Hey Gang!
I haven't posted in a long time since my Michael Delaney Rampar build, but I've been keeping tabs - some stellar build-off bikes in the last couple of years!!!
I had every intention of entering the BBO this year, but as we're supposed to keep something of a journal in the Forums - and not having the patience nor time to do so, I'm not going to elbow my way into it by pleading for acceptance when the rules are pretty clear. I had the timelines down and the bike was in pieces when it started, and it's finished as of last week.
Enough chit-chat; onto the build, yeah?
Source bike was a Supercycle Hooligan from Canadian Tire, procured for $60 last Fall off of Kijiji. I always liked the triple-tree fork, and wanted to experiment with reconfiguring it to give it a more aggro look. The fork and the swingarm weigh a tonne, partially offset by the aluminum main triangle.
I ended up throwing a lot more new parts at this bike than I usually do on builds, but there was too much stuff past saving. A list:
Complete Shimano brake calipers and pads
Shimano sealed BB
Shimano chain
Wellgo V8 copy pedals
Shimano crank with alloy arms, to replace the all steel boat anchors
Geax Booze Light 2.30 tires for street
Chinese Ebay carbon fiber handlebar
Ergon grips,
Shimano Shifters/Brakes 3x7
NukeProof seat post I had ordered for a different bike, but ordered the wrong size (fits this one!!)
New seat and Sixpack seatpost collar
Jagwire cables, etc.
Modified rear cassette for different gearing.
I modified the frame a little to cut down the stack height of the headtube by trimming about 3/8" from the bottom to give me more grip on the steerer tube for the fork clamps and stem. I also trimmed the cable stops to make them pass-throughs on the downtube. It didn't make sense to me to have open cables for about 8" right where the front wheel is spewing dust, mud and water.
I also cut the seat tube flush to the frame's sweep (and the seatpost, once the height was dialed in) for that clean look.
The paint is Rust-O-Leum mettallic blue, plain white, Tremclad Red, Krylon Sun Yellow, Rona store-brand gold (fork), and Krylon Gloss. I used Zinsser 1-2-3 white primer, and it worked very well, even on some bare spots on the frame. Frame and swingarm were wet-sanded with 3M paper to 2000-grit and then polished with Turtle Wax white polishing compound. Used some NuFinish as a finishing touch.
I took a bit of a chance and polished the front shock mount gussets instead of painting them. The bike has a lot of color to it and not much metal showing, so I figured this would tone down the "plastic clown" factor
The wheel disc is sheet styrene I had from my fellow tinkerer in crime father-in-law. Cut, coned, and painted with same wet-sanding/polishing/wax regimen, and some Red Bull decals, of course!!
The whole thing turned out pretty good, rides super smooth and (I think) looks pretty bad-...! I appreciate you guys taking the time to read through this - hope you like it!
I haven't posted in a long time since my Michael Delaney Rampar build, but I've been keeping tabs - some stellar build-off bikes in the last couple of years!!!
I had every intention of entering the BBO this year, but as we're supposed to keep something of a journal in the Forums - and not having the patience nor time to do so, I'm not going to elbow my way into it by pleading for acceptance when the rules are pretty clear. I had the timelines down and the bike was in pieces when it started, and it's finished as of last week.
Enough chit-chat; onto the build, yeah?
Source bike was a Supercycle Hooligan from Canadian Tire, procured for $60 last Fall off of Kijiji. I always liked the triple-tree fork, and wanted to experiment with reconfiguring it to give it a more aggro look. The fork and the swingarm weigh a tonne, partially offset by the aluminum main triangle.
I ended up throwing a lot more new parts at this bike than I usually do on builds, but there was too much stuff past saving. A list:
Complete Shimano brake calipers and pads
Shimano sealed BB
Shimano chain
Wellgo V8 copy pedals
Shimano crank with alloy arms, to replace the all steel boat anchors
Geax Booze Light 2.30 tires for street
Chinese Ebay carbon fiber handlebar
Ergon grips,
Shimano Shifters/Brakes 3x7
NukeProof seat post I had ordered for a different bike, but ordered the wrong size (fits this one!!)
New seat and Sixpack seatpost collar
Jagwire cables, etc.
Modified rear cassette for different gearing.
I modified the frame a little to cut down the stack height of the headtube by trimming about 3/8" from the bottom to give me more grip on the steerer tube for the fork clamps and stem. I also trimmed the cable stops to make them pass-throughs on the downtube. It didn't make sense to me to have open cables for about 8" right where the front wheel is spewing dust, mud and water.
I also cut the seat tube flush to the frame's sweep (and the seatpost, once the height was dialed in) for that clean look.
The paint is Rust-O-Leum mettallic blue, plain white, Tremclad Red, Krylon Sun Yellow, Rona store-brand gold (fork), and Krylon Gloss. I used Zinsser 1-2-3 white primer, and it worked very well, even on some bare spots on the frame. Frame and swingarm were wet-sanded with 3M paper to 2000-grit and then polished with Turtle Wax white polishing compound. Used some NuFinish as a finishing touch.
I took a bit of a chance and polished the front shock mount gussets instead of painting them. The bike has a lot of color to it and not much metal showing, so I figured this would tone down the "plastic clown" factor
The wheel disc is sheet styrene I had from my fellow tinkerer in crime father-in-law. Cut, coned, and painted with same wet-sanding/polishing/wax regimen, and some Red Bull decals, of course!!
The whole thing turned out pretty good, rides super smooth and (I think) looks pretty bad-...! I appreciate you guys taking the time to read through this - hope you like it!
