[sandmangts]

I recently picked up this 41 Elgin. The craigslist ad had a small fuzzy picture but the price was low so I went to have a look. This bike had surely seen better days and was sitting on 2 flats starting to rust away. I was immediately taken by the smooth lines of the frame, I had to have it. To my wifes dismay I brought it home, another worthy project. After 8 months of toil and eventual triumph with my last project I was looking for the next challenge. I longed for that sense of pride and accomplishment that came with the first pedal stroke sitting on my 1936 Mercury.

This old girl is rough but the frame is straight and the major parts are good. The paint, saddle, wheels and tires are not original so I won't feel bad about repainting and changing the build a bit. I love my Mercury. I have been riding it daily for almost 2 months commuting to work and it has performed nicely but the fusion of modern parts with the old frame made for a massively complicated and difficult build. With this bike I plan to use as many of the old parts as possible with a "keep it simple" build philosophy.

Here is how it looked when I purchased it about a month ago.

Here it is stripped down with some fresh chrome.

Proposed build:
Skip tooth bomber
Morrow coaster rear hub
Sturmey (or similar vintage) front drum
Mirror polished Araya 7x rims
Brooks b-72 saddle
Suntour XC-2 pedals.
And all the chrome I can throw at it.

 

[mechagouki]

You sped far too much time in front of your buffing wheel!

Looking forward to seeing this one done - beautiful frame.

 

[MendonCycleSmith]

Yeah, I opened this expecting another cruiser frame, not that that's bad thing.

What I saw, had lines and brazing that made it, you know, move a little....

 

[halaburt]

What are the TWO I.S.D.T. Levers for?

 

[sandmangts]

What are the TWO I.S.D.T. Levers for?

They won't go on this bike but they are so cool I just wanted to take a picture of them.I will need one lever for the front drum but this pair is so nice I don't want to break them up, plus they don't really fit in with this build. I traded Fatmikeynyc a pair of XT pedals for them. I also got a nice pair of Araya 7x rims from Tim (Aemmer) that I am in the process of hand polishing. I am gonna have black goop under my fingernails for weeks.

 

[sandmangts]

Got lucky today and scored some nice parts. I was taking my boy to the park and spotted an estate sale. Got a really nice Sachs front drum, Flite Ti saddle, Extralite post, some suntour hubs and a cassette and a really nice cro-mo cruiser bar. It is almost exactly like the Skull Skates bar I put on my Mercury. All I need now is a nice old school saddle and a BMX stem.

 

[jeff]

You cashing in on some karma? Good score.

 

[tductape]

Nice score.

 

[sandmangts]

Rounded up a few more parts. Still looking for the right saddle and one brake lever. I am going to try my hand at building wheels for the first time with the guidance of my friend and shop owner. The bike has kind of taken a path that was not what I planned in the beginning but I am pretty excited to see how it will end up. My hands are frickin killing me.Hey Tim, do these rims look familiar?

 

[sandmangts]

Moving right along. The paint came out really nice.

 

[J_Westy]

Lookin' great A-

That chrome is really going to pop!

 

[sandmangts]

Lookin' great A-

That chrome is really going to pop!

Oh yeah, it is popping. This bike is really all about the look, I doubt it will ever see any off road use. I have my Mercury for that. it is just for family rides around the bay and hauling the kid in style. I take almost as much pleasure from the builds as I do from the rides. Made a little more progress today.

 

[gm1230126]

did you have those parts plated and if so by whom?

 

[sandmangts]

did you have those parts plated and if so by whom?

Many of the parts were re-plated by DMF of Escondido CA. They do killer work. The truss rods, cranks, stem, and hub were re-plated. https://www.decometalfinishing.com/ Soaking the old chain in vinegar worked wonders.

 

[slickscustoms]

that bike is gonna be sweet! i love old cruisers

 

[sandmangts]

I finally made some progress.

 

[rev106]

Looking good!

 

[sandmangts]

All I need are some pedals. I will most likely get a new saddle but I kinda like the old one on there. I may also put some cruiser tires on it.

 

[rev106]

I'd be sure to treat the seat to some saddle soap, letting it get some moisture back in it or it could tear. Just been there before.

 

[sandmangts]

I'd be sure to treat the seat to some saddle soap, letting it get some moisture back in it or it could tear. Just been there before.

Yeah it is pretty much toast, nice and crispy. I won't be using it, I just put it on so I could throw a leg over the bike to see how it felt. Hopefully I will have a nice Brooks on the way in a few days.