), then I sanded the covers just enough to remove a few rough spots and give the surfaces enough tack to hold paint. I applied 3 even coats of Krylon satin black. (K-Mart had a sale recently, 3 for $10.) I also bought a set of really nice die-cut decals off of eBay that are replicas of the old 60's/70's tank decals, and put 'em on. (I had to fudge the right side decal due to that cover's awkward shape & smaller size). They turned out really nice.
The other big money item came in the form of hydraulic brake conversion to replace the lame cable set-up from the factory. Hands down the best investment you can make to an older Rokon. I have stopping power out the ying-yang now! "Stoppies" are no problem for this beast. In fact, I decided to reverse the location of front & rear hoses because your first reaction is to roll off the throttle and grab a handful of front brake. These new units are so much stronger than the old jobs that I could probably catapult myself right off the bike if I do that! So now when I roll off the throttle I hit the rear and then judiciously apply a touch of front, as needed!
Well, with new Maxxis Bighorn tires, the re-done side covers, the hydraulic brake conversion and the 40mm ammocan saddle bags, the old girl has gotten a major cosmetic & performance overhaul. Doing all of these tasks was sometimes a real pain in the arse but it was a lot of fun, too. And as I said before, I am in love with this machine all over again!!!
The only downside to these fix-ups is that now that the Trail-Breaker is better & stronger than ever, I now have no excuses to put off several yard & woods chores the little woman has been nagging me to do! Oh well, at least they'll be a LOT more fun to tackle with my "new" Rokon!
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Originally Posted by racerone3
on the bright side, the hustler is almost done