Allen_Wrench
Resident Mad Scientist
I've learned a few things through building on the Huntington. I wanted to share somewhat hard-earned enlightenment with anybody here who wants to consider the Huntington as an MB platform.
One of the first things I learned is that the springer fork from Spookey Tooth will fit the Huntington headtube, being 1 inch diameter. Since other springers I saw were also a standard 1 inch dia., I imagine they would also fit. BUT: the front tube on the Huntington that accepts the springer headtube is SHORTER IN LENGTH than on most other bikes. If you trim the springer headtube too much, your spring mount (angle iron?) won't line up with the bolt that runs through the spring to the big U-shaped bracket out front. A spacer of the proper diameter and length is really the best option in this case, in addition to trimming the fork headtube only slightly. Measure as often as you need to, to be certain.
The downtube up front is bigger than the seatpost tube. The frame is steel but, for some reason, I just don't feel good about drilling the frame. You'll need a good aftermarket oversize-frame motor mount for in front. In the pics section, under the title "was a Huntington", you might be able to see my solution. I tend to overbuild things a tad. Mine is a four-bolt saddle shaped pipe clamp up front. It uses the standard ThatsDax motor clamp in back, which is itself overbuilt. Locknuts all 'round. The motor's going nowhere.
The top tube (often referred to as the "nutcracker") is oddly shaped, presenting a problem for mounting the tank. One idea is to get a cooler aftermarket tank or old motorcycle tank. Because the top tube's cross-section near the front/headtube is more that of a vertical oval and near the seat it is more of an horizontal oval, I decided to do some metal fabbing. I took a strip of thin brass and wrapped it around the top tube where the front tank bracket would go. Same for the rear bracket. These acted as templates to form heavier steel brackets that are big enough to wrap around the frame.
I am currently working on a braced chain guide. I will let you know how that goes.
One of the first things I learned is that the springer fork from Spookey Tooth will fit the Huntington headtube, being 1 inch diameter. Since other springers I saw were also a standard 1 inch dia., I imagine they would also fit. BUT: the front tube on the Huntington that accepts the springer headtube is SHORTER IN LENGTH than on most other bikes. If you trim the springer headtube too much, your spring mount (angle iron?) won't line up with the bolt that runs through the spring to the big U-shaped bracket out front. A spacer of the proper diameter and length is really the best option in this case, in addition to trimming the fork headtube only slightly. Measure as often as you need to, to be certain.
The downtube up front is bigger than the seatpost tube. The frame is steel but, for some reason, I just don't feel good about drilling the frame. You'll need a good aftermarket oversize-frame motor mount for in front. In the pics section, under the title "was a Huntington", you might be able to see my solution. I tend to overbuild things a tad. Mine is a four-bolt saddle shaped pipe clamp up front. It uses the standard ThatsDax motor clamp in back, which is itself overbuilt. Locknuts all 'round. The motor's going nowhere.
The top tube (often referred to as the "nutcracker") is oddly shaped, presenting a problem for mounting the tank. One idea is to get a cooler aftermarket tank or old motorcycle tank. Because the top tube's cross-section near the front/headtube is more that of a vertical oval and near the seat it is more of an horizontal oval, I decided to do some metal fabbing. I took a strip of thin brass and wrapped it around the top tube where the front tank bracket would go. Same for the rear bracket. These acted as templates to form heavier steel brackets that are big enough to wrap around the frame.
I am currently working on a braced chain guide. I will let you know how that goes.