GT Arrowhead - For Fork Sake + Machining - PG13
gt-arrowhead
Posts: 2,507
I havent really put my favourite bike up on here yet, so i thought i may aswell put it up.
I first got this bike when a friend of mine knocked on my door and told me he was selling a bike for £10. I said i would go and see it since he lives literally round the corner. I honestly didnt expect it to be a GT, cause most of the bikes he offers to sell me are all argos bikes and bikes of that sort, and they are in pieces, covered in rust etc etc. As was the Arrowhead.
As soon as i saw that triple triangle i knew that i was gonna have it! He told me the bike was dumped outside of his house on the pavement, so it obviously was stolen. There was a 6 speed wheel that was forced onto the frame. It had a Maxxis Advantage tyre on it which was completely bald. No one does that to their own bike... the Gears and brakes werent working, and whoever had it decided to spray the whole bike in black without removing a single thing, and he probably used a whole can in one go. The paint job was horrible and was chipped in some places where they tried to remove the "Arrowhead" logo from the top tube.
I have a real thing for GTs, since my second bike was a BMX size GT which had gears (GT Outbound, i would certainly recommend it for your kids haha) and my dad had a GT that looked the bollocks and i wished i had
So i decided that i would make start building up this from scratch, and start to learn how to build a bike and how everything comes together since this would be my first time doing it. I also decided that this would be a good opportunity for me to learn how to prepare a bike to be sprayed and spray it. So the pictures below are kind of how it changed over time. I dont have a picture of how it was when i got it though.
Sanded the black off and sanded around the bare metal parts
I used the primer to fill the dents massive scratches, then i sanded the area down to get it level. Quite proud of that
Back from the dead finally
Changed everything on it a month or so later
How it looks right now
Will change yet again in the next week or so. Changing wheels back to black i think. Thinner tyres and a new stem and handlebars. A new freewheel and chain too. Will post a pic when finished
I first got this bike when a friend of mine knocked on my door and told me he was selling a bike for £10. I said i would go and see it since he lives literally round the corner. I honestly didnt expect it to be a GT, cause most of the bikes he offers to sell me are all argos bikes and bikes of that sort, and they are in pieces, covered in rust etc etc. As was the Arrowhead.
As soon as i saw that triple triangle i knew that i was gonna have it! He told me the bike was dumped outside of his house on the pavement, so it obviously was stolen. There was a 6 speed wheel that was forced onto the frame. It had a Maxxis Advantage tyre on it which was completely bald. No one does that to their own bike... the Gears and brakes werent working, and whoever had it decided to spray the whole bike in black without removing a single thing, and he probably used a whole can in one go. The paint job was horrible and was chipped in some places where they tried to remove the "Arrowhead" logo from the top tube.
I have a real thing for GTs, since my second bike was a BMX size GT which had gears (GT Outbound, i would certainly recommend it for your kids haha) and my dad had a GT that looked the bollocks and i wished i had
So i decided that i would make start building up this from scratch, and start to learn how to build a bike and how everything comes together since this would be my first time doing it. I also decided that this would be a good opportunity for me to learn how to prepare a bike to be sprayed and spray it. So the pictures below are kind of how it changed over time. I dont have a picture of how it was when i got it though.
Sanded the black off and sanded around the bare metal parts
I used the primer to fill the dents massive scratches, then i sanded the area down to get it level. Quite proud of that
Back from the dead finally
Changed everything on it a month or so later
How it looks right now
Will change yet again in the next week or so. Changing wheels back to black i think. Thinner tyres and a new stem and handlebars. A new freewheel and chain too. Will post a pic when finished
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Comments
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Nice work, would make a nice little commuter/town bike although your rear driveside brake pad looks a little close to the tyre.. does it not rub?0
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Thanks, i use it to go from school and back so its pretty much a commuter
I left it in my garden for 2 weeks since it had a puncture and i didnt bother fixing it. I repaired it today and i fiddled with the brakes because they started rubbing. They dont rub now but the brakes are very weak. I didnt do anything else since i have new tyres on the way. Ill set up my brakes properly once ive got my new tyres on 0 -
Well done mate, its amazing what you can do with a lick of paint and a bit of TLC, got a custom built chucker meself , I love GT's crackin looking frames, have a look at my post when I built mine
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Thanks
Your Chucker looks amazing. 10/10. I wish I had an excuse to spray mine too but the factory paint is in mint condition and came up really nice when polished for a few hours
It's quite hard to decide on a colour scheme with my chucker since its the white XS1 frame with the black and blue designs. Can't wait to get building with mine, luckily I'm getting a lot of a help from another forum member who is sending me a load of parts for pretty much nothing I'll make a thread once I start the build 0 -
Ah yes I remember reading the tread, good luck with that, ive added some more pictures of mine on my build post, luckily I'm getting a lot of a help from another forum member who is sending me a load of parts for pretty much nothing I'll make a thread once I start the build 0 -
I like how you went for it with the yellow. I would have looked at it and went "nahhh" and changed the stem, but the addition of the yellow bits actually made it look even better The more I look at yours the.more I wanna start doing mine. thanks for showing me yours, it looks top notch. 0
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Nice one man, well done for putting in the effort in on that one, I would have left that frame even for a tenner but you saw the potential. Taps0
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Thanks , i went for it cause the only other decent bike i had at the time was a purple Raleigh Mirage and as i said i like my GTs. Its aluminium too so was much much lighter than the cromo Raleigh. 0
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Fair play. Yeah I can see you're a fan of GTs, your're working on a chucker as well? Have you got a build thread for that?0
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Pesky Jones wrote:Fair play. Yeah I can see you're a fan of GTs, your're working on a chucker as well? Have you got a build thread for that?
