"GULF SWING" Fat tire Swingbike build! As done as it is gunna be!

[LukeTheJoker]

Re: The bike formerly known as "DragBike EXTREME"

This is gonna be AWESOME. I'm looking at cheapo bikes in a whole new light now! :shock: :lol:

I am finding some very interesting frame tubing now that I am looking, the main triangle of my bike will probably be recycled frame tubing now, found some tubes with nice curves in them that I like...

Still more work to be done, but here is a more chopperish version:

I think I am going to cut all the tubes I want to use out of the bikes, get the tires on the rims and just lay it out on a board like a big jigsaw puzzle, see what speaks to me... Not my usual build method of fine tuning the shape and design completely in drawings and on the computer and then transferring it life-size to a build board to work from, but figure it is time to try something new!

Luke.

 

[Pushie Pirate]

Re: The bike formerly known as "DragBike EXTREME"

Now that is tough!

 

[LukeTheJoker]

Re: The bike formerly known as "DragBike EXTREME"

Yep, that chopper version is pretty tough looking! I really like the super long headtube with that idea. Got a few more ideas and directions floating around, so not sure on the final build yet...

A bit of real progress today! Here is the rear wheel stripped of its center and ready for spoking:

Next problem, does not quite fit my spoking jig! Might be able to get away with it, have to take some measurements to check it is centered on the jig where it jams up:

If not, I do have plans to modify the jig to fit wheels all the way down to 14", I might just have to do that now rather than later!

Here is another pic of the rear wheel/tire combo to show how it will look on the bike:

Here is a pic for size reference with a 26" rim on top of the wheel, been looking at 26x1" to 26x1.5" slicks, should look awesome!

Here are some of my tire options:

Bronx fast slick 26x1"

Maxxis Detonator 26x1.25"

And Michelin Wildrunner 26x1.4"

As I am running a narrower rear tire now, I figured I can use this deep bucket banana seat I bought not long back:

Love the huge reflector on the back, and if you look closely you can see a 737 sticker all but faded at the top, shows the age of this seat! The 737 Boeing was released in 1968...

The seat of course will be recovered and repadded, it has very little padding left and is horrible to sit on!

More soon hopefully!

Luke.

 

[LukeTheJoker]

Re: Was "DragBike EXTREME" now "GULF STREAM FLYER"

Well, it appears the time has come to reveal my paint and trim theme, I was going to keep it secret right to the end or as long as possible, but there are a couple of other builds in process on the website with the same theme and I don't want to appear like I am just copying them! (links: viewtopic.php?f=21&t=71870&p=751897 and viewtopic.php?f=16&t=77596&p=752438 )

Here is my original inspiration:

With a little of the late sixties GT40 racers and Porsche Le-Mans racers thrown in for good measure. So my original plan was this:

Now my choice of vinyl for the seat probably makes more sense? :lol:

I have already ordered this sew-on patch for the seat from eBay:

And I am working with a sticker/decal printer to make the rest of the pieces I need for the theme...

I am still working on the design of the bike, the chopper shown up higher would work well with the Gulf theme, but an awesome pic on Rson's intro page got me thinking... (Link: viewtopic.php?f=9&t=77606)

A quick mock-up later brings me this, fairly modified from the inspiration but still carries that same cool swagger...

(Yes, I noticed when I had finished that I put the cranks on the wrong side... :lol: Have to be my worst mock up ever!)

Luke.

 

[LukeTheJoker]

Re: Was "DragBike EXTREME" now "GULF STREAM FLYER"

Just found out the Maxxis Detonator is available in a 26x1! :mrgreen: I thought they only went down to a 1.25 in the 26's... Probably going to go with that on the front whichever way the build goes... Having trouble finding a tube to fit that is normal car valve and not Presta, do you guys think I can get away with a 26x1.25-1.5" tube?

Probably going to run this 26x1.5" shallow V double wall alloy rim with disc hub that came with my DYNO mountain bike turned into BMX build...

The little extra height in the V compared to a normal rim will show more paint side on and should make the narrow tire look even smaller!

Luke.

 

[LukeTheJoker]

Re: Was "DragBike EXTREME" now "GULF STREAM FLYER"

New mock-up:

Luke.

