Early Electra Rat rod

[JA331]

Picking up this early RR this week. Pre pedal forward model which I prefer. Has a factory fitted front caliper brake as it is required under Aussie regulations. It has been nicely aged by the original owner due to poor storage!

 

[Ronn’s Cool Stuff]

Nice ride, that seat is a treasure and so is the bike!
Just start cleaning.
I look at patina like scars and tattoos, it’s all part of the story.
I have a lot of patina! Enjoy

 

[JA331]

Drove 2 hours each way today to pickup the RR. The scenery improved once I got out of the city and near the ocean. Once I returned I removed the ugly rack and cleaned off the heavy rust followed by a dousing of CRC to stop it returning.

Pumped the tires, lifted the seat, adjusted the nexus and took it for a short ride. Rides well although I’m not a fan of the springer front fork. I’ll service the bearings tomorrow, fit a new chain, dump the reflectors and possibly the useless front brake. The coaster brake is really powerful compared to those in the nexus 7 hubs I have so it will do.

Other observations, the frame welding is excellent and I’m surprised the bike isn’t as heavy as thought it would be. Can any of the Electra specialists confirm the year of this model? My best guess is 2004 or 2005.

 

[wheelbender6]

We should report you for being Too Awesome!

 

[JA331]

First ride. Love it!!! Detailed rebuild report to follow…….

 

[JA331]

With a little work this has turned in a really sweet ride. I swapped the damaged original stem for a repop steel Schwinn razor stem. Removed the useless front brake, fitted new Serfas grips, a rusty ding dong bell, new rim straps as the old ones were cracked from the salt air, new tubes, a decent chain from an Electra Karma parts bike, mks grafxx pedals and a cheapie ebay light from one of my other bikes. I also serviced the bottom bracket bearings, front hub and lubed the squeaky springer. l left the chain guard off as it was rubbing on the chain and I didn’t have time to fix it.

Rides smooth and much faster than I thought it would be. Its a shame Electra don’t offer a bike like this any longer with the traditional pedal position. The range of bikes they currently offer downunder is very limited and boring. I much prefer riding it over the straight 8 I sold last year. Its a little heavier but just as fast.

 

[irideiam]

Nice ride! Beautiful welds on those older Electra's!

 

[Karate Chicken Industries]

Beautiful welds on those older Electra's!

I've had a few Encinitas era Electras come through in the past few years, always solid.

 

[JA331]

Nice ride! Beautiful welds on those older Electra's!

Yes. The welds on the rat rod are a real focal point because of the gussets. I have 5 Taiwanese built bikes, a 2012 Mongoose reissue Kos, 2010 heavy duti, red menace, 96 Trek cruiser and the Ratrod. I have to say the welds are really nice on all them.

 

[JA331]

Went for a ride on the RR yesterday and discovered it pulled quite badly to the left. After checking the headset, flipping the wheel and ensuring it was centered, I discovered the problem was in the steerer tube. The horizontal tubes for the pivot bolt were welded on an angle. I grabbed the steerer from another springer fork I had but had to shorten the tube 6mm. Steers perfectly now.

The problem was so bad that even with the bike stationary the fork would wander quickly to the left.

 

[irideiam]

Strange deal on fork! Glad you figured it out. I missed that you had ask about year.

No expert, but I researched this once before, and have owned several. What is the serial number, typically there are two letters followed by a number. It's on the bottom of the bottom bracket.

So something like MB4 would be a 2004 for example.

 

[JA331]

Thanks for the reply. The alignment issue had me beat for a while. You can see the pivot tubes are not straight (photo 2). Photo 3 is of the new steerer tube.

 

[irideiam]

WN4=2004

 

[JA331]

Thanks

 

[JA331]