Started my winter project this weekend. The bike is from Amazon, they call it a Shorewood but it is essentially the same as a Moondog. The chopper forks came from ChoppersUS (long wait but worth it). Had my son weld the front extension on and will have him beef it up a bit more but thought id start test fitting things together. I am planning on using a HT66 with pull start, wide crank and a jack-shaft to an 8sp rear hub. For brakes it'll have a drum brake on front and a disc on the rear. The tank will end up being a custom shape made similar to the way Tom made his Cpt. America tank. Still trying to decide on what color.
Shorewood Chopper
- Thread starter Geezer
- Start date
Always was a fan of those forks...lookin good.You migh not want to go all the way up to a 8spd.You will be skipping gears when you shift.I would say a 5 spd is all ya need.But if you are pedaling alot maybe you want an 8 spd.Just something to think about.
Geezer,
Ya jus gotta do the 'Billy Bike'. The one Hopper rode in Easy Rider. It was orange with a flamed tank. I recently had a major computer melt down and lost all my photos of it but it shouldn't be hard to find some pictures of it. That's a great looking frame and fork. I wish my switchblade had that profile.
Keep us posted on this build. I'll be watching closely.
If you've never ridden a chopper with that much rake you'll have a challenge at first but after you get used to it you'll never want to ride a standard frame bike again. Super comfy on the open road. Not much of a trail bike though
Good luck.
Tom
Ya jus gotta do the 'Billy Bike'. The one Hopper rode in Easy Rider. It was orange with a flamed tank. I recently had a major computer melt down and lost all my photos of it but it shouldn't be hard to find some pictures of it. That's a great looking frame and fork. I wish my switchblade had that profile.
Keep us posted on this build. I'll be watching closely.
If you've never ridden a chopper with that much rake you'll have a challenge at first but after you get used to it you'll never want to ride a standard frame bike again. Super comfy on the open road. Not much of a trail bike though
Good luck.
Tom
Thanks guys... I keep saying this is going to be my last one but I don't think i've convinced my self of that, let alone anyone i've said it to.
MM - My thoughts on using an 8spd is I figure I probably wont be able to get to the highest 2 or 3 gears due to the rear tire being a 3.0 ...so that would leave me 5 or 6 actual gears.
Tom - I absolutelly know the bike you're talkin about and I truly appreciate your thoughts/suggestions but I think you should still build that bike, so that you have the matching set. Besides this thing is way too long (5'5" axle to axle) to be the Billy Bike... his wasn't raked out nearly as far Fondas & the two should be proportional and ridden together. I do think the shorter version of these forks would be perfect for it when YOU do get around to building it thou.
...As for riding the thing, I'm sure it'll be different (promise i'll stay off the trails) but thats one of the things i love about building these things ...they all seem to have their own personality.
MM - My thoughts on using an 8spd is I figure I probably wont be able to get to the highest 2 or 3 gears due to the rear tire being a 3.0 ...so that would leave me 5 or 6 actual gears.
Tom - I absolutelly know the bike you're talkin about and I truly appreciate your thoughts/suggestions but I think you should still build that bike, so that you have the matching set. Besides this thing is way too long (5'5" axle to axle) to be the Billy Bike... his wasn't raked out nearly as far Fondas & the two should be proportional and ridden together. I do think the shorter version of these forks would be perfect for it when YOU do get around to building it thou.
...As for riding the thing, I'm sure it'll be different (promise i'll stay off the trails) but thats one of the things i love about building these things ...they all seem to have their own personality.
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great thinking, use the peanut tank and place inside a form, add fiberglass and viola! a custom tank ..
Geez,
That's looking great! See? I didn't think of building a tank shaped box. Mine came out of the form a huge cube that I had to shape from scratch. You had far less foam to carve and not near as much waste. Good thinking
What did you use as a release agent? I used wax. I melted it and painted the inside of the form while the wax was still liquid. The foam came out okay but stuck in a couple of places. If I do it again I'll make sure the wax covers better.
After our PM last week I have been exploring some other options for my next tank but I really like your idea. Are you planning to use epoxy or polyester resin? I did mine last year in my garage but the wife complained about running the garage heater so much. I found some part II hardener that was made to work in colder temperatures. It set up just fine at 50 degrees. The epoxy resin doesn't smell as much as the poly; just a suggestion.
Tom
That's looking great! See? I didn't think of building a tank shaped box. Mine came out of the form a huge cube that I had to shape from scratch. You had far less foam to carve and not near as much waste. Good thinking
What did you use as a release agent? I used wax. I melted it and painted the inside of the form while the wax was still liquid. The foam came out okay but stuck in a couple of places. If I do it again I'll make sure the wax covers better.
After our PM last week I have been exploring some other options for my next tank but I really like your idea. Are you planning to use epoxy or polyester resin? I did mine last year in my garage but the wife complained about running the garage heater so much. I found some part II hardener that was made to work in colder temperatures. It set up just fine at 50 degrees. The epoxy resin doesn't smell as much as the poly; just a suggestion.
Tom
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i used PAM cooking spray as a releasing agent and as you can see in that 2nd pic it worked better in some places than others. Tom, I'm ready to apply the fiberglass and was wondering what brand of hardner you used... the stuff that works in cooler temps?
..........nevermind, i found a picture of it in your Cpt. America thread
..........nevermind, i found a picture of it in your Cpt. America thread
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Geeze,
The West Systems products are good but not cheap. That hardener is good down to 40 degrees but it takes some getting used to. It stays liquid for quite a while then suddenly 'kicks' and it can't be worked anymore. I'd test a small mix to see how it reacts and to get an idea of how much working time you get.
Keep us posted. I'm really interested in watching this build.
Tom
The West Systems products are good but not cheap. That hardener is good down to 40 degrees but it takes some getting used to. It stays liquid for quite a while then suddenly 'kicks' and it can't be worked anymore. I'd test a small mix to see how it reacts and to get an idea of how much working time you get.
Keep us posted. I'm really interested in watching this build.
Tom
this is gonna be a great looking bike keep it up , go with the 8 speed , I have that very same set up , but go with the sbp hd jack shaft kit , I use every gear on mine .
stretch's with massive rake ride so good , but dont corner so well .
love that tank work .
Gary
stretch's with massive rake ride so good , but dont corner so well .
love that tank work .
Gary
