Firebird, Silverbear's Worksman Cruiser
- Thread starter silverbear
- Start date
Thanks for the nice comments you guys. Yeah, we're like a couple kids having a good time with this project. Steve has to get going on his cross country trip pretty soon and wanted to see it basically come together before seeing his son in New Hampshire and then heading up to Prince Edward Island off the coast of Canada for a look around. He may pass this way on his way back in another month or six weeks on his way back to Vancouver to see how things turned out with the sidecar and bike all done. It is a neat thing to work on a project with somebody interested in the same stuff. I learn from lots of people and am always open to something new.
SIDECAR UPDATE
I held a piece of scrap 3/4" plywood against the stern while Steve scribed a line which he then cut out with the jig saw. While he was doing that I finished cleaning up the frame and primed it. As the day progressed it got a couple coats of rattle can black and now doesn't look like something which survived a fire. Steve used pan head screws to fix the aluminum sides to the plywood stern piece and with that done the C clamps and board on top were no longer necessary...
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SIDECAR UPDATE
I held a piece of scrap 3/4" plywood against the stern while Steve scribed a line which he then cut out with the jig saw. While he was doing that I finished cleaning up the frame and primed it. As the day progressed it got a couple coats of rattle can black and now doesn't look like something which survived a fire. Steve used pan head screws to fix the aluminum sides to the plywood stern piece and with that done the C clamps and board on top were no longer necessary...
(cont.)
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I forgot to mention that Steve made an aluminum patch for the open space at the bow as shown in the fourth photo above in the previous post. While he was doing that I removed a section of the canoe side and floor from the remains cut off from the sidecar. With this piece we would make the skin to cover the plywood stern. We left the gunnel intact to match up with the gunnels at each side of the sidecar. I cut the gunnel and floor ribbing with a hacksaw and from there used the jigsaw with a metal cutting blade. Steve took over with the donor section and soon realized it did not want to flatten out. Our guess is that when the aluminum canoe was made it was put into some kind of oven to set the aluminum in it's new shape, something like what is done with aluminum bodied cars. While he fought the aluminum I cut down part of the bow deck so that it could sit flat on the bow again.
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Steve cut off the little excess from the sides extending beyond the edge of the plywood at the stern so that it was all flush and then clamped the still bowed piece of aluminum for the stern skin. We're figuring tomorrow to heat it up with a propane torch to see if we can relieve some of the tension, allowing it to lay flatter. Screws should draw it in by themselves, but it would be better if the piece was flat to begin with. I attached a middleweight 26" wheel just to see how things will look and think I will try to stay with a 26" rim and balloon tire. I like the way it looks with a bigger wheel. The kiddie trailer origin of this frame is disappearing as we go. The original position of the stock 20" wheel was further back on the frame and is now centered allowing for a bigger wheel. That is why I like the frame on this particular Instep model. I will be on the lookout for another for the next sidecar using the rest of the canoe. I'm satisfied that we have come up with a good way of converting an aluminum canoe into a sidecar. I don't know how else one would do it. Steve and I were talking and he thinks it would be just as easy to convert a fiberglass canoe into a sidecar, doing basically the same thing... cutting out the keel and overlapping the sides, joining them together with fiberglass and grinding things down to the final shape underneath. If you want more on how to do this I would suggest contacting fasteddy with a PM.
