Way Back Machine

[wrenching4fun]

Was tempted to hang it up after my disastrous tandem build. Then a 1950 JC Higgins Beehive Springer caught my eye and the ole flame was rekindled. Was instantly bit by the nostalgia bug and swept back to my first Whizzer which had a springer front end and drum brakes. I loved how fluid the bike behaved on the bumpiest roads. This bike spent most of its life sitting under a tree enduring the elements. There was plenty of rust to be removed, but from the condition of the components suggest she wasn't ridden much. The pivots for the springer front end were still tight and all of the bearings were good, Most important, the bike was complete and unmolested.

I steel-wooled all of the rust before swapping out the rusted steel wheels for fine Arayas laced to drum brakes with 11 gauge spokes front and aft. A Sturmey Archer X-FD (90mm) front drum drives the speedometer gear. The gear cassette on the vintage Schwinn rear hub was replaced with an adapter that accommodates a 44-tooth sprocket. The SBP jackshaft was modified to house a Shimano silent clutch 3-speed hub to serve as a tranny using a belt primary drive. A Shimano single speed freewheel allows the jackshaft to turn without driving the pedals. A 3-speed suicide shifter is attached to the crossbar in front of the extended fuel tank.

The deteriorated padding was removed from the springer seat leaving a bare pan which looks vintage and works perfectly. Vintage brake levers preserve the vintage look of the original swept back handlebars. A throttle control from an ATV is currently in place, but might be replaced with a vintage moped twist throttle. The vintage speedometer is a good complement to the suicide shifter.

Still have to mount the fenders and lights before testing for proper gearing. Have mixed feelings bout painting the frame and seat since I like the rusty patina.

 

[fasteddy]

I hope the bike is going to be riding as well as it looks. The paint it or not, mountain. Myself, if the look is what I want I'd leave it as it is. If the look gets old and boring in the future it can always be painted but once painted it's had to go back to the original look. Amazing that you found a bike like that, that hasn't been until it fell apart. A wonderful build indeed.

Steve

 

[Tony01]

Yeah that’s a real build. Nice. So you got a max torque belt clutch going to a chain in and chain out from a 3spd. Yeah I think the belt primary is the way to go for the small stuff we build that doesn’t have a primary chain in oil bath. Probably evens out the torque pulses from the engine for the hub. Only thing I’d change is moving the belt tensioner from the drive/tension side to the slack side. Everything looks right and well built. You got lucky with this find. I bet it’s a blast to ride!

 

[Venice Motor Bikes]

Man.... That thing looks complicated!!!

 

[Gordy]

That looks sweet! What happened to that old banana seat you had? I've got a sturmey archer hub and SBP shift kit I'm gonna put together on my old Columbia cruiser frame. I've got it all mocked up right now. I just need to get some good wheel hoops and a drum brake front up, lace it all together, and bolt it all together. It'll use the cheap dual spring fork I have until I get something else. I'm thinking of going woth 24" wheels on this one. Not quite decided yet.

 

[Sidewinder Jerry]

Ok, what size pulleys are you using, what's the tooth count on the jackshaft sprocket driving the 3-speed, and what's the 3-speed input-output sprocket tooth count? Then I can give you reduction values for all 3 speeds. Depending on your weight you don't want to go below a 16\1 reduction in your highest gear for your particular engine . Most larger people shouldn't go below an 18\1 reduction.

 

[wrenching4fun]

Thanks for the help on gearing, Jerry. It'll take a while to pull the tooth count on the sprockets together. Meantime, the Max torque pulley is 2" and the driven pulley is 6" and the ratios for the hub are 0.733, 1.0, 1.364.

Good catch on the tensioner, Tony. Though an easy fix, it took all afternoon to fabricate the bracket, but it came out better because it's adjustable and fixed, no spring that can bounce.

Gordy, the vintage seat pan looked so good, the banana seat has been relegated to the parts bin for a future build.

 

[Tony01]

the Max torque pulley is 2" and the driven pulley is 6" and the ratios for the hub are 0.733, 1.0, 1.364.

Though an easy fix, it took all afternoon to fabricate the bracket, but it came out better because it's adjustable and fixed, no spring that can bounce.

Yeah it be like that sometimes with fabrication.

I don’t think Max Torque made a pulley clutch that small. The number I used in calculating gearing on mine was 3.2”. The diameter is measured on the outside of a brand new belt I think. A v-belt wears on the sides and sits deeper in the pulley over time requiring an adjustable tensioner, pulley spacing, or adjustable pulley.

 

[Sidewinder Jerry]

Thanks for the help on gearing, Jerry. It'll take a while to pull the tooth count on the sprockets together. Meantime, the Max torque pulley is 2" and the driven pulley is 6" and the ratios for the hub are 0.733, 1.0, 1.364.

Good catch on the tensioner, Tony. Though an easy fix, it took all afternoon to fabricate the bracket, but it came out better because it's adjustable and fixed, no spring that can bounce.

Gordy, the vintage seat pan looked so good, the banana seat has been relegated to the parts bin for a future build.

