Handy Tricks 7: Bike Mods and Projects

Handy Tricks Seven! Things to do to and with bicycles!

To see even more handy tricks, check out the rest of the saga at
Handy Tricks 9: Oodles of random tricks
and Handy Tricks 8: Island Handy Tricks
and Fifty Handy Tricks.
and 40 More Handy Tricks
and Australian Handy Tricks
and Guatemalan Handy Tricks
and Yet More Handy Tricks
and Handy Tricks Six!
For a bunch of things that didn't work, check out How Not To.

First trick: Improvised Freewheel Removal Wrench
Every brand of freewheel has a different pattern of grooves inside it. If you don't have the right wrench you usually can't take it apart. Unless you can improvise one. This method works well for the most common shimano freewheels.
Remove the axle from the wheel.
Insert the biggest hex wrench you can find into the freewheel. Pound some nails or a big staple as seen here into the grooves to lock the wrench in place. Unscrew the freewheel. Wiggle the nails out.
Rejoice.

To learn about why you'd use this tool, what the real one looks like, and everything else about bicycle mechanics, look at Sheldon Brown's site and Park Tool.

Step 1 Chain Whips

These two fancy "chain whip" wrenches are used to disassemble a freewheel. The "freewheel" is the cone-shaped cluster of sprockets on the rear wheel. The little sprocket unscrews and the others pull off, with spacers between them.

To make a chain whip, use your "chain breaker" tool to take a chain apart making two pieces of chain with as many links as seen here. Then drill three holes in a piece of steel bar and grind a curved divot where the short chunk of chain rests. Use the chain breaker to attach the chunks of chain to the steel bar, and you're in business. If your breaker doesn't reach to attach the chains to your wrench, just pound the pins in place with a hammer.

You probably don't need two of these, but it's easier that way and they're quick to make.

Comments

[mysss]

Seems like it might be a bit too easy to squish the tubing, impacting the integrity of your frame?

[BottomlessPizzaPit]

Like everyone else has said, there are plenty of chain tensioner devices. The idler gear thing seems like it works fairly well, as I own an old Schwinn Twinn tandem and that's what it uses -just a cog on a bearing with a bolt holding it to a slotted bracket- and it moves on a vertical axis where you can tension it to the desired level.

[dstras]

yah - safety first, no?

I want them to be resourceful and dig making/modding your own tools, _BUT_ I wouldn't want my students (or kids) taking shop tips from this -- lets model sensible tool use. Please. You don't need OSHA to tell you that this is not good practice.

[struckbyanarrow]

Wait, was that the bicycle wizard?

[jwolski]

Great idea!

[jwolski]

Be sure to use the safety guards that come with your tools. Those cutoff disks can break and send chunks of it flying. Judging by the sparks coming off of that disk, the pieces will fly right at the user's face.

As others mentioned, this is also an easy way to lose a finger. Please be careful people.

[mwwdesign]

Interesting black outfit. Where is it from/what is it for?

[KrakenFan69]

Apparently David Carradine is an avid cyclist when not acting. Killer.

Kraken Fan #69

[sarliaee]

you've got a new rear fender too!

[sarliaee]

please strip the frame before painiting, you'd hate to get paint on those moving parts.

[sarliaee]

a little more expensive but plenty of companies make chain tension devices.
loving the cheap bike mods anyway.

[harigast]

lose a finger doing this? that thing isnt a light saber. if anyone has used one alot you know that you cant really chop off a finger unless you wanted to.

[wrenchead]

CUT-OFF wheel on an air tool? Admittedly not as cool as a lightsabre, but you can seriously injure yourself.  They are designed to cut through metal which is a fair bit tougher than your finger.

Loose, they'll hurt and can give you a good gash.  If your finger is pinned between the wheel and oh, say a chuck in a drill, yes, you could easily cut it off faster than you can say "get a ziplock bag and start the car".

Just be careful, secure your work [vise, clamped to the edge of a table... anything] and wear eye protection.

[paulocr]

The ones with small front wheel are factory made. This model go back to the fifties and perhaps even before that. They are slowly disappearing and motorcycles are taking over.

[juanoporras]

believe it or not back where I come from some people do some similar stuff to motorcicles so they can carry even heavier loads. for instance, back in my town some people rent laundry machines, the company delivers them by motorcicle with racks on it just like in the picture.

