Fractal's Norco A-line build

[fractal]

Hey guys!!! For my winter project, I will be building a DH bike. I'm a commuter who has to deal with harsh urban terrain : pot holes, cracked pavement, sinked sewers, sidewalks, big hills, ...etc. With my hardtail, its OK but very unstable and not very comfortable!!! I need something HEAVY DUTY and SAFE (and that looks badass too ) So I found this very nice 2009 Norco A-line frame. When I saw the removable dropouts, I knew that they were perfect for modification(you'll see in the pics!!!) Here is what I want for this build :
-Crystalyte HT with all the usual upgrades : phase, Honeywell hall sensors, cooling holes.
-custom machined dropouts/torque arms
-24 FET 4115 MOSFET 84-132V Freeway Speed Controller (made by Lyen)
-24s 3p lipo
-Hyperion 1420i charger
-LVC parallel boards
-Rock Shox Boxxer race fork
-Fox DHX rear coil
-Direct plug in Cycle analyst
-Dual cycle lumenator (from Ebikes.ca) for 2000 lumens of lighting power!!!
-custom made battery housing
-26 inch Alex DX32 rims
-Maxxis Hookworms
-Avid code hydraulic brakes
-...all the bells and whistles that I can think of...

Here a some pics of the frame

[sn0wchyld]

bwa hhahaaa.

your trying to outdo me mate?? hehe. Looks like I might have some competition .The ht is fun with a dam 12fet and 50amps. a 24 is going to be a ball tearer. You'll want to put some temp probes on the motor though at the least, Ive had no heat troubles so far at up to 50A but the ammount of current that 24fet will give the HT youll have to be carefull. Im switching to 24s too over the next month or two, 50clicks is not quite enough to get the heart racing.

When you remake those dropouts, I'd recommend making them a bit longer, to extend your wheel base. Doesnt need to be much, a few cm will do fine. Im running an extra 2cm atm, and even with the extra weight of batts mine lifts the front with only a little encouragement, and I rarely give it the beans from less than 10-15km'h. Also try to bulid the spacer for the callipers into the dropouts, so they're 1 single peice. Itll take more work to get it right but saves the pita of making a spacer later on, and you'll know its not going to move. check the size of your break callipers too, as you may need to space the disk out from the hub by a few mm.

In hindsight, Im not so sure that the completely enclosed dropouts are really nessasary either. a well made pinch bolt woudl probably do just as well, possibly better. If i ever end up re-doing mine in SS that's what Ill probably do. mind you, riding around with no axle nuts is kinda neat.

Ill be interested to see how you mount your batts too, Im seriosly thinking about trying to design a frame mounted pack that will also fit in a backpack for when im on the trails. Just took mine into the lbs for a tuneup today, and after taking the batts off you're reminded of how much weight they add.

[fractal]

my A-line will kick a** Ball tearer... I love it. I forgot to mention that I will definitaley put a temp probe inside. I got a really good one at my local hardware store. About those dropouts, very clever of making them longer thanks for the tip. What about the rear shock, are there any things to consider. Does it compress too much with the torque of the motor? For the battery box, I have a couple of really good ideas, will post designs soon.

[sn0wchyld]

seems fine in terms of being under acceleration. How it handles bumps is another issue... all that unsprung weight really hampers the shocks performance. try riding down some big stairs or someting and youll get my drift.

[fractal]

YOU'VE GOT MAIL!!!! Just got a bunch of stuff today for my build!!! Check it out!!!!

[sn0wchyld]

YOU'VE GOT MAIL!!!! Just got a bunch of stuff today for my build!!! Check it out!!!!

My god mate, that 24 fet looks bigger than my entire batt case!!! Where the hell are you going to mount that?

[fractal]

I have lots of ideas for the batteries and controller. One of them is making a moldless fiberglass construction around the frame (not inside, its way too small).With a moldless construction, you dont have to make a plug wich is a real PITA and extremely time consuming. I am working a couple of designs that I will post. I also could mount the controller on this seat post rack that I found that has adjustable tilt to compensate the seat post angle of a dh bike and build a housing around it to make it look custom and nicer.

[sn0wchyld]

I have lots of ideas for the batteries and controller. One of them is making a moldless fiberglass construction around the frame (not inside, its way too small).With a moldless construction, you dont have to make a plug wich is a real PITA and extremely time consuming. I am working a couple of designs that I will post. I also could mount the controller on this seat post rack that I found that has adjustable tilt to compensate the seat post angle of a dh bike and build a housing around it to make it look custom and nicer.

been thinking of doing the FG thing myself, with some help from the uni Elec. engineering workshop. I was plaining on molding it out of foam and then just laying up with GF, and maybe a final layer or 2 of carbon. Might scream 'steal me' too much though. In the mean time I think ill try and copy hyena if i can find some square pvc down tube, cause I dont think ill get time in the next couple months to do much more. Uni's kicking my ass. ~50+hour weeks. ugh.

what do you mean by moldless and a plug? how would you hold it in place while it cures?

[El_Steak]

I think that's going to be a kick-ass bike Fractal. Hope to get a chance to test-ride it some day!

[Microbatman]

Love those modular/removable dropouts!!!!
Keep us posted about how you made or who made the new stronger ones to hold the motor.

[fractal]

I think that's going to be a kick-ass bike Fractal. Hope to get a chance to test-ride it some day!

El_Steak, any time!!!! You are more than welcome!!!

[fractal]

Love those modular/removable dropouts!!!!
Keep us posted about how you made or who made the new stronger ones to hold the motor.

