Felt cruiser

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Germany, Leverkusen
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Hi there. I bought a used Felt cruiser from a friend for 100$ about a year ago. Like this one http://up.picr.de/9945818eig.jpg

It had a problem with the rear wheel so I couldn't even try it, but I liked it so I took it. I had a colleague at work who knew about hubs, (having lived in Holland) and he explained to me how to fix the wheel, it turned out it just had to be set correctly. I only had experience with dirt cheap MTBs and I knew how to change a tube, how to replace a stem and basically that was it. Little I knew how would I have to read till I got the bike to be how I wanted it to be. I fixed the wheel, the play had to be correctly set and it was done. The more I rode it the more I saw where it was lacking. It was heavy so I decided to put a motor on it, the ride was too hard for me so I wanted to have a fork with suspension, another seat, I wanted to sit lower and further back, I wanted other brakes, I wanted to get rid of the coaster brake. The problem was that everytime I went to the local shop they were telling me to forget about it, it was impossible they said. They even told me my wheel was screwed and that I needed a nw wheel. I had already found some builds googling at saw that anything could be done. I found a shop that did my wheels, they laced me new hubs and installed the brakes. At another shop I got me an used suspension fork. Those were the two shops in the area that claimed to do some custom work. Thanks, guys. The others shop owners were mostly incompetent, one of them told me my seat post is obviously custom made and I would have to go to a cruiser shop. I was ready to go postal on the morons at my village when I explicitely asked for a chain for a single speed, and explicitely stated that I need to make a chain longer so I need not just to work, but to be hte same correctly showing to the "7,8,9s" inscripment on the package and I was still given the thinner chain for a MTB. Facepalm and kill'em all. So in the end I learned that I can't expect any assistance, they just wanted to change tires, fix brakes and sell their complete bikes.
Anyway, that's the end result. I am not gonna lie, had I known how much work would it be for a noob who lacks the experience, knowledge and tools I would have probably never started.
 
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I also have this one, it takes me to the supermarket. It was intended for my wife, but she didn't like it so it is mine now. I put another fork, installed a disk in the front and moved the seat a bit more to the rear. There is some cosmetic stuff I want to do, I would like to install wider tires for more comfort, probably an used brooks or similar suspended seat, longer bars, those are too far. The original plan is to give it an electric motor too, I primarily bought this bike because it has a 7-speed hub.
 
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Thanks, guys.
I never liked how the display rested there on the stem and finally put it behind the lamp using the original lamp clamp. I still have two hole left on the clamp, so if I find some soft plastic to cut a shape out of I will be also able to put the on/off switch there.
 
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I found a swap meet in my city and things got exciting. First I found that seat, pretty wide:
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I also had these wonderful pedals, but they ultimately went to the red bike:
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Once I installed the seat the bike evolved naturally. I swapped stems and bars untill I finally got it the way it is really comfy.
The black seat got an impromptu leather cover, which I will rework as soon as I find some nice colored leather. I finally found some use for the front light bracket and used it to attach the fender.
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The seating position got just a bit higher and more to the front, which gave the option to turn the stem in its correct direction. The new stem is shorter and the handling got faster.
I also had this metal box on it, but it didn't go well with the tank paint. Those pedals are another swap meet find and I love them.
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I remembered this box from my childhood and I explicitly asked my Mom for it if she didn't need it. I really liked the writing when I saw it and got curious. A quick search brought me to this pic:
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Funny enough in the upper left corner You see the same box. My first thought was to blacken the Gritzner logo, but after I found they made motorbikes I don't want to ruin the box (it is actually for sewing machine accessories or something like that, but still), so I removed it for now.
As huge as a helipad:
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I put the cruiser bars on it a few days ago and just couldn't try them... It was a terrible weather, but today finally the rain stopped and the sky cleared. I, however, saw through the deception and got into my riding gear:
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Some scenery pics.
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Yellow lenses are great for riding.
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The rear brake got the Bafang brake lever with motor cut-off, it looks and feels really good, very nicely built, I think. The grips are made of cork.
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I rode mostly the red bike the last few weeks, as the hard riding position turned out to be helping me build muscles in my legs, I am not much of a rider actually. I love comfort, a car guy really. I always had to battle strong winds when I rode to the city. It was a so good riding these roads for once without getting tired. That is the water tower there, a local sight seeing spot, here in Leverkusen. It has an observation deck and on a clear day You can see forever:
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I need an offset left side crank, because it clears the chainstays, but there is a difference between left and right side. I want to make a round a housing for the display, make it look like a tacho. I am waiting for some frame bags.
 
