homebrewed bikes

2013-03-27T16:25:00.001-05:00

Got out riding again today. Harry Moss park is right in my backyard and is an easy enough skill level I can enjoy it on a 26" rigid bike. It was my first time riding a seesaw. If I hadn't put music over that video you would have heard me exclaim "woah" ever time I went over it.

I tried out Performance's new Ultra Bib and the chamois was super comfy. Usually in an hour ride I am readjusting a chamois to not rub sensitive areas, but this one did the trick without an adjustment! It's a winner and the price is the most reasonable one I've seen for a bib of this caliber.

Gingerly

2012-11-26T13:53:00.004-06:00

Work hard. Play harder.

My Ginger Minger & Scott Paisley MTB just before a clean & lube.

I worked hard this weekend. Friday was the biggest retail day of the year. I sold a bunch of bikes, got folks accessorized, and thoroughly worked my ass off. Following busy working days like these, I usually just rest on my next day off. But not today.

Today, I played. I took the Scott Paisley mountain bike out to the woods near my place. She rode beautifully. It was my first time riding the trails out there. It was fast & fun. I rode for and hour and a half and explored all the different loops on my own. I can't believe I hadn't done this sooner.

I had forgotten how important play is to me. I'd been wasting my days off, just napping & watching the boob tube. Then, I got hooked up fishing. I found a friend that makes jigs and has taught me quite a bit about fishing in the creeks and lakes around here. I caught the fishin' bug from him, and have been fishing several times a month on my own. I caught three bass two weeks ago, just a 5 minute walk into the woods from my place.

The woods are my new sanctuary. On my days off I can take my dog out there for a walk, grab a fishing pole and pull up some perch, or sling my bike down and tear up the trails.

I feel really good again. It's a high of 75F today, unseasonably warm for this time of year here in Dallas. After riding today, I came back, cracked my latest homebrew, cleaned my bike, and cranked the online stream of WTJU on TuneIn. The folks at WTJU always remember to give me a shoutout.

Oh - my latest homebrew. I was quite disappointed with it... until this week. I call it Ginger Minger. It's a basic pale ale recipe I took and played with a bit. I added a bunch of shredded ginger and fresh mint for the last 15 minutes of the wort boil. It was intended to be a late autumn beer... and it's perfect for that. Perfect for today. Play is rewarding.

Stable Stable

2012-10-31T11:54:00.001-05:00

Rachel and I moved to a new, more spacious apartment at the end of the summer. We were cramped in our old one, partially because of the number of bikes and cycling accessories we had crammed in there. To fix that issue in our new place, I picked up a set of XPORT Bikes Aloft 2 Storage Racks from Performance Bicycle. Here's a peak of them with 5 bikes hanging:

They really got our bikes up and out of the way. Now there's plenty of room to enjoy our hardwood floors (and keep them tread-pattern free). They're priced well and easy to assemble. I am most impressed with was how stable they are. I literally did pull-ups off the top rungs of each... and they survived even if I didn't. Do yourself a favor and pick one up for the holidays. We definitely should have done this sooner.

Why... Hello there, friend.

2012-10-30T17:28:00.000-05:00

"You need some car free days"

2012-04-24T11:25:00.000-05:00

Since moving to Dallas I've been driving to work every day. It has been taking its toll on me - until this past Saturday, that is. Saturday was the first day that I've commuted to work without a car since coming to Texas. I biked to the train station, hopped aboard for 15 miles ($1.75) and biked the rest of the way to work. On the way home I missed a train by less than a minute, causing my return commute to take 80 minutes.

Overall, it was fun. Tons of folks on the train talked to me because of how different my bike is from things they've seen. Everyone seemed to strike up conversation about it. The train did get crowded though.

Today, I'm armed with more experience. I know what to expect, how & where to pay for the fare, how to hang my bike on the DART, and a knowledge that it's less taxing psychologically on me than driving is. I'll be saving a bit of cash, too. My driving commute was costing me a gallon of gas each direction ($8 total), plus wear and tear on the car. My roundtrip now costs me less than $4, and I'll be getting some exercise and sunlight at the same time.

Today will be bike commute #2.

The Cloud

2012-04-19T11:29:00.001-05:00

I got my frame back a couple of months ago with the braze-ons. Looks great, but the canti studs on the back are too high. I can just BARELY get a set of brakes to hit the rim without rubbing the tire. If they were another millimeter higher I'd be screwed. Oh well, I got the work done for super cheap and it WILL work out, so no skin off my back I guess. I've been trying to get in contact with a personally recommended powder-coating company, but no luck. I'm sick of this frame sitting around unrideable , so I clear-coated it today and will get it powder-coated later after I get vinyl decals made for the logo.

