CONTRAPTION

THE GUITARS: GRETSCH SYNCHROMATIC JET JR.

2012-01-30T23:33:00.000-08:00

SO apparently in the late 90's to early 2000's Gretsch started making a line (or multiple lines) of cheap guitars called 'Syncromatic.' Reminiscent of a Les Paul in shape, these guitars were made in Korea out of plywood until around 2004 when they were switched to a solid wood body (maple?) and renamed 'Electromatic.' The strange thing is that a Gretsch Synchromatic was previously a totally different guitar- a much nicer, archtop hollowbody guitar worth much, much more. So why did they suddenly put out a line of cheap ($300) instruments? No one, insofar as I can tell, has any idea. Most of them don't even have serial numbers.

I'll admit, I bought this guitar because, first and foremost, it's a cool looking little instrument. I first saw it on Craigslist before I bought my Tele, and I actually contacted the owner but he was out of town, so I sort of forgot about it for a couple months. Then right after Thanksgiving it came up again. I guess I didn't really need a second electric, but I couldn't stop thinking about how pretty this one was. I did a little bit of research, and everything I found on line about the 2001 Synchromatic Jet Jr was just so-so... plywood body, scratchy pots, rough frets, all the usual low-end guitar stuff. What intrigued me, though, was the single bridge humbucker pickup on a cheap guitar- I felt like it must sound unique somehow. Plus, I like simple things that no one else likes. It's kind of my thing, and this was too interesting to pass up.

So I called the guy up again, went and checked it out, and, of course, bought it. Turns out that even though this is really, truly a shitty guitar in the truest sense of the word, there are a few things that make it completely worth owning.

First, it looks pretty badass, and if you're going to own a low-end guitar, it might as well look good, right? The black and orange sunburst is beautiful, offset with the rosewood (?) fingerboard. The old-school jazz style Gretsch pearl pickguard is a nice touch as well. everything is in really nice condition too- no dings or chips, just a little belt buckle scratch on the back.

Second, the single bridge pickup is still a Gretsch, and even a cheap Gretsch pickup (the "Gretschbucker") sounds good, apparently. It also has adjustable poles, so I was able to raise the low, level the mids and lower the highs to balance out the gratingly bright sound it had when I got it. Coupled with a single tone knob that has a surprising range, this pup is pretty versatile. In fact, I like it for a Johnny Cash/50's style country tone better than my tele. I set the tone at about 4, my MXR DynaComp at 12 on the 'sensitivity' dial and my analog delay with the frequency and time at 1. I get a nice, warm, slightly hollow, squishy slapback that sounds awesome in open E with a sort of 'chugga chugga' rhythm. Move up to the 12th fret and lay down a simple pentatonic lick with the same settings and you get some considerable tone that sounds pretty unique.

Third, I have been using Beefy Slinky's (.11-.54) to darken up the (in my opinion) icy, tinny tone that lighter gauge strings seem to produce with this particular humbucker. I experimented with the same mix of Beefy and Power Slinky's that I use on the Tele (see previous post) but I didn't like that set up at all, especially for lead guitar- this is mostly due to the action that is slightly higher than it could be, but mostly the fact is that it sounds full and warm with heavy strings and tinny even with mediums.

Finally, I love the way this guitar sounds with a Delta Lab Tube Overdrive. The combo of the Delta Lab TO-1, MXR DynaComp, and Analog Delay is pretty killer. Oddly, the TO-1 sounds like shit with my Tele. I don't know why, but it really does. I was going to sell the pedal, which was a disappointment since I got a killer deal on it and most of the reviews I've read were really favorable. I'm glad I kept it, though... maybe it just doesn't sound good with single coil pups? That makes no sense really but it might be true. It's fat and warm as a drunk beagle with the Gretsch though, and it sounds way better with a humbucker than my Boss SD-1 (which sounds great with the Tele...)

So, overall, even though this guitar was probably not worth a penny more than the $140 I payed for it, with a little work and experimentation I ended up with something that can lay down some pretty awesome, unique sounding alt-country licks and look good doing it. Moral of the story? Cheap can be great, as long as you're willing to experiment with different setups; plus, it's a good learning experience, and if you get lucky like I did, you end up with something very few people have- a Gretsch Synchromatic Jet Jr that sounds cool and is fun to play.

THE GUITARS: FENDER TELECASTER

2012-01-16T23:18:00.000-08:00

THE first thing I needed, when I joined the band was, obviously, an electric guitar. I haven't owned one in at least a decade. This being an alt-country band (sort of) I figured a Tele would fit best; also, I've always wanted one- they look classy, they're simple and you can beat the shit out of them. Fortunately, the lead singer of the band had an old one out in his garage. It was a circa 1999 MIM, with a few dings for character, a warping pick guard, a missing volume knob, and the neck pickup hanging on only by the wires. Also, to top things off, at some point someone (I think a relative?) had scratched an "eye of Sauron" into into the face just back of the saddle with a pocket knife. Obviously, it was the perfect guitar for me. Dave was willing to part with it for a very reasonable price all things considered, so I took it home and starting fixing it up.

I ordered a new black pickguard off Amazon for about 10 bucks to replace the dirty, scratched and buckling white one. While that was on the way I remounted the neck pickup; turns out the screws were a little stripped and had come out so the adjustment springs were down in the body chamber but it was an easy fix with some tiny splinter-shims. I also made a new volume knob out of a .45 Caliber bullet shell stuffed with cork. It works alright (sort of too slick for quick volume changes mid-strum) but it looks badass, so it's good enough for now. The eye of Sauron remains scratched into the paint, and gives this guitar it's inevitable name, "The Necromancer," which is, of course, the nickname of Sauron in the Hobbit when he... oh never mind. The important thing is that it's set up fairly nicely, and sounds great.

The last decision I had to make before this guitar was ready to go was what string gauge to use. I've been playing acoustic guitar almost exclusively for about the last 20 years, and I mostly use medium gauge strings. This is probably why every time I pick up an electric I can't help but bend the shit out of every note, making whatever I'm playing sound really sharp. Also, one thing about Tele's is that they have a really nice punchy, twangy, slappy sound to them, but in my opinion the bridge pickup (at least mine) is pretty harsh sounding with anything but a high-end amp. My amp (which I'll get to in a post coming soon) ain't high end, so I figured I would see if I could darken up the tone with heavier gauge strings, and make it easier for me to play at the same time (more acoustic feeling, I guess.) I strung it up with Beefy Slinky's by Ernie Ball, which colored the tone nicely and gave chording a nice heavy feel that was easier to really dig into without unwanted bends. Basically, I don't want to play lighter, I want my strings to accommodate my playing style. I quickly realized, however, that a lot of the riffs I was writing were requiring moderate bends on the D string and some pretty extensive bends on the G. So I started mixing in the D and G strings from the Ernie Ball Power Slinky's, which are a slightly lighter gauge, but still fairly heavy as far as electric strings go. Thus my string selection for the Tele is:

11 E
15 B
18p G (switched from 22p)
28 D (switched from 30)
42 A
54 E

So how does it sound? Some (read 'those who believe that price equals quality) might say that the fact that this is a Made in Mexico (MIM) Tele takes away from its ability to provide reliability, tone, etc; basically the differences are that the body on a MIM is Alder, not Ash, and that the fretboard is maple rather than rosewood. The pickups are some low end stock single coils. Supposedly this combination of cost saving measures kills the 'Tele tone' (the pickups and brighter sounding Alder body) and negatively effect playability (the maple fret board with poorly finished frets) and for that reason a lot of folks on the web are pretty anti.

To be honest, though, I don't give a shit. I've got vintage acoustic guitars with plywood bodies that sound fucking great. The neck is straight, worn in nicely, and the fret ends are smooth. The pickups in this guitar are Noiseless Tele single coils which were installed at some point to replace the stock ones and they sound really good. My favorite tone comes out of the neck pickup. Deep, dark, and hollow- it really howls with a good dose of overdrive and a touch of delay. For straight up, balanced tone the mid position (both pickups) sounds really nice- crisp and dark with just a hint of twang. Of course the bridge pickup pure country goodness, especially with some compression and delay. Overall, no matter what pickup is selected, this guitar rocks harder than I was expecting. Our songs cover quite a range of tones, and it can do it all handily. I love the fact that I can go from a nice country sound to a low growl with a couple flips of the selector switch and a roll back on the tone knob. Add my new favorite pedal, the MXR Custom Badass '78 to that combo and faces begin to melt.

So do I stick with this awesome axe for all duties required of me as a lead guitar player? Hell no. Not when a sweet deal on a low end Gretsch Synchromatic comes along on Craigslist... but that's for the next post.

HIGH TIME FOR A MUSIC RIG POST

2012-01-16T00:08:00.000-08:00

WELL, it has, again, been too long since I posted anything on this, my blog that details the shit I build, compile, or otherwise cobble together. The past year or so, I've been focusing a lot on motorcycles, and the Yamaha XS850 project is still in progress: more to come on that soon. But this blog has also focused, at times, on music; or, more specifically, the instruments I've built/repaired. Lately I've been pouring much of my creative energy into relearning (well, lets be honest- learning) to play lead guitar. The old time band I was playing with for several years split up at the end of the summer, and about two days later I was sitting at the bar down at Terry's in A-Town with my buddy David who happened to be looking for a lead guitarist/multi-instrumentalist for his band which could best be described as, I guess, ''garage alt-country.'' It's been a LONG time since I strapped on an electric (hell, at the time I didn't even own one) but I was happy to give it a shot, so over the past few months I've been spending a lot of time putting together a rig on an incredibly tight budget. As I've been endlessly researching guitars, pedals, amps, etc, (most of which I'll never be able to afford) I've realized that there's not much out there in the way of helpful product reviews and honest evaluations, especially from the point of view of novice players who are really into trying for interesting sound (and also dead broke.)

Most reviews are written by illiterate assholes who don't take time to mess around with their gear before reviewing it online, or by the same sort of folk who scoff at anything inexpensive or less well known. These are the people with full Boss pedal boards, a Jackson seven string, and a Line6 modeling amp. Fuck them. So I decided it was high time to share what little I've learned recently about playing secondhand guitars through a some pedals and amps I scrounged up and the sounds I've achieved. Much of what I've learned proves that I have a long way to go, but I think my recent quest to put an extra pair of balls in some alt-country songs has led to a few victories at least. So my next few posts are going to share what I've learned. Hopefully it helps. If not, you're welcome to close the page and go buy a double necked Ovation. Have fun at Guitar Center.

PAINT AND ETC. (PART 1)

2011-08-07T22:51:00.000-07:00

I'm a little behind on my posts right now, so here's an update on a few things that happened with the bike over the past few days; this post'll be a two parter.

First off, I started painting components. I decided on a Rustoleum Satin Black since my buddy just did his Sportster with it and it looks sick. Rather than tear down the whole bike, though, I decided to paint as many parts as I could in place. I pulled out every rag and sheet of packing paper I could find and started wrapping up everything I didn't want painted.

Here's the setup for painting the tank- note the use of an empty organic chicken feed bad to cover the crankcase. Profesh.

The tank came out nice, I think. I debated whether to leave the lettering chrome, but a lot of the finish was flaking off so I just sanded everything a bit and blacked out the whole thing. The paint on the back of the tank was pretty cracked in spots, but the satin fills it out ok... it might not look professional, but it does look badass, which is what counts, right?

The gauges sucked. When I took off the speedometer one of the mounting bolts came loose and fell into the case. I had to take the whole thing apart to get the screw out and put it back on the correct hole. So after an hour of screwing around with that (and the rubber facemounts that disintegrated and the almost slack-less cables, etc.,) I was able to 'mask' them off from the rest of the front end shoot them. Then I did the bars brake levers and lever mounts, top of the triple tree and the headlight bucket, leaving the ring around the lens chrome. I'm still deciding whether or not to do the fork ears and boots... Suggestions?

the finished (for now) front end

DAMMIT.

