BO15 Dumpster Diamond (Formerly "First Ever Build Off with a Postwar Hawthorne")

[OddJob]

Making great progress! I really like the two wood inserts in the frame. If you keep the paint the way it is (which is pretty RaT - isfying as it is!) I have a couple of wood 'aging' techniques I've used that can be shared to get that wood to match the age of the look. Let me know.

I personally like the chain guard in the 3rd from top mock up photo. Doesn't draw your eye away from the wood as much, and will show off the chain and crank more. Agreed on the blue fork with the others guys.

RaT oN~!

 

[Bike from the Dead]

Making great progress! I really like the two wood inserts in the frame. If you keep the paint the way it is (which is pretty RaT - isfying as it is!) I have a couple of wood 'aging' techniques I've used that can be shared to get that wood to match the age of the look. Let me know.

I personally like the chain guard in the 3rd from top mock up photo. Doesn't draw your eye away from the wood as much, and will show off the chain and crank more. Agreed on the blue fork with the others guys.

RaT oN~!

Thanks! Those wood inserts are just the rough templates for now, but I'd love to learn how to age wood from you! I still don't quite know what direction I'm going with this build, so I may stain the wood parts, or I might want an aged looked. As far as the paint goes, I would have loved to keep it as I got it, but with the scorch marks, I just want to strip it down to bare metal. Can't say I'm the biggest fan of red anyways. Hopefully I'll be able to take care of that today.

Yeah, that chain guard was okay, but I've got a few other options I want to try now that I've got the bike home. I'll be doing some more mock ups later today. The blue forks are cool, but I was planning on saving those for a Schwinn straight bar project I've got. I've got a similar set of forks that I should be getting back today, along with some other parts.

 

[Rat Pilot]

I’m loving how this one is shaping up!

 

[Bike from the Dead]

I’m loving how this one is shaping up!

Thanks Rat Pilot!

 

[Bike from the Dead]

I've managed to sand off about a third of the paint with a drill and brass wire brush so far, but after about an hour of holding the drill trigger, my hands need a break!

 

[Wildcat]

I put my drill in the bench vise and set the switch on and held the frame as I wire brushed it. Made it a lot easier to do. I was able to hit the hard to reach places easier too.

 

[Bike from the Dead]

I put my drill in the bench vise and set the switch on and held the frame as I wire brushed it. Made it a lot easier to do. I was able to hit the hard to reach places easier too.
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That's a great idea! I don't have much paint left to sand now, but that just might be the way to wrap this part of the project up!

How do you preserve the bare metal finish on your bike, by the way? I've got another project I want to leave bare metal, but I would like to keep it from rusting.

 

[Shrunken_Head_Pedaler]

Maybe lots of WD-40 or clear coat it.

 

[Wildcat]

It takes a lot of work to keep bare metal shiny. I've heard that boiled linseed oil is good, but I never put that much effort in it. Mine patinaed up in a week or so in the humidity of Florida.

 

[Bike from the Dead]

Maybe lots of WD-40 or clear coat it.

It takes a lot of work to keep bare metal shiny. I've heard that boiled linseed oil is good, but I never put that much effort in it. Mine patinaed up in a week or so in the humidity of Florida.
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Ok, thanks for your advice. I might try clear coating first, but if that doesn't work, I might try either wax or linseed oil. Oklahoma is pretty humid as well, so I'll just have to experiment and see what works best for me.

 

[Bike from the Dead]

I had been in a bit of a rut this past week deciding what direction I wanted to take this bike, but I think I've figured out what I want to do. I'm going to try to make my bike look like a cross between an early 1920s Harley/Indian, and a 1930s/1940s racing motorcycle. Here are some of the photos I came across last night that best demonstrate what I'm going for.

I'm thinking of going with a color scheme similar to this Harley.

I've got an idea of how to make some truss rods that look similar to these, and I think I know a way to modify the forks to look closer to the ones in the picture below. The big question is if I'd have to switch to class 2 because of that, even though my idea for modifying the forks would (hopefully) be reversible.

I like the bobbed rear fender and overall stance of this one.

This is the sort of attitude I'm hoping to achieve, with the race numbers and lack of front fenders.

I'm seriously considering using the pie-tin number plate idea that this guy had...

...and the spinner number plates this guy has on his bike.

I also have a few ideas I want to save as a surprise down the line, but ultimately, this is the look and feel I'm going for.

 

[Shrunken_Head_Pedaler]

Ok, thanks for your advice. I might try clear coating first, but if that doesn't work, I might try either wax or linseed oil. Oklahoma is pretty humid as well, so I'll just have to experiment and see what works best for me.

