Saturday, April 3, 2010

Redline Rescue Update - Buying Parts

The Redline Rescue project is under way.  I started with 6 bikes and I have sold 5 of them.  All to people who love bikes.  Two even to the guys at Corvallis Cyclery who want to use them for Bike Polo mounts.  In going through them, I found that one is a 19" frame (the rest are 17").  So in the picture below, you see the "Before" picture.  The second photo is the Redline stripped down. 

What have I learned so far?  First, that it is easier to tear down that to build up.  Second, that I don't know much about how bikes are built. Let me illustrate, the goal of the Redline Rescue is to build a single speed as cheap as possible, but not with cheap parts.  What I've learned is that parts don't always go together.  For example, I ordered a new stem for $12 and a new wide bar for $7.  When both arrived, the stem is the 1.5" and the bar 1".  It was cheaper to get a second bar at $12, but it wasn't as wide as the first.  The fork arrived about 1" longer.  So the next lesson is head sets and spacers. I also picked up a new chain and a good friend gave me a set of disk brakes after cleaning out his garage.  Finally, I picked up a set of SPD pedals from eBay, but they turned out to be older and with cleat access on one side.  I didn't know they made those and it wasn't clear in the description (so I'm still learning).  I'll keep you posted.

Before


Frame Only