HUBCAP Cycles

Another Pic

2011-11-06T16:37:00.000-08:00

Gordy's bike built up

2011-11-06T16:21:00.000-08:00

Just a quick picture, I have more but will post later. Hub

For Gordy (and Rody)

2011-11-02T17:11:00.000-07:00

I know it has been a while since I've posted on the blog, and Rody gives me crap about it every other day. From his text "You're a sucky blogger". On to Gordy's frame. I have more man hours in to this frame than any other that I have built. Some of it to custom requests by Gordy but mostly time building more fixture to make sure everything is dead nuts. This is a TI 29er, with a 2x10 drive train, 16.75" chainstays, 44MM ID headtube which will have a King headset for the fox tapered steerer, and a direct mount front der. This all adds up to tight clearances, which means double and triple checking everything. To finish this frame, I need to polish the down tube, some of the top tube, and seat stay bridge, then lay down decals and glass bead blast, and then remove decals to reveal chrome like lettering. It should give the industrial look that Gordy was looking to get. I will be back at it Friday, for a Saturday morning delivery. I promise to post pics of the completed bike.

Yard Sale

2011-09-05T11:47:00.000-07:00

Mike had me build this Hairy Eyeball styled frame last spring, and he is looking to upgrade to a TI frame, so it is up for sale as a complete bike($2300) or frame only($800). Here are a few specs. 26" wheels, 23"EF TT, 16"ST @ 73*, 16.75"CS, 12.25"BB 4.5"HT @ 69.5*, 42.446"WB. If you are interested or would like more specs, send me an email. Cheers, JU

Jay's Road bike

2011-09-05T11:14:00.000-07:00

I didn't get a chance to snap a photo of Jay's frame before it went out, so Jay was nice enough to send me pictures of it built up. It looks sweet.

Progress

2011-07-21T09:22:00.000-07:00

Jay's Road Frame

2011-07-19T18:24:00.000-07:00

Spent the afternoon machining an IS head tube for Jay's Road frame and managed to miter a couple of tubes. Jay wanted to see picture of the fabrication along the way, so I will do my best. I need to go to my other job in the a.m., so I am not sure how productive Wednesday will be.
Hub

Howard P's touring frame

2011-07-15T18:51:00.000-07:00

This is officially the first Touring frame with a Hubcap name on it.
I know it will see a TON of miles.

Cheers,
Hub

2011-07-11T18:52:00.000-07:00

Howard P's Steel randonneuring frame

2011-07-06T10:23:00.000-07:00

More progress from the basement: This thing is turning out to be a sweet beast. Columbus steel- S-bent the chainstays and left the seatstays straight, 3 bottle cages, racks, fenders, lugged straight-blade fork, room for BIG tires... it is going to be ready for the long haul. It should be ready for the paint booth very soon.

Cheers,
Hub

Back At It

2011-06-16T20:57:00.000-07:00

Some shots of the latest fabrications including Jeff A's Ti coupler road frame is ready for paint, Michelle S's super orange Steel MTB, and Jess K's fresh paint with lots of keystones. Feels good to be back in the swing of things.

Cheers,
-Hub

John Y's paint

2011-03-01T16:35:00.000-08:00

Needs a wet sand and then final clear to bury the decals.

Single Speed

2010-12-26T11:42:00.001-08:00

Just needs some zip tie cable guides and it is ready for paint. I did get a chance to take it for a quick spin to make sure everything is rockin.

Tapered Head Tubes

2010-12-14T17:12:00.000-08:00

Dropouts

2010-11-12T17:03:00.000-08:00

John Y's build

2010-10-30T18:57:00.000-07:00

I know that I have bad about posting on blog lately, but I have been very busy. Here is the Hubcap swinger dropouts half machined. The next post will show the drops in 2 double vices in the CNC. These dropouts have really slowed production, but I hope it will be worth it in the end.

Below is the 20mm thru axle rigid fork. I used 2 True Temper 1.125" dia. 1.3mm/.7mm butted tubes which should work well with the long rigid fork.

Here are the 20mm thru axle dropouts machined and ready to weld. Front triangle welded up and waiting for the rear.
Front triangle welded up and still in the jig.

If I was going to go to NAHBS I would take this one with me. The 20mm thru axle rigid, with the new swingers really shows how custom my frames really are. I think John will be happy.

