BMX thread

My uncle told me a couple of good stories from when he road BMW 20 or so years ago.

Story 1: Apparently he was pretty good and was damn near unstoppable at his local track. One time he came out of the gate and was leading like always, but this time there was one guy that was hanging with him. I don't remember the outcome of that race but after he found out that the guy hanging with him was some pro rider. Thought that was kind of cool.

Story 2: My uncle was in decent shape back then. He came out of the gate once so hard that he shattered his chain.

Datsun1500 wrote: My Brother and I were sponsored by GT in 84-85. We toured the country as part of the team, talk about fun times for a 15 year old!

(going deep into my memory) The only brothers I can think of off the top of my head were Brent and Brian Patterson, but they were off of GT by '84, right?

Who are you??? I'd be curious to see if I recognized the name. BMX Action was my bible from '83-87. Freestylin' after that.

Guess I'll show my age. When I did this before I got my license (early 70's) we had to build our own as you couldn't buy a BMX then. Welding crossbars on to the handlebars and adapting motorcycle padding for it. welding motorcycle handlebars to goosenecks. Changing sprocket sizes, somtimes using motorcycle sprockets welded on. We all tried to be motocross riders and jumpers. That's probably my first wrenching building and rebuilding my bike. Friends and I used to scrounge thrown out bike pieces and special build bikes for purposes like jumping or wheelies. Schwinn was the frame of choice sisnce the had a warranty against cracking and would replace the frame when we cracked it. By the time I had real motorcycles and cars was when BMX bikes started to hit the market.

Stuc wrote: And yeah, bmxmuseum.com is awesome.

I just spent a good hour looking through the pictures there.

My favorite bike was a 90-92ish Haro. It was chrome, but I don't remember the model. Some fool stole it, stripped it, and painted it, ruining the frame. It was never the same once I got it back.

Bringing a thread back from the dead here!

Today, I just scored one of my holy grail frames. A 2001 Mongoose CRX (Craig Reynolds Express). This is the same frame that David mentioned at the beginning of this thread 3 years ago. And yes, it is the same Craig Reynolds that is on Speed and has been in GRM.

While they aren't uber-rare, you don't see them come up in NOS condition too often. And when they do I'm always too late or too short on cash.

I came across this one by luck. I was at my companies Christmas party a few weeks back and I was talking to a co-workers husband. I knew he worked for Mongoose (actually Pacific Cycle) and I just casually mentioned that this frame was on my bucket list. He mentioned that he had one just sitting in his collection in their attic. Then one day at work my co-worker asked me if I wanted it - $100 and it was mine.

I still haven't decided if I want to build it or let it stay in new condition. I'm going to have to think that one over.

In the mean time I finished building the frame that my wife got me for Christmas. This was the 2009 Anarchy Deviant that I posted in X-mas present thread a few weeks back.

DK US made forks and bars, King headset, Primo cranks, carbon fiber seat post and a few other goodies. I used this bike to race last Sunday for the first time in three years. I then proceeded to get my ass handed to me in 36-40 Inter after I slipped a pedal. I'm beginning to think racing BMX is a young man's game.

definetly watching this thread i'll have to post my Redline up. I mainly prefer dirt jumps but i'll do park.

Marty, sweet find!

And lately I have been riding an SE Racing Floval Flyer 24" cruiser. Who knew that a brown bicycle could be so much fun?

Mine looks just like this:

So cool that SE reissued their stuff. I remember drooling over those bikes in BMX Action back around '83-84.

I'd love to build one of these up as a singlespeed with some cyclocross tires on it (if I had a grand lying around to build it)

While I wish I would have ridden BMX for better MTB skills...I'm glad I don't have a nostalgia for the knee crushing, wrist destroying, back killing, and general displeasure of riding a 20" BMX.

but a bike is a bike and if its get people outside being active all the better.

Last summer I during a period of reminiscence of mid 80's BMX I stumbled across this thread about vintage "cal custom" 26" BMX cruisers.

http://bmxsociety.com/topic/38162-cal-cruisers/

So I built myself one

Made a replica of a 40's straightbar frame from a 90's cantilever cruiser. Brazed on new dropouts, some 26" Araya's with some BMX spec gumwall compe III's and some GT and Dyno bits here and there. It is the perfect cruiser but I do wish it had 1/10th of the agility of a proper 20" bike.

