New Schwinn Build

[lillback44]

Thanks Paula, I've also been enjoying your build. Due to your high level build you probably have a good idea what you want to do, but I want mention a few details about finishing a frame for anyone considering it. The black powder coating on my frame is practically flawless. I highly recommend it as a base coat. Nowdays there are many types of finishes available and they also do metallic.
Also you don't need to do anything to the frame because they will sandblast it first. Ask for glass bead because it will leave the smoothest finish. Make sure to tell the coater to plug any threaded hole or anything else you don't want coated or you will have a lot of re-tapping to do. While 2-tone may not be impossible it may be hard to get a guy to do it. When powder coating, they use a special high temperature tape and don't know if a difficult design would be possible.
I may have mentioned it earlier, I got my stencils from a guy on ebay (oldstuff4you). If your doing a Schwinn design he recommend to paint trim color first. However if you powder coat and paint like I did you do the powder coat first and than paint. You would need to ask for reverse stencils. The one most important thing is the frame size. The stencils on ebay are for a heavyweight frame and will not fit a frame of 1" inch or less diameter frame. I had to have them re-sized using a pattern I already had. This delayed my project two weeks.
I'm going to clear coat tomorrow. I'm going to only do the painted areas, so I will have to mask all the powder coating. I don't know how the powder coating would take the clear. You also want to make sure you use the proper clear. Enamel for enamel , lacquer on lacquer. Using the wrong one could be a disaster. Start with a light coat at firstand than several coats after. Heavy coats may create a wrinkled finish.
Memory Lane is having a swap meet Oct. 24th and 25th. in Ohio. By the way paula, awhile back I asked you where you got your coil cover and was able to get one from memory lane, thanks
Chris

 

[Paula]

Oh, I missed the part where you mentioned about the powder coating. That should hold up pretty well for you. I got a set of painting stencils from the "oldstuff4you" guy too, and they look really nice. Anyway, keep up the good work!

Paula

 

[lillback44]

Very busy weekend, got alot done. Wheels are just about done now. I just have to add the sprocket and tweak the spokes a bit.
Rims are Schwinn S-2 26" in. 2.25 in. wide. Spokes are 10 5/8 in. .120 11 gauge, and tires are Schwinn Typhoon. Rear hub is a Shimano heavy duty coaster brake that was purchased from Workman and Front expander brake Schwinn hub and rear sheath were ebay purchases.
I'm embarrassed to mention how much this set up cost me, but let's just say it was substantial! Rims were powder coated and I spoked and trued the rims myself. I've heard that bicycle shops charge $ 2.00 per spoke to lace a wheel and $25 or more to true a wheel, so you can save a bit of money if you can do this yourself. I'd like to tell you it's really easy, but it's not!
I had to re-drill the front hub spoke holes to accommodate the .120 spokes. I did this by hand drill and was quite worried about it as some of the holes seem very close to the edge. I simply found the next larger bit than the current hole size and stepped it up till I got to the correct size. I followed the same process for the spoke nipple holes in the rim. Rear hub was purchased pre-drilled to size.
For the front hub I found a video on you tube and followed along. After 4 tries I finally nailed it! Only took me 2 times for the rear. Thick spokes are harder to work with and I scratched powder coating all over.
Rear sheath was pretty easy to install. This will also expose any mistakes you made, as the hardware brackets will not line up correctly.
These red rims with the chrome spokes and whitewall tires really make this bike pop! I am really pleased with the look of these on the bike and will share the pics of a mock up at a later time.
Next: Painting the tank

 

[lillback44]

Forgot one.

 

[Paula]

Nice job on the wheels! Hope mine turn out that good.

Next: Painting the tank

Just curious, Chris. Will you have any interference problems between the Whizzer gas tank and the Black Phantom "tank"? I only ask because I've never seen them together on the same bike.

(Might just be showing my ignorance...

)

Paula

 

[lillback44]

That's a good question Paula,but I'm not to that point yet. Shouldn't be a problem.

 

[lillback44]

I finished painting and wanted to post a few pics. I did a mock up to get a idea on how things look. Some may notice I have the rear wheel on the opposite way, this was for the purpose of the pics.
Just waiting on the motor to start getting things together.

 

[Quenton Guenther]

Crankshaft arrived late today.

Will fire up tomorrow morning. Had to reverse ignition wires for maximum fire.

Have fun,

 

[lillback44]

Wow Quenton,great pics. Can't wait to get this engine on the bike!

 

[Quenton Guenther]

Although it rained today I did manage to put about a hour of test time on your motor. Boy do I dislike the carburetor, as it has been difficult to make it work smoothly. At one point I installed a used ML5B and ran the motor for about 20 minutes. The ML5B idles smooth, and accelerates nicely, whereas the larger ML2 stumbles when the throttle is advanced, and the idle speed wanders slightly. I am convinced the carburetor will work OK, but will require some fine tuning once the motor is broken-in. It is hard to dial the carburetor in on the test stand, but will be easier once mounted in the bike. I will run for several more hours at short intervals, and then box and ship your way.

Motor runs great, and sounds solid. It starts easy, and maintains a good running temperature [doesn't run hot].

You can see the motor running in some of the pictures [flywheel looks extra shinny]

have fun,