I will work on those in a couple of weeks. First I need to upgrade the phase wires, install the hall effect sensors and I also need the brakes to accurately measure the distance between the adapter, rotor, motor/caliper...etc

[fractal]

I have lots of ideas for the batteries and controller. One of them is making a moldless fiberglass construction around the frame (not inside, its way too small).With a moldless construction, you dont have to make a plug wich is a real PITA and extremely time consuming. I am working a couple of designs that I will post. I also could mount the controller on this seat post rack that I found that has adjustable tilt to compensate the seat post angle of a dh bike and build a housing around it to make it look custom and nicer.

been thinking of doing the FG thing myself, with some help from the uni Elec. engineering workshop. I was plaining on molding it out of foam and then just laying up with GF, and maybe a final layer or 2 of carbon. Might scream 'steal me' too much though. In the mean time I think ill try and copy hyena if i can find some square pvc down tube, cause I dont think ill get time in the next couple months to do much more. Uni's kicking my ass. ~50+hour weeks. ugh.

what do you mean by moldless and a plug? how would you hold it in place while it cures?

A fiberglass moldless construction means that you do not release the final piece from the plug. You just lay the fabric on an existing structure made of whatever material you like and thats it. That is a more simple way of working with composites. You just sand it to a smooth finish. The harder way (and way more expensive) is to first build a mold, wich is a copy of the final piece. You need to lay fabric and resin on half of the mold, and repeat with the other half. You then join the 2 halfs together : that is the plug. It has to be absolutely perfect in every way. After, you lay fabric and resin in the plug to make the final piece. Experts use vaccuming to take the bubbles out. Once its cured, you separate the 2 pieces and you have your finished piece. Its messy, it stinks chemicals and there are a lot of steps and coats of all kinds of release agents, resin, ...etc to put on!!! A moldless construction is way more easier, it just means that the model you build stays inside the fabric and resin once its cured. You can use wood, mdf, styrofoam, expanding foam, whatever you like. I'm thinking of doing this for my build. I would build a removable battery housing and lay the fabric and resin while its off the bike. There is another really cool product that I am going to test very soon that would make it way easier than composites!!! stay tuned!!!

[doc007]

You can use wood, mdf, styrofoam, expanding foam, whatever you like.

Even Playdoh and food wrap! Check out the before and after pics from this build. You will be impressed, I promise! viewtopic.php?f=6&t=26029&hilit=playdoh&start=45

There is another really cool product that I am going to test very soon that would make it way easier than composites!!! stay tuned!!!

We are too impatient! What is it?!

[fractal]

A word about my choice of motor­/controller : The controller that I chose is very powerful, in fact maybe too powerful for the HT motor. I was going to get the new 5404 to go with this controller but changed my mind when I saw how it weighed (30 pounds ). When I changed my mind, I already bought the controller. So what, I will keep it and maybe get a 5404 for a future build. I know that I am going to keep this controller for a long time. It looks awsome, big, high quality, and I think its cool!!! I will program it to accomodate the power of the HT.

[El_Steak]

Good call on going overkill with the controller.

The only piece of equipment I never changed on my bike is my Method 100V 100A controller. Never failed and can take anything I throw at it.

[fractal]

More parts!!!More parts!!! The brakes just came in!!! Check it out!!!

[sn0wchyld]

A word about my choice of motor­/controller : The controller that I chose is very powerful, in fact maybe too powerful for the HT motor. I was going to get the new 5404 to go with this controller but changed my mind when I saw how it weighed (30 pounds ). When I changed my mind, I already bought the controller. So what, I will keep it and maybe get a 5404 for a future build. I know that I am going to keep this controller for a long time. It looks awsome, big, high quality, and I think its cool!!! I will program it to accomodate the power of the HT.

lol, and ive just gone and bought one!! planning on buying a second bike (cromolly) and making a custom rear swingarm and beefing up the linkages to deal with the extra weight. that and swiss cheese the motor. though I'll probably go with a 'meer' 18fet.
mind if I ask how much the 24 cost, and where from?
also, can you get a pic of it next to the norko frame? want to get an idea of the size of that beast!

any update on your end? started on those dropouts yet?

[fractal]

sn0wchyld, I got the controller from Lyen. All the details are here : http://www.endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=31&t=19719&p=423189&hilit=freeway+controller#p423189
I will take pics of it next to the frame for you no problem . This weekend, I will be drilling cooling holes on the cover plates of my HT. My buddy El_Steak gave me the idea of making a template with Sketchup. Well, turns out I have been using Sketchup for years. I have used it on many projects like my backyard deck, dedicated home theatre room, ...etc. El_Steak is letting me use his drill press with a step bit to do the job. Will post pics and info when its all done. I will work on the dropouts when i'm done upgrading the motor ASAP.

[fractal]

Mod #1 : cooling holes. My good friend and member El_Steak gave me a really good idea for the cooling holes. Just like him, I made a template with sketchup to make a nice clean job. He also let me use his drill press and special "step bit". Turned out great. Check it out.

[fractal]

A made a couple of more mods to the motor before I add the phase wires and hall effect sensors. Check it out :

[fractal]

Finally got the suspension and tires!!! Is that a huge pothole i just went over??? Oh well, didn't feel a thing! I also used my handy Dremel tool to widden out the slot of the axle for the bigger phase wires and most importantly prevent those damn wire cuts!!!. Check it out :

[El_Steak]

Nice. I suggest you get some heavy duty downhill tubes and some kevlar liner (I use 40mm panaracer flataway) to prevent flats.

After over 4000km on my Hookworms with the liners and big tube, not a single flat.

[fractal]

Nice. I suggest you get some heavy duty downhill tubes and some kevlar liner (I use 40mm panaracer flataway) to prevent flats.

After over 4000km on my Hookworms with the liners and big tube, not a single flat.

Thanks for the tip! I Will look into that.

[deecanio]

+1 for trhe tyres and liners, no punctures here whilst used.
lookin nice.

D