I would write more but need to go.
Cheers,
JU

Sorry, pictures and text do not match.

Piece Of History

2010-10-01T14:47:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the lack of posts, I have been working on Hubcap Cycles swinger dropouts that I need for at least 4 builds. Should have some CNC parts done in a week or so, and will post some pics. I did stop by the old shop and picked up some old signage that I will place in the new shop as soon as I pick a spot for it. When there, I was happy to see that Herm's handy work was still there. He had scribed "Grove Innovations Command Center" in the dusty wall upstairs. I also miss living 3 feet from work, but don't mind not being a land lord. Will post soon. HUB

Ti Seatposts

2010-09-03T19:43:00.000-07:00

The new posts came out super. I delivered this batch to Freeze Thaw this afternoon.

4 Hubcaps, 1 Allegrippis

2010-08-22T19:09:00.001-07:00

Mike, Chad, Jim and Ron went for a fun spin around the Allegrippis trails. Good times.

TI seat posts

2010-08-22T14:57:00.000-07:00

I took a couple of hours today to build a fixture for welding up TI seat posts. Seemed to work well.
Here is the first one out of the jig. The post still needs a little polish on the head and it will head out.

TI Road S and S frame

2010-08-12T18:13:00.000-07:00

Jeff"s frame is finally off the build list after being bumped a few times. This was one of the harder ones I've done in a while. It took a bit longer than most frames, but a two week vacation to the great state of Maine did not help the production time. Jeff wants an bead blasted/ anodized finish, with the HUBCAP logo a polished anodized finish. Should look cool, and will post pictures when it is ready for delivery.
On another note, I had a backhoe at the house yesterday, and needed to get rid of some fill. Needles to say, now I have a sweet little track complete with a jump, table top, bank turn, and a double. I sure wish I had a backhoe when I was 12 years old, it would have saved us a ton of time building our dirt tracks. I'll post pictures as soon as I can find someone brave enough to hit the double.

S and S couplers

2010-07-21T17:54:00.000-07:00

I know it does not look like much, and the front triangle usually goes pretty quick, but when you are installing S and S couplers in butted TI tubing, things slow to a crawl. The couplers need to be in the right spot in the frame, which would be no problem with straight gauge tubing, but throw in butted tubes and they also need to be in the right spot in relation to the buttes. I am actually looking forward to doing the rear.

EWR-RF-166-6-5-97

2010-07-20T11:37:00.000-07:00

Here is a pic of Clay's new/old mountain bike. It was the last EWR ever made by Innovations, and was never delivered to Jay. It is an extra small frame, with a 19" top tube length, so toe over lap is a slight problem. From the serial number, it looks as though fabrication was completed on June 5th 1997, so I am not sure if Jonny B did the welding or if it was Bill, or myself. It hung on the wall, unpainted, in the Centre Hall shop for a couple of years. One day between jobs I decided to spray some light blue met., lay down some decals, and finished it off with some matte clear. I was hoping this would motivate Bill to sell it, instead it hung on the wall in his basement for a few more years. At some point Rody grabbed it for his son, and built it up so that he could cruise the trials. Colten has since out grown this cool retro frame, so it was handed down to Clay, with the condition that when he was done with it, it would go to the guys at First Flight.

Jeff's road frame and stuff

2010-07-16T19:19:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the lack of posts, but not too many photo worthy work going on in the shop. Clay and I managed to make a trip to Ohio to see Rody and take part in the Groovy race. Thanks Rody!

Pictured above is the start of Jeff's butted TI road frame with S and S couplers.

Felt a need to give the 69er some TLC, since I have actually been riding it a bit. I added a brake stiffener, a 3rd cable guide on the TT, bead blasted the frame, updated the fork, installed a king headset, and built a custom stem. Justin at Freezethaw is building a new set of wheels. I am more than capable, but he does a killer job and has a TI frame on order.

I'll post a picture of Clay's new MTB bike when the camera is recharged. It has some cool history that the retro guys will love.

