Classic & Vintage - Tank bike: a heck of a way to treat a vintage MTB

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-K4rGXq0AKdg/TgJkXsKH8SI/AAAAAAAAAok/c8hED70ur8k/Tank%252520Bike%252520Bertha.jpg
https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-4T4zmy0YS8I/TgJlBj2YiQI/AAAAAAAAAoo/J-GdIirYfjU/Tank%252520Bike%252520Rear%252520Freddie.jpg
https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-8T1T8G1SMKc/TgJm4l0ASKI/AAAAAAAAAo0/4RXHk7e0YgA/Tank%252520bike%252520drive%252520side.jpg

Ross Mt. Hood MTB:

SRAM S7 Rear Hub
Sturmey XF-DD Front hub
Alloy Northroad bars
Planet Bike MTB Fenders
Kenda 838 slick tires
Busch und Muller Lumotec Plus Halogen mit Standlight (I'm too cheap for LED's)
MKS 3000R rubber-block pedals.
Other bits and parts and racks and bags from all over.

Weighs a TON. Rides really nice. No hills here in Chicago :)

wow, I like it! The stem is a bit scary..:twitchy:

Sweet! Thanks for the inspiration.

...Stem is a bit scary.

The stem is like 12" long. It's shoved into the steer tube as far as it will go without hitting the narrows at the bottom. It's firm and strong -plus it is STEEL (and real.)

I really like how the head badge came out.

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-AfwulXMd2hc/TgJzy3dS5xI/AAAAAAAAApA/wcN1FvsZ5Z8/s720/head%252520badge%252520tank.jpg

The stem is like 12" long. It's shoved into the steer tube as far as it will go without hitting the narrows at the bottom. It's firm and strong -plus it is STEEL (and real.)

I own one. It's made here in KY. It probably constitutes 10% of the weight of that bike!

Nice job, man. I dig bike "trucks".

The air brakes on the front of this bike sure STOP! I didn't think it was possible to improve on the massive Dia Compe cantis with the motorcycle-like dogleg levers but this thing is like a motorcycle now. Stoppies are not out of the question -and they weren't before. Now they are just easier.

How to you like that S7 hub? Does it downshift well? I built a townie for my gf using a S7 as a rear hub, and she complains that it's slow to downshift under pedal pressure. I tell her to ease up on the pedals when she shifts, but when riding behind her, I do see it takes a second for the gear to engage. Wondering if that's common with the S7, or if it is particular to her hub.

I doesn't downshift with any pressure at all. You have to back off (not necessarily coast) between downshifts. I can see how that would really suck in hilly terrain but here in Chi-town we don't have those things. The place is as flat as a billiards table. I've got it geared between 30 gear-inch in 1st to 90 gear-inch in 7th. There's a big jump between 1-2 and again between 6-8. They are basically bail-out gears. There could probably fit at least one more gear in between there on both sides but I understand why SRAM did it that way. They basically have a 10-speed here butt missing those 3 gears in between 1 & 2 and 6 & 7. You have to make a few sacrifices -it's a compromise.

It shifts OK going up but not with too much pedal pressure. You can put some in but it won't shift if there is too much until you let up a bit -then it shifts. It doesn't shift as smoothly as an old Sturmey-Archer 3-speed AW hub but it is similar in having to let off. Every once in a while it feels a bit "iffy" but I just bought one of those plastic washers that goes between the twist grip and the stub of the grip at the LBS. Rode home the 1/4-mile from there and it seemed much improved. Had to make dinner so I didn't get much more riding on it. I"m hopeful it will make shifting much more pressie. I've got it already adjusted in 4th so the clickbox is dead on the mark. I think my issue was more with friction at that grip junction which hopefully is fixed now.

I got the hub used off of a forum member (who, in turn, got it used from another forum member) but I won't name names ;) So far I like it other than having to rebuild the twistgrip once when the plastic junk number strip ripped and balled up inside. It makes for a good tranny for a tank.

Thanks for the input! I think she just has to adjust to IGH shifting. Also, very nice build. I've been thinking about a similar build for my beater hybrid.

pretty

Where do you put your coffee cup?

I love it!

i dig it. I think the only thing it might need is a front rack.

Looks great! I made the mistake of passing up a chrome Ross MTB at a flea market last year and regret it every time I see one of those beauties...

Looks great! I made the mistake of passing up a chrome Ross MTB at a flea market last year and regret it every time I see one of those beauties...

+1 I need one!

I dig the color scheme, Amesja. Black and various degrees of shiny.

Fabulous build. Looks great and very functional!

I think this is what a lot of vintage Mtn. Bikes want to become when they grow up...we must help them realize their inner potential. ;)

i also have a Ross Mt Hood (converted to an xtracycle), but instead of the lovely chrome that yours has, mine is more of a tacky 80s/90s light blue splattered on dark blue look. luckily i've sort of just blended them in my mind so it looks like a medium blue.

Ha! I made the exact same bike but in the exact opposite color scheme. Mine is black with chrome fenders and trim versus yours in chrome with black fenders and trim.

It is a very cool bike.

I like it! :thumb:

I own one. It's made here in KY. It probably constitutes 10% of the weight of that bike!

What's the brand/model?

What's the brand/model?

SunLite/Pyramid (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000AO9ZLG).

+1 I need one!

I dig the color scheme, Amesja. Black and various degrees of shiny.

