ATC 350X Headlight Shroud Reproduction

[jack2193]

A few weeks ago I managed to roll my 350X down a ski slope and destroy my very nice and very rare 86' 350 headlight assembly. Unfortunately, it is becoming harder and more expensive to find a headlight assembly in good condition. I have been doing some research and plan on attemping to reproduce the headlight shroud using a silicone mold and casting process. I know other people have made fiberglass reproductions in the past, but I haven't seen a plastic one yet. I think this is because nobody has come up with a way to vacuum form them like most othere atv plastics are made. Based on the geometry of the part and the casting materials that are now available, I believe it would be fairly simple to make durable, high quality reproductions for a reasonable price. I am only in the research phase of the process, but if I am able to sucsessfully make a good quaility part, I may be interested in producing them for others to purchase down the road. I have even been toying with the idea of modifying the design of the shroud to allow modern ,mass produced, lights to be fitted. This would alleviate the need to buy the orignal internals to create a complete assembly.

Any insight on if this process has been attemped would be appreciated.

[ps2fixer]

There was some machine out there that had headlights in production yet, but the "stay" was offset, so swapping the 350x one in made it fit nearly perfect, just the headlight recessed in the housing a little more than normal. I can't remember what the source machine was though, the thread was here and there was photos etc showing the differences.

I thought the same thing as what you're researching, why hasn't a vacuum molded headlight shell been made yet. The only issue I see is how to reliably place the mounting points and attach them. I think pour molding shells is the best overall solution, but probably is a higher cost to make overall.

If you solve the issues on how to make a cheap 350x headlight shell, you could try to go after other machines like the 85+ 250r shells. Even if they don't turn out completely flawless, I bet there's atleast a little bit of a market that "something" is better than broken/missing for the right price range.

[jeswinehart]

http://www.3wheelerworld.com/forumdisplay.php/39-New-Product-Research-amp-Development

Lots of great info/ideas in here Jack, even 350X headlight reproduction. This particular thread is where I got involved along about page 5 or so. Cant see pictures no longer for some reason ?
~ http://www.3wheelerworld.com/showthread.php/86020-350x-headlight-plastic

I made around 25 of them near as I remember.
http://www.3wheelerworld.com/showthread.php/161105-85-86-350x-Headlight-Socket-Reproduction makes outstanding wiring stuff for us !

I too have a interest in vacuum molding and can recommend to use Alumilte "vac master" resin to make your shell mold since it would hold up to both heat and pressure with out distortion.
Another post of mine that may help in your research is
http://www.3wheelerworld.com/showthread.php/150303-How-to-reproduce-parts
in that thread towards the last you will see recent work by member Shep doing a fantastic job with another Honda trike light shell.
Hopefully you keep a interest enough to see this thru. So for inspiration,,, some pics of shells I made

john

[ps2fixer]

Thanks for the link on the 350x sockets, forgot I had a dedicated thread on them lol. Updated some of the out of date info/links =).

[jack2193]

Thanks for all the info guys.

I'm at the point where I'm narrowing down what materials I will need to make a first run prototype. The company smooth-on makes a large variety of casting resins and I think they have one or two products that would hold up well as a headlight shroud.

More importantly I need a perfect master to make a mold of for casting. I am leaning toward creating a solidworks model, 3D printing and hand finishing one. Finding a shell that is perfectly straight and damage free is out of the question.

Creating my own will give me the ability to make a very rigid master for molding and allow me to modify the design to fit readily available components down the line.

Hopefully within a month or so I will have at least one casting as a proof of concept.

[jack2193]

If i am successful with the 350x i would certainly look into reproducing parts from other models with a high enough demand

[jack2193]

Update: After spending a few hours working on a Solidworks model of the headlight shroud, i've realized that there aren't any flat, straight, square or regular shapes that make up the design. It is going to be nearly impossible to create an accurate model without using 3D scanning. Unfortunately I do not have access to anything like that. I might just have to create a casting of an original part and do some finishing/repair work to make the master copy for the final mold.

[ps2fixer]

There's one part that's flat, right where it clamps on the front shocks. I'd think if you started from there you could make a very similar looking 3d model with some angle measurements and such.. Probably be near impossible to do a perfect copy though.

