musclebrook 26 inch cranbrook musclebike build

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heartlandcruisers

heartlandcruisers

Joined
Jun 3, 2012
Messages
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Location
arkansas city,kansas
well not sure if i will succeed but i think i am going to enter this one in the musclebike buildoff
I have had this crappy rotting corpse of a huffy cranbrook so long it is becoming a part of my house.
so what perfect time to bring him back to life
it was going to be an 18 speed conversion but now ii am going a different route.
most of it's parts have been harvested, but there is still hope for the brook( hmm might have to call it musclebrook kinda works hey )
now off to find parts and donor bikes for musclebrook
more updates soon but to make it official here is my entry photo
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well some progress on musclebrook i used a sears 3 speed asa donor and a few other parts i had laying around in order to give musclebrook the musclebike look i am running a skinny front tire and fatter back tire the back tire resembles a gripper slick so it works good i want to make it a 3 speed but unsure i can since the 3 speed wheel will not take this tire but alas here is my progress mostly mocking up the rear wheel is just a front wheel so i can see if the fat tire will fit under the fender i also sued the front end from the 3 speed and the huffy mag sprocket of another 3 speed i had
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the handebars i will be using their just the right height and are sort of apes

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mmm farm fresh bearings lol these will need to be cleaned and re greased their very sticky and it took me awhile to get them out undamaged
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same pic as the first but this is my beginning mockup and a general idea what it will look like i will be adding brakes a gearshift and a banana seat eventually oh yeah and a real back wheel not just a front wheel impostering the back wheel
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this rear tire resembls a gripper slick a bit so i figured it will work perfectly
for musclebrook if i can find a 3 speed wheel that will accept this tire id be all set
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well fron tire is junk i aired it up and a giant blob of black rubber started taking over the front fender so i quickly deflated it i got a bouch of bikes with these tires on them so i will find one if not i can buy one my lbs has these 26x1 3/8 tires in stock
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decided i wanted to take these forks off the donor bike i will
also be sung the brakes and gearshifter setup off the donor not sure the front fender will stay but it looks like i will have to do a little painting or i can just leave it not sure yet
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pictures a little blurry but this is the mag sprocket i will be using it needs some cleaning but is indecent shape
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r i p ol sears this is the uy that sacrificed his life to bring musclebrook back from the grave he was a good soul and will be missed
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more updates soon but i am stopped ehre until i get more parts which will be soon
 
That is one of my favorite chainrings. Good start.
 
heartlandcruisers said:
View attachment 85371 this rear tire resembls a gripper slick a bit so i figured it will work perfectly
for musclebrook if i can find a 3 speed wheel that will accept this tire id be all set
Click to expand...

Have you considered lacing one of the 3-speed hubs from the wheels you have into one of the rims that fit the tires? It's actually a lot easier than it sounds and about the only specialty tool you absolutely need is a spoke wrench. You would probably be able to re-use the spokes from the rim donor wheel.
 
The last Cranbrook I rode weighed a ton but it was a single speed cruiser. It'll be interesting to see where this one goes.

I do like them little Sears frames with the pool stick graphics. I'm tempted to throw out an offer for the bare frame. I have one already and the two together would be either a cool tall bike or a nice long stretch...

Carl.
 
GuitarlCarl said:
The last Cranbrook I rode weighed a ton but it was a single speed cruiser. It'll be interesting to see where this one goes.

I do like them little Sears frames with the pool stick graphics. I'm tempted to throw out an offer for the bare frame. I have one already and the two together would be either a cool tall bike or a nice long stretch...

Carl.
Click to expand...
i sill got it if you want it i think it has the frame chainguard rear fender and chain the rest has been cannibalized but the bars are still around somewhere
 
LukeTheJoker said:
Great start, looks good already.
Click to expand...
thanks luke i have beenw anting to do soemthing like this for awhile
restodave said:
Have you considered lacing one of the 3-speed hubs from the wheels you have into one of the rims that fit the tires? It's actually a lot easier than it sounds and about the only specialty tool you absolutely need is a spoke wrench. You would probably be able to re-use the spokes from the rim donor wheel.
Click to expand...
that is exactly what i am doing i was just about to update my post that is what i am doing i am lacing the hub to the front wheel hoop
 
little update on musclebrook i sent the wheel to have the 3 speed hub laced to the rim with fat tire i dropped them both off at my lbs i stink at wheel building so i had to outsource the work more updates soon
 
due to snow and freezing weather this project has been at a standstill but i am going to get on it tomorrow and see what i can do i am waiting for a few parts so i doubt much will get done
for fenders i am thinking of taking a pair of Schwinn Hollywood fenders and bobbing the rear fender or i may use the fort fender on the back to give it the musclebike look i also am more then likely going to put a taller pair of apes on it as i don't feel these bars are very musclebikeish i will most likely mount the newish front tire and clean some parts on it and see what else i can do with what i got
more updates soon
sean
 
so i guess since i have downtime i can give a little back story as to how this bike became and what inspired me
first off this bike came into my possession in July with a bunch of junk bikes waiting to be scrapped out for parts( yes im stupid enough to actually have a bicycle junkyard lol surprisingly it does ok though) i began taking some parts off the bike as i needed them but then i discovered the frame had a cool pin striping paint job stock of course and had potential to be a cool build i just was not sure what to do with it so then i thought motorized build, then decided nope don't want to with a huffy frame as their not strong enough to hold my weight and the weight of a motor kit, so again it sat, then i got the idea of a 18 speed conversion, which turned out to be more then i can afford or what it would be worth to build, so bam plan was scrapped so again the bike sat. about a week before the muscle bike build off became, i cam across 14 bikes in the junkyard and i got a bunch of 3 speed parts and misc parts in stock so a couple weeks went by and i began dismantling the junk bikes and stocking my junk pile most bikes do not last more then couple days with me unless i am building them then they stay but usually i part them and scrap the frames and junk do no want.
so again the bike sat with a lot of parts on my shelves and the musclebike buildoff came about and bam like that musclebrook was born the idea in my head is to build a full on musclebike with apes banana seat and 3 speed using the cranbrook frame these frames suck monkey skin big time but it has the look for what want so this bike has finally been saved from the scrap pile and hen done should be a cool bike win or lose this bike will be an accomplishment for me i have been toying with for a few years so as you may have guessed im not in to win just to have fun and build a cool ride.
now back to the build i am still waiting for my 3 speed wheel to be built i told my lbs to take his time he treats me very well so i am ok with that but to kind of give you guys an idea of what i am going for visualize if you will a full on 3 speed muscle bike like a Schwinn hurricane only 3 speed instead of 5 speed with fat gripper slick style rear tire and skinny front tire apehagers full working 3 speed and a long banana seat loaf pan style possibly but to keep the musclebike look i am using a polo seat which i have to order and i am going with the tallest sissy bar i can find do not want to paint the frame but i may paint the back forks so i can clean up the build a bit more updates soon but not sure what else i can do atm until i get more parts
 
I found some rust on these forks that may make them unsafe so i am going to use this complete front end and see if i can straighten the fender braces her is musclebrooks current state still waiting on parts but im using a few junkyard bits to mock it up and shw the bobbed fender im not 100 percent but it is good enough once the rest of the parts get installed it will be good
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well i got the gears sorted and working the donor wheel is good for making adjustments but when i get my wheel back i will have to readjust everything slow progress but it is coming along
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the cble guuide wheel needs some minor adjustments but it works as it sits
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radiator hose clamps make great cabl holds for these 3 speed cables
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she works but i still have to make some tweaks to dial it in
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