 

[LukeTheJoker]

Re: Was "DragBike EXTREME" now "GULF STREAM FLYER"

I am guessing by the lack of comments that people are not impressed by the lowriderish idea, so did this one up in Gulf colors too, which do you prefer?

Luke.

 

[Pushie Pirate]

Re: Was "DragBike EXTREME" now "GULF STREAM FLYER"

I like the low one but I am a low-ness fan, down with the snakes for me!

 

[GuitarlCarl]

Re: Was "DragBike EXTREME" now "GULF STREAM FLYER"

low, air bagged to ride...hehe...

 

[MplsCoaster]

Re: Was "DragBike EXTREME" now "GULF STREAM FLYER"

Hey Luke, sorry i haven't been keeping up on your build off and personal build
Great idea for a build off and I'm seeing lots of cool Ideas
Was wondering how you could top you penquin bike (which was to cool!)

Think your last idea is at least as good.

Like the more musclely last idea a little better than the lowrider idea
The proportions seem to fit the theme well
And the Felt is one of the coolest stock bikes I know

Good luck with the wheel jig and glad you found the right tire for the front

 

[LukeTheJoker]

Re: Was "DragBike EXTREME" now "GULF STREAM FLYER"

Thanks for the opinions guys! Still not sure myself what I will do, guess I will make it up as I go along...
Totally agree with you Steve about the Felt Deep 6, beautiful bike, love it!
Probably left it a bit late to pursue air-bagging, waiting for parts would cause major issues...

More thinking to do...

Luke.

 

[ODDER]

Re: Was "DragBike EXTREME" now "GULF STREAM FLYER"

Excellent color scheme!

 

[LukeTheJoker]

Re: Was "DragBike EXTREME" now "GULF STREAM FLYER"

Excellent color scheme!

Been wanting to do a GULF bike for a while now, either that or a MARTINI sponsor set up... Might have to do another one down the road...

Luke.

 

[c1run1]

Re: Was "DragBike EXTREME" now "GULF STREAM FLYER"

wow Luke your going for it , a lot of your creations are over the top . This project is No exception .

 

[LukeTheJoker]

Re: Was "DragBike EXTREME" now "GULF STREAM FLYER"

wow Luke your going for it , a lot of your creations are over the top . This project is No exception .

I hope that is a good thing! :lol: I sometimes worry that I go a bit too crazy...

Luke.

 

[CRASH]

Re: Was "DragBike EXTREME" now "GULF STREAM FLYER"

I personally like the non-low-rider mock up, but that's mainly because I don't see how you can ride the low rider. So the other one looks more practical.

Great paint scheme!

 

[LukeTheJoker]

Re: Was "DragBike EXTREME" now "GULF STREAM FLYER"

Well after worrying that my builds are too crazy, I got to thinking how I could make it crazier...

Off to buy some steel... :mrgreen:

Luke.

 

[LukeTheJoker]

Re: Was "DragBike EXTREME" now "GULF STREAM FLYER"

Bought some steel!

Spokes, rear triangle will come out of that lot and the bike they are leaning against will provide the curved twin top tubes.

Ended up picking up a tire at my LBS, ended up cheaper than buying online! Also appears to be a better quality tire with a pressure rating of 100psi, nice slick center too:

Here it is on top of the rear tire, very similar in diameter, maybe slightly smaller than the rear, so I am calling that perfect for this idea! The narrower tire still counts as a smaller tire than the rear surely?

Figured something else out while I was driving around, if anyone asks me what I am doing while I am working on the bike, I can say I am working on my Gulf Swing... :lol:

Luke.

 

[LukeTheJoker]

Re: "GULF SWING" Finally settled on a design!

Tire mounted up on the rim!

Love the way it looks! Hoping to start cutting out frame parts tomorrow, need to dissect a couple of mountain bikes for frame pieces and decide what I will be using to build the fork... Bring on the angle grinder!!! :mrgreen:

Luke.

 

[CRASH]

Re: "GULF SWING" Finally settled on a design!

And now a Swing Bike? Man, you really turned a corner on this build! :lol: