the singapore stretch

[ohchusan]

well, here goes, as i post these pictures of my current build here, i'm sorta expecting my project to be frowned upon for a number of reasons, one: its gonna be shiny,(very unRAT) two: its sorta like a lowrider bike (even more unRAT) and three: i bought the bike and parts brand new! (major MAJOR UN-RAT)

BUT i figure and hope that you guys might appreciate the old school feel that i'm trying very hard to stick too. :lol:

i purchased this stretch cruiser online a couple of months back and as soon as it got here, i started making some parts for my new bike with my table top mill and lathe. no sawzall usage here i'm afraid.

first up was to fab up some new fork struts that lowered the front end of the bike some 2 to 3"

then did some lathe work and fabbed some of these "nut covers" well, thats what i call 'em anywez...

then came the real itch to transform this bike into something really unheard of here in Singapore. a stretched cruiser trike! :shock: sure we have trikes here but normally these are used by the postal service here and well as some of the environmental officers who keep Singapore clean and green!

so imagine my wife's reaction when i told her of my plans! what???..."you want a road sweeper bicycle!!???? hahaha

 

[ohchusan]

so, i went out and bought myself a Gomier trike for donor parts.
basically a direct bolt on except that i had to drill some holes on the rear dropouts of the bike frame, good thing the frame has huge dropouts!

here's a mock up of the frame and rear axle bolted together..

 

[ohchusan]

its such a pity that the axle and frame had different shades of blue, so i had to repaint the brand new frame....


as much as i wanted to paint it myself, not having a back yard and a tree to hang the frame off, i had to outsource the painting to a local bike guru. i figure, if i'm gonna pay someone to paint my bike, i might as well get the best.....

i did manage to take some spy pics of the frame yesterday when i dropped by uninvited..haha...its looking really sweet!

 

[Markm]

Re: chusan's trike project.

The Singapore Stretch! COOL!! :mrgreen:

 

[ohchusan]

Re: chusan's trike project.

hey, i'm liking how that sounds....thanks!
mind if i add that to the thread title?

anyway, forgot to add that i also had new tires ebayed in.... nice 24 x 3s, Fatti-Os

 

[Markm]

Re: chusan's trike project. "The Singapore Stretch"

very cool!! Ill be keeping a close eye on this one

 

[TheDuke]

Re: chusan's trike project. "The Singapore Stretch"

That name is perfect! And don't think anyone is gonna look down on this one- it's awsome! 8) Looking foward to seeing this one done!
L8 EM

 

[KOTA]

Re: chusan's trike project. "The Singapore Stretch"

Lookin Good!........Should be a big hit, "here" and 'there"!

 

[sensor]

Re: chusan's trike project. "The Singapore Stretch"

Lookin Good!........Should be a big hit, "here" and 'there"!

id listen to him! he knows how to make a mean stretch himself :mrgreen:

 

[low_life]

Re: chusan's trike project. "The Singapore Stretch"

gonna be sweet man i want one of those frames soooooo bad

 

[hewey]

Re: chusan's trike project. "The Singapore Stretch"

Sweeet. Cant wait to see this one progress 8)

 

[ohchusan]

Re: chusan's trike project. "The Singapore Stretch"

thanks for the positive comments guys! now i'm really stoked (and stressed) to get this done asap...
but i don't think i can possibly get any real work done on the bike this week, my work work is really heavy this week. but i should be able to swing by the painters place to collect the frame and trike attachment once he's done with the buffing.

one of the ideas i have for the trike is to have a "tank" area, but i'm not sure what type of treatment to give it. i have some ideas but not sure if they'll turn out as i expect it...please feel free to give my any input guys....

also, wanna have some sort of hand brake lever....anyone know how i can make one, the mechanical bits i mean?
milling out the lever and handle shouldn't be too difficult, but the ratchet part (if it has one) has got me stumped....

 

[briancustoms]

Re: chusan's trike project. "The Singapore Stretch"

Looking great! Gonna keep an eye on this one as well.

It's hard to tell in your pictures, but is that this brake?

If so, all I did was make a handbrake lever for mine like this:

All I had to do was weld a bolt to the frame with a spacer to keep the handle away from the frame and also to help it pivot. That would be the upper bolt on the bottom of the handle. The bottom bolt on the handle is where the brake cable bolts to the handle, so when the handle is pulled back, the lever action of it pulls the cable forward. Then I just added a stronger spring on the brake to return the brake after pressure is let off of the handle. Hopefully all that makes sense and helps you out a little.

 

[ohchusan]

Re: chusan's trike project. "The Singapore Stretch"

yes, that is the brake that i have....ah, i see, so its a stronger return spring...and thanks for posting a close up picture..i understand now...

 

[briancustoms]

Re: chusan's trike project. "The Singapore Stretch"

You're welcome. You can actually see the black spring inside the factory return spring in the picture of my brake.

 

[ohchusan]

Re: chusan's trike project. "The Singapore Stretch"

ah yes....i see it. btw, how does this brake perform? would i need to add another brake at the front or will this suffice?

 

[ohchusan]

Re: chusan's trike project. "The Singapore Stretch"

just got an email from the painter... my frame is ready fro pick up!
my palms are sweaty just thinking about it... what the heck is wrong with me???? :shock: :shock:

 

[GodHatesCleveland]

Re: chusan's trike project. "The Singapore Stretch"

one of the ideas i have for the trike is to have a "tank" area, but i'm not sure what type of treatment to give it. i have some ideas but not sure if they'll turn out as i expect it...please feel free to give my any input guys....

I don't know if this will fit the theme of your bike, but it might fit someone else's: I've always thought that since a lot of guys use some type of foam to shape their tanks, like polyurethane or a low density foam, why not make the tank a little wider than normal and cut a cylinder shape out of the top on each side to use as cup holders? Cutting a padded iPod holder was another idea for the tank. You'll just want to cut it deep enough that if you hit a bump it doesn't fly out-that or put a latch in to hold it down.

 

[briancustoms]

Re: chusan's trike project. "The Singapore Stretch"

ah yes....i see it. btw, how does this brake perform? would i need to add another brake at the front or will this suffice?

Well, I'm about 220lbs, with my weight on the trike it stops me pretty decent when I'm cruising around town. If I'm coming down a hill at decent speeds it takes a little more planning and early speed control with it. So if you're just going to be primarily cruising around on level ground it should do fine, If you plan on doing some fast riding or quick stopping I would add a front brake.

 

[ohchusan]

Re: chusan's trike project. "The Singapore Stretch"

one of the ideas i have for the trike is to have a "tank" area, but i'm not sure what type of treatment to give it. i have some ideas but not sure if they'll turn out as i expect it...please feel free to give my any input guys....

I don't know if this will fit the theme of your bike, but it might fit someone else's: I've always thought that since a lot of guys use some type of foam to shape their tanks, like polyurethane or a low density foam, why not make the tank a little wider than normal and cut a cylinder shape out of the top on each side to use as cup holders? Cutting a padded iPod holder was another idea for the tank. You'll just want to cut it deep enough that if you hit a bump it doesn't fly out-that or put a latch in to hold it down.

hmmm...cup holder....hmmmm...

thats a great idea dude!
wonder if i have enuf creative juice to make one that pops in and out...

hmmm.......*saunters off to find fav beverage from the kitchen*....