"Red Rodster" - Never Done - New Pics 4/14

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Re: "Red Rodster" - Honey Leather Stitched Grips - 12/11 New Pic

I love creative builds like this :D ....nice, classy, subtle mods to give a bike a whole new personality....very nicely done. 8)
 
Re: "Red Rodster" - Honey Leather Stitched Grips - 12/11 New Pic

sleepy said:
I love creative builds like this :D ....nice, classy, subtle mods to give a bike a whole new personality....very nicely done. 8)
X2 I agree, this is a really nice build with the things that make it super cool ! The leather and the tire selection are right on. :D
 
Re: "Red Rodster" - Honey Leather Stitched Grips - 12/11 New Pic

You can make the corks look better and last longer with a few coats of shellac. The amber shellac will match the Brooks after a few coats. Your brooks will also darken with use and Proofide. The vinyl grips you had I think are the VO ones? If so they do not match, but amber shellac works on them too, but makes things shiny.
 
Re: "Red Rodster" - Honey Leather Stitched Grips - 12/11 New Pic

cledry said:
You can make the corks look better and last longer with a few coats of shellac. The amber shellac will match the Brooks after a few coats. Your brooks will also darken with use and Proofide. The vinyl grips you had I think are the VO ones? If so they do not match, but amber shellac works on them too, but makes things shiny.

I mostly don't like the small size of the corks because they don't cover enough of the grip and bar end. I was thinking the bulbed tip of a champagne cork would give a nicer finished look to the bar ends. I do like the idea of shellacking the corks. I may also glue some beer bottle caps to these corks and see if I like that.

I have proofided the Brooks and it seems a tad darker which I like. The saddle was pretty dry when I got it, so I bet the original owner never treated it. The underside was very light tan and it just absolutely sucked up the Proofide. It reminded me of when I've gotten minor skin burns and dabbed on some aloe vera. You can literally see your skin absorbing it.

I appreciate everybody's kind words on my build. Can't wait to get my wheels so it's a roller. Looks like that will be close to $250 for all the parts. I am looking at buying a used truck, so that is going to push the bike build out a bit.
 
Re: "Red Rodster" - Honey Leather Stitched Grips - 12/11 New Pic

I build SS/Fixed bikes myself and I have to say that your ride is coming out pretty nice. Keep up the killer work.
 
Re: "Red Rodster" - Honey Leather Stitched Grips - 12/11 New Pic

Thanks again for all the kind words. I took the frame to the local monthly swap meet to show it off and display the leather top tube protector hoping to sell the remaining piece of leather I have leftover. Everybody that saw it loved it, which really increased my drive to get this done. Luckily, I did really well selling some bikes at the swap and brought home enough money to not only buy the little truck I planned to, but order my wheel parts.

So, on the way are my Sturmey Archer hubs, Sun CR18 700c rims, and Wheelsmith spokes. I also ordered a layback seatpost. Other than a few odds and ends, I will have what I need to get this thing rolling. I am super excited!
 
Re: "Red Rodster" - Honey Leather Stitched Grips - 12/11 New Pic

this is a cool build,love it,it screams classic sunday ride,that color red is beautiful,its gona look good when its done,I like to see how skinny tyre builds come out as apposed to the fat tyre mainstream,growing up in england back in the 80's it was all about road bikes and i went through a lot so its ingrained in me much love for the skinny tyre riders :D
 
Re: "Red Rodster" - The Stance - 12/19 New Pics

Alright, so my layback seatpost arrived. Its a really long Redline bmx post I'll end up chopping down just to cut some weight. I was excited to get this so I could see how the bike "sits." I wanted to check my leg extension and sit on the bike, so I threw the cranks on it and the wheels from my other bike. This is exactly what I visions and wanted! It looks like it is in motion while sitting still with that layback post. I "Fred Flintstoned" myself down the street just to feel it roll and my initial impression is that it will be comfortable.

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Re: "Red Rodster" - The Stance - 12/19 New Pics

Well, in a perfect world, this bike might be on the road today. All of my wheel parts I ordered were lost by the men in brown. The package end up getting scheduled for delivery 12/24. I was out of town, so I called to have the package held at will call. The screwy thing about UPS is that you have to wait for the package to be out for delivery to make such a request. So, my stuff was on the truck and made it all the way to my house. Instead, it went back to the facility and was somehow lost. UPS already closed out their claim and will be reimbursing the shipper. The seller has processed a new order, but due to the New Years holiday, I won't get it until the week after next.

If there is a silver cloud, it is that my spare time has been occupied with my new to me 99 Chevy S10. This will be my bike hauler. I can't load my Honda down with more than 2 bikes. I've spent the last few days cleaning and tinkering on the truck. It is a nice diversion.
 