I would choose to clear coat it. I’m in Kansas, so I know what you mean by humidity. Sucks. The weather is crazy right now.

 

[Bike from the Dead]

I would choose to clear coat it. I’m in Kansas, so I know what you mean by humidity. Sucks. The weather is crazy right now.

Yeah, hot and humid in April, now it's cool in May! Or, it was cool in May. It's starting to feel normal again, rain included.

 

[BartRidesEternal]

Love the boardtracker looks! Are you going for a very low seat aswel?
Just a thought: Maybe you can use small road signs as a base for the number plates next to the wheels.
Looking forward to more updates!

 

[Bike from the Dead]

Love the boardtracker looks! Are you going for a very low seat aswel?
Just a thought: Maybe you can use small road signs as a base for the number plates next to the wheels.
Looking forward to more updates!

Thanks! Yeah, I'd like to have the seat sit low and further back. I've got a banana seat that matches the colors and racing theme I'm shooting for, and an old layback seat post that would help move it back. Problem is, I'm missing the part or parts that fit between the seat post and seat pole. I'll hopefully have some more photos of the parts and pieces I intend to use sometime soon.

As for the road sign number plate idea, that would work, but I don't have any road signs at my disposal. I do have some other pieces that might work, though. I just have to play around with what I've got.

 

[Bike from the Dead]

A friend of mine and Dad surprised me with a free Huffy bike just earlier this week. I just learned about it earlier today, well... yesterday, I mean. It's already after midnight where I live. This is actually just what I needed, as I wasn't sure what to do about wheels, since none of the wheels in my inventory either matched, had spokes and hubs, or all the above. Best of all, after airing up the tires, I learned that the coaster brake still worked, which was made all the more apparent by the lack of tread on the rear tire.

Also, I couldn't help myself. If you can hear this image, you know which one of my favorite custom car shows I'm referencing.

I haven't really done much with my build to- yesterday other than just deciding where I want to take this build, deciding what parts I'm NOT using, and cleaning up my work space in the garage. Hopefully I'll have more progress pictures to upload soon.

 

[Shrunken_Head_Pedaler]

Tons of pictures and a decent amount of progress today!

Okay, to start off, some "before" pictures of the forks and rear fender I intend to use before I get them fixed. The forks are slightly bent at the... stem? Is that what it's called? The fender is bent and dented and rusty, and although I don't think I'll be using the WHOLE fender, I'd rather see what it looks like dent-free before I bob anything.
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Fortunately, I got my frame back today. Turns out the guy who fixed it for me lost my number. I had hoped the paint would be left untouched, but it looks like he had to use some heat to fix everything. He claims he did the best he could, though I wasn't expecting to see even more dents in the seat tube than before. Still, at least it's dented in a straight line. I paid the guy $30 for his service, bought some wheels, tires, and a special piece for another $30, and left him with some other parts to fix for me before heading to my dad's shop.
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Once I brought everything over to my dad's shop, I immediately got to work on a rough template for a custom wood tank. I used some scrap plywood and a jigsaw for the initial shaping, then a belt sander to trim it down to fit.
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I had originally planned to leave the paint alone, but that was before about a third of the paint was burnt off in the process of straightening the frame. Rather than try to cover up the scorched bits and match the patina, I instead decided to just strip the frame down to bare metal to see how I liked that. Well, I only got so much paint sanded off with the brass wire wheel on my dad's grinder before I got tired of how easily the darn thing wanted to stop on me. I did find what must've been part of the original paint hiding underneath. I might use that diamond design later...
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I don't know what you'd call the piece that sits behind the seat pole on old motorcycles, but I thought I'd try making a version of that for my bike. I also mocked up a few chain guards and a couple other parts to see what might work. So far, I'm not sure I've found a combo I like yet.
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One of the other forks I had used for mockup purposes (not pictured) had this reflector bracket that I thought would make a good mounting point for a race number. I think where this bike's going is "old school racing motorcycle," but we'll see. I've got a bunch of other parts I want to mockup, and everything's liable to change.
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Looking great! Stoked to see it finished!

 

[Bike from the Dead]

Wow, today has been an absolute roller-coaster of progress and emotions with this build and a few others I have going on in the background! If you haven't figured out how I post stuff by now, prepare for a bit of reading and a lot of photos.

First off, I spent most of my morning picking up, loading up, and dropping off various parts and pieces from other bike projects into storage. Once that was out of the way, I cleaned up the wheels and tubes from the free Huffy, plus a pair of blackwalls I bought from the guy who "fixed" my Hawthorne frame. I mounted the tires onto the wheels, then took these pictures.

One of the tires is a bit dry-rotted, but I think it's fine for now.

