Soggy Posted September 16, 2011 Posted September 16, 2011 (edited) So anyone who would remember I started buying parts off the hub and most of my other parts at Chris Willemse Cycles, so I finally got a chance to piece it all together. Here is the storyboard of my GT IDXC 4.0 bike build. All in all the total cost came to about R7000. Not bad for a full suspension GT I-drive, considering a brand new one at CWC was priced at R23,000. Ouch!! Just need to sort out the crank pivot and there is a little play in the headset, but will get that sorted out later. I will need to do my fork over as its quite worn, but will play with it on full lockout at the moment. Started off with the frame (bought off hub) Thanks to Quintin for including a nice set of wheels along with the frame :-) Seat and seatpost was given with the frame, and tyres bough off the hub. Crank also bough off hub but picked up a nice FSA handlebar at CWC Got myself a 9 speed cassette and derailer at CWC for a great price!! Picked up an awesome Aliovo full disk brake set brand new with disks for R1800 (calipers,pads, levers, cables and disks), thanks CWC!! A cheapie set of shifters but the work great! Full display of parts, ready for assembly!!! My final product!!!!! Completely stoked! Now the only flaw of the GT frame is the little plate at the front crank that tends to snap often. I will have to make something here to fix it as it needs cuz my crank moves around on the pivot and that is not good. Edited September 16, 2011 by Soggy
Flowta Posted September 16, 2011 Posted September 16, 2011 So anyone who would remember I started buying parts off the hub and most of my other parts at Chris Willemse Cycles, so I finally got a chance to piece it all together. Here is the storyboard of my GT IDXC 4.0 bike build. All in all the total cost came to about R7000. Not bad for a full suspension GT I-drive, considering a brand new one at CWC was priced at R23,000. Ouch!! Just need to sort out the crank pivot and there is a little play in the headset, but will get that sorted out later. I will need to do my fork over as its quite worn, but will play with it on full lockout at the moment. Started off with the frame (bought off hub) Thanks to Quintin for including a nice set of wheels along with the frame :-) Seat and seatpost was given with the frame, and tyres bough off the hub. Crank also bough off hub but picked up a nice FSA handlebar at CWC Got myself a 9 speed cassette and derailer at CWC for a great price!! Picked up an awesome Aliovo full disk brake set brand new with disks for R1800 (calipers,pads, levers, cables and disks), thanks CWC!! A cheapie set of shifters but the work great! Get your LBS to order another one for you, but make sure it is the one from one of the later models that has a plastic covering of sorts. It's for some reason lasts longer than the original one Full display of parts, ready for assembly!!! My final product!!!!! Completely stoked! Now the only flaw of the GT frame is the little plate at the front crank that tends to snap often. I will have to make something here to fix it as it needs cuz my crank moves around on the pivot and that is not good.
Soggy Posted September 17, 2011 Author Posted September 17, 2011 so far so good!! after the small tune ups its gonna be awesome!
swoosh1973 Posted September 17, 2011 Posted September 17, 2011 AWESOME! How long did it take you from start to finish? Did you enjoy building and selecting your components? Who showed you how to put things together?
Soggy Posted September 17, 2011 Author Posted September 17, 2011 AWESOME! How long did it take you from start to finish? Did you enjoy building and selecting your components? Who showed you how to put things together? From buying the first part it took me about 4 weeks. I did enjoy selecting the parts. It also helped me to realize that some components are actually ridiculously priced and doesn't need to be so expensive. A slightly cheaper model part is just as good as the more expensive, although I am not talking about the cheapest, which will be pure crap. I had all the parts so piecing it all together took me about 2 hours. I had all the right tools so it made life so much more easy for me. The right tool for the job makes life very easy. I got a bit confused about my rear brake bracket setup, but a vid on Youtube helped me with that. I have been building my own bikes since I was in primary school ages ago, as my parents would keep buying me parts whenever I broke them, so I had to keep my own bikes running.
Soggy Posted September 18, 2011 Author Posted September 18, 2011 (edited) So I fixed the play that was in my headset, reason? I was using the existing crown race that was already attached to the fork and it didnt fit with my new bearing set. So I carefully tapped it off with a screwdriver and put the new one on. Luckily I had a piece of pvc pipe at home that I could use to tap the new one on evenly, worked like a charm!! Next project, getting the bracket for the crank section sorted out, then I am good to go for some trails! Edited September 18, 2011 by Soggy
Soggy Posted September 26, 2011 Author Posted September 26, 2011 So I finally got to tackle the funny crank link of the GT frame. I really didnt like the single link that is supposed to be on the bike. The previous owners one not only snapped but the bolt snapped trapping the fitting inside the housing. Here is a pic of what it it should look like: Where the stress is actually supported is actually the housing where the little bolt turns into, so the weakpoint is actually the small bolt part of the equation.http://lp1.pinkbike.org/p4pb132735/p4pb132735.jpg Having all that stress on a small piece of metal and bolt no thanks, so I had to come up with something stronger. Got a piece of steel sheeting Then cut and measured a paper stencil: Cut out two pieces of the bracket for each side and grinded away clearance for the pivot. I saw that the holes were perfectly 8mm holes, so I got two 8mm bolts, a locknut and 8 washers for each join. Painted the steel with anti rust paint and bolted it on. So far the install is awesome and feels solid. so far no problems so far and bike feels great. Just need to tweak my rear derailer as it slips gears sometimes on bumpy terrain but so far the ratio is awesome with the single front crank and no probs climbing and fast sprints.
TheV Posted September 26, 2011 Posted September 26, 2011 Wow, your mod looks awesome, seems to be an ever better design than the original!
Soggy Posted September 26, 2011 Author Posted September 26, 2011 (edited) Wow, your mod looks awesome, seems to be an ever better design than the original! Thanks!! My theory was having two pieces other than one will distribute the force between them, instead of one taking the brunt of it. Edited September 26, 2011 by Soggy
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