Yep im working on a Chucker, theres no build thread just yet as i have no parts at the moment. I should be getting loads of parts within the next week or so, then ill make a build thread.
Heres what it looks like though:
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Got my new tyres through the post today. They are Michelin Wild Run`rs. Got them fitted and im really really happy with them! The difference between weight on these tyres and the previous ones is monumental. Also much more grippy and look a million times better IMO.
They look alot like an inner tube i noticed
Polished up my rims today and really really happy with the results i got from the product called Brasso. I would 100% recommend it for anyone looking to polish chrome or any other surface that is supposed to shine. It is really worth it. You can get in Tesco!
Adjusted brakes and checked everything else on a short ride and everything is 100%. Really pleased with it now. Tyres get rid of that cheap look to IMO. Here it is now, all done and ready for the 50k ride on Sunday!
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How do your brakes work now?0
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They work fine. They got weaker last time i went out in the wet. Always does that. But i moved the pads in more and changed the toe a little and its all good now.0
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I do like it, but that stem has some mad rise on it.0
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What's up with that rear dropout? Looks like something is missing :S0
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Pesky Jones wrote:I do like it, but that stem has some mad rise on it.
Haha, it looks retarded to say the least, but im totally comfortable with the riding position. I was going to get a straight stem with spacers but all funds have been redirected to the Chucker so gave up on that since it wasnt a must really. Tyres were a definite must so had to spend money on them.
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bennett_346 wrote:What's up with that rear dropout? Looks like something is missing :S
The dropout is fully intact Saw it today since i changed tyres and was all good. 0 -
So it only grips say 2/3rds of the nut?0
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Nothings missing from it but it comes up a mm or so when you tighten it. Its not a problem though. Well i havent had any problems in 2 years.0
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That drop out isn't right. That nut should sit fully over the drop out.Transition Patrol - viewtopic.php?f=10017&t=130702350
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I reckon a big enough knock that will jump straight out0
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GT-Arrowhead wrote:
Is the bike upside down here? I was getting pretty confused, I thought that axle would definitly come out after a few knocks if thats how it normally sits0 -
Yeah it is upside down.
Probably ok with rim brakes, discs no chance, with the ejection forces0 -
The forces are the same no matter what brakes you have. Rim brakes might not be as powerful though.Transition Patrol - viewtopic.php?f=10017&t=130702350
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Yeah it just comes up ever so slightly when i tighten it up. Dont know why. I think i better sort that out. Im getting slime tubes so when i fit them ill try and sort that out.
The bike is upside down in that photo. And i know what you mean about the ejection forces. I cant see it popping off with V brakes.
The locknut is the one where the bottom lip grips the frame and the actual bolt itself turns as you tighten so i shouldnt be having this problem anyway.
Probably have to add or remove some spacers so that it getts a snugger fit.0 -
Spacers? Is the wheel the wrong width for the frame?0
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Nope, the wheel is meant for a 7 speed frame. I took the axle off before to grease bearings so either i put a washer or locknut on the wrong side or the locknuts arent in the right place. Shouldnt it be 1 on the bearing cone and 1 on the inside of the frame?
I dont think spacer is the correct term. LOL i meant in general all of the washers and locknuts that go onto the axle.0 -
Old school bolt ups always twist and move a bit, just one of the reasons they are utter shite.0
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Well the bike is old school anyhow. And i wouldnt go as far as to call them "utter shite". They arent really that bad.0
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GT-Arrowhead wrote:Well the bike is old school anyhow. And i wouldnt go as far as to call them "utter shite". They arent really that bad.
They are that bad. Thats why no one uses them any more.Transition Patrol - viewtopic.php?f=10017&t=130702350
