Dragst-Her Too

[CRASH]

I'm going to take another crack at this. I got as far as building the wheels and modifying the shifter before I had to bow out last year due to work and finances. So since I figure most are just using wheels they already have built, as well as shifters... I'm fine to restart this project. My daughter is 12 now... so I have to hurry. lol

If you want to see my first Dragst-Her, just follow the link below to my builds page. This second iteration is using lighter modern parts where I can for a smoother ride. Not all of them, because I want to keep the concept, but a few.

So here's where I'm starting.

I had the seat made 2 years ago, and it's a beauty. My daughter is going to flip over it.

I had a custom basket made.

I spread the frame to fit an 8-speed.

I'm using allow hubs and rims, and purple allow nipples for the rims. I polished the rims for a chrome look. You'll see those soon.


And I had to make modifications to the body of the shifter to make it fit in a girls frame. From this:

To this:

And I stripped the console of the old chrome and thinned it out so it would fit.

Over the course of the year, I got the shift handles and the base of the shifter chromed. I also had the shifter console chromed. And now the build resumes. On to the hard parts!

 

[CRASH]

Tonight I laid out all the shifter parts I have. Now I have to remember... a year later... how it went together.

 

[Brian macumber]

Tonight I laid out all the shifter parts I have. Now I have to remember... a year later... how it went together.
View attachment 140699

I have trouble after 10 minutes remembering where I put something lol.

 

[CRASH]

Not built to factory specs, but I’ve converted it from a 5-speed click shift to a friction shifter which I HOPE can shift 8 gears. The next step is to work on that... and that will be the most critical part of this build.

 

[CRASH]

I didn’t realize how much tweaking I still had to do on this shifter! I started this morning fabricating a mounting brace for the front. I used some angle iron, and I’ll have it chromed at the end.

so I mounted the shifter and realized I had 3 problems initially. The brake handle would push all the way forward because it hit the frame, so the “Park” indicator wouldn’t fully retract. Also, the front and back mounting bolts were too long, hitting the console. (I made some major modifications to the console to get it to sit down over the frame since I had modified the base to wedge into the frame.) And lastly, the shift indicator was hitting the new mounting bracket.

So I spent some time addressing each.

I had to shave some of the rear internal mounting hole to get the console to sit correctly in the back. Then I came to realize the “Park” indicator was then hitting on the glass. You can’t see it, but it wouldn’t fully retract.

Inside the console the glass mounting pegs and some edges of the glass (clear plastic) were getting in the way.

So I shaved the little posts and made other fitting modifications, then I re-glued in the glass. I had to make additional adjustments with each handle and some other areas. It’s amazing how much work it took to make a twin stick shifter that wasn’t meant to fit on a girls frame, fit on a girls frame! The original Dragst-Her used a Huffy twin stick. The “Park” indicator had to be sacrificed for the lack of height. I’m really glad I was able to get it to work with this Eliminator twin stick!

 

[CRASH]

Summary of today’s work: I got a 50 year old 5-speed shifter to shift 8 modern gears.

I have a lot more tweaking to do, but I’m getting close. I don’t have the really nice and very expensive Park drop out aligners, so I made these.

I got the chain measured and installed.

Installed the drop out extension and installed the Dura-Ace derailleur recommended by @Chad T . I measured the housing, figured out the house clip locations, and... does anyone else do this? I crimp the housing ferrules even though no one would notice. Sometimes I think its some weird OCD thing.

Anyway, I’ve gotten it to shift through all 8 gears, but it’s noisy in 8th gear because the cable is so tight to get it to actually throw the derailleur through that whole range. I thought maybe the derailleur may be sitting too close to the 30t first gear cog. What do you think, and how would I get it to sit farther back (second pic) if the mounting adjustment screw is already all the way in?

Regardless, I think I discovered the real problem. There are arm throw limiters on the shifter base that stop the arm from moving too far. I could remove them, but I’m concerned what that would do. Maybe it would be smarter to indent the arm where the stops hit. That would allow the arm to travel a bit farther and allow more slack in the cable. What do you think?

 

[RustySprockets]

If the derailleur is struggling to reach the inner-most cog, and has also met its physical maximum with regard to 'swing,' then you might explore the possibility of shifting the entire derailleur assembly inboard. This may require some futzing with the derailleur hanger or drive-side dropout to gain that tiniest bit of relief. You're already on the gear, so you don't need to gain much.

I'm finding it difficult to describe precisely what I am envisioning, as I suspect you are. But, if I understand correctly, you're proposing a modification to the derailleur--I'm suggesting you simply reposition it.

 

[Chad T]

I thought maybe the derailleur may be sitting too close to the 30t first gear cog. What do you think, and how would I get it to sit farther back (second pic) if the mounting adjustment screw is already all the way in?

You're probably a little bit beyond the capacity of that short cage derailleur with the 30t cog. Looks like it would work though. Might get a little bit of a noisy shift from 1st to second. Maybe see if you can get a deal on a medium or long cage for that derailleur? Short cage is usually 28t max but you're close.

 

[CRASH]

Tonight I can proclaim the shifting “working!” I took the shifter apart again. As you can see, on the shifters base their a movement stopper. It’s just a tab that sticks out. The shift arm has catches that, on either side of the throw, stop the arm from moving too far. So, I just ground out a bit of the catches from both sides. It’s enough to where I can get enough shift arm movement to pull the derailleur through all 8 gears.

so now it’s bed time. This is the time of year where my place of work gets very busy. I work in a distribution center that feeds retail stores, which need lots of stuff for the holidays. So my days start with me getting up at 2:30am this. I get home around 5pm. I do that 5, then 6, days out of a week. Now you know why it’s been difficult for me to finish anything during the MBBO for the last 2 years. This year I’m going to try to manage more time toward my builds.

before bed I wanted to throw the chain guard on... just because.

