Crush All Those Who Stand Before You, The Environmentally Friendly Way.

Step 7 Step 7.

Now get out and ride it, its particularly fun in the snow, because of the lovely sound it makes.


I've ridden to work on it, hills and all, its very stable.
If you have gears it will be very easy to get a very scary speed up.
Don't make one unless you will enjoy strangers coming up
to you to discuss it and have a ride.



Anyhoo, Enjoy, and give me a vote if you liked it.

FriendOfHumanity.

Comments

[SIRJAMES09]

OH MY WORD!!!!!!

can you imagine having a 10 or 15 speed gearing system & then heading DOWN HILL??

Talk about a major rush!!!!!!! LOL

This is awesome dude!!!!!! I gave you 5 stars!!!!! TY for sharing!!

[sonofstone]

why don't you make one with a suspension fork? i'd imagine that it would be really cool looking, and more than that, it would feel comfortable

[smooth97]

does it require a n adults help if you are 12?

[Russian sniper]

hahaha lol
baby noob

[stephenniall]

Unless you can weld id imagine not ! im 13 and i can weld and its really handy ! if you cant id reccomend you get a cheap welder and learn !

[smooth97]

thanks for your help

[(seabear)]

remember: you get what you pay for and always use a welding mask, gloves and earplugs. i should know, my brother is doing an engineering aprenticeship.

[stephenniall]

Especially for stick welding as the stick is always live when stick welding.

Never used earplugs though Mig welder is quiet!

[burpreynolds]

So, the braking argument went on waaaay longer than I thought it would.  Somebody introduced a Sheldon Brown article, for crissakes!  There are infinite combinations of bike geometries, bike weights, and brake types in the world.  The people who say that grabbing the front brake of their bike will _definitely_ flip it are right.  As long as you're on their bike and you are their size.  Not the case on my 79 Suzuki GS1000.  You could definitely flip a bike like my 80 Motobecane Grand Sprint which was way too nice not to ride, but way too small for my height and girth, and also happened to have chop'nflip bullhorn bars (I know).  I remember seeing a curb drop coming up way too fast and getting about three feet of air with the back wheel on that thing, then gently setting the wheel down by slowly and evenly releasing the front brake.  Can be done.  Ask anybody on a stunt bike.  If there's anything in the world where size, girth and dimensions matter, it's bikes.  Trust me.

[drycell]

I have just one problem, and I don't mean to sound like the nerdy kid who's afraid of falling down. This had to have added at least fifty pounds to the weight of the bike. Now you've gone and taken the brakes off the front, where they do the most good, and left only the back brakes which do a marginal job of stopping the bicycle at its stock weight, especially down hills. Have you thought about leaving the car's hydraulic brakes inside and possibly adding the brake lever from a motorcycle? You'd have excellent stopping power, although it would be weighed down a bit more. I love the bike, though, it's very Mad Max. If I had a welder, I'd build the same thing.

[hammertong]

Remember: you have a brake at the end of each leg. Foot dragging, destroying new shoes since the first bike was invented.

[danlab]

If you ever talk to a hard-core mountain biker they will likely tell you to use the front brakes to slow down, to stop you would use primarily the back with help from the front brakes in extreme/slippery situations. While it would be a good Idea to have front brakes they are not necessary; a well adjusted rear brake can stop you and the bike no problem.

[hi6908]

The brakes in the front of a bike do not do the most good, usually because if you don't use the back brakes, you will flip over your handlebars.

[hammertong]

Because your momentum is pushing you forward, the front brakes do about 70% of your stopping power. If you lean far backwards, you can stop just about as hard & quick as you want with only the front brakes. I have hydraulic brakes on my mountain bike, and do this just for fun. On another note, I have not noticed anybody mentioning the built in brakes everybody has: YOUR FEET!

[snowpenguin]

Using back brakes alone does you no good either. You need both. Without back, you flip. Without front, you can't stop well. Think before you speak.

