It's Lives!

It's been some time since I've messed with this project. I've been working on bikes a bit in preparation of selling my SS and setting up my other MTB for a stint on the trainer this winter. Apparently, it's been enough to peek my kid's interest and refresh their memory on this project and a request was made to revive the home grown roller racing system to pass some time in the winter months.

So, I spent a quite a  few hours, digging around in boxes, our old laptop and my external hard drive and made a run at getting things rolling.

I set up in the basement first thinking things would be easy and it'd be ideal to have a bike near for some test rides. Unfortunately, nothing ever seems to be easy around our house. Or orderly.

Test rider, anxiously awaiting first go. 

Unfortunately, in typical form, I never wrote down any notes on how to hook up the sensors. Which quickly overheated and self destructed. Work moved to the kitchen table where after a full installation of software, registration of DLL's, near complete read of the Lab Jack manual and pillage and re-purposing of two bike computer harnesses I had lying around, things appear to be ready for business. 

I am curious how accurate things will be with use of legitimate bicycle computer sensors versus the ones I ordered to specifically meet the specs of the device.

More fun to come. 

No progress but, fun planned

Well, what can I say. I've done nothing.

On the bright side, the event that inspired this project last year is just around the corner. Maybe it will be the motivation I need to finish things off and get some folks together to try it out.

Hell Yes Sprints at the Blind Pig. 9pm, January 19th. Flyer says 7pm. However, doors don't open until 9pm.

Click Here To See The Flyer & Details

Click Here For The Official Website

***This image will soon expire

Waking the Dead

Spring and Summer came and went, my weekends and free time became devoted to soccer games, family time, yard work and mtb racing. While every weekend until the third week of November is booked on my calendar, I can see some light peeking over the horizon to put a little time back into this project. Work has slowed down for the moment and my thoughts have turned towards something to keep me sain when the air turns ice cold and the options for outdoor activities quickly become shoveling snow, sleding and an occasional snowball fight this winter.

Really not too much left to do. Just need one forkstand and a way to mount them and a couple of sets of rollers to some plywood.

One more important improvement may be to the bikes. Right now they are both running ghetto 52 X 16 gearing. This may prove great for roller racing but, I used one of the bikes quite often this summer to pull my daughter on her tag a long and a 44 or 48 chain ring would be a definite improvement. I've got a spare mtb crank and BB. So, I am thinking of throwing that on one bike and finding a huffy donor somewhere for the other. That should improve the gearing as well as, the ghetto chain lines.

Parts Are In

Parts are in. Bikes will hopefully be together by Saturday afternoon. I put the bottom bracket and fork back on the white bike last weekend. It turned out pretty sweet. The chrome forks look good. The rear wheel will need to be trued. It's a wobbler.

Getting closer.

Jim, if you are reading this, time to build a forkstand. :)

Transformers

So, I picked up a couple of vintage schwinns last weekend. A very lightly used, red, approx. 59cm, Sprint and a smaller, yellow, rusty but, still revivable, Le Tour. I got a little excited and forgot to take some before pictures before I started in on their transformation.

Here is the Sprint. Minus gears, cleaned and bearings repacked. I left the brakes on. I am considering using this one around the neighborhood. It was a pretty unmolested bike. Except the threads on one of the crank arms were pretty messed up. I suspect an attempt to do some maintenance with improper tools/technique. It's got it's share of scratches but, it says sprint on it. So, I couldn't justify painting it.

The Le Tour in its new color. Turned out pretty good for a rushed, rattle can paint job. It would have been really nice if I would have been more diligent on the sanding and painted with the garage door closed. But, the kids were helping so, that's my excuse. The fork turned out to be nearly all chrome. I think it's going to look pretty good all together.

This is a before pic of the Le Tour I receive via email before I went out to pick it up. Looks pretty pristine, huh? This one was proof to the fact that pictures are deceiving. Think that it lived outdoors and the tarp behind it was what was covering it up. Steal wool does amazing things with slightly pitted chrome.

Just need to order up some track gears, tires, pedals and maybe some longer sear posts, reassemble and we are in business.

Vintage Delights

I am on the hunt for a couple of vintage schwinns to convert to fixies and serve as the first generation of roller racing bicycles.

With the weather improving, these nearly all steel gems are popping up here and there on craigslist. Some for reasonable prices.

Conversion should be easy enough. Given they will come apart.
- Pedal adapters to accept 9/16 pedals
- BMX sproket
- Ditch the freewheel for a track hub
- Toss all other non essential parts. Shifters, derailleurs, brakes, reflectors, etc.
- Top it all off with a sweet flat black paint job. Maybe some pinstripping. Or maybe red.

I bet they'll still weigh 30 lbs, in their new, nearly naked, state.

I'll post some pics if I end up aquiring any.

Lil' Bling

The Opensprints has the great idea to put some LEDs on the wheels of the bikes for an event. There are all sorts of ways to do this. Simple, one light valve stem lights to full out, DIY, programmable setups. I am thinking about something in the middle of the road like the following. Some optional patterns and words but, no need to build or program anything. I've got enough on my plate at the moment. Cost seems pretty reasonable. ~$12. The question is whether they will fly off at high speeds or interfere with the senor pickups on the wheels.

I may just have to stick to good ol' pyrotechnics. ;)