24 inch Free Spirit BMX Cruiser (Still figuring out a name for it)

[Bike from the Dead]

Small update for today: I need to replace Mutt's seat post. The one that came with the frame is just ever-so-slightly bent, and I don't have a replacement currently. I'll probably post a want ad on the forums later, but I'd like to check with my contacts to see if they have anything first. If they have the seat post I need, they may even have some other parts I can use, and I wouldn't have to mess with shipping, just driving. I just might have to wait a bit as the weather here in Oklahoma just got a lot colder, and is going to be even uglier in the next few days, and I'd hate to ask my contacts to look for a specific seat post when it's freezing outside.

I took some measurements of the seat post I have, as well as the seat tube inner diameter, between yesterday and this morning.

Thing is, while my seat post has a 16mm/0.625in diameter up top, the banana seats I'd use need a later 22mm/0.875in diameter top. Granted, I could probably get away with using a smaller seat clamp and some washers, but if I could get something that's just a simple bolt on, it'll make everything that much easier.

So in short, I need a 12.5" long seat post with a roughly 20mm/0.775in body diameter and a 22mm/0.87in upper diameter, or something close to that.

 

[AndyA]

That bike is going to be very cool!

then Allan cut along the template with a cutoff wheel.

Note from the Safety Committee: Friends don't let friends use a grinder without gloves and a face shield.

Thing is, while my seat post has a 16mm/0.625in diameter up top, the banana seats I'd use need a later 22mm/0.875in diameter top. Granted, I could probably get away with using a smaller seat clamp and some washers, but if I could get something that's just a simple bolt on, it'll make everything that much easier.

I want to say one word to you. Just one word. Are you listening? Shims.

Have fun!

 

[Bike from the Dead]

That bike is going to be very cool!

Thank you!

Note from the Safety Committee: Friends don't let friends use a grinder without gloves and a face shield.

As someone who's a stickler for safety, (and as someone who's been hurt by power tools before,) I did bring this up with him, but it's hard to convince someone to play it safe when they've been doing something a certain way for a long time without injury.

I want to say one word to you. Just one word. Are you listening? Shims.

Have fun!

Oh my gosh... You just made me realize that I have some seat clamp shims that would do just what I need. Sometimes when I go through my mental Rolodex of parts, I tend to skip a page or two. Thanks for the tip.

 

[BFGforme]

Flip seat post over !! Better than shims…

 

[Bike from the Dead]

Small update on Mutt.

Yesterday, I think I solved my seat post issue. Turns out the seat post clamp was on the frame super tight, pinching the seat tube to a noticeably smaller diameter.

Using a screwdriver, seat post and hammer, I managed to open that seat tube back up to a reasonable size.

I also found that I had a near-identical replacement for my seat post, and this one was nice and straight! I even managed to slide that thing all the way inside the frame with no* issue!

Well, there's still one issue. The top of the seat tube's still kind of narrow compared to the rest of the seat tube, and I noticed that there's a bit of wiggle room for the 12-inch-long seat post while it's inserted in the frame. I'm wondering if this frame was supposed to have a 13/16" seat post, but someone swapped it out with a 3/4" seat post at some point. I did some experimenting, and found that all my Murray frames took a 3/4" seat post, though even they have pinched seat tube tops. I know I can just use the seat post I've got and it'll work, but I don't know for sure just who built this frame, and what exact size seat post it's supposed to actually take.

One other thing I played around with yesterday was the chain guard. When Allan and I made the tab for the chain guard mount, I didn't have the chainguard placed exactly where I thought I did. So unfortunately, it looks off from where I initially had it.

(BEFORE)

(AFTER)

I have an idea of how to fix it, but I need to pop out the rivets at the back of the chainguard and make a new bracket for it to sit correctly. If I can still use the same chain guard, that's what I'd like to do, but I would not be surprised if I need to get a replacement. All small details for later.

