Hey guys. Just in time I guess. Despite of the lack of time this year I'm glad to say my build is up and running. I didn't get to do all the things I had planned, but on the other hand, a true hotrod is never done
I started out with a Gazelle. A Dutch ATB that I litteraly rescued from the trash at work. I love the older rigid frame MTB's because of their functional no nonsence design. I always thought I could restyle it to a next level. I got inspired by a youtube-video from Holland, which may be the very first footage of BMX racing preceding the wrongly praised Californian Joe Kid-story by at least 10 years. That, and the Little500 bikes. The general idea was a mix between a singlespeed and a cruiser. Sort of an oversized BMX with 1930-ish styling cues.Click here for my <<<SINGLESPEED HOTROD build thread >>>
This is what I started with...
^ Early to mid-nineties Gazelle ATB pulled out of the trash...
^ I've replaced the 26" wheels with 28". The Fat Frank reartire kicks it into the 29-ers ;-) Ofcourse the reartire didn't fit the frame, so I grinded an arc in the seatstaybracket. Colors I used are: Reseda Green and Rally Black.
^ I've used a fenderbrace to mimic trussrods/springertype fork. Just to beef it up.
^ Flipped handlebars featuring double bells. (I have this thing about symmetry...) I've used old, cheap, and ugly MTB-grips and think they're a perfect fit for this bike.
^ I left the original sprocket on the bike. When I cut off the smaller sprockets I really liked the look of this one. I filled the holes with bolts and acornnuts which reminds me of the American style 5 lug wheel patern. Cheap and used, but very nice alloy aftermarket pedals.
^ I know my 'chaintensioner' is frowned upon but it does what it's supposed to do. It's just a drag to finetune the thing so once set I'll keep my paws off of it... I'm kinda proud of that little gizmo. And it sounds really nice. Maybe I use a halflink chain in the future but for now, this'll do. Besides, hotrodding has always been about doing things your own way. Not the smartest sollutions but really cool ones ;-) I converted the bike from rimbrake to coasterbrake. (Shimano Japan hub)
^ Homemade fenders. I split a regular fender in two, and widened it by attaching an aluminum ribbed strip on top with a small gap between.
^ My trademark 'vintage' sportseat. Cheap aftermarket gel seat pimped out with antiqued nails. The seat is rubber but after some time it started to look like black leather.
^ 28" Fat Frank in the rear.
^ So here you have it. From rags to riches. My Singlespeed Hotrod.
I wanted to thank everybody for following my build. I've enjoyed watching everybody elses ... Though I haven't checked for over a month. Speak about having some catching-up to do... Looking forward to it.
To all participants:
Good luck, and happy voting!
