Electra Townie 8 Ball'oon - DONE (I think)

[the_undecider]

I hope this bike isn't too new and too shiny, but I think it will turn put pretty nice when I am finished. New it is indeed. This is a showroom fresh 2012 Townie 7D. So far, I have installed Schwalbe Fat Franks and a set of magnesium platform pedals I had laying around.

My original plan was to get an Electra Cruiser 1 in their new tall frame size and revamp it with a Sturmey Archer 2 speed kickback hub and a S/A front drum brake. Then, I was thinking new handlebars, stem, Brooks saddle, and so on. Quickly, my $250 cruiser turns into $700-800. It would have been neat, but I'd still have a heavy, relative low performance bike. Then, I found Electra had a 7 speed derailleur equipped cruiser. It's a cool bike, but they don't make it in the tall size and it just felt too cramped, so I nixed that one.

So, I decided that the Townie 7D offered what I needed, but with any bike I buy, I can't leave well enough alone. Initially, I was going to leave it mostly stock except for changing out the grip shifter (which I can't stand) as well as some comfy grips in addition to the tires and pedals. That has morphed into ideas of greater grandeur. I found a mountain bike wheelset with white rims and black hubs that would look sick on the bike. Of course, that gives me the opportunity to upgrade to 8, 9, or even 10 speed systems if I went really crazy. I decided to stick with 8 speed so I can keep the stock crank and chain to save money. Also, that allows me to call it 8 Ball.

So, the bike will be getting the black and white wheelset, 8 speed cassette, and some sort of trigger shifter which I will have to figure out what will fit within the limited space on these handlebars (or switch bars). I am thinking SRAM X4 or X5 which is fairly cheap or I may go with Shimano Altus or Acera. I don't need anything fancy, just functional. I am also going to find some 8 Ball decals to cover up the 7 speed markings on the bike. I'll send it to Electra and maybe they'll make a version and pay me royalties, ha.

Also, I wanted to post my wife's Townie with the adaptations I made for her. It's an interesting story. When she was 14, she broke her arm and the x-ray showed she had a tumor in her left elbow. This was a fairly rare type of tumor that is benign but acts like a malignant tumor. It only eats through bone which is what it did to her elbow. After a couple years of treatment, doctors had to amputate her left arm below her shoulder. She hasn't been able to ride a bike since she was 14 save for when she tried to ride again after healing from her amputation at the age of 16. When we met, I just assumed she would never ride a bike. I was wrong and not the first time she has proven me wrong, won't be the last.

Earlier this year, something possessed her to jump out of an airplane. Since then, she has been doing things she never thought possible. After seeing a guy completely missing his right arm and a portion of his left arm riding a road bike in triathlons, she decided she needed to get back on the bike. We discussed how to go about doing this and here is the product of that so far:

I purchased a dual cable brake lever so she could operate both brakes with her right hand. It works beautifully:

I also added this spring steering stabilizer. This is common in Europe where you see a lot of utility bikes that carry loads on the front forks or handlebars. It keeps the front wheel from flopping around while the bike is parked and helps stabilize the steering while riding. I figured it would be useful for her with only one hand. I had to order this from a French company as nobody in the US sells one (except Velo Orange, but theirs doesn't fit large diameter frame tubes):

For someone who is missing an arm and hadn't ridden a bike in 14 years, she got right back into it. The very first day, she was riding unaided by me holding her up running along side. I am so happy to finally have a riding buddy.

 

[KOTA]

Re: Electra Townie 8 Ball

First off..KUDOS, from KOTA to your wife! As far as I'm concerned, you have the two best bikes ever made. I say that because my wife and I both have 21D Townies. We bought them new a few years ago, and have put on many, many miles with smiles. The men's bike, 21D, has some really nice trigger shifters, the woman's has twist grip shifters, don't know why they're different. But, you may be able to get the shifter you want right from ELECTRA.

 

[Houndog]

Re: Electra Townie 8 Ball

Very cool bike and good to see you got your wife riding...

 

[the_undecider]

PARTS!

