delays and changes

Sorry for the lack of posts lately. I have to upgrade my torch setup and I have some tools that I am working on getting made that will help me with the rear triangle on #001. It is also necessary for a frame that I am designing to build coming up. I have some things that I need to work out with the carbon frame as well. And on top of all that, we are moving. Getting closer to civilization and the shop. Less travel time on the highway will make me happy. I will also be able to commute by bike a lot more and take the public bus when the weather is too bad. All good things ahead. A little patience is what I need to get situated. Thanks, Wil

Looking good

I took some time to clean up the re-braze of the seat tube and the new braze of the down tube into the BB shell. There is a lot that can be done here and the amount of time you spend on clean up is an individual decision. I am happy with this junction. I may use my Dremel to clean things up some more before is gets sent to powder. Catch up with the details over at Flickr.

After the soak

I am ready to clean up the joint I just brazed. After I sand and file it all nice, I will tap and face the shell. Then I will shoot some primer on it to see how it turned out.

I will then move on to fitting the top tube. I think that this is one of the trickiest parts of the front triangle. It requires plenty of precision and no less patience to make it right. stay tuned for those details.

Spring has Sprung!

The weather here in Northern Vermont has been unseasonable. Yet this time it was to a cyclist advantage. We had temps in the 80's on Saturday. We got out for some riding and it feels great to be in the warm. It is going to tone down here a little bit but it is still nice to have the shorts on and feel Spring coming.

I did manage to get the down tube brazed into the BB shell and I cold set it on the alignment table. I need to chase and face the shell and do some clean up. I will then move on to the top tube. This is the trickiest part of the front triangle. Slow and steady will get it done. I will update photos tonight of my progress so far.

Re-braze

The seat tube to BB shell joint was not adequate for my desires so I stripped the primer of it, cleaned it up, put some fresh flux on it and added more silver. Wow, how perfect it turned out. I am very pleased at the shorelines and how just the right amount of silver was pulled through the joint. Next up is the down tube.

Ready!

A slight delay from working on this frame. I am back on track and will show real progress over the next week. I have prepared the down tube to BB shell joint for brazing. I lined the tubes up over my drawing with the down tube in the socket. It is then scribed to the miter and then cut by hand. This miter doesn't need to be perfect because the taps will clean up any extra little bit.


Every thing is lining up like it should. I hope to have this front triangle together soon.


Next, I will clean the primer off the BB joint and add more silver to the seat tube joint. I wasn't quite happy with it. You can see alot with primer on it. I will then tack the down tube into the shell above the drawing and then finish brazing it in the vise.

new happenings!

Hello there. NAHBS has come and gone. I missed it (again) but got to see a bunch of it through the grace of all the coverage that you can find on the internet. It has been announced that the 2011 show will be held in Austin, TX. My plan is too make it. Not only do I want to go to the show but I hope that I am in the position to show my work there.

I have updated my Flickr to reflect some of the new things going on around here. I have to keep in mind that I do this as a sort of journal for myself to look back on as I grow and change.

I am working on some headbadge designs and you can see them here.

I also have made an attempt at working on some TIG welding for a design that I have in mind for a future build. For what it is worth, you can read about it here.

And last but certainly not least, I have some more details on the SSCX that is coming up next. I have put a lot of thought in how I want this to turn out and I think it is going to be great. Go here to see the latest details.

I have to get some more tooling setup here to more forward but I will keep pecking away at what I can. All the little processes add up to the big process. When that happens, you have a frame!