So the building goes on. Did another mtb, then a 650B rando-commuter and now a geared bike for my 8 y/o daughter. Also some shop pics. My flat plate-style jig, drawing board, miter machine.
A couple of bikes, and some shop pics
MDEnvEngr
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Here the "jig"
Mostly a bunch of fitments that I made to allow me to build the front triangle on my surface plate. I then have another "jig" with an 8020 spine that I make the rear end on (no pic of that one yet). Set up is super easy, and alignment is based off the flattest thing I have. I tried a full 8020 jig and wasn't happy with the set up or the alignment. Tacking is a little complicated, with one side of the tubes so close to the table, but not too bad. This will work for a long time until I feel the need to step up to an Anvil. I am size-limited though.
Mostly a bunch of fitments that I made to allow me to build the front triangle on my surface plate. I then have another "jig" with an 8020 spine that I make the rear end on (no pic of that one yet). Set up is super easy, and alignment is based off the flattest thing I have. I tried a full 8020 jig and wasn't happy with the set up or the alignment. Tacking is a little complicated, with one side of the tubes so close to the table, but not too bad. This will work for a long time until I feel the need to step up to an Anvil. I am size-limited though.
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This winter's bikes
The process gets more refined each frame. This is #12,13 and part of 14 and the twin TT is 10 (I think) finally powder coated and in "testing". I have plans in my head for a bunch more. Time can be tight with the family and all...but the addiction is complete I'd say.
The process gets more refined each frame. This is #12,13 and part of 14 and the twin TT is 10 (I think) finally powder coated and in "testing". I have plans in my head for a bunch more. Time can be tight with the family and all...but the addiction is complete I'd say.
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Nice!
MD -
Really like the mitering setup and "fixture" - so many people get sucked into trying to get tools that are accurate to .001" or perfectly flat surface plates or whatever - it's a bike, not a satellite. You have made awesome use of the tools at your disposal and your bikes look great!
-Walt
MD -
Really like the mitering setup and "fixture" - so many people get sucked into trying to get tools that are accurate to .001" or perfectly flat surface plates or whatever - it's a bike, not a satellite. You have made awesome use of the tools at your disposal and your bikes look great!
-Walt
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All I can say is................dude! Wish you were my neighbor. Nice work and toys. :thumbsup:
Always like to see how the fellow grassroots folks develop a working shop. A couple of tooling questions for you:
1. How do you like the HF tubing roller? What sizes has it worked for? Did you use it on your twin tt frame?
2. I remember seeing a similar miter machine in Smoke Bike's workshop. Are they a homemade dealio, or can you buy this setup?
Thanks! and frames look great!
1. How do you like the HF tubing roller? What sizes has it worked for? Did you use it on your twin tt frame?
2. I remember seeing a similar miter machine in Smoke Bike's workshop. Are they a homemade dealio, or can you buy this setup?
Thanks! and frames look great!
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Thanks for the words, guys...
I have been meaning to get some shop pics on here for a little bit. I agree with Walt that many of us newbies get caught up in needing the tools the pros use. Jigs, in particular, are completely unnecessary for a hobbiest. I spoke with Doug Fattic last year about his flat plate fixture and really liked his approach. I would have purchased one, but determined that it wasn't the best for wierd geometry. The pieces you see are made to support my process. But, the process has to develop....and that takes a few frames. I'm working on #14 and the process is still developing. And I suspect will continue to do so for a while. I have recently built a fok jig out of 8020, and that works well. I made a rear-end jig to hold the front triangle in place while I fit and braze the chainstays. I did go the 8020 jig route in the beginning, but the jig setup was was too complicated. I didn't know enough about how to build a bike before I made the jig. Putting the cart before the horse.
Note that I'm not a frame school graduate, so this might be different if you are. I do have access to a really good builder, who is amazingly open with advice. But I built my first FSO before I went to his shop (as someone seeking advice, I jhad been there plenty of times drooling over his work).
Peter, I'll try to get some close ups of the fillets. Honestly, I'm proud of the fillets, but there is still plenty of room for improvement. I'm still getting my mind around you writing "brazing" and "sweet" in the same sentence!
The belt-miter machine is my own design. James M from Hawaii has a nice website with good pics and explainations of his belt miter machine. I used his for inspiration. The "rollers" (dies) are the hard part if you don't have access to a machine shop. The rear roller is a conveyor roller. The motor has an arbor chuck so that you can remove the shaft and replace the roller in about 2 minutes. I love this thing...it's my favorite tool. I rough-cut the miters with a hack saw, and finish on the belt. I can adjust the support table to whatever angle I need. The miters are always spot-on. With the little tube blocks that you can see in one of those pics (I got them from Alex Meade), I can miter both ends of the DT 90° out of phase perfectly and test fit in the "jig" without removing the blocks.