2011-08-07T10:03:00.000-07:00

Just a quick update on the bike this morning; in an earlier post I mentioned that I took off a broken horn and blinker controls... Well, turns out that this particular set of controls also ran the headlight. I missed this fact since the guy who owned the bike before me also installed a hi-lo beam switch on the frame. Confusing. I only left about 1/2 inch of wire in the switch box when I cut everything out, and fortunately I was able to VERY carefully connect the wires back together. Now my problem is that I'm not sure I can get the box back on the bars, so I might have to tape it all up, leave it on low beam and tuck it into the headlight bucket; I guess I got lucky with that extra switch on the frame. This was definitely my FML moment for the weekend.

XS 850- TEAR DOWN AND DESIGN IDEAS

2011-08-03T23:54:00.000-07:00

I figured the first thing I should do is make the bike rideable and as safe as possible, so I decided to start with the rear brake. I've never worked on disk brakes on a motorcycle, and my experience with them on bicycles has been limited to cable controlled, not hydraulic. The problem was that the brake would stop the rear wheel but only back off very slightly when the brake was released, causing some very noticeable friction. I wasn't quite sure what was happening inside the caliper. But that's what the internet is for, right? I started watching some instructional vids on how to free a stuck piston; however, most of them recommended taking the brake to a shop, or buying a rebuild kit. I figured, though, that a combo of common sense and Firestone DBA was all I needed.

My buddy Karl came over and, seeing as he had never worked on hydraulic motorcycle brakes either, we figured between the two of us we should be able to fix it easily. After both of us put flathead screwdrivers worrisomely deep into our respective palms, we decided it was time for a new plan. Karl pulled up some more videos on his iphone, and we agreed the best plan of attack would be trying to push out the piston with compressed air. My compressor decided it was too tired to help, so after giving up on that, Karl pulled the end off my bicycle pump and attached the rubber hose to the bleed nipple. He gave it 2 pumps and the piston shot out immediately, almost snaking one of my fingers. Underneath, the seals were soft and in great shape, so I cleaned all the corrosion off the piston with some brake fluid, reassembled the who thing, and mounted it back on the bike. We bled the line (another thing neither of us had done) and called it a night after testing what is now a smooth, correctly operating rear brake. I'm going to buy a new rotor at some point, as this one is pretty bad, but at least it stops well and doesn't lock up.

Next I started taking shit off... anything I don't absolutely need is going: rear fender (soon to be bobbed... somehow,) blinkers, passenger pegs, broken horn and blinker control assembly, running lights, old sponge grips, etc.. I also started cleaning, got rid of the wasps and most of the spiders, and started Google searching for design ideas. I don't like cafe' racers all that much (although some are definitely cool); it's not really my style. Since this bike is already a beefcake, I don't think it makes much sense to try to get it too slim. So I'm thinking lean and mean, but not anorexic and bitchy. After some searching, I found this pic:

I don't know who built this bike (it comes from an online used vehicle database) but as soon as I saw it I knew that this was the style I was looking for. I recently met a dude at a poker run my band played who has a Street Bob set up in a similar way and it looks badass... so I'm using this as a template. I like the satin black with tasteful chrome highlights, and I like the short rear end. I also think the black mags are killer. The gauges sort of create a little extra hight in front too.

So I've got my inspiration. But I think I can make my bike look better than this one. For one thing, it needs a rear fender that comes up past or flush with the back of the seat, and I don't like the tank he used... the stock one looks better (even though it's a goddam whale.) So here we go; next post, new paint and new, lo-pro seat mounting.

UH OH. XS 850 PROJECT BIKE!

2011-08-03T20:26:00.000-07:00

It's been a bit since my last post, mostly because I finished the SL125 (dubbed the "Nazgul") and haven't had anything to do (except work 55 hours a week.) Lately, though, I've been itching for a bit more power and reliability than the Nazgul can deliver. This is probably the fault of my buddy who lets me take his 883 Sportster for a spin every now and then. I even started thinking about dropping an old 250cc motor in that little frame (which I have been told, categorically, is a bad idea.) But a few weeks ago I was helping my friend's dad clear out his garage and (cue singing angels) lo and behold, in the back, covered in spider webs (and, as it turned out, filled with wasp nests) was this 1980 Yamaha XS 850.

The bike had technically been for sale for a while, and had been sitting for about 3 years, so the owner was anxious to get rid of it. I payed $500, loaded it into the trailer, and that was that.

I got her home and took a quick ride around the block before the battery died, and the motor runs fine considering it hasn't been started for a long time. I'm used to the Nazgul (top speed, 55mph) so when I hit 60 in second gear I realized... this is going to be fun.

The XS 850 is a sweet bike. Shaft drive, 3 cylinder, dual front rotors-- all power and BEEFY. Check out the size of that tank! Usually these bikes either get restored as close to original as possible, or they get cafe'd out. I'm not sure what to do with her yet; the first order of business is to clean her up.

Obviously, she needs some work. A new battery was a must, as the old Wal Mart special was refusing to recharge and blowing fuses. Also, the rear brake was stuck, and, unfortunately, had been ridden that way for what looks like a long time, judging from the glacial tills in the rotor. The whole thing is riddled with spiders, and there's a lot of corrosion and rust so most of the components could use a good scrubbing and probably some paint of some sort. The seat is giant, so if my feet are going to even get close to reaching the ground she's going to need a new, lower profile saddle, too, at the very least, and maybe shorter rear shocks.

Next post, I get at that rear brake, start slimming her down, and begin brainstorming design ideas.

ANOTHER FORAY INTO RECORDING

2011-04-19T17:58:00.000-07:00

This week I took a break from working on the bike to do some rough recordings of some of my older songs. I gave myself a crash course in playing the upright bass, bought a handle of Gin and a pack of smokes, and went to work. I started with an older tune from a few years ago, and re-wrote a large part of it. After a couple nights in the garage until after midnight, I finished it to the best of my abilities... me and garage band ain't that great of friends, but still, it's not too bad. You can listen to it at http://jonbartel.tumblr.com/
I apologize for mixing my blog sites, but whatever. Tumblr is awesome for music. While you're there, check out some of my older tunes too.

Enjoy!

PICS!

2011-03-16T23:30:00.000-07:00

Here she is, at least for now. Like I said in my previous post, I still have more to do, including new tires, brakes, sissy bar, etc., but I thought some pics were still in order at this point.

FINISHED SPRINGER SEAT AND FENDER

2011-03-08T00:04:00.000-08:00

After I got the seat mounted, I went back to the welding supply shop and bought a prefabbed trailer fender ($19). It was designed for a 14" wheel, but I had to cut 1/3 of it off anyway, so the length I used is short enough to look good on my 18".

I made a mounting bracket out of an old framing strap and bolted it down to the original seat mounts. In the picture, I haven't ground off the corners yet so they don't show on each side of the fender. Next I notched the sides of the fender so it fit as low as possible under the seat. I drilled out a mounting hole and bolted the fender to the bracket, and that was it. I went back and did a little tweaking here and there, including shimming the seat springs up about 1/2" with some washers for some extra clearance, and remounting the tail light on the throttle side strut.

So what's next? Hi-Beam switch, maybe a rebar sissybar... I'm also going to replace the rear sprocket with something a few teeth smaller, put on new street tires and mount new foot pegs, My new brake shoes are on the way from Ebay as I write this (I figured better braking was a priority right now.) So there's still a lot of work to do, but as it stands right now, I have a pretty badass little machine that has come a long way from it's trail bike days. Next post, some full bike pics.

SEATS AND SPRINGS

2011-03-03T23:24:00.000-08:00

My buddy Taylor was interested in my idea of building a custom springer solo seat, and decided to make one for his sportster. So we made a template and he cut out 2 seats, one for each of us, made from some 12 gauge steel we picked up at the welding yard for $14. Once the seats were cut, we got to work with the bench grinder and a ball peen.

This was my first time trying to shape steel using only a hammer, but it was surprisingly easy... just beat the shit out of it until it does what you want.

Next Taylor welded me up some seat springs, made from 2.5" of the old rear suspension with washers top and bottom to provide a solid mounting surface.

I stopped by Ace and picked up some mounting bolts (hex drive pan head). I drilled out two holes on the seat frame bracing and did the same to the seat. My fingers are huge, so it took a while to thread the nuts on inside the spring coil, but after a good hour of pinched fingers and a shit-ton of swearing, I had the seat mounted. Next post, steel fender.

DRINKIN'

2011-03-01T22:03:00.000-08:00

I've been working on the bike on and off this week, but before I get to those pics and descriptions, I figured I'd post a few photos I took the other night when the boys were over getting drunk in the garage. The bike at that point had just been hardtailed. All pics taken with the Toy Camera Ap for iphone.

Kenneth Bonelove, trying to calculate his Bud Light count.

smoke break

The Dirty Rambler himself, gettin' his lean on.

GAS TANK UPDATE:

2011-02-20T23:22:00.000-08:00

Only time for a quick update tonight: I modified the tank lift. On my buddy Chris's advice, I used a deeper socket and got rid of the washers. I also pulled apart the front end again, took off the dust boots and flipped the headlight. I'll post some pics tomorrow. Also, soon to come, custom made 12 gauge steel springer seat... hopefully that'll be done soon.

GAS TANK LIFT: GHETTO OR BADASS???

2011-02-19T19:10:00.000-08:00

I woke up yesterday morning with a plan already formed in my head for lifting my gas tank. Like I mentioned in the previous post, my goal here is to beef up the aesthetics of the bike, for that "gorilla" geometry. I think I got the term "gorilla" from my buddy JMan who once claimed that a dude should transform into an ape as soon as he straddles a well-built bike. So, in an effort to make myself and my motorcycle more ape-like, I headed out to the garage to forage around in my many tool boxes of random shit until I found the perfect riser mount.

I started by removing the original rubber mount that friction fit under two tabs welded to the frame. Then, I ground out the rivet on a turn of the century window sash lock that I had left over from a remodel we did on a late 1800's house a few years ago. I knew it would come in handy at some point! Thanks to homeowner Joey Meese for letting me keep all that old hardware.

I drilled out the old mounting tabs on the frame and bolted on the sash lock. Then I began the arduous task of selecting spacers. I wanted to raise the tank about 2 inches, so I started with some washers and then started trying out random other items. Finally, I found the solution.

An old, stripped 14mm socket put the tank just about where I wanted it, so I stacked everything up, ran a 2.5" bolt up the middle of the spacers and through the tank mount tab, which already had a hole in it. A couple nuts on top secured everything down, and I was done.

Next, it's time to move my headlight down, and I think I'll get rid of the dust boots on the forks. Then, I have to figure out how to fab and mount a springer seat... I'm thinking straight steel. So here's my question: is this super ghetto? Or just straight up badass? I'm ready for some feedback on my project, so let me know!

'72 HONDA SL 125 HARDTAIL

2011-02-19T15:35:00.000-08:00

Once I decided to hardtail this bike, I had to figure out the best way to do it. I played with a few ideas, and then went down to the local steel supply warehouse to see what they recommended. I ended up with two, twelve inch lengths of 1/12" wall 3/4 square stock.

The width was the exact same as the original suspension mounts, so all I had to do was drill out the holes in the right spots for the bottom stud and top bolt. I was about to make a plywood template when I realized I have a doweling jig, donated to my garage by my father in law. The jig self-centers, and keeps the bit perfectly plumb during drilling.

Fortunately, the bottom stud diameter was 1/2" and the top bolt was 5/16- both dimensions included in the doweling jig. I clamped it down and used my corded drill for a little extra power- the holes took a while, but they came out perfect.

I set the first strut, leaving the seat frame about 3/4" off the rear tire. Then, I drilled the bottom stud hole in the second strut, so I could mount it and mark the exact center of the final top bolt hole. This strategy worked great; I drilled the last hole, mounted the second strut, and that was it. Now I've got a (sort of ghetto) hardtail frame.

