Chopper build progress and new name, "Ebola" or part 3

The bike being stripped down, I cleaned the frame and went over it with sandpaper and steel wool. Not a real proper preparation for the red primer finish but i want the paint to flake in time. See I'll be promoting rust, not prevent it.

Frame painted primer red, not the rustproof kind.

I've also used bailing wire to kinda add strength to my bad bolt-on job on the upper part of the frame and to give more rigidity to the brake brace at the rear. We'll see how that goes.

Redneck re-enforced frame and brake bracket. Will it hold or help?

I came up with a new name, "Ebola". The end goal for the bike is for it to look so bad that no one will dare sit on it because they'll be afraid to catch something. Tetanus having been already used, I needed something else and nastier. Can't beat my choice. The theme of the bike will evolve around the name as well.

Homemade stencil on card stock with my printer using Gimp. I outlined the yellow with a permanent marker.

I've started doing a bit of weathering on the red primer finish and I have the fenders sitting outside in the elements. Progress is slow but I want this to come out looking good and balanced. No rush here, I just want to have something really cool and different.

Hiding the bolt-on with a themed bandage on white hockey tape. I did not use real blood, this is food colouring.

Weathering done with Gray and rust model oil paint using a lot of thinner.

Keep posted for more progress. Sadly, my chaintool is still MIA.  :(

Ride safe and Godspeed.

Gerry  :)

No weld Chopper rebuild part 2

So the bike has been taken apart and inspected. Recent documents that came back to light revealed that the mileage made is actually 300 miles. Taking it apart revealed some good and some bad. Grease and bearings stood up good and removing some tape reminded me that I did a stupid move with the hacksaw when I built this thing. However, everything has held up pretty good.

Make no mistake, I wouldn't sell this bike to anyone as it is at best a slapped together piece of junk. But it rides very smoothly and I love it, which in this case comes second to my health and safety.

Talking about slapped together, the paint was just sprayed on after a very light wipe down using a half dirty rag. Want to know what happens when you don't prep your surface properly? Take a look at the picture and the answer is pretty obvious.

So step one is done. The bike is pieces, I gathered some parts, found my tools, well most of them, have a design in mind and the weather is nice, because I'm outdoors you know so that is important. Next will be painting primer red so that I can start building on a , temporarily, clean canvas.

Taking it apart

Grease and bearings fared well.

Oups! A case of measure, cut once...measure again, cut twice.

Paint chips all over the frame shows the very low degree of surface prep. The new paint job won't be much better.  :)

My chaintool is still missing in action.

Some of the parts I'll be using, or not.

Definitely going for a full wrap rear fender.

Until next time, ride safe and Godspeed.

Gerry  :)

New/Old project a Bike Revival

Yesterday I took a stretched chopper I slapped together 4 years ago and fell in love with it all over again. I built it out of 2 frames I had lying around, a Schwinn cruiser and a mixte frame. I stole the idea from a friend who did this design by bringing 2 frames together at the bottom bracket.

I went ahead with my own idea to stretch it even more. I wanted cool looks and a comfortable riding bike. I wanted my cake and eat it too! Well after 4 years, 150 miles and one crash, proof of concept as been overly tested. It's comfortable and reliable like a tank. Now I need to go beyond the semi-gloss black paint and add some character to this thing.

The main goal is to make it look so rough that you would want a Tetanus shot before riding it but the mechanics of it underneath will be perfect and well balanced. This build will be in 2 parts.

First I want to do a full mechanical tune up to all the components and take care of the overall finish. I would like the bike to be in riding condition before the end of the Fall season. Secondly, since I am getting a bit older, I want to install an electric assist system to it that I have lying around. I'll also be adding a full lighting system and make some other cool doodads.

Keep posted for another instalment of this revival next week. Here's some shots of the bike as it sits right now.

The bike as it looks right now

Custom made tire front fender, might be keeping that.

Details of the bolt on Bottom Bracket extension

Shifter with knob found on the ground by my Wife in South Portland Maine, go figure! definitely keeping that.

Foot operated rear brake because I ran out of brake cable. Keeping it but must improve. Doesn't work that good.

Lighting system will be fully redone.

Lunch box saddle bag. To be replaced. This is the sole survivor from the original pair. The other one was destroyed in a crash. Never lock up the front wheel when turning.  :)

Until next time, ride safe and Godspeed.

