(WBO) Thorn... OK, really now, it's done PICS!

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swung into a hardware store this afternoon, picked up a pair of those bolts in stainless allen head. Had to go metric but whatever. I will need a larger tapered bit to make the hole.

They also had...drumroll.....
Rustoleum Night Tide! it actually is more green than in the picture.




As far as mounting the control box, I was hoping to use 3M super duty double stick tape but it pretty much fell off. I would have drilled and mounted it with self tapping screws but the box needs to slide about 3/8" to release from the mounting bracket, there isn't enough room between the fender and seat tube for this so in the end I tried Shoe Goo. Works great! I mounted it up last night and this afternoon it's on there tight! Even with a minimal chainguard it's pretty well hidden (thanks you Dale Allen for this part).




I started messing around with the front wheel wiring, I'll need to trim a bit off the backside of the hubcap to accommodate the fork leg and maybe add a wire guide but looks like no big deal.

The weather is looking a little warmer this week so maybe I can get some color on the fenders.


For tonight I really need to attack the rear fender stays. Which means the chain needs to be sized up..
 
Nothing significant to report..

Did not have a 5/8 countersink bit for the bolts so I ordered a set..waiting for those now

Pedals arrived and they are awful so I wont even waste megapixels on them. Way too chunky in proportion to the rest of the parts. Going with plan "B" pedals.

Mounted up the newly painted front fender this evening and have the front end pretty much done. Few minutes to wire up the hub, trim a little plastic from the caps to get them to fit better and install horn and light and I can leave it alone.

Worked on the chain, had to go through a few sprockets to get the length right. Since the tire fits really close already and there is only so much front to back travel at the drop outs for the coaster brake arm to work. Wishing I had a 1/2 link.

With the chain length sorted, I should be able to move ahead on the fender braces. hopefully...

Been trying to find a 22.1 aluminum stem with some negative rise and a lot of reach, like a 150. Going to try the LBS over the weekend.
 
OK, cool shot of the front fender set up. I wound some copper wire around the rod to kind of look like springs and found a pair of old wingnuts. To attach the nuts I drilled out the threads to the size of the rods and used a hot glue gun.


Here's a shot of the finished rear braces and all that remains of the chrome rod. I just made it! These will mount at the bolted seat/chain stay connection. You can see where I traced one rod to make a duplicate right on my workbench. Drilled out the threads on a pair of stainless steel nuts and welded to them. the bracket at the fender will get hammered finish silver paint like the front. This took at least 2 hours from start to finish. Glad it's over!


Tomorrow I need to sand and paint the rear fender.
 
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OH, I also got the front hub totally wired up and even drilled a little hole to use the anti rotation washer on the hub axle. I was careful to not totally drill through the drop out. Hubcaps only needed a little trimming on the inside to get them to seat properly.

I need to start looking for a photo shoot location. Even with the warm temps we still have over a foot of snow on the ground. Might have to bring it indoors somewhere..
 
Countersink bit was waiting for me in Saturday's mail when I got home so I went ahead and drilled the seat stays. Such a better look overall with flush mounted hardware.



Also mounted up the rear fender. I might swap the drilled out nuts for a new set and they can double as the fixing bolts for the rear triangle.


I did a trade with The Black Monark for a really cool rack. The orig struts will not work of course and neither will the upper mount. I'd like to use it but will take more head scratching to make it fit and look smooth. We'll see.
 
Made one last punch list last night. completion is looking promising. Just a couple of brackets to make to be done with welding. Weather is looking like almost 40 on Saturday so that will be the day for some final paint work and then just a few nuts and bolts to attend to and its done.

I still haven't had any great ideas for a photo location.
 
redid the rear fender brace nuts this afternoon. No chain clearance issues anymore. Going to run the shift cable and give the drivetrain a test later on.

Still no stem... looking for a cool 22.2 road stem with either zero rise or some negative rise and lots of reach. like a 150mm would be perfect!

I think I came up with a photo location but that means the bike will have to be done by morning of the 28th so I can still get into the place before they close.
 
Just a shot of the fender brace/rear triangle bolt. I cooked the nylon a little, whoops! Doesn't need it anyway.


Here is the rack from The Black Monark. If I use it then it would be stripped and painted. Probably blue on the body with silver highlights. I would only raise it up so it's just above the fender. I'll have to make a front bracket that mounts to the mono stay and another that holds the rack off the fender like some Rollfast's I've seen. No room for normal rack struts...

 
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