The location of the rear light will have to be changed, and I'm gonna have my work cut out for me trying to figure out how to mount a fender, seat, and sissy bar., but I'm stoked on the way the bike sits so much lower now. I went back to Google Image Search to get some ideas for the fender, etc., and came across a couple pics of bikes similar to mine: small frames/motors with a bulky look to them, but I couldn't put my finger on what was different about them. Finally, around midnight, I realized that all those bikes had an elevated gas tank that provides a sort of "gorilla" geometry. Also, many of these motorcycles have a lowered headlight. I like how both these elements really make a bike stand out, and I ought to be able accomplish both pretty easily, so... I guess that'll be the next post.

'72 HONDA SL 125 FINISHED! (OR IS IT...)

2011-02-17T22:51:00.000-08:00

Well, I finished it... at least as of a month ago. Once I got the bike together I still had a couple tasks- namely, registering it and getting licensed to ride it. I went down to the DMV and got my permit since all it takes is passing a written test. That made me feel comfortable riding it around the streets of our immediate area. Then, I took a 3 day motorcycle safety/training course through CCMT. It cost $250 but it was worth it. After the course I felt safe and confident on a bike, and just taking it waves my DMV licence test.

(Done)

Next I had to go down to the DMV again and try to register the bike for dual use- street and off road. So I went down and filled out a billion forms and hoped that they didn't ask to see the bike... no blinkers and a chopped exhaust probably wouldn't go over so well. The lady at the DMV asked to see it right away. "You don't need to see it" I said, using my Jedi powers. "It has lights and it's an SL, so its Street Legal- you know, 'SL'." Apparently that was pretty convincing; the lady looked at me strange for a second and then sighed and handed me plates. I guess SL could stand for 'Street Legal,' who knows?

I've been riding her around for about a month now, and it's awesome. Top speed is about 55 mph if the conditions are right. For getting around town, going to the store, or riding out to my Dad's house ten miles away, this is the perfect bike. Since this is my first motorcycle I'm fine with it going slowish. And I'm fine with it being the obvious street legal dirt bike that it is rather than a cruiser.

But... I sort of want a bike that can at least go the speed limit, and I've been spending a lot of time looking at a shitload of bikes on the internet and in magazines. The speed problem is easy; my rear sprocket is a 58t, which is huge. I could easily drop 10 teeth and still be on the big side. I figure I'll go down to a 48 and see what that gives me. Maybe it'll get me to 65 mph. Plus an OEM sprocket for this bike isn't too expensive. The magazine and Google image problem is much bigger. I've realized recently that there are a lot of people out there who aren't in to stock motorcycles, cool though some may be. These people aren't into fancy show choppers either. Rather, they're all about building a rusty, badass conglomeration of gasoline, steel and anything else that can be altered or transformed into a low slung, growling bike to get you from A to B. It's not flashy, but it exudes creativity, individuality, and ton of real, gritty, knuckle grinding work put in at night, on weekends, any time there is a spare second. Poring over these bikes for the past couple of months has really inspired me; hell, the whole purpose of this blog is to showcase the shit I build, and there's a reason the blog's called contraption.

So I decided I'm gonna go all in. I'm hardtailing this baby. Dropping the frame 4 inches. Installing a springer seat, etc. I think I just can't stand to have a project finish. My brother was over the other day when I was working on the bike, and he asked me, "is it fun to own something that you have to fix constantly?" My immediate answer was yes. That's the best part, in some ways. So I'm going to make this little bike look smaller and bigger at the same time. It's going to be a beast. A relatively slow beast. Next post, the frame gets slammed and strutted.

'72 HONDA SL 125 PART 4: CHOPPIN' PIPES AND MOUNTIN' LIGHTS

2011-02-15T19:46:00.000-08:00

After spending some time poring over a ton of similarly ratty bikes in Google Images, I decided to ditch the original seat in favor of a flatter, leaner looking one... so I pulled out an old sheet of 3/4'' ply and a jigsaw and went to work. I've never upholstered anything before, but I was surprised at how easy it was. I stapled a couple layers of carpet padding to the wood base, wrapped it in batting and finished it off with some faux-leather I got cheap at the local fabric store. My wife is an avid seamstress, so she gave me some tips; I think the whole thing came out looking pretty slick, and it's not uncomfortable.

I also shot the tank with some flat black barbeque paint. The dents are still noticeable, but at least I got rid of the surface rust and old orange paint.

I think a motorcycle should be as loud as possible, so, seeing as how the exhaust pipe looked pretty stupid to begin with and had a hole in the muffler, I went ahead and sawzalled it off just past the foot peg. I flat blacked it to match the tank, and remounted it with new bolts to replace the rusty, stripped studs that miraculously didn't snap during removal. Now the bike sounds like an amplified, coal powered chainsaw on steriods. I recently left my buddy's house and rode home, a trip of at least a mile through my rural hometown. He called me to say that he could hear me all the way to my house!

The next day all my new cables and my headlight finally showed up. Unfortunately, it didn't come with mounting hardware. I dug through my bin of old bicycle parts and found a couple of crankset bolts from an old fixie project. They look great as mounting bolts and even have rubber bushings that keep the light snug and relatively vibration free.

Now that I had a headlight it was time to think about tail lights. I shopped around on Ebay trying to find an old bobber-style break/tail light, but I didn't want to drop the 50-100 bucks that a cool one would cost. Finally, I went down to Kragen to see what they could do for me, and I ended up just buying a replacement 12v Taurus tail light. I replaced the bulb with a 6v, mounted it with a modified Simpson framing bracket, and wired it up.

It works great, and looks pretty good sitting on the edge of the old plastic dirtbike fender I chopped and painted. A little conduit routes the wires up under the frame. The whole setup cost about $7: way cheaper than anything on Ebay.

'72 HONDA SL 125 PROJECT: PART 3

2011-02-14T17:15:00.000-08:00

After I replaced the battery and coil I was able to get a weak spark, but I still couldn't get the motor to start up. I tested the compression, which was ample, kicked it over until my leg felt like it was going to fall off, and even tried bump starting it on the hill in front of our house. Nothing worked. Finally, I realized that the fuel line (which I had not checked, for some reason) was attached to a vent port that the previous owner had JB Welded a fuel nipple into. I decided to take apart the carb and see what else was wrong, so I disassembled it and bathed everything in carb cleaner.

Since the fuel nipple had been welded into the wrong hole, I had to make a new one out of a brass vacuum hose fitting (see pic above, the old nipple on the left and the new one on the right, in the correct port.) It worked, and finally I was able to get gas into the float bowl. I shot a little starter fluid into the spark plug hole for good measure, and she fired up on the 20th kick-- for about 2 seconds. I repeated this process a few times and gave up for the night, satisfied that I could at least get some combustion. The next day I bought and installed a hotter plug, smashed around the wires a little bit more, and she fired up. I was able to keep the motor running for a few minutes this time, until I accidentally touched one of the wires and immediately lost spark. Also, the timing seemed pretty off. So I cleaned the points, adjusted the gap, which helped the spark issue a little bit. Still, the bike still wouldn't run for more than a couple of minutes and it died every time I rolled the throttle. Finally, I called my good buddy known locally as The Scoutmaster, a mechanical engineer with an addiction to restoring vintage scooters and Volvos; I figured if he couldn't get this thing running right no one could.

(The Scoutmaster (left) and me all dressed up)

The Scoutmaster took one look at the wiring on my bike, cracked a beer, swigged, and burped. Then he rewired the whole thing. With a brand new harness, an oil change and a little work on the timing, the bike fired on the first kick and ran strong! Unfortunately, I learned the hard way that if you tighten the nuts that attach the carb to the manifold even a bit too snug, the throttle slide tube will bend slightly out of round and cause you to spend an hour sanding the slide into an oval. All in all, though, the day was a success, ending with a fat spark, a running bike, and clean wiring with tight connections.

(New low-profile, conduit wrapped wiring harness and new battery)

Next, I get busy with a sawzall, build a new seat, and make this baby street legal (sort of.)

MORE PROGRESS: '72 HONDA SL 125 PROJECT

2011-02-13T09:21:00.000-08:00

Since I had the front end pulled apart and the new coil and battery were still in the mail, I decided I'd just do all the suspension components at once. I pulled off the rear shocks, which were pretty much locked with rust and dirt. At some point I'd like to replace them, but not right now. So I spent a few hours cleaning, wire brushing, re-oiling and finally re-painting. The result wasn't bad- they're not the smoothest or quietest shocks ever, but they get the job done and they look a hell of a lot better.

I also removed the 2.5" extension spring, which lowered the bike a bit. I've since gone back and forth between shock heights a couple of times, but I think I like the bike as low as possible in the rear- both because I'm not very tall and because it looks better than way.

I removed the fork arms and flat blacked the bottoms and tops, leaving the middle in it's chrome-and-rust condition. I ordered some black rubber dust boots to cover that part. I didn't bother changing the fork oil for now, since everything operates smoothly and the seals seem fine. I bought some used chrome headlight mounts off Ebay and I ordered an OEM headlight from Thailand, which ended up taking 2 months to arrive.
Once everything was painted and lubed, I put the front end back together- a task which ended up being fairly time-consuming. I also took apart the front brake and cleaned everything with heavy-duty degreaser. I re-oiled the springs, adjusted the arm and put the old cable back on while I waited on the new one I ordered. I also ordered a new clutch cable, OEM levers and a lever mount to replace the one I snapped a bolt and then 2 easy-outs trying to remove. Sometimes, rust just wins.

MOVING ON TO MOTORCYCLES: 1972 HONDA SL 125 PROJECT

2011-02-12T10:22:00.000-08:00

I've been wanting to buy a motorcycle for a while now; it's not that I've lost enchantment with building bicycles, but something about the noise, power, and (i'll admit it) cool factor of riding a motorcycle has always appealed to me. It's like picking up smoking for older people. My wife has been opposed to this plan, since she's concerned (rightly) with my safety, but it's not like the past few years of weaving through rush hour traffic on fixies sans brakes was particularly smart or safe either, so in September, on my 30th birthday, I convinced her to let me buy this non-running 1972 Honda SL 125. It was a steal on Craigslist for $160, registered off road through 2011 and complete with a clean title. I made it my goal to get her running and revamped for around-town duty by Christmas. It took me a bit longer than that, but as of now this bike has a new lease on life, as my next few posts will show. I'm still building bicycles, don't worry- my current project is a 26" MB/road crosstraining bike- but I thought i'd share the process of building this motorcycle with the 7 or 8 people who still read this blog. Keep in mind I've never rebuilt or even worked on a motorcycle, so everything I did here I learned as I went. So, here we go...

The bike as it looked when I bought it: non-running, with a bad orange paint job and a bunch of corroding plastics, dents, rust, and greasy mud from almost 40 years of being used in the dirt and stored outside. It was time for a little TLC, degreaser, and a self-taught, crash course in motorcycle maintenance.

After a little research and some advice from my more mechanically inclined buddies, I decided to start with the electrical system. I pulled the tank and seat, and started checking the wiring. A tug on the plug wire pulled it right out of the coil; it had literally been melted in half, possibly from a short. I ordered a new OEM coil/plug wire off of Ebay, as well as a new battery. While those were being shipped, I began pulling the front end of the bike apart and cleaning it up.

I pulled the forks, bars, and front wheel off, teaching myself how everything connects... as far as the headset/tripletree is concerned it's not much different from a bicycle.

The cups and races were pretty much welded together by rusted bearings, but once I tore everything apart, went to town with PB Blaster and repacked it all with a liberal amount of lithium grease the headset works great- smooth turning and silent.

A wire wheel quickly took off the corrosion on the triple tree, brake mounts, throttle switch box, etc... I love the wire wheel. Next, the forks get a new paint job, the front brakes get overhauled and the front end goes back together!

CHICKENS

2010-05-10T15:44:00.000-07:00

A while ago we decided that we want to become more sustainable as a family... that means growing a lot of our own food, and raising some animals that can function as both pets and producers. The logical first place to start was with chickens. So one weekend I built a coop in the big side-yard behind the garage. I had to buy a lot of the lumber, but I was able to reuse a 100 year old window and one of the hideous awnings that I pulled off the front of our house. Turns out the awning made a pretty cool roof. Thanks to Uncle Dirty for his help building the coop... although I don't think I'll ever let that guy near my framing gun again.

