Shoestring

[Pondo]

Wow, what a great build! I haven't checked in with the bike community in a while as I've been too busy with house and car projects but man I've been missing a lot! You're doing a great job with all the little details on this build. I really love the headlight, decals, tank treatment and fabric ideas not to mention the rusty patina. It's amazing what can be done on a budget with a little creativity. This build actually inspired me to try to get something together for this build off, despite not really having time for this right now.

For future builds I was thinking you could have fun with your handle for head badge decals or what not. BFD is a fun abbreviation. Also "B.F. Dead" in a B.F. Goodrich style.

Great job and keep up the great work! Looking forward to seeing the final result.

 

[Bike from the Dead]

Wow, what a great build! I haven't checked in with the bike community in a while as I've been too busy with house and car projects but man I've been missing a lot! You're doing a great job with all the little details on this build. I really love the headlight, decals, tank treatment and fabric ideas not to mention the rusty patina. It's amazing what can be done on a budget with a little creativity. This build actually inspired me to try to get something together for this build off, despite not really having time for this right now.

For future builds I was thinking you could have fun with your handle for head badge decals or what not. BFD is a fun abbreviation. Also "B.F. Dead" in a B.F. Goodrich style.

Great job and keep up the great work! Looking forward to seeing the final result.

Thanks Pondo! I'm really hoping to get this one done in time, but it's proven far more difficult than I anticipated; life has been repeatedly getting in the way for me too! I've been wanting to build a patina bike for a long time now, but I just couldn't find one with the right look until I came across this one. It's probably my favorite build so far, since it dips more into the "arts & crafts" category than some of my other builds, and I love arts & crafts! While I've been slow to get this bike done, it's been fun experimenting with all sorts of tricks and techniques to try and make all my additions to the bike look like they've been on the bike for the past 50 years. I'm glad to hear I've inspired you to join the Build Off with a bike of your own!

I actually want to use my icon as a head badge on the bikes in my stable that either don't have a head badge, or I just don't feel like replacing.

BFD is a fun abbreviation, but admittedly, I abbreviate it as BFTD, which probably doesn't work as well. I do like that B.F. Goodrich idea though! Maybe I could do something like @The Renaissance Man did last year with his X-53 where he painted "Hoosier" on the sidewalls of his tires, except I'd paint "B.F.T. Dead" on the sidewalls of my tires!

Thanks Pondo! I'm going to try my best to get this one done on time!

 

[Bike from the Dead]

Okay, looks like I've hit a few more speed bumps. I don't know if anyone remembers the small crack in one of the seat stays, but apparently, I need to get that crack welded before I can even think about riding this bike. Good news is that I know a couple folks who can help me with that. Bad news is that one of those folks is going to be out-of-state for the next couple of weeks, the other is a long drive away, and another option might not be available until tomorrow at the earliest.

What's more, is I might be house and pet-sitting again starting this week. I wasn't scheduled to do that this time (and in fact, I was going to use this opportunity to go to the Springfield, Missouri swap meet on Friday and Saturday to do some possible bike-trading,) but the couple's dog I've looked after before injured her leg again, which means they might need my help once more. Nothing is set in stone yet, but if it turns out they do need me to come over and stay at their house while they're on vacation for the following week, it could slow down my build progress.

Admittedly though, the biggest hindrance to getting this bike done on time is both the summer heat, and to a stronger degree, me. I am not a morning person by any means, but the best time to work on my bike is early in the morning when the temperature is in the 70s and 80s. I could also work on the bike in the evening around sunset, but I kind of need that sunlight for some of what I'm doing. Frankly, though, I can tolerate a little heat, at least until I start to get a headache. I just need to get to bed earlier so I can get up earlier. I'm going to test out this bleach fade trick I've seen online on a fabric sample and see if that works for getting the right "patina" for the fabric I intend to use on the tank insert and headlight. I'm also going to see if I can use what paints I have to stain the fabric, and maybe even that front tire...

