Show your bicycles, sans engines!

[Ulu]

2 hours ago, cheesy said:

I can quit anytime. And this isn't showing what's in the attic.

 

What’s the orange thing made out of square tubing?

[Ulu]

The pan  is all painted, and I am making a pattern for the upholstery.

[cheesy]

1 hour ago, Ulu said:

 

What’s the orange thing made out of square tubing?

That's my Cub Cadet zero turn mower. A time saver when you have an acre to mow.

[Ulu]

Nowadays I just hire somebody to do my mowing etc. That saves me time twice, because I don’t have to maintain a mower either.

[cheesy]

23 hours ago, Ulu said:

Nowadays I just hire somebody to do my mowing etc. That saves me time twice, because I don’t have to maintain a mower either.

When I was working, mowing was one of my stress relievers. Now, it's just something I like to do. Maintenance on this beast isn't much; once a year oil change, filters, and blade sharpening. Hit it once a month with the grease gun. This thing is so much faster than my old Troy-Bilt, too. Used to take upwards of 2 hours to do the lawn, now it's about 45 minutes.

[Ulu]

It used to be the motorcycle polishing was one of my stress relievers. I didn’t have to deal with anything but a brush and a rag.

 

But arthritis has taken that away. I don’t want to do it anymore. Just putting my motorcycle back together was a pain in the finger joints.

 

At some point it becomes a serious pain and I have to stop and change tools or pick up a tool And switch hands or something.

 

Anyhow I think it’s time to sell the Nomad. Maybe. We’ll see how the clutch works now.

 

 

 

 

[cheesy]

Out and about this humid morning. Stopped at the local coffee shop for some ice tea with lemonade, aka, an Arnold Palmer. So far, an hour riding the bike burns more calories than trying to get the elusive 10K steps in in 12 hours. My wife is getting upset with my weight loss.

[Plymouthy Adams]

a local gentleman (76) was fatally hit and run just a few miles from my house.  Have seen him out and about many times, always rode on the very shoulder of the road.  This is not an isolated incident and why I have been out so few times on my bike in recent past as these incidents is on the rise as is driver rage toward bike riders.  The guy who hit him had the time and forethought to stop, remove the bike embedded into his grille and chunk it to the side of the road, drive off about a mile and abandon the car, am sure if failed to proceed as it looked like it rammed a phone pole dead center, after abandoning the car, then proceeded away from the car and further from the scene and any help nearby and was located only with the assistance of a tracking K-9....I passed by the car parked along the road abandoned before I saw the scene of the accident and told the wife how odd the wrecked car and no sign of an accident there.  There were zero skid marks, the bike was well ahead of the point of impact when tossed.  Sad day...!

[cheesy]

2 hours ago, Plymouthy Adams said:

a local gentleman (76) was fatally hit and run just a few miles from my house.  Have seen him out and about many times, always rode on the very shoulder of the road.  This is not an isolated incident and why I have been out so few times on my bike in recent past as these incidents is on the rise as is driver rage toward bike riders.  The guy who hit him had the time and forethought to stop, remove the bike embedded into his grille and chunk it to the side of the road, drive off about a mile and abandon the car, am sure if failed to proceed as it looked like it rammed a phone pole dead center, after abandoning the car, then proceeded away from the car and further from the scene and any help nearby and was located only with the assistance of a tracking K-9....I passed by the car parked along the road abandoned before I saw the scene of the accident and told the wife how odd the wrecked car and no sign of an accident there.  There were zero skid marks, the bike was well ahead of the point of impact when tossed.  Sad day...!

That is awful.

[Plymouthy Adams]

it truly is....and this I am sure was a distracted driver....however there is no excuse at the age of 50 not stopping the render aide or at minimum call 911 and am sure he was aware you are not to hit and run.    He had a cold calculated plan to exit the scene of the crime however showing no remorse for his actions but only to try and save his sorry butt.  I am sure the next step if not already put in play by him was to report the car stolen and he just discovered that fact.  Action, arrested, bail denied.

 

Road rage incidents of increasing violence is on the rise in our area as I read the news the few times I do (gets me riled) and well, this is becoming ever so common everywhere.  My grandson was hit and run inside a state park on a bicycle path no less by a couple estimated to be mid 60's who was on a powered ATV not supposed to be on the bike path....taken to the hospital by helicopter the couple broke camp and disappeared and not found to this date.  Personally I do not think the police care enough to follow any leads...after all, all entrances in the park is recorded.  Again, the sorry state of humanity these days.

[Ulu]

I’m afraid they catch so many people without chasing, that they don’t “have time” to chase people down.

 

I can’t imagine how much time they spend just hauling intoxicated people off the street.

[Ulu]

Stripping spokes for a small wheel.

Hot brake fluid destroys paint. It turns rubbery and peels right off.

You can see a little pink still, in the threads.