Re: "Red Rodster" - Rims/Hubs/Spokes Have Landed - 1/7/13

Got a call from UPS today that they found my package that was lost 2 weeks ago. Now, I have to call the place where I bought the stuff tomorrow and tell them to cancel the reorder that they thankfully have not shipped due to a delay getting the rims from a different supplier. They aren't going to be happy they had to reorder all this stuff for nothing. UPS told me they were going to reimburse the shipper and to go ahead and request the shipper replace the items. Nevertheless, I was happy to get my stuff.

I can't wait. This front hub looks so cool:

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Did manage to get the rear wheel built up. Here is the hub with my Shimano Nexus 22T cog mounted. The hub came with a 22T cog, but it is for 1/8" chains only and I want to run 3/32" chain:

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Here is the whole rear wheel. It is a heavy beast, but I expected that with the 2 speed hub, plain gauge spokes, and a heavy tire:

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While this didn't warrant an update to this thread alone, I did get some champagne corks from my friend's at New Years and turned them into bar end plugs as I had planned. Just need to shellac them:

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Once I get the front wheel built, I have almost everything I need to make this a rideable bike. I think I am just missing a chain. There are a few detail items and odds and ends, but mostly just cosmetic stuff.
 
Re: "Red Rodster" - Sorta Done!

I finished the wheels today, so I was able to get the bike pieced together to where it can be ridden. I still have some details to finish, but this is 95% or so finished. I'll post better pictures when the rain stops. Kills me that I can't ride it due to the weather.

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Re: "Red Rodster" - Sorta Done - Better Photos

This bike in the past few days has been 2 steps forward, one step back. The morning after I laced the wheels up late at night, I noticed something didn't look right, but had to get to work without figuring it out. That afternoon, I confirmed my fears that I had laced the wheels wrong. I failed to take notice of the offset drilling of the rim and didn't match that up with the drive/non drive spokes on the hub. OOPS! So, I had to take everything apart and rebuild the wheels. Here are some better daytime shots I took yesterday when I had finished rebuilding the front wheel. I still have a few cosmetic details, but this is really looking nice:

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Re: "Red Rodster" - Sorta Done - Better Photos

This is the sort of build I want to do next, but I need to find a smaller frame. Looking for a nicely lugged frame in a nice classic colour. Also going to use cream tires but plan to use a SRAM 2 speed automatic instead of the kick back.
 
Re: "Red Rodster" - 99% Done - New Pics 2/10

I have mainly been getting a few finishing parts together on the bike like new pedals, water bottle mount, silver braided brake housing, and a nifty rear LED light. I also shortened the seat post which does nothing for how it looks, but takes a small bit of weight off. About all that I have left to get for it is a nice brass bell. I may steal the one off another bike that I plan to sell and this one pretty much replaces.

I've ridden the bike a few times and really like it. The biggest issue was initially I was running clipless pedals which just doesn't feel right when you are trying to operate the coaster brake and then having to always rotate the cranks forward for when you need to take off next since it doesn't freewheel in reverse. It was just awkward having to un-clip right as you left off the coaster brake and rotate forward. That may not make sense, but it is hard to describe. Platforms are much better for bikes with coaster brakes. So, I bit the bullet and bought a set of MKS Sylvan Touring pedals since they have that vintage look, but are fairly lightweight, and oh-so-shiny.

My next biggest complaint are the grips. I love the way they look, especially now with the shellacked cork end plugs. They are just so small, I find myself having to really grip the bars tightly which is a little fatiguing. I think I am going to get another Velo Orange leather top tube protector, this time in the larger size, and wrap another layer of leather on the bars. Still, it isn't too bad. I bought a new pair of mesh back crochet fingerless gloves which have really thickly padded palms and that helps a lot.

Here are some glamour shots of the bike:

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Kind of hard to believe I started with this:

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Re: "Red Rodster" - 99% Done - New Pics 2/10

Nicely done. What is the rear light you are using?

I finally found my frame, an old Wearwell from England and am gathering together parts. I already have the same front drum and hub you are using on the way. I also have an IRD Defiant track crank on the way, a pair of Schwalbe Delta Cruiser tyres in creme, Velo Orange porteur handlebars have also been ordered.

I am looking for some polished alloy 700C rims to use. I also have to decide what colour to have the frame powdercoated in.
 
Re: "Red Rodster" - 99% Done - New Pics 2/10

cledry said:
Nicely done. What is the rear light you are using?

I finally found my frame, an old Wearwell from England and am gathering together parts. I already have the same front drum and hub you are using on the way. I also have an IRD Defiant track crank on the way, a pair of Schwalbe Delta Cruiser tyres in creme, Velo Orange porteur handlebars have also been ordered.

I am looking for some polished alloy 700C rims to use. I also have to decide what colour to have the frame powdercoated in.

The light is made by Lezyne. I forget the model name. It was about $15.

I really wanted to do polished rims on this bike, but couldn't find any at a reasonable price. Velo Orange sells a nice polished rim for $58, but that was too spendy for me. My Sun CR18s were under $30 each.
 

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