[drycell]

You're silly. You won't flip if you only use the front brakes. I ride a motorcycle to work every day and a bicycle at least three times a week. A motorcycle brake system is set up similar to a bicycle's. The front and back operate separately, at least. That's possibly the only similarity between my two machines. Anyway, I rarely use the back brake on either and I've never flipped either, even when I mash down as hard as possible because some jerk cut in front of me and I don't want to end up as a part of someone's trunk. I've never even so much as lifted the rear wheel off the ground. However, I've used the back brake alone many times and what happens most often is that the rear wheel locks up and skids. Skidding seriously increases your braking distance and decreases your braking capability. The reason for this is because when you brake, the weight on the vehicle shifts forwards. Therefore, you have more weight on the front wheel and less on the back. The front wheel then has more traction because of the force pressed on it and the rear wheel has barely any because much of the weight is lifted on it. It's true. Google it. Better yet, try it. I find your statement "think before you speak" mildly offensive. Maybe I'm just sunburnt and cranky. Maybe I should just come back with a clever line like 'do before you speak'. Maybe not. Have a good one.

[ProfessorJWN]

Drycell, Ever take a bike to say 70mph, dump the clutch and pull the front brakes?? Me Either, as I am still alive. You can use rear brake only, works great for "slideouts", we used to do this and see who could lock up the rear wheel on our dirtbikes and slide sideways the farthest on the road (way out int he country) where there was ABSOLUTELY no traffic. Don't EVER try that with the front brake, unless you are a trick rider. YOU WILL raise the rear end of the bike (whatever size) off the ground, and hopefully realize this and release the front brake before gettign up close and personal with the road surface. Bicycles are the same way, though perhaps not "quite" as violent as the bike weighs less. BUT that said, you just can't beat kinetic energy though, it has a tendency to sneak up on you. BTW - same thing happens with cars front brakes do 60-80% of the stopping for a variety of reasons. Hard to use front brakes only (unless catostrophic failure of rear brakes (happened to me once) hard braking, you go unstable (I was lucky and didn't 360, only severe fishtailing. I was able to recover. DON'T EVER try that either, that was a mechanical failure on the car, was not planned, and to this day, I consider that the closest I ever came to being killed. Respect your brakes, and they will save you. Jim

[marxdarx]

When I was 15 I coasted down a down grade road and my back brakes failed, only had front..in the split second it took to break fully, I went head over heels and landed hard..my bike flipped a few times and was totaled...I was in the hospital for a week dealing with severe road rash on knees and elbows....too the bone I carry the scars today. All because I was going relatively slow and used only my front brakes...it was one lesson I never forgot..both brakes are needed..something I have always made sure of after that blunder of mine. (From then on I never flipped when using BOTH breaks..and only tipped over to one side once if I used back only) Motorcycles are much heavier and wont react quite the same on a surface when stopping. More force forward, and less in back means more friction on front wheel but it ALSO means a severe imbalance. especially downward..on a straight even road..yes no problem but when going on downgrade..the speed picks up even while stopping..then front tire stops suddenly and whack! flip. I have flipped before my final one many times..eventually I learned the whys. So please not only THINK but also experience the BIKE not only the motorcycle..they are very different . the only resemblance is the fact they have two wheels and a chain with spokes..not much more than that..everyone else is weight and distribution differences..BIG ones at that. It all comes down to physics and how fast you are going, as well as grade of road and all that...anything can happen given the right circumstances set up.

[mrdepo96]

 Okay, if you "tap" the brakes, that wont happen. You failed to clarify if you where on a motorcycle or a bike, so i have no idea if "tapping" works with a motorcycle...

[Fraggotmode]

 Ok, I'll end this discussion. The front brakes do most of the job.
Hammertong is right. Obviously your not supposed to fully press your front brakes. I ride downhill mtb, and I got a 3000£ bike and I own a pitbike and my dad owns a harley davidson. We both know that the main work is done by the front brake. so your supposed to press the front brake with about 50% power. and apply about 80% to your rear brake

But for normal to-work bikers, the rear brake does it all.
And don't start whining with me about this.

And heres the info www.sheldonbrown.com/brakturn.html

[marxdarx]

agreed. and you say it better than I did.

[LinemenOwn]

Even though you may not have flipped it is possible to flip a motorcycle over the front wheel, once when my dad was riding a piece of his brakes broke off and stopped the front wheel (I am not sure how that worked). Then he flipped over his front wheel.

