Titus Motolite build

[Nico van Loggerenberg]

Dear hubbers, I am in the process of building up a nice little Motolite for my girlfriend to use as a trail bike.

 

I've scraped together all the parts required through months of arduous negotiations and now there is only one thing standing in my way. 

 

A decent 26" wheelset. Crucially, one with a 15mm front thru-axle. It doesn't even need to be stated but the budget is tight and the timelines are narrow. If anybody has one, please let me know.

 

Alternatively, does anybody know anything about converting an older American Classic front hub (Disc 130) from QR to TA? I've seen this online but the price is prohibitive, might as well buy a new wheel - https://www.bicyclepartsupply.com/product/american-classic15mm-thru-axle-kit/

 

Would appreciate any help, leads, or Motolite memories and tips!

Edited December 12, 2021 by Nico van Loggerenberg

[Nico van Loggerenberg]

Build begins with me clueless and ever and no wheels on hand 

[Alouette3]

If you can find a set of Giant OEM 26" wheels, they can be had cheap, not the lightest but are indestructible and a lot of them came out with 15mm Thru axle up front and QR rear.

If you in CT and need a hand and tools building, drop me a PM.

[Nico van Loggerenberg]

19 hours ago, Alouette3 said:

If you can find a set of Giant OEM 26" wheels, they can be had cheap, not the lightest but are indestructible and a lot of them came out with 15mm Thru axle up front and QR rear.

If you in CT and need a hand and tools building, drop me a PM.

Thank you, that's a kind offer! I'm in JHB but fortunately have access to a few tools. 

[Nico van Loggerenberg]

Some extra bits done, sourcing bearings for a wheel conversion and for pivots next. So many dead links on the Internet with items this old! 

[Jewbacca]

The stem and handlebars are up side down...... ????

If you buy one of the sets of 26er wheels for sale and one of the 15mm front hubs I will strip and build the wheel for you. I'm in Cape Town but I'm sure we can organise a cheap courier.

 

[DJuice]

If I recall correct, here was a dad that restored a Titus for his son to a very high standard.

Sorry, but I still can`t seem to work the search function.

[Nico van Loggerenberg]

On 11/30/2021 at 4:56 PM, Jewbacca said:

The stem and handlebars are up side down...... ????

If you buy one of the sets of 26er wheels for sale and one of the 15mm front hubs I will strip and build the wheel for you. I'm in Cape Town but I'm sure we can organise a cheap courier.

 

Super kind offer, thank you. I managed to get my hands on American Classic wheelset that should be easy to convert - just need to have a new axle turned. 

On 11/30/2021 at 5:05 PM, DJuice said:

If I recall correct, here was a dad that restored a Titus for his son to a very high standard.

Sorry, but I still can`t seem to work the search function.

It's this one - actually what got me interested in the brand - 

 

[Nico van Loggerenberg]

Got a very light wheelset, just hunting around for a 15mm axle or looking to have one turned now. If anybody can recommend someone please drop a contact. 

Seatpost and seat will be replaced, and I'll go for a lower stem too. 

[Steady Spin]

Are the bars upside down?

[Nico van Loggerenberg]

1 hour ago, Steady Spin said:

Are the bars upside down?

Do you mean tilted down? Because yes, they're just temporary.

[Nico van Loggerenberg]

Slow progress with a lot of frustrating setbacks. Amazing how many mistakes you can make when everything is a first time. 

 

The nice blue anodized Chris King headset the frame came with had a non-matching crown race. Apparently sometimes you can get away with this, but this time is not one of those. Lucky fluke then to find out a friend of a friend had the part in their garage. 

 

Pics showing before, after and comparison. 

 

In the meantime I've had some aluminium machined for a custom thru axle solution, will find out if that worked next week. 

 

 

[Mars1967]

Looking really good so far Nico. 

[the nerd]

This looks great Nico!

[Nico van Loggerenberg]

After trying in vain to find a conversion kit for American Classic hubs to 15mm thru axle on here or at bike shops, I decided to have one made. With help from a friend the design was prepped and turned. 

 

 

[Nico van Loggerenberg]

And it fits! Fortunately the existing bearings could take a 15mm inner sleeve so it all went pretty smoothly.