Matt Ferrari takes 2nd in SS at Lumberjack 100

2010-06-23T15:52:00.000-07:00

Matt Ferrari takes 2nd in SS at Lumberjack 100 (CLICKY HERE)

Matt Ferrari on his Ti 29er single speed

2010-06-22T07:50:00.000-07:00

Matt on his way to 1st place SS and 3rd overall in the Stoopid 50

Last 2 frames

2010-06-15T13:09:00.000-07:00

Here is Harry's road frame, and if looks wet, that is because it is still wet.
This is Mike's 26er that required a very low stand over height. I decided to run with the hairy eyeball solution.
With both frames out the door, I can enjoy my family vacation, so I'll catch up on emails as soon as I get back.

Dirt Fest Demos

2010-05-31T18:50:00.000-07:00

The Winner

2010-05-23T13:34:00.000-07:00

Dirt Fest Approaches...

2010-05-17T19:22:00.001-07:00

It is late but people are requesting images... here you go. Hope to see you at Dirt Fest!

-Hub

Allegrippis DirtsFest SS Belt Drive

2010-05-11T17:46:00.000-07:00

I have been working hard to get the Dirtfest raffle bike and Matt F's TI ss frame in the paint both at the same time since they both need to be at Raystown next weekend. The raffle bike is ready for sand blasting, and Matt's frame just needs the post mounts for the rear brake.

See ya at DirtFest,
Hub

Rock Rings

2010-05-03T18:09:00.000-07:00

I need to thank Andrew and Tim for cranking out these cool Rock Rings. They are fully CNC machined, black anodized, and engraved with my logo. Sorry, not for sale, but will look awesome on the Dirtfest demo bikes. Cheers, Hub

Matt's frame/DirtFest update

2010-05-02T16:25:00.000-07:00

Here is Matt F's TI frame with the rear triangle welded on. It still needs cable stops, seatstay bridge, disc mounts, and mount brace. With it out of the jig, I can get going on the DirtFest raffle bike, which I need to pound out ASAP. Both bikes need to be ready to roll for the big event in Raystown. The DirtFest bike will be a Chromoly single speed belt drive. If you have a spare $10, buy a ticket. Who knows, you may be the proud owner of a sweet new ride. All proceeds go to maintaining the trails there, which are killer if you have not seen.
Things should pick up quite a bit around here after this week, when my other job ends for the next 3 months.
Cheers,
Hub

Matt's frame

2010-04-24T17:26:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the lack of posts, things have been busy, but the frame building should pick up at the beginning of May. I had to take a couple of hours to machine a new heat sink/argon purger, so that I could weld up Matt's front triangle. This 27.2 sink goes in the seat tube and the fitting is for pumping argon into the tubes for purging.

Matt's frame has been slow going, but is turning out rather nice. Tomorrow I should be able to bend up some stays for the rear.
Cheers,
Hub

Jess's frame

2010-04-05T14:39:00.001-07:00

progress in the shop

2010-04-04T17:44:00.001-07:00

Here are a few shots of what has been going on in the shop: Jess K's Ti frame repaint- Kawi green with Belgian orange chain rings should pop. Chad R's Road bike is built and has some miles on it. And finally an emergency A arm replacement for the mini baja. Trees don't want to move out of the way of a 40 mph buggy. Who knew? Our team leaves for competition this week.

Internet Down

2010-03-29T17:20:00.000-07:00

Hi All,

Sorry for the lack of posts... my internet has been down (again). We are currently talking to other carriers so this will hopefully not happen anymore. That doesn't mean I haven't been busy in the shop. Things going on include: Chad R.'s and Dennis B.'s bikes are back from getting pics taken. Also, I started Matt F's frame. Plus, I blasted Jess's frame. It needs some pop. The blue and blast finish just didn't have the sizzle I would've liked to have seen.

Cheers,

HUB

Wow, Thats Red

2010-03-21T17:12:00.000-07:00

Can't wait to see this one built up and rolling down the road with the sun bouncing of the metallic red. It starts by bead blasting the frame in my cabinet to completely clean the surface to prepare it for the primer. It then gets 3 coats of PPG epoxy primer, and then a wet sand to prep it for the base coat. 3 coats of pure gold base, followed by the Sunset Red tinted clear. I lost count of how may coats, but did manage to use up almost half a quart of an unopened can. Then the decals go down and I start shooting the clear. 2-3 coats and then a final wet sand and 2 more coats of clear to finish it up. I was cruising the forums(V-Salon) the other day and a builder claimed he has $35 in material costs for a paint job. Wish I had his deal on paint. That half a quart of tinted red cost me $64. That would leave $3 for primer, base coat and clear. Hmmm.
Hub

Ready for Sunset Metalic Red

2010-03-18T18:58:00.000-07:00

Good day.