[bb908]

Yes , if you use both brakes, you won't flip. But, if you just use the front, it is very possible, especially if your bike is light in the back and not in the front. A motorcycle would not flip with just the front brakes because it has enough weight to hold it down. Anyway, with my particular bike, when I'm going about 10m/h, and just use the front brakes, yes, I stop, but the back wheel goes about a foot in the air. Anyway, i was just trying to make a point.

[Gamer917]

my bike flips sooo easily imthinkin of puttin a 50 pound weight on the back tokeep itfrom flipping my spacebaris retardedsodont annoyme aboutlack ofspaces

[drycell]

i dunno, i suppose that's possible. i've ridden mine down a hill much faster than that and jammed the brakes on. i guess it could happen if your arms happened to be limp at the time and you shifted your weight forward at the same moment as you braked it might happen. i believe that once you bring front suspension into the mix, the possibility for a flip may increase. depending on the types of brakes you have, possibly center pull brakes squeeze harder than side pull. ok. jamming on the front brakes as hard as possible going down a hill on a mountain bike will probably send you flying over the handlebars. but i still don't believe that jamming on both brakes as hard as possible going down a hill on a mountain bike will make you less likely to flip. i suppose using less force on the front and little on the back would be better. i ride a road bike and rarely use the back brake anyway. even at speeds above thirty miles an hour going downhill and i've never had an issue with liftage. i've never ridden a mountain bike with suspension off-road down a hill. i suppose there's a whole different element of physics there.

[mrdepo96]

 Rarely used your back brake? is that possible? 

[marxdarx]

yep many factors to consider...mine was without any suspension..just a dinky kids bike..broken back brake then going fast enough I wanted to slow and bam..popped over

[badbradmx]

youre right mate, FACT your front brake does 70% of the braking. and if these numpties flip over the bars whenever they pull the front brake they have no dexterity and feeling. guys just go ot on your bike, do a few tests, and see which combination stops you quickest, i garantee your results will be this 1) both 2)front only 3) rear only

[bladebaka]

true story: I was six, trying out my friends' bike which had no training wheels (mine still did, dad didnt want to take them off yet) and I was riding it around. it was one of those semi-mountainbike/ street bikes, and i was probably still in first gear! pressed the front brake, and I flipped completely over the handlebars and landed on my back!

[snowpenguin]

Well, you posed a good argument there, but I have evidence of my own. Going fairly fast, especially downhill, if you slam on the front brakes, you are likely to flip. It's happened to me before. Maybe you don't ride as fast, or, I don't know. But it happens sometimes. It's dumb to just use one brake, in my opinion. Just use both. That's what I said before. You can't really compare to a motorcycle, as that ways much much much much much much much more, so is less likely to flip.

[mman1506]

then why did i flip when i used the front brake,its actually a trick called a stoppie and i did it on my bike

[okto]

Aw, my favorite nubcake bike argument.
If you do an involuntary endo when you use your front brake alone, you're doing it wrong. It isn't a binary system; you want to apply pressure gradually, only using the Grip O Death on the left brake lever if you need to stop OMG RIGHT NOW OR I'M GONNA DIE.

It's also possible your front brake needs adjusting in order to give you the best control over braking force. Note this doesn't account for bike-flipping; that's still you clamping down on your front brake too hard. It just may be that things could be a lot better than they are.

See http://www.instructables.com/id/Adjusting-Cantilever-Brakes/ to learn how to adjust your brakes.

[Expertmurderboy007]

I ride BMX, so I say ride brakeless and have more fun

[the_mad_man]

w/o brakes at the skate park only or when your going down a hill with an intersection/ traffic lights at the bottom?

[mrdepo96]

 footjam! and first of all if the person is smart they would never have gone down it.

[Expertmurderboy007]

 just put your foot on your backtire

[the_mad_man]

hmm... forgot about that one.

[Expertmurderboy007]

and by the way, I like it very much, I'll build me one

[FriendOfHumanity]

Yes you're right, it would have been great to leave the original brake,(it was a drum brake and I did try), but the wheel had been lying in a field for at least six years and therefore was totally rusted. Brakes are so important, I agree; but despite having only a back brake, for some reason, this seems to stop it quite efficiently. Anyhoo, I'd recommend an Arc welder, they are incredibly cheap and so very easy to use. Best Wishes.

[hellstudios]

Arc as in mig? I have a mig! :D