Upcoming 2025 ORBO/SWBO - who’s in?

[ingola]

What’s the start date?

Post in thread '** The next build off 2024 **' https://ratrodbikes.com/threads/the-next-build-off-2024.119940/post-1299137

 

[Robertk]

Sounds good!

 

[OddJob]

uh oh. I just found a '48 Columbia straight bar, wishbone, loop tail frame that would be perfect to build a klunker around this ORBO.

 

[idiotboy]

uh oh. I just found a '48 Columbia straight bar, wishbone, loop tail frame that would be perfect to build a klunker around this ORBO.

don't think i've ever seen a loop tail columbia, got any pics?

 

[OddJob]

don't think i've ever seen a loop tail columbia, got any pics?

I'm probably describing it wrong, Schultzie. But it has a wishbone (single tube) coming off the seat tube at seat stay and the chain stay; and both stays are just one continuous rounded 'loop' and then the meet at the rear dropouts.

In this photo of a Columbia frame I have, the seat stay is the same shape. On the bike I'm looking at, it is a single 'mono' tube instead of the twin tubes in this design.

And here is a side profile from when this bike was my Four-gone Conclusion build.

 

[metalchewy]

@OddJob Is it the frame from four-gone conclusion?

https://ratrodbikes.com/threads/mbbo-5-class-ii-four-gone-conclusion.100073/

 

[OddJob]

@OddJob Is it the frame from four-gone conclusion?

https://ratrodbikes.com/threads/mbbo-5-class-ii-four-gone-conclusion.100073/

The one in the photos I sent idiotboy are of my Four-gone Conclusion. This other one I want to use is down in AZ. I'm currently trying to secure it without being there yet. He is moving on the 21st to Colorado, and we don't arrive till Jan 2. Finagling.

 

[metalchewy]

The one in the photos I sent idiotboy are of my Four-gone Conclusion. This other one I want to use is down in AZ. I'm currently trying to secure it without being there yet. He is moving on the 21st to Colorado, and we don't arrive till Jan 2. Finagling.

I hope it works out in the Finagling. Sounds like a cool bike to build up and rat out.

 

[MattiThundrrr]

In this photo of a Columbia frame I have, the seat stay is the same shape. On the bike I'm looking at, it is a single 'mono' tube instead of the twin tubes in this design

That's a wishbone stay. Looptail would have seat and chain stay made from one long tube, with the dropouts attached behind the loop.

 

[Shrunken_Head_Pedaler]

I want to enter and build, but I think my wife would flip if I spent another 3 months in a build off. Here is the bike that I bundled with the Lamia frame. I was told it’s a CWC but I haven’t confirmed that yet. I paid $60 for the CWC and $10 for the Firestone Step Thru. I think it would be a great Klunker.

 

[Wildcat]

I want to enter and build, but I think my wife would flip if I spent another 3 months in a build off. Here is the bike that I bundled with the Lamia frame. I was told it’s a CWC but I haven’t confirmed that yet. I paid $60 for the CWC and $10 for the Firestone Step Thru. I think it would be a great Klunker.View attachment 284897

Definitely a CWC, late 40's from the looks of it. The serial number on the BB will give you the date. Here's an early 47 I had years ago.

 

[Bike from the Dead]

I've had a good deal of fun riding my step-thru klunker Belle around the gravel trail close to home and at a few events this year, but I got a pretty good reminder as to why these single-speed klunkers were mostly ridden downhill.

So just like the guys who figured this stuff out back in the '70s, my next klunker build is going to have more gears for riding uphill. I want to take this rusty X-53 frame and build it up as a multi-speed dual-sport klunker, meaning I can ride it off-road, but I could also take it to the pavement as well! I have plenty of Craigslist/FB Marketplace freebie mountain bikes and 10-speed bikes I can cannibalize for parts to bring this bike to life, and thanks to my friend @billn, I now have a possible solution for the brakes. This will be my first multi-speed build, so this will be a completely new learning experience for me. That said, I'm excited to try my hand at it!

I don't know if I'm going to attempt 2 builds at this time, but I have an idea for another bike of mine. I got this 1990-ish Huffy Chesapeake 3-speed at a garage sale for $5 two years ago, but I'm thinking of building it up as a '90s-inspired mountain bike. I'm not the biggest fan of diamond frames, but I think I could throw this Huffy together with what I have, and I really need to use up the parts I've got. I'd love to practice painting on this frame, though that will mostly depend on the winter weather here in Tulsa. Worst-case scenario, if I mess up on the paint, at least it's on a frame I don't care that much about.

