Sunday, November 8, 2009

"Riding For Fun" Season

The need to ride for conditioning is over for me, so I can ride more of my non-traditional bikes now, for the hell of it! And spend time building up bikes out of junkers! Here is an old Huffy Shadow that I started farting around with. It served first as a wheel trueing exercise. The back was a little out, but the front was a mess. So I loosened all of the spokes, tightened until the wobbles were out, then snugged up the rest. So far it's holding, but hasn't had any real cruising on it yet.
I think I like the drop bars better than the drag bars, not sure though. It will also have a 6 speed shifter on the right seat stay, another bolt for the relocated seat post, (gotta get it back and low for the ratty look) and the seat post blacked out. This will be a great bike for cruising to Kum & Go for a pop, or hitting the High Trestle Trail with the boys. Might even get brakes later:)
Here's a brain teaser for you. I was making my Diamond Back poor man's niner into a monster cross setup and found these little spheres somewhere in a metal tube. At first I was stumped as to what they were. Then I cut the round one in half and it became clear. Strange I never heard them rolling around in there until I started the teardown. We'll see how the monsterizing ends up, could be a rideable bike for Jinglecross? More to come on that later. Any idea what these are, and which metal tube they came out of?

10 comments:

Speedblend guy said...

The old Huffy Shadow looks like a beater extraordinaire! Ride the wheels off it!

The egg shaped and round pellets looks like turds. I can only guess at which metal tube they came from

MrDaveyGie said...

I like that bike, would be a sweet town cruiser. Are them martian eggs?

Travel Gravel said...

While the pellets are completely organic, they are in fact NOT human or animal waste. Also, not from the seat tube, ouch! The Drop Shadow will be getting a truss-type tube for the center of the front triangle, with a metal or wood panel inside of it and the top tube. I'm thinking barn board with a Rat-Fink character? Wood-burned flames? Later guys!

Speedblend guy said...

I give up. Spider eggs? Mud? Wasp nests? Did they come out of the top tube?

Travel Gravel said...

Can't reveal yet. Have to give Blue a fair shot at it too. Horizontal tube. Time will tell. Later! Not out of a bottom bracket shell!

Jean said...

petrified chocolate

Travel Gravel said...

I would have eaten any food near my bike, you should know that!

bluecolnago said...

i like the bike! reminds me of the things we used to do as kids, though we didn't have the pimpin' tires.

i'm totally stumped as to the "objects" you found inside the bike. did they come from the factory?

bluecolnago said...

they kinda look like mudballs....

Travel Gravel said...

They are indeed mud balls. I figure the person who had the bike before me must have let the bar plugs fall out, and then set the bike down (or let it fall) in the grass and plugged the end with dirt. Somewhere along the line they put bar ends and plugs back in. The spheres are very dense and smoothly polished. I swear I never heard them rolling around in all of the miles I rode on that bike. But then, most of those miles were good crunchy gravel!