What comes to mind in reading this: 'Tools? We don't need no stinking tools!' The India episode gets my vote for the Bike Hacking Extraordinaire medal. -JimD On Sep 5, 2012, at 8:09 AM, PATRICK MOORE wrote:
> Late to the party, but anyway! I learned how to build bikes by jumping in > headfirst and making all the mistakes possible before I was 18. And I was > ambitious: had a project for a while, circa age 17, 1972, to build a > recumbent out of a section of heavy irrigation tubing for the backbone (we > lived in the middle of a large coffee plantation and the pipe was left lying > around just waiting to be liberated). My father squashed that project. But I > did build my first ss circa 1971 only to find no brake would fit (new Indian > made roadster frame, donated flip flop 700c rear, Westwood, 24" front wheel > stolen from my brother's kiddie bike. Principal tools -- not kidding -- were > vice grips, pipe wrench, crudely cast, Indian-made, single-hole paper punch > for pliers, and bb lockring adjustment and chain dis- and re-assembly using a > nail and hammer. It's awkward but can be done. I've used the hammer-and-punch > system even recently on the trike where I couldn't get a good approach with > my VAR lockring pliers. Braking at first accomplished (hilly terrain, > traffic) with the Ked-between-for-blade ploy, leaving deep grooves in the > sole of the right shoe; later with a scavenged, flea market coaster that, > with the 50/16 or so gearing, registered either "on" or "off". Sold that bike > for KS 150, which was just a slight loss and worth, at the time, about $25. > > Next project, also circa 1972, was to tear down, strip and repaint a late > '60s Varsity and replace the drive train with a hacked 2-sprocket AW and a > pushrod Benelux rd. Spray painted it (was this before the days of rattlecans, > or had they not yet turned up in Nairobi, or did I just not find them?) gloss > black with oil-based enamel in a Flit insect spray gun and hand-added gold > pin striping. Classy bike with whitewalls, aluminum fenders and home-made > brass head badge; also sold, for some KS 400 or so, IIRC. It was only after > these two experiments that I got my first real 10 speed, a hotted up Raleigh > Sprite with Brooks saddle, Simplex Prestige (Delrin -- gave me no problem, > but then I didn't shift much), cottered, riveted 44/48 crankset half stepping > a 14-28 (tho' I didn't know about halfstepping and simply shifted it -- when > I did -- as a crossover; and Weinmann Raleigh Approved centerpulls. > > I also successfully disassembled and reassembled coaster brakes and the SA AW > for the Varsity project. > > I think it is easier if you start by disassembly, carefully keeping the parts > sequence in view. Googling "bicycle assembly" there are all sorts of videos > available. > > On Mon, Sep 3, 2012 at 11:29 PM, Michael Richters > <michael.richt...@gmail.com> wrote: > I'm about to embark on the adventure of putting together a bicycle for > the first time, and I find myself anticipating all manner of > difficulties arising from my lack of experience. I've got my > brand-new A Homer Hilsen and a large assortment of parts, doo-dads, > and associated accoutrements, and even most -- if not all -- of the > tools that I ought to need to put it all together, but before I begin, > I'd like to solicit some advice from the learned audience of this > mailing list. > > My first dilemma is where to begin. Clearly, I have a few choices, > but it's not clear what unforseen surprises await me if I do things in > an order that it less than optimal. The only thing attached to the > frame so far is the headset (and front fork, of course). Perhaps the > best thing to start with would be the bottom bracket, then the cranks? > Or maybe there's a good reason to set up the stem and handlebar > first? Speaking of which, it seems nigh-impossible to get the brake > levers I've got onto the bar. If watched this video > (http://youtu.be/oEUm3VzF_Z0), but it seems the bar that I've chosen > (Grand Bois Randonneur) might have a larger diameter in the bend, > because even with the clamp loosened all the way (or, indeed, > separated completely from the brake levers), it's a very tight fit, > and it seems impossible to slide onto the bar without causing lots of > zig-zag scratches in the aluminum bar. > > This brings me to another, more general question -- where and how much > grease to use. It doesn't seem like a great idea to grease the > aforementioned brake lever clamps, but maybe that's the only way to > get them in place. My inclination is to grease just about everything, > especially threads, but maybe there are a few places where lubrication > is a particularly bad idea, and everyone is just assumed to know about > it... > > Here's hoping I don't destroy anything in this process; I'd rather > learn from the mistakes of others than by making my own, at least in > this case. > > --MR > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "RBW Owners Bunch" group. > To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch@googlegroups.com. > To unsubscribe from this group, send email to > rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. > For more options, visit this group at > http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en. > > > > > -- > "Believe nothing until it has been officially denied." > -- Claude Cockburn > > ------------------------- > Patrick Moore, Albuquerque, NM, USA > For professional resumes, contact Patrick Moore, ACRW > http://resumespecialties.com/index.html > ------------------------- > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "RBW Owners Bunch" group. > To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch@googlegroups.com. > To unsubscribe from this group, send email to > rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. > For more options, visit this group at > http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en.