2010-03-09T17:04:00.000-08:00

As you can see from my paint prep area and the boxes of tube sets, things are busy in my shop.
Today was another great day of things coming together. Dennis B.'s Zona road front triangle is welded. Prepping the dropouts and getting ready to miter the stays. Chad's road frame got black stripes and some clear. His headtube HC will be polished and then I will shoot final. James K.'s Big One Inch is turning slow in the lathe for the clear to settle. Decals are on.

2010-03-07T18:05:00.000-08:00

A few quick picks of Chad's orange... This will really pop.

Road Frames

2010-03-06T19:13:00.000-08:00

Here are a few pics of two road frames... Chad's Columbus Spirit and Dennis B's Columbus Zona. Seat tube clamp done and a very long headtube cut to length. Chad's now white with some pearl for the decal panels will get some Orange on it and I want to get Dennis's front triangle welded tomorrow.

Night,

Hub

Road Frame coming together

2010-02-27T21:28:00.000-08:00

A few quick shots of Chad's welded front tri and s-bent stays are mitered.

Brazing

2010-02-26T19:05:00.000-08:00

Brazing a cable guide on a steel fork for my Mom's titanium rails to trails bike. She doesn't need 100mms of travel.

Chad's Road frame

2010-02-26T18:34:00.000-08:00

Chad's stays are mitered. This is turning out pretty slick.

more pics from today's adventure

2010-02-20T16:06:00.001-08:00

Had to post more pics...
Enjoy.

Lots of stuff coming together

2010-02-20T14:26:00.000-08:00

Guest blogger here... I was able to scoot down the valley a little after sunrise in order to spend some time working with Hub.

After fulfilling my promise of coffee, we were able to make some final decisions on my front triangle and get to mitering. I worked at hand finishing a different set of dropouts cast by Llewellyn in Australia. Glad Hub ordered two sets so I could get on these. They look fantastic.

Other things coming together are James' Fat Wicked retro resto. Still waiting on fork decals but it is looking SWEET.

Jim Campbell's titanium seat post is ready for clamping in his frame. These are fantastic. Hub, where's mine?

Another fork is ready for canti mounts. Makes me want one. Cool.

My front triangle is now mitered and probably either tacked or being welded as I post. I can't wait to build this up.

Cheers,

-Chad

TI Post

2010-02-19T15:43:00.000-08:00

Sorry for the lack of posts, no pun intended. I have been busy building retro forks, ordering tubing and parts, and working on the SAE Mini Baja car for the big competition in Greensville SC at the beginning of April.

I did get Ron's proto-type TI seat post done, and he snapped a photo for me. The children managed to miss place the camera cord, yet another excuse for the lack of posts. James's fat resto is complete and will post pics as soon as I find the cord. I also did my corporate taxes, thanks to my helpful mom, good thing I built her a frame. Promise to post soon.

Cheers,
Hub

Just for Jid

2010-01-17T19:00:00.000-08:00

Sorry for the lack of posts. Jid is very excited to get his BOI retro fork. Here is 2 pictures of it ready for paint. It gets a metalic silver with black decals. still waiting on the decals.
Ron's final flat clear did not go well, so it has been stripped and will be reshot. Sometimes that is how it goes, and Ron was very understanding, wish all my customers were as cool as him.
Cheers,
Hub

Quick picture

2010-01-07T06:57:00.000-08:00

I still need to lay down some clear to bury the decals. The final coat of clear will be flat, to match the Fox fork.
Cheers
Hub

Productive Day

2010-01-02T17:39:00.000-08:00

Spent the AM finishing off the cable guides for Ron's frame, loaded it into the blasting cabinet (which was needed since it was 10 degrees and windy outside), and laid down 3 coats of epoxy primer. Need to pick up the color coat Monday morning and get the custom decals moving.

Finished setting up the frame jig for Chad's Life road frame, cut the head tube, faced the BB, and decided to go with an externally butted seat tube, which we will need to order on Monday.

Had a customer that required 4 sets of canti bosses installed. Things went well, good end to a productive day.

