AL-U-Mini

[Ulu]

These are the other parts of the press kit. Thankfully, I didn’t have to break out the huge clamp, but with it I could’ve used one of the big cylinders instead of that brass toilet nut.

This thing is a heavy monster and you just don’t break it out unless you really need it.

 

[GeePig]

Ah yes, the minimalisation of the brass toilet nut. I know the feeling, you don't want to overdo it with the big bits of equipment, because if they fail then you would have no back up.

Comfort. It is like my three hammers - if I have to use the big one then I know it has to work or I am in trouble.

 

[Ulu]

Ah yes, the minimalisation of the brass toilet nut. I know the feeling, you don't want to overdo it with the big bits of equipment, because if they fail then you would have no back up.

Comfort. It is like my three hammers - if I have to use the big one then I know it has to work or I am in trouble.

Brother, I have been detecting a little bit of hammer envy, and that’s why I haven’t brought out my entire collection.

You will look at my pitiful collection of Harbor freight hammers, and then cry that you sold your expensive Wiltons.

 

[Ulu]

The new alloy seat post was too long, and I had to yank it out with a medium slide hammer. I cut off 60% of it.

You can see the new pedals are on.

Soon, it gets (another) big bananna…

Purple bike belongs to my sister.

 

[Ulu]

There is little Sydney on the Leftovers bike. I was hoping to get the Al-u-mini in rideable condition for the Thanksgiving bicycle jamboree, but there were too many other things to do last week as the weather is changing here.

It was still a rousing success.

I decided that I was going to change the forks in this strange-to-me Trek bicycle, but it has strange head bearings. They appeared to have the correct bore in the headstock so I bought another headset for it.

First I have to get these cups out and the first one I pressed out easily.

I found myself banging the second one out with a mallet at 11:00 PM before I realized I should go to bed & quit waking up our neighborhood dogs.

And both of these guys were mad at me.

That looks a little fuzzy because it’s a no-flash midnight iPhone shot of furry little animals.

I think my wife slept thru the whole ordeal.

 

[Ulu]

This is the homemade cup press. I just shaped off a couple of washers to slide in there and I’ve got some jam nuts and a lock nut on the end of some all-thread.

The key to making this work is that big star washer. It causes the inside nut to jam against the shaped washer and press it instead of just spinning. You really can’t get a wrench inside the headstock, So normally you would just have to weld a nut to the shaped washer.

The star washer eliminated that need to weld. It sucks up a lot of pressure, and it was enough to actually split the star washer.

 

[Ulu]

A short length of conduit was used to drive out the second cup, supporting the bike on a wooden box with some stiff foam rubber to protect the frame. (That’s the turquoise stuff.)

And here you can see the way I shaped the flat washers to get them in behind the cups.

I just dressed them off flat on a belt sander.

 

[Ulu]

New Prestine silver headset was $20

Blue foam pad is from the Garden Department at Lowe’s hardware and that’s what I used to repad my stingray seat.
I cleaned out the headstock with my old cylinder hone and some ScotchBrite.

That was one of the first tools I bought when I started working as a mechanic circa 1972, and I was doing brake jobs on Fords.

 

[Ulu]

Pressing in the new cups.

 

[Ulu]

I pressed the cups with an ordinary bolt and some flat washers, plus this silver bit which is from my small bearing driver kit.

 

[Ulu]

The head has been converted to threadless using thre old Mongoose stem. I put on the butterfly bars with new Vans ($$) grips.



The rear gets a fattie whitewall. This will require lots of extra frame clearance.

The rear wheel is just clamped in place by the brake lever, with a piece of para cord tying it to the seat.

Weird elliptical bio pace sprocket from Shimano and gnarly bear trap pedals.

 

[Ulu]

Today I need to come up with a sissy bar for this bike. (I’m not going to use the old one in the photo there that’s holding my rear wheel.)

This is going to be welded up custom and it’s going to have to fit the dropouts tightly, as it will be both extending the wheelbase and supporting the sissy bar.

 

[Slow-Rider]

I put my adapters in the freezer and then use wooden skewers to align it while I press it in place. Grease too of course

Haven't done one in awhile but always worked well

I used old bicycle spokes to align the holes up. then pressed it all in. with a home made bearing press. IE a long thick piece of all thread rod. 2 thick washers, 2 nuts and just screw it all down tight and snug till it bottoms out done . the washers press the bearing cups in as you tighten it all up. the spokes keep the screw holes lined up.

 

[Ulu]

@Slow-Rider
That was such an obvious thing to me that of course I also did it. Unsuccessfully.

The spokes that I tried didn’t seem to be nearly fat enough to fill those holes, so I cut some 1/8 inch welding rod.

Then I decided I wanted to use my thick press plates to avoid distorting the aluminum, and I didn’t need the alignment tools at all.

I thought it was more accurate to just make fine index marks on the frame and adapters. In any event it came out great and I am really happy. Now if I could just figure out how I want to do the sissy bar.

 

[Ulu]

I’m trying to get a mock up here so I can figure out how much to stretch the frame and how low it should be.

I just didn’t feel this appealing to me so I decided to try the new forks.

First I had to assemble the bearing races. I used a piece of 1-1/4” conduit to drive the lower bearing cone on the tree. In the bearing kit they called this the crown race, But I think that’s wrong.

I did Not cut the steering tube yet.

But I put it all together and ignored what the parts might be called and concentrated on how well they fit, which was pretty well.

Regarding how they looked, well I was not so pleased. I’m not feeling this at all.

I only have one place to go from here, considering my current stash of parts.

 

[CRASH]

I've never pressed in cups. I guess I just never felt the need to be that precise. I just take a piece of 2x4, hold it over the cup, and whack it with a BFH. Then I used said hammer for lighter hits to fine tune the seating. Takes me about 30 seconds per cup. I pull them by sticking a very long tap that I have, and giving them a whack from the inside, which can send the cup flying!

 

[Ulu]

I've never pressed in cups. I guess I just never felt the need to be that precise. I just take a piece of 2x4, hold it over the cup, and whack it with a BFH. Then I used said hammer for lighter hits to fine tune the seating. Takes me about 30 seconds per cup. I pull them by sticking a very long tap that I have, and giving them a whack from the inside, which can send the cup flying!

I can’t bring myself to beat on an aluminum frame. Also flying metal is a major faux pas in my garage!

 

[Ulu]

More after midnight hijinx . . .

This mockup is starting to look better to me. Much lower in back.

But the Mini has negative chain clearance, and the heartbreak of chain-rub is nothing to discount.

Poo!

Peedoo!

We got a double rub, bub!

 

[GeePig]

Looks like it could be time for the saw, file and hammer, a gear freewheel to get it around that lower frame mount and an indentation to free up some space on that upper arm...

 

[Ulu]

I think I will also have to lower the bike a bit more, then flip the rear sprocket and space the chain ring in towards the frame, plus get a BB kit with less offset.

I was always planning to bob off those brake anchors. But I was not going to remove them completely. They were going to help anchor the sissy bar.

The steel brackets and sissy bar I’m looking at here are just for mockup purposes, and I don’t intend them to be part of the finished product.