I never worked with 3d modeling, so can't really be much of a help there :(. If you were successful though, you could have the option to make other models of headlights fit the housing correctly.

I personally wouldn't think there would be too many people with torches and pitch forks coming after you if you made a similar to, but not exact match of the 350x housing. As long as it's similar and still looks good, I think that's the main concern. Exception that I can think of is those trying to go 100% OEM correct restore, but then they are looking for OEM parts anyway.

[Ranvier]

I think making your own parts is amazing. I showed a shell to a plastics guy I know and he was talking about vacuum vs injection molding and the big difference in tooling cost. As ps2fixer mentioned, the slots the straps fit into are especially challenging. Also, the mounting point for the lamps. I am all for supporting the little guy but fyi there is a group buy on maier headlight shells for 350x on fb right now at under 80$.

[atc007]

I don't want to divert you from getting into reproducing,but Maier will have new ones on the market pretty soon. I think under $90.

[Howdy]

If a headlight shell is made that is very close to OEM will sell good even if Maier makes one .
Howdy
I don't want to divert you from getting into reproducing,but Maier will have new ones on the market pretty soon. I think under $90.

[wonderboy]

I'm not on facebook. Is anyone able to repost details here about the 350x shells from Maier?

[Ranvier]

251564
251565

[ps2fixer]

It's only a 2 week long sale for Maier, so it's not like they will flood the market with them. Once the group buy is gone, no one will be actively making them again, so pretty sure OP's project is still worth while.

[ironchop]

That Vinny Staffa is a madman

One of the few trike/vintage 2wheeler mega-enthusiast guys I miss following from my BookFace days

Sent from my Z958 using Tapatalk

[jack2193]

Thanks for all of the updates about what is going on with maier. I am not on facebook so i had no way of knowing. The more research I do, the more it seems as though it would not be cost effective to produce these things the way i planned. It's not impossible but will be difficult to make a clost to stock reproduction without it costing over $100 a piece.

[Arky-X]

I'm not on the BookFace either so I will have to see if the dear sweet loving beautiful wife will respond for me.
I just hope there are at least 4 others wanting electric blue (fingers crossed!)

[Mosh]

Who is doing the mold? Maier or a private owner?
10-12 years ago,
Hornets powersports really paved the way for trike plastic repos with Maier, then the ensuing Tri-Z stuff and 200x shrouds really blew the lid off the "there is money to be made" idea here..
I don't want to divert you from getting into reproducing,but Maier will have new ones on the market pretty soon. I think under $90.

[fabiodriven]

Who is doing the mold? Maier or a private owner?
10-12 years ago,
Hornets powersports really paved the way for trike plastic repos with Maier, then the ensuing Tri-Z stuff and 200x shrouds really blew the lid off the "there is money to be made" idea here..

I saw that Maier just started making them. If I'm not mistaken, there were at least two guys about to make the shrouds on here, but if Maier is going to do it then why bother?

What I'm waiting for is SX shells, lol.

[Aulbaugh]

here is the picture from FB

[Shep1970]

I think this would be great if it comes through, but i’ve seen so many threads about getting molds/items made through maier or other companies fall on its face. Many people would like to see a finished product before dishing out cash. Maybe this guys got the personal funding to pay up front. I wish him all the luck i really do, i’d like to see how the fork straps will attach just outta curiosity though. Is there any more info or how many have ordered/paid yet? No facebook here, but i may have to sign in through the wifes to check it out.

Shep

[Aulbaugh]

I think this would be great if it comes through, but i’ve seen so many threads about getting molds/items made through maier or other companies fall on its face. Many people would like to see a finished product before dishing out cash. Maybe this guys got the personal funding to pay up front. I wish him all the luck i really do, i’d like to see how the fork straps will attach just outta curiosity though. Is there any more info or how many have ordered/paid yet? No facebook here, but i may have to sign in through the wifes to check it out.

Shep

It's a pretty lengthy list of names of people wanting them. I would say close to 275 names give or take are curretly on the list. I have no idea if they those people have paid