New derriere for "The Sparkly Purple One"

General Discussion Build Logs
1

Oh, why not.

So, I broke my trail bike at the bike park. Might have had something to do with using parts wrong, or casing big jumps, or both, who could say?

20230601_111959
20230601_1119591920×1080 142 KB

20230601_112636
20230601_1126361920×1080 485 KB

20230601_111753
20230601_1117531920×1080 262 KB

Rather than try to band-aid that rear triangle, I figured I’d just make a new one. Also, this butt section can now hang, complete, on the wall of shame.

I’m gonna eliminate the travel adjustment, add 10mm of travel (135mm), shorten the chainstays by 10mm (435), add some sexy new BFS dropouts and take just a bit of progressiveness out of the link. So, I’ll also be building a new linkage and getting new aluminum pull rods and heim joints because I’m still convinced that’s a cool fucking idea.

Borrowing from our record holding downhill program :grinning: I added some tabs to put the bolt that holds the pull rods (Yankers? Jerk rods?) to the rear into double shear, you can see in the pictures of the carnage where this would have been helpful. I also eliminated any bent tubes, bye-bye pie cuts.

20230731_191635
20230731_1916351920×1080 117 KB

This whole section was 14g with some 16g exhaust pipe to make the curve. I know. the bottom piece is still 14g but the tabs are all .120" now and I left a bunch more material in the lower plate piece thingy.

20230731_102603
20230731_1026031920×1080 224 KB

20230731_102614
20230731_1026141920×1080 155 KB

20230731_102548
20230731_1025481920×1080 176 KB

20230731_191654
20230731_1916541920×1080 138 KB

20230731_191723
20230731_1917231920×1080 227 KB

Adapter free 203mm rear post mount and it clears the 32 tooth chainring, I’ve got a really pretty Works Components 30 tooth that’ll be going on it…

And just thinking about what I’m gonna do when I get this back together…
Make it again.

linkage
linkage1782×956 142 KB

New version has the same layout, but tucked in a bunch more, smaller links (stronger?) less anti-rise but still a good pedaling platform, 1 piece seat tube (thank god), short stays, mixed wheels and I shortened it up a bunch. I really like how the DH bike feels being shorter (reach) and taller (stack) than this is now, steepened up the HT too, it’s still big but not big like it is now. More standover, trail bike shit, blah, blah, blah…

5 Likes
2

If you want to try more stack and less reach on your current frame you could put a longer air shaft in your fork if you aren’t opposed to more travel…

3

Definitely. There is even a name for that, it’s called “Rod ends in bending” or REIB for short :wink: Ask anyone who is or has been involved in Formula SAE/Formula Student in their Uni…

4

I know. I was being sarcastic. I was 97% sure that was gonna fail but since I’m wrong about every other goddamn thing, I thought maybe I was wrong there too. Turns out I was wrong. For a change.

Good point. Definitely not opposed to more travel. There’s other stuff I want to change too. The 7 piece seat tube irritates me, the lower part of it is totally unnecessary. The pivot right in the middle of the seat tube irritates me, the 500mm seat tube irritates me. It could be straighter. I like the shorter links everywhere. There’s just a bunch of fiddly things I want to change, I had a few ideas about how to make it straighter with less pieces, so less welding.

Also, Isn’t making frames, kinda the point? :upside_down_face: I feel like I like this suspension design, it seems to work well, I’d like to keep tweaking it. Then after that, we’ll re-visit the park bike with the aim of reducing the brake jack. I already got paint picked out for the second one of those. Priorities.

1 Like
5

Someone needs to talk me out of this. Or into it? Your call.

I’m not sure how, but I always seem to run out of welding gas on a saturday afternoon. It’s my super power. I took my Ar tank to be filled today (monday) and I probably won’t have it back until “by the weekend, for sure”

Now I have these link halves all (mostly) made, they’re tacked together they just need final welding and the cross piece put in.

20230807_112643
20230807_1126431920×1080 283 KB

I also have a mostly full Ar/CO2 bottle and a perfectly fine mig welder…

Should I zip the back of these up, where nobody will ever see, with the glue gun and be riding this thing by the weekend?

20230807_112701
20230807_1127011920×1080 249 KB

Or do the responsible, adult thing :stuck_out_tongue_closed_eyes: and wait till I get the bottle back for the TIG rig?

If it helps, once this bike is back together I’m probably gonna start on the next version pretty quickly and that one is going to get an aluminum rocker. This piece is definitely not the “forever” answer.

For those of you keeping score, this is the 3rd rocker and 3rd rear triangle I’ve put on this bike, this year. Christ.

2 Likes
6

Don’t crap it up with some garbage MIG welds. You’re too good for that.

1 Like
7

I can assure you, I am not :rofl: :joy:

1 Like
8

Mig it, ride it, learn something for the next one. Normally I’d vomit at the sight of mig welds on a bike, but that stuff looks pretty burly and if it’s only a short-term piece anyway, what have you got to lose?

1 Like
9

This one kinda got away from me. I migged the link and put it back togehter. Holy crap, the front of this thing is crooked :rofl:

It’s a little shorter, bit more travel and just a bit less progressive. I’ve only ridden it a handful of times, but I like it. I changed to 30t chainring from the 32 and I like that more, bonus for the color, it also came all the way from jolly olde, so that’s fun.

Ordered tubing today to make another one. Suggest a color!

20230810_200121
20230810_2001214608×2592 2.93 MB

20230810_200229
20230810_2002294608×2592 3.44 MB

20230811_094436
20230811_0944363264×1836 2.18 MB

20230815_112431
20230815_1124312304×1296 1.96 MB

1 Like
10

image
image665×665 118 KB

I’ve always been drawn to this particular poptart color scheme so I vote for blue!

2 Likes
11

Gold with lots of gold flake!

1 Like
12

Wildberry. Seriously. I was this close to doing the dh frame in this Blueberry Blue Metal Flake UV-proof — Tropical Glitz maybe this one…

So, I was intially like “nah, too much gold with the bars and the chainring…” but started looking through the golds anyway…what about this over black? REALLY heavy on the head tube and fading to just black by the time it gets to the seatpost. A gold fade, if you will. Dark Brass Metal Flake I Caramel — Tropical Glitz and we all know I’m a sucker for a prismatic flake Holographic Bronze Metal Flake — Tropical Glitz or that :stuck_out_tongue_winking_eye: Dirty Gold Metal Flake - Limited Edition — Tropical Glitz Very good stuff.

13

I’ve not made it through all of you Idiot Box but I noticed you started with Painthuffer and now you’re on Tropical Glitz. Why’d you make the switch?

I was thinking this basecoat with a whole bunch of Golden Shower.

14

I was ensorcelled by their selection of colors and wanted to give it a try. Nothing ventured, nothing gained and all that. I have nothing but good things to say about Painthuffer and will happily use and recommend their products any damn time. At the moment, I’m trying something new and I have been pleased. I like to mix, so I really like that I can buy 1.5 oz from TG and make blends of different sizes.

That’s a good combination. I had my shop when that color came out and I participated in the Instagram naming contest, I suggested Golden Shower or Yellow Fever but someone beat me to it. I also put up “Red Rocket” for a prismatic red they had, that wasn’t picked either :grin:

1 Like
15

Singal yellow fade to porsche red with flakes. Will match good with your sunglasses.

1 Like