Anyone ever bought a NEW worksman?

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Thinking of pulling the trigger on a new worksman inb. I like the frame, and the optional alloy wheels are the kind, I'm a big dood at 300+ pounds looking for a cruiser.

I've got a schwinn heavy duty frame, but it's more suited to a ratty build than a fresh clean powder job like I like. So I'll likely peddle it off, buy the inb, and change some things (bars, stem, sprocket etc)

Lookin to the bike wizards for some thoughts.
 
I'm a Big fan of Worksman, look at the big frame bike . It has the straight top tube and are made for big people. The chain on the older ones were not normal size , so check chain size,if larger than normal , you'll need to change both sprockets and chain. Also convers.with
ind-chuckz he seems to have good info on worksmans.
 
I bought one maybe 4 years back; the pedals are garbage, the saddle ain't my bag but some folks love'm. You get a 7/8" post that's plated with something (zing? pigeon droppings? mung? definitely NOT chrome) but it's strong; it works. Wald stem, Wald bars, some throwaway grips. The headset is a Wald but with Worksman-specific cups; the Wald headsets these past few years all have a YST top-nut. BB is probably Wald; you get a generic Taiwan OPC; I believe it's a 170mm. The 44t sprocket and chain are 1/2x3/16" chain, which is really fat. You can't run 1/2x1/8 on the front sprocket; the rear is a standard 22t Shimano, and will work with 1/2x1/8" chain. So, if you wanna switch, you don't have to worry about the rear at all. The wheels: front hub is their own knock-out extra HD hub; makes sense for the LGB fork, but not so much for the INB and M2600, although it works in any of those contexts. Rear hub is Shimano cb-e110 standard, but you can get a Nexus 3 speed, a Sturmey 2spd, or a SS drum as upgrades. 11g spokes with moped nerps; your spoke wrenches won't work. I haven't played with the aluminum rims, but the steelies are massive, look cool, won't hold a tire with any real PSI in the tubes. Stock tires on the one I got were the CST C241 type tread, but a nicer Kevlar-belt going on. Not sure if these are "upgrade" tires. The Fenders and chainguard on mine were steel; the fenders are a little shorter than full coverage, but not quite "bobbed" lol. New guards and fenders are apparently plastic nowadays.

Basically, I sold/gave away the bars, grips, pedals, and saddle. Bars are nice, but not my favorite. Fenders went on a different bike; forget where they are now. Chain and front sprocket are in the parts bin; the bb was replaced after quite a bit of use; crank is in use on a different bike. Most all of it is good stuff, except the pedals and, imo, the saddle. It just may not be the stuff you'd run, given the choice. The only legit gripe I have with buying a new Worksman is that the paint is a bad joke; it doesn't last at all, and may even have some little bubbles forming when you take it out of the box....

My advice would be to get a $70 Chuckz frame, and give it a proper prep job before powder. If you take it down to raw, sandblast it, and then sand down any craters, good power wll cover most of the imperfections. You can get HD wheels aftermarket, even the WTC-branded ones, if you wanna pay for'm. Chuckz somethimes has those, too. Basically, all you probably want is the frame, probably the fork, and I guess the wheels. You'll save money for the stuff you like if you get it used from Chuckz or via other avenues.... but there is something nice about buying a new "complete"; I haven't done it in 4 years. (Thinking of buying a bike from my LBS, just to try to support'm some more....)

HTH
-Rob
 
thanks for the responses..... I know im Midwest normal size.

what I want is kind of a bmx-ish cruiser...... I purchased a Schwinn HD frame, but its a bit rougher than I should really start with. mainly in the drop out area...... I know I could fix it all, but its hours of work. my thinking was that if I bought a new INB, the frame would be fresh, wheels straight, and it would be a rideable thing I could change over time. but the paint issues kinda suck, and id rather not pull down a near $500 bike for powder and hop ups, so its back to building one. (my wifes gunna kill me).