Yeah, I like the understated classy look (with a few skulls and crossbones artfully thrown in.) I think I was scarred by the Flaming Red Huffy 3-speed I had as a kid. I got picked on for that bike my whole childhood.

This is how I painted my motorcycle.

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-NdVLlnH5H-k/TepWKZuFdLI/AAAAAAAAAi4/hNKmhZd9gYs/Sport%252520Tour%252520VFR.jpg
https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-QSN5QwZL8dY/TgPo2j2-O8I/AAAAAAAAAp0/zfeHYpsKNZg/Sexy%252520bike.jpg

See a pattern?

sweet! A Trek 950, with the purple-fade to green paint, just followed me home and I was deciding what to do with it. I think I have an inspiration.. :D

Nice looking VFR! :)

Stupendous! Spectacular! Oustanding! Bravissimo!!! Yes, indeed....

Nice looking VFR! :)

Thanks. It looks so much better than it did when it was red.

https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-lylUNQIYl0Y/TgPrmFM2tSI/AAAAAAAAAqA/kA6jG88esog/VFR%252520Right%252520side%252520OEM%252520paint%252520w%252520Givi.jpg

I just hate red. Took me a few years to get around to painting it but I am glad I did.

sweet.. i've got a vintage mtb with those same tires

http://velospace.org/files/P1010022.jpg

sweet.. i've got a vintage mtb with those same tires

http://velospace.org/files/P1010022.jpg

I love these tires. They are like riding on glass they are so smooth -and on a MTB that is a huge difference from typical knobbies. The profile also makes the handling much more amenable to street riding rather than dodging boulders on a downhill off-road course. Changing a tire's profile really changes handling and how fast the bike steers and turn-in. When loaded it is much nicer! I am probably preaching to the choir here as you have them too and know what I'm talking about.

It's amazing just how wide those tires are so far out from the rim. They really are 1.9" as marked but that width is almost all the way out to the outer radius of the wheel and not closer to the rim like a traditional round-shaped MTB off-road tire. Even on the Mt. Hood there really isn't a lot of clearance down at the chainstays.

If the gearing where slightly different and chain length had the axle all the way to the front of the DO's instead of nearly all the way to the rear the clearance on both sides is something like 2mm. Most of the negative comments/reviews on these tires is related to tire width and clearance issues that surprise some buyers. the profile of these tires is so odd that it can fool someone into thinking clearance will be OK when it really is pretty tight. The 60mm Planet Bike MTB fenders are barely adequate to keep the water from jumping around them.

BTW, I love that yellow rack with that bike and the red bottle cage. They are small color details but ones that really makes the look of the bike pop in contrast with the teal/duck-egg frame paint. When it comes to color schemes a little goes a LONG ways and so many people don't get that. Beautiful bike!

yeah, clearance on the chainstays is less than 5mm on each side.. pretty tight fit but well worth it :D the fat tires eat up cracks and potholes, and like you say, the ride is nice and smooth.

thanks for the compliment on my bike :D The "Diamondback" decal has an underline which fades from red to yellow which was partially the inspiration for the colors (you can sorta see it in the pic). also, the fact the rack came with the frame and i had the red cage laying around didn't hurt ;)

Your chainstay bridge area must be a little bit wider than on the Mt. Hood. I've got more like 3-4mm with the axle all the way back and about 2mm (or less) with it all the way forward. With round-profile MTB tires the fat spot of the tire falls much further back and clearance is closer to 10mm but these tires are fat so far out that the designers of this frame never thought it was necessary to make it much wider to clear such a tire. The wide chainstays make a radical offset towards each other at the end of the tire and are very close together as they hit the BB.

Can I post a pic of mine? I don't want to horn in on your thread or steal any thunder from your bike.

The day I complain about someone hijacking my thread is the day I become a hypocrite!

:-D

Post some pictures.

http://www.hunt101.com/data/500/IMGA1593cropped.JPG


Yes, I know, the grass needed mowing. :)

That's what I'm talking about. The need for hub brakes will soon seduce you into providing them for your bike.

awesome build! I am really digging vintage MTB these days and yours is very inspiring! Utility is such a good thing

It is very utility-minded. It's a bit heavy but not really more so than a typical single-speed heavy beach cruiser. And one gets 7 gears with a range of 30-90 gear inches with trouble-free shifting that doesn't need adjusting ever, and AWESOME brakes front and rear combined with light power. I was too cheap to go LED but if I had gone LED over Halogen I'd have even MORE light which is incredible as right now the light is freaking amazing With the strong MTB frame it hauls very well and since it was an 80's MTB design the long wheelbase actually helps with stability when loaded down to the nines with groceries, or building supplies from Home Depot.

I really like it. But it really needs a Brooks for more comfort.

That's what I'm talking about. The need for hub brakes will soon seduce you into providing them for your bike.

Hub brakes were part of the original plan. I just couldn't find a frame that had everything I wanted, so I scaled back on my objectives during the initial build. The initial build became just a "proof of concept". I will say this, the bike has far exceeded all my expectations. Who knows, maybe someday I will get a proper frame (bought, built or modified) and fully implement the original plan.

I think bike companies should take note of this type of bicycle. It differs from what they currently offer as a "city bike", a "beach cruiser" or a "mountain bike". It melds the best of all of them and adds a dash of retro-bike to them.