The Coop: the ramp is on hinges- it swings up and bolts shut at night so the hens are completely safe inside. The compartment on the left side holds 2 laying boxes, accessible from the outside via a small door so the eggs can be collected without entering the coop area.

The red window, salvaged from a remodel I did a few years ago on a turn of the century house.

Our first hens "Baiyoon" and "Bindap", named by our 1.5 year old son Hank. By the time we got them I had enclosed the 6' by 15' coop area with a six foot tall chicken wire fence secured down by 4x4 and concrete "deadmen." That should keep the coyotes and coons out, but just in case the Hawks decide to drop in I covered the whole thing with heavy duty bird mesh stretched over the top of the wire fence. So far, no problems.

Our 3 pullets, "Newspaper," "Zebra," and "Boromir." They should start laying sometime around June. Two Plymouth Barred Rocks and an Ameroucauna.

Boromir chicken is pretty dumb. In fact, they all are. But they are pretty gentle and Hank has a great time herding them around with a stick in the backyard. When we are home we let them roam the property, eating bugs and weeds and fertilizing the lawn. Between the two older hens we get 6-10 eggs a week, but once the pullets start laying that should more than double and we can begin to give fresh, organic, truly free range eggs to our friends or even sell them.

IT'S BEEN A WHILE, BUT I'M BACK!

2010-05-09T21:11:00.000-07:00

Well, I haven't updated this blog in quite some time, but tonight I have a few minutes to myself, so I thought I'd see if I can bring y'all up to speed on what I've been doing lately. I've been so busy fixing up the house we recently bought that I haven't had much time for anything else... my bike building has been on hold until this past week when I rebuilt my neglected Fixd Gear which has been in pieces for the past few months. Also, last week I lucked out and picked up an OLD Ideor frame for free. It's waaaay to big for me (58 or 59cm) but it's about right for my buddy Chris. He's been talking for a while about building a fixie, so I've been helping him out with that for the past few days. It feels good to wrench on something again! The band is going well, and I've been spending the evenings working on the ol' homestead...

So here's my plan. This blog has always been about Bikes and Music, but I think it's time to branch out a little. Besides building bikes and playing Old Time Music, I'm also a carpenter, and I think those projects that I do around our house (and growing "farm") are worth documenting here- some of them are truly worthy of the "Contraption" name. So I'm gonna post a few separate posts detailing the household projects, the band, and the bikes over the next little while. I hope you like it. Thanks for reading.

BLACK WATER UNION AT MOTHER'S TAVERN 9/29

2009-09-28T15:42:00.000-07:00

We're playing at Mother's on Wednesday. Git there.

AN ANTI-BELLUM BIRTHDAY PRESENT

2009-09-16T21:23:00.000-07:00

My birthday is coming up on Sunday, and as an early birthday present, my wife bought me a pre-war (WWII) Slingerland arch top tenor guitar. I did some research and it looks like the manufacturing date is 1935 or possibly even earlier. I can't believe I own an instrument that is almost 80 years old. Of course, 80 years is a long time time to exist as a guitar without sustaining some sort of damage, and this guitar is no exception. The bridge was missing, and the set neck was separating from the body. This neck separation also came with a slightly loose dovetail joint which caused the neck to slop about 1/16" from side to side when the strings were taken off. The tuning pegs were falling off as well, and the whole guitar was filthy. I decided to take matters into my own hands instead of paying the hundreds of dollars it would take to have the work professionally done. Here's some pictures and some brief descriptions of the work I did:
Here's the whole guitar after I finished getting it all set up, homestyle. The body and neck are maple with a rosewood fingerboard, according to the 1930's Slingerland catalog I downloaded. It has a huge sound for a tenor- super loud and mellow at the same time.

Since the guitar was missing its bridge, I decided to just make my own rather than pay $25.00 for one on line and then wait a week for it to get shipped to me. I hand-shaped a block of "poor man's ebony" (poplar colored with black Sharpie) to match the profile of the arch top. I cut a kerf in the block, glued in a plastic saddle, and slid it under a new set of strings. The intonation is pretty good... way better than I expected, and I think the bridge fits the overall look pretty well. The action is great, actually- better than many of my other guitars despite the well worn frets, and the slight bow in the neck doesn't seem to matter at all.

I cleaned up the headstock and tightened the tuner plate screws (which, miraculously, were not stripped.) A little guitar polish really brought out the MOP work, and I'm particularly impressed with the green diamond in the middle. The inlay reads "Slingerland Songster." At some point I'm going to try to remove the red paint some idiot put on the tuning pegs.

The tailpiece is original, which is rarer than you might think; it reads "Slingerland Chicago, USA." I thought about taking a bit of steel wool to the rusty spots, but I kind of like the tarnished look.

Finally, I fixed the neck (sort of) by installing a trim head screw to pull the neck back into its original position. This took care of some of the side to side wobble as well, and the string tension did the rest- the neck is solid now, and I see no reason it won't stay that way. Thanks to my wife for a fantastic birthday present/awesome afternoon project! I can't wait to play it with the boys tomorrow night.

SHOW TIMES

2009-09-15T09:42:00.000-07:00

Come see us at Sally Loo's Coffee Shop this Thursday forthe Photo Booth Release party. Then on Sunday, we're gonna be at the Cal Poly Organic Farm fundraiser event playing some chemical-free old time to raise some money for old school farming.

Next week, come out to the Clubhouse on Thursday, September 24th for the Blackwater Union, Zeb Zates and Anthony Roseli. It's gonna be Ta-Ta's last show as a bachelor!

TWANG & BANG TONIGHT!

2009-09-06T14:16:00.000-07:00

Come on out to the Frog and Peach tonight for a boot stompin' throat jawin' hullaballoo with the Blackwater Union and a bunch of other country/bluegrass bands from SLO. It's gonna be a hell of a show. We go on around 5:30. Git there!

BOTTLE NECK SLIDE

2009-09-01T21:40:00.000-07:00

Now that I have a sweet CBG, I figured it might be time to make my first authentic bottle neck slide. It was easy- all I had to do was find my glass cutter and chug a bottle of 2 Buck Chuck real quick. First, I scribed a line around the base of the neck. I ran hot water over the scribed section for a couple of minutes and followed it with cold water. Then I tapped the neck gently with a mallet and it broke right off. I finished it up by grinding the sharp edges down on the sidewalk (old skool, yo) and then polishing them with 100 grit sandpaper.

Next time I will probably use some masking tape to guide the glass cutter so the cut won't be so jagged, and I will also cut the neck a little higher up so the slide will be shorter. Overall I think it came out pretty good for my first try. I want to make a few different colors, so I guess my wine drinking is about to escalate.

AMMO CAN 6 STRING

2009-08-20T22:25:00.001-07:00

Today I finished the Ammo Can Guitar I've been working on. It's not as polished as the JR tenor, but it's got an amazing range of tone. I didn't run the neck all the way through this time, gambling on my ability to firmly mount the neck to the body, and it payed off. I think it's maybe a sixteenth out between the head and the end of the fretboard, but it doesn't seem to make any difference, and it holds tune just fine. This was my first foray into the world of fretting, but it was easier than I had thought it would be- just a pullsaw and a hammer and some fretwire. The key was using a square to guide the cut. I laid out the fret positions using my '75 Harmony 3/4 scale acoustic as a template- the scale is 21.5" from nut to bridge. The hardest part was getting the bridge angle right so the intonation wasn't off... that took a couple hours of trial and error, and I ended up having to shim the nut with a jigsaw blade (whatever works, right?). I keep learning new things about the instrument the more I play it- for instance, I just discovered that if you turn the latch on the box lid by 180 degrees, it creates a rattle that sounds just like someone turned up the gain. It's natural distortion- amazing! And, since it is still operable as an ammo box, I can keep any number of things in it during shows: extra picks, a whole microphone as a pickup, or, best of all, 2 inches of ice and three cans of beer. Best Instrument Ever.

Specs:

-Poplar neck

-Mahogany fingerboard

-Ammunition can body

-10 speed rear cluster guard sound hole co

ver

-Simpson Strongtie neck bracket

-Old Fender Tuners (mismatched, all right handed)

-Maple table leg neck brace

-Abalone inlay drawer-pull bridge

-Light gage strings

-Total Cost: $24.00

J.R. CBG LIVE!

2009-08-17T12:46:00.000-07:00

Here's a video of me more or less playing an old Doc Watson tune. I'm still getting used to the fretlessness of the neck, so I'm sure the viewer will forgive any bum notes. I tuned to GDGD for this song, which is how I also tune my fiddle. I think I'll keep the guitar in this tuning, since it also makes playing slide a lot easier. Enjoy! (Also, for some reason my camera turns everything backwards, so the backwards writing on the headstock is actually correct in real life.)

INTRODUCING THE "JONNY REB" TENOR CIGAR BOX GUITAR

2009-08-16T23:47:00.000-07:00

So here it is, finally! The Jonny Reb Tenor CBG, all strung up and ready to go. It's not the loudest guitar by any means, but it's got a really distinctive tone that I can't quite place... something between a crappy cello and a nylon string guitar you'd buy at the Tijuana border crossing. In other words, perfect. I originally wanted to put frets on it, but I kind of like it fretless now that I've played it. Also, due to the 19" neck and the strange bridge position, the first few frets would be pretty massive. It's playable though, so I'll either burn in fret markers once I figure out exactly where they are, or I'll just put cheater dots on the side of the fretboard. I think I might have to install ferrels where the strings come out of the tailpiece since they are digging in more than I thought they would, and I think it's causing the strings to go flat, but other than that, my design works pretty well. I strung it GDAE, tenor style. I have to admit that I was pretty sure the whole thing was going to explode or shatter or something when I was tightening up the strings, but it held together just fine. Next post will involve a video or recording of me playing it.

Specs:

-Poplar neck

-Mahogany fingerboard

-2/25 mahogany cigar box

-Mahogany nut

-Steel T-strike bridge

-Nickel sealed gear tuners (mismatched discount set, 3 right, 1 left.)

-shower drain sound hole

-Mineral Spirits finish

-D'Addario light gauge strings

-Total cost: about $40.00

CIGAR BOX PROGRESS

2009-08-15T23:16:00.000-07:00

Today I made some headway on the cigar box guitar. The project is taking me longer than I thought it would, but it's also coming out better (looking) that I had anticipated. I'm still not sure what it will sound like, but I rigged a pretty interesting floating bridge that I think will work pretty well. Here are some pics and explanations:

I finished shaping the neck and head (poplar), and glued down the fingerboard (mahogany). I'm pretty stoked on the two-tone grain of the fingerboard, and not so stoked on the accidental kerf left by the table saw on the left side of the headstock... poplar Duco, anyone?

For my bridge, I dug through a couple old tool boxes full of hardware left over from random jobsites. I found this steel strike plate and attached it to the tailpiece using two panhead screws to pin it down inside the mortise opening. The nice thing is that the tab (unseen in the pic, sorry) can be adjusted by bending it up or down. This feature, originally designed to allow easy door adjustment, makes it possible for me to adjust the action from the bridge side pretty easily. Also, since the panheads secure the bridge without actually penetrating the metal, I can pop the bridge out simply by loosening the screws a small amount.

I noticed in researching CBG's that some people have a hard time keeping the strings from digging into the wood. I think I'll be ok behind the bridge, but I am a bit worried about the ball ends of the strings slowly working their way into the holes in the back of the tailpiece. I solved this problem (I think) by cutting out a piece of an A-? bracket left over from a house we framed last year. Oddly enough, the layout of the holes is perfect for spacing 4 strings evenly across the fretboard, and they are smaller than the ball ends on most strings.

I should be able to finish everything but the fretting tomorrow. I can't wait to play it, although I'm not getting my hopes up that it will sound good... at least it looks pretty sweet though. Also, any ideas on finishes would be greatly appreciated. I was thinking just some mineral oil might do the trick...