I got some more thinkin to do it seems.......
 
Brand-new Worksman frame is $185 plus shipping from NYC, direct from Worksman.
http://worksmancycles.com/shopsite_...2012/2013 Factory Direct parts price list.PDF
Scroll down to item # 7200. Those were 2014 prices; not sure if it's come up. That's a bare frame; no forks, no cups, no seatpost clamp, no nothin'. But, it's brand new, with sketchy paint, no rust or parts to pull off.

Don't tell your wife that i'm trying to help you with this madness.... :blush::chicken::blackeye:
 
Don't tell your wife that i'm trying to help you with this madness.... :blush::chicken::blackeye:

my wife..... she understands.

I'm on my 16th motorcycle in 3 years, i had 150 vintage mopeds at one time, and don't usually keep a car more than a year..... she gets it. however, she's making me keep to a semi strict +- 10% budget.
 
150 vintage mopeds....thanks. You just made me feel way more "normal". :crazy:

I miss riding Puch Maxi mopeds.... coolest thing ever made. Maybe i oughta get one....
 
150 vintage mopeds....thanks. You just made me feel way more "normal". :crazy:

I miss riding Puch Maxi mopeds.... coolest thing ever made. Maybe i oughta get one....

i have built some puch maxis. like a gazillion of them. used to get shipments of parts from the netherlands 3 pallets at a time. mopeds were crazy here in so cal about 2007-2008. was my first means of (motorized) transportation at 13. rode em till i was 29. had other things too obviously, but mopeds were fun.
 
Huh. you're lucky, I guess. I've never gotten into them, but it might just be a "sour grapes" thing, as they're almost impossible to get street-legal here in Jersey... I got a couple pedal-powered Worksman bikes, though.... they are a pretty versatile frame, so I'm always coming up with new (bad) ideas for them....
 
Ordering up a worksman frame from chuckz.

Thanks for talking me out of buying a new worksman......

back to the regularly scheduled thoughts of 3 piece cranks, anodized wheels, chain wheel, and stem.
 
There's also the Transition Klunker...

http://www.transitionbikes.com/2013/Bikes_Klunker.cfm

Transition_klunker_playdirtyyellow.jpg
 

see, heres what happened.......

I've been a bike guy, always, from the time i was little. had the gamut of rad bmx when i raced bikes BITD (I'm 31 years old) mach ones, interceptors, elf double cross, auburns, robinson, etc etc..... i know what the style is.

the other day I'm getting out my truck and walking across to my house, and the neighbors (friendly doods, run a little fab shop out of their garage) have an elf double cross 24" cruiser......all decked out in period parts....

that sent me down the rabbit hole........

backstory, i used to race motorcycles, have broken both knees, and my back, so a cramped bmx, even a cruiser, isn't gunna cut it. i sold my soul less trek 29'er to my brother after not jiving with it late last year. ITS TIME FOR A BIKE.

initially, i find that "transition klunker" good luck finding one in my area.... add to that, at $550+, i could surely build something comparable, but done in my style/colors..... never been an off the shelf guy.

so here we are.

i don't plan on building a bunch of bikes.... just one. its not going to be crazy high end anything, just functional, but its gotta turn heads. its gotta fall right at or below the transition klunker as far as money goes. it will be built with mostly new parts.
 
As others have advised...contact this member.

Chuck sells and services industrial bikes for the big chemical plants down near Houston. He is always got a supply of used frames from several different manufacturers. He usually has access to all of the heavy duty parts that go with them.

Oh....and his prices are ridiculously good too. ;)
 
The recipe for what you're trying to do is:
ind-chuckz + porkchopbmx.com x some beefy wheels from the RRB store + whatever tires you want to run = :rockout::113::rockout:

If you haven't shopped porkchop yet, it's gotta be the best site on earth for new-production old-school BMX parts, heavy on the ano, nice prices, impossibly fast shipping.
 
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