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Some might remember this bike from the last BO:
IMG_20200831_090623.jpg

It has a 29" tire in the back and 26" in the front.
I rode it some and changed the seat and the seat post to make it more rideable. Had to raise the stem too:
IMG_20200913_182543.jpg

It needs a front brake in order to be street legal, also reflectors and lights.
So I dug out the front wheel that matches the rear. The drum brake reaction arm is not drilled for a bolt, but it uses a clamp. However the clamp is too far from the fork leg. Of course being the technical prodigy it didn't occur to me that I could have taken a drilled reaction arm from an identical Sachs hub, (which even has the brake installed) until I was done... Then I could have simply used a long bolt with a few nuts and washers. So I went the hard way. The ratrod way if you like.
I used scissors to prevent the reaction arm opening of the clamp from being squished and a screwdriver to achieve an inside curve:
IMG_20210304_111948.jpg

I was left with a piece that can be easily bolted to a coaster brake clamp on the fork leg:
IMG_20210304_115709.jpg
IMG_20210304_115717.jpg

So I am now waiting for the tube and tire for the front wheel to arrive. I have to see if I can find matching reflectors in my parts boxes... Or maybe a single reflector on each wheel?
Hm I do have reflecting stripes on these tires, do I need spoke reflectors then? I will ask on my local group.
 
Just a quick update - I installed the front wheel with the 29" tire but found out that it looks quite like a regular Cruiser with both wheels that large. It actually looked like a 26" Cruiser because the big wheels made the extended frame look shorter, as well as the fork. It took a lot away from the original look.
So I installed the 26" wheel from my daily which has a drum brake too. Of course it turned out that the brake itself was a bit different and it would not fit between the fork legs. Luckily the brakes are interchangeable so I swapped them.
The brake from the 26" wheel:
IMG_20210317_161544.jpg

The brake from the 28" wheel installed on the 26" wheel'
IMG_20210317_161633.jpg

I found a cheap pair of grips that I deemed perfect for the bike:
Screenshot_20210317_171809.jpg

Turned out to be from a kid bike, very small, I didn't think of asking about the length. They were 10 cm / 4" tops. But I just needed to cut the ends so I can use the metal bar plugs. I used parts of another pair to finish the grip area:
IMG_20210317_162000.jpg

I should have sanded the brake lever to metal, but I got lazy. It is a right side lever, but that is what I had and I didn't find online any used left side lever that I liked:
IMG_20210317_161947.jpg

So it sits like before, the only difference is that now it has a front brake and grips:
IMG_20210317_161727.jpg
IMG_20210317_161811.jpg

I also have to shamefully admit that I have no intention to shorten the gear cable because it is quite a chore on a igh with a bell crank.
By the way check the front rim:
IMG_20210317_162104.jpg

Pretty nice. I think it is from the Netherlands. I actually do have a 635 mm rear wheel, with the same pattern, which is not only bigger, but also wider. Unfortunately it has a ss hub and there is a very limited choice of tires for the 635 mm wheels, so I won't use it on this bike.
 
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I stumbled upon this video which describes the Dutch bike I used for the extension:

Don't get fooled by the title though, it was literally the worst bike I have ever ridden. I use it for my first BO and it came 57th from 60 participants, or something like that.
Easily identifiable in the video are the bolt-on seat stays (and the rack, which I am using in this year's BO.)
 

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