I then was informed that the bike parts I left with the guy who "fixed" my frame were done and ready for pickup. When I saw how this guy... "fIxED" everything... I got mad. REAL MAD. Now, thankfully, I didn't blow up at this guy, but I was fuming all the way home and then some once I got home. He had misheard a critical instruction to fill one hole on the rear "deep dish" Shelby? fender I left him, and had filled NEARLY EVERY HOLE ON ALL THREE FENDERS I HAD LEFT WITH HIM!

But that wasn't the worst of it, oh no. The fork I asked him to straighten was still slightly bent, which he said, "is supposed to be that way, as that's how it fit on one of his bikes." There was now a crack running down about an inch of the steering tube (did I get that right this time?) that was not there before. The brazing on all my fenders were nothing but blobs of molten metal, some even threatening to puncture the tires. His excuse when I asked if my tires would clear? "There'll be about an inch between the fender and the tire, they'll be fine." Some of the brazing even has sharp edges that could potential cut someone if they aren't careful. He filled holes that made no sense to fill. He didn't leave the indent for the chain guard on the deep dish rear fender, saying "that's how it's supposed to be." When he attempted to remove the busted seat post from my Schwinn straight bar frame, he even managed to melt the original brazing that held the straight bar on my frame so it's no longer held solidly in place! The only good news is that when I pointed out everything, he didn't make me pay the $75 I expected to pay him. The downside? Now I have to pay someone ELSE to FIX his MISTAKES!

I had more photos I was going to share of this guy's "fixes," but I didn't want to overload the RRBBO thread with a ton of unrelated pics. So, I'll just share the worst examples.

He actually filled the hole where I'd mount the front fender to the forks. Just... WHY?!

The rear fender to my Hawthorne, which I just wanted smoothed out. He filled the mounting hole on this one too.

...And not even all that well.

I'll let the next couple of pictures speak for themselves...

After I had let out some steam, I decided to try mocking up my RRBBO15 entry. My mood thankfully did a full 180 in the process. First, while the rear wheel from the donor Huffy fit the Hawthorne just fine, the axle on the front wheel was both too wide and too thick to fit inside the forks I wanted to use. Amazingly, the bearings and axle from one of my other, older wheels fit the Huffy wheel perfectly!

My first serious mock up. I had tried a couple other sprockets and handlebars before this photo, but these were the ones I liked best.

I bought this banana seat at a bicycle swap meet a year ago, and I thought it would be perfect, as it matches both the color palette and racing theme I'm going for. It's currently sitting on an old layback seat post, but I'm missing the part or parts that fit between the seat post and the seat tube. Something to search for later...

No idea what this sprocket's off of, but I thought it looked good on this bike.

Yeah, about that surprise I mentioned earlier? I want to make a secret set of cup holders disguised as an old v-twin engine, using a couple industrial light cages and part of a rusty old rake. I'm still figuring out how I'll make it work, though...

Another thing to go with the old racing motorcycle theme... I want to use this set of forks, as the top ends are open. I'm thinking of jamming some conduit or something inside the open tops of the fork tubes to make them look more like the forks you'd see on 1910s/1920s motorcycles. I want it to be reversible, but I don't know if that kind of modification would move me to Class 2. I'll have more detailed concept sketches later to better show what I'm thinking of doing.

I wanted to see how this speedometer would look on my build. I like it, but I'm not sure this is the right bike for it.

Lastly, I decided to see if the handlebars looked better down, or up. Up would be more practical and comfortable, but down fits the racing look better, I think.

Phew, that was a lot of photos to edit and words to type! Let me know what you guys think of my build so far! All feedback, advice and critique welcome!

 

[BartRidesEternal]

Thats quite the story! I hope everything will work out eventually. I really dig your v-engine idea!! How are you going to hold it in place? Wood always works very well too, and looks cool when dirty and oily The speedometer is not my thing.
Looking forward to more updates!

 

[Bike from the Dead]

Thats quite the story! I hope everything will work out eventually. I really dig your v-engine idea!! How are you going to hold it in place? Wood always works very well too, and looks cool when dirty and oily The speedometer is not my thing.
Looking forward to more updates!

Thanks! I hope so too. That's one off many creative problems regarding the dummy engine I have yet to solve. Thankfully, creative problem-solving is something I excel at! Wood might work for some parts of the engine, but the thing is that I want to actually use these cup holders to hide my water bottles while I ride. Water and wood don't exactly go together all that well. I definitely want the "engine" to look old, that's for sure. And yeah, the speedometer looks a bit too "new" for this build. I'll just have to tinker with it.

Thanks! More updates coming soon!