First build

This is my first build. I have posted for a while now but today was the first day I had where everything was in that allowed me to do my first step of painting the frame.

So far this build is going to be a retro/vintage looking Indian cruiser/board track racer.

The frame is a GT2A Skyhawk frame with 150mm drop out. The front forks are black powder coated 1 1/8" threadless Sunlite Deluxe double springer. Once my threadless stem arrives Monday I hope the paint to be cured enough to assemble the head set so I can cut my steer tube down to size then I will be using Eastwood Down to Metal paint and powdercoat stripper so I can paint the forks in the same color as the frame.

Anyways here are the photos I have taken from what I have done today.

Primered with Dupli-Color self etching primer

Base coat

Base Coat w/ Indian Script

First coat of clear

Second coat of clear

Third and final coat of clear

For me the shape of the frame resulted in some over spray with the clear so I am hoping when it comes to the buff stage after this clear had time to dry it will buff out. If not I still have some clear left over and I will simply put more clear where it needs it and just blend it in.

For those that are wondering the paint is 1949/1950 Dodge Red. This red as per PaintRef.com shows the mixing code is the same as Coke-Cola red. Which from my research a guy who had these bikes new said the closest match to Indian red was Coke-Cola red as that's what his guy did when there wasn't any Indian red for his bike he would use Coke-Cola red for a almost perfect match. The clear is automotive grade high gloss clear that I purchased from AutomotiveTouchup which is where the base coat came from as well. I have used their paint in the past for automotive and am very impressed with color matching even for 40+ year old vehicles that are sun bleached.

 

[Rusty_S85]

during lunch I brought my 1/8" NPT starter and bottoming tap and ran the starter tap in as straight as I could. I got it pretty damn straight now, straight enough that it doesn't bother me. How ever looking from under the bike it looks like the filter is cocked to the left side but the hex head fitting I threaded in almost flush with the bung and it has the same gap all around, I think the bung wasn't welded in perfectly true. None the less I got it straight.

I also got my tubes in today, they are Tac9 brand at least that's what the box says the tubes inside are Kenda which Ive heard horror stories of the valve stems leaking. I installed my Mr Tuffy tire liner and installed one tire on the front wheel assembly. I have it aired up to 50 PSI so its sitting over night going to check it tomorrow around this hour see how much air it lost.

Aside from that bike shop called today at lunch they wanted to ask about the wheel job I had with them. They switched systems and the guy wanted to find out whats going on with my wheel. Asked me if I have been contacted, just told him I called last Friday was told it was scheduled to be built that day and would be finished that day and they would call. No call Friday, Sat, or Sun and I called this Monday found out they were having trouble finding the right spoke length and that it should be ready Friday but they will call. No call from them other than this one today. He supposedly was to talk to the mechanic and find out whats going on and would call me back later tonight but he never did. No big deal to me though, if it isn't ready by Saturday I will go in and find out what the hold up exactly is and if they haven't got it I will just take it and figure it out myself and they will just have to pay their mechanic for screwing with my wheel for two weeks out of their own pocket.

If they can get my rear wheel for me tomorrow that will be great I can start assembling the bike and put it up on its rear kick stand and go to town compounding the rest of the bike. It desperately needs to be compounded to smooth the finish out and bring out the proper finish it should have. The black rear axle kick stand I got its a little narrower than my drop out but I can pull on the arms and flex it out enough to make it fit. When the nuts are tightened up on the rear axle it should tweak the kick stand to where it straightens out.

 

[Rusty_S85]

Got my fork installed today still waiting on back wheel going to have to go to the lbs tomorrow and raise hell cause sunday will be the start of 3 weeks since I dropped the wheel off to have a hub swapped. Aside from that I need to do some reading but it looks like I am going to have to lose my one piece VO threadless stem and buy another and buy a spacer as my link bars are jacked up which has me afraid the front of the bike is going to be higher than the rear.

 

[Frankenstein]

Can't find the spoke length? I think they are completely bulls**tting you I've been wheels and ordered them at the lengths I need by using a calculator online to find the length from all the simple measurements. Finding the right length is damn near the easiest part of wheelbuilding there is to do!

I'd drop them like a spoiled melon, go to the next shop and leave those clowns to their demise...

 

[Crisco]

Yeah fo shizzle on that..! If they can't sort a spoke length then I wouldn't trust their wheel building skills either...

Go find a good MTB shop. They will be able to lace your wheels for strength and reliability...

This is not s**t you want to skimp on..!

 

[Frankenstein]

Yeah fo shizzle on that..! If they can't sort a spoke length then I wouldn't trust their wheel building skills either...

