Much needed upgrades for my commuter bike. B17, Trekker bars
 

I have been lusting after both of these for a while. Two weeks ago my saddle broke and I knew I wouldn't be happy unless I replaced it with a Brooks. Nashbar had a sweet sale on B17's, and I jumped. I also bought a Trekker bar and cork tape and some other odds and ends. I installed them this weekend, and they are awesome. The Brooks saddle is quite comfy for being hard as a rock, and I like the way the handlebar looks. We'll see how comfy it is in the long run. Here are some pictures. Duct taped into the bottle cage is a 6V 11aH battery for my cygolite. I can go two weeks between charges, but it has to charge all weekend with the stock cygolite charger. Anyway, on to the pics!

http://www.rykoala.org/brooks-trekker/

is that a rear rack on the front????
I like.

Yes it is. I had two of them and for a while needed two racks, so I bought some aluminum flat stock at the hardware store and bent/drilled up a bracket to mount it to the front fork. if you want a close up, I can take a pic for you. Its very simple.

Beautiful. I dig your bike, really dang sweet setup.

Wow. Thanks!:o

Nice ride. I'm interested in how you made the bracket for the front rack. Would you mind taking a close up pic? Thanks!

A step-by-step, illustrated tutorial would be much appreciated:D

and that's one cool looking tractor of a bike.

I will take pix tonight and write it up. And yes it is quite a tractor! I can maintain 16-18mph on it though, and its a tank over the potholes in my area. Well, off to go ride it to work. I just changed my schedule to 7a-4p. *yawn*. Makes for early mornings!!

Welcome to the world of Brooks! Nice setup

I called up my LBS, and said : "I want what he (rykoala) has"! The mechanic there is McGyverish type of fellow, who said :"yeah, yeah, swing by, we'll figure something out"...so i did, and now i'm the proud owner of an ex-rear, turned front rack.

Pretty cool, i must say. Not sure how much i trust this setup, but i'm not going to load it up too heavily, and before i go on my world tour i'll get a proper rack.

Or not.

Thanks for the idea!

Right on! I'm glad you liked it that much. That's great! I have loaded it up with 10-15lbs worth of stuff and couldn't even tell the difference. The only reason NOT to load it too much is that it might affect steering because of its high center of gravity. Other than that, load it up and have fun. Just be careful to load the rear more than the front ;)

OK here is how I mounted the rear rack backwards on the front.

http://www.rykoala.org/brooks-trekke...ackbracket.jpg

I also put up a couple of pictures of my DIY computer/magnet setup.

I'm glad you guys like it. I hope it gives some practical ideas for old bikes with new parts :)

FidelCastrovich: I loved your "tractor" comment! I am now thinking about repainting it (or powder coating it) in tractor yellow. I have been wanting to repaint it anyway, now I know what color ;)

Glad i inspired you!
However, tractors to me are John Deere. And John Deeres are green, wet grass green. Maybe consider that as a possibility.

Thanks for the close-up. Your rig looks sturdier than mine. Then again, i don't intend to use it for anything but around town. When i go touring, i'll get Old Man Mountains.

"I loved your "tractor" comment! I am now thinking about repainting it (or powder coating it) in tractor yellow"; " And John Deeres are green"

Lots of choices here: Case = Yellow; John Deere = Green; Kubota = Orange; Mitsubishi/Massey Harris/Shibaura = Red; Ford = Grey; New Holland, Iseki = Blue.

I always think of tractors as yellow. Growing up, my Dad operated Case backhoes for a living for about 6 months, and he let me operate one. I was 8 years old. The memory will never die :)

Yellow it is for me!

Now if I had grown up in the farming community my wife came from, it would most likely be John Deere green. Also when I think of John Deere tractors I just remember the line in Dumb and Dumber that Jeff Daniels had about his girlfriend writing him a "John Deere Letter". I laughed for a long time on that one and still do!

First beer run!!!

Mission accomplished with no glitches. Very cool setup.
And dampens road vibrations marvelously.
Quite the eye-catcher too...i got some smiles from kids and drivers standing at a red.

:beer:

Yeah, that's the ticket. Good setup. I've got a spare rack in the shop. Better get out there and emulate. One question, tho: How long do you have to wait for the beer to calm down...?:D

Good point...Let me see...Looks good...Tastes good too, not a drop spilled.

SUCCESS!

I'd say 5-7 minutes is enough. But an expert opinion is welcome, of course, as i'm a just a newbie at this.

:D :lol:

As an experienced beer drinker, I can honestly say that you can drink it right away. Just tap the lid a few times and then pop it open. The most important thing is that it is cold and that you don't spill any barley-pop.

I like the bike, and a fixed gear at that! I'm of the john-deere green camp, it's what immediately comes to mind when I look at your bike. What kind of tires are those? they look very thick and durable. (you need some V-tread tractor tires for that thing for bad weather commuting!)

oh, and 'nothing runs like a deere'

Hi there "rocks in head"! The tires are Cheng Shin C1218's.

http://www.amazon.com/Cheng-Shin-C12...A7RTAC/sr=1-2/

I got them for $13 each locally but next time I'll get them at amazon. I have been looking for an excuse to get more expensive tires that are $30 each but I can't justify it. These tires, although heavy, work great at higher PSI's and they roll smooth and are durable. I only get flats on them if I get a goat head or if I keep the tire pressure too low.

I will look at some Deere's and see if I can acclimate myself to the color. I think it was ruined for me when I saw this:
http://rykoala.org/johndeer.jpg

As a Land Cruiser lover, I saw that and gagged. Its been rough to see JD green and yellow together ever since... even on a JD! Its going to be Case yellow and black I think.... Will have to see if I can find a TONKA decal :D

BTW it is worth noting- I have lots of miles on those tires and they show very little wear. I had 26x1.25's and they died. I had no money so I put these tires back on after a failed experiment with them and thorn proof tubes with slime in them. That combo was extremely heavy and dreadful to ride. The tires with plain tubes are like riding on air...

Wow. I have that exact same '87 Rockhopper sitting in my garage, stock except for the flatbars, and have been thinking about trying to update it for a commuter. You've given me some ideas.

PM me or email rykoala@gmail.com if you need any specifics. The only thing I *hate* about mine is the u-brake mounts. I wish it had canti studs in the back.

Great bike! Why did you decide to mount the computer at the front of the front rack? Just bein' different?

Wanna race? For this bike, I'm waiting for my computer mount to come in. I want to see if I'm breaking 20 MPH on the downhills. You'd have to get studded tires on yours for it to be fair.