Anyone ever build up a decent rear wheel with a coaster brake hub?

[Conundrum]

I'm serious. I had a lot on my mind last night so I went for a beach cruiser ride around the neighborhood. I ended up at the top of a hill and the trailhead to the trail that is downhill back to my house. There were some corners, some water bars (read giant table tops from a beach cruiser perspective), mostly downhill, a one foot step down...I could go on on how gnarcore this trail was on a beach cruiser.

I felt like frickin' Gary Fisher of yore.

I tend to go through a rear cruiser wheel every couple years because I get drunk and hit a BMX track or jump of curbs on the way home from the bar. Yes, I wreck sometimes too.

I also run ghetto tubeless so I'm thinking whatever a good coaster brake hub is to an 823. While I'm at it, 823 in front too. Can it be done? Who can do it? If someone can assist, I'll cut my Levis into some manpris, grow a mustache, and deem my bar bike my rigid, steel, single speed and enter a local race in the SS category.

[Skipig25]

willing to do this just to see ^that^ happen

[reynolds.trailrun]

Sure it is possible... just never knew there was such a thing as a decent coaster hub. Maybe that is because every bike I pedaled with coaster brakes weighed more than my pickup, pedaled on flat ground like water-soaked shit, and stopped never.

Like Skipig, I would I do it for you just to see the fun.

[m1e448]

Sparky at Frrezethaw bikes in State College used to only ride bikes with coaster brakes in the rear and a front brake. He would get a decent shimano hub and build up a 29er rim onto it. You gotta find some sticky icky grease and repack them often because they tend to overheat and the grease breaks down and causes brake fade. But totally doable and fun

[single]

Sparky at Frrezethaw bikes in State College used to only ride bikes with coaster brakes in the rear and a front brake. He would get a decent shimano hub and build up a 29er rim onto it. You gotta find some sticky icky grease and repack them often because they tend to overheat and the grease breaks down and causes brake fade. But totally doable and fun

^This.


"quality" coaster brakes dont really exist. Brake fade is a major issue at speed.

My townie is a coaster brake only (cuz I like black rims without rimbrake scars, and didnt want to build another fixie), and going fast it fades hard. It also sucks so bad for slowing down. I can go from 20-0 in about 50 feet, maybe. The coaster is almost nothing but an inconvenience.

I have a mustache, capris and tried to race my fixed gear in a sanctioned race until I was told the rules required a freewheel. SO take it as you may.

[Conundrum]

But was your fixed gear a beach cruiser?

[Finstah]

Sure it'll work. You'll just have to be careful and accurately measure the hub. Once you have those numbers any good online spoke calculator will be able to tell you what length to use to lace to your 823.

That thing will have the hippest wheelset at the Obama rally and SLC 's summer Twilight Concert Series combined!

[toast2266]

There are lots of internet ramblings discussing quality coaster hubs. My understanding (not first hand) is that there are a couple of old school coaster hubs that hold up well and will not turn into an oil belching smoldering pile of pot steel at the first sign of a downhill. If you care, I'm sure a little inter-webs research will give you some options.

[Conundrum]

Looks like Velosteel is where it's at similar to turntables and microphones.

[XXX-er]

How hard is it to find the spokes, or do they need to be custom cut & threaded ?

I had a buddy who ran a rolloff hub on an HT and apparently getting spokes short enough was a problem so all he could run was a shitty brand of mtb rim

[shirk]

Get a Sturmey 3spd with hub brake.



It's a boat anchor. 36 hole so you can get bomber DH wheel if you want. I somehow messed up the spoke calculation for a three cross build but they worked for a four cross build. The wheel is a TANK.

[ski_faster]

If someone can assist, I'll cut my Levis into some manpris, grow a mustache, and deem my bar bike my rigid, steel, single speed and enter a local race in the SS category.

YES!!!!!

[m1e448]

I mean doesn't brake fade make it so much more fun? You just gotta feather the brakes a bit.

[stuckathuntermtn]

Any way you can mount rim breaks to it? I don't know how anyone over the age of 7 rides a coaster brake. I think that was the last time I did. Not trying to be hoitytoity, but it was just explained why the hubs and brakes suck, not to mention you have to be careful if you stop pedaling, let alone come up to a stop sign and wanna spin backwards.

[Conundrum]

Any way you can mount rim breaks to it? I don't know how anyone over the age of 7 rides a coaster brake. I think that was the last time I did. Not trying to be hoitytoity, but it was just explained why the hubs and brakes suck, not to mention you have to be careful if you stop pedaling, let alone come up to a stop sign and wanna spin backwards.

People ride a lot of stuff that sucks or for purposes it wasn't designed for and spend money on parts they don't need. Fixies, single speeds, overkills "AM" bikes. I just moving the revolution in the other direction...heavier bike, shitty geometry, a brake that won't work.

[mtnjam]

drop the Tram trail on the cruiser...let's see if we can really warp the coaster brake.

Still like the idea of getting an old Schwinn and dropping some of the trails like Scott's-->Corrals-->Bob's

[Conundrum]

With the help of an LBS buddy, just finished up my new steel single speed.

'96 Specialized Shark
Flows laced to a Coastie 32 hub
WTB Prowlers
Sunline lockons
Grundle Wolf DJ saddle

Shits about to get real

[scrublover]

Sweet!

This



has been fixed the last few years, but the idea of a coaster is nice. The commute has a couple hills both directions that would be soooooo much faster to bomb down with the ability to *not* have to pedal.

[leroy jenkins]

I just wanted to say I thik grundle wolf is a brilliant name for a saddle.

[Krash]

Here is my Klunker in action. 1940's Hiawatha, original fork, crank, skip tooth chain, BB, Headset and New Departure coaster rear hub.

I re-laced the rear hub to a new aluminum rim with stainless spokes. Front hub is a Worksman style drum brake laced with 10g spokes. The bike is a riot to ride, somewhat scary, but that's the point right? The New Departure is not the best coaster for Klunking, it uses a multi-plate style brake stack. Handles heat pretty well, but not the most powerful. The best old-school coaster brake is the Morrow, super heavy duty.

I actually raced this thing for 10+ miles, it was terrifying and hurt, bad. A must for everyone's quiver