I spent a good part of the day looking for what I need to personalize my ride driving around to area bike shops. The cheapest way out would have been a 7 speed shifter and new grips. In fact, that is exactly what I bought yesterday at REI. The issue I had was the shifter, exactly what I put on my wife's bike, didn't allow me enough room for grips and a brake lever. On her Townie, the bars are rolled back for an easier reach which allows the barrel adjuster to sit under the bars. My bars are straight up and the barrel adjuster smacks into the bar where it drops down toward the center.

The cheapskate in me secretly hoped I could find another compatible shifter, and I would keep the stock wheels and derailleur. But, fiscal irresponsibility prevailed. Here is what I came home with:

1.) SRAM X4 8 speed shifter and rear derailleur - The shifter was a new take-off I got for $10, much less than the $25 I paid for a 7 speed unit at REI. Another shop had the matching rear derailleur for $21 which is reasonable. I much prefer SRAM's double thumb levers which is why I run them on my mtb.

2.) Forte Team seatpost - I wanted something with finer adjustability than what the stock post gives and I hate those two piece posts. I almost spent $40 for an Easton brand post at REI, but couldn't bring myself to do it. I was able to get a friend who works a the shop to hook me up, so I paid much less. I love the white detail which goes along with my bike's color scheme.

3.) Wireless computer - Its white, so it fits the bike's look. Also a hook-up score thanks to my friend.

4.) Fake leather grips w/ white stitching - Cheaper than Ergon grips which I realized I didn't need on a bike that I would not be bearing any weight on my hands or wrists. Those Ergons are going back to REI along with the shifter.

5.) Greenfield kickstand - The stock kickstand has a plastic top section which is a bit flexy. Meh, it's a kickstand. Not sure why I mentioned it, but its in the photo, so there...

 

[the_undecider]

Some build pics

Grips and shifter mounted:

Rear derailleur mounted, but the chain not threaded through the pulleys:

I removed the bottom pulley which allows me to get the chain through without breaking a link:

The shift cable housing is already compressed and the bike barely had any miles on it. I trimmed the excess wire strands off. This wasn't compressed much, but if it got any worse, it could degrade the shifting:

Here is a close-up of the new seatpost:

I didn't get the computer mounted, so here is how it looks so far:

I am currently using the 8 speed shifters on the stock 7 speed freewheel. The cog spacing on 8 speed systems is the same as 7 speed, so as long as you set your derailleur limit screws, it will work fine. The final piece of the build are the wheels. I ordered these:

The minute I get them, the stickers are coming off. I am stoked because I think these will look sick on the bike. All I need to do is find some 8 ball decals for the frame and chainguard and I am set.

 

[the_undecider]

It has been a while since I updated this thread. Since I finally got the bike the way I wanted, I cleaned 'er up and took her out to take some photos. Camera battery died, so I only got 3.

Not sure if this really was a build, but more of a new bike being upgraded. Nonetheless, it has a lot more aftermarket parts than stock and I think both looks and rides awesome. I sold much of what came off the bike to offset purchasing new parts, so it wasn't too expensive. It ended up costing right around the same price as the Townie Balloon 7 speed if you don't factor in the cost of the Brooks saddle. This bike has better parts than does the Balloon 7D model and is my personal take on what the Townie Balloon should be. As such, I have named it "8 Ball'oon" for its 8 speed drivetrain and the 8 ball decals I made for it.

Where I had left off before, I ordered a set of white rims. That really completed the bike's overall look. Then, I had a set of Avid SD7 brakes I took off another bike, so I put those on there. As you can guess, they work a lot better than the stock generic brakes. Last, I just got my Brooks B68 this week. The stock saddle was too wide and rubbed the backs of my legs. I tried another narrower comfort saddle that just wasn't cutting it. I wanted a Brooks all along, but didn't want to spend the money. I finally bit the bullet and pulled the trigger. My back side just seems to take to these things and I am not bothered by the stiffness of a brand new Brooks. Same thing when I got my B17 a few years ago. It was tolerable on day one and did nothing but improve.

Without further delay, here are some fresh pics of the bike:

 

[Houndog]

Very nice.....

 

[Bryon Pruett]

by the way sweet bike like the mods question what size tires did you put on 26 x 2.35 ? fat franks. I like fat tires and wanted to know how big i can go. can you air all the way up without rubbing the brakes? thanks i know im a couple years late but any information will help.