Parts is parts

In a previous post I sang the praises of the humble beach crusier and I said I would like to build another. Well, I went and done it. 

I started out with a Schwinn typhoon frame I got from a fellow ratrodbikes.con forum member. 

Usually I would rattlecan the frame, but something about this frame's patina made me smile. It was part of a well loved bike. It earned those dings and that rust just gives it personality. 

 I could have just gotten schwinn parts but I didn't want to restore anything...if the fork was correct then I'd try to get the  bars right, seat correct ect. That would take time and money. I decided to make this a frankencrusier. 

The headset was a challenge. Schwinn often used proprietary parts so if I wanted to find a headset, I'd have to dig. 

After a while at the co-op I was able to cobble together a headset from bmx races and parts leftover on the fork I dug up. 

I had to go to eBay for the crankset. It's got a little patina on it but it works as it should. 

The wheels have been on 2 other bikes I've built - my first crusier and that green roadbike that had many different incarnations. 

This bike is an absolute pleasure to ride. Smooth as butter and geared just right. My only complaint is the seat post tends to sink. I just can't get the collar tight enough. Some kind of shim may help. 

I really dig the hodpodgy look of this bike. Nothing matches but somehow it works. 

I'm sure I'm not done futzing with this bike. I'll keep you posted. Until then may those bins be full of parts you need!