Tour de Cafe in Plano, TX

2012-02-04T22:26:00.000-06:00

At work I've committed to lead a Sunday morning ride out of the shop. It will formally be known as "Tour De Cafe." Our lead tech came up with the idea, and I'm excited to lead it. Pretty much we'll leave the shop at 11am, ride 5-10 miles to a coffee shop, get a cup of joe and ride back. This will be a great ride for beginners! Definitely conversational pace and no-drop. If you're around Plano, TX and want in, just let me know. I'll give you more details.

And while I'm on the subject of coffee and bicyles, gotta give props to this:

Wooden Fenders from Woody

2012-02-04T22:09:00.001-06:00

I've been put through the proverbial wringer at work, hence the lack of recent updates. I've been told it's all for a greater good... so I'm trying to keep my head above the water for now. I believe the worst is over, but I haven't quite recovered...

On the homebrewedbikes side of things, I've done a small amount of tinkering while waiting very patiently for Aaron with RevTilton Cycles to finish braze-ons for my frame. I found a sweet bicycle fender shop: Woodys Custom Fenders. His craftsmanship is beautiful. But more than anything else, I like that he sells his scraps for dirt cheap!

I picked up a box like you see above. They'll be great for my current projects because I'll have 20" wheels on my Rockfish and a 16" trailer wheel. About a week ago I got bored and replaced my trailer fender that had seen better days. Now it looks classy. The curve of the fender scrap I used didn't quite match the curve of the 16" wheel, so I boiled it in water for about 30 mins. After boiling it, I then clamped it to the rim to hold it's shape while it dried. Turned out great. I sanded it with 220 grit and put on two coats of polyurethane:

I borrowed all the hardware from the previous fender:

If you've made your own fenders, let me know and send me some pictures. I'll feature them.

Utility Wheelset on Ebay

2011-12-21T12:02:00.000-06:00

Finally parting with my 3 speed utility wheelset. I put it on ebay two days ago:

It's a beautiful set. 3 speed sachs torpedo hub in the rear, sram i-light dynamo hub in the front, wheelsmith double butted spokes, rhyno lite rims, blue anodized alloy nipples... and it comes with a shifter, cable & toggle chain for the rear hub and spanninga dynamo lights for the front. Check it out if you're interested.

RevTilton Cycles

2011-12-03T07:39:00.002-06:00

RevTilton Cycles - Dream, Scheme & Execute

I've been wanting to add a few braze-ons to the Rockfish, so last night I dropped the frame off with Aaron at RevTilton Cycles. He was recently at the Texas Homemade Bicycle show and it looks like his building operation is getting off the ground. He's going to add a few cable stops for me, cantilever brake bosses for the rear wheel and water bottle mounting bolts. Looking forward to getting the frame back in a month or so.

Sean's Homemade Panniers

2011-12-01T11:42:00.000-06:00

My good friend, Sean, has his homemade panniers featured on BikeHacks.com. He waterproofed them with Plasti Dip. They're super nice, go take a look:

The First Rideable Night of my F-1 Rockfish

2011-11-27T12:39:00.000-06:00

I've wrenched on bikes quite a bit. The majority of the wrenching I've done has been for friends and strangers at the Charlottesville Community Bicycle Shop. It always felt great to get neglected bikes and parts working again with some ingenuity and elbow grease. And although it feels great to wrench for other people, there's just nothing like piecing together my own bikes. I've been conceptualizing and building my own bikes since my freshman year of college and one thing does not change: the first ride on a project bike is a blast. There comes that day in every project when I make a realization that I have everything in my possession to take it for a spin, even if it's not complete. That realization means the evening is ruined and all other plans are cancelled. I wrench until the wee hours of the night if I must, just to hop on for that first limited ride. I have to know how she handles.

I remember my first mountain bike ride on Observatory Hill on my first build in 2006, Penelope:

I remember blasting down the streets of Charlottesville at 4am with blinking yellow stoplights just as I finished the final welds on my tallbike:

And I remember taking a spin around the block as soon as my 3 speed road bike had a brake on it:

Those bikes were all juvenile builds of sorts, as my recent builds have matured and become somewhat coherent. More frequently I start from the frame up; sometimes building just the right wheelset or building the bike for a specific purpose. This week, I finally got my Formula-1 BMX Rockfish rideable:

Mechanically, the front brake and 3 speed hub are working, so it's all good to ride! I'm still working on the back brake (braze-on cantis?), searching for the right seven speed shifter for the cockpit, and looking to get the bike painted and decaled. As for the ride... this is the quickest accelerating, tightest turning, smoothest, and most fun bike I've built. I put some B.O.B. Nutz on it to haul my trailer and the build will make a nice beater/commuter/utility bike when done! It's super quick on those skinny 406 tires. It's definitely road worthy.

