yet another cran adventure

okay, so it's been a four month build, on and off. started on a whim of an idea i'd seen years ago, and it's grown a lot from there. as everyone who has started with this bike for a first build would say, "i wish i could start over". it's been a mess, but quite a learning experience. next time will be a lot less sloppy, that's for sure! regardless, i am oh so happy with all that i've learned in the process. being in my mid 20's i find it sad i've never owned anything with an engine before. living in a small city with great public transportation, it's never been on my mind. not that i will ever rely on my bike for daily transportation, it's still OH SO F---ING FUN!

start:

-"walmart special" huffy cranbrook
-ebay buy of 80cc kit from "daemon bikes" (canada)
-ebay 6v light kit from "boy goes fast"
(both fantastic with shipping!)

build:

bike was initially the blue and creme cranny. the day i brought the bike home i dismantled it, stripped all the stickers off, hung all the parts in my basement, and painted it. this was a week before the engine kit showed up. of course i had no idea what i was doing and was very fortunate my kit came with a universal engine mount for larger tubed frames. i did the frame in flat black and did the rims and initially the fenders in silver. was hoping to go with a low-key rat rod kind of look.

initial issues:

-coaster brake: disassembled it when i deemed it impossible to use with the engine sprocket (though i guess a lot of people still manage this). after pedaling around a few blocks like that the hub locked up and kicked me off the bike. so i bought a new rim with 12g spokes and a free wheel by shimano.

-rear sprocket: did not know this is supposed to be REALLY tight. reaaaaally tight.

-kill switch/white wire: neither works, and were my biggest problems with getting the bike started the first time. a local guy who builds them figured this out for me and got the bike running.

run-in problems:

-carb: the stock carb worked really great at first. maybe the first 20 miles, top speed close to thirty. but then something went wrong. engine rev'd real high and then stalled out. if i'd let it sit for awhile and start it, it'd go fine a block or two, and then rev and die. at first thought maybe it was my poor oil mixing skills. turned out (only recently figured this out) to be a hairline crack in the carb. not positive how it got there, but my hunch involves a whole other stupid short story.

-carb2: ordered a CNSv2 carb, took a lot of tweaking to get the bike started the first time. ran "best" on the 2nd from bottom needle clip. maxed out at 15mph, not even half throttle. bogged down no matter how i had everything adjusted. when it comes to "jetting" a carb the first time, i am not ready for it.

-carb3: just installed today, is the RT (delorto clone?) from Dax. this thing is absolutely amazing. runs 100% better than the stock carb did at first. with less than 2 hours of break in on this carb i've certainly beat my top speed by a long shot. the bike finally feels ALIVE. takes a minute after starting for the engine to warm up and be good to go. assuming this will go away after it's broken in.

customization:

-added speedometer
-added rear bike rack
-flipped the bars after being inspired by many builds on this site!
-added headlight/taillight kit from boy goes fast.
(not having the functioning white wire i planned on using, i needed to improvise)

lights:
using an older 9.6v craftsman drill, i cut off the handle, rewired it, and added switches to use the battery to power my 6v headlight/taillight.
turns out, that burns out light bulbs quickly. ordered some makita 9.6v light bulbs as craftsman never made a flashlight for their 9.6v series.

seat:

hated the old-man style huffy seat, while comfortable, not stylish.
ordered a giant springer seat off ebay (did not realize how big it was til it arrived).
copied Flatblack's style and used some cast iron piping and ingenuity to create a laid-back seat post. while not perfected yet, it's working pretty well to get me an extra 5 or so inches from the bars.

still working on:

-bought a 5.56mm ammo crate from the army navy store. drilled it and attached it to to the rear rack before i had the giant seat. ran my wires and battery pack into it with switches for the lights. had to remove it to fit the seat, and plan on re-installing it on the side of the rack this weekend.

-bought some well used older steel pedals at a bike shop, removed the reflectors and painted the pedals silver. don't have a wrench strong enough to remove the current ****ty plastic pedals, but it'll happen soon!

more to come:

-front rim with drum brake (26" FRONT WHEEL WITH DRUM BRAKE HUB: Husky Bicycles)
-red/brown brick 2.25 tires
-analog speedometer
-small half gallon motorcycle gas tank. found one in auburn for sale, but couldn't find a petcock with smaller threading to fit it.
-would like to install a springer fork, but not sure what it means to be "threaded/unthreaded" and how to find what i need. (help??)

EDIT: i left out many many details and hiccups. but the main points are here. any questions, just ask!!

build photos:

thanks Droc. with enough patience and creativity you can do anything!

just finished reinstalling my ammo can and rewiring the lights. woo!

UPDATE: parking this outside the restaurant i work at every night has turned out to be a hassle. it's a busy street downtown, so i lock it up directly outside the window where i am doing prep work all night, to keep an eye on it. i repeatedly have to knock on the window to tell people to stop touching the bike. i've seen people turn the throttle, touch the brakes, squeeze the tires, try to sit on it, ALMOST open the ammo crate i have on back, AND one guy even opened the gas cap!! what on earth? do people have no respect anymore? i've also had quite a few people after realizing it's my bike, come into the restaurant to ask me questions. freaking ridiculous! i'm thinking of making up a sign tomorrow afternoon that explains the bike, not to touch it, and hey, you can buy it for a grand! although i wouldn't sell it until i could: keep the seat locked in place, upgrade the battery system, switch the tires for brown bricks/balloons, and of course the brake! (still waiting on funds to get a sturmey archer drum brake and new front rim!)

speaking of which, with my shotty braking as-of-currently, i almost died the other night. coming down a slight hill intersecting with a busy street, the bolt holding the brake onto the frame snapped in half. only had about 20 feet before the stop sign, and was stupidly wearing flip flops. my only option was either eat it into the curb, or upon quick judgement, blast through the intersection and turn into a parking lot. missed the back end of a car by about 4 feet. -phew- sat and reflected on my life, then went home (uphill from there) and found a heavier duty bolt. but still, took that as a sign to not be out riding at midnight, maybe.