View attachment 115992

I like using fractions for the IGH

¾; 1; ⁴/³

If you have a 10t on the jackshaft and the input/output on the IGH sprockets are the same tooth count these would be your final reductions:

1) 18\1
2) 13.2\1
3) 9.67\1

As you can see 1st gear would be your only practical level ground gear. My suggestion would be to change the 6" pulley to a 10" pulley.

Another option is to run a 8" pulley; a 28t IGH input; a 24t IGH output; 48t or 54t rear sprocket. The 48t will put you in the 16\1 range the 54t would put you in the 18\1 range for your 3rd gear. All of these calculations is based on having a 10t sprocket on the jackshaft.

An option 3 is remove the jack shaft and put this 2\1 reduction gearbox in. David Staton could put a longer output shaft on it. You may want to contact him soon though. Rumor is he's going to close shop after 40+ years.

 

[wrenching4fun]

Jerry. The jackshaft is 10t to19t. Final drive is 24t to 44t.

 

[wrenching4fun]

I can easily swap the 6" pulley for an 8", a 10 incher would be pushing it in terms of clearance. I can also swap the 19t input to hub for a 24" if I have one in my parts bin. If not, I could simply reverse the 24t and the 19t. Changing the final sprocket to a 48t might push the upper run of the chain against the frame. Will have to check.

 

[wrenching4fun]

Jerry. A slight curve ball to screw up your calculations-swapped out the 6" pulley for an 8", but instead of yanking the hub to swap it's sprockets I changed the JS sprocket from a 10t to a 9t. I could go to a 48t on rear, but waiting for your new ratios first.

 

[wrenching4fun]

While waiting on Jerry's calculation, I mounted the headlight.

 

[Sidewinder Jerry]

Swapping out the 6" for the 8", Swapping out the 10t for a 9t, and switching the 24t and 19t gives you the following reductions:

1) 33.7\1
2) 24.7\1
3) 18.11\1

You should do well as long as the hills have less than a 10% grade and if you aren't a very large person (300+ lbs). It should give you a level ground speed of 29 mph on 26" wheels.

1] (2">8")~(9t>IP24t)~(OP19t>44t)*0.733

2] (2">8")~(9t>IP24t)~(OP19t>44t)*1

3] (2">8")~(9t>IP24t)~(OP19t>44t)*1.364

 

[wrenching4fun]

Thanks, Jerry. Am 185lbs with no hills. Will switch the gears on the hub tomorrow to obtain the ratios you calculated. Also, need to pick up a 33" Gates belt to fit the larger pulley.

 

[Sidewinder Jerry]

Since you're aiming for a vintage look, here are the minimum and maximum full throttle speeds for each gear. I assume you won't be using a tachometer.

1. 10–15 mph
2. 15–20 mph
3. 20–29 mph

This means that if you're at full throttle and exceed the maximum speed listed for your current gear, you should shift to the next higher gear. If you are going downhill and reach 29 mph, ease off the throttle and coast — gravity will take over. Conversely, if you are at full throttle and drop below the minimum speed, shift to the next lower gear. If you can't maintain the minimum speed at full throttle in 1st gear, you'll need to apply more pedal assist.

 

[wrenching4fun]

Question: How do you eat an elephant? Answer: One bite at a time. Today's bite was the front mudguard. The balloon tire original is complete and in good shape, after some cosmetic work with a ball peen hammer, but it needs a coat of primer and some paint to keep it from re-rusting. The heavy duty chrome mudguards from the tandem build have exactly the same mounting points and are in descent shape so I decided to slap them on. I might replace them with the originals at a later date. J.C. Higgins bikes came with the painted mudguards until 1955 if I remember correctly. This old survivor is a 1950.

Am learning to pace myself, unlike previous builds where I rushed the job to get my first ride, often making mistakes on measurements or doing shoddy workmanship that had to be redone later. I still make more mistakes than I should which slows me down quite a bit (not to mention the waste of materials) and the mudguard was no exception. When measuring the brackets, I used the moveable bolt on the springer pivot instead of the stationary one. Had to completely remake the first bracket leaving telltale holes for the mistaken length. The important thing is there is plenty of clearance for the spring to compress (these don't have much travel compared to modern forks), plus they are plenty strong to hold up under vibration. I might pick up a couple of sections of aluminum tubing at my local hardware and make some bullet proof braces.

Might tackle the rear mudguard tomorrow. Because of interference from the hub/tranny, I will have to trim the rear mudguard from the lower front tab to the crossmount just behind the seatpost. That will leave 75% of it with three good mounting points including the bracket that bolts to the dropouts where the rear rack bracket is mounted. Will probably use aluminum tube for that one as well so they match the front brackets.

Finally, am thinking about replacing the ATV throttle with something smaller, maybe a vintage thumb shifter with the index stops removed, or a modified brake lever. The ATV throttle occupies the handlebar section where the right mirror usually goes. I don't particularly like the way my modern mirrors look on the seep back bars. I have a set of vintage mirrors stashed somewhere!

Could use some creative ideas on mounting the key switch, the battery, and the voltmeter.

Hope to take her out for her maiden voyage before the weekend and prove that random gearing sometimes works. After the shakedown cruise, I'll tidy up the cables, make necessary adjustments, and install the electrical system.