Author Topic: Setting up my ride!  (Read 5811 times)

Offline Eddie

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Setting up my ride!
« on: October 23, 2019, 04:59:57 AM »

Hey guys!
This is my first post on here, and I hope I am putting this in the right section.
I have a Hoffman bike that I am wanting to setup with front brakes only, however, I have no brake mounts on the forks and I don't have a hollow compression bolt (potts mod, if its still called that).
So I am planning to put on a caliper brake and just having a slic cable run down the front.  I know this limits any complete spins.
My question is.. does anyone run a setup in this fashion?  Just simply running the cable down the front without going through the steerer tube?  Are you able to do any tricks this way, such as fire hydrants etc?


Im also a bit confused on the caliper to use for a potts mod setup.  I have a tektro 985 caliper that I took off another bike, is it possible to flip around so the cable comes up through the bottom of the "fittings" (not sure if that is the correct description), or is there a special caliper that is setup for just that?  I know we used to use Dia Compe bull dogs and 883 nippon back in the day that were specific for freestyle.  Can any caliper be setup that way?


Thanks in advance for any advice! I have a few bikes I am fixing up/riding.  I am currently riding a Hoffman Bama frame, which I know is not exactly a flatland frame, but I am hoping to be able to do a bit of flatland on it!




Offline bmxelement90

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Re: Setting up my ride!
« Reply #1 on: October 23, 2019, 08:12:21 PM »
i would just get a new fork. i think flatlandfuel has some flatware ones on sale for $100
http://flatlandfuel.com/odysseyflatwarefork.aspx

Offline eightyfivegt

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Re: Setting up my ride!
« Reply #2 on: October 24, 2019, 02:29:04 AM »
I had a compression bolt that didn’t have a hole in it for a front brake so, I drilled it. Then, I was able to run my cable thru the steerer tube. It worked out fine!

Offline Voodoo

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Re: Setting up my ride!
« Reply #3 on: October 24, 2019, 03:07:08 AM »
I had a compression bolt that didn’t have a hole in it for a front brake so, I drilled it. Then, I was able to run my cable thru the steerer tube. It worked out fine!




Absolutely do this.


OR compress the whole system down, lock it down with the stem and then REMOVE the compression
bolt allowing you to run the cable through the fork. You don't really need the compression bolt once
the setup is locked down.


I would not advise just running a straight cable to the brake. It will completely limit what you are
trying to accomplish. Especially with flatland.
I don't miss old school technology one bit.
But old school style and art? We live in a world of a thousand one color decals. Old school aesthetics win a thousand times over.

Offline Eddie

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Re: Setting up my ride!
« Reply #4 on: October 24, 2019, 04:54:30 AM »

bmxelement90: I will definitely go with a new fork on a future build.


Voodoo: No kidding!  I did not know that you could ride with the compression bolt off.  Will this hold up to daily riding etc? 


eightyfivegt: I think I might try that as well, drilling a hole. Great idea, thanks!


Do you guys have any recommendations on a certain brake caliper to use?
I also heard that using a regular slic cable instead of linear is best for this setup as well.  Is this because the regular slic is more flexible?



Guys thanks for your input, this really helps


On a side note...Ive been noticing recently a lot of flatlanders running breakless.  I know this is pretty common now for the street/park guys, but is it possible to pull off a lot of these tricks without breaks?
Just curious. 
« Last Edit: October 24, 2019, 05:08:49 AM by Eddie »

Offline Voodoo

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Re: Setting up my ride!
« Reply #5 on: October 26, 2019, 05:14:09 AM »





Quote
Voodoo: No kidding!  I did not know that you could ride with the compression bolt off.  Will this hold up to daily riding etc?


Absolutely. In fact, there are many street riders that run without a compression bolt. So it will hold up to abuse. All that bolt does it initially sandwich the headset/stem/forks together and compress it until you lock it down by tightening the stem bolts. Once those stem bolts are tightened, the compression bolt is estentially useless. I use them on my bikes except for my beater rig...which I just compressed, locked down with the stem bolts and then took the compression bolt out.


As far as brakeless goes, there are many new school riders who don't touch them. However, I wouldn't advise this if you are used to brakes and/or just starting out. If you are interested in riding brakeless, you can build a secondary rig and make it brakeless...or..Just ride and not use your brakes. You will absolutely know when you are comfortable enough to start trying to ride without brakes. There are also a lot of flatlanders who still just use a front brake.
I don't miss old school technology one bit.
But old school style and art? We live in a world of a thousand one color decals. Old school aesthetics win a thousand times over.

Offline Eddie

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Re: Setting up my ride!
« Reply #6 on: October 28, 2019, 01:37:37 AM »

That's great info!  I will try that out once I get my setup going, awesome! Thanks Voodoo.
I will definitely be riding with my front brake at least. I was just curious about flatlanders going breakless, that's gotta take some skill for sure!


As far as the front calipers go, I was checking out those U-brake adapter plates.  Has anyone every used those? Are they good?  If they are not worth it, I will just go with the 883 Nippon calipers that I used to use back in the day.

Offline eightyfivegt

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Re: Setting up my ride!
« Reply #7 on: October 30, 2019, 05:41:58 PM »
I've used U brake adapters. They work fine but, they add a good bit of weight to the bike as they are usually steel and pretty stout to resist flexing.  :)

Offline Eddie

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Re: Setting up my ride!
« Reply #8 on: October 31, 2019, 01:43:22 PM »
Cool, I think I will give it a go.  My bike is about 26 lbs now so should be fine B) I have a 99 Dyno that I ride around a bit, and that beast must be close to 40 lbs, but its all good training I suppose!

 
« Last Edit: October 31, 2019, 01:48:03 PM by Eddie »