Cheers,
Hub

Happy Holidays

2009-12-25T16:52:00.000-08:00

Ron's frame just needs cable stops and into the paint booth.
Cheers,
Hub

Rear Triangle

2009-12-19T16:35:00.000-08:00

Bent and mitered the rear triangle, and it is all ready to be welded up. It doesn't look like much, but it took most of the day. With 16 3/4 inch chainstays, the bend needs to be just right to clear the 2.2" 29er tire and triple chainring. I'll get back on it Monday. More pictures then.
Cheers,
Hub

Ron's front triangle

2009-12-18T18:25:00.000-08:00

First picture is Ron's front triangle loaded up in the frame jig. The second picture it is all welded up and waiting for the rear. Planning on putting in some more hours tomorrow, so next post should have the stays installed.
Hub

Ron's 29er hardtail

2009-12-17T18:15:00.000-08:00

Quick post with pics. I was able to miter up the front triangle for Ron S's 29er hardtail. Things went smooth, just need to wipe everything down, tack it in the jig and weld it up. Hoping to have the rear started by lunch tomorrow. I'll post more pics later.
Cheers,
Hub

Odds and ends

2009-12-15T17:55:00.000-08:00

Sorry for the lack of posts, things have been busy and production slow. I had high hopes for the week, but a sick kid had other plans. Looks like a trip to the doctor in the AM.
First picture is of the rails to trails TI 29er hardtail. I know you have seen this bike before, but I had a request for a picture from the side. It still needs the Thompson seat post.
Second picture, I'm checking the radius on the seat tube to make sure the gap between the tire and the tube is consistant.
Third picture shows the tube in the frame jig. This frame will have an effective seat tube angle of 73 degrees.
In the paint booth: Jim's Fat frame and fork, and Jake's Willits fork.
On another note, I just found the spam folder on my e-mail, so if I have not responded to your mail, try again and I will respond.
Cheers,
Hub

Dumpster Fat Resto

2009-11-29T18:27:00.000-08:00

OK, Here is a picture of the new glass bead blasting cabinet. Inside is Jame's Fat Wicked. In the second picture is the big one inch fork to go with the frame. Still need to install the paragon canti's and the silvered tabs.
Hub

Mom's Rails to Trails

2009-11-28T15:48:00.000-08:00

Here it is all built up. Still waiting on the Thompson seat post and the f der. I shimmed this one just to give it a test ride. The Reba is just to get her by until I have time to do a rigid fork. She is worried about weight, so I think I might give a go at a TI fork. I'm still kicking around a few ideas on dia. and wall thicknesses. I want to make sure I engineer a well handling fork. I'll post pics with the new fork as soon as it is done. Don't ask!, Not yet. Notice the new head tube decal for the non steel frames, also have them in baby blue.
On another note, I made a run to Millbrook NY to pick up my new glass bead blasting cabinet. I was up at 5 and drove 5 hours up and 5 back, I was so excited I had to hook it up tonight and it works great. My camera needs to be charged or I would have posted a picture of it as well. Will post again soon.
Cheers,
Hub

Head Tube Badge

2009-11-18T16:25:00.000-08:00

Took a couple of hours today to build a tool that fits in my press to roll the stainless steel HCs that get silvered onto all my steel frames. I used a couple of shoulder bolts as guide pins to keep the bottom and top die in line. The hardest part is remember which side is up, I have one or two that look nice if you are looking in your rear view mirror. Happy to say it works really nice, it rolls it perfect for the silver job. The badge will get a quick sanding between each coat of paint, and polished before the final clear. This one will be going on Ron S's hardtail 29er.
Cheers,
Hub

Nothing to do with bike frames

2009-11-11T17:54:00.000-08:00

Every once and a while you need to slow down and look around. I'm not big on sweets, so this was my dessert tonight.
Cheers,
Hub

Dumpster Fat

2009-11-10T16:01:00.000-08:00

My friend James of the north happen to find this Fat Wicked in the trash. It has a couple of issues, but all and all, there is something to work with here. Rody says I should post stuff like this on my blog, so this one is for him. First issue, Deore XT steel post was froze in the seat tube. If it had been an aluminum post I would have drilled it out on the lathe, as seen in another posting. However this is 10 times harder to do with a steel post without running the drill though the side of the seat tube. Plan B:
1. Cut post a half inch from the top of the seat tube.
2. Weld 1/4 plate to end of post.
3. Strap clamp the plate to left side of mill table.
4. Throw large tractor chain over main beam running through the center of the shop.
5. Attach chain to all thread and spacers running through bottom bracket.
6. Lower mill table until the whole milling machine is almost hanging from beam.
7. Apply just enough heat with propane torch to burn the paint.
8. Wiggle frame by head tube.
Post out! Still undefeated.

