Frankenbike



JinDogan

New Member
Jul 16, 2009
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I have been riding a fuji all terrain bike for quite a while now and the handlebars are beginning to creak.

I also have a blue bicycle frame that suits my height better and various parts(but the only ones I want to keep are the wheels, handlebars, and pedals.)

I was wondering if it were possible for me to transfer parts and my main concerns are with the chainring, crankset, and brakeset(Levers, pads, etc.). What should I note down?

Also I've been looking all over the net to see the purpose of bullhorn bars but haven't found any. Which is better for uphill situations? The drop or bullhorn? Thanks.
 
You can certainly transfer some if not all of the parts from one frame to another. Assuming they're both modern frames you could still run into issues with Bottom Bracket compatibility, clamp on vs. braze on front derailleur and possible tube size differences, seat post diameter, etc. But in general you can move parts if the parts are sufficiently valuable to do so. But even if all the parts fit you'll generally want to replace the more consumable parts like shift and brake cables and the chain.

Bullhorn bars originated in time trials before the modern aero bars hit the scene. They basically are similar to road bars that force you to only ride in the drops. Their original advantage was aerodynamics but these days appear on a lot of urban fixies and single speed bikes presumably for simplicity and because they're hip.

Bullhorns really don't have an advantage for climbing and have several disadvantages for longer rides. They don't give you as many options in terms of riding positions or hand placement and either need to be mounted high (negating a lot of the aerodynamic advantage) or force you always ride in a fairly low position (like always riding in your drops on standard road bars).

With road bars you'd typically climb with your hands up high on the tops (the flat middle section) or the brake hoods and save the drops for situations where aerodynamics is a concern (like pushing a headwind or going fast on the flats) and sometimes for greater sense of control (fast descents on rough pavement). But if your road bike is well fitted you really shouldn't climb a lot down in the drops (but you see folks bent over double struggling up hills in the drops all the time) and the bullhorns if set low basically put you in that position.

Anyway, if you're doing longer rides with sustained climbs you generally don't want bullhorn bars. But they sure are popular in the cities....

-Dave
 
thanks dave. What can I check everything without dissassembling the red bike? I use it daily for a short ride to my train station.

Also, are certain front derailleur types built for certain frames? Or are they just for the chain set? Because if I can use the red bike's chain set then I will transfer the whole thing(except for the casette)

If everything fits, I will only need handlebar tape, primer, and a tire and tube set!
 
Well if both bikes either have braze on front derailleur mounts (a bracket permanently attached to the frame) or both use clamp on derailleurs and have the same diameter seat tubes then you can reuse the front derailleur.

A quick check with calipers or other measurement device will tell you if the seat post is the same size which will allow you to reuse the seat post. It's very likely the stems both fit a 1-1/8" steering tube if both bikes are of recent vintage but you should check to se if both stems clamp on to a similarly sized steering tube. If one or both bikes are older you should make sure they both use threadless or both use quill style stems.

You'll probably find it difficult to reuse all your shift and brake cables and possibly the housings depending on how each bike is configured for cable stops. Most bikes force you at the very least to disconnect the cables to the rear brake and both derailleurs to unthread the cables. Rethreading used cables with typical fraying can be difficult if not impossible. Sometimes you can use a high quality cable cutter (like the Park or Pedros tool) to cut a clean end on the cables and get them to thread properly but it's generally not worth the hassle as even the kink left from derailleur and brake clamping makes it tough to get them through the housings.

Depending on the mileage on your chain and whether it's a 7,8,9 or 10 speed chain it may or may not make sense to reuse the chain. Running worn chains speeds up the demise of cassettes, especially on the 9 and 10 speed versions. But if the mileage is low you can break and rebuild the chain onto the new bike but you'll need a chain breaker and possibly a new master pin or quick link depending on the chain style to put it back together again since chains thread through the frame and can't be moved without breaking them.

Also look closely at the bottom bracket configuration for each bike. If both frames are fairly modern and weren't built in Italy you can safely assume they're threaded the same. But Bottom Bracket styles may differ, tough to explain in a forum post but you'll want to establish whether the Bottom Bracket is reusable before you tear the working bike apart.

If these things aren't clear you should surf over to Park Tools or the late Sheldon Brown's sight for descriptions of these parts and instructions for removing, installing and adjusting various components.

Park Tool Website

Sheldon Brown-Bicycle Technical Information

-Dave
 
ok thanks. The blue bike looks like it was made in the 70s/80s while the red one was made in '98.

It has grip shifters but replacing cables shouldn't be a big deal, right?

I think I might bring it into my local bike shop and get a rundown and see what I can reuse just so I don't screw anything up! Thanks!
 
You're likely to find substantial differences between a frame built in the '80s an one built in '98. It's very likely you'll need a new stem for starters and a new front derailleur is a distinct possibility.

You should also know that you need a handful of specialized bike tools to do this job in addition to a set of metric allen wrenches including at least a Crank Puller, Bottom Bracket Tool and Chain Breaker.

Good idea to take both frames to your LBS and get some opinions, necessary parts and tools to do the job.

-Dave
 
I was looking at the front derailleurs and I am pretty sure they are both clamp ons but I will be bringing the bikes to the shop to check everything. I also want to paint the blue frame an orange color. Should I do that before I bring it in? Just because then I don't have to disassemble and reassemble it.
 
Whoa! Painting the frame is a far cry from a creak in the handlebars.

The creak is most likely from the stempost. Try a different one and when it is all working...then paint the frame. Function before form an form follows function etc!

When everything functional is functioning then dis-assemble and paint. Assembly will be a one-off thereafter.
 

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