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I was figuring on making a little dashboard to fit under the bow deck and was looking at the "Indian" speedometer trying it this way and that and realized I like it best on top of the little deck as it draws attention to it there whereas it is lost under the little deck. Steve agreed, so tomorrow I'll get the deck trimmed and riveted in place and will drill out the hole for the gauge. Perhaps tomorrow, and if not then sometime soon will sand down and clean up the rusted backing on the gauge and give it a new coat of paint. I like it. A few days ago I ordered the miniature Indian logo water decal which will go on the face of the gauge where it now says something about heat. I'll either paint or otherwise cover over that and in it's place the decal will go. No, it will never work as a speedometer which I don't need anyway. I know how fast I'll be going with a sidecar... not very. It is just for looks and to further establish that it may look like a canoe, but it is really an old sidecar. Where there used to be a flotation cavity under the bow deck, I may build in a hinged cover so that there can be a small stowage area there for a few tools, maybe some extra mixed gas and a large roll of hundred dollar bills. (kidding). At the stern the upholstered seat will fit right up against the stern piece and a bit above the gunnel line. Black elk hide. Gray carpet on the floor. No windscreen. So by day's end the skin will be cleaned up some, especially at the bow end where there is old glue from registration stickers, the body will be connected to the frame with two U bolts up front and two in back, the stern skin will be in place and Steve's work will be pretty much done on my project. As time permits I'll return to it for the upholstery work and figure out the front arm attachment to the bike frame which I have some ideas on but can't do anything with until the bike is further along. After tomorrow the focus will shift over to the Worksman. With that, good night.
SB
SB
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very cool thread 
all the pics and walk-thru of the project make for an excellent read
good to see friends working together as well
all the pics and walk-thru of the project make for an excellent read
good to see friends working together as well
Thanks for the nice comments you guys. Sam, yes I like the photo, very cool, and I hope you're enjoying being in California. Tyreslider, yes that is the same tank I made before to the Worksman frame dimensions you gave me last winter... so you see you are part of this build, too. Steve and I were talking this morning about how neat it is having this thread and this forum with this great community of like minded people... feeling like you guys are kind of looking over our shoulders a bit as we work, curious about what the Lone Ranger and Tonto are up to. The sidecar has been a very gratifying 'side' project which has turned out better than I anticipated. When the time comes to do a second one it will go quicker and easier than the first, but I expect will be made in much the same way. I don't know at this point how to improve on it, but maybe after it has been joined to the bike and has some miles on it something will need tweaking. Just looking at it sitting there on the frame with a wheel next to it is satisfying. By the end of the day when tools were put away, after a swim with a bar of soap in the lake, a dinner of red beans and rice with a cold can of beer, we sat outside looking at it. The sun had set and a full moon was rising above the tree line when Steve said, "that little thing is so sweet it's like homemade candy". And it is.
CANOE SIDECAR BODY FINISHED
While Steve worked over the stern skin piece with a propane torch and heated, pounded with a rubber mallet, bent and otherwise convinced the panel to flatten out, I worked over the bow "deck' piece, cutting the overlap with tin snips, drilling new holes and pop riveting it to the canoe. Steve then drilled holes in the stern skin and fixed it to the wooden stern piece with pan head screws. He allowed for overlap with the idea of attaching the skin first and then trimming off the excess after.
cont.)
CANOE SIDECAR BODY FINISHED
While Steve worked over the stern skin piece with a propane torch and heated, pounded with a rubber mallet, bent and otherwise convinced the panel to flatten out, I worked over the bow "deck' piece, cutting the overlap with tin snips, drilling new holes and pop riveting it to the canoe. Steve then drilled holes in the stern skin and fixed it to the wooden stern piece with pan head screws. He allowed for overlap with the idea of attaching the skin first and then trimming off the excess after.
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I'll continue this in the morning since my satellite internet connection is dropping and I'm nodding off to sleep anyway. A couple more sets of pictures will follow tomorrow. G'night.
SB
SB
Very nice man! its looking great!
yes i am loving cali to much.. picked this up- free!
ok- back on topic
Yes, back to our regular programming... where was I?
Steve got the stern skin attached with pan head screws and made cuts with the tin snips to rmove most of the excess sticking our beyond the sides of the canoe/sidecar. Then he ground it down with the angle grinder and finished off with a bastard file (I always felt a little funny about calling it that, but that's what they're called. Sam, I was not cussing). The final filing was partly to finish it off visually, but mostly to avoid any burs or sharp edges which could result in a cut.
