POISON APPLE: '79 Schwinn Fair Lady Trike

[Bike from the Dead]

It looks like it due to the rear wheel not having the inner & outer nuts on the hub to tighten it down but with it assembled & trying to stick 26" fenders & 2.125s in there it's Rub City. I could be wrong but Every other identical Columbia frame with a built in kickstand I have seen here is usually a 24". I have been fighting the urge to cut it at the seat tube & use it to gender bend a girls '53 26" Roadmaster & then use the rest to build a Monark Rocket frame stretched & widened. Knock out 2 or 3 bikes with 1 sacrificial frame

Yeah, having the tires inflated does make a difference. It just looks like a 26" frame to me I guess. As much as I'd hate to see a good frame cut up, it sounds like using 1 frame to modify 2 bikes is still a good idea, as long as you get some use out of it.

 

[Superman1984]

Columbia straight bar style tank on a CWC Roadmaster frame, tall goose neck, and an unusually extended frame would surely throw purists off BUT I can't bring myself to do it before Officially offering it up for sale sooo once I do post it & give it a month here. It's fair "chop cut repurpose" to further at least 2 other cheap purchased bikes I'd like to build.

 

[Bike from the Dead]

Columbia straight bar style tank on a CWC Roadmaster frame, tall goose neck, and an unusually extended frame would surely throw purists off BUT I can't bring myself to do it before Officially offering it up for sale sooo once I do post it & give it a month here. It's fair "chop cut repurpose" to further at least 2 other cheap purchased bikes I'd like to build.

You saw all the different frames I was planning on hacking up to turn this Fair Lady into a boys frame? I honestly couldn't care less about keeping the frame pure if it looks cooler in the end! That said, if the frame's cool to begin with, then it's definitely not as easy or pleasant to cut it up. I think you've got a solid plan for that frame. If it sells, great! If not, CHOP CHOP!

 

[Superman1984]

You saw all the different frames I was planning on hacking up to turn this Fair Lady into a boys frame? I honestly couldn't care less about keeping the frame pure if it looks cooler in the end! That said, if the frame's cool to begin with, then it's definitely not as easy or pleasant to cut it up. I think you've got a solid plan for that frame. If it sells, great! If not, CHOP CHOP!

Exactly 100%! I might see somebody else do something cool with it or I get to show off some myself.

 

[Bike from the Dead]

Well, I've tried to stay optimistic, but the writing's on the wall; There's no realistic way that I'll be able to finish Poison Apple by the March 1st deadline. I might, might, be able to get the wheels, sandblast and powder coat everything, service the bearings and coaster brake, and get this trike at least rideable by March 1st if the weather gets at least 15 degrees above freezing a week from now, but I doubt I'll be able to actually finish it. There's still enough left to do that requires warmer weather, especially when it comes to painting the tank and removing rust off any chrome parts. And based on the current forecast, that's not happening anytime soon.

As much as I hate that I won't be able to finish my Muscle Bike Build Off entry in time, I'm actually feeling better about it than I did before. Yeah, I'm basically stuck at home thanks to the weather, and there's not much I can do on any of my bike projects right now, but I've had some more time to think about what I want to do with this trike. I've found that I don't really know what I ultimately want this trike to look like in the long run, but I do have some ideas of how I can modify it over time using parts I already have.

I don't have a picture of it right now, but just before I started on this project, I bought a different trike axle for another trike project that would allow me to mount some car wheels to it with some minor fabrication. After realizing the frame I had planned to use wasn't sturdy enough and the project would cost to much to build, I've decided that I want to use that axle on this trike project instead, when I have the time and money.

I also have an idea of how I could get the longer, lower stance I originally wanted for this trike using the springer fork I already have. I had saved these photos from I-don't-know-where of someone's bike where they mounted the steerer tube upside down so the front wheel stuck out further and the frame sat down lower.

