The wheels should express the modern look. I like Quickspeed's, but they were only available in single-speed and I wanted gears for long rides, also over hills. On a stretchcruiser it isn't possible to stand up to get more power into the pedals. . I found Protos-Wheels , made by a German company, that produces wheels for sport-bikes. The construction is simple, like the Honda-motorbike-wheels from the 80s. The 3-spoke-part is only aluminium sheet, pressed in a form for stability. Both sheets are riveted together with an inner hub. These wheels were also used on Mercedes Benz Mountain bikes. The bearings are fantastic, you have the feeling that the rotation won't stop... . The wheels are constructed for the use of disc brakes, so I had to clamp adapters to the frame, because there was no possibility to mount the calipers. The advantage of the adapter on the front is the adjustability. I can use all kinds of diameters and then I mounted a big 245mm disc. . The tires are Schwalbe Super Moto 26x 2.35, very comfortable. 26x3 Tires weren't available then, perhaps now I will change the tires. That would look even better on the wheels. . The Shimano 8-gear derailleur is so wide that the dropouts needed to be modified. Thanks to my friend Chris for helping me. . For shifting there is a 3-speed Vista-Shifter from the seventies. I converted it to 8-speed. . Now to the accessories: . - Extremely wide German Fehling Drag-bar (motorcycle) . - Chain guard- 44 parts, built from two 3mm polished aluminium sheets and chrome-plated spacer pins . - CNC milled aluminium motorcycle - grips (2x left version/22mm), I added polished alu-caps to close the ends . - BMX bearing with aluminium sprocket that has thin teeth for thin Point-24-Gear-chromed chain . - Double motorbike-headlight: chrome with blue cover (Streetfighter Look) , converted with 2x LED and switch . - Iron Cross motorbike-taillight- aluminium chrome-plated, converted to 5 LED's . - Polished Sachs brake-levers, all cable mantles are chromed brass tubing . - Oversized saddle SDG Big Boy, with Camouflage pattern . - Suntour aluminium seatpost with parallelogram system . - Iron Cross mirrors aluminium chromed . - DK Iron Cross pedals aluminium (I am still not happy with the look) . - Masterlock Lock with frame holder (Handcuff Design), plus mobile alarm system with movement alarm unit . - All screws stainless steel polished . - Valve caps Iron Cross, at night alternatively LED valve caps with movement-detection . The Streetfighter is a very fast bike and rideable on nearly every terrain. I ride several days a week with it and would have many hundreds of miles on the speedo, if it had one. This bike was a start for me in kustomizing bicycles. That's a fine hobby. We visit many bike-meetings with family and friends. My favourite meeting until now is the yearly FBI-meeting in Amsterdam. I am writing an article about it, because meanwhile I even became an associate editor for BR&K for Europe. Thank you Jim Wilson and Marty (who pushed me to do that) for your trust. . At the moment I am working on three bikes. One of them is for CBN's Worldwide Bicycle Buildoff 3. On another bike I am testing my construction of a billet wheel where Shimano Nexus hubs can be used. The parts for the prototype are in production. Perhaps someday I will write an article about that on BR&K
|