FWIW as a previous owner of a LARGE downhill bike build in a car garage im all for out there in shed built designed bikes – it rode well , was slack low and plush as owt without bobbing like a badun
shame it just couldnt hold its self together – but it certainly had no calcs done.
Do you have any pics trail rat?
I’ve had a fairly peppered history with breaking bikes intended for hard use too…
> Specialized M2 hardtail (the ones the MBUK guys were messing around on in the late 90s as jump bikes) – unexpected headtube separation…
> Old Sunn DH bike – snapped two back ends, cracked front end
> Coyote DH2 – cracked
> Orange Zero trials frame – cracked
> Pashley trials frame – snapped, welded, snapped again
> Rocket trials frame – snapped one, cracked another
> Schwinn 4 banger – cracked
> Schwinn Straight 6 – cracked a bit – still in use
> Ellsworth Dare – cracked gussets – carried on using
Which is another reason I like UK builders cos at least you can get them fixed easily!
I remember watching Burf racing a few times, he’s fast and a nice guy, I was chatting to him at Aston a few months back looking at the belter frame (surprisingly light for what it is).
Personally I like the frames and considering the variations on geometry for the stock sizes, let alone the custom options they actually are reasonable VFM, still too pricey for me but if I could afford it I’d buy one over a number of other brands.
I do love it when the STW armchair frame building experts get going. Some of you lot don’t half blow out your arses…
a new custom built front end mated to the rear end of my old Schwinn straight 6 so that I can keep my lawwill back end that I love so much but with a new re-designed front end with more modern geometry.
You sir have fine taste. Sounds like an awesome idea. Please share it on here when done.
Many people seem to consider a product’s place of manufacture more important than its quality.
cookeaa – I do love it when the STW armchair frame building experts get going. Some of you lot don’t half blow out your arses…
Some of the “armchair engineers” on here have been involved in a lot bigger projects than designing & building a bike frame. Don’t be so quick to dismiss their comments.
Some of the “armchair engineers” on here have been involved in a lot bigger projects than designing & building a bike frame.
And some of them haven’t, the problem is it’s really hard to tell over the internet…and in the absence of any evidence that they know anything about building bikes other than a few throwaway comments it’s hard to place any faith in them.
Also could have made a joke about their involvement still not being any proof they know what they’re talking about, but don’t want to turn this thread into an Engineers willy waving contest.
Yup, I’m working my socks off. Got weekends free for riding and I’m home by 5 most nights. Life is good. Not fixing bikes but I’m actually loving riding more for it. Been building a pretty cool trail on some local ground too. Should be ready to ride my shiny yellow ranger on in the spring. 😉
I meant to edit that so it read better but I really do think that is brilliant. Looking forward to hearing how you get on with riding it. Be justifiably proud as commisioner (and builder BTR)…I’d like to think Mert would approve; and it’s an awesome piece of upcycling.
@bwaarp – you don’t have to like the way it looks 😉
I was always treating this as a project, a new modern shaped front end for my favourite rear end of all time was the goal, and I’m well chuffed with the result.
Aesthetically it won’t be to a lot of people’s tastes, but then I’m not a fan of the way a lot of modern bikes look and I think it fits well wit the retro-rebuild concept.
Will definitely report back after build and ride as that’s obviously the most important bit, how it rides!
Is that the ladies frame with a dropped top tube ?
🙂 cheeky! I’m just a short arse and like the standover
I’ll do a full write up after I’ve had some ride time on it, but a bit more info…
Geometry wise at the moment:
66deg HA
75deg effective SA
330mm BB height in current config
1127mm Wheelbase (432mm chainstays)
134mm travel with 50mm stroke shock using 150mm i2i
695mm FC
100mm HT
400mm reach
563mm stack
518mm TT
551mm effective TT
It’s a Lawwill back end lifted off a Schwinn straight 6, very flat rate and incredibly active back ends, they can be a bit bobby until you are used to them but soaks up a lot more than it should for the travel.
The shock is mounted on a trunnion so there is a fair bit of adjustment in effective i2i so you can alter HA/SA/Wheelbase, it also can run shocks with stroke from 38mm to 57mm so there are travel options from 100mm to 150mm
Currently using Fox 36s dropped to 130mm, but will be playing around with a few different travel options until I’m happy, although I probably won’t be running anything over 140mm at the front I think…
The goal was basically to take everything I loved about Schwinn Straight 6 and 4 Bangers, and fix a couple of the niggles I’ve had over the years with them, like needing a bit more room in the front, and a slacker head angle, and to end up with a nicely sorted bike for ragging round the woods for a few hours and having a lot of fun with, tough like and AM/mini DH bike but without all the travel.
I’ve still got another S6 fully built so will be doing some back to back rides as well to compare.
I’ll do some proper pics in daylight as well as the shock tunnel area really is brilliant, very impressed with what BTR have done!
I love that bike! It looked pretty odd as a bare frame with the carbon fibre back end and steel front triangle but built up it looks awesome! And the geometry is very appealing.
well, have taken it for it’s first proper ride now and have to give it a big thumbs up, it is flippin’ quick and very playful!
For the first 20mins or so I was thinking it was feeling a bit short and could have done with an extra inch in the top tube/on the wheelbase but as soon as I got it into the twisty rooty tight steep stuff we have here it was absolutely spot on, it is really really nimble and the centre of gravity is really low, it feels like the entire weight of the bike is in the bottom bracket, it’s really really planted and very very stable in the air.
Standover height is huge, works really well when steering with your knees in turns and a lot more leeway for bailing on steeper bits!
There’s a little more flex in the front end than the old Schwinn frame but it actually works really well, especially with a big bolt through fork, if you smack it through a rock garden at full tilt the fork stays on line and the back kind of wiggles it’s way through a bit instead of getting deflected off, makes it a very smooth ride and it carries the speed really well and it’s not enough flex that it loses it’s line, just enough.
Probably going to put an extra 10mm travel back into the forks and wind the trunnion up a little to take the BB up 1/2 inch or so as I was smacking my pedals a bit too often, but then I’m running 175 cranks on it and I normally use 170s so crank swap might be in order.
It seems to have kept all the good traits of the backend too, soaks up more things than it should for the amount of travel, has ludicrous amounts of grip when peddling back up loose and rooty climbs too, and is totally planted on the way down too, and will still slide the back end out in a controlled way if you weight the outside pedal and give it a little kick so very happy there, pivots have moved slightly compared to the old frame and consequently it ramps up a tiny bit more towards the end of the travel than it used.
Has come in at a smidge over 31 lbs, which is not bad and only about 1/2 lb heaver than the old Schwinn. Scope to lose some of that too as It has a hefty old Mavic 325 (700g!) rim on the front and the 2.4 Advantage is not a light tyre but I’m happy with the weight anyway, especially given where it’s CofG is it’s not that noticeable handling wise.