I did some quick figuring in Photoshop, and I realized, at least on "paper," that I could do the same thing using the springer fork I already have. I got to say, I like how the frame looks like it actually sits level, but I would want to get longer handlebars. (I should've used one of the pictures with the seat I actually plan to use, but whatever. This is just a concept.)

I also drew a few sketches to play around with more ideas of how to further modify this trike down the road. One with just the other trike axle and some Cragar SS wheels, one where the trike's completely custom, and another with the other axle plus the inverted springer.

I know that there's still a decent amount left to finish on this trike, but without that deadline looming over me, I think I'll be able to relax and build this trike in a way that I'll feel good about in the end. Sure, it's great to have a deadline to help motivate one to finish a bike project, but sometimes, it's better to just take your time and not rush it. I think that's how this project's going to be. I'm going to still try and get it looking "good enough" like I had originally planned, but I can always tinker with it and improve it down the road.

I'll still update this build thread whenever I make some progress; it'll just take a bit longer than originally planned.

By the way, if anyone can help me find out the source of that custom Cheater Slick bike, I'd appreciate it.

 

[coasterbrakejunkie1969]

You were running out of time for sure and mother nature apparently was not concerned with your timeline. Like you said maybe for the better now that you have no deadline. You can slow down and focus with out the stress. I can see you have already put a lot of energy into it would be a shame to have to rush it. Seeing as though you still have details undecided now you can be sure it is what you want. Good luck and yes updates. Maybe even just sign in and bust balls.

 

[Bike from the Dead]

You were running out of time for sure and mother nature apparently was not concerned with your timeline. Like you said maybe for the better now that you have no deadline. You can slow down and focus with out the stress. I can see you have already put a lot of energy into it would be a shame to have to rush it. Seeing as though you still have details undecided now you can be sure it is what you want. Good luck and yes updates. Maybe even just sign in and bust balls.

Yeah. I still plan to get this trike done soon, just not as soon as I had hoped. Without that deadline, I'll have more time to figure out what I really want to do with this project, and that always helps. Thanks, and don't worry! There are more updates on the horizon. In the meantime, I have been meaning to check out what everyone else has been working on. I just don't know where to start...

 

[Superman1984]

The weather sucks when it doesn't play nice! Sounds to me like you have Bike ADHD; Ask me how I know. Hahaha.

 

[Bike from the Dead]

Kind of a loose fit for the build thread, but I figured I'd share it here too, since it involves a bike that at one point was a parts donor.

Shot these today after the 2nd wave of snow passed through Tulsa. I had been staying indoors since the storm began a few days ago, but after seeing my brother (pictured directly below) shooting pics with his '49 Chevy 5 window pickup out in the snow, I decided to have some fun outside for a bit. I busted out Sasquatch, my fat tire Mongoose Beast, and decided to try it out in the snow for the first time since I bought it last year. My brother and I both took turns riding it up and down the cul-de-sac while the other shot photos.

My turn on Sasquatch. My brother got more good photos of me than I did him, oddly enough. Still, we both had fun out in the snow.

Sasquatch next to a pile of snow that was shoveled off the driveway before and partly after the 2nd wave of snow from last night/this morning. Sasquatch has tires that measure roughly 29.5 inches high, just to give you a sense of scale.

A shot of the neighborhood, and the skid marks where my brother spun out his Chevy while having some fun. Sorry, but I wasn't out there at the time, so no photos. Dad did get it on video, though.

 

[Bike from the Dead]

Okay, you guys remember just how burnt out I was with this project these last few weeks? Well, I finally had a chance to get all my trike parts and mockup everything again, and now, I'M ECSTATIC! I'm so enthusiastic I can barely keep my OCD under control! I'll try to post some photos, and maybe even a time-lapse video real soon. I won't able to get better photos until either tomorrow or Monday, but I might be able to get a few half-decent ones tonight.

I still don't think I'll be finishing this trike before the March 1st deadline, but I'm about to make some good progress again!