that was easier than i thought. iceberg offroad

[Philphine]

i shoulda made this one the buildoff bike. i'd probaly get it finished

i really like the "iceberg shorty2" bike that dirty jersey choppers showed. i didn't realise at first that they were doing like a bicycle version of a donk, i was thinking more like a bike version of a rock crawler so that's were i went.

i was gonna use a regular bmx bike i had extra, but i thought this 20" mountain bike i had would work better if i found a 26" mountain bike to use with it. it worked out. a local thrift store has a 1/2 off sale almost every holiday (columbus day in this case) so i got a bike that looked close to the 20" bike for $15, and just disassembled and reassembled to get to this pic.

i need to trim about an inch off the head tube, and rework the rear shock mounting, but neither should be problems. both bikes were in pretty bad shape running wise, but the 26" wheels are strait enough, and i think there's enough parts/cables bettween them to get all brakes and derailleurs going without extra cost.

a couple parts thrown at it to eyeball how it should be

some bars from a scooter that'll work. at the moment the only part i think it'll need purchashed is a laid back seat post. maybe a chain if these are too rusty.

it almost makes me wish i was working with better parts, maybe have 6-8" of suspension. but that would be real money. it ought to be good enough for anything i'm liable to try on it, probaly a few wheelies and find a trail just to see how it works.


thanks for the idea dirty jersey choppers.

 

[deorman]

:shock: No bash guard needed here. :wink:

 

[Markm]

put a longer bar in place of the spring and it'll sit up even higher

 

[Philphine]

still no gears or brakes, but i cobbled up a seat post i may keep, and lenthened the rear spring to reach the mounts already there instead of making new ones. that let me ride it some.

kinda fun. a little twitchy with the short wheelbase, but easily rideable on the street. riding in my backyard was more of a challenge but i think being able to shift to a lower gear would help there. right now i think the only changes will be luck changes, like if i find a better rear spring or fork with more travel for cheap.

i believe i'll keep it in the collection. it's about the opposite of the bikes i usually make and like (probaly as close as i'm going to get to making a tall bike), but i think it'll be fun to pull out sometimes.

 

[UncleKudzu]

i hope that seatpost works for you; i was wondering how you would manage with your thighs on the pedals!

that's an interesting little project - you should've put her in the AGBO.

 

[Philphine]

i'm a little worried about the seat post, but i had that piece of tube and a seat post to stick in it, and i wanted to try the bike out. i may try to work out some better bracing and maybe a gusset off the frame if i get to where i'm riding it more.

like the saying, "nothing new under the sun", i stumbled across a bike made kinda like this, only it's a serious machine. i'll try to post a pic when i get home.

 

[Philphine]

i was just checking fork prices on ebay and saw this. it's my new style goal for this bike. i'm not gonna get too crazy with it though. like mentioned before, i'll keep an eye out for a cheap longer fork and spring deal, but i know i'm not gonna compare a thousand dollar bike to mine, that i'm into for about $40.

 

[elvis51]

that thing is freakin cool looking!!!

looks like it would be somewhat easy MAYBE to recreate

Easy E

 

[Philphine]

once you get started

yeah, it's kinda gotten away from me a little. extended the swingarm about 3 1/2". lets me lose some of the twitchy short wheelbase and lifts it a little more also.

i've only got 1/2 (ok... maybe 1/8) a handle on the geometry of it, but if i stay with a 6" shock i think the spot shown is the best new mounting point. if i find something longer the point will slide forward under the top tube. been looking at ebay to get an idea of what i can get cheap and i think i can stay with a 6" shock, but just get a nicer one that has a bit more travel. i'm also eyeballing scooter and other shocks. prettymuch what i luck into will be what i use.

for the front, looks like the fork on this and all the department store forks i have around the house have maybe 2" of travel. looking at ebay again, 7" seems to be the point where a cheap-(ish) deal and extra travel cross. the wood blocks are me estimating how it would sit if i found one. quite a few with 4" of travel also, but since i don't have a time limit on looking for one i'll try to wait out a deal on the longest i can get. once i get the fork settled, it will probaly include a small head tube change. i'm going to add a strut from the head tube to the seat. part to help making sure it doesn't break or bend, part as preliminary to trying to make a seat like the on on the mongoose.

just for fun, throwing in a pic of a normal build for me in comparision

 

[Philphine]

found a decent fork deal

not quite what i hoped, but imma go with 'em anyway. they do have a lot more travel (around 6.5"), but they're made in a way that the overall height of the fork is only a little more that the other forks, so the overall height of the bike didn't change much.

doesn't look too bad though, as far as matching the height of the rear, plus it should mean i can look for a better rear shock and not have to go all out for something really long.

forks were $50 shipped. more than i had in the whole bike, but not too bad. i figure if i can find the better rear shock for not too much, i'll still have a nicer (though slightly wierder) mountain bike than i could get at walmart for about the same price.

 

[Chainsaw]

I think I'm getting a nosebleed! Looks pretty wild. Kinda reminds me of alot of the old motocrossers back in the 70/80s. The suspensions on some of them got so rediculous that there were 80cc bikes that I couldn't even sit on flat footed! :lol:
We definitely need some riding vids on this beast!
Thanks,
Chainy

 

[Philphine]

i don't know about riding vids, but i have ridden it with the old fork and before stretching the rear section. it won't be rideable again 'til i decide on a rear shock. in that last pic the shock is just resting against the frame under the seat. i don't want to make a new mounting point 'til i know what i'll have for a shock.

 

[AussieJester]

If your after a cheap set of triple trees i found a set for a mate on Ebay few weeks back just so happens another set from the same seller have appeared


http://cgi.ebay.com.au/JEEP-DNM-MIRAGE- ... df1fe#shId
My mate paid 45 bucks Australian for his set they were listed with a buy now price, cost him another 45 bucks freight so under
100 bucks all up, dunno if this is within your budget perhaps keep an eye on them?

KiM

 

[Philphine]

thanks, i think i'm gonna call it good on the forks though. looks like the ones i picked up have more travel than these. it's a rear shock i'm keeping a eye out for now.

i think i'm settled on handlebars too, so maybe i'll start putting brakes and gears back on it. and still looking at the mongoose for a couple of style ideas, but that's for later or if i come up with some inspiration.