Gerry  :)

Rat Rod Bike Build Off #6, my entry

I have a friend called Robin who's been trying to make me take this bike for almost 3 years now and I finally took him up on his offer. Just in time to join the fun at the annual build off at ratrodbikes.com.

I'll be sharing the build with you guys of course but don't expect daily reports. I have another big project under way that is time sensitive and the Schwinn Typhoon is just a blank canvas for me right now. I have no final idea but I want a dirty look...for now.

I don't have much info on this bike apart from the fact that it runs in it's current state, it's rough and it's all there. Cantilever Schwinn bikes are a rarity around here, so I'll be trying my best to do it kustom justice, rat style.

Keep posted for the tear down.

Don't forget to check out the how-to articles post
and download my free bike maintenance book if you haven't already.

Until next time, ride safe and free.

Gerry :)

Sons of Jenna

As some of you know, I have entered my homemade stretched cruiser bike in the build off at ratrodbikes.com. It would seem that my attempt at trying to make a utilitarian bike look cool has spawned two more of these in the ratrodbike.com community.

Member Hsean has slapped together "Imma Hauling" from a classic Raleigh Three speed roadster

Meanwhile member and moderator Hooch as taken some vintage American iron and actually entered the bike in the build-off. The bike is called #2, for now anyways.

It's always nice and flattering to inspire others. :)

You can follow the builds here:

Imma Hauling

#2

Jenna Saykwa

Until next time, ride safe and Godspeed.

Gerry :)

HOW-TO PAINT A BICYCLE THE QUICK AND EASY WAY.

One of the steps in the Flat Top Cruiser build is to repaint it. However, my time and budget being very limited, I have to be fast but I still wanted something that looked decent. Hence the quick and easy method using rattle cans. One thing though, this only works good with flat or semi-gloss paints. You can try with a gloss finish, but I don't feel it would look that good. Remember, this is a rattle can paint job and it won't be as tough as a factory finish. Oh yes, there will be scratches!

First step, take the thing apart. Want to know how? Just go on my other blog here:http://bikeoverhaul.blogspot.com/

Second, whatever you don't want to take off but don't want to paint, mask it. Use some tape and an X-acto knife to trim.

Third, wash the entire bike. I use Simple Green which is a great degreaser. The removal of grease or oils is the key to avoiding weird looking reactions when applying the paint, so any good degreaser/cleaner should do. Use a clean rag or paper towels to dry the frame.

Fourth, sand, wet sand or steel wool it. Whatever you do make sure you dull that original finish(Keep the original finish if you can. It can't be beat to protect your frame.). It will give some grip to the primer and even out the surface for a better looking finish.

Fifth, primer that thing. You can use regular primer on painted surfaces but if like me you want to paint on chrome, you must use a self etching primer. This stuff runs about $15 a can and can be found at automotive supply stores. After you prime it, go for multiple light coats, give it some time to dry. 24 hours should do or until the primer feels untacky to the touch.

Sixth and lastly shoot the main color coat. I used Krylon flat black here but it comes out in a semi gloss finish, which works out great for me. I apply a few light coats with about 20 minutes between each. Leave in the Sun to dry. Don't start putting it back together right away. Give the paint a chance to dry for at least a day before you start messing with it. Don't do like I did. :)

So it's not a factory finish, but the bike is one nice even color and looks a lot better. Anyways, paint is only temporary.

Until next time, ride safe and Godspeed!

Gerry :)

The Flat Top Cruiser, my build off bike

So the Rat Rod BikeBuild Off #5 started off officially Saturday morning and I decided to toss my hat in the arena. My Build Off bike will be my everyday ride which I have decided to call the "Flat Top Cruiser".

The challenge here is to make a cool, yet still very practical bike. I love the ride of this bike and the stretched out frame is practical to carry a lot of stuff. However, it's just plain ugly.

My plans are to make this into a mobile bike shop since I intend to give free bike repair clinics along some of Montreal's bike paths starting in the next few weeks. This bike has to carry the tools, be used as a work stand and look cool while doing it.

I'll share some of my work on the blog and you can also follow the build thread here:http://www.ratrodbikes.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=50&t=26164

Until next time, ride safe and Godspeed!

Gerry :)

RATRODBIKES.COM BIKE BUILD-OFF #5

Well it's that time of the year again for the annual big event over at ratrodbikes.com, the Main Bike Build-Off. Rules are simple, you start with a stock mass produced frame and you build from it. The frame cannot be modified by cutting parts or stretching it. This is to have a level playing field for those of us who don't or are not equipped to weld.