 

[Chad T]

Nice job on the shift mech!......

 

[CRASH]

I want to add a spoke protector only because of the look. I can go without if I can’t get it to work... but I really want to. So, first obstacle...

this lip gets in the way of the cassette falling completely down on the freewheel body.

So....

with the lip off the cassette sits down but it presses on the protector and makes it spin with the cassette. So I hammered that area down a bit... still no good. It’s the lip you see below, where the whole center area pops up a bit. How can I press that down without ruining the spoke protector?

 

[sandman]

It's so discouraging when things don't go as planed ? I kind of lose all motivation and may just start drinking again ?

 

[RustySprockets]

I had to think about this for a moment. The disk is supposed to spin with the cassette, and should be stationary while coasting. That's how it works on my modern Schwinn. The metal protectors are not the same as those chintzy plastic 'dork disks' that are often bound to the spokes. Am I not understanding something in your description?

EDIT: You got me, Crash! This question prompted me to make a survey of my bikes with metal spoke protectors. On my vintage Trek roadie, it spins with the spokes. BUT, on my Schwinn Mesa and Jamis commuter, it moves with the cogs. Depends on the mounting style. On the latter, there is sufficient gap to allow the hub shell and spokes to spin independently and in silence. I never really gave it that much thought before.

 

[CRASH]

There is a difference between a free wheel and a cassette. Free wheels are an older style. They have a three wheel body which the cogs attach to as one unit. That unit screws on to a hub.Metal spoke protectors like the one I have are mounted behind the Freewheel body which attaches to the hub. So the spoke protector moves with the hub, not the cogs.

cassettes are a newer design. Their hubs have a free wheel attached to them. Then the cogs act as a single body, and those attach to the free wheel body. in this case the spoke protector had nothing to press against without screwing up the mechanical operation. The spoke protector sits right against the spokes, so if it moves it will wear through the spokes. my plan is to attach the spoke protector to the spokes probably using very tiny zip ties. But first I have to create enough separation where it won’t rub against the cassette.

Does anyone have an idea how I can flatten that raised area without damaging the outside, visible part, of the spoke protector?

 

[RustySprockets]

There is a difference between a free wheel and a cassette. Free wheels are an older style. They have a three wheel body which the cogs attach to as one unit. That unit screws on to a hub.Metal spoke protectors like the one I have are mounted behind the Freewheel body which attaches to the hub. So the spoke protector moves with the hub, not the cogs.

Woah! Hang on...you're using a splined freehub, right? That's the style that should not turn with the spokes. At least, it wasn't intended that way. It's the older thread-on freewheels that pinch the disk between the hub shell, spokes, and ratchet center of the cluster, causing them to act as a unit. I presume the disk you have was designed for the latter, which you are not using.

Hmmm... You may be able to re-shape the disk by squeezing it between two wooden patterns. A hydraulic bench press would be ideal for this, but you might pull it off by using a couple of C-clamps, as well.

 

[Captain Awesome]

Hmmm... You may be able to re-shape the disk by squeezing it between two wooden patterns. A hydraulic bench press would be ideal for this, but you might pull it off by using a couple of C-clamps, as well.

I was thinking that. Cut a circle of wood at whatever diameter you are pressing. For the small amount you are describing you might not even need a negative form, you could just use some foam as a "cushion for pushin"

 

[CRASH]

I didn’t have wood, so I went with Plan B, a BFH. I pounded it flat, made some adjustments and got it to work. I thought I’d screw up the outside, but I didn’t. I had to make some adjustments the outside anyway, but I got everything to clear. I secured it to the spokes with some small clear zip ties. A really ghetto approach, but they won’t be noticeable.

The next step was the rear brake. As I was looking at the area I noticed the wheel at the top leans to the left. There is a 10mm difference in the gap on the right and left. I took the wheel off and tried adjusting the drop outs, but no luck. The wheel is even between the chain stays but leans to the left at the seat stays. Is the frame tweaked? Has anyone had experience with correcting this?

 

[Chad T]

It's probably the spacer you added. You've changed the dish of your wheel by that same amount. I usually grind that hanger mount screw down flush. You don't want that much of a gap. The chain can actually rub a tiny bit as not too many people can crank a 12t gear on a muscle bike for very long. That 8 speed cassette is super wide already. You want it as close to the drop out as you can get it.

Spoke protector looks good. Make sure you trim them zip ties...

Edit: Here's a pic of a 9 speed setup. You can see the flush hanger bolt. This is all the gap you need. Just enough to let the chain shift on to that last cog.

 

[RustySprockets]

Those slender-headed fasteners are called 'elevator bolts' in the industry, and are not the easiest things to come by. A merchant like Fastenal or McMaster-Carr can certainly supply them by mail, and you build enough groovy bikes to make the extra effort worthwhile.

 

[MattiThundrrr]

It's probably the spacer you added. You've changed the dish of your wheel by that same amount. I usually grind that hanger mount screw down flush. You don't want that much of a gap. The chain can actually rub a tiny bit as not too many people can crank a 12t gear on a muscle bike for very long. That 8 speed cassette is super wide already. You want it as close to the drop out as you can get it.

Spoke protector looks good. Make sure you trim them zip ties...

Edit: Here's a pic of a 9 speed setup. You can see the flush hanger bolt. This is all the gap you need. Just enough to let the chain shift on to that last cog.

View attachment 141768

That is an incredible picture. Look at the swing of the derailleur! Check out the chain guard line! Madness! I love this stuff