Steve got the stern skin attached with pan head screws and made cuts with the tin snips to rmove most of the excess sticking our beyond the sides of the canoe/sidecar. Then he ground it down with the angle grinder and finished off with a bastard file (I always felt a little funny about calling it that, but that's what they're called. Sam, I was not cussing). The final filing was partly to finish it off visually, but mostly to avoid any burs or sharp edges which could result in a cut.
oops, hit the wrong thing and skipped the photos... try again...
As I was saying, Steve filed the edges smooth and then made two little corner pieces where the gunnels intersected the stern. He cut squares from a piece of scrap aluminum flat bar of about the same thickness and then cut a curved decorative line to dress it up a bit. Looks good. In the mean time I had cleaned up the old glue from registration stickers with a little zip strip and fine steel wool. While doing that I realized how nicely the old aluminum was cleaning up and even came out with a bit of shine. I like shiny, being part raccoon, so when I go to town later today will stop in at the grocery for a small container of Murphy's Oil Soap, a liquid which helps to clean up oxidized aluminum. I learned about that from the Spartan trailer site... a problem with old travel trailers is oxidation and rust runs from old steel screws and such. I had used it before to good effect so for a small project like this it will be just right. A bucket of warm water with some of the Murphys soap mixed in and some elbow grease scrubbing the skin clean with very fine steel wool will clean it up nicely.
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As I was saying, Steve filed the edges smooth and then made two little corner pieces where the gunnels intersected the stern. He cut squares from a piece of scrap aluminum flat bar of about the same thickness and then cut a curved decorative line to dress it up a bit. Looks good. In the mean time I had cleaned up the old glue from registration stickers with a little zip strip and fine steel wool. While doing that I realized how nicely the old aluminum was cleaning up and even came out with a bit of shine. I like shiny, being part raccoon, so when I go to town later today will stop in at the grocery for a small container of Murphy's Oil Soap, a liquid which helps to clean up oxidized aluminum. I learned about that from the Spartan trailer site... a problem with old travel trailers is oxidation and rust runs from old steel screws and such. I had used it before to good effect so for a small project like this it will be just right. A bucket of warm water with some of the Murphys soap mixed in and some elbow grease scrubbing the skin clean with very fine steel wool will clean it up nicely.
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Steve filled the remaining bolt holes with the original bolts and nuts which had held on thwarts and such as a final finishing touch and with that the sidecar body is done. The bow looks so much better without the old glue stuck on there and you can see how nicely it shines up with a bit of fine steel wool. This doesn't remove deep scratches and there are still dents here and there and everywhere from countless miles of use in it's former incarnation as a canoe, but cleaned up it looks like a million bucks. Or a thousand at least. And this was the worst end of the canoe with substantial dents. When I make another it will be made the same, but that will come much later, perhaps not until next summer. I'm trying to figure what is invested in money so far. The canoe cost $20.00, so half of that is $10.00. Rivets cost around $8.00. Soap and steel wool will cost maybe $5.00 worth since much will be left over. Gauge was free from the dump. A decal for the gauge was $3.50 plus shipping for a pair. The stern decal will be around $7.50 with shipping. Floor carpet is scraps of indoor outdoor I had. Seat materials will be salvaged from something or other I have and the leather panels are from a couch and are free. A can of primer and finish coat for the frame is another $5.00... cheap stuff. U bolts I had. The frame was free from the dump and that's it. Around $50.00 has gone into it. If there's something I haven't thought of or will need to get at the hardware it won't be much, maybe $10.00 if that. So call it $60.00 in money and days worth of labor. If your labor is free as mine always is, then it is a pretty cheap project.