The results are amazing despite what some would think considering we are using only stock frames. I will be entering this year with the intent of ending up with a cool yet very practical bike. Only 3 days left before the mayhem starts.

Keep posted.

Gerry :)

THE KLUNKER BIKE BUILD

Yes, yet another bike build is on the way. The good folks at ratrodbikes.com yelled "BIKE BUILD OFF" again and this time the theme is a Klunker bike. Klunker bikes were the genesis of the mountain bike back in the late 70's in Marin County California when a bunch of guys and gals decided to race old cruiser bikes downhill on a trail famously known as the Repack. It was called this because at the bottom of the hill, after every run, the coaster brake hubs had to be repacked with grease since they would smoke them out on the way down. The need for better brakes, multiple gears and the shrinking supply, not to talk about the limitations, of classic iron motivated the development of what we know today as the mountain bike.

I got my hands on this Klunker wannnabe from a friend for a mere $10 CDN. I had stashed it away for next season, but the build off requires me to get going now, so I figured I would take a chance and share with you guys at the same time. I plan on fixing this thing more than going for a full out rebuild and selling it on Craigslist as soon as possible.

What we have to work with here is not incredible. We are talking about a late 90's, chain store, klunker look alike. The diagnosis so far is grim. My main concern is the seized seat post. This problem could bring this project to an end if I can't pull it out. Thankfully it is a steel seat post inside a steel frame. Aluminum seat post in steel frames are a lot harder to get out when jammed. It will also require, at first glance, new brake calipers, cable and cable housings all around, shifters and pedals. That's for now until I put it on the workstand and do a more in debt autopsy of the beast.

So keep posted while I scrape my knuckles and curse myself to eternal damnation to finish this bike before Winter shows up it's true ugly face with a monster dump of snow. I'm sure it's going to be a blast.

Until next time, ride safe and Godspeed.

Gerry :)

1956 Raleigh Sports, the conclusion.

After the initial long ride with the Raleigh, I realized two things. My legs were definitely not used to riding a regular diamond frame anymore and I really liked the way it rode, but it was missing something. This bike was definitely not right for the upright cruiser position. Maybe it's the skinny tires (For me those are skinny, but I know some dudes who find those tires huge!) or the frame geometry, I don't know, but something was just not feeling right.

I hang out with a bunch that ride fixies and I must admit that I love how vintage road steel comes alive again with modern wheels, components and how attractive the purest form of the bike is. One thing that I find very cool is how they use flipped and cut drop bars. I found a pair of alloy drop bars and by using a pipe cutter tool, I trimmed off the excess. I then covered them with fake cork grip tape.


I was a bit worried. One of the reasons I had stopped riding diamond frames was because my hands would get numb quite fast. But so far the combination of the grip tape and gloves seem to work. I did splurge for the grip tape since I wanted a vintage look, $22CDN. What the heck, you only live once last time I checked.

I disconnected the Nexus hub since it didn't need the gears and I am replacing that wheel with a single speed coaster hub soon anyways. The ride is sublime, a bit nimble and that Brooks saddle is still as plush as ever.


So, what is this bike? A wannabe fixie? A violated vintage roadster? A piece of junk? I don't really care what people will think, I'm in love with this bike like you wouldn't believe. What caught my eye the first time I saw it was that dimpled fork. I have loved those forks since I was 10, I had a Raleigh Chopper. The fact that the saddle was also original equipement, that crane chain ring, the racing green, the faded hand painted gold pinstripes, all are factors that makes me able to sit and just look at it for a long time. It not only looks great, it rides great. I am very happy with the fact that I was able to keep the most important (for me) original parts, add some modern rubber and bring it down as close as I could to it's most purest form.

As of today, it sleeps indoors. I hope you enjoyed this build, the spend-o-meter has stopped at $48 CDN.

Until next time, ride safe and Godspeed.

Gerry :)

1956 Raleigh Sports project bicycle build, ride and review.

After correcting the small problems mentioned on my last post, I finished putting the bike together and went for a spin. The ride was nice and as expected. But I wanted to take it for a decent ride before I would declare my happiness to the masses.


A long ride teaches you something about a bike that a spin around the block will never do, especially if you have to be somewhere at a specific time. The first thing that hit me, or rather my leg muscles, was how tall the gearing was. The Nexus was in first gear and that thing was kinda hard to push up a hill. Now I understand why Nexus equipped bikes come with those tiny 36 tooth chainrings. Well I wasn't too sad about that. My first idea for the bike was to see if that hub was operationnal since it's going on a future project. Mission accomplished on that front minus the fact that I am still in the "educated gueswork" stage for adjusting the speeds on the Nexus.