ADVENTURES IN GUITAR BUILDING

2009-08-15T00:17:00.000-07:00

About a week ago I was searching Ebay for something I'm sure I didn't need, and I came across a cigar box guitar. Quite simply, it's a home made guitar that uses a cigar box as a resonator cavity. I got really stoked on the idea of owning one of these instruments, and I figured that, as a sometime finish carpenter, I should be able to build one pretty easily. I did some research, bought an assortment of empty cigar boxes from my local cigar shop, rustled up some poplar 1x3 and started planning. Somewhere along the way Ta-Ta's the banjo man got involved and decided to build himself a cigar box banjo. He came up with some close-grain mahogany crate wood (who builds crates from mahogany?) and we set up in the red house garage to build us some pickin' machines. Here are some shots from tonight's experimental session, in which we learned that tuning pegs are weird, jigsaw blades can actually light on fire, and, contrary to popular belief, it is possible to freehand a headstock on a table saw with no guide- super sketchy, but possible.

Necessary starting materials: Poplar, check. Cigar box, check. FatMax, check. Alcohol, check.

Ta-Ta's sanding out his neck. Obviously, our work area is conducive to safety and efficiency.

Me, prepared for flap-disking and mustard gas.

GUITARCYCLE

2009-08-06T22:16:00.000-07:00

We played a show at Mike Kaplan's Motorcycle Shop tonight, and I thought it would be a good time to test the instrument transporting capabilities of Skully the touring bike. This photo was taken on Ta Ta's the Banjo Man's porch right before the gig. I made good use of some bungee cords, and, other than a slight difference in cornering balance, I was able to ride around with no problems. On the way home, I had a guitar and a mandolin case strapped on the rack, and my tenor guitar in a gig bag on my back but I forgot to get a picture of it. Pretty awesome way to get to the show, though- Toddy rode too, solo on the tandem with his dog chasing us in the bike lane.

BEERCYCLE.

2009-07-27T23:18:00.000-07:00

Getting ready for a Sunday evening ride to Zeb's barbeque with Scully and Simpler Times! The beer got a little shook up on the way, but you gotta expect a little bit of head with a rack like this!

ALWAYS RIDE WITH A REAR LIGHT

2009-07-26T11:09:00.000-07:00

Ok, so I lied. How could my bike be finished without the addition of a skull to the rack? The best part is that with a strategically placed rear Frog light, the whole thing glows red at night, putting me in compliance with city mandated bicycle light requirements. I completely forgot that I had this skull until the other day when I found it in the geraniums (why was it there?). It used to be mounted on the fabled Pirate Bike (RIP), and it joins the Shimano 333 shift levers (also left over from that bike) for another shot at glory here! I rode the bike around town last night and got some strange looks from a cop and an enthusiastic "oh sweet" from some little kid with an ice cream cone. YARRRRR!!!!

IT IS FINISHED (AND IT ALMOST KILLED ME)

2009-07-24T20:13:00.000-07:00

The touring bike is finally finished, I think. Here are before and after pics. Today I finished mounting the ammo box panniers and cages. The only thing really left to do is re-adjust the rear hub that seems a little tight after my wheel randomly fell off while riding with the rest of the band to our gig last night. Fortunately I had a wrench in the backpack so I could at least get the wheel back on, but it was a scary experience none the less, especially on the way home, which involved an inebriated midnight sprint down a pitch-black Foothill Ave with Ta Tas in the lead with his banjo and a cigarette and Rog weaving around the tiny bike lane pulling a trailer loaded down with my guitar and the upright bass. At times like that you don't want a sketchy rear hub! I'll fix it soon, though, and then I'm gonna do some short 20-30 mile rides in the next couple of weeks to try to get in shape to ride Hwy 1 from Monterey to SLO.

AMMO BOX PANNIERS

2009-07-23T08:16:00.000-07:00

Despite the fact that everyone thinks I am crazy for wanting to use ammunition boxes as panniers on my newly rebuilt Schwinn touring bike, I have gone ahead with my insanity. I had to spend a few hours of trial and error in order to perfect the design, but I think what I came up with is pretty cool. Here's a step by step-ish breakdown of what I did.

1. I bought a Bontrager rear rack (50 lb max load) and installed it. About then I realized that in order to install the boxes, there needed to be some sort of shim to hold the box out from the rack at least 1/4" or so (this is because when the box lid is closed it overlaps the outside of the box.) I solved the problem by cutting up an old inner-tube, wrapping it tight around the stays of the rack in 3 places and securing it with electrical tape.

Next, I went down to the hardware store and bought some cable clamp U-bolts. These mounted easily to the rack stays; once they were secure I held the box where I wanted it to go, marked the position of the bolts, and drilled my holes. I used 2 U-bolts to secure the upper portion of the box- this turned out to be really strong, so I just drilled a couple of smaller holes toward the bottom and attached that section to the rack using heavy-duty zip ties.
I ran out of time to finish the other side, but I should be able to get it done today. The boxes are a bit smaller than I had envisioned (since I was originally going to use the more rectangular .50 cal boxes) but I really like how flat they lie to the bike. Plus I got them for $2.50 each at the army surplus store- saving myself a whole lot of money any way you look at it.
I will probably still buy a nice Trek bag to sit on the top of the rack, and I will need to somehow strap on my sleeping bag and bivvy sack, but if I need to I can always install a front rack too. For short trips, however, this is fast becoming a beautiful machine.

BLACK WATER UNION

2009-07-16T09:32:00.001-07:00

Last week we played the Templeton Chamber of Commerce mixer. The venue was a huge art studio/barn that Ta-Ta's (our banjo man) built a couple of years ago in the middle of a vineyard. There was a photographer taking pictures, so he sent a few our way; they came out real nice, and you can see them here. No mics, no PA, just old time acoustic instruments and a heavy case of throat jaw- the way it should be! Honey played her first show that night, and she was sweet as can be. Come out and see us at the Clubhouse in SLO on Thursday, July 23.

ALMOST THERE

2009-07-15T09:05:00.000-07:00

I spent the portion of the week that I didn't have food poisoning working on the touring bike. It's coming along nicely, and today I am planning on getting the gears and brakes set up. This bike has been really fun to build. I'm proud of the paint job, which came out pretty nice considering that it's impossible to find an outdoor painting location in SLO that is free of wind at any time of day or night. Another highlight is the complete mishmash of components that have been commandeered to get this baby running. So far the list includes:

-Schwinn (?) frame circa 1975

-Araya 27 x 1 1/4 wheelset (steel, of course)

-Original Dia-Comp centerpull brake calipers

-New Tektro levers

-New Campy Mirage crank set

-Soma Bullhorns set up with a combo of Oury grips and Fizik suede tape

-New Vittoria tires

I'm taking her to Big Sur on our annual camping trip this week to put on some test miles. Next week- Ammo Box Panniers.

MEET MY NEW HONEY

2009-07-07T22:02:00.000-07:00

Last week I decided that I wanted a tenor guitar. I enjoy playing the mandolin in our band, but when it comes down to it, I'm no Bill Monroe. The tenor guitar is tuned in fifths like a fiddle in either C or G (the same as a mandolin). It has a nice tone that fits right between the guitar and the banjo, and it was quite a popular instrument during the middle of the 20th century, especially in country/americana bands. I put a 'wanted' add up on Craigslist one night, and the next morning I had an email from an old-timer in Cambria who
just happened to have one up in his attic. Turns out it was a 1961 Epiphone with a solid mahogany top and neck. I bought it for $100. I named her Honey, and she lives up to the name, although adapting my mandolin leads to a new instrument with frets four times bigger is a bit of a challenge. After some jamming with the band, I strung her gDAE. The higher G string where the low note should be takes some getting used to, but the inverted up-down rhythm that it provides is pretty cool sounding, as is the high drone note on open chords. See Honey in action on Saturday, July 11th in Santa Maria when we open for Monte Mills.

INSPIRATION

2009-07-07T19:37:00.000-07:00

Well, it's been a while since I posted. Things have been busy with Hank, school, and some much needed early summer vacation trips. We spent this last weekend in Ventura with my wife's sister and her fiance, Uncle Dirty. After a few rounds of Red Stripe Dirty poured us some whiskey and turned on the Tour de France. Suddenly, we realized that our calling, as brothers in law, must certainly be long distance cycling. The problem is, neither of us have a touring bike. He rides a beach cruiser, and I alternate between my hardtail mountain bike and my fix'd. Oh what a glorious problem to have! Today Dirty bought an nice older Trek set up for touring, and I dug around in the shed and found an old steel Schwinn frame that I bought for about $20 a while back. I hooked up a free Araya wheelset on Craigslist, and bought a Campy 34/50 nine-speed crank set on ebay. I have a nice wide set of Soma pursuits and a rear rack laying around somewhere too, as well as a bunch of random derraileurs, brakes, levers, etc. That leaves a pretty small amount of stuff left to purchase, so I'm hoping to do the whole thing for right around $150.

The frame needs a new paint job, obviously, so I think I'm going to recreate the legendary 'Kalishnakov'- one of my favorite bike projects whose life was ended prematurely by a stop-sign running BMW a couple of years ago. More to come on this as the design progresses, but suffice it to say that .50 cal ammo box panniers are in the works.

Our first ride will be Santa Barbara to Ventura in a few weeks to test our bikes (and our strength), and then we're going to try SLO to Ventura sometime in September.

NEW PAINT

2009-05-04T11:19:00.000-07:00

Before Hank was born I wrote him a couple of old-time songs about trains, and they turned out to be prophetic; he came flying out like a steam train out of a tunnel, big and heavy as could be. So now, four months later, I though it was only appropriate to get a tattoo commemorating the event, and what could be better than an old locomotive? Jake at Traditional in SLO sketched up the design and did a fantastic job, especially on the shading. It's about 24 hours old in these pics, so it's still a bit swollen and red. Any red or purple is just leftover swelling- the whole thing is black and grey. It's hard to see in the pic, but the placard on the face of the engine says "HANK". Jake also did the tattoo just above. I highly recommend him if you're looking to get some work done.

EXTREME BIKE MAKEOVER

2009-04-13T22:46:00.000-07:00

After a week of great anticipation, my new wheelset finally arrived, and after replacing a bent spoke (thanks, USPS) I got everything up and running this afternoon. They are the Wienmann Deep V style rims with a track/track flipflop Formula hub so you can run 2 different size fixed cogs- pretty cool for longer rides with varied terrain. I got a good deal through Fly Bike Shop's Ebay store: $174 with free shipping. I also bought some new Vittoria Rubino tires (23's) and replaced my old Fizik tape with some black RAV-X Wrap. I have never heard of this brand (the guy at Art's said it's newish) but I have to admit that I am sold on its comfort and affordability ($14). My bike looks like a bumble bee. It's never had an official name before, but now I'm thinking of something along the lines of Buzz!Kill! or Stinger, etc. I put about 10 miles on her this afternoon and, apart from a 25 mph headwind, everything felt great! It's nice to have new, good quality gear.

NEW PEDALS!

2009-04-06T08:37:00.000-07:00

All the bike stuff I have been selling on Craigslist lately has started to pay off, and so I decided to invest in some new/higher quality components for the Peugeot. For some reason when I first built this bike about a year ago, I installed mountain bike pedals. They still work just fine, but I don't like how hard it is to get my feet into my clips because of the serrated cages. So after looking around for a while, I bought a set of Origin 8's in yellow, of course. These were relatively inexpensive (around $33) and after putting a few miles on them I have to say that I am pleased with their performance. They turn smooth and needed no adjustment out of the box, which is nice, seeing as how most other inexpensive brands seem to need an overhaul before you install them for the first time. Origin 8 makes pedals and cranksets in a ton of different colors, including this super sick "Anti-Freeze Green" color that momentarily made me consider changing my whole color scheme. The best prices I could find were at the Wheel and Sprocket online ebay store here. I also just ordered a set of yellow Weinmann Deep V rims with a track/track rear hub. Currently I'm riding a good, durable set of Windsors that I really can't complain about, but it was just time to make the upgrade if only for added style points.

FIXED = MACHISMO??

