# ?? Droppin' weight in the details ??



## BikeSATORI (Mar 20, 2004)

Alright, most of you all know I'm a tweaker when it comes to bike mods... always pondering the stuff. 
My old man was a hot rodder and chopper wrench monkey, so I grew up as a little grom in some workshops toolin' on stuff throughout the days (he always rips on me when I tell him I just bought a new part or something, says it's too easy on me, and back in his day, if he couldn't make the part himself with his own hands, then he couldnt' ride, which I completely respect)... so I'm still tryin' to get into the shop on some of these things... :thumbsup: 
So anyway, was just thinking about a couple of things here and there, and was wondering if anyone here has done either of them... ??

First of all, neither of these mods are really going to make me faster, or magically able to bust out the big chucks when slicin' the cheese wedges or anything like that, I realize it, but...
I was just curious about drilling rims. (heck, if I lost you there, or you just don't care, please stop paying attention now.)
I know it's a big thing in Trials, blowin' up now as it used to be kind of an underground mod, but now TryAll, and 24B, etc. sells stock rims pre-drilled... but I'm not into the fatty superwide trials rims, I like'em skinny. Both of the rims I'd be thinking of attempting this on are double walls (Atomlab GI Dirt/old aircorp, and a Sun BFR). I'm thinking possibly just some holes about the size of a schrader valve hole to start out with. 
And, also I'm just wondering, should I try to set up a stop on my drill (can't use drill press if I drill from inside the hoop as the handle and overhead motor wouldn't fit inside the 24" rim without leaving it all crooked) and only go through one rim wall, or should I just drill all the way through and have rim strip showing when mounted? I know that's how the trials dudes rock it, but I'd be a bit worried about grit and water getting in there so easy (and maybe sacrifice structure too much). Also, I'd primarily be looking at doing this only to the front wheel since riding street beats the eff' out of rears...

So, if any of you have done this (I've been seeing it pop up on a lot of bmx'ers rims long before the Fly rims came out), please post up some pictures or tell what you did! 




Second of all, I'm wondering about dremeling off the ISO disc tabs from my '06 Marzo DJ2. I'm just apprehensive because I don't know what the casting is like underneath that little hump, if I can smooth it down flush withough worrying too much... Also don't know what to put on the bare material to prevent oxidization... gonna keep it cheap and simple, so was just thinking fingernail paint or model stuff??





Basically, these two mods won't drop much overall weight, although I may feel it from losing weight off the rim, but really, they aren't even about weight that much as just taking the next step on some one-off smooth movin' steel custom mods. :thumbsup: 
Clean fork combined with a 20mm non-disc front hub (if I ever get the cash or if NPJ ever gets imported to the US), would equal the killer beat hot rod! 




So anyway, if anyone here has done, or even knows where some info sources are on any one of these dozens of biking boards spread accross the net, just post it up and let me know, any info or tips is much appreciated. or hell, just post up on your thoughts, whether ripping me for pondering the pointless and convincing me that I should settle for off-the-shelf products, or whether you yourself have looked into voiding your own warranties as well, haha!

sorry, no pics right now for the ADD action!


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## asianprideryder (Apr 21, 2007)

well ok, these holes are pretty damn big..considering...and the rest of the rims on the dans comp site that ive looked at...you would only loose about 2oz. 
it would look sick, but id keep the rims the way they are...unless your like bored or somthin lol


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## pavement_hurts (May 13, 2006)

i've seen a few sets of the alex dh rims (dx32?) drilled completely out. i think that they used a handheld drill and a friend. i ran a few sliced in half pieces of duct tape in my drilled out rims under the rim strips and they stopped all the crap from popping my tubes.


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## buckoW (Feb 7, 2007)

Try All makes special colored rim strips for drilled rims that are rubbery and bulge out a bit at the holes. It looks nicer than a normal sticky rim strip filled with dirt. They say that the tryall drilled rims give extra "pop" and soak up the flat landings a bit better(elastic feeling). I think it would be a better idea to just run a lighter front rim.


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## Epschoenly (Jan 25, 2006)

Concerning you wanting to have a stop for your drill, on a handhelp drill iff you wrap a bunch of tape around the bit at the height you want to stop at, then you have yourself a very basic drill stop, worked for me a bunch of times doing wood working stuff.


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## aggiebiker (Apr 18, 2006)

that would be wicked hard to hand drill all those holes without screwing up, but it would be sooooo slick.


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## BikeSATORI (Mar 20, 2004)

thanks for the input everyone. 

yeah.... I could very well run a lighter front rim, but that may change the tire profile from what I already have, not to mention require spending more money on top of the rims I already have (and like). 

