TURNING THE PROJECT INTO A MUSCLEBIKE

Well, the lowrider look wasn't going to work. The seat had to be brought down even more and we made the mistake of taking it out for a ride! The ride is just sweet and I don't want to mess with it. I wanted to put a fat tire in the back and I happened to have a Maxxis Hookworm lying around the shop. It will have to do until I find something in the 3 inch wide range. We'll be posting a video soon of what we did before removing the old tire.

I also happened to have a huge NOS sissy bar that was given to me some years ago and I just couldn't resist slapping it on. This was inspired by some fans that we have in Copenhagen. I saw some of there rides and one of them was equipped in that fashion, thanks guys for the great idea.

This isn't over by a longshot. We have to either find a decent seat or refit this one. I want to equip the bike with a modern light system inside a vintage set-up. I've already done this on my cruiser using white LED's, so keep posted for that article. I also want to add some accessories without crowding the bike too much. It looks pretty good right now, apart from the crappy seat. Some careful additions will make it even better.

If you are lucky enough to be in Montreal, this bike will be at the corner of Rachel and St-Urbain on Sunday September 17 2006 at the V-Low bike ride, weather permitting. You'll be able to see the Galaxie in person and ask me all the questions you want.

Until then, ride safe and keep your hands dirty.

Gerry

CLEAR COATED, TIME FOR FINAL ASSEMBLY

Well, I used an entire can of Krylon Epoxy clear coat on the frame. I had done my last wetsanding before hand. I shot the entire can in one day, leaving about 20 minutes between coats. I had to wait a week for everything to dry hard before even thinking about putting stuff back on...

...until yesterday! We took the whole day to put everything back together. I was lucky enough to have some parts lying around from previous projects. I had a pair of ape hanger handle bars, a mustang seat with sissy bar and a not bad looking bullet light. The seat has been covered in an amateur fashion, but it will do for now. The idea is to get rolling as fast as possible. The wheels came from a kiddy bike and as a bonus the tires have whitewalls. Just what we needed for that lowrider look we were aiming for. I also bought a nice chrome chain to go on it. I simply used the old chain to measure the proper length.

The hardest part was to clean and buff just about everything. The bottom bracket was the hardest with it's 30 year old caked on grease that just wouldn't quit! Even using the lemon furniture polish and steel wool, it wasn't a piece of cake. When all was ready to assemble, we just regreased everything with green axle grease and CAREFULLY put it back together. If there is one thing in this world that can just drive you nuts, is leaving a grand canyon scratch on that beautiful, hard earned, sweet paint job just as you put in the last screw! Not this time. We now get to scratch and ding that beautiful finish the way it's suppose to...while riding.

Reassembly is just the reverse of disassembly, so I won't go all over it again. We got this bike off the rack and took it on it's first ride...WOW! It rides very comfortably, the power reaches the pedals easily and the riding position is cool while still comfy. I think that the lowrider look is not going to fly. Hmmmmmm, this is more like a Muscle Bike and I just happen to have a Maxxis Hookworm lying around the workshop... Keep posted. Even though the build is over, the project is still ongoing.

In the meantime, we have put together a little video for all of you fans who have been with us for the past month. Enjoy and do keep posted for additions to the CCM Galaxie and it's adventures in this great city we call Montréal.

Gerry

If you get a blank box below or that the video is not working, go see it directly on the YouTube site with this link.