Captain Slow - Finished!!

[JoKeR63]

Re: Captain Slow (advice needed)

It could be the torch your isn't hot enough to heat the frame quick enough. You end up heating the post as well and they both expand together.
I'm having a problem getting seatposts to go in, as I have a defective frame. Seems that seatposts are a pita when trying to rat out old bikes.

 

[motopsyco]

Re: Captain Slow (advice needed)

If the post is not too far into the frame (too long) you could try to take a hacksaw blade and try to slit the post from the inside and get it out. It takes a long time and a lot of patience but I have done it twice :shock: Go to step 10 at the page below
http://www.sheldonbrown.com/stuck-seatposts.html
Hope this helps
Floyd

 

[raskal13]

Re: Captain Slow (advice needed)

Cheers for the advice guys!

JoKeR63 - That makes sense, I had the feeling it saw taking a long time to heat, I was more worried that if I did it too fast I would mess up the brazing on the seatstay.

motopsyco - D'oh, I didn't even think of using a hacksaw! I'll give it a shot tomorrow when I'm less frustrated!

Cheers again!!

 

[Anonymous]

Re: Captain Slow (advice needed)

Don't give up on the seatpost just yet. I just finished doing the exact same thing except I improved on the hacksaw method. I bought a 9" metal cutter blade for my sawsall. But I had to trim it length wise to fit down the seatpost. It made it much much easier. Just keep checking so it doesnt hit frame.
I ALMOST gave up before I tried this. Hope this helps.

 

[raskal13]

Re: Captain Slow (advice needed)

FREEDOM!!!!

The offending seatpost is finally out!

When I was a kid my mother used to tell me "never stick anything in your ear smaller than your elbow". I think I should apply that to seat tubes from now on as well.

Thanks for the great advise, the build can now continue!!

 

[NLCTVWguy]

Re: Captain Slow - FREE AT LAST!

Wow! I thought I had the stuckest one! Ya got me beat!

Torches, hammers, vise grips and an air chisel... good work conquering your foe!

The rest of it will be a lot more fun I'm sure. Good luck in the Build Off!

--Rob

 

[raskal13]

Re: Captain Slow - FREE AT LAST!

OK, I'm still in this

Had a crazy sinus infection for the last month and a half, pressure migraines, couldn't stand upright for any amount of time. Almost had to have surgery but luckily the antibiotics finally kicked in. I wasn't able to work on the bike (or do much else) the whole time so I have some catching up to do

Luckily I did most of the prep work to the frame in June. I'm off to pick up a pair of wheels I had built at the LBS and then I will post some photos of the work so far. Got the painting done last night and rebuilt the fork. I wanted to build a tank from scratch but that will have to wait now. I'm just grateful to be finishing the bike with only a day or so to go...

 

[raskal13]

Re: Captain Slow - FREE AT LAST!

I was originally going to paint the whole frame but as I stripped more of the paint off I noticed how shiny the bare metal was underneath. I went over the whole thing with a brass wire wheel and it polished up pretty good.

I wanted to add some paint to the front of the frame to cover up the most tarnished pieces of steel and to add a transition to the alloy forks. In order to blend it in a bit I chose a cream coloured flame design.

Self-etching primer:

Forks:

Left it to dry for a few hours then three layers of cream paint. Pulled the stencil off and it looks pretty good Abit of sanding to blend in the paint and then top coat or wax the whole frame.

 

[SCHWINNRAY69]

Re: Captain Slow - FREE AT LAST!

That's COOL :mrgreen:

 

[raskal13]

Re: Captain Slow - FREE AT LAST!

Time for some assembly and then it's off to get the wheels:

Forks:

Sorry for the cell phone pics, I'll add some better ones later.

 

[raskal13]

Picked up my wheels from my LBS, great job lacing as usual. Front is a SA drum brake and the rear is an SA 3-speed coaster, both on black 700c rims. Wish I had time to paint the machined side walls but I'll have to make do.

A couple of things I had to sort out before completing the build up. First up was to make a new bracket for my SA shifter:

Mmmm, too small:

Now it stays on the frame:

Next up was grinding down the bar-end brake lever to fit in the handlebar:

Now to rout the cable through the handlebar for a cleaner look:

I have a matching pair of drum brake hubs but the rear SA 3 speed doesn't engage properly and I can't get the hub open to repack it. It will have to wait for another day.

 

[raskal13]

The finished bike!!

Captain Slow is alive!!!

(forgot to take photos while I was doing the final assembly)

It was a lot of fun this time around and I'm very pleased with the outcome (even if I ended up not having the time to do more). Although I've had this frame for almost 10 years, this is the first time I have been comfortable with the riding position. I sacrificed a little on the look of the bike using the 700c wheels and the tall seatpost but at 6'2" I can't ride with a slammed seat any more...

I'll move the build over to the completed section in the morning and add some better photos.