That's awesome. Coaster brake FTW.

How hard was it to track down the 26" Comp III's (or are they pretty common as a reissue these days)?

Also--are those Oakley F1 grips?

GREAT bike.

Speaking of 26" cruisers, I saw one of these at my LBS hanging up. 2012 GT Interceptor cruiser. I think it was priced at $700.

I like it, but I like the Free Agent Cruiser I just spent $80 on off of CL a little more.

The tires were less than $15 shipped via ebay, The forks were about $18 from amazon, the grips were $1.99 from porkchopbmx. The handlebars are actually new $7 childs BMX bars that I welded 2 inches to each end and they look exactly like cruiser units. The rest came from the center for appropriate transport used parts room so the GT cranks and chainwheel might have cost me $1, The diacomp bulldog and lever was $1.50...ect It was a very cheap one weekend build.

The frame was a $9 Torker

In reply to Marty!:

I would rather have the 26" GT performer

So cool

ditchdigger wrote: In reply to Marty!: I would rather have the 26" GT performer So cool

That's berkeleying fantastic. They aren't catering to Gen X nostalgia at all, are they?

And ditchdigger--MASSIVE props for being able to weld up a custom frame like that. I can spin a mean wrench, but framebuilding is an entirely different universe. Too cool.

gamby wrote: That's berkeleying fantastic. They aren't catering to Gen X nostalgia at all, are they?

They wouldn't do it if it didn't work so damn well.

I really, REALLY want it.

you guys should post up action pics of yourselves

Potentially the only digitized version of my glory days...I will have to dig around a bit

Downside fastplant at the 6' bowl in Joyce park, Cincinnati, Oh., circa '02 or so. I know Ive got some shots of my bike(s) somewhere. And dont ask why winnie the poo is in my crotch...its better if you dont know lol...

noiceeee!! and I was actually gonna ask that lol I like both those bikes in that shot. I want to ride mine in a bowl/halfpipe but it's too damn heavy. I have an 09? (bought it from a stupid kid near me a few years ago, 450+ dollar bike I paid 125he had no clue what he had) Redline 7.1. Race bike really, not very well for parks lol HS Steel frame.

Also, I wonder if anyone inlines anymore, good ol agressive inline lol

It's about time to bump this thread. Getting nostalgic over a weekend find.

My nephew (10 years old) has been hounding me for a few years to let him work on my old mid-90's Robinson Rebel bike. It broke long ago, but I have kept it all these years (I'm 30 now). Even though I'm too large for it now, I've always hung onto it. He has been getting interested in working on things, and I remember that 10 was the age when I started learning about this stuff. This led me on the journey of getting into cars as well.

Well, a random trip to Savers over the weekend resulted in me finding the same bike (although, it's a year or two newer) and in fully working condition. Best part: it was $6.99!!! I remember paying over $200 for mine back then with hard-earned paper route money.

The plan is to restore both mine and his to factory-new condition. The new one needs the seat replaced (it's from a K2 bike and is ripped up) and it needs new graphics. Mine needs either the crank assembly or the rear hub replaced. The pedals just freewheel in place and it won't move anymore. I'll post pics soon.

Side note: My older sister (my nephew's mom) used to race for Mongoose in the early 80's. She was given a team issue Supergoose back in '82-83. it looked just like this, except it had checkered flag pads:

I fixed it up and rode it in the early 90's. It was such a cool ride. It's still hanging out at my parents' house. She used to race with my cousins who had same-era GT and Redline bikes, which I used to want too. The GT was just like the one a couple posts up, and the Redline had red-anodized stuff all over it. They looked so cool.

I wish I was smaller so I could ride these beasts again.

I got my Haro out, over the weekend, pumped up the tires, and did a few 360 tailtaps in the driveway just for fun.

Im heavy, and out of shape, but it was fun. I think Im gonna take a trip to the old skatepark and be the old fart on the outdated bike here before it gets cold. Im not too sure I will be up to it the next time it gets warm (not sure Im up to it now )

SilverFleet wrote: I wish I was smaller so I could ride these beasts again.

Get a cruiser. I still have my 20-inch bikes, but my 24-inch cruiser gets all the attention. The 29er bikes are interesting, but to be honest I think I'm way too short.

It is back in action!