Go find a good MTB shop. They will be able to lace your wheels for strength and reliability...

This is not sh*t you want to skimp on..!

Especially the rear wheel, under engine power of all things.

 

[Rusty_S85]

Well I gave them a call today, didn't go in because we got a real bad storm that just rolled in. In any case I'm hearing a different story now the mechanic isn't in on Sat/Sun but the wheel is on the truing stand and it is almost done it has most of the spokes in just a few more spokes to install and a final truing. I was also told the delay was because they couldn't get the right length spokes as in they had to order them. Maybe I misunderstood the guy about having trouble finding the right spoke length. Or maybe the guy just misspoke and I didn't understand it right.

But in any case they are on it and it should be ready fairly soon.

I did how ever look up local bike shops that have mechanics, down side is besides this one the closest shop that has on site mechanics is a good 25 mile drive one way for me. Id really hate to drive 50 miles round trip when this one is not but 5 miles one way from me.

I got my front put together last night, now I am looking at ways to adjust my springer fork as my link bar is at the full extended down position. What I am thinking of doing is getting rid of the VO tall stack stem I have that is 75mm stack height and get a normal stem without the tall stack. How ever VO doesn't offer a plain stem in black but I found that Dimension does make one a part number SM2941 which is identical to what I have now but with a 41mm stack height. The VO polished alloy one they have is 40mm tall. I figured on 35mm worth of spacers for the difference from 40 to 75mm. I figure 1mm shouldn't make much of a difference. So if I can locate SM2941 to buy I think I will buy it and go to Amazon and buy some black headset spacers and add 35mm worth of spacers under my spring perch. That will raise my spring perch roughly by 1.35" which would put my link bar pretty close to level if not a little higher than level with the road. This should be fixable by loosening the tension on the springs some which would make the front suspension a bit softer.

 

[Crisco]

I got my front put together last night, now I am looking at ways to adjust my springer fork as my link bar is at the full extended down position. What I am thinking of doing is getting rid of the VO tall stack stem I have that is 75mm stack height and get a normal stem without the tall stack. How ever VO doesn't offer a plain stem in black but I found that Dimension does make one a part number SM2941 which is identical to what I have now but with a 41mm stack height. The VO polished alloy one they have is 40mm tall. I figured on 35mm worth of spacers for the difference from 40 to 75mm. I figure 1mm shouldn't make much of a difference. So if I can locate SM2941 to buy I think I will buy it and go to Amazon and buy some black headset spacers and add 35mm worth of spacers under my spring perch. That will raise my spring perch roughly by 1.35" which would put my link bar pretty close to level if not a little higher than level with the road. This should be fixable by loosening the tension on the springs some which would make the front suspension a bit softer.

VO make some really nice stuff. I have a pair of their internally cammed steel QR skewers for a steel frame bike I built.

Stems are a dime a dozen though. Any of the big online bike stores will have tons of options. Chain Reaction, Wiggle etc etc...

 

[Rusty_S85]

VO make some really nice stuff. I have a pair of their internally cammed steel QR skewers for a steel frame bike I built.

Stems are a dime a dozen though. Any of the big online bike stores will have tons of options. Chain Reaction, Wiggle etc etc...

True I can find a lot but I am trying to find something toned down. Don't want adjustable as well as one with a bunch of writing or logos on it. Preferably I would rather have a plain one in black with no writing.

But I did find the Dimension brand stem but just haven't found any place online that sells SM2941 for me to purchase. Amazon turned up no hits. I could check ebay. Or I could wait till I go to the bike shop and see if they can get that stem for me.

I hope to hear from them soon, guy on Saturday told me that he thinks the hold up was they couldn't find the right spoke length meaning they didn't have one on hand and had to order the right length. Maybe I misunderstood the guy the first time or maybe he misunderstood and explained it to me wrong. Guy I talk with on the phone isn't the mechanic hes just a salesman so he might not know about wheel building.

 

[Rusty_S85]

Well I have tomorrow off as shop is closed down for the day. Looks like I will be hitting up the bike shop tomorrow without warning and seeing what is going on. This is getting insane. I don't want to burn my bridge as they are close to me literally down the street and I don't care to drive 30+ miles one way to go to a bike shop on the south side. But for $50 to build this wheel I am at the point I think I shouldn't have to pay since its been in their possession for 19 days. I dropped it off July 1 at 10:15am and its now July 20.

 

[CrazyDan]

Bike shops hate motorized bicycles, woulda been best to show up with the hub and tell them what gauge spokes you wanted with rim quality and size. Never mention motor.