Inspiration for this build is a comfortable adult size cruiser with the looks of a 80's BMX bike.
My Build off 13 entry started life as a made in USA, 1986 Huffy Savannah 10 speed Bike.
This bike was purchased at auction and was most likely stolen and abandoned.
Outstanding original deep blue metallic paint, straight rims and a functional Shimano Lark derailleur made it stand out as more than a parts bike.
Additional inspiration for the build was a Redline BMX parts bike I picked up with a BigBlock crank.
this massive crank came out in the late 90's. Very short run. It will fit a standard OPC bottom bracket, but to improve durability it has larger threads and bearings to allow a thicker cross section. Also crank has an extra long 7 3/8" throw for more torque. and they are heavy adding a flywheel effect.
Color scheme was defined by a pair of 26" x 2.125" Kenda K80 tires I actually bought for a different bike and had not used.
Stock fork, bars, stem and seat were not in keeping with the BMX theme, and were replaced with mountain bike and BMX components. To maintain the color scheme, the fork and bars were painted white then red paint added in a spatter pattern. The seat was painted the inverse, (red with white spatter).
Really cool red grips and awesome beartrap pedals were awesome swapmeet finds.
Stock plastic thumb shift just felt flimsy and I replaced it with a much more substantial cast aluminum unit from an vintage Schwinn road bike. Cast aluminum mountain bike brake levers replaced stock chromed steel levers. Finally, the front brake caliper was replaced by gold anodized component, (another cool swap find).
This bike is an amazing rider. 5 speed gives a useful range of 43 to 85 gear inches. Very pleased with how it turned out. I hope you agree.
Build thread:
http://ratrodbikes.com/forum/index.php?threads/big-boy-bmx-done.106930/
My Build off 13 entry started life as a made in USA, 1986 Huffy Savannah 10 speed Bike.
This bike was purchased at auction and was most likely stolen and abandoned.
Outstanding original deep blue metallic paint, straight rims and a functional Shimano Lark derailleur made it stand out as more than a parts bike.
Additional inspiration for the build was a Redline BMX parts bike I picked up with a BigBlock crank.
this massive crank came out in the late 90's. Very short run. It will fit a standard OPC bottom bracket, but to improve durability it has larger threads and bearings to allow a thicker cross section. Also crank has an extra long 7 3/8" throw for more torque. and they are heavy adding a flywheel effect.
Color scheme was defined by a pair of 26" x 2.125" Kenda K80 tires I actually bought for a different bike and had not used.
Stock fork, bars, stem and seat were not in keeping with the BMX theme, and were replaced with mountain bike and BMX components. To maintain the color scheme, the fork and bars were painted white then red paint added in a spatter pattern. The seat was painted the inverse, (red with white spatter).
Really cool red grips and awesome beartrap pedals were awesome swapmeet finds.
Stock plastic thumb shift just felt flimsy and I replaced it with a much more substantial cast aluminum unit from an vintage Schwinn road bike. Cast aluminum mountain bike brake levers replaced stock chromed steel levers. Finally, the front brake caliper was replaced by gold anodized component, (another cool swap find).
This bike is an amazing rider. 5 speed gives a useful range of 43 to 85 gear inches. Very pleased with how it turned out. I hope you agree.
Build thread:
http://ratrodbikes.com/forum/index.php?threads/big-boy-bmx-done.106930/
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