02-01-2024, 02:56 AM
I also did something similar to the rear plate on my '13. When I gave the bike a close inspection once I got it home, there were pairs of holes in the license plate. Forensically, I could tell that the original owner wanted to eliminate the plate/reflector mounting gobbledeegook, but rather than make a backing plate with spacers and holes placed to line it up to cover the rubber bumper in the middle of the fender, he just drilled and screwed the plate directly to the taillight base. He put it all back to stock when he sold it.
I just got a chrome license backing plate, put new holes through that, and spaced it out away from the taillight base with hardware from Ikea. (Pre-Covid, Ikea had a wonderful huge chest of drawers in the lobby with bits of funky hardware from all of their furniture pieces, so if you lost a screw, spacer, etc, you could rummage through it to find a replacement. I found many bits that are handy on motorcycles as well). Then, I just mounted my license to the backing plate, and it looks clean and simple. (I also turned in my drilled-up original plate and got a replacement... my OCD can't have a license plate with random holes in it.)
I just got a chrome license backing plate, put new holes through that, and spaced it out away from the taillight base with hardware from Ikea. (Pre-Covid, Ikea had a wonderful huge chest of drawers in the lobby with bits of funky hardware from all of their furniture pieces, so if you lost a screw, spacer, etc, you could rummage through it to find a replacement. I found many bits that are handy on motorcycles as well). Then, I just mounted my license to the backing plate, and it looks clean and simple. (I also turned in my drilled-up original plate and got a replacement... my OCD can't have a license plate with random holes in it.)