The Wicked also needs new canti mounts, a Big One Inch fork, midnight blue paint, and some decals and she will be up and running again.

Cheers,
Hub

TI 29'er Hardtail

2009-11-08T17:47:00.000-08:00

This is what my welding table looks like when I'm really work. Sorry I have not been better about posting on the blog. This frame just needs a couple of cable stops and it will be ready for the scotch bright pad. That's right, no paint. The customer does a lot of rails to trails where they load bikes into horse trailers and she was always concerned about the paint on her steel Hubcap. The polished TI finish won't fall victim to chipping and can be easily polished to make it look new again.
Up next, Ron S's Columbus Zona 29er hardtail. Still trying to figure out top tube configuration to achieve a 30" stand over. I have a few options, I just want to make sure we pick the strongest, cleanest option. Ron is planning on riding the Wilderness 101, and would like to document this build for his scrap book, so I plan on shooting lots of pictures of his project.
Cheers,
Hub

Stainless Steel parts

2009-10-25T19:20:00.000-07:00

Chad R wanted to see his Henry James drop outs all polished up for the Columbus Spirit build. I also threw in 20 stainless steel head tube badges that still need to be rolled and silvered on to your future frame. Wonder how long it will take to use them up.
Cheers,
Hub

Day of stays

2009-10-25T16:58:00.000-07:00

I was contacted by a fellow builder that wanted to build his own press and was wondering if I was willing to share the specs on mine. I e-mailed him some dimensions and said I would post some pics on the blog. So Joe, the first 4 pics are for you, hope they help.
A good part of the day was spent on TI stays. The chain stays started out as Haynes 7/8 dia.x .032 wall. After rough cutting them to length, I load them into the press to ovalize the BB end and make a smooth transition to round on the drop out end.

Once the chain stays are flattened, onto bending. This is the first bend, for tire clearance. I forgot to take a picture of the second bend. I must of got wrapped up in all the excitement.
There is a stop on the bender to make sure that both stays are bent the same amount. I also have a stop for length, although it is not in this picture.

I was so excited I forgot to snap pics of mitering as well. Oh well, maybe the next frame. Here the chain stays are loaded into the jig

Onto seat stays. The pair of stays have been S bent up and loaded into the mitering fixture. The cool thing about this jig is that when I adjust the length, the pair of stays maintain the center line of the jig.

Cheers,
Hub

Jess crankin it out in Truckee

2009-10-20T18:02:00.000-07:00

Just a quick post, but here is a picture of Jess at Nationals in Truckee CA. She placed 29th in both the short track and the cross country. Funny it was on a 29er. Maybe I could talk her into smaller wheels.

Great job Jess!

We are hoping to give her frame a flashy face lift for the 2010 season, so I would love to hear suggestions.

Cheers,
Hub

4 More Forks

2009-10-17T19:47:00.000-07:00

I managed to miter and weld up 4 more forks. In the pic, 2 Fat Yo's and 2 Fat Big One Inch. I am glad they are off my plate, so that I can focus on a couple of frames that I have been looking forward to knocking out. I have a TI frame that still needs a rear triangle, and then onto Ron S.'s steel 29er hardtail.
On another note, there has been a lot of chat on the frame building forums about frame jigs, and I still feel that I have the best jig for set up, rigidity, and accuracy. If a customer wants a 70.5 degree head tube, I loosen 2 bolts, drop in a pin and tighten the 2 bolts. I can set up any geometry in just a couple of minutes, so that I can spend my time fabricating a killer frame. Most other builders only tack their frames in the jig, and weld it out of the jig. I weld as much of the frame in the jig that I can reach, approx 85%. Others will tell you that creates internal stresses in the welds. B.S. I have done this with 800 plus frames and have never had a failure. I can tell you that post welding alignment is almost never needed. I fear that the guys welding out of the jig have to do so much cold setting to get alignment that the frame is compromised or still has memory and will someday move back to the unaligned state. Just something I need to say here, didn't need a bunch of guys on the forum, who never built a frame, to tell me they know better.
Cheers,
Hub

Metal Lathe, not just for round parts.

