The frame is a pro-street Carolina Customs drop-seat frame that had the rear end chopped. The rigid frame was sportbike-inspired and was going to have to be able to get a serious exhaust coming up out of the fender, Ducati-style. Tony had seen a few ideas like his not work, so he started researching compounds that could be used, along with ventilation that would aid in the cooling of the exhaust and keep the paint from peeling. He started his search on the Internet and ended up looking at the NASA website, which led him to to a company that provided heat shielding technology for the space shuttle. The pipes got a ceramic coat inside and out, treated with the heat deflector material he picked up online, and then wrapped with header tape. "Only if I am sitting in traffic for a long time does the fender actually get warm to the touch, but it still isn't hot enough to mess up the paint. I think the air vents on the side aid in the cooling as well," Tony said.
The fabrication on this bike was done meticulously, with very little Bondo or body filler being needed before paint. The oil tank was incorporated into the front of the frame and adorned with a grill so that it fit the lines of the bike-no stock horseshoe tank here. The gas tank was hand-made to exacting specs, so that it perfectly fit the contours of the frame and still accentuated the drop seat feature of the bike. There were going to be parts that would need to be bought, but Tony was going to try and keep those to a minimum and display his fabrication skills while still making a statement about MotoGP and his tribute to Nicky Hayden. The wheels were going to be minimalist, yet have a spoked look. He opted for black powdercoated Performance Machine Vader wheels. There was going to be a minimal amount of electrical and it was all going to be run internally. Tony decided to mold the bullet taillights into the rear fender and hand-machine the tips of the dual exhaust, engraving them with the T-Fab logo
The bike looked about what he was hoping for, and he wanted to make sure the paint didn't detract from the bike-it needed to be subtle and classy. Tony turned to his good friend Steve Cook of Steve Cook Creations to help decide on the paint scheme. Steve was known for custom car paint, and Tony felt he could trust his judgement. They had the layout and went to Two Brothers paint to lay down the base coat. Mike Robins did all the graphics, and then it was back to Two Brothers for the clear coat. The tin was painted and Tony was psyched to get the bike fired. With help from R&B Customs he got it wired up, and then he hit the street. Overall, it took Tony over 385 hours in fabrication and 11 weeks total to build the entire bike. He was back to working around the clock, but this time the results were obviously more satisfying.