Saturday, September 17, 2011

Custom Haro Backtrail Completed

Well, folks, after a long and rough ride, my Haro Backtrail is finally built. It is a 2003 model, and I got it for free a few years ago. An acquaintance of mine showed up at my house one day with it, totally out of the blue. It only consisted of a rusty frame and fork, bent bars, the original Fusion stem, and a cheap Taiwan made crank with a Haro chain wheel. The bike was in bad shape.

Well, I fixed it up right away but because of my living situation, I had no garage and the bike had to be stored outside. My resources were limited, as well as my tools and knowledge. The first build can be seen in the post just below this one. Basically, it consisted of sourcing used wheels, applying steel-wool to the frame, and spray-bombing the forks, bars, and seat clamp fluorescent orange. It rode like a dream, though, other than the rear wheel being a 3/8 axle in a 14mm flange. It kept moving on me when I’d ride it hard.

Of course, after sitting outside for a while, the thing got rusty again and the paint faded badly. Now I have a much better shop set up in a nice garage, and I have many more tools and a lot more room, so I figured I’d give it a nice do-over. What follows is the skinny of what I did.

I ordered a new 14mm rear rim – that was important. I shined up the chrome again using cleaners, steel wool, copper brushes, and rags. It came out pretty good. It’s no show-winner, but it definitely passes the three-foot test (looks great from three feet away). I completely rebuilt the front wheel, re-greased all the bearings on the bike, stripped and painted the bars, forks and seat clamp, and shot a nice coat of lacquer clear over the stem, chain ring, and front rim, which I had painted a bright-ass red. Also, I added the sticker set, which was my first. The rear wheel is a Weinmann Black Ops 14mm, and the front is made by Specialized. The tires are Diamond Back. I removed the Gyro because I don't plan on doing freestyle on it. Rear brake to come, as well. The front one is just an MX cheapie.

I had received another free bike, a Redline, a few months back from a friend who had too many. The Redline featured a really thick, once-piece Haro crank which I subbed-in on my Backtrail build. I like it much better than the cheapo one.

Anyhow, here it is. Let me know your opinions in the comments section! And yes, the Next seat is temporary. I’m a budget builder who is quite opportunistic with my choices. :D

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