I wish you the very best on your maiden voyages. Mine have all been super.

Single-speeding your Double Chainring Bolts

2011-11-20T12:40:00.000-06:00

If you've ever converted a double chainring-ed bike to a to a single chainring, you've likely run into a problem with the length of the chainring bolts. Double cranks usually come with bolts and nuts that are a little longer to compensate for the width of that second ring. Sure, you can buy some single speed chainring bolts or washers... or you can just take care of it yourself and save a few bucks.

What you'll need:
-chainring bolts and nuts
-5mm hex wrench
-a clamp, vise, or the ability to use two hands
-a file or dremel

1) Thread your chainring bolt into the back of the nut a few turns, like so.

2) Slide the chainring bolt onto your 5mm hex wrench.

3) Either secure the hex wrench to your table, a vise, or even hold it with your hand.

4) Run a fine file across the nut approximately 20 times.Congrats, now your chainring nut is likely short enough for a single chainring on a double crank. If not, file some more.

The finished product with a magnet to collect filings.

Good things come to those that drink good beer...

2011-11-17T13:23:00.000-06:00

Rachel won a New Belgium 2011 Fat Tire cruiser from an online drawing! We picked it up from Jerry, a New Belgium "Beer Ranger" today. This is our 7th bike in our one bedroom apartment!

New Belgium Cruiser made by Felt.

Rachel poured us some help.

We did the assembly quickly. Very painless.

It really is a very comfortable bike. It rolls smooth, albeit quite heavy. It looks like aluminum... but that's all steel! Great for a flat place like Dallas.

Slowly but Surely

2011-11-09T20:56:00.000-06:00

I took the time to completely clean and regrease the internals of the Sachs 3x7 hub today...

Sachs 3x7 hub internals.

If your Sachs hub is gummed up and you want it cleaned up like new, talk to me and maybe I can clean it out for you for a few bucks. The whole bike is taking shape and I should have another $200 of parts coming my way in the next week or so to start to flesh it out. Exage cranks, 53 tooth chainring, Soma High Rider stem, Kalloy seatpost and collar, Panaracer slick tires, headset spacers...

Rockfish F-1 BMX taking shape.

I picked up a brand new Forte 10 speed carbon derailleur for $35. It looks fly and that's a great deal for what seems to be a well built derailleur. It should index correctly with a 7 speed shifter... and if not, there's always friction shifting.

Forte 10 Speed Carbon Rear Derailleur

Just in time for Halloween

2011-10-31T22:32:00.000-05:00

Oh. Em. Gee.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/HANDSADDLE-HAND-COMFORT-SADDLE-SEAT-ANATOMIC-PERFECTION-SELLE-SAN-MARCO-ITALIA-/220884953365?pt=Cycling_Parts_Accessories&hash=item336dc4e915#ht_1000wt_1193

Out. Of. Shape.

2011-10-12T16:17:00.000-05:00

Just got in from a 35 mile ride - only my 3rd road ride in three months since moving to Dallas. Too much wrenching and not enough riding these days. However, things at the shop are looking up, and they have some bike-specific tools I can use to get my Rockfish Formula One BMX into shape. So far I've gotten the chance to use the Park FFG-2 dropout alignment tool. I had been contemplating building one out of scraps I have lying around, but sometimes it's easier to use what's already available than rebuild the wheel. However, there are many home-brewed methods to make this tool instead of buying that rarely-used $80 tool. All you need is a 10mm axle, two axle nuts, and a stiff piece of metal with a hole in it for a leverage arm:

A photo & design from Mark @ BikeSmithDesign.com

Pretty ingenious. Then there are those tools that are necessities if you want to do a job correctly. I'm specifically referring to cutting tools. I've already added threads on the fork for the Rockfish, but now I'm planning on using two additional cutting tools while I have access to them at the shop.

CRC-1 headset crown race seat milling tool
&
HTR-1 headtube facer

The CRC-1 is a $400 tool that will allow me to take my 1" fork that is intended for a 27.03 ID crown race and mill it down to accept a 26.43 crown race... that will make it compatible with my new CHRIS KING headset! w00t. If I didn't have access to this tool, then I would take a file to the crown race seat... a laborious and imprecise method. However, the file method will work, and I suggest using a retaining fluid with this method to keep the crown race seated.

The HTR-1 is another $400 tool that will allow me to face the top and bottom surfaces of the head tube in order to make each surface planar and in parallel. Supposedly Chris King headsets require that this is done, and I will be cautious and follow their suggestion as I have already repaired the dented head tube. I cannot think of a way to make a tool that can do this accurately.