We still have to bolt it to the frame, I will still have upholstery to do later on and a seat to make. The dummy speedometer has yet to be gone over and mounted. The rear Indian decal is not even ordered yet. A storage area in the bow with a hinged, locking lid will come later as well. Still, I call the body finished and a job well done. Thank you fasteddy, or in this case, "sidecar steve". He worked steady and hard with good result. Later today I'll roll out the Worksman next to the frame with the canoe on it to get an idea how things will look and what size wheel I can use. 26" if possible in a balloon tire to match the bike will look good. I've decided against the electric pancake motor wheel for this sidecar as it would not look right with an old looking bike and the "Indian" theme.
Next in line is the Worksman part of this project and I can hardly wait to get going on it. Woo hoo!
SB
We still have to bolt it to the frame, I will still have upholstery to do later on and a seat to make. The dummy speedometer has yet to be gone over and mounted. The rear Indian decal is not even ordered yet. A storage area in the bow with a hinged, locking lid will come later as well. Still, I call the body finished and a job well done. Thank you fasteddy, or in this case, "sidecar steve". He worked steady and hard with good result. Later today I'll roll out the Worksman next to the frame with the canoe on it to get an idea how things will look and what size wheel I can use. 26" if possible in a balloon tire to match the bike will look good. I've decided against the electric pancake motor wheel for this sidecar as it would not look right with an old looking bike and the "Indian" theme.
Next in line is the Worksman part of this project and I can hardly wait to get going on it. Woo hoo!
SB
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Below are photos of the sidecar just sitting on the carriage frame. It is yet to be bolted on and the frame is going to first get sectioned so that it isn't so wide... this will draw the sidecar in to the bike and make it both look better and handle better. Moosh is going to get a little leather helmet eventually with goggles attached and a little strap under her chin. Should be fun making it. The green plastic will go and be replaced with black elk hide... I'll just use the clear lenses from these swim goggles effectively making a set of neat leather Aaniimoosh doggles. The bike has a lot of work left, figuring out the mounts for a rear drop stand, repainting the frame a cream color much like the wheels, mounting the black engine, leather gas tank and headlights, black fenders and jewel lights, finding a different goose neck. Probably it won't be done until the end of August, but it will be different and an eye catcher. With the canoe it will help to sell bikes and maybe motors someday when I grow up. At least that is the plan. In a canoe town a canoe sidecar should be of interest. Tomorrow I hope to get the frame sectioned and will show you the mounts for joining it to the Worksman. I will also share what I think is a great idea for the rear drop stand mounts which involves no welding and could work on any vintage bike... I'm pretty excited about it. Not much work got done today, but a good deal of creative staring was done and talking over options. We determined for one thing that a 20 inch wheel is the right size. 26" sets the sidecar way to high and the 24" is still too high. Goldilocks would say the 20" is jes right.
SB
SB
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Hey Curtis,
The tires are Electra and I got them from Amazon. Very nice tires and if I remember right they were sixty some dollars for the pair with free shipping. Plus, they came in a box in the shape they were meant to have. I've gotten tires before which are all folded up and a real pain to mount. It's a good value and Amazon has a lot of tires... scores of pages of tires, but poorly organized so it is time consuming to see what they have. You can't just look at 26" 2.125 tires or narrow it down to cream colored ones. So pack a lunch for before searching. That is my only complaint about Amazon. You can narrow it down to tires by Electra and that helps. I am not looking forward to searching for a 20" 2.125 cream colored tire to match the bike tires, but finding one will be worth it.
Yes, very cool for Steve to have put so much time and effort into the sidecar. Like me, he likes making things and always has. He wanted to see how this would work out and is very pleased, giving him some ideas for a lighter weight sidecar for his next one. Anyone who has not seen his awesome mahogany "Chris Craft" sidecar to go with his restored 52 Monark Silver King Super Deluxe... check it out on the Sidecar thread. Now there is a sidecar and what a bike! Yeah, fun too, to have somebody your own age to hang out with. For Steve my part of the world is much like where he lived as a boy in Ontario, so swimming in the lake and being in the forest has been a treat and a walk down memory lane. He'll be on the road to see his son in New Hampshire soon and then on to the far north of Prince Edward Island, Canada. And I'll be working solo on the bike project again.
