Left: "Powder Keg" was finished just in time for the Hamilton Cruise. It got a lot of nice comments from the adult FreakBikers, and was very popular with the kids. John Brain |
I needed a kustom bike, and I needed it right away! I was invited to the Summer 2006 Hamilton Ontario Cruise, put on by the local chapter of the "Freak Bike Militia", and, I didn't have a bike that I could take to the ride; not really anyways. Sure I had ancient bikes I could have taken, but they were looking their age! And my show bike was (and still is) far from completion, so it wasn't even a remote possibility! I needed a solution, and I needed it fast! |
John Brain: Powder Keg |
I needed a kustom bike, and I needed it right away! I was invited to the Summer 2006 Hamilton Ontario Cruise, put on by the local chapter of the "Freak Bike Militia", and, I didn't have a bike that I could take to the ride; not really anyways. Sure I had ancient bikes I could have taken, but they were looking their age! And my show bike was (and still is) far from completion, so it wasn't even a remote possibility! I needed a solution, and I needed it fast! |
I had two weeks to get something together, and I was starting to get desperate! I had a million bike parts lying around the shop, but the one thing I didn't have was an extra kustom frame that I could use. I knew with the time factor that I couldn't be too choosy. So I looked around at everything I had, and realized that my only choice was to build around an existing bike in the shop! I quickly decided that the only bike I had (with quick kustom potential) was a semi recumbent with 20-inch wheels stashed in the back of the workroom! The project was going to be made from my C.C.M. "Evox". A bike I originally bought on a whim because it looked so unusual! |
In one sense it would be like an old time kustom project, made around a stock frame that I thought had some potential. The frame is very unusual and doesn't really look like any other frame on the market, and this was a bonus! It looked kustom the way it was. Just what I needed for the project! I tore the bike apart immediately, and began to gather the parts and pieces to get the job done. The first thing I needed was a new pair of forks; this was absolutely essential. I decided that I would make a homemade springer for it. This was the logical choice as I had a number of springer kits on my parts shelf that were ready to put together. |
I decided that the frame and forks would be powder coated the same color, yellow! The frame was ready to go, but I needed to get the forks together pronto! I had some 5/8" tube for the top springer rails, and I bought some 1-inch stock for the main tubes. I burnt the midnight oil preparing them, along with figuring out the final rocker angle to match the frame and wheel size. |
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The next morning I rushed the mocked-up springer to the only guy in town who could mig weld it together immediately, without an appointment! Once it was welded, I rushed it back home and cleaned up the excess weld spots in my shop. That afternoon I put the frame and forks in the back of the car and went to a powder coater I knew of in a nearby town. They said it would take four days and $180 bucks to get it done! I said "go for it"! I had a high-back chopper motorcycle seat coming in from Ebay that I thought would be good for the project, and luckily it arrived in decent time for me to use! I had to fabricate a new seat post to utilize it, and this also took time to put together. For handlebars I decided on a vintage set of custom made chopper pullbacks that I had laying around. They were originally slated for use on my show bike, but I decided that they would be better suited for this project. Like all builds this one had its ups and downs! I was never sure until the last minute whether it was going to come together in time for use at the FBM cruise in Hamilton! But, with the help of friends like Mike Jones, the job was done just in time! On the Thursday before the cruise weekend Mike came over and helped me do the final cabling for the brakes and gears! The finished bike is a bit of a compromise for adult size riders. Even though it was built around a frame that was intended for use by kids around the age of 12, its design (and a horizontal seat post) allows it to be adjusted for use by an adult rider (but just barely). In the end the bike proved itself as an interesting and reliable piece of machinery. Who uses the bike now? Primarily the young people I know, and this is just fine! It's more their size. |
Primary features: --Semi-recumbent design, CCM "Evox" frame --Homemade springer forks with chrome-plated springs and retainers --Custom motorcycle handlebars made in the early 70s --High-back chopper motorcycle seat -- Horizontal seat post --Powder coated frame and forks --Wooden keg behind seat acts as battery box --18 speeds, grip shifted, vintage 20x2.125 cheater slick rear tire. |
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Left: "Powder Keg" was finished just in time for the Hamilton Cruise. It got a lot of nice comments from the adult FreakBikers, and was very popular with the kids. John Brain |
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