Dang Girl, You Made That?

Remember how in my last post I hinted about a lot of cool stuff happening with the bike? Well, I'll let you in on a secret, Gretta is home. I'm playing catch up. I hadn't really had time to blog about everything as it happened, but I'm so proud of the different steps of the process and the things that I learned during them so they're being included in this blog.

I know in the last post I had told you guys I had become a fabricator, and this entry is dedicated to me fabricating a part for Gretta. Gretta has coaster brakes and if you guys haven't seen coaster brakes before there's a little tab that sticks out to connect the brake hub to the bike. Once G knew that we were dealing with coaster brakes, he told me we'd have to find a way to connect it to the frame. Luckily, my wonderful boyfriend knows how to fabricate parts and suggested we fabricate our own piece. So that's what we did. In the process, I learned how to use a lot of different tools. I wish we had gotten pictures of me using these tools because I feel like most people won't believe me when I say I used them. But I did. So there!

First we had to measure around the back spoke to see how long of a piece of sheet metal we were going to need. Once we had done that we marked it and headed to the band saw. I was actually quite frightened to be using this little guy. He's intimidating. G soothed my nerves and helped me set it up. Next thing I knew we had a rectangular piece to work with. Following this we needed to create rounded edges. G helped me mark them up, and we went over to the belt sander. If I was frightened to use the band saw, I had no desire to be any where near the belt sander. When we started to get ready to use it, G noticed we needed to change the sand paper belt that was on it. The second he turned on the machine to position the belt it started tearing pieces off. I might have squeaked,but if I did I don't think G heard me. Using the belt sander was interesting, it required a certain amount of pressure and the right movement to get the edges nice and smooth. I got the different edges rounded, but G had to do the final touches because let's face it, I can only do so much.

Once we finished with the belt sander, I got to use a drill press. G figured out the positioning and the diameter of the holes, and we got down to it. Frankly, the drill press didn't freak me out at all. It wasn't buzzing and darting back and forth like the band saw. It wasn't ripping sheets of sand paper apart. Once we drilled the two holes I got to use my favorite machine ever-the sand blaster. Remember in the beginning how I used the sand blaster A LOT to take paint off of Gretta's different parts. Well, I got reaaal good at it. Okay maybe not at professional standards but at my "I've never used tools for real before" standards. I got to sand blast the part, and then it was time to bend it. G started out by bending the piece by hand, but that could only do so much. It took the power of the vice to bend it the rest of the way.

After we got it bent in the right position we hooked it up on Gretta. Here's the part where you guys get a picture. If you've read all this so far, High Five! If you haven't, I totally understand.

Dang guys, all that work for that tiny little part. I'm super proud of it though. Gretta totally needed it to be able to ride and brake properly!

On that same day, I got a surprise from G's dad. Remember those garages filled with magical items, G's dad had one of my dream items just laying around. A Schwinn bell! That's right people, a bell. I had told you all that it was on my list of eventual parts to get, and I was super excited to be given one. G's dad even had another one which G might put on his bike if we go about building him a bike.

Gretta just looks even happier with a bell on her. In case you were wondering what the bell sounds like, check out the video above.

The next entry is going to be awesome. You guys, I'm so excited to share the final product with all of you. It's been a long process, but it was totally worth it. Until then, keep the bike ridin'.

I'm on the hunt I'm after you!

Today was a beautiful day here in Indy! It would have been an epic day to go for a bike ride. Since the bike isn't fixed and I had other things I had to do, I settled for enjoying an iced armaretto latte and taking every chance I had at walking around outside.

Progress on the bike is now going to be a little slow going because we now need to start gathering up parts that we need to get. Like I said in previous entries we were really lucky with this bike because we had most of the body. However, we do have a little list of things we need to get. I figured it'd be fun to create this list so that when we checked something off the list you guys could celebrate with me!

1. Seat post, clamp, and seat. One of the things we noticed when we found the bike that there was no seat on the frame. We didn't think this was odd or anything because his dad had taken parts of the bike off it. When we searched the garage and asked G's dad, we found out that we don't have a seat post, clamp or a seat. When it comes to these parts I want to try to find/use Schwinn parts because I do want the bike to remain true to the Schwinn style. Seat wise I've looked at a few of the seat that Schwinn has out in stores and there are a few options. That being said, I'm going to try to avoid a banana seat unless it's going to be the best fit for the bike.

2. Handle bar grips. These I know exactly which grips I want.

These bad boys. They were originally on the handlebars but we weren't able to save them when we went to paint the handlebars. I love their style and appreciate the little ridges for fingers. They're precious. Definitely going to get a pair of these guys!

3. New Tires. I really want white wall tires because they really scream '50s to me. I know that my bike is from '78 but the hollywood appeared in the '50s and by George I'm going to have a '50s/'60s bike.

4. Brakes. Schwinn Hollywoods use the rear brakes that require you to pedal backwards. I haven't used that type of break on a bike since I was 6. However I'm excited! We'll be keeping our eyes out and doing research as to what exactly we'll be needing to make this happen. When I know, I'll let you guys know!

5.Master link or new chain. I talked about this in a previous entry. We're hoping to use the original chain because it looks like it's in great shape. A master link is a relatively cheap solution. One of the great things though is that even getting a new chain isn't all that expensive. I believe I saw one for $7 at wal-mart the other day when I was looking at bike stuff.

Those are all the things we need right now to get the bike up and going. Eventually I'd like to add on a few other things. For non-essential bike purchases, I want to get the following items:

1. Fenders

I think the fenders(the coverings of the front and back wheels) really give this bike some character. While it'll look fine without them, I know that they'll really make the bike what I want it to be in the long run.

2. Wire bike basket. I really want a basket on my bike. I started looking at these the second I knew I wanted to get a bike. While I won't be using this bike as a daily rider or commuter bike, I would like to be able to have a bit of storage just in case we find stuff when we ride along the monon trail!

3. A bell. Yeah, I'm that cheesey bike rider. I want a bell on my bike to ring. You'll be able to hear me coming from like a fifth of a mile away!

See, we're going to be busy bees trying to track down all of these parts. Keep your eyes out for the next entry where I'll tell you guys about finding the serial number on the bike and learning about Gretta's history. Until then enjoy the weather guys and keep the bike ridin'!