The HF roller is good. It's a tube roller...not so complicated. However, the dies it comes with are too big for frame tubes for the most part (they are useable, but they put a crease in the side of the tube...which can be looked at as a "feature"). They sell some square tube rollers pretty cheap that make great blanks for machining different sizes. I machined a "V" in the square tube rollers for the smaller tubes. This creased the tubes in the "V", so I wrapped some bailing wire in the base of the "V" to further support the tube. This did the trick and small dia thin tubing can be rolled easily.
Ummm...I think that's it.
Oh... the Caddy. We used to have a sweet '73 Thing. But then kid #3 came along. Squeeze points out we all can't fit into the Thing, so it should go (Doh!). But, then she says she'd like a big, giant Caddy. Yes, dear, the Thing is for sale. We sold the Thing, and purchased the Caddy and did all the work for even $$$. That project proceeded the framebuilding, and it was huge. We had to replace all of the floor, both of the rear fender arches, the front fender rockers. While we had it torn apart, we smoothed the trim on the sides and shaved the door handles. We did all of the body work and brought it to Maaco to paint. It came out nice for what it is: an ice cream run car. Here's a couple of pics.
Should you have any questions, give me q holler. As you can see, more than happy to e-chat.
B
I have been meaning to get some shop pics on here for a little bit. I agree with Walt that many of us newbies get caught up in needing the tools the pros use. Jigs, in particular, are completely unnecessary for a hobbiest. I spoke with Doug Fattic last year about his flat plate fixture and really liked his approach. I would have purchased one, but determined that it wasn't the best for wierd geometry. The pieces you see are made to support my process. But, the process has to develop....and that takes a few frames. I'm working on #14 and the process is still developing. And I suspect will continue to do so for a while. I have recently built a fok jig out of 8020, and that works well. I made a rear-end jig to hold the front triangle in place while I fit and braze the chainstays. I did go the 8020 jig route in the beginning, but the jig setup was was too complicated. I didn't know enough about how to build a bike before I made the jig. Putting the cart before the horse.
Note that I'm not a frame school graduate, so this might be different if you are. I do have access to a really good builder, who is amazingly open with advice. But I built my first FSO before I went to his shop (as someone seeking advice, I jhad been there plenty of times drooling over his work).
Peter, I'll try to get some close ups of the fillets. Honestly, I'm proud of the fillets, but there is still plenty of room for improvement. I'm still getting my mind around you writing "brazing" and "sweet" in the same sentence!
The belt-miter machine is my own design. James M from Hawaii has a nice website with good pics and explainations of his belt miter machine. I used his for inspiration. The "rollers" (dies) are the hard part if you don't have access to a machine shop. The rear roller is a conveyor roller. The motor has an arbor chuck so that you can remove the shaft and replace the roller in about 2 minutes. I love this thing...it's my favorite tool. I rough-cut the miters with a hack saw, and finish on the belt. I can adjust the support table to whatever angle I need. The miters are always spot-on. With the little tube blocks that you can see in one of those pics (I got them from Alex Meade), I can miter both ends of the DT 90° out of phase perfectly and test fit in the "jig" without removing the blocks.
The HF roller is good. It's a tube roller...not so complicated. However, the dies it comes with are too big for frame tubes for the most part (they are useable, but they put a crease in the side of the tube...which can be looked at as a "feature"). They sell some square tube rollers pretty cheap that make great blanks for machining different sizes. I machined a "V" in the square tube rollers for the smaller tubes. This creased the tubes in the "V", so I wrapped some bailing wire in the base of the "V" to further support the tube. This did the trick and small dia thin tubing can be rolled easily.
Ummm...I think that's it.
Oh... the Caddy. We used to have a sweet '73 Thing. But then kid #3 came along. Squeeze points out we all can't fit into the Thing, so it should go (Doh!). But, then she says she'd like a big, giant Caddy. Yes, dear, the Thing is for sale. We sold the Thing, and purchased the Caddy and did all the work for even $$$. That project proceeded the framebuilding, and it was huge. We had to replace all of the floor, both of the rear fender arches, the front fender rockers. While we had it torn apart, we smoothed the trim on the sides and shaved the door handles. We did all of the body work and brought it to Maaco to paint. It came out nice for what it is: an ice cream run car. Here's a couple of pics.
Should you have any questions, give me q holler. As you can see, more than happy to e-chat.
B
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