2009-03-26T22:12:00.000-07:00

Today I was bouncing around on the intarweb trying to find a track frame for my dad, and I came across a San Diego Union-Tribune article from 2006, about a hazardous new cycling trend: fixed gear bikes. This article, written by one Hannah Karp, is totally unresearched, and I encourage you all to check it out in its entirety here. Here is a brief overview of the main points (and my commentary in response):

- "Fixed-gear models have pedals chained directly to the rear wheel." (Hmm, that sounds dangerous!)

-On a fixie, "because riders can't stand up in the saddle to coast, long rides can result in reduced blood flow to the reproductive organs, which studies suggest may lead to impotence." (What about all the time spent standing up in the saddle to climb hills?!)

-"Macho types... revel at riding a bike they can stop only with their own brute strength." (yup, if any word describes fixie kids, it's 'Macho'!)

-"Don't go ride it in traffic. That would be suicidal." (Ever driven 80 mph on a rush-hour freeway in LA? That's suicidal!)

Thanks, Hannah Karp, for that insightful look into the terrifying world of fixed gear outlaws and all those Macho kids chasing death on bikes with their pedals chained to their wheels!

The Mongrel SS

2009-03-21T00:30:00.000-07:00

Today I finished the Ross single speed that I have been working on this week. I had intended to sell it, seeing as the frame has just been sitting around gathering rust for about 6 months in my shed... but when I got it all together and took it for a spin I kind of fell in love. It's truly a mongrel of a bike- completely Frankensteined together from the mangled limbs of other projects. There is something about the geometry of the frame that I really dig. It's not the best handling, lightest, or smoothest ride ever (although I would like to take credit for a particularly fine hub overhaul,) but it moves like some dark beast bred of forbidden bike love. 80's Ross Steel lugged frame, SR stem, short chopped Diamondback bars, Oury grips, Pyramid Cranks (44t chainring), SR racing pedals, blue KMC 1/8" chain, 16t Dicta freewheel, DiaComp Bulldog BMX front brake with modified calipers, wheels randomly selected from the pile in the shed. My buddy Rog is selling me a white seat to top it all off. I can't lie. It's a beautiful creation.

USE YOUR SOLE BRAKES!

2009-03-19T23:33:00.000-07:00

I included the option "Portland Stick Stop" in this week's poll on brake preference, so I thought I'd post a video demonstrating this phenomena for those of you who are unaware of the legal ramifications of riding fixt without the proper stopping mechanism, at least in Portland, Oregon. So here it is! Enjoy.

LOCK DOWN

2009-03-18T22:59:00.000-07:00

Lately in SLO it seems like there is an epidemic of bike thefts. Craigslist is littered with reports of stolen bikes. All these disappearing bikes have got me worried, even though i am always careful lock mine up. The last theft alert I saw, though, was posted by a guy who had his cable cut in broad daylight, right in the middle of the Cal Poly campus. That did it for me, and I decided that it was time to ditch the decently sturdy cable lock I usually use in favor of something much more heavy duty. The problem is, I'm not made of money, and the burly chain/lock combos sold by companies like Kryptonite are pretty expensive- they run anywhere between $30 and $75. So I did what any man worth his salt would do: I went to my local hardware store and bought 3 1/2 feet of big ass chain, and then hit the fabric store to pick out something for a home made protective sleeve. Total cost, about 15 bucks. My wife is pretty handy with the sewing machine, and she stitched me up a chain covering that rivals anything you can buy at the bike shop. I took it on a test ride this evening and it works great, although I think I might shorten it by a link on each side so it fits more snugly around my torso as I ride. It already has some chain grease on it, which is the bike version of the champagne bottle on the bow of the ship, I guess. Also, don't forget to vote for your favorite braking system in this week's poll in the right hand sidebar!

OLD PARTS, DIFFERENT BIKE

2009-03-12T19:04:00.000-07:00

Lately I have been thinking that instead of owning 2 fixies, maybe I should just own one really sick one. My wife has been telling my this for months. I know, it's crazy. But here's my plan. I've decided to sell my Azuki, otherwise known as the Black Plague. It's always been a bit big for me, and in all fairness I love my '79 Peugeot more. So I decided to steal the risers and stem off the Azuki before I sell it. I made a trip to Art's to buy some Yellow Oury's and got a flat on the way. As I was fixing it, the tire lever slipped and my hand slammed into the pavement. I think I fractured my thumb- it's purple and swollen. Anyway, in the end I ended up with some really nice risers I can trade with my pursuits when I get the itch. I am also planning on upgrading the Windsor wheelset I am currently riding to matte black Wienemann Deep V's sometime in the next couple of months.

HAIRCUT, ETC.

2009-03-11T23:42:00.000-07:00

I've needed a haircut pretty badly for a while now, but Hank has been taking up so much time that it's pretty hard for my wife to play barber and mom at the same time. So today I decided to take matters into my own hands and cut my hair by myself. I have never done this before, and it turns out that it is really, really hard to do. I actually stabbed myself in the corner of my right eye with the scissors at one point. However, I managed to give myself a sort of mohawk/mullet thing that more or less resembles the DIY do's of the popular kids these days and, strangely enough, matches Hank's style as well. Here are some pics of us showing off our matching hair and rocking out.

In other news, the results of last week's poll were unanimously in favor of the Half-Link as the preferred method of keeping a tight chain on a bike with vertical dropouts. No one voted for the Chain Tensioner, which makes sense considering its hideous appearance, but I was kind of disappointed that no one chose to cast their lot with the Saggy Baggy Chain! I thought at least someone would be purist enough to let it sag. Anyway, check out the new poll for the week and choose your favorite style of handlebars. Assert your democratic ideals and vote, goddammit!

HOW COULD I PASS THIS UP?

2009-03-07T22:28:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I went to Art's to pick up some components to finish the Motobecane and I made the mistake of perusing the tool rack before checking out. Turns out they had just gotten a shipment of the new "Trixie" fixed gear multi-tool made by Pedro's. I couldn't pass it up. Hell, I didn't want to! The tool is made of forged steel, and features a lockring spanner on one end and a 15mm box wrench on the other. It also has 8mm, 9mm, and 10mm box wrenches, a 5mm hex wrench, and the requisite bottle opener. At $27 it's a steal. A lockring spanner alone will cost you that much.

I have to admit that the final selling point for me was the fact that the tool includes a set of wingnuts that can be used to attach it to the water bottle bosses on any frame. The style points alone on this one make its purchase a no brainer, but the really great part is that I don't have to carry all these tools separately with me on my daily commute anymore. My previous method of securing my lockring involved a mallet and a flathead screwdriver, which are completely impractical to carry with me, obviously. Now, if my lockring loosens as I cheat death skidding around the back end of a car driven by some douchebag turning right with no blinker at the bottom of the hill on Santa Rosa, I'm set. If you want to buy one of these, you should check with your LBS first; otherwise you can order one from my favorite online distributor, Ben's Milwalkee Cycle.

MOTOBECANE CONVERSION

2009-03-06T21:50:00.000-08:00

Today I finally finished my latest single speed project, a late 70s Motobecane Mirage. I bought the frame on Craigslist about a month ago, and I've been slowly building it up using mostly spare parts. I'm happy with the way that it turned out, although there were some frustrating moments, such as the hour I spent trying to remove the cluster on the rear wheel only to find out after some extensive research that Maillard Helico Matic hubs have a weird spiral and lockring system that makes them impossible to convert to single speed. Also, don't ever use the bar plugs that come with Prologo tape. EVER. Rarely have I encountered anything so badly designed. They will shred your tape and the 3 part system is rediculous. I should have just bought different plugs for 50 cents, but I got mad and decided that this was a battle I was not going to lose. Turns out, nobody wins when plastic hex bolts are involved... in the end it was more like an uneasy truce. This is the first time I have used Prologo tape, and even though it's a fairly comfy cork feel, I think next time I'll spend the extra couple of bucks on Fizik. Anyway, I love the bike; it rides smooth and is quite light. Perks include vintage SR drops, cool integrated Pyramid SS crankset, and a pretty cool old Schwinn brake lever. Total cost: $67. Pics:

UPDATE 6/7- SOLD FOR $200 TO A NICE DUDE NAMED MARK!

HALF LINK VS. CHAIN TENSIONER

2009-03-02T23:29:00.000-08:00

I keep seeing SS/Fixed Gear bikes around town and on various websites that use a chain tensioner to take up the chain slack created by vertical dropouts. I don't understand why the chain tensioner method seems to be so much more popular than the much sleeker and user-friendly half link. For some reason people assume that half links are problematic; I have been told that they cause a clicking sound when contacting the cog and chainring, and that they are difficult to install. This is totally untrue, at least in my experience. Recently, I used a half link (which cost about $1) when I converted an old Raleigh with vertical dropouts, and I had great success getting the chain nice and tight. I even tried a couple different chains to make sure I didn't just get lucky with the first one. My brother, on the other hand, has been fighting with the chain tensioner on his SS Iron Horse conversion for the last year. So don't sacrifice style for functionality with a component that looks exactly like the derailleur you just chucked in the trash! Instead, save your money and keep your bike looking good with a half link!

NEW!! MAKE YOUR OPINIONS ON THIS SUBJECT KNOWN BY PARTICIPATING IN THE POLL OF THE WEEK NOW LOCATED IN THE SIDEBAR!!

COOK YOUR BIKE!

2009-02-26T16:26:00.000-08:00

Come out on Sunday to Mitchell Park in SLO for the Bike Kitchen! Hang out with others who share an obsession with bikes, donate old/spare components, and sift through the bins to find that one last random part that you have been needing to finish your new build. I'll be the guy trying to find a bolt for an old 1" SR stem. Tools and bike stands will be available for your wrenching needs, and there will be a BBQ as well if it's not raining. This event bonds our community and strengthens our commitment to cycling as an environmentally sustainable mode of transportation and as a way of life.

MUSICAL CRANKSETS

2009-02-23T16:08:00.000-08:00

This weekend, between rainstorms, I was able to get some work done on the old Motobecane Mirage frame that I bought for 40 bucks on Craigslist a while back. I stripped all the components and rebuilt the bottom bracket and the headset. It's a nice bike, and I think it will make a fun single speed. Unfortunately, the crankset, an old alloy "S" brand, has an integrated chainring/crank arm instead of a spider, with spacers and long bolts for the smaller rings. The integrated ring is a 52 tooth, too big for a single speed (I prefer 44). So, after a quick cleaning, I put it up on Craigslist for 20 bucks. I figured some fixie purist with a love for oversize gear ratios would snap it up, and I was right; it took all of 7 minutes to sell. Today, the Pyramid SS cranksets that I ordered finally arrived (I ordered 2), and I'm pretty stoked on how they look, especially for $21 each. They're steel, so they add a bit of weight, but they're inexpensive and durable: perfect for economy rebuilds. Now all I need is a decent 700c rear wheel.

Here's the old crankset- vintage French "S" brand

And here's the new Pyramid 44 tooth, soon to be installed.

OLD FRIENDS

2009-02-20T21:58:00.000-08:00

I've built up and sold a fair amount of bikes over the past year, and every once in a while I see one of mine around town. A couple of days ago I came across the first single speed I ever built; my old blue "Superman" Huffy, parked in a bike rack at Cal Poly. I'm glad that the person who bought this bike is still riding it, although I was slightly disturbed at it's condition; it looks like it may have been ridden (in the loosest sense of the word) home from the bars one too many times. Also the red wall tires and vintage Araya rims that I thought were the highlight of the bike seem to have moved on to a new home. Anyway, it was good to see her again. And in case her new owner reads this post, I just want to say "hey, go easy on the old girl! And put a new cap in those bars so they don't rust inside, dammit!" These things are important.

This bike can be seen in its original incarnation HERE.

AH, SATURDAY!

2009-01-31T23:25:00.000-08:00

Today Hank took a 3 hour nap in his bouncy chair on the back porch while I put down a couple of Coors Banquets and rebuilt this old Free Spirit Townie that I got out of a dumpster. The whole project was a weird foray into the wacky world of gears. The biggest challenges were de-rustifying all the chrome and overhauling the badly corroded bottom bracket. I also added new tires and tubes, replaced the chain, and topped it all off with an old crusty Brooks seat that I got from Vic at some point. It looks downright classy. I think I'll stick with riding fixed, but this bike looks and feels so sweet that it almost makes me want to keep it... Hopefully it will find a good home somewhere here in SLO. For now though, it makes a good propaganda piece!