I also bought a gallon of distilled water for my ultrasonic cleaner, and a refrigerator condenser coil brush to clean out the inside of the frame, leaving the current budget at $9.43. I could probably cheat it a little if I say I bought that $9.27 (after tax) brush for all my bike projects, but that's a detail for ironing out later. At this point, my main goal is to get this bike done. If I go a little over-budget, I can live with that.

 

[Pondo]

I could probably cheat it a little if I say I bought that $9.27 (after tax) brush for all my bike projects

I always use this fudge factor for tools if I know I'll need them for other projects. Special tools that will be dedicated to one project get included in the overall budget. Another way to consider the cost of tools is the cost savings over having something done professionally at a shop. Labor really adds up so it's worth it to me to buy some tools here and there. Plus I'm hopelessly project addicted.

 

[Bike from the Dead]

I always use this fudge factor for tools if I know I'll need them for other projects. Special tools that will be dedicated to one project get included in the overall budget. Another way to consider the cost of tools is the cost savings over having something done professionally at a shop. Labor really adds up so it's worth it to me to buy some tools here and there. Plus I'm hopelessly project addicted.

"Fudge factor." Mind if I borrow that? I think that's a fair way to justify not adding the cost of certain tools to individual project budgets. After all, I've got plenty more bikes that could use a coil brush for cleaning seat tubes and headsets. I agree, labor really does add up, so getting tools for long-term use on multiple projects makes total sense. I know the feeling; I've got enough projects to finish as is, but gosh darn it, I keep bringing home more!

 

[Bike from the Dead]

Small progress report: My fading technique definitely had an effect on my fabric sample, just not quite the effect I was hoping for. The fabric has faded, but the spray-bottle bleach/water technique also caused the fabric to... brighten? It's weird. I'll try and get photos tomorrow when it's light out again. I'm still tinkering with it, but I might have to use my old khaki work pants for fabric material instead.

Also, it's official: I'm house- and pet-sitting again starting this Thursday. I'm going to try and get as much done before then as possible, but I may have to work on my bike over at this other location for the following week. I'm going to try getting the wheel hubs rebuilt over the next few days, and I might be able to get my frame patched up too. If all goes well, I just might be able to get this bike in a rideable state by the end of the week. Here's hoping!

 

[Pondo]

"Fudge factor." Mind if I borrow that?

By all means. I keep a pretty good supply of it in my shop.

Too bad about the fabric brightening. Can you soften it with tea or coffee stain?

 

[Bike from the Dead]

By all means. I keep a pretty good supply of it in my shop.

Too bad about the fabric brightening. Can you soften it with tea or coffee stain?

Cool!

I could try that. That's the same technique I'm using for aging my stickers.

 

[Bike from the Dead]

Okay, pictures will have to wait until later, but I managed to accomplish quite a lot between yesterday and today! To keep it brief and to the point, I'll just list what I've done so far:

1. Got the crack in the frame welded shut.
2. Cleaned out inside of frame with variety of brushes and air compressor.
3. Lined inside of frame with ATF.
4. Cleaned a number of wheel hub parts in ultrasonic cleaner.
5. Rebuilt front wheel axle, using a few parts robbed from other front wheels.
5.5. Tested front wheel; spins smoothly, but needs some truing.
6. Dyed shoelace handlebar streamers with coffee.
7. Bleach + direct sunlight on fabric = rip and tear.
8. Installed headset bearing cups using all thread, washers and nuts. Results were... mixed.
9. Practiced staining other stickers with coffee. Getting good results.
10. Final assembly has begun on frame, with seat, seat post, seat post clamp/bolt, and rear rack installed.
11. Sprayed fork steerer tube with 2 coats of primer to both protect from further rust and to add thickness for the bearing race to seat properly.
11.5. Bearing race still has minor but noticeable play when mounted to fork. Need to find a solution.
12. Picked up some paint and textile fabric medium for dying/staining fabric for tank insert and headlight.

I'll try to post photos of my progress soon, but odds are tomorrow is going to be spent mostly getting ready for my house and pet-sitting job on Thursday. I'm going to try and get as much done on the bike as I can while there, but this could slow things down a bit for me, especially since the job runs from Thursday to about Saturday the 27th. I might be cutting it close on this Build Off, but I haven't thrown in the towel yet!