2009-10-15T16:06:00.000-07:00

One of the services that I offer the local bike shops is seat post removal. Something I don't like to advertise, but interesting to look at. I fixture the frame in the tool post and drill out the frozen post with an undersized drill. In the picture, 2/3 of the post has been drilled when it decided to let loose. This is usually how it goes. I am proud to say I am undefeated. Never damaged a frame, and have always gotten the post out. Back to work,
Hub

First Snow!

2009-10-15T13:12:00.000-07:00

It is the middle of October and we already have an inch on the ground and it is expected to keep snowing through Saturday. Not very good for the Sunday ride at Allegrippis, but great for production at the HubcapCycles factory.
On the plate, more Fat forks, seat post removal, and rear triangle for a TI frame.
Figured out one reason for the poor quality on recent blog photos, looks like the kids smeared peanut butter on the lense. This picture appears to be better with the new cleaned lense.
I'll post more pics later, gotta get something done. Cheers, Hub

More Retro reproduction forks

2009-10-12T18:34:00.000-07:00

Ok, lots of pics, and the quality is not great, but it is late. And they are in reverse order, oh well. Just a few pics of a Yo Eddy fork build. In the last pic it shows the fork loaded in the jig and half welded. Second to last I was trying to show the stack of dimes on the bearing race weld. third and fourth to last is the race being turned in the lathe to the proper dia. after it is all welded up. The first pic I was trying to show the tabs that are silvered on the back of the fork legs.
Fortunately my frame building skills are better than my photography and my blogging skills. Soon I'll be done with this run and i can focus on some frames

Tough weekend

2009-10-04T18:47:00.000-07:00

I was hoping to get a ton of work done this weekend. I started by shooting final clear on 2 bars and 1 fork, no problem. Went to do the fusion pass on the front triangle of a TI 29er, no argon for the back purge, problem on Saturday morning. Richard at B and B reproductions was nice enough to hook me up with a cylinder at 10am. Got rolling on the fusion pass, started on the filler pass and couldn't establish an arc. I recalled Rody had a similar problem and it was the torch cables. Thought I was done until Bill called and told me he had an extra set that I could use to trouble shoot. Bam, back in business. So tomorrow is a big trip to the welding supply store to pick up argon, weld mold 880, and a new torch. I did manage to rework Jess's binder bolt in preparation for nationals in Truckee CA. Hope she kicks some butt after winning her last three races.

Paint Booth

2009-09-29T17:39:00.000-07:00

Still need to build some fixtures to hold my parts when painting, so almost didn't post this picture, but most builders don't even paint. In this picture is a CW style BMX bar, Grove Innovations Hard Core reproduction fork, and a original Grove hot head bar/stem. They have been primed, sprayed with white base coat, sanded and cleared. Need to be sanded again, decals applied and more clear.

Hard Core Fork

2009-09-26T16:26:00.000-07:00

I have a customer who snagged a Grove Innovations X-frame off of eBay. The bike came with an old Scott uni-crown suspension fork, which really didn't even function any more. He was hoping to get the correct fork put back on this vintage bike. Here is the fork loaded in the jig.
The Hard Core fork and the Hot Head bar/stem that came with the bike will get a fresh coat of white PPG paint. I'll post pics when it is all together.
Cheers, Hub

RB Winter

2009-09-23T18:58:00.000-07:00

A bunch of us met at R.B. Winter to hop on some single track. The weather was fantastic.

Heading For Ohio

2009-09-23T13:50:00.000-07:00

My gas mileage was not normal on my way out to Ohio for the Groovy race.

BMX Bar

2009-09-22T18:39:00.000-07:00

I know there is no money in BMX parts, but when you live with your 9 year old customer, you have few choices. Upon returning from the Groovy race in Ohio I was asked to fabricate this CW style bar to finish off the 1982 Schwinn Sting build. Still needs white paint, but I have a fork and stem on the build list that also needs white, so I'll do them in one shot.

Titanium Rails to Trails for Mum

2009-09-09T18:17:00.000-07:00

This is the front triangle for my mom's rails to trails TI 29er. (click to enlarge)

New Hubcap Logo

2009-09-09T18:09:00.000-07:00

Tee's will be coming out soon.