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C

CB4

Joined
Jul 6, 2008
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Location
St. Louis, MO
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Hi all, just found this site today and it looks like a wealth of info.
I recently completed 2 cruisers for myself and my wife:

here's a before shot of hers....the other was in the same condition.

bikegirl.jpg


Here's the afters:

murraycruiser.jpg


murraycruiser-hers.jpg


I know they're not Rat bikes, but my next build is going to be.

I do have a question about these 2 first...
everything works great on the bikes, but when applying the pedal brakes on either bike, we get a metallic howling noise. I cant tell if its coming from the rear wheel or the crank, but it verberates through the whole bike and is rather annoying. I've taken the cranks apart and checked the bearing and all is good.....is it the rear wheel?

Thank you for any suggestions on that.


Now, on to my next project. I'm torn between a low rider / rat or maybe a burrito!
All I know is that I spent way too much on the 2 I just did, so this one has to be on the cheap. Where's the best place to find cheap donor bikes?

Thanks for reading!

CB4
 
welcome! :mrgreen:
Bikes look sweet. I dont normally like painted bars but those look great!!
Sounds like a dry hub....break out the grease :mrgreen: :mrgreen:
 
I bought the rear wheel and hub already assembled. Does the hub come apart or is there some way to get grease IN it or should I just get some on the outside?

not sure what you mean about the forks.....they're both the same forks, just stripped and powdercoated.
 
Nice bikes!.the hub CAN come apart..............Powwwdder coooating...Whoooo! Burrito! Whats that? (kidding) :lol:
 
ok, cool...I'll take a look at it closer. I'm sure I can figure it out and get some grease in there.

I have a friend that does powdercoating, so I opted for that instead of paint.
My bike is done in "Jeans Metallic" and my wife's is in "Lime Green" with a silver sparkle top coat. Her coating job is phenominal in the sun.

oh yeah, I do have names for them. Mine is Billy Jean (because of the color) and hers is Envy.

Thank you very much for the compliments and tips so far.
 
hello there, welcome, and beautiful bikes ya got there !!! we like all kinds around here :D

easiest place to find donor bikes / parts is yard sales, the dump, on the curb at trash night, resale shops, online classifieds, bikes shop trade ins, pawn shops, friends, neighbors, co-workers, family members, thrift stores, flea markets, that auction site and so on :mrgreen:

as far as the vibrating screech sound, i cant tell from the pics, but is the brake arm attached to the rear stays ?? they look like new wheels due to the shinyness and more than average spoke count. there has been some screeching brake complaints before from a certain type of rear hub that i think had to do with faulty brake pads in the hub. the bearings in the rear wheel shouldnt be the problem unless they make noise under normal riding without braking too.
 
it looked like your bottom bearing cone is up too high but I think its just the angle. My bad.
Very cool rides for sure!!! :mrgreen: :mrgreen:
 
yes, the brake arm is attached to the rear stays. They dont make any noise while riding. Only when braking.

not sure what brand....I bought them new here:

http://www.bicycledesigner.com/defaulth ... %20coaster


Thanks guys!
Click to expand...

I've got the same problem with the same wheel and hub, bought from the same place. The problem with mine is two fold; it only makes the noise under hard braking, normal breaking it's silent, but mine also thinks it's a fixed gear hub. It'll coast if you put a little back pressure on the pedals, but otherwise it'll spin the pedals as long as the wheel is moving.

I had the wheel for about 6 months before I finally put it on the bike, so I couldn't send it back. I was planning on breaking down the hub this Wednesday or Thursday. I'll let you know what I find.
 
Dude. They loosely fit into the RAT world. The first one was like, BANG !!!. Presto chango. Nice job. Welcome.
 
I've got the same problem with the same wheel and hub, bought from the same place. The problem with mine is two fold; it only makes the noise under hard braking, normal breaking it's silent, but mine also thinks it's a fixed gear hub. It'll coast if you put a little back pressure on the pedals, but otherwise it'll spin the pedals as long as the wheel is moving.

I had the wheel for about 6 months before I finally put it on the bike, so I couldn't send it back. I was planning on breaking down the hub this Wednesday or Thursday. I'll let you know what I find.
Click to expand...

I took the entire hub apart and rebuilt it. One if the problems was that the hub shoes weren't positioned properly. That solved the "fixed gear" problem but the .... thing still sings every time I brake hard. If it's doing that on mine, and two of yours, and it's the same brand, I'm inclined to think it's a design defect. Since yours aren't 6 months old, I'd try to exchange them for a new pair. I'm going to have a pro look at mine but I think we both may have been screwed on this deal. I wasn't real happy with the condition of some other items I ordered through bicycledesigner.com and this pretty much seals the deal for me, no new business from me will be heading their way.

This is what I found when I opened up the hub:
hubdw6.jpg
 
thanks for the info. unfortunately mine are past the 6-month mark too. I orderd them in December.

I feel the same way about the company. I got the stuff fast, but wasnt impressed with the quality.
 
The local bike shop's single speed coaster hub specialist wasn't working today, but I'll put a call into him tomorrow to see if he knows anything about the squealing brake problem. I'm also going to link this thread over on the "how to" section to see if it gets a response there.
 
bicycledesigner.com update: I sent them an email about the problem and they're willing to exchange the wheel for a good one. They'll also said they'll personally test the new one before sending it out. CB4, I just sent you a copy of the email through ratrodbike.com's email feature.

This is enough to reverse my previously stated negative opinion of them. Even though some time had past, the hub was obviously bad and they are willing to take care of it when they really didn't have to. And that offer was for both me and CB4. So at this point I'll commend them for standing behind what they sell and being a responsible online retailer. Now, if after all this, I get the new wheel and it squeals when braking I'll be pissed, but no sense worrying about that until, or if, it happens.
 

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