We were standing chest deep in the lake last evening finishing off a can of beer and watching a nearby loon fishing and speculating about the leftover section of canoe... another sidecar or making it into a little boat deal with an electric motor... first picturing it as an inboard with one of those RC electric motors like Thud has, geared down and powering a shaft through the floor at the stern... a little 11 foot solo cruiser running silent as you cast for small mouth bass along the shore. I don't think I'll ever look at a canoe again without seeing in my mind something else it could be. It could make a neat little trailer for the bike, too. It is kind of like when I see someone ride by on a bicycle with legs pumping furiously... I think to myself, "man, you need a motor". Motorbicycling and tinkering is in my blood.
SB
The tires are Electra and I got them from Amazon. Very nice tires and if I remember right they were sixty some dollars for the pair with free shipping. Plus, they came in a box in the shape they were meant to have. I've gotten tires before which are all folded up and a real pain to mount. It's a good value and Amazon has a lot of tires... scores of pages of tires, but poorly organized so it is time consuming to see what they have. You can't just look at 26" 2.125 tires or narrow it down to cream colored ones. So pack a lunch for before searching. That is my only complaint about Amazon. You can narrow it down to tires by Electra and that helps. I am not looking forward to searching for a 20" 2.125 cream colored tire to match the bike tires, but finding one will be worth it.
Yes, very cool for Steve to have put so much time and effort into the sidecar. Like me, he likes making things and always has. He wanted to see how this would work out and is very pleased, giving him some ideas for a lighter weight sidecar for his next one. Anyone who has not seen his awesome mahogany "Chris Craft" sidecar to go with his restored 52 Monark Silver King Super Deluxe... check it out on the Sidecar thread. Now there is a sidecar and what a bike! Yeah, fun too, to have somebody your own age to hang out with. For Steve my part of the world is much like where he lived as a boy in Ontario, so swimming in the lake and being in the forest has been a treat and a walk down memory lane. He'll be on the road to see his son in New Hampshire soon and then on to the far north of Prince Edward Island, Canada. And I'll be working solo on the bike project again.
We were standing chest deep in the lake last evening finishing off a can of beer and watching a nearby loon fishing and speculating about the leftover section of canoe... another sidecar or making it into a little boat deal with an electric motor... first picturing it as an inboard with one of those RC electric motors like Thud has, geared down and powering a shaft through the floor at the stern... a little 11 foot solo cruiser running silent as you cast for small mouth bass along the shore. I don't think I'll ever look at a canoe again without seeing in my mind something else it could be. It could make a neat little trailer for the bike, too. It is kind of like when I see someone ride by on a bicycle with legs pumping furiously... I think to myself, "man, you need a motor". Motorbicycling and tinkering is in my blood.
SB
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Oh yeah, with the helmet & doggles, turquoise collar and sidecar to ride in she'll be cool for sure and people will make over her which she likes just fine, enough to make her grin. Maybe she'll appear on the cover of a glossy magazine like Canine Cosmopolitan, or go on to star in dog movies or bark radio. Skies the limit with the wonder dog.moosh is gonna be stylin' in that rig and 'doggles '
very cool job guys
I'm also looking forward this fall to my little Grandson in Baltimore who is four(or thereabouts) to see if he wants to ride with her. Also a seven year old granddaughter up here in Ely. As you know, giving little people rides is a lot of fun. The trouble with my trailer is I can't see behind me. With the sidecar I can look over to see how my passengers are enjoying themselves. This stuff is so much fun. I hope I never grow up.
SB
SB,,,
I use 2 mirrors, the left is for traffic, and the right is aimed at the precious cargo
just my simple solution
I use 2 mirrors, the left is for traffic, and the right is aimed at the precious cargo
just my simple solution