RAIN-PROOF COMMUTE

2009-01-24T13:44:00.000-08:00

The rain finally showed up here in SLO this week. Not that I'm complaining- after a January that felt more like July, we really need some good rain. Unfortunately, the weather isn't all that great for cycling, and after getting caught in a downpour yesterday two miles from home, I decided to go out and get me a fender. I picked up a set of plastic fenders made by Planet Bike for $12.00 at CBO, one of our local bike shops. I got one of the last sets- I guess I wasn't the only guy sick of having a mud line up my back at the end of a commute. The rear fender clips on to the seat post and is secured at the brake bridge with a single bolt. I didn't mount the front fender; it doesn't seem to be necessary. I think my bike looks pretty stupid with this big plastic tail, but it keeps my ass dry, and after a little customization, I can live with it until the rain stops.

MY WHIPS

2009-01-17T21:33:00.000-08:00

I thought it was high time I posted updated pics of my two main rides, a 1979 Peugeot PS10, and an early 80's Azuki. Both were built up from old rusty frames off Craigslist. My wife thinks I'm crazy for owning two fixed gears- she says there's no reason to own two of the same bike. I keep telling her that one is silver and the other one's black, obviously making them different. I ride one or the other of these to school (Cal Poly SLO) every day, a round trip of about 5 miles. It's not a strenuous ride, but it's great exercise and I always look forward to it.

INTRODUCING: HANK THE TANK!

2009-01-13T10:40:00.000-08:00

Well, building bikes is one thing; building little humans with perfect pot bellies is quite another. My wife and I have been working on this one for nine months, and on January 2nd, we finished! Welcome Henry Willard (aka Hank the Tank)! Being a father is the most amazing experience of my life, and I can't get enough of it- something I never thought I would say. I'm already mentally designing his first fixie... maybe for his first birthday!

SIMPLE GREEN UPDATED!!

2008-12-22T09:17:00.000-08:00

It has been a pretty busy Christmas season in the bike-converting business. This one started life as a Raleigh mountain touring bike circa the early nineties. It was a budget build for my buddy's sister, but I managed to keep the cost at about $100. The back tire needs to be replaced as its side wall exploded during the first ride. I think I'll add some black Continentals. I will probably also switch out the SR pedals for black mountain-style ones in better condition (see updated pic below!). I'm pretty proud of this paint job, seeing as how I shot it on a rainy day at 48 degrees in the wind. This is the last of the frames I got from Vic a while back. Pics:

UPDATED PHOTO!

Before:

CAP'N SHAF'S BLACK DIAMOND

2008-12-10T18:49:00.000-08:00

My buddy Cap'n Shaf has been riding an early nineties Diamond Back mountain bike for a long time. Too long, if you ask me. So he let me have my way with it, and I rebuilt it as a single speed commuter. I shot a new paint job, and threw on some sick Geex 26" road tires, terry drops with Cinelli tape, and a new chain. I overhauled the ailing rear hub, spaced out the freewheel and left only the 15 tooth cog, creating a 38:15 gear ratio. When i finished I only had one ball bearing left over: not too shabby. Behold the Black Diamond!

Spaced out 15t SS Freewheel

Before:

OURY, MESA, ZOOM

2008-12-07T21:20:00.000-08:00

I thought I'd put up some pics of the newest additions to the Black Plague. I ditched the 2 pound goose neck stem in favor of a zero-degree Zoom with a removable face plate. Although I love my Soma pursuit bars, they keep me pretty low and streamlined for around-town riding, so I decided to take advantage of the quick change potential of my new stem and get myself a set of risers. I went down to the swapmeet this morning and scored brand new black Mesa risers for 3 bucks. Well, actually $3.22, but the nice old guy at the booth said he'd cut me a deal- lucky me! I cut them down to 19 3/4" with my trusty Bosch grinder. I put on some red Oury grips that I got at Art's, and I think the whole setup looks pretty sick. Now all I need is a straight fork and better balance and i can do bar spins.

INTRODUCING... THE BLACK PLAGUE

2008-11-23T15:21:00.000-08:00

Well, here she is- my newest fixie, the Black Plague. Azuki frame (circa 1980) rattle-canned and built with various components that are a mash-up of craigslist and careful bargain searching on the intarweb. I probably spent too much money (around $350), but hell, it was worth it. I got my first real ride in today and I am completely stoked on the large size of the frame and the power of the 44:15 drive train. I put a 16 tooth freewheel on the other side of the flip/flop hub so I can coast around if I want. Highlights include Soma bullhorns, MKS clips, and a weird goose-neck stem that half of me thinks is awesome and the other half of me wants to replace. Here's the evidence:

Black Plague

Converted FSA Triple Crankset

MKS Clips with Alle Leather Straps

Before: Azuki "Rust", $23

CRANKSET MOD

2008-11-21T00:00:00.000-08:00

A couple of weeks ago I decided that it was time to build a new bike. So I sold my blue Huffy SS (see Single Speed Conversion post below) for $200 and ordered some components with the money. While those were shipping I painted the Azuki frame (see previous post) that was sitting in my yard and hunted up a flip/flop wheelset. The idea is to build a completely black fixed/SS bike with subtle red accents. When i got my components in the mail a couple of days ago and started to convert the FSA crankset from 3 ring to SS, I realized that the factory had failed to grease the chain ring bolts and thus they were essentially welded into the nuts. After some fruitless wrenching that only led to stripping the weak alloy hardware, I grabbed my trusty Ryobi and drilled out the bolts. If done carefully, this works great. I used a 3/8" steel bit, which was just slightly bigger than the inside diameter of the nut. Once the 32 and 22 tooth rings were removed, I reattached the 44 tooth ring to the spider with some sweet red anodized bolts. Here's some before and after...

FSA Dyna Drive Crankset (Original):

Modified:

PAINT JOB

2008-10-30T22:41:00.000-07:00

Here's a new project I just started a few days ago. It's an old Azuki frame that I've had laying around for a couple of months now. I have experimented with several painting methods on my past few builds, and I think I've finally got it figured out. This frame, though not yet clear coated thanks to some long overdue rain, is coming out pretty nice.

Of course the best way to get the paint job you want is to get have the frame powder coated, but that can cost $100 or more. So here's what I do, step by step:

1) First, I strip the frame of any components, including the bottom bracket, and thoroughly clean off any dirt and grease with a clean rag soaked in Rubbing Alcohol.

2) Sand the frame with 180 or higher grit sandpaper (wear a dust mask since some old paint dust contains lead) Sand enough to smooth out any dings and/or rusted spots. Use GooGone to remove sticky residue from stickers or decals. Finish this step by cleaning dust and any remaining grime off the frame with Rubbing Alcohol. Remember: nothing ruins a new paint job faster than leaving grease on the frame.

3) Use painter's tape to mask off the headbadge. A good way to do this is to over-tape and then use a razor blade to trim the edges of the tape to conform to exact shape of the headbadge.

4) Find a well ventilated spot to paint in. Preferably this will be somewhere that you can hang the frame by the head tube or dropouts at a hight that makes it easy to spray all parts without having to re-position it. I hang my frames from a bungee cord suspended between two nails about 6 1/2' high on either side of a wide door frame.

5) Start with a Primer coat. I use Rustoleum Automobile Grade Primer. Shoot a couple thin coats to start out with, about 3 minutes apart. Don't lay it on thick... just get even coverage, making sure that you hit all parts of the frame. Let the primer dry for around 24 hours.

6) Lightly sand your primer coat with 280 or higher grit sandpaper. Clean the frame with Rubbing Alcohol and apply another coat of primer. Let it dry for 24 hours.

7) Lightly sand with 280 grit sandpaper, clean, and apply your first color coat. I use Rustoleum Enamel. Enamel is dries harder and glossier than Acrylic spray paint, and is easier to apply. Start with a couple of thin coats, 3 or 4 minutes apart. Recoat either within 1 hour or after 48 hours. Remember, shoot your final coat top to bottom so that you avoid over-spraying onto areas of fresh paint (this causes 'orange peel' or dullness of color in affected areas.)

8) Once your frame has a few good coats of color on it, give it a couple of light coats of Rustoleum Clear Coat Enamel to protect your color coat and to really gloss it out. Let the clear coat dry for 24 hours before putting any components back on the frame. This method won't stand up to a crash or systematic abuse, but if you're careful and protective of your bike (like you should be anyway) it will provide adequate rust protection, resist chipping and look bitchin' for quite a while.

THAT WAS CLOSE!

2008-10-27T23:33:00.000-07:00

The other day I was riding home from school on my fixed gear when I hit a rather large bump, which caused my right foot to twist in toward the frame. All I felt was a quick tug, and when I looked down, the side of my shoe was cut clean in half, sliced between my chain and the chain ring. I guess I'm pretty lucky that it didn't get my skin; I've heard (and seen pictures) of guys who have lost fingers to the notoriously hungry fixie chain line. Ouch.

MIDAS TOUCH TAKARA

2008-10-25T00:20:00.000-07:00

Not too long ago my good friend Moog asked if I would build her a Single Speed with some attitude. So I took this old Takara that I got on Craigslist and turned it into a Golden Goddess. 25 lbs and a 40:16 ratio for the slopes of Flagstaff where she's headed. Total Cost: $125. The second pic is what she looked like before.

AFTER: TOTAL COST $ 100

FRESH MEAT

2008-09-13T00:17:00.000-07:00

I love Craigslist. Seriously. Here are my newest finds, soon to be overhauled and given a new lease on life. There is a lot to work with here, and my plans as of right now are to create a new SS commuter, a sick old school cyclocross machine, and perhaps the previously threatened 'Fixed Gore' halloween special. All this stuff cost me $75. Thanks Vic.

Azuki Road Frame, Raleigh MTB Frame, Good Rims, Seguino Crankset, Brooks Seat

Takara Road Bike, 50cm

SLO FIXED

2008-09-10T11:38:00.000-07:00

I have been moving for the last week, which is why the other projects are on hold... But in the meantime, check out slofixed, an intarweb forum for the newest fixed gear gang in SLO. Wrench something together and come ride with us!

FINISHED TREK 800

2008-08-27T23:11:00.000-07:00

Well, here it finally is. The old Trek 800 from the dumpster now lives a second life as a 28:17 (soon to be 28:14) single speed with a new custom paint job. I rode it to work today, and no hill even came close to making me stand up in the saddle. I really like the way this bike came out, but unfortunately it must be sold to finance the next project (halloween fixie?). The total cost came out to $50.00- not too bad. I had a great time building this bike; please enjoy the pics!

Before:

After:

Bars chopped to 15.5"

Custom 28:17

CHAINRING CHOPSHOP

2008-08-22T23:29:00.000-07:00

As I wrote in my previous post, the TREK is almost finished... all but the crankset. Last week I decided not to use the triple that came on the bike originally, since the 48 and the 38 tooth rings are both significantly damaged, and since the rings are welded together instead of held together by bolts (and thus they are non-removable.) After spending a great deal of time on the internet and after consulting my LBS, I determined that there was not a decent crankset to be had anywhere for under $40. The problem is that, since I found the TREK in a dumpster to begin with, I would like to keep the re-building cost as low as possible, and I am already approaching the $50 mark due to some unavoidable expenses such as paint, freewheel, bar tape, chain, etc. So today, after nearly a week of frustration, the time came to take matters into my own hands. I decided to use the original crankset, but to modify it by cutting off the 48 and 38 tooth rings, leaving only the 28. This is a little bit crazy, especially as it leaves a gearing ratio of 28:17 which is pretty high, but I figured I'd try it and see how it goes (worst case scenario I buy a new 14 tooth freewheel or something.) So I grabbed my grinder and started cutting. When the smoke cleared, I was left with a custom crankset that only needed a bit of careful filing and a couple coats of matte black Rustoleum to reach full badassness. I won't be able to finish the build until monday due to a wedding and an open bar, but as of right now I'm pretty optimistic that my little chopshop crank job will work great. Here are the pics:

Before:

After:

All you need: Grindalero, Roland Pliers, Roland File

SCORE!

