Space Patrol Bike

[LukeTheJoker]

Good to see this one still going!

Luke.

 

[gsc]

I want a 30 ton jewelry press....nice

 

[kingfish254]

Shiny Happy People!

 

[pebblewurm]

The press was pretty simple to make- frame is from an 8" tie rod type hydraulic cylinder with some other random scrap steel, mainly pipe flange blanking plates. power comes from a 30 ton bottle jack with two corners chopped off to fit. I've been playing with it to emboss old bicycle headbadges from period dies, but it really needs a little more oomph. I may have to build a drop hammer... The "force" or male die is just some 90+ durometer urethane sheet. The press works pretty well, and it has a small footprint which is important in a city apartment and a model-T garage I share with a car. Best information on building and using one of these is in theis book:
http://www.amazon.com/Hydraulic-Die-Forming-Jewelers-Metalsmiths/dp/0963583204
I have found a lot of other uses for it once it was up and running.
For modifying the tubing bender I'm just adding rings of wood and will turn a 1/2" channel in them on a lathe.

 

[pebblewurm]

The bike should finally arrive here on Monday- I keep forgetting to leave the front gate ajar. However I did retrieve the stainless tubing and the modified rollers are working fine. Bending the tubing without deforming it. Process was simple, once I stopped overthinking it. I found a piece of 1" thick maple at my favorite local (Bay Area) store for interesting things, S.C.R.A.P.-
http://www.scrap-sf.org/
You never can tell what they will have. Metal, wood, architectural samples, trade show remains, paint and chemicals and opera costumes. It's a hoot and cheap. I marked out the OD of the stock rollers with a compass and cut the inside diameter with a hole saw. The OD was cut on the bandsaw and the rough ring trued up in the lathe and cut in half. Then beveled the ID to roughly match the curve of the roller and then glued in place and clamped with a hose clamp around the circumference. I used Shoe Goo because I had two partial tubes that were starting to dry out and it is working. Then I chucked the wood lined rollers in the lathe and cut the 3/8" channels and installed them in the roller. I'll need the bike here to mock up a wire pattern for the fender stays.

 

[Chad T]

Wow some nice craftsmanship on that tube bender + press.

 

[pebblewurm]

Thank Harbor Freight for the tube roller! And I am in luck because an unmodified piece from the scrap box makes a perfectly acceptable off-center flattened end:

 

[pebblewurm]

Whoops- posted too soon. I really can't call the modified bits "craftsmanship"- more like just trying to make them work and spend some quality time in the shop. It is fun, and I am getting better at it. One of my favorite sayings is anybody can do just about anything if you are willing to do it over three times to get it right. Here is a side view of the tube flattened with the scrap piece-

I think I would have to make a better die if I went full on Shelby Air Flo style on the struts, but I think I can settle for Roadmaster style curved stays with much simpler mounts at the fender end.

 

[OddJob]

Whoops- posted too soon. I really can't call the modified bits "craftsmanship"- more like just trying to make them work and spend some quality time in the shop. It is fun, and I am getting better at it. One of my favorite sayings is anybody can do just about anything if you are willing to do it over three times to get it right. Here is a side view of the tube flattened with the scrap piece-

I think I would have to make a better die if I went full on Shelby Air Flo style on the struts, but I think I can settle for Roadmaster style curved stays with much simpler mounts at the fender end.

Creative use of "what is at hand" and clever tool design! Be anxious to see the plan and execution of such....

 

[The Renaissance Man]

I can't wait to see more of this!

 

[LukeTheJoker]

Very cool tool work!

Luke.

 

[pebblewurm]

I finally picked the bike up yesterday- it made it out intact via BikeFlights ground. The rust peppering on the fork is responding-slowly- to an oxalic acid bath. 3 kitchen tablespoons in a 5 gallon bucket for a pH of 3. I forgot to pack the cranks, but I have some others here to choose from. Most of my chainrings are 1" pitch, but I have a Swiss cheese one that will work. An AMF star ring would be ideal, but the round holes look like planets. Don't they? I am not liking the Persons saddle- not very comfortable and a little cramped for an adult, even with either a Harris Cyclery or french longer reach stem. Murray gas pipe steerer is the size problem- thicker than an ISO steerer so most stems will not fit. And the folded metal Wald stem has got to go. I almost hate to say it but I'm thinking a banana seat might solve the problem. But a low banana seat, low bars and a vestigial rack underneath might just be too much going on and look odd. But it might work! I liked the Banana seat on my Chopper when I was 10.

 

[The Renaissance Man]

^That's a lot to digest, we need some pictures!

 

[pebblewurm]

Some more progress, now with pictures! The tank is roughed in:

On this frame the seatstays mount on the outside of the seat tube. I should have trusted my measurements and amputated the back of the tank from the get-go rather than chiseling it away into nothing. Then I could have mounted the original boat tail to the seat tube. Now I'll have to make one.
Some parts are turning purple. I had some sun fading and rust spots in a number of areas. I tried soaking the fork in oxalic acid, but by the time the rust spots faded so had the Kandy purple top coat. I just repainted it with silver car paint and a few coats of purple "anodizing" paint. Now they and other parts look a lot better than the frame:

It also helps that the family is out of town and I can bake parts in the oven....
I converted a couple of light up license plate bolts to LEDs- they originally came with hair fine wires and grain of rice bulbs that I did not think would last. The lamp nipples were bored out to a tight press fit and gave plenty of room for thicker wires and the resistors. I also opened up the fender bomb. A couple more LEDs and a lens cut from a ready light from some junk equipment. I didn't have any blue ones so settled for a green unearthly glow:

 

[kingfish254]

Cool tank work
Cool purplisciousness
Cool light work and doodadery

 

[The Renaissance Man]

Lookin' good!
I got into the same thing with the rack ends being on the outside of the seat tube. Looks like you got a good fit though.

That's a great idea using the anodizing paint over silver.

 

[deven_science]

The bike should finally arrive here on Monday- I keep forgetting to leave the front gate ajar. However I did retrieve the stainless tubing and the modified rollers are working fine. Bending the tubing without deforming it. Process was simple, once I stopped overthinking it. I found a piece of 1" thick maple at my favorite local (Bay Area) store for interesting things, S.C.R.A.P.-
http://www.scrap-sf.org/
You never can tell what they will have. Metal, wood, architectural samples, trade show remains, paint and chemicals and opera costumes. It's a hoot and cheap. I marked out the OD of the stock rollers with a compass and cut the inside diameter with a hole saw. The OD was cut on the bandsaw and the rough ring trued up in the lathe and cut in half. Then beveled the ID to roughly match the curve of the roller and then glued in place and clamped with a hose clamp around the circumference. I used Shoe Goo because I had two partial tubes that were starting to dry out and it is working. Then I chucked the wood lined rollers in the lathe and cut the 3/8" channels and installed them in the roller. I'll need the bike here to mock up a wire pattern for the fender stays.

That's pretty good with the press. Great job of making your own tools. As to the rollers, the wood insert is a cool idea, but I think you'd find it's unnecessary. I've found that for anything less than 1", I can just use the 1" dies with no problems. The tubing is so light, it curves without any noticeable ovalling of the tubing.

 

[pebblewurm]

I tried that, and it went kinda oval on me. This stainless tube is pretty stout- left over from some liquid nitrogen lines for a lab. Eyeballing it looks 18 gauge or thicker and seamless to boot. Definitely over spec'd for fender braces. I did have fun turning wood even if I was overthinking things, per usual.

 

[Funkme]

The bike is starting to take shape,like the lil cool add ons.

 

[Fv2]

I'll be honest, I've never been a fan of purple but this purple looks good.