Alright, enough of this pro-tool business. These tools are not necessities for the home mechanic, and are rarely used even in the shop. If you are doing a fresh build or have a damaged frame and need cutting services done, I highly suggest getting them done professionally for personal economic reasons.

Upcoming Goodness

2011-10-02T11:50:00.000-05:00

But I don't think I'll be able to make it...

Rear Rack Bike Hack

2011-10-01T06:47:00.001-05:00

Made it on another post at Bike Hacks again. This time an anti-theft hack for travelling with bikes on the back of a vehicle.

I go where I'm thread.

2011-09-07T13:45:00.001-05:00

Somehow, I think I knew this day would come. I do not believe it was by chance that I purchased a die handle and a 1" 24tpi die off of ebay a few months ago. I used them today to extend threads on my new fork for the Rockfish F-1 BMX. The fork had 1.5" of threads already cut, but I had to extend them another 1.75" to make it compatible with my head tube. Park Tool's article on thread cutting was really helpful.

Fork prior to cutting more threads. I threaded down into the black painted area.

My awesome die handle.

1" steerer x 24tpi

Thread shavings. Clear these by spinning 1/8 turn backward every 1/2 turn.

First pass, super oiled up. Copious amounts of lube required.

First pass.

Second pass.

Third pass, all clean and all done!

All in all, it probably took me an hour of work and a lot of arm strength. I had to make several passes with the die set at slightly different diameters. During the first pass, the die is set quite open. The die is closed a little with each following pass to cut the threads a little at a time. I used almost all of my chain lube in the process.

The title of this post is a play on a lyric in a Silver Jews song - Pet Politics.

Applications for Best Friend Being Accepted...

2011-08-24T15:58:00.000-05:00

Sole Qualification:
Don't tell my wife which piece of furniture I used to spread the Rockfish dropouts to fit the Sachs 3x7 wheel.

Yipeeeee!

2011-08-22T22:07:00.000-05:00

Having a hobby that allows me to get cool toys in the mail is great! It's exciting like Christmas was when I was a little kid. I want to give a special thanks to Brian over at http://kmxtornado.blogspot.com/ - he sold me his old Sachs 3x7 hub laced to a 20" wheel! It used to be on his tadpole trike recumbent... but no longer! It is mine:

Three gears internally and 7 on the cassette. Laced to a 406mm 20" wheel.

The OLD (Outside Locknut Dimension) on this bad boy is 135mm. My Rockfish F-1 BMX frame has dropouts spaced at 126mm, so I'll need to coldset the frame a bit. I gave it a quick shot today, but didn't get too far without the right tools. Additionally, it didn't help that the seat stay and chain stay bridges are so close to the dropouts on this 20" wheel frame. Between that and the solid construction of the frame, I only managed to squeeze out a few millimeters in spacing on attempt one.

Spreading the frame slowly, with a garden tool.

Not super successful, as you may be able to tell from the caliper reading.

I'll try spreading the frame again later this week with a less flexible lever- most likely a 2x4. I'm hoping that it will not be too apparent on the seat stays after all is said and done. Only 7mm to go!

I've been looking high and low for one of these things. I've seen them on eBay, but usually incomplete, at scary prices, and on wheel sizes I can't use. I'm glad I finally found a complete one on an appropriate wheel size. It was worth the money. The next big task is finding a suitable fork for that Rockfish...

These mechanical pursuits are a great break from the job hunting, here in Dallas, TX.

Recently Awarded...

2011-08-20T21:24:00.001-05:00

So back in June there was a great cycling party in Charlottesville, to support Double the Wheels. The point of the party was to bring non-cyclists and show them how cool the cycling community in C-ville is. Turns out, it was pretty hard to find someone I knew that was a non-cyclist. All of those I asked to attend were busy or out of town. Too bad! They missed a great party with DJ WesternFront, the unveiling of Squid Logistics, and beer brewed in Richmond, VA at Legend Brewery.

But most importantly, there were some cycling superlatives for the local cycling community... and I won... most die-hard bicycle commuter! Check out my sick bling and super moves:

Photo stolen from Chris's facebook.

Now THAT'S a title I know you're jealous of!

Free Cassette Spacer featured on Bike Hacks!

2011-08-19T12:51:00.002-05:00

Recently submitted a post to Bike Hacks... they published it today!

Flywheels on Bikes?!

2011-08-15T10:52:00.003-05:00

Flywheel technology being tested on bikes for more efficient automotive transit:

Max says it himself, the goal isn't to redesign the bike, but to use it as a testing ground for flywheels on automotive vehicles.

Remember, the folks that brought you powered flight were bicycle mechanics.