I probably won't be getting much done on Mutt or my other bikes this week, as the weather's looking pretty ugly for the most part. Good news is that gives me just the excuse I need to work on my art again.

 

[Bike from the Dead]

Life update: I just started taking a welding class last night alongside my dad! We're taking a "hobbyist's welding class" for the next 4 weeks, twice a week. We're both learning about MIG and TIG welding, which I hope will come in handy for future bike builds.

We thought the first class last night would be more about discussing the class itself, going over basic welding terminology, but nope! It was hands-on from the start! I was expecting to do poorly my first time in class, but surprisingly, my first tries of laying down beads while MIG-welding turned out better than expected! Turns out, as long as I can sit down, brace one of my arms on the table, and overall just get comfortable, I can actually do alright! Teacher told me I was already at a point where some of his students would need at least a few weeks to get where I was!

Obviously, I still have a lot to learn, but now I feel WAY more confident that I could learn how to weld up some custom bikes! Looking forward to the next class!

 

[Bike from the Dead]

Well, my month-long break from working on bikes did NOT go as I had hoped. Instead of focusing on my coloring book project, I could hardly bring myself to focus on ANYTHING AT ALL. It didn't help that a lot more happened in February than I had anticipated, with family visiting from out-of-state, house-cleaning, car trouble, joining a welding class on short notice (which I DO NOT regret,) and a bunch of other life stuff on top of it all. Overall, the past month has been very exhausting and over-stimulating, especially since I spent a sizeable chunk of it spinning my wheels and getting nowhere.

With that said, I feel like working on my bikes again might restore the creative drive I need to make progress on my commercial art. Also, the weather these past few weeks has been unseasonably warm, and I'd like to have at least one more bike to ride while the weather feels this good outside.

Unfortunately, I don't think I can finish both of my Off Road Build-Off bikes by the March 31st deadline, which means that Mutt is going to have to sit on the backburner for now. If I hadn't paused my work on this bike, I would've likely had enough time to finish this bike before the end of March, but now there's just not enough time given what's left to do. I still plan to finish this bike this year, but I'm going to slow down and take my time with it. No sense rushing things now.

 

[Bike from the Dead]

On a side, note, here are a few more highlights from my welding class. I still have a ways to go, (and there are a bunch of mistakes I didn't photograph,) but I've been improving a great deal in the few classes I've had so far! (Photos are in chronological order.)

My last 2 classes are this week, so I'll share pictures of my best welds from those classes later.

 

[Bike from the Dead]

Well, my month-long break from working on bikes did NOT go as I had hoped. Instead of focusing on my coloring book project, I could hardly bring myself to focus on ANYTHING AT ALL. It didn't help that a lot more happened in February than I had anticipated, with family visiting from out-of-state, house-cleaning, car trouble, joining a welding class on short notice (which I DO NOT regret,) and a bunch of other life stuff on top of it all. Overall, the past month has been very exhausting and over-stimulating, especially since I spent a sizeable chunk of it spinning my wheels and getting nowhere.

With that said, I feel like working on my bikes again might restore the creative drive I need to make progress on my commercial art. Also, the weather these past few weeks has been unseasonably warm, and I'd like to have at least one more bike to ride while the weather feels this good outside.

Unfortunately, I don't think I can finish both of my ORBO bikes by the March 31st deadline, which means that Mutt is going to have to sit on the backburner for now. If I hadn't paused my work on this bike, I would've likely had enough time to finish this bike before the end of March, but now there's just not enough time given what's left to do. I still plan to finish this bike this year, but I'm going to slow down and take my time with it. No sense rushing things now.

 

[Bike from the Dead]

On a side, note, here are a few more highlights from my welding class. I still have a ways to go, (and there are a bunch of mistakes I didn't photograph,) but I've been improving a great deal in the few classes I've had so far! (Photos are in chronological order.)

My last 2 classes are this week, so I'll share pictures of my best welds from those classes later.