So, we are in a strange time world wide right now. With that thought firmly planted in your mind, here's another unusual thought. OJ will be doing a 'shiny' rat build this year~! 
Not only will it be shiny, it's going to be colorful as well! My experiment with the Dupli-color Metalcast paint last Fall on RaTsberry Buffet has entranced me ever since. This summer I will be going full bore on that paint plan!
I have long admired the 'gasser' hot rods and their exaggerated colors, jacked up front ends, big fat rear / small skinny front tire combos, colored glass windows, and added graphics and stickers / decals. Expect ALL of those on my build....RaTs GaSs.
Here are some of the inspirational photos I found this winter while planning my build:
Then, while digging deeper, I found this Hot Wheels gasser photo.....and I knew this was it!
This March, as the seasons and our lives were changing, my buddy Scotty at Arizona Wholesale Bikes asked me to come in and help him build bikes and keep the shop humming to keep up with the explosion of bike sales. I spent 5 mornings there, enjoying his company and building cool cruisers. On the last day, I asked him about a frame set that had been hanging in the corner of the shop. "Was that a parts donor? It looks like a new frame. Any issues with it?" He told me he had taken the wheels / tires and saddle off of it to 'customize' another new bike the way a customer wanted it. So no, the frame and fork were basically new.
I offered that I would take that frame and fork in lieu of some of my day's wages, and he walked over, grabbed it off the rack, and handed it to me! It's a 'classic' styled frame ( that is the actual model name of this Zycle Fix bicycle) with a great chrome finish. Perfect for my Metalcast paint application!
I told Scotty about my gasser build idea, and he mentioned a really cool custom auto paint store that was just a couple miles away. So I swung in on my way home that morning. The store is called Space Age Auto Paint, and is a unreal set up! Custom paint mixologists, every brand of base and paint you can think of, or have never heard of. And the aisle with Dupli-Color Metalcast was packed full! I brought these home from the shelves....
Yep! I'm doing a fade paint job just like the Hot Wheels car. Can't wait to get started!
I am also back now in Minnesota and working every other day at our bike shop in the 'hood. Put in a couple of parts orders, and here's what I have so far in the queue.....
26" chrome fender set
20" Rant tire. Not sure if I will go 20" or 24" in the front. Have to try both and return the one I don't use. That employee discount sure comes in handy.
BMX style lay back seat post. This is a larger seat tube than the vintage frames I usually work with, so I'm going this route. Chrome, of course.
Last Fall Trek had some closeouts on Electra parts ( Electra is owned by Trek ) and I got this 24" x 45 mm wheel with the Shimano Nexus 3 spd hub and 24 x 3 Fattio tire dirt cheap!
MX style stem in chrome, natch.
Option 2, 24 x 1.75 front shiny wheel with Kenda Kwest 24 x 1.5 tire. The tire tread matches up with the Fattio rear really well. Just, skinnier.
So, that's way more than you cared to know about RaTs GaSs . Can't wait to start throwing the bike parts around in the BACK40 !
RaT oN~!
Not only will it be shiny, it's going to be colorful as well! My experiment with the Dupli-color Metalcast paint last Fall on RaTsberry Buffet has entranced me ever since. This summer I will be going full bore on that paint plan!
I have long admired the 'gasser' hot rods and their exaggerated colors, jacked up front ends, big fat rear / small skinny front tire combos, colored glass windows, and added graphics and stickers / decals. Expect ALL of those on my build....RaTs GaSs.
Here are some of the inspirational photos I found this winter while planning my build:
Then, while digging deeper, I found this Hot Wheels gasser photo.....and I knew this was it!
This March, as the seasons and our lives were changing, my buddy Scotty at Arizona Wholesale Bikes asked me to come in and help him build bikes and keep the shop humming to keep up with the explosion of bike sales. I spent 5 mornings there, enjoying his company and building cool cruisers. On the last day, I asked him about a frame set that had been hanging in the corner of the shop. "Was that a parts donor? It looks like a new frame. Any issues with it?" He told me he had taken the wheels / tires and saddle off of it to 'customize' another new bike the way a customer wanted it. So no, the frame and fork were basically new.
I offered that I would take that frame and fork in lieu of some of my day's wages, and he walked over, grabbed it off the rack, and handed it to me! It's a 'classic' styled frame ( that is the actual model name of this Zycle Fix bicycle) with a great chrome finish. Perfect for my Metalcast paint application!
I told Scotty about my gasser build idea, and he mentioned a really cool custom auto paint store that was just a couple miles away. So I swung in on my way home that morning. The store is called Space Age Auto Paint, and is a unreal set up! Custom paint mixologists, every brand of base and paint you can think of, or have never heard of. And the aisle with Dupli-Color Metalcast was packed full! I brought these home from the shelves....
Yep! I'm doing a fade paint job just like the Hot Wheels car. Can't wait to get started!
I am also back now in Minnesota and working every other day at our bike shop in the 'hood. Put in a couple of parts orders, and here's what I have so far in the queue.....
26" chrome fender set
20" Rant tire. Not sure if I will go 20" or 24" in the front. Have to try both and return the one I don't use. That employee discount sure comes in handy.
BMX style lay back seat post. This is a larger seat tube than the vintage frames I usually work with, so I'm going this route. Chrome, of course.
Last Fall Trek had some closeouts on Electra parts ( Electra is owned by Trek ) and I got this 24" x 45 mm wheel with the Shimano Nexus 3 spd hub and 24 x 3 Fattio tire dirt cheap!
MX style stem in chrome, natch.
Option 2, 24 x 1.75 front shiny wheel with Kenda Kwest 24 x 1.5 tire. The tire tread matches up with the Fattio rear really well. Just, skinnier.
So, that's way more than you cared to know about RaTs GaSs . Can't wait to start throwing the bike parts around in the BACK40 !
RaT oN~!
I ended up with a nice tight fit in the rear end, a few micro-meters of space between tire and frame, and tire and chain line. And I didn't even have to change out the chain that was already on the frame and fork! 
