Gusset

Here's the gusset I welded on to stiffen up the front boom attachment to the steering tube. I cut a stiff paper pattern, then traced it onto some .032" steel sheet. Then I used a piece of scrap pipe to press the sheet between the jaws of my workmate until the sheet had a nice U shape. With a little trimming and tapping with a small hammer, it fit perfectly.

I'm still planning on doing some seat work, and modifying the fork for better steering feel.

Jack

Rides

I rode the bike around Sunday, then again Tuesday evening. According to the speedo I went 9.5 miles Tuesday and hit 43mph! My conclusion is that the magnet that attaches to the spoke is passing the bar-shaped pickup at too occluded of an angle, and actually registering twice on each pass. So, my real distance should be 4.75 at 22 max. That sounds much more realistic. I guess I need to move the pickup to a better location (one where the magnet lays parallel to the spokes).

I tried some tricks with the seat cover to figure out why I keep sliding down. I think I'll cut the seat bottom side tubes about in the middle, and have them come straight back to meet the seat back just above the mount clamps. That way I'll still have the same height/curve in the front part of the seat, but I'll have better "cheekage" in the rear part. I also recontoured the back to give a little more support in the mid/upper back area. That part feels great now.

The front boom flexes a little. When I really push hard (starting, accelerating, hillclimbing), I can see a slight movement, and feel it flex. To help eliminate that, I'm in the process of adding a gusset to the front side of the steering tube. I made it by making a paper template, then cutting it out of .032" steel sheet, and bending it around a piece of scrap tubing. I still need to weld it on, but I'll post a picture when it's done.

While I have the steering apart, I think I might make new front drop-outs. The steering feels just a little touchy, and I think maybe by adding some rake (going from 1" to 1.5" or maybe even 2") I'll put some "center" feel into it. I'll spend some time toying with the steering calculator first, and come up with some definite numbers.

Jack