Recently I have gotten many of the key components that I need for the bike. Needless to say I'm pretty excited! I bought a used set of Velocity recumbent wheels for $180 which seems like a good deal seeing how they are at least twice that new. I will only be using the front wheel on my bike initially. The components that I have right now are all 7 speed and the Velocity rear wheel has an 8 speed cassette. When I upgrade it to new components I will add the rear tire. Today I am going to call the Hostel Shoppe and have them help me pick out tires and tubes for my wheels. They seem to have a good selection (not that I'd know) and they are experts on recumbents. This morning when I needed to find out what size tires I needed for my rims I once again found myself at one of the most exhaustive bicycle information sites on the internet, http://www.sheldonbrown.com. If you are ever in need of any information about bicycles, chances are you'll find your answer here. Sometimes I wonder why I even bother searching the web because most of the time I just end up there. Here's a useful tip for finding information on the Sheldon Brown site more easily. When using google type:
WHATITISI'MLOOKINGFOR site:http://www.sheldonbrown.com
The "site" option allows you to search a website you specify.
Last night when I got home from work I found a package waiting for me on my doorstep. Woo hoo! It was like Christmas. Two crucial components to my frame had arrived from
Nova Cycle Supply Inc. along with a couple of other goodies. I ripped open the well packed box and beheld the beauty of my aluminum head tube and bottom bracket. I can finally plug the actual dimensions of these pieces into my computer model. In the box was also my titanium cable stops and brake bosses. I'm still waiting on my fork to arrive and have to order some aluminum flat stock to create my rear dropouts. At that point I can start fabricating the frame.
On Sunday I bought supplies for a wood seat that will be built like the one at the Alternative Transport blog. The seat I will be making is just a temporary prototype that will help me get a better idea for how I want the final seat to be constructed. I hope to begin construction on this seat tonight but I have to buy a jigsaw first (hurray, more tool expenses!) so we'll see. By the way Alternative Transport is a fantastic resource for anyone building there own recumbent. Ben shows all the steps he went through to build a mostly weld free conversion recumbent. I will be referring to this site for quite a bit of ideas.
Along with the seat materials I also happened to find nice painted aluminum "spindles" for $1.80 each. They are just what I've been looking for to use as braces for the seat. I still have to find some brackets to attach the braces to the bike and the seat but its nice to have one part out of the way.
Well, enough writing, I'm on to some seat building.