[Ulu]

Here it is all buffed & assembled. I don’t know if I ever showed you guys my DIY buffer. On the other end of the spindle is a 6 inch disc sander and there’s a tailstock and a steady rest and it converts to a small wood lathe.

 

Everything is clean and ready to go.

 

This is called a 2-cross lacing pattern. On larger wheels they usually cross three times. The first cross is right at the hub so it’s difficult to see.

 

The bearings and axle are all back together now, and the wheel is trued up with a dial indicator.

It was hot enough in the garage that I decided to build the wheel in my office.  

Edited January 13, 2023 by Ulu

[Ulu]

This one is a 3-cross And it was the front wheel on the mongoose.

 

I bought a Sturmey-archer fat bike three speed hub kit and I am going to convert it to a rear wheel.

 

Unfortunately I had to order new spokes and they will not be here for a week. . . . Which is not a big deal because I don’t have a frame for this yet. This will go on a custom built frame.

 

[59bisquik]

This is my Phat Cycles Tribal cruiser. I have had her for many years and always enjoyed her. Lately where we ride is no longer flat and it was a real struggle to keep up with my daughter on her mountain bike with all the gears. I rode hers and figured out what gears I should change to on the cruiser. Went from a 44/22t combo to a 36/24t combo. Also added a Nexus 3 speed rear hub. Now I have two underdriven gears and a straight through. Works much better bit the coaster brake was not up to the hilly task. Then added a set of calipers to the bike. It took away from the simplistic look I always like, but much nicer to ride.

Edited July 25, 2022 by 59bisquik

[Ulu]

So I could have extra gears, I put two sprockets on the front, but I don’t have a derailer.

 

I have to reach down and change the chain by hand although I’m pretty good at shifting down with my toe.

 

So I have seven speeds with high/low range, and I don’t have to change ranges very often; plus I keep my chain clean, so it’s not all greasy.

 

But I have to live with the rear derailer, and those things are too delicate. If I get the new spokes soon I’ll be able to lace up my 3-speed.

 

Right now I’m rebuilding the worlds tiniest little coaster brake.

[Ulu]

Stripping more paint with brake fluid.

I soaked it for two days in the desert sun and the paint bubbled off. This was after a quick wipe with Scotchbrite.

 

This bike is finally stable enough I can barely ride it without hands, but it still needs 2° of rake and it needs to drop about an inch towards the ground. I think I’m gonna accomplish all of that with a special sissy bar.

[Ulu]

Right now I am stripping the hoop for that little brake with old used brake fluid, but I didn’t want to pour 2 gallons of brake fluid in a pan. I drenched it all in brake fluid and wrapped it in a thin plastic bag and put it in the sun in a steel pan.

 

I measured the temperature after it had sat in the sun all afternoon and my infrared thermometer tells me 148°F.

 

Brake fluid does not boil until about 400°F so I may try heating this up with the Wagner heat gun and see if it blisters up faster. The pink paint on this bike was more susceptible than the blue paint, so it must be a different formula.

 

That hoop also had a nice dent in it.

 

I shaped this little piece of hardwood to match and I hammered it out with a rubber mallet.

 

 

 

Spoke points to where the dent was. It came out really clean. I need to remove the rest of the rust though.

 

I checked it with the caliper and it runs between 1.295” & 1.325”, So the hoop is within 1/32” all the way around, and there’s no dents or gouges.

 

Anyhow I should be able to get all the paint off today after another hot soak.

 

Edited July 30, 2022 by Ulu

[Ulu]

Soaked in hot brake fluid 24 hrs:

Brushed and  Scotchbrited:

After that I hit it with number 400 and number 800 wet paper to get rid of all the die scratches.

 

But before I continue with that buffing, I’m polishing out the new stainless spokes and chromed white brass nipples for my fat wheel. Those are the old cadmium plated spokes with the rubber band. ($38 delivered, from T&T bikes, unpolished.)

 

I am first setting up to lace & true the fatwheel. It’s pretty hot outdoors so I’m setting up in the office.

First I’m going to just polish the hub.

 

What you’re looking at is the mid lift-frame from my mom’s old power lift chair bolted up to the two long crossbars from a ‘96 Bonneville trailer hitch.

Edited July 31, 2022 by Ulu

[1950 Special Deluxe]

Bought this today. Ebike originally produced and sold by Lee Iacocca. 

[1950 Special Deluxe]

https://www.electricbike.com/lee-iacocca-and-the-ev-global-electric-bike/
 

[Ulu]

 

[Ulu]

I had to cut that rim strip off because it was so tight.

 

I stitched it back together with a sewing machine and somehow I managed to stretch it back on without destroying anything.

 

 

 

 

 

Edited January 13, 2023 by Ulu

[pflaming]

Ulu, you have quite the ‘love’ for bicycles. Your work is admirable. 

[Ulu]

It keeps me out of the bars. No booze money left after this mod.

 

The axle is too short to put this on the Mongoose.

 

Edited August 3, 2022 by Ulu