That rear wheel will be replaced by a one-speed coaster hub. The other reminder that I got, after arriving at my destination, is that running smaller and higher pressure tires makes you more vulnerable to flats. Yep, got one. It's a good thing it happened right next to the Mile End bike garage.


Lastly, I have to talk about the Brooks B66 touring leather saddle that came with that bike. I've heard from many sources that those saddles were worth their high price( around $150CDN) and, after a few decent rides, I must come to the conclusion that they are right. Wow! What smoothness, comfort and smashing good looks! To think that the one I have is over 50 years old. This is the best saddle I have ever had on a bike.

Now normally this would be the end of this little project, however, it's not. I'm not done yet. I'm still going to change some stuff and I'll write about it next week. I just don't like those handle bars.

Until next time, ride safe and Godspeed.

Gerry :)

1956 Raleigh Sports project bicycle build, putting it back together .

Putting newer components on older bikes has always a few surprises in store for you. In the case of the rear wheel, the vintage 52 year old frame did not measure up. The drop outs were too small for the bigger axle of the Nexus and the width of the new hub will need to be helped in there as well, it's a bit tight. There was no way around the drop outs however, I had to file them in order for the axle to make it in. I used a hand file since I wanted to keep control of steel removal! If you are doing this type of work, check your progress often, you don't want to take too much off. If you do so, there's no way to put it back. It took me 30 minutes to do both sides. Afterward, with a big flat head screwdriver, I was able to squeeze the new wheel in.

Next I Installed the tires on both wheels with my new 26 X 1.5 slicks. They fitted the frame and fork well with enough room for clearance on both sides. I also installed a chrome chain I had lying around from a previous build.

Now the Nexus is equipped with a coaster brake, but you will agree that two brakes are always better than one. So in that spirit, I installed a front brake caliper on the fork. I put on a set of V-Type brake pads on them for better stopping power. My riding style is that I always use the front brake to slow down and I actually stop the bike with the rear brake.

Before going any further in this build, I decided to do the best test there is to see if I was on the right track with every thing, a road test. This was not a waste of time. I found out immediately that the original pedals were crooked and that the rear tire was not fully set in the rim. The bump bump bump that I felt while cruising was the sign that something was wrong with the rear rubber. The front brake was working marvelously and so did the rear one. Every thing else was coming together as I had hoped.


After the test ride, I replaced the pedals with a pair I had lying around, reconnected the Nexus shifter to the hub, installed the last grip on the handle bar and started to gather up the accessories that will go on the bike.

Keep posted for next week's final installment of this build. With the brake pads added, the spend-o-meter now sits at $26 CDN.

For more info on caliper brakes, check here: brake article
For more info on installing a chain, check here: Chain how-to
For more info on installing pedals, check here: Pedals how-to

Til next time, ride safe and Godspeed.

Gerry :)

1956 Raleigh Sports project bicycle build, tear down!

When rebuilding or restoring an old bike one of the first things you need is a good working area and place for storage. You need a dedicated shelf or box to put every little piece you take off the bike. You'll be saving yourself a ton of time and headache medication from looking around for stuff later on. Keep everything for now. Even though you might think you won't use a certain part, you just don't know what might happen down the road.

This is especially true about custom jobs like the one I am attempting. Tearing down the bike was pretty straight forward. I removed the wheels, fenders, chain, brake calipers and cables. These parts were not going back on the bike. I then removed all the brackets, seat, seat post and handle bar. These went on the storage shelf. I was left with the frame, bottom bracket assembly with cranks and the fork assembly.

I removed the fork from the frame and I was very happy to find that the bearings and cups were in decent shape. These old bikes did not hold the bearings in crowns. They have all individual bearing balls. One must prepare for such a thing when dismantling a fork. Lay down a blanket on the floor or a big empty bucket because these little suckers will fly all over the place. Reassembly is pretty straight forward, make sure you have the same number of bearing balls on top and at the bottom of the fork head set. Lay down some grease in the top cup on the frame and on the bottom one of the fork. Insert each ball bearing, grease the cup under the frame and on the one you screw on the top of the fork. Carefully insert the fork and be ready to screw it in right away. Did I mention that this was a bit of a messy job? It is. :)


I was also going to repack the bottom bracket with grease. But this one is equiped with cotter pin crank arms. In order to remove these, you must hit the cotter pin out. I partly removed the nut on the cotter pins and whacked them 2 or 3 times with a hammer on each side...nothing happened. No movement at all. That's the way of the cotter pin crank, it's a 50/50 chance that they are seized every time you need to remove them. The only other way for me to remove them is to drill out the pin. Now I am on a time limit for this build and the bottom bracket seems fine. No looseness anywhere and the thing cranks over pretty smoothly. So I decided to let it be.

