With all the excitement
Posted: Tue Nov 13, 2007 1:32 am
With all the excitement going on about re-configuring bikes I got swept up & decided that with a new 1936 model Carbine Roadster coming along, it was time to get racey.
So, .... after riding the old bush bike around town for a while I decided to revert it back to its origins. Fortunately this was easy & cheap & a racer is reborn.
By simply rolling the bars to their original position, substituting a lightweight racing saddle for the old comfy chair, removing that unatractive luggage rack & she's back into performance mode.
I'll ditch those heavy Dunlop thornproof tyres soon & fit some lovely lightweight roadster ones, then a little bit of cotton bar-tape & we're ready to go night racing. By using the latest development in water fueled lighting technology I can now see arms lengths ahead. No batteries going flat here, & the suspension saddle does away with the need for complicated, heavy & expensive suspension units when riding these country roads round here.
By using a high tech skip tooth roller chain transmission, frictional losses are kept to a minimum too.
That's the key to a successfull design, ... simplicity.
I'll take 'er for a spin tomorrow & see how she handles.
Actually I was surprised to discover that the seat pin is a Number 4 size, which translates to 26.8mm & sure enough my 26.8mm 3ttt seat post slips right in without any sign of tightness. This tends to confirm the view from two sources that it was indeed originally built as a road racer.
Anybody got some 28" wooden rims? [Yes, I'm serious]
If this works out I will just have to get the fork ends & half the rear triangle re-nickled & give 'er a lick o' paint to tart the ole girl up a bit.
Yes, nickle plating because chrome plating wasn't invented untill 1928 & this was on the road long before then.
So, .... after riding the old bush bike around town for a while I decided to revert it back to its origins. Fortunately this was easy & cheap & a racer is reborn.
By simply rolling the bars to their original position, substituting a lightweight racing saddle for the old comfy chair, removing that unatractive luggage rack & she's back into performance mode.
I'll ditch those heavy Dunlop thornproof tyres soon & fit some lovely lightweight roadster ones, then a little bit of cotton bar-tape & we're ready to go night racing. By using the latest development in water fueled lighting technology I can now see arms lengths ahead. No batteries going flat here, & the suspension saddle does away with the need for complicated, heavy & expensive suspension units when riding these country roads round here.
By using a high tech skip tooth roller chain transmission, frictional losses are kept to a minimum too.
That's the key to a successfull design, ... simplicity.
I'll take 'er for a spin tomorrow & see how she handles.
Actually I was surprised to discover that the seat pin is a Number 4 size, which translates to 26.8mm & sure enough my 26.8mm 3ttt seat post slips right in without any sign of tightness. This tends to confirm the view from two sources that it was indeed originally built as a road racer.
Anybody got some 28" wooden rims? [Yes, I'm serious]
If this works out I will just have to get the fork ends & half the rear triangle re-nickled & give 'er a lick o' paint to tart the ole girl up a bit.
Yes, nickle plating because chrome plating wasn't invented untill 1928 & this was on the road long before then.