2008-08-20T21:42:00.000-07:00

So I've been working on converting the TREK mountain bike I found in a dumpster (see post "Dumpster Diving" below) to a single speed, and, with the exception of the cranks, everything is pretty much done. Yesterday, I drove down to GoodWill to see if I could score a cheap bike to pirate the final necessary parts from, and I came across a near mint condition Schwinn Sprint, circa 1975, which I bought for $70. The bike must have come from some sort of estate sale or something, because it had an auction tag on it. My trusted colleague TaTas reckons some old guy owned it, never rode it, and then kicked the bucket, causing it to be sold to someone else who never rode it and who eventually donated it. So here's why it turned out to be such a sweet score:

First, I took off the bitchin' vintage Christophe toe clips (made in France, worth about 20-30 bucks) and put them on my fixie. They are shallower than my old clips, so my toes don't rub the front wheel on sharp turns, which is a definite plus. I also took off the near perfect wheels (27 1/4 Arayas) and traded them out with the older, crappier set on my wife's World Sport, thus making amends for arriving home with yet another random bike. Then I tuned up the brakes and front derailleur and re-sold it within 24 hours for $150.00- an $80.00 profit. Not too shabby. Here are some pics:

Schwinn Sprint (as it was when I bought it)

Christophe clips

FRESH INK

2008-08-18T18:23:00.000-07:00

I took a break from building bikes today to get a new tattoo. "Like the sixgun loves the street" is a line from a song that I wrote for my wife when we first got married. The original line is "I love you like my heart loves to beat / like the sixgun loves the street." I like the image of love as something both dangerous and protecting, peaceful and tumultuous. Thanks to Jake at Tiger Rose Tattoo in Pismo beach for the design and beautiful execution, and to my wife for the great early birthday present. Check it out!

CREATIVE BRAKING SYSTEM OF THE YEAR

2008-08-15T23:38:00.000-07:00

I finally got my front brake lever in the mail yesterday, but when I went to put it on I realized that the curvature of the clip (middle piece in the first pic) was not wide enough to fit around my bars. The pictures that follow show how I was able to modify a few things to make this awesome vintage lever work for me.

1. The first picture shows how the brake lever and its components (lever, clip, and bolt) looked originally. The clip hooks into the slot in the brake lever and wraps around the back of the bars, connected underneath by the bolt. Everything is made of steel, which, luckily for me, can be reshaped pretty easily with the right tools.

2. In this picture you can see how the curvature of the clip has been flattened (and thus the length increased) so that it conforms to the diameter of the bars. I used a padded bench vise to do this. I also used a rattail file to lengthen the hole for the bolt so that I could get some extra clearance on the bottom. I then selected a longer, thinner sex bolt (courtesy of Sun Valley Bronze passage hardware) from my box-o-random parts, which just barely snuck under the bars. The unique aspect of a sex bolt is that it has a threaded tube-like nut (designed to connect two escutcheon plates on either side of a door.) I like how the nut gives the whole thing a very weird industrial look.

3. This is another view of the sex bolt, complete with random washers, from the underside. Basically what this whole operation proves is that: a) steel is no match for a flexible mind, and b) you should never throw away old door hardware just in case you ever need it for your bike.

FINISHED FIXED

2008-08-11T21:21:00.000-07:00

So here she is, all finished. All told, the cost was right around $320. I am still planning on installing a front brake, although I've been riding it brakeless while I wait for my vintage steel lever to arrive. I am stoked on this bike; riding a fixed gear is a completely different experience, and I'm addicted. I can't wait to build another one.

DUMPSTER DIVING

2008-08-11T17:20:00.000-07:00

I got up this morning and checked Craigslist (as usual) and found a posting for a free bike in a dumpster behind a housing development out towards Los Osos. I drove around for a while until I found the place, and then wandered around for a while longer until I found the right dumpster. Sure enough, this little beauty was waiting for me, right next to some questionable potato salad. Behold, my new Trek, soon to be a single-speed of a new color.

A SCHWINN RESURRECTED

2008-08-05T19:55:00.000-07:00

This bike was an old Schwinn World Sport that I bought for my wife at a thrift store a couple of years ago. For Christmas '07 I took it apart, painted the frame, buffed out all the rust from the components, and put the whole thing back together. This was the first bike project that I undertook on a large scale, and I think it came out pretty nice. I still want to apply new decals and put new rims on it at some point, as well as some chrome fenders and whitewall tires (both hard to come by for 27" wheels.) As always, thanks to my dad for his advice and assistance. I definitely caught the rebuilding bug on this one.

BURBANK BACKYARD BEAUTIFICATION

2008-07-30T19:32:00.000-07:00

Last summer my buddy Jim decided that he wanted to fix up his backyard, so I went down to Burbank and helped him design and build a custom patio trellis. It was 110 degrees that weekend, but we built the whole thing in two days (while our wives drank Coors Light and watched us from shaded lawn chairs.) Recently, Jim's kitchen was remodeled by the folks at HG TV, and their lead carpenter complimented our work highly. Here's a few pics:

ME AND JIMBO

RYOBI RULES

WIVES

END OF DAY ONE

HERMANOS FUERTOS

PAINTED, ONE YEAR OLD

MY FIRST FIXED GEAR

2008-07-28T21:04:00.000-07:00

This year I have built a couple of single speed bikes (with a freewheel, capable of coasting) but in the last couple of weeks I have been working on my first fixed gear, also known as a track bike. A "fixie" can't coast, as the back cog has no freewheel. The rider must pedal at all times, and if he/she pedals backwards, the bike goes backwards. The bike can be stopped by using leg strength to slow down the speed at which the pedals turn. Some riders don't use brakes at all. I have a front brake on mine just in case, but I am getting the hang of stopping without it.

I am not completely done with this bike yet, as I want to add yellow bar tape and a yellow chain. I will also most likely add an old-school bmx style brake lever. For right now, however, I am happy with how it looks and rides-- and I have no more money. At this point, the cost is right around $280.00- not bad when you consider how much it costs to buy a similar bike new. A large chunk of the cost was taken care of by the sale of another bike i built (see post below "Another Single Speed.") The bike weighs right around 21 lbs. I used a Peugeot Record DuMonde frame which I stripped and clear coated. I bought the wheels on Ebay, and all other parts are stock or scavenged from my shop or my dad's. The bars are Franco Italia drops that I chopped and flopped to make pursuit bars. Thanks to my LBS Art's Cyclery for putting up with all my questions, and to my dad for all his help.

BEFORE:

AFTER:

THE BEST SPOKE CARD EVER

Stella Rose

2008-06-25T22:33:00.000-07:00

Here's my newest guitar, a 1957 Stella flattop. I picked her up for $65.00 on Craigslist a month ago. She sounds like a gutshot locomotive running heavy down a tin track- just perfect.

We played our first gig together last night at the Clubhouse Bar in SLO. Come see us again on July 15, Woody Guthrie's birthday.

Another Single-Speed

2008-06-23T21:04:00.001-07:00

About two years ago I got hit by a car while riding my old mountain bike. I walked away with a few bruises and a black eye, but my bike was totaled. The driver tossed $30.00 at me and fled the scene. So I bought this old Western Flyer at the Salvation Army. Last week I decided to turn it into a single-speed. It's great for cruising to and from the bars. Check out the pics!

BEFORE:

AFTER: Total Cost $50.00

Single Speed Conversion

2008-06-23T12:11:00.000-07:00

Here are some pics of the first single-speed bike that I built. I just put the finishing touches on it a couple of days ago. It's a sweet ride, geared perfectly for riding the hills in SLO.

BEFORE: Huffy "Savanna" *** $30.00 on Craigslist

AFTER: Total Cost $130.00

I stripped off all the components and started over with just the frame. Originally I was going to paint it Propane Tank White, but after a couple of days I got attached to the Metallic Blue. I used a freewheel BMX cog and the chain ring off of my old Schwinn from when I was a kid. The ratio is 40:16. I flopped and chopped some old road bars to make custom Pursuit Bars. Other components include: vintage NOS saddle; vintage Redline BMX platform pedals; SR stem; bitchin' Huffy brake lever; old school Schwinn calipers; Araya 27 x 1 1/4 wheels; Duro red-wall tires.

Introductions...

2008-06-23T12:08:00.000-07:00

Well. My name is Reb. The purpose of this blog is to display the things that I enjoy doing, which mostly include building stuff and playing music. I am a scavenger of junk and quarter notes, a lover of free garage items and folk songs. I have chosen to call this blog "CONTRAPTION" because I like the way that the word evokes images of an unsteady yet possibly brilliant creation: a perfect description of the things I build and the music I play. Please enjoy the ensuing chaos.

Reb

CONTRAPTION

THE GUITARS: GRETSCH SYNCHROMATIC JET JR.

THE GUITARS: FENDER TELECASTER

HIGH TIME FOR A MUSIC RIG POST

PAINT AND ETC. (PART 1)

DAMMIT.

XS 850- TEAR DOWN AND DESIGN IDEAS

UH OH. XS 850 PROJECT BIKE!

ANOTHER FORAY INTO RECORDING

PICS!

FINISHED SPRINGER SEAT AND FENDER

SEATS AND SPRINGS

DRINKIN'

GAS TANK UPDATE:

GAS TANK LIFT: GHETTO OR BADASS???

'72 HONDA SL 125 HARDTAIL

'72 HONDA SL 125 FINISHED! (OR IS IT...)

'72 HONDA SL 125 PART 4: CHOPPIN' PIPES AND MOUNTIN' LIGHTS

'72 HONDA SL 125 PROJECT: PART 3

MORE PROGRESS: '72 HONDA SL 125 PROJECT

MOVING ON TO MOTORCYCLES: 1972 HONDA SL 125 PROJECT

CHICKENS

IT'S BEEN A WHILE, BUT I'M BACK!

BLACK WATER UNION AT MOTHER'S TAVERN 9/29

AN ANTI-BELLUM BIRTHDAY PRESENT

SHOW TIMES

TWANG & BANG TONIGHT!

BOTTLE NECK SLIDE

AMMO CAN 6 STRING

J.R. CBG LIVE!

INTRODUCING THE "JONNY REB" TENOR CIGAR BOX GUITAR

CIGAR BOX PROGRESS

ADVENTURES IN GUITAR BUILDING

GUITARCYCLE

BEERCYCLE.

ALWAYS RIDE WITH A REAR LIGHT

IT IS FINISHED (AND IT ALMOST KILLED ME)

AMMO BOX PANNIERS

BLACK WATER UNION

ALMOST THERE

MEET MY NEW HONEY

INSPIRATION

NEW PAINT

EXTREME BIKE MAKEOVER

NEW PEDALS!

FIXED = MACHISMO??

The Mongrel SS

USE YOUR SOLE BRAKES!

LOCK DOWN

OLD PARTS, DIFFERENT BIKE

HAIRCUT, ETC.

HOW COULD I PASS THIS UP?

MOTOBECANE CONVERSION

HALF LINK VS. CHAIN TENSIONER

COOK YOUR BIKE!

MUSICAL CRANKSETS

OLD FRIENDS

AH, SATURDAY!

RAIN-PROOF COMMUTE

MY WHIPS

INTRODUCING: HANK THE TANK!

SIMPLE GREEN **UPDATED!!**

CAP'N SHAF'S BLACK DIAMOND

OURY, MESA, ZOOM

INTRODUCING... THE BLACK PLAGUE

CRANKSET MOD

PAINT JOB

THAT WAS CLOSE!

MIDAS TOUCH TAKARA

FRESH MEAT

SLO FIXED

FINISHED TREK 800

CHAINRING CHOPSHOP

SCORE!

FRESH INK

CREATIVE BRAKING SYSTEM OF THE YEAR

FINISHED FIXED

DUMPSTER DIVING

A SCHWINN RESURRECTED

BURBANK BACKYARD BEAUTIFICATION

SIMPLE GREEN UPDATED!!