Next step was to go over the frame with a Scotchbrite pad dipped in soap water to remove some house paint splashes and to generally clean the frame before applying a coat of clear lacquer all over the original finish. I also cleaned the chrome parts with a steel wool dipped in Mother's polishing cream. Another part that required some attention was the seat. The Brooks B66 leather saddle was not in bad shape, but the hide was starting to become a bit dry. It was wipped with Dubbin at least four times. The result was pretty good.

Next I located a stem and handle bar in my pile of parts. I really don't like the riding position of the original. Now that the frame is ready, it's time to figure out if those new parts fit on the frame...and that's for next time.


For more info on a complete bike tear down, including fork removal, consult my blog on the subject: http://bikeoverhaul

I bought two lights for the bike so that now sets the spend-o-meter at $21 CDN.

Til next time, ride safe and Godspeed.

Gerry :)

1956 Raleigh Sport project bicycle build

Well I haven't been the best of blogger lately. A crappy summer and all of a sudden the weather is nice. I've been selfish and spent my time riding and enjoying the nice weather. Yesterday I got my hands on 2 bikes that I plan to turn into one. So in trying to gain the forgiveness of my faithful readers, I will share this build with you. :)

So the story goes like this, a friend of mine had a pile of bikes he wanted to get rid of and called me to come and pick them up. I had no clue what he had, neither did he, but I rushed to his place and I was quite happy with what I found. The first was the CCM cruiser. Despite it's very bland looks my eyeballs zeroed in on the rear hub immediately, a Nexus 4! Four inner gears with a coaster brake, even the shifter was there, I couldn't believe my luck. That's until I turned my head and saw the Raleigh. Wow, the Brooks leather saddle caught my eyes right away and just by the general looks of it, I knew I was dealing with some very sweet vintage British iron. The rest of the pile was brought to the community bike shop.


When I first got my hands on these, I had a very vague idea of what I wanted to do with them. I had hunted for a Nexus for the past 3 years to put on one of my custom bikes, but now all those wheels are built up and painted. I wanted to try out the Nexus a bit before rebuilding an entire wheel for one of the customs with it. So I finally decided to use the Raleigh as a test bed for the Nexus and build it up. I took the CCM cruiser for a spin to make sure that the hub and shifter worked properly before disassembly. To my great relief, it worked fine.

Whenever you set up yourself up to start a project like this, there are many things to take into consideration. It's not just a case of slapping some parts from one bike to another. You most also decide to what extent you are willing to go. For this build, I decided I liked the original finish too much to repaint it, besides I have neither the means or the time to recreate the original art and decals put on there by the workers of Notthingham 52 years ago. I will simply lay a few coats of clear over the existing finish. I will also keep the signature Raleigh dimple fork, one of my favorite features of these bikes.

The Raleigh is equiped with 26 X 1 3/8 wheels, at first glance this size would seem to be the same as any 26 inch wheel, wrong! 26 X 1 3/8 is a little taller than balloon cruiser or mountain bike 26 inch wheels. The frame is also not wide enough to accept 26 X 2.125 whitewalls. I have no intention to lace the hub to the original rims, this would be time consuming and there is also the fact that there is one or two kinds of tires that fit on 26 X 1 3/8, that is if you can find them. I have gone and bought two 26 X 1.5 slicks that will fit inside the frame and fork.

The other thing to consider at this point, are the axles of the new wheels going to fit in the frame and fork? Axles today are pretty big compared to back then. I will use a quick release hub in the front, the smaller diameter axle will fit so I don't have to grind the fork stays openings. I will also have to verify that the back drop outs are wide enough to accept the Nexus hub.

There are a bunch of things to consider when doing this type of custom bicycle build, but in the end it's all worth it. I will post a progress report within the week...promise. The spend-o-meter now sits at $13 CDN.

Til next time, ride safe and Godspeed.

Gerry :)