I'm thinking, if I get around to attempting this process, I will set a stop on the drill and only go through one wall initially. 
Haha, I'm not looking for any added "bounce" or "flex", and I think since I'm running a front susp. fork, it should limit the stress put on the front rim just a bit. Going through the outer wall of the rim should retain a bit of structure I'd hope, and if they get dirty, I could just blow'em out with the air compressor.
But, don't hold your breath for me to try to guinea pig this on right off the bat here, I'd be waiting until I do pick up a 20mm non-disk front hub to unlace my current wheel in order to fit the drill in there properly, then relace it up after drilling with the new hub.

I couldn't do it quite like the Fly rims, since my spoke eyelets are in the middle of the rim not pushed to the edge, so I'd have to go inbetween those, similar to the DX32, and I would not be going anywhere near that big of holes either since my rims are only right around 30-32mm wide.

here's a quick pic I got from Mitch Yeates bike check from Simple BMX, where he drilled his rims:
*alright, was trying to post a pic, but imageshack isn't uploading it atm, so check the simplebmx website bikechecks if you want to look at it...

as for dremeling the disc tabs, that might happen a bit sooner as I'm going to be lowering my fork in the next weeks to come, and while it's off the bike, I might go about it.


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## snaky69 (Mar 8, 2005)

I think it is do able, measure 20 times, drill once, dead on center each time, try and get a bit that fits flush with the shraeder valve hole.

Drilling straight might help too


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## dirtyharry (Jun 27, 2006)

if the DJ2 you're talking about is the one on your eastern complete, I wouldn't do it. No front brake tabs may make some potential buyers look elsewhere . . . if you're planning on keeping the fork or even the whole bike though, it's your call I guess . . . 

I'm a front brake nut, so most of the riders here who ride super specific DJ/park bikes (you know, any combination of short fork, brakeless, rear brake only, 24"ers, etc) probably wouldn't give a sh!t. 

You should try and assemble "worlds lightest DJ/Street bike that is still rideable." Hmmm, mebbe you and rick should have a talk . . .

oh, and when I say rideable, I mean strong enough to take atleast the occasional case, because no rider, no matter how good, is smooth enough to never, ever case.


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## maximum.minimum (May 4, 2007)

hey bike satori, PM me after you try dremeling the disc tabs, i wanna know how it turns out, im thinking of doing this on my dirt jam pros


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## BikeSATORI (Mar 20, 2004)

dirtyharry said:


> if the DJ2 you're talking about is the one on your eastern complete, I wouldn't do it. No front brake tabs may make some potential buyers look elsewhere . . . if you're planning on keeping the fork or even the whole bike though, it's your call I guess . . .
> 
> I'm a front brake nut, so most of the riders here who ride super specific DJ/park bikes (you know, any combination of short fork, brakeless, rear brake only, 24"ers, etc) probably wouldn't give a sh!t.
> 
> ...


yes, resale is a good pretty good point...

But, attempting to build "the lightest" bike for this stuff is pretty ridiculous IMO (wait before you jump the hypocrite thing in this weight weenie thread, haha)... Going for THE lightest would would mean giving up my DJ series fork... giving up Atomlab GI or Sun BFR rims... giving up 22.2 chromo bars and bmx stem... giving up dedicated street tires... going back to a stupid 3/32" drivetrain and chainring/cogs/chain... etc... NONE of which I want to do!
yeah, I'm a weight freak in some cases, but I'm not going for a sub 20lb blkmrkt mob or something crazy... even if it may be possible...


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## BikeSATORI (Mar 20, 2004)

maximum.minimum said:


> hey bike satori, PM me after you try dremeling the disc tabs, i wanna know how it turns out, im thinking of doing this on my dirt jam pros


If I do get around to doing it, I'll be sure to try to update this thread and let everyone know... if it doesn't get buried and forgotten anyway...

Originally I was just trying to put some feelers out, hoping someone on these forums might have done the same thing... looking for some pics/process tips, etc.

But, by the time I get around to doing this, I may not have access to a computer or internet, so it may be awhile if it is ever updated.


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## dirtyharry (Jun 27, 2006)

just a thought . . . I'm sure everyone here would be interested to see such a ride, though. I hope I didn't come across as making fun of your lightweight gear fetish, that wasn't my intent. 

I think everyone has a specific bike fetish. I know I do! I have an enourmous aversion to TT tubes and or seat posts that extend at or above the top of the rear tire. I don't exactly know why, but I could see myself turning down a nemesis if I couldn't get the seat at the level of the rear tire top if I wanted to . . .


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## J-dogg (Aug 7, 2006)

oh satori about the 20mm non disc, i may be replacing my front wheel with the non disc ringle boxxer if you're interested. or i may sell my whole tonic complete. pm if you'd be interested maybe


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## dirtyharry (