I removed the seat setup and used the bent seat post from my groceries cruiser. I discovered that the way I had mounted the seat the flexing joint under the nose was blocked by the front seat post clamp. The result was that the suspension was not functioning. So I had the old leather seat for a while. Then I used the big seat on the groceries cruiser and was pleased to find out that it actually worked quite well - stiffer, but just enough suspension to be comfy. The bent post also gave me a bit more elevation, while I still can have both feet on the ground when stopped so the bike is easier to pedal now.
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I practically stole the fender from the groceries cruiser, reworked it just a bit:
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While searching for some cranks in the cellar I found the cranks from my MTB donor and I noticed that they have bigger Q factor. The left crankarm was perfect - same length (170mm) and just the right offset. I now have same distance from crankarm to frame on both sides without having to order the way too expensive offset Bafang crank.
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I am thankful I found this forum. Watching all Your builds taught me to think outside of the box. I have this bike lock that wouldn't fit in the frame triangle because of the battery and I always carried it in my bacpack. This is an inconvenience because I don't always need a backpack, but was forced to carry it every time. Then it occured to me that the lock doesn't have to be in the triangle and I mounted it to the side:
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Well that's it for now.
I will be working on the groceries cruiser next.
Here is a tease pic, it needs some more work still:
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I noticed that my rear tire was in very poor condition:
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Before I could replace the tear got bigger and a few days later the tube was done too. Bike sat two weeks every day for 8 hours in the sun, could this be the reason?
I took the time to rework the seat setup, using the 1" stem that I always liked and could never really use as a stem (too long):
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Then I finally made my front light work. It took some simple engineering since the bulb bracket was missing:
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I wired it to an old 6V front light I had, forgot to take a photograph, I just connected two loudspeaker cables to the spots where the original bulb made contact and ran the cables through the housing. Isolated them with electrician tape. The original light is hidden in that frame bag. The original bulb is very weak, but the LED is pretty bright.
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I am thinking of looking for some yellow film though. I sincerely believe that yellow light is less tiring for the eyes and helps You see better at night than white light, especially in wet conditions.
I am also thinking of a way to strap my backpack to the tank or looking for a tank-bag, because I hate having to carry it on my bag, and don't want to install a rack, which is pretty complicated with the seat as it is. I had a rack installed a few times, but never really happy with it.
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Then suddenly - goodies!
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This stem can be set in a way to bring the handlebars with zero offset over the headtube. It was on sale so I couldn't resist. I am not sure yet on which bike I will use it though.The tube was on the same order.
Unfortunately the tire has not arrived yet. I found a suitable one on sale for 10 Euro on another site so I didn't order everything in one place. They sent me a tracking number, it will arrive tomorrow, I guess. I ordered the stem and the tube 39 hours ago and they are already here. The one site didn't have the right tire and the other didn't have the right tube, duh.
 
Thanks :)
I like the motor a lot. It gives me mobility, I recently rode 35 miles, which I could not do on a non assisted bike. It takes 5-10 seconds to switch through all three gears and reach 25 km/h (the legal limit around here).
I can't coast because the motor itself has a freewheel, so when I backpedal the pedals are turning freely, but the chainring is not. The original hubs were replaced, the rear has a freewheel and a roller brake.
If You want to coast I read somewhere that there is already a coaster compatible version of Bafang. Also there is the TSDZ2 (TongSzheng) midmotor, which is very similar to the Bafang and has a coaster version for sure.
You did get me thinking though what would happen if I fasten the crank to the chainring? It should actually work with a coaster brake. Hmmm...
However the Bafang has a speed sensor, and the TongSzheng has a torque sensor, which is supposed to be better especially when climbing hills. I am still weighting the pros and cons to get one for my groceries cruiser (7 speed coaster).
My motor is 250W only - the legal limit here again. I have ridden with the thumb operated gas lever (for test purposes, since this is also outlawed here) and it climbs really well, but feels weak when pedal assisted on a hill. But I run a 52t chainring and a 16t sprocket. On the flat after the motor cuts off I can pedal further and reach around 33 km/h (20 m/h). I notice how right after I pass 25 I am left on my own.
The motor is limited to 25 km/h (around 15 m/h), but with a few clicks through the menu You can remove the limitation in about 30 seconds, it goes up till 40-45 km/h.
 
I was asking if you had to pedal all the time or if I out could coast and still have the motor drive the bike. My plan is to use a multispeed freewheel rear hub.

Thanks for the info, I’m doing research now for a future project.


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I thought You meant if the motor is compatible with a coaster brake. I thought "to coast" means to use a coaster brake.
With the thumb operated "gas" lever in the kit You can ride without pedaling. It is awesome, but it also empties the battery faster. I did it a few times, was able to ride 30 km without pedaling. I have seen the cranks removed with bolted pegs instead.
Unfortunatey according to the moronic laws here in Germany it is forbidden to use an electric assist without pedaling, so I removed it before getting myself in trouble. It could cost me my driving license.
This limits of course the ways I could setup my bike. Not having to pedal would have allowed me to use lower handlebars.
 
After a few changes in seats, stems and bars again...
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It has a 24x3.0 Berm Master in the rear and a 26x2.125 Street king in the front now.
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The fork is lower and much softer. The luxury of air suspension. The bike is also much closer to its original geometry.


Here is a vid of the bike:
 
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I have been playing with the fork and it was annoying to have to remove the top crown every time to get to the air valve. Wouldn't it be wondeful to have the pump ported to the air chamber all the time? So I can pump it up whenever I feel like it?
I think the pump would be better behind the front light though, I ordered longer clamps.
 
Yiiiiihaaaa

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Now we are talking. I never liked the front wheel being 26x2,125 only, (while riding on 24x3.0 in the rear) but with my fork could not fit a wider tire. This 27,5" fork will take 24 x 3.0 wheel so I can finally have identical wheels, except for the hubs obviously.
Not quite sure about the direct mount though, I might go with my own stem UNDER the top crown.
Now I have to get a wheel laced. Does anyone know where can I get rims like mine (came with the bike, originals)? The Felt website wasn't of any help, n'or the other sources I know.
 

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