MattiThundrrr
Rattus All Terrainus
Brazed beauty!
Gravel Grinder Green Motobike 1930 Tribute Bike
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It's done. The only new parts are the valve cores and they are used. The wheels are potato chipped out and the whole bike shakes when you crank over the rear wheel. To ride it you would need new wheels and tires. It's very heavy and the rope carrying strap really makes it easy to get in and out and up and down stairs. I like it, looks cool, just like the original. Of course I would trade for the original as this bike is nowhere near the quality if the original. It looks like something that a kid tried to make into a mock path racer back in the 1920s.
MattiThundrrr
Rattus All Terrainus
The rope is cool. I might use it on a future rat.
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I like the rope too. I might put one on my gravel bike. It makes carrying real easy. I turned the seat post around and it looks better.
MazdaFlyer
Like “RadioFlyer”
Looks neat, seems like a shame for it to remain a static display. Would the wheels be serviceable at all if you had a set of tires? Nice bike regardless.
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Want a great representation of a bygone era.
It looks like art to me.
Great job!
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It looks like art to me.
Great job!
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No, they are single tube glue on tires in an obsolete size. The wood under the steel cladding has some punky places and a lot of cracks. 28 x 1 1/2 inch tire size. They are also pretty taco shaped. I would have to get 700c wide rims and put 35 to 38 mm tires on for it to look the same. Someday I might find some but I don't want to buy new.
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I tried to ride it today on a bike path but the front tire would only hold air for a mile. Had to push back.
MazdaFlyer
Like “RadioFlyer”
OK thanks for trying, sorry about the pushing part. You also had the handle though...I’m impressed with you saving the old bike.
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I put on 700c coaster brake wheels with 38 mm tires. I got them for a good price as they were new but taken off a bike as they were replacing the wheels. The rims are black. I rode it around but it's snowing out and dark. It works good. I'll post a picture of it tomorrow (if I remember) but it may be snowing on and off, so the pictures may be bad because of low light from the low sun angle and clouds. The snows not sticking here as the ground isn't frozen but it is on the hilltops, which have been snow covered for about 10 days. For the next ten days it's going to be in the teens and 20s. I may take it to town on Wednesday to ride on the bike path. The path is on the Lake Superior shoreline and if the winds are vicious I'll abandon the mission before I start. I'd like to ride it at least once before winter really closes in and you need studded tires.
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Sun peaked out so the picture is pretty good. 28 F now and calm winds.
MazdaFlyer
Like “RadioFlyer”
Think it’s great that you can ride it again. Those dropped bars would kill my back though. What town on the shoreline has your bike path? Cool stuff!
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You can ride with your hands on the flats near the gooseneck and that's not too hard on the back The flat spot here is wider than it looks. It's 20 Miles to Munising, Michigan which has a 9 mile paved bike path along Lake Superior. Some of this is on roads that are in poor shape. What I want to do Wednesday is take the bike to Marquette, Michigan, 62 miles away to ride on their paved non motorized bike path. It is 19 miles long in the city with most of it along the Lake Superior Shoreline. There is an additional 50 miles of crushed gravel or paved dedicated bike path leading out of Marquette that connects 3 other communities. If it's blowing I could go on the Iron Ore Heritage Trail out of Marquette and that goes away from the Lake. It's been in the upper 20s F since this morning and they predict snow and cold for the next 10 days. 60 miles east they are supposed to get 5 inches of snow this afternoon. It's windy so it feels very cold with puddles frozen in the shade. I may not be able to ride it but I want to try.
MattiThundrrr
Rattus All Terrainus
Your dedication is admirable
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It was windy yesterday and in the 20F but I did ride this bike 8 miles away from Lake Superior. Yesterday evening I went for a night ride with 6 guys from our club (3 of us were 73 and the others 50s and 60s). It was snowing lightly and brutally cold with our early season thin blood. One guy slipped on a large frozen puddle with snow on top, crashed hard and fell through the puddle. My water bottle turned to slush and gave you a ice cream headache. Driving home (79 mile ride) I ran into a blizzard where you couldn't see the center line, just a white strip. I went sideways once before I put it in 4 wheel drive. When I got 6 miles from home the blizzard stopped. When I woke up this morning the blizzard had reached us overnight and we have a nice snow cover. It's 21 F. I just made it riding this bike before you need studs and fat tires. It rode nice and others from the club took turns riding it. They all commented on how nice it rode.
MattiThundrrr
Rattus All Terrainus
I don't know wether you are inspirational, or if we should schedule you a mental health check.
I suppose there is a possibility of option three: I've gotten soft in my middle years. Where's my afghan, Agnes?
I suppose there is a possibility of option three: I've gotten soft in my middle years. Where's my afghan, Agnes?
MazdaFlyer
Like “RadioFlyer”
A few years back we did a road trip to Memory Lanes Classics Swap Meet in October. Then we went on up through Michigan to Mackinac Island, then the Upper Peninsula and over to Duluth and back down to KS. We stopped at Munising and took a Pictured Rocks boat tour. We stayed overnight in Marquette. Wish we’d had more time in our schedule. It was getting cool but no snow back then.
You are a trooper, cold here today, 28 degrees and dry.
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28F is cold, brrrr, pretty much the same as here. Especially if your not used to it yet. We were all cold during last nights ride. Pretty much everyone opted to cut the ride short at 8 miles and take ATV trails back to the bar. I was OK but my thumbs and face were burning. Every time someone opened the brew pub door the inside temp took a plunge. My camera and cell phone are still in my truck. When I feel like it I will venture out and take the bikes off the racks and empty my truck and post a snow picture. I have to go to our storage unit to exchange the leaf sweeper for the snow blower and get out my winter cloths. I rode in tennis shoes last night and that was marginal.
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It quit snowing so I went to take the bikes off the truck from yesterdays rides. Another snow squall off Lake Superior came through while I was emptying my truck of riding gear so I quit and went back inside. I'm waiting to see if the snow lets up before attempting to put them away. I'm through riding the tribute bike for this year.