 

[OddJob]

I've had a good deal of fun riding my step-thru klunker Belle around the gravel trail close to home and at a few events this year, but I got a pretty good reminder as to why these single-speed klunkers were mostly ridden downhill.

So just like the guys who figured this stuff out back in the '70s, my next klunker build is going to have more gears for riding uphill. I want to take this rusty X-53 frame and build it up as a multi-speed dual-sport klunker, meaning I can ride it off-road, but I could also take it to the pavement as well!
View attachment 284900

Love your plan for the X-53 frame BFTD! And be prepared to think 'out of the box'; a klunker shouldn't be a kruiser that needs a shave!
Think of your 1 ton farm trucks or off road equipped Jeep. They don't have smooth tires for a better ride, they chunk along on the pavement on the knobbiest of knobby, and have geometry and transmissions that are set for climbing and dealing with obstacles.

Good luck with this first geared attempt! Take your time and if you need any ideas on the conversion, keep us in the loop.

RaT oN~! KlunK oN~!

 

[Bike from the Dead]

Love your plan for the X-53 frame BFTD! And be prepared to think 'out of the box'; a klunker shouldn't be a kruiser that needs a shave!
Think of your 1 ton farm trucks or off road equipped Jeep. They don't have smooth tires for a better ride, they chunk along on the pavement on the knobbiest of knobby, and have geometry and transmissions that are set for climbing and dealing with obstacles.

Good luck with this first geared attempt! Take your time and if you need any ideas on the conversion, keep us in the loop.

RaT oN~! KlunK oN~!

Thanks OddJob!

For me, a dual-sport klunker is thinking "outside of the box." I recently discovered this subreddit called r/xbiking, which is about custom bikes that are a sort of cross between road-racing and cross-country. Basically an "all-road" bike. I want this to be dual-sport because the gravel trail close to home is in the same place as the paved trail I frequent the most. That way, I can make the most out of each trip. I can either ride on the gravel trail or the paved trail, or I could even make one long loop by combining both trails!

In car terms, think of it as thrashing a '68 Dodge Charger through the dirt like you're Bo or Luke Duke, and then driving home on the highway with the same tires. I don't have the guts to jump any of my bikes or ride on the faster, narrower, hillier, rockier trails around town, but give me a good, relatively easy gravel trail with plenty of open space to stop and appreciate the scenery, and it won't be long before I start timing my laps!

The tires I'm using will be the same tires I had on my first klunker back in 2022, which were meant for the street, but also work just fine on these tightly-packed gravel trails. I wouldn't use these tires on the harder, rockier trails, but for this scenic gravel trail, they'll do the job just fine. They've got enough knob to them to keep traction when I need it, and they look right at home on an old black-and-red bike.

 

[MattiThundrrr]

I was told it’s a CWC but I haven’t confirmed that yet

The curved chain stays are indicative. And gorgeous. That's going to be a beautiful bike, whatever you throw at it

Think of your 1 ton farm trucks or off road equipped Jeep. They don't have smooth tires for a better ride, they chunk along on the pavement on the knobbiest of knobby, and have geometry and transmissions that are set for climbing and dealing with obstacles.

Hahaha have you been reading my dream journal again? My backup plan (for if I jump the gun on the Norco) is titled Truck Norris. The old Duck is ready for some upgrades

 

[OddJob]

It didn't come to fruition. It's fine, I have to focus on our move. It was a perfekt klunker frame though.

 

[rickpaulos]

BTBO category this summer? (bike trailer build off)

 

[dropstep]

Seeing all the possible klunker entry’s has me happily waiting for this to start! I still have last years so I won’t be entering the category but it’s my favorite to follow along

 

[Captain Awesome]

BTBO category this summer? (bike trailer build off)

Definitely not for the summer

We asked for opinions and input and didn’t get much feedback on changing things too radically

 

[Pondo]

Definitely not for the summer

We asked for opinions and input and didn’t get much feedback on changing things too radically

Maybe if we specify the trailer has to be towed by an offroad downhill racing burrito/scraper?