Here are the pics of my
latest ski bike project. I am converting an
Iron Horse 7005 series aluminum frame downhill rig.
The completed ski bike total target weight is 25
lbs, and it should be able to withstand brutal
punishment from jumping, park-use, and half-pipe
jaunts!
It has adjustable
rear suspension with a new Fox Air Shock with
adjustable rebound, which is replacing the old Fox
Vanilla spring-type oil shock. The front forks have
6 inches of travel, with adjustable pre-load and
rebound. I cut 2.5 inches off each end of the
lightweight aluminum Downhill handlebar (total of 5
inches, making the bar 18 inches in length).
This will allow easier handling on tree runs and
flat-out cruising! I also cut the BMX handlebars to
a shorter length (will keep these in the truck for
quick access) to use in the parks and half-pipes.
The higher position works fantastic when you need to
toss the bike around, and want to do BMX tricks to
show off as you pass the crowds! The quick-change
head allows you to switch handlebars in less than a
minute.
The Brenter seat
channel is tig welded to the frame to accept the
used Brenter seat I purchased from Randy Kimball at
SkiBikeFun.com
(bicycle seats are not comfortable on a ski bike).
I got a "bonus" from this setup as well...can you
guess what it is?
Has anyone ever seen
Earls home-built ski bike? Has anyone ever seen how
he loads and unloads his bike from the lift chair?
He never gets up off the seat! The chair scoops him
up, and his body weight keeps the ski bike on the
chair directly in front of him. Best use of the
"kiss" (keep it simple stupid) method I have ever
seen! I will bond a length of dense rubber material
to the bottom of the Brenter seat channel to protect
the chair fabric, and I expect to be able to load
with any other kind of rider, on any kind of lift.
The frame has been
cleaned of all old paint to bare metal. The frame
and fork will be painted blue, and the rear swing
arms will be hand-polished to a chrome finish using
a die grinder with a cloth polishing wheel and
jewelers rouge.
I have modified the
Hanson Performance Ski Bike Adapters to eliminate
the spring-clocking problem and pivoting has been
limited to allow for precise control in powder and
on hard-pack. I will be using 2 different skis this
year.
- A pair of K2 Fattys
for fresh powder, terrain parks, half-pipes and tree
runs.
- A pair of 100cm K2
parabolic skis with torsion-box construction for
incredible carving on the hard-pack powder and
full-speed groomer runs.
Click on any photo to enlarge it for easier viewing
in the same browser window. They are in order from
left to right, and the same for the following rows.
If you are using dial-up, or have a dinosaur
computer, sorry...you will have to wait for the
pictures to load.
I also have a limited
supply of "special screws" for mounting skis that
have not been manufactured with threaded inserts in
the ski. Click here for
more details.
