# PreWar Roadmaster straightbar project..



## DJ Bill (Jan 21, 2014)

I had a thread about this bike when I got it, you can see it here: http://thecabe.com/vbulletin/showth...g-Roadmaster-or-Trexlertown-project-bike-find

Figured before I got too involved it was time to make its own project thread. Here it is today:






I will copy the posts from the other thread that are pertinent to the build here..Thanks for looking, comments always appreciated. (I hope! )


When I got it I posted:

"A nice gentleman with a very unusual step van/pickup truck conversion sold this to me at Trexlertown 2013 just before he started loading up his truck. My intent was originally  to use the frame as a base for a WWII style clone bike, but the more I play with it the more I am convinced to go for a period civilian look.

 Anyhow hours of online searching have only found one definite thing ..It is a CWC sprocket. Any ideas on the rest would be appreciated. Also sources for the missing stuff, bargain basement rusty stuff is fine.

 Here's the first batch of pics.. more to come. New departure rear hub, measurements of head tube and badge holes (vertical) pics of markings on crankset area..

 Seems to be consensus it is a lower line CWC Roadmaster, probably a no tank version, and fairly early prewar.."

Here's the frame before I got busy getting rid of the four paint jobs...:




And the bars that came with it were beat up and partially crushed, and the stem was twisted, and the fork.....was toast. 







Here's the skiptooth sprocket I got, you can also see some of the gnarly paint on the frame here..



Here's the missing lucky 7 seatpost.. Still haven't found it.


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## Hubs-n-Spokes (Jan 21, 2014)

I believe that is a bent tank model. Nice project.


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## jpromo (Jan 21, 2014)

Definitely a Cleveland Welding built bicycle. The combination of electric welds and brazing is classic CWC. It looks like the serial starts with G? If so, I'd put this as a 1940 frame.


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## DJ Bill (Jan 21, 2014)

Yes, G 56886.  Also a 17 on the BB for some reason. or maybe a double struck 7...

I noticed after blasting many of the resistance welded joints appear to have a spot or two where you can stick a fingernail into a "crack" appearing in the seam. I hope this is normal because I don't want to have to weld up every joint after the paint work has already started. Everything appears tight and not moveable, and when I rode it once it appeared to not be flexing badly.


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## jpromo (Jan 21, 2014)

Nope, those joints are perfectly normal. CWC didn't bother to hide them, but I've yet to come across a busted weld on a CWC bike.

There was a more dramatic example on this bike but I didn't have a picture of that particular weld:


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## DJ Bill (Jan 21, 2014)

I'm thinking of using some seam sealer on the more obvious "cracks"....mainly to avoid having to hear comments about my frame being cracked but also to pretty it up slightly. That pic you posted looks like it was a twin to this one by the colors, except it has a different fork than the one I got.. Was it a tank bike? Edit: I see it is the other gender frame..lol.


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## DJ Bill (Jan 21, 2014)

Here's some mockup pics from today.










Still looking for a front hub, ND model W or WL. Gotta go to my storage place and see if I left one there..as well as my seat post which is MIA right now.


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## frankster41 (Jan 21, 2014)

*Fenders*

Do you need fenders?

Frank


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## scrubbinrims (Jan 21, 2014)

DJ Bill said:


> Here's some mockup pics from today.
> 
> 
> 
> ...




Oh that saddle...you had me at "hello."
Chris


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## DJ Bill (Jan 21, 2014)

frankster41 said:


> Do you need fenders?
> 
> Frank




I have a pair, but off a postwar bike.Same one the forks came from.   Front looks good  but back one is wrong, but might be adaptable. here's the picture I took of them loosely installed after the Memory lane meet. You can also see the girls seat I got off that bike, Not gonna use it. 





Scrubbinrims, is that good or bad on the seat???? I think I picked up those grips from a friend of yours at the MLC meet...or was it you? Or was that Higginsforever, I mix you guys up for some reason.


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## DJ Bill (Jan 25, 2014)

Got some paint on today. I miss having access to a spray booth and compressed air, but here's the best I could do with Rustoleum. Canvas white for rims and accents, navy blue is perfect match for some of the remaining paint that was on the fork .






Here's the high tech spray area...a wee bit too cluttered.





and the plated stuff cleaned up pretty well, not perfect but at least it isn't rusty anymore...





Definitely not a museum piece but at least it will look good from 20 feet.


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## Ozark Flyer (Jan 25, 2014)

Lookin good.  Cool project.


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## ChicagoFlash (Jan 26, 2014)

*CW Roadmaster frame question*



DJ Bill said:


> Yes, G 56886.  Also a 17 on the BB for some reason. or maybe a double struck 7...
> 
> I noticed after blasting many of the resistance welded joints appear to have a spot or two where you can stick a fingernail into a "crack" appearing in the seam. I hope this is normal because I don't want to have to weld up every joint after the paint work has already started. Everything appears tight and not moveable, and when I rode it once it appeared to not be flexing badly.




