My newest build, Beach cruiser, Coaster Brake Question

[keylan]

Hey guys, I am building a beach cruiser and i am running into a lot of trouble with the coaster brake, the bar opposite the rear sprocket (bike not motor sprocket) the one that catches the coaster bake...is there a way to work around this without disabling the brake completely....


to be honest i didn't know what i was doing with that brake and ended up ruining the brake itself and the wheel anyway i am going to find another one and try again if there is a way to make it work

thanks for any help guys

 

[fetor56]

I avoided this problem with a Clam Shell(it comes with a female/male spacer bracket) but a friend is going through the exact same thing soon.
When he gets around to an easy fix i'll let u know(currently he's talking about getting a few arm brackets from old cruiser bikes & welding them together) but in the meantime are u certain u want a coaster brake(do u have bosses for v-brakes?)
I've taken my coaster apart & examined it out of curiosity & also see how it works....it's ok,strong enough,BUT it's a terrible system for braking,plus u loose the handy feature of being able to back-peddle.
Scroll down:
http://livefastmotors.com/accessories.html

IF u was doing this cruiser BS again i'de probably choose this & build my own wheel.
http://cgi.ebay.com.au/motorised-bi...42317QQcmdZViewItemQQ_trksidZp1742.m153.l1262

 

[fetor56]

PS...Not sure if my previous comment helped....in answer to your question about the standard setup their's no way to work around the problem.Sooner or later that arm has to come off.....you'll need to find a fix for your clearance problem then retension the bearing.Any dust cap if it gets in the way can be ground down.
Pics of your setup/problem would help.

 

[keylan]

hey, thanks for the info that was quite helpful, where i am stuck at now is that i took apart the coaster brake and was not able to fit it all back together, i took the wheel off of an old 21 speed and it was working but not 100% aligned, the chain poped and ruined some of the spokes so i am in need of a whole new back wheel....is there an easy (cheap) fix via putting on a new back wheel, maybe one setup to be a single speed but without coaster brakes,


i am setup rightnow with some brakes on the front wheel, the bike was drilled for them so i just stuck them on there and it is all good...i think that if i get a rear wheel that fits good and re-align the idle bearing and re-fit the chain i will be in business,


any suggestions on a wheel type to look for?


thanks for the info and the pictures, very helpful!

 

[fetor56]

I can understand u having trouble with the original coaster brake......tricky little suckers.
Dunno exactly how the measurements are in your country but here MTB/Cruisers,etc have different axle widths between the dropouts.
Probably best with the replacemant wheel to start at bike shops....pick their brains.If your not happy with a price go secondhand....atleast then you'll know what your looking for.
Cos of the speed these MB reach i DON'T recommend not having a rear brake....this might help.
http://www.danscomp.com/489051.php

 

[keylan]

cool, i like the looks of that...I have an old bike i have been using for parts and the braking system on that bike is attached in the same manner as i would on my cruiser...in other words i just need to unbolt and re-bolt, which i did

i think i'm going to run by my loal pawn shop and see if they have any old cruisers on the cheap...

 

[kcpoloman]

I have a beach cruiser as well. What I did was bend the coaster arm in a vice two times, once on each end to make an angle on the arm, but the ends that mount to the wheel and frame are still paralell.

 

[kyndpurplebiker]

Hey,

I just built my 1st cruiser bike.....

Coaster SUCKED. I did everything right but the brake I did'nt understand. I removed the arm and during my practice run, well, the rear wheel hub disinigrated.
My next wheel, i didn't learn beacause i did'nt know what was going on so i did it again only this time i only took my test run about the block. Luckily, I caught the problem in the act and analyzed. THERE IS NO WAY AROUND THE ARM. Bend It.
I am broke and poor so I went to my shop where I work and used the vice and A sledgehammer. Unfortuneatley did not have the bike for mock up. It did'nt work. Luckily, I had the arm from the original wheel and took it out to my curb with my big crecsent wrench and my foot and beat it into submission. You have to clear the sprocket bolts then bend it back to attach to the frame arm. Bottom line, COASTER BRAKES SUCK. For stopping and for Fab'ing.

GOOD LUCK.

Mine turned out ok.

-SeaNDi
AKA kyndpurplebiker

 

[matu421@hotmail.com]

It's not a cheap fix but I bought a new wheel with an external drum break, had to make ajustments to the wheel and the bike to make it line up but works good! It doesn't stop on a dime but it doesn't lock up either!! I think you can buy all the parts to build one yourself, I bought mine through spookytoothcycles.com, it's about 130.00 but removes the potential for hub disentigation, and it's already built! I plan to post a thread about the HD wheel, from spookytooth!!

 

[Lynnie Ritz]

They sell pre bent coaster brake arms.
www.custommotoredbicycles.com/manic_mechanic_sprockets_over_50_tooth_mainly_for_4_stroke_motorized_bicycles38t42t44t