Pre-War Royal Flyer

[el_espanto]

its pretty much a Hawthorne Zep frame. been wanting a bike like this for a awhile.
had it since the summer and just now started messing with it. this thing has Alot of problems.

 

[el_espanto]

this is how it looked when I brought it home...

 

[LukeTheJoker]

Nice frame! A great starting point for your build! What are your plans for it?

Luke.

 

[el_espanto]

Hey Luke. Thanx. I can't decide about paint scheme. But I wanna make it a cool bare cruiser. I got some parts in mind.

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[el_espanto]

i tried on some brick tires. But theres some problems I gotta attack.

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[noodlenoggin]

Does anyone else think the front end has a REALLY steep rake?

 

[el_espanto]

Does anyone else think the front end has a REALLY steep rake?

Yeah. Like its jumping up like a horse. Lol. I can't figure why that is!
Maybe the fork tube is bent?, or is this just how the frame is built..??

 

[Ratfink1962]

Looks like the frame took a real hard hit to the frontend, head tube is bent more vertical. Fork looks ok... probably changed out at one time though.

If you look close, the seat tube has a slight bow aft, and the middle tube has more radius than the top tube which means its bent. Both tubes should be exact copies of one another.

How to fix it?

I would chuck up the bottom bracket in a sturdy vise, then find a nice strong tube that fits inside the head tube and use that as a jacking point against the vise. Maybe a good old school bumper jack could be pressed into service with some slight mods?

 

[el_espanto]

WOWSERS! might as well list the problems

1- replace bottom bracket bearings
2- fix seat post issue with shims or get creative
3- stem is frozen to fork
4- replace frozen pedals
5- adjust rear wheel hub (might not have left it right when i cleaned and repacked
6- adjust the front fork to rake out forward.

and this is just to make it RIDeABLE

ill be honest, iM IMPATIENT! and lazy. for such a simple build i have in mind, sure sounds
like alot of work ahead.

-any help or advice is welcome..

 

[el_espanto]

Here's some bikes that I've found but they all seem to have about the same rake angle as mine. I mean its very slight the difference..

And here's some influential inspiration.

 

[Ratfink1962]

Your list isnt that bad... replacing bottom bracket and headset bearings is pretty much a standard deal on old bikes, Pedals... same deal, Stuck stem, Takes a little patience but you can usually get them to un-stick. Seatpost shim, really not that big of deal.

The frame issue... I wouldn't suggest bending a fork to get the proper rake, either ride it the way it is, or find someone that can help jack the frame back into position, it isn't much, but it will make a difference in how it rides.

Here is some more inspiration, one I built for my Dad...

Before...

After...

 

[el_espanto]

Thanks rat fink. For the advice and inspiration..

I got the Bike apart to the frame. I tried taking off this stubborn stem w no luck. Unscrewed and untightened every thing that holds it in place. Banged the living s**t outta the stem to loosen it. And it turns but it just won't come out ta the fork.

 

[Ratfink1962]

Ive heard that soaking it in water works, no kidding.

if you have a tub big enough, soak that sucker. And since it spins... I think you are way ahead in the game. Ive had some that wouldnt budge at all.

 

[el_espanto]

Dammt.! Day 2 of trying to free the stem . i think I know what's holding it. The fork tube is bent ,so the stem inside is stuck in that bend and prevents it from coming straight up and out.

 

[TuckTuck]

I'm not jinxing you, but the last one that I had like that, I cut the fork off. I'm impatient too. Lol

 

[ozzmonaut]

Since the lower tube that bent has an actual crease in it, I would try wrapping a sturdy ratchet strap around it as well as the downtube and start ratcheting it down. I think the bent tube will give before the downtube does, possibly putting it back in alignment or at least close. (At your own risk though) . If you know anyone with a fork straightener, they could jack the straightener while you ratchet the strap, possibly alleviating the stress at the headtube simultaneously. As for the stem, I'd just hack the fork at the bottom of the steerer tube and weld a new steerer tube on. Then you have a straight tube and you can cut the old one from around the stem if you really want to use that stem. But if you don't care about the stem and don't want to weld the fork, cut the stem off at the headtube and use a 7/8" spade bit to chew the stem remnants out. You will ruin a $2 spade bit but your fork will still be useable

 

[el_espanto]

I'm not jinxing you, but the last one that I had like that, I cut the fork off. I'm impatient too. Lol

this is the fourth try at trying to bust that stem out. im really losing hope. :x

 

[el_espanto]

5th try was a success!
Had to buy a piece of rebar and flip the frame upside down put it on my work bench (vintage black and decker),best $12 I ever spent, and pounded it out with a big a** hammer. And sure enough it dropped out. Broke the fork washer and the fork itself is toast. The tube of course is bent and probably the hammering twisted the fork itself. So now I need a prewar "26 fork that will fit. If anyone might have one for sale..

So I lightly sanded the frame and got the badge visible and created some bright puke green patina. Lol. Deciding whether to keep it as is and clear it, OR, rattle can it some flat dark brown..

What u guys think??

 

[el_espanto]

Sprayed some flat velvet brown paint. I like it. And left some original patina through out the frame.

Any one have prewar fork w truss bars for sale?

 

[el_espanto]

Made my own shim. I think it works.