DJ Bill your way ahead of me haven't done anything with my CW Roadmaster project yet



If DJ Bill's "G" serial # is a 1940  

would that make my "H" making it a 1941?


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## tailhole (Jan 26, 2014)

Love seeing a project come together, lookin good!


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## DJ Bill (Jan 26, 2014)

Thanks, guys.. I never did find my lucky 7 seatpost...so I will have to make my own repop. $10 in 5/8 rod, two cuts with the power hacksaw, and a torch bend and I should have it. What is the angle on a stock one?

I have to be more patient waiting for the paint to dry before handling stuff. Didn't help I painted it just as the temperatures dropped 20 degrees for the evening, made myself some more work.  Got a new front hub coming, I guess it might be time to do some maintenance on the rear hub next..

Mine doesn't have a cap for the oiler...are there repops or should I just find a plastic or rubber cap at the hardware store?

Edit: 



I found my seat post finally in the same box I looked in three times already. I still might make one or two for grins, already got the steel.  Mine also appears to have been bent sometime, how you'd do that I haven't a clue. maybe it happened when the forks got destroyed. 

Does anyone have a picture of the correct seat post clamp bolt for this? It has a square hole in both sides of the clamp, I am thinking a carriage bolt sort of thing with possible a smaller head and most likely a finer thread..


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## tailhole (Jan 26, 2014)

Im not sure exactly what the angle is on a 7 post, but when it's installed, it should be parallel to the ground or the flat part of your lower top bar.


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## tailhole (Jan 26, 2014)

Keep us posted on the progress!


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## DJ Bill (Feb 10, 2014)

It has been pretty cold down here in TX, so I gave everything a long time to dry and harden up. But.....some clear coat popped off when I was trying out the masking so I have some wet sanding ahead.

Anyhow, I made up these masks, using the dimensions I had gotten off the bike when I stripped it, and figuring out what I didn't have by doing some geometry....Took a while to design on my sign equipment, but once I got it right I can whip off a set pretty quick.





The blue is the actual shape of the darts, and it goes over the partially painted frame which has been shot the color I want the darts to be when the bike is finished.

Here you can see the masks put on, some more masking has been started. I'll use masking tape to cover everything ahead of the darts when it comes time to do the paint, as all this will have to come back off to do the prep work before shooting more paint. (Wet sanding with 400 or so) 




More, all mocked up, what is blue right now will be ivory later..




Sure doesn't look like three hours of fooling around but it is.... :o  I'm glad I had taken the pictures I posted previously with the ruler alongside the original darts....or I'd really be guessing about it. 

Hopefully it will look reasonably correct. Might end up with some striping on the edge of the darts, if I can find my striper.


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## DJ Bill (Feb 13, 2014)

One of the most challenging (for me anyhow) parts of this rebuild was learning how to lace up and true the old rims to the nice shiny New departure hubs, but eventually I got over my fears and got the front one put together with the new stainless spokes from Ebay.





Then, I needed to take apart the ND coaster brake hub. For practice, I took apart the blackout hub I got here, and I eventually figured out the hardest part of the job was going to be unthreading the cog. Should have done that when the wheel was still together, but that wasn't an option on the new one from the blackout hub. (The original from the wheels I got at the MLB swap was worn out and had hooked teeth.) I ended up using the torch to warm it up slightly and then it was able to be removed, using the blackout hub in the vice to hold the driver...One of those ND cog holder things would be a great addition to the toolbox but at $100 plus, not gonna happen. 

Anyhow, I ended up with this pile of hub parts:





While the hubs were apart I relaced the rear rim, looked like it was reasonably straight but I couldn't bolt it up to the frame to check until I put the hub back together. I did a search for ND rebuilding, and guess where most of the hits brought me to?? Yup, posts on the CABE! Thanks guys, you helped this newbie a bunch with your old posts on the hub. 
I sanded the brake plates, cleaned everything up and reassembled it using the best parts from the collection...Note both hubs had all steel discs, no brass ones and more than 17, too. I searched for and found the .750 stack thickness and my stack was actually slightly oversize.. 
 Here it is back together:




I don't know where the axle nuts are, they seem like 3/8 - 24 but a fine thread nut I had hanging around was too tight....I'm hoping I can find them as bearing cones don't make the best axle nuts...lol. 

Anyhow, here's the current mock up. 



Got a new set of tires from Memory lane to put on tomorrow, and this weekend it is supposed to be even warmer so it is time for the rest of the blue paint. Hopefully it will stay warm long enough for it to cure quickly....last time I painted we went into the deep freeze for a month.


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