[HughBothwell]

I would recommend finding a junk seatpost. Drill a hole through it side-to-side about two inches from the top, stick a bolt through, and weld it in place.

Now remove your seat, stick the ground-post in, and clamp your ground on the bolt. Voila! Nice clean ground without paint damage.

[MT-LB]

one of the first things in the manual for my welder says "do not run circuit through bearings"

[Bidul]

+1
Even if it seems to be a great idea at first sight, heavy current isgoing to "solder" balls in the ball-bearing.
Use any other paint-free metalic area on the frame (seat support, for instance)

[csorrows]

I have never heard that stuff called "unistrut" before.

[Hycro]

Looking in the last picture there, it kinda reminds me of the corner reinforcements for drywall--those things you put on projecting corners, only thicker...look...it even has the "long" holes like those corner reinforcements...

[masterochicken]

Would the spoke nut screwdriver eliminate the need for a set of spoke wrenches?

[guerrilla.1]

actually these are an extension of the Californian low rider car culture. from what I understand these are anything from lightly modified to full on custom construction.

[sharlston]

hi tim please reply to this comment do you need any more tricks for this ible cos i work in a bike shop is west yorkshire and i know loads of nifty little tricks

[TimAnderson]

please! actually since you have a bunch, do your own ible and I'll link to it!

[sharlston]

well i only have 3 or 4 so ill tell you them and just credit me a bit ya know the little 3 in 1 oil cans with the red nozzle when oiling small parts i attach a oil can straw to the end for those nifty places i always put duct tape round the inside of the tyre to prevent big punctures when im gonna throw away a old bike i always strip it for spare parts like cdbales and chains if you need pictures ill reply with them

[csorrows]

There are holes in your shirt...

[csorrows]

To put it simply, DO NOT DO THIS!

[sovereign]

step 3: use a vice, or risk losing a finger WHAT ARE YOU THINKING???

[_soapy_]

Wow, I just saw that! Bit mental to do it that way. Also, in the picture the sparks are flying towards the eyes... which is not good. However, the odds of loosing a finger is very small. Even if you severed it you'd find it at your feet. (Truly, though, you don't need to worry about a slight accidental touch of a cutting abrasive disc like this. You just get a friction burn, rather than devastation. Yes, it hurts, but it isn't life altering.)

[--scare--]

(removed by author or community request)

[strangebike]

awesome fella but about the quickest way to loose a finger use a vice or grips or just not shower your silly self with the waste as you cut. always show the safest way to do things or some other person following your instructions may well loose the finger you were lucky enough to keep. other then that great mutant waste bikes !!!

[goeon]

great! 5*ed and faved, the chain whip idea was great

[g.petinati]

This is the site of the first bike's maker:
http://www.houston.com.br/en/produtos/bike/hybrid/super_forte_carga

[dagwoody]

Behind the scenes of the new sequel "Bridges of Madison county 2"

[mdlmusic]

What a great idea! I picked up a mallard squeaky toy at WalMart for $5.00 and wired it to my handlebars with twist ties. Got quite a few strange looks when I honked it as I came up behind pedestrians.

[Schaftt]

Shoulda used duct (duck) tape. (insert rimshot here)

[craig4542]

about using the pedals for a welder ground. this generally is discouraged, since this runs the current through the crank bearings. While it probably won't weld them solid, it will cause some pitting and shorten their life.

[_soapy_]

It also looks like the chrome plate has been blown off by the current through it, on the crank itself. Might I suggest fixing the clamp via the handlebars instead? Take off the grip and attach there, and any marking would be recovered afterwards. Any minor damage to the bearings in the steering would be far less likely to lead to issues, too, as the steering bearings never turn a full rotation and are under far less load.

[Tavor]

I think I have a possible solution to the chain derailing problem. Add some 'idler' gears in the middle to prevent the chain from bouncing or swaying. In an ideal world, they'd be mounted in the center of that LONG chain run, but anywhere between the front of the cargo section and the front of the back tire should be sufficient.

[murc]

Nice list!! How do the baskets stay put when riding over bumpy roads? In picture 3 it seems that there is a black support on the side of the basket.. And what's with the shades while it's dark? ;)