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yoothgeye

yoothgeye

I build stuff.
Joined
Jul 1, 2010
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Location
Roanoke Rapids, NC
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While on vacation I was using the grill at the house we rented and a light bulb went off! Those chrome spring type grill handles would be great for replacements on springers, making your own springer, or even long spring saddles. So I just did a search on Amazon and I'm pretty happy with the results.

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_ ... l%20handle
(also narrow searches with "grill handle spring" or "grille handle chrome")

Just something you builders can add to your bag or tricks.

Warning, these were never made to be load bearing springs and could cause mixed results, too tight, too loose, easily break, so use caution when building any structural bicycle part.
 
We're not building downhill bikes, we're building cruisers, I'd try these for the price, most springers are mostly about looks anyway.
 
Thanks for the opposing views on this, fellers. Hope nothing bad happens to ya, Yoots. :mrgreen: Always nice that someone cares enough to speak up. 8)
 
CeeBee said:
On your first test ride,be sure to wear a helmet....or at least a cheap alternative to a helmet.
Click to expand...

Haha! This made me laugh.

helmet.jpg
 
There seems to have been an increase in posts lately expressing concern based on safety issues. When read slowly this 'concern' has a strong whiff of superiority and unsolicited judgement.

C'mon people! We build and ride RatRodBikes. Most of us our grown ups still doin' kid stuff. The risks are inherent and minimal when compared to other activities.

If someone can actually ride a 8 foot tall bike with little or no brakes, springs made from charcoal grill parts and a tractor seat I assume they know enough about physics and gravity to be aware of what could happen if things go wrong...even if they have a watermelon protecting their melon. My input is not required. I only need to smile when I see them having fun and say, "bummer, dude" when I see them on crutches.

Sorry to hijack Yoot's thread with this but I received some similar comments quite some time ago to a question I posted. My bike, my build, my body, my risk. My wife keeps one eye on me while rolling the other (quite a skill) and my mom lives 20 min down the road, they're qualified to do the mothering and wife-ing.

Go ahead, try the grill springs. What's the worst that can happen? Judging from your pic you're an adult I trust you to answer that question based on your own experience and judgement.

RatRodBikes- Safety First...or at least top 10.
 
Ummmmmmmm, yummy watermelon hat....

bicycle do not have to be DOT approved. I seriously doubt of spring failure you're going to cause a bike colapse on you!
 
Apologies CeeBee

PM sent

The springs in question are not really intended to be springs at all. They're handles wound in a spiral to reduce heat transfer. I meant to bring this up this in my first post but I got distracted and posted prematurely.
 
There shouldn't be a problem with people posting comments that question an idea or point out potential flaws of an idea.
It's always great to hear compliments about your ideas or builds, but I get just as much (sometimes more) out of alternative opinions and ideas.
 
I rode my first tall bike an entire Christmas parade route, waving at kids, racing down the sides high-fiving spectators, then I got home, put it on the kick stand, walked away for 10 seconds, the wind blew over the bike breaking a main structural weld on a bike. Haha

I had a pocket bike (sold it last week) would do almost 40mph sitting 12" off the ground, no suspension, I went over the handlebars at my little girl's birthday party covering myself in road rash and dislocating my shoulder tearing enough muscles and tendons to warrant 10s of thousands of dollars of surgery.

I am sorry if I have fueled this fire CeeBee, as I was typing I realized that as an adult I knew the dangers of tall bikes and small bikes, but I knew those dangers because others had told me (I was the second person to end up in the hospital because of that pocket bike) and for some of us that are a little "carefree" (like myself), a vocie of reason should be a welcome thing.

If I end up making a springer out of grill parts or with the leaf springs from a compound bow (yes, I have them and yes, this is planned) I will do it knowing that I can be hurt, but I will also add a disclaimer to those watching because seeing others get hurt is not as funny as seeing myself get hurt, even less so if it's my fault.

Adding disclaimer to first post now.

Sincerely,

Rev. Justin D. Fender (not joking on the reverend part)
 
I get yoothgeyes Idea and have seen handles on grills that would work on a springer fork (maybe not the ones in the link). I was out at our local park and was going to get a pic of the heavier handle springs but all The grills I seen had spiral flat stock for handles. As for the safety of building something out of stuff not intended for bikes or what ever, I dont see a problem in trying something to see if it works I mean all of us know you can get hurt on any bike whether its older or a newer bike, Just like with the old hawthorne I got recently Id a visual check of the bike but knew in the back of my head something could go wrong and I could wipe out or like when I went on a test ride of a Mtn bike I was rebuilding and was shifting thru the gears and the chain jumped between the rim and gear cluster and locked the rim up and I went sliding. To me its a chance we all take in our hobby
 
Well, good looking out on ya C.B.

With that said, I've often looked at some of the cheapo wal-mart suspension stuff and thought the same as what's said in this thread ... I don't think this will do what it's meant to do :lol: unless it's just meant to "look the part".

You are talking to a bunch of penny pinching tinkerers too though, and Yooth is in a bracket all by himself. :wink:
 
yoothgeye said:
CCR said:
You are talking to a bunch of penny pinching tinkerers too though, and Yooth is in a bracket all by himself. :wink:
Click to expand...

I need to show you all my GoPro pole...
Click to expand...

TMI
 
I guess I'm lucky, I live about a mile from a place called Kokomo Spring Co. You can get any spring you want and if they don't have it they will make it. I heard they are being bought out though so I hope the new owners are as friendly and outgoing as the old guy running it now.
 
I don't think those springs would be a safety hazard, I would be more worried about poor welds on the frame and forks. Even if a spring did break on most classic type springers (like Harleys) there is usually a bolt up the center of the springs. I think those springs would probably just be way too weak to be of much use. Many people have made springers that you could run without a spring, why they would do that I don't know, the rockers would just swing up to the point of no more room to move. Worry about your frame welds, and don't make bikes out of conduit. Remember those cheap repro Monark forks that broke all over the place? that's what we got to worry about.
 
CeeBee said:
It is discouraging that when people make a counter point here that it seems to always be taken as a personal attack. It's a shame that a "discussion" can't make it past a few comments here anymore.
Click to expand...

This pretty much sums up any forum I've ever been to, ha ha. :D

The issue seems to lie in the fact that communicating via written word (forum posts, emails, etc.) as opposed to a face to face conversation where emotion can be detected usually ends up being misinterpreted...especially when counter points are being made.

Smileys were invented to try to help resolve that issue, but they definitely aren't 100% effective. ;)
 

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