Yetman drag frame

[66xlch]

Firstly, I have been MIA for a coupla months, So hello, everyone!

Secondly (?), I have just acquired a Yetman drag racing frame from the late sixties/early seventies! It is really cool. It has VL/WL style rear lower leg section, and is Chromoly. I bought it from a guy who happened into my shop, and was looking to off some old parts. It struck me because it bears a good resemblance to my big twin chopper frame that I had specially built about ten years ago. In fact, it looks like a mini, Sportster version of it. I have a 1963 XLCH motor and a buncha parts to build it with, so I'm pretty jazzed!

If anyone knows anything about Yetman frames, I'd really like to hear what I can. I initially thought it was just a homemade rigid, but the I found this:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=320689199015&viewitem=&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWAX%3AIT#ht_683wt_1163

So I googled around and found out it's a Yetman for sure.

Pic are coming.

[fdny37]

Glad to see that you're back online.

[66xlch]

thanks, it's good to be back!

[IronMick]

Welcome! back. Great project starting ...

[66xlch]

Pics:

My new (to me) frame
http://i357.photobucket.com/albums/oo11/blackjack62/Picture122.jpg

http://i357.photobucket.com/albums/oo11/blackjack62/Picture123.jpg

http://mobth357.photobucket.com/albums/oo11/blackjack62/th_Picture124.jpg

My Big Twin chopper:
http://i357.photobucket.com/albums/oo11/blackjack62/Picture120.jpg

http://i357.photobucket.com/albums/oo11/blackjack62/Picture119.jpg

[mrmom9r]

that's a Yetman with some added moulding and a brake cross shaft added. They are not chromoly but are DOM mild steel tubing and are brazed together rather than heli-arc welded. They were THE frame for drag racing back in the day and I used one for many years. I am currently building repops of them and an updated version for vintage drags. I ran 9.30's @140mph with a Yetman and in spite of the fact that they were brazed together I never had a weld failure. The rear sections were very prone to twisting and metal fatique failures as HP and traction increased over the years. when they were designed the tires were only 4" and hard as a rock. Probably the best looking of all the early drag frames and an iconic piece of early speed equipment.

[66xlch]

So it's DOM? I read about the brazing thing, and I think i will avoid welding on this frame ( both to preserve it, and to avoid melting any brazed joints) I think i'm going to build a little street bike out of it. I will probably mount pegs to the motor early ness style on the shifter, and plate the primary side.

I could tell the brake stuff was added. It has an anchor slot, as well as the crossover. It also has some fender mounting stuff added out back.

[mrmom9r]

Ground clearance with a 26" tall rear tire is only 2 1/4".

[66xlch]

I mocked it up with an 18" rear , and a 19" in the Marzocchi fork in the pics, and I''m getting around 3 1/2 or 4". That's still really low, but I have bikes for canyon riding, etc. This one will be rarely ridden, and will avoid twisties. Besides, my back wont tolerate much seat time on a rigid sportster anyway!!

[mrmom9r]

Good luck, it will make a really neat project. They are great looking frames. You can see a picture of the new vintage style frames I am building at ebay item #170629659942 ( I'm an old fart and don't know how to do a link,lol)

['79 Supercharged Fuel Inj]

Good luck, it will make a really neat project. They are great looking frames. You can see a picture of the new vintage style frames I am building at ebay item #170629659942 ( I'm an old fart and don't know how to do a link,lol)
Ok, you old fart.... http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=170629659942&ru=http%3A%2F%2Fmotors.shop.ebay.com%3A80%2Fi.html %3F_from%3DR40%26_trksid%3Dp3841.m39.l1313%26_nkw% 3D170629659942%26_sacat%3D%26_fvi%3D1&_rdc=1

By the way, your frame looks great!

[mrmom9r]

Thanks 79 super...etc. I'm lucky if I can remember which way to turn the door knob to get out of the house. When I get my daughter to show me how to post pics I'll show some of my vintage ironhead speed equip't. collection on the speed eqip thread.

[66xlch]

Now we all want to your vintage speed parts!

Just load them into Photobucket (free to register), and get the URLs, copy/paste them into the thread.

BTW, cool Yetman-ish frames!

[mrmom9r]

The real problem with loading pictures is my internet connection. The only thing available where I'm at is satellite which is an expensive joke. It will usually time out before I can get anything uploaded to Photobucket but we keep trying. Serves me right for living out where the chicken hawks still date the hoot owls.

66xlch- don't worry about welding on that frame,you won't melt the brazing. However I would highly recommend stripping all that B.S. moulding off there so you can inspect all the welds and check for fatique cracks in the rear section particularly and also the rear motor mount area. When I designed my frames the first thing I did was improve that rear motor mount area. look for cracks in that area as well as where the rear section joins. That frame should weigh about 28lbs. with all the bondo off of it. That's what the one I have weighs. The frames I build now weigh 31lbs. because the motor mount is part of the frame and they have a little more tubing being an inch wider in the rear. I can also build to any width a guy wants but don't recommend any more than 8" tire on gas and 6" on fuel. The one inch of additional width will handle a 6" tire.

[IronMick]

The real problem with loading pictures is my internet connection. The only thing available where I'm at is satellite which is an expensive joke. It will usually time out before I can get anything uploaded to Photobucket but we keep trying ...

I crop the pics down to the essentials, and reduce the size to between 15K and 100K before uploading.

[dixieworkx]

here is you a bit of reading on yetman frames..

http://www.vintagedragbike.com/specs.html

http://www.tz350.net/yetman.htm

http://www.classictopfuel.com/john_dixon.htm

http://www.motohistory.net/news2011/news-feb11.html

http://forums.dragbike.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=1096&PID=204839

two yetman frame pics, ½ way down page
http://www.eurospares.com/graphic2.htm

http://www.phpbbplanet.com/granddaddyjoesm/viewtopic.php?p=1454&sid=719e8fb05fa76676e8e8f1f568b386d5&mforum=granddaddyjoesm

reiser built my brothers smoking 73 school bus chopper
http://www.motohistory.net/featuredstory/reiser_feature2.html

http://66.154.78.216/forum/showthread.php?t=26810

yetman Honda s-90 frame pic ¼ way down page
http://www.vintagemx.us/roach.htm

telling who bought out yetmans tooling and what they did with it
http://forums.dragbike.com/forum_posts.asp?TID=1096&PN=248


2011 auction schedule..item # 50—completely restored 1974 shovster dragster, yetman frame, yes there is a reserve
http://batorauctions.com/2011_Daytona_Lot_Order_Line_listing.htm


http://www.texasscooter.com/scrapbook1.html

[mrmom9r]

Thanks, Mick-I'll get my daughter to tell me what that means and try again,lol. Seriously, thanks for the help.



started with nothing, still got most of it left.

[dixieworkx]

what happened to the yetman project ?????????????????????????????

[GA_Ironhead]

Who knows. He hasn't been on in 7 months...

[DR DICK]

Who knows. He hasn't been on in 7 months...

i might.

[brucstoudt]

i might.

well,please feel free to continue with that!

[GA_Ironhead]

i might.

I forget: it's a small world, and getting smaller.