Darn stubby legs ...

Hi, I have a 26" Cruiser with a modified seat post, I cut the post at 40 degrees had it welded back together to make a right angle at 80 degrees, I also turned the seat post clamp upside down these mods move the seat back and a lot lower. I started at 90 degrees but the back of the seat was too low compared to the front. My Cruiser measures from the ground to seat at 30 inches. My neighbor's 7 year old lad can just touch the ground. I chose a Grubee Skyhawk gt-5 because my steel frame Cruiser has an oversize front down tube and the front motor bolted straight in, I just had to lengthen the rear mount and mounting studs. I hope this helps!

Spacey,
Your right about a grown man riding a 20" bike, It just aint right. I've been building bikes for almost four years now and the only bike that that looks even close to right is the 24" OCC. The problem with those is that the metal is way too thin throughout the entire bike. I've built about ten of them and have had to weld them back together more than I would like.
Just my opinion, Go with a 26" frame. You can chop it and lower it any way you want to get the LOW or lowrider look. With a 20 or 24" fork and a 24" wheel on back you could get it pretty low.
Anyway, Like I said, Just my opinion. Good luck with yer build.
Fatdaddy.

Don't need to weld, Mr. Woodworker, just chisel out one of these! The company that makes this one sells the bare frames for over $2,800, finished bikes are $3,500 and they seem to have no trouble selling them. Check out driftwoodcruisers.com. Whittle your own and have something really unique and sized to suit what you want to do. Google "wooden bicycles" and you'll see a lot of different versions.

What about something like this? Not too cheap and it looks like its carried at sears and kmart both.

24'' Micargi Pantera Men's Beach Cruiser - Buy Micargi Beach Cruiser Bikes Onli BikeBerry.com

Clothing, Toys, Electronics, Jewelry, Jaclyn Smith - Kmart.com

Sears: Online department store featuring appliances, tools, fitness equipment and more

Ive often thought of getting a 24" frame and putting a 26" fork on the front to give the bike more of a chopper look since it would be cheap.

That Micargi looks like it has plenty of room for a HT motor. Nice looking bike...
SB

spacey said:

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Mr. Fishguts,
Some stuff just don't look right made out of wood, tho a great job. By the time you soak that in resin, to keep it from checking apart , it must weigh a ton .
I know the first steam motorcycle was made of wood ( well the frame & wheels ), wonder if the first peddle bike was too ?
Nice try but Im tossing my line back in the water .... (sorry, couldn't resist )

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Their bikes weigh 30 pounds, complete. I've been building wooden boats and musical instruments for years so I'm well acquainted with wood laminate construction. Fir may be prone to checking, but quality hard woods won't with a decent finish that is maintained. Actually, left completely to the elements with no finish, many hardwoods still won't check. And maintaining a finish on a bicycle is sure a lot easier than on a Chris Craft. Like anything, build it right and take care of it and it will last forever.

DaveM said:

Hi, I have a 26" Cruiser with a modified seat post, I cut the post at 40 degrees had it welded back together to make a right angle at 80 degrees, I also turned the seat post clamp upside down these mods move the seat back and a lot lower. I started at 90 degrees but the back of the seat was too low compared to the front. My Cruiser measures from the ground to seat at 30 inches. My neighbor's 7 year old lad can just touch the ground. I chose a Grubee Skyhawk gt-5 because my steel frame Cruiser has an oversize front down tube and the front motor bolted straight in, I just had to lengthen the rear mount and mounting studs. I hope this helps!

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Question / help request from Measure Twice

Is there a picture to help me see what I might try doing the same?

Here to, since I have a banana seat to allow to be able to sit further back, then my legs are not strattling the motor as much, but this had me get handle bars that are long so I don't huch forward. Then I had found that if I use the banana seat I can't have it as low as a regular seat, due to the rear wheel underneath.

I may have to wear clogs

Hey Measure Twice,
Here are some pictures I hope they help. I took these with the flash I hope you can make them out. If you are using windows, save the pictures and in picture viewer you can magnify them to increase the size to see them better. You may already know this? I see others are able to post bigger pictures but I don't know how to do it. Maybe someone could help me?

I have a cut off saw so I was able to cut the 40 degree angle myself but I did get someone else to weld the seat post back together. The guy charged me $5 to TIG weld it, I was happy I thought that was cheap. This mod moved the seat back and lower also take note of the seat clamp it is up side down this way you get maybe another inch lower, it tucks the seat post right up into the seat. If you still need the seat lower the seat post clamp on the frame if you can easily see the weld you could grind this weld and you could move the clamp down re-weld and then be able to cut half an inch off the frame tube itself. Others may have better ideas to get the seat lower.

I remeasured my bike it is just over 29 inches from the ground to the seat.

Regards,
DaveM.

spacey said:

Hey thanks Dave,
I've been thinking about moving the seat back. I've seen some folks here have done that mod. I can't visualize the clamp flip , I think the clamp is welded to the tube, I'll have to check that out . Either way it prevents mounting a gas tank behind the seat, not a big deal but way easier then fabricating a tank for between the top rails. I have to go with a 50 cc or under to be legal here in the corn/bible belt . Right now I'm just trying to find the fastest way to get on the road, save all the heavy mods for the winter.

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I had the same trouble visualizing, but I asked and see he put up 3 pics. Novel idea.Thanks to all!

I have looked at my situation with the banana seat and if it goes too low at the seat posts I would have to slant the seat downward. I just thought having it level and just clearing the rear wheel will do for me. I have but not shown in my album of two pictures posted, an exhaust manifold that was to come out underneath the banana seat toward the back just above the rear wheel. You know thinking it would look cool. I know with the bend in the manifold it would cause a bit of back pressure robbing engine hp, but was going to do it anyway. Now I am probably going to run exhaust some other way and probably be fine with the about maybe an inch under the seat to clear the rear wheel. I am thinking that guards to prevent debris getting into the clearance space may be needed as it is for just off road. I would also think of a steel plate that attaches under the banana seat just in case.
No need to read on of a non-motor bike experience, but I think there is an analogy.
The safety ideas I felt necessary as from an experience in my car running over one of these eye bolts that trucks use to cable down loads. One just lying in the road when run over got under the driver side front wheel and skipped up and just at an angle right under the vehicle where the driver seat is. It had the threaded end of the foot and a half long bolt jam in a crevice under the vehicle and penetrate just through the outer metal shield and caulking between the outside of the floor board. At about 50mph the car, a Chevette, found a nick in the road to have the other end of the bolt jam into. The 45 degree angle allowed the forward movement of the car anchor as the best description I can give, lifted up the car just under where I was sitting just a few inches I suppose, but at an incredibly fast rate. I pulled over to the side of the road with sparks underneath with the bolt still intact. I pulled the thing out after it cooled. The caulking insulation was melting from the heat around where it stuck. Really there was not any damage to the vehicle, except slightly bent metal plates underneath vehicle where they fit together. But this experience got my attention to safety!

http://motorbicycling.com/members/measure-twice-albums-measure-twice-early-engine-carb-tank.html

The album above has just two pictures, I have long not quite ape hangers, (cause they ends of the handles don't bend down, just outwards), to enable me to sit futher back from the engine and still reach the handle bars

Measure Twice

Hi Spacey,

Back when I was at school I modified a seat post by bending it, the post ended up cracking at the bend. That's why this time I cut and welded the post instead of bending it. When I cut the angles for the seat post I also beveled the edges of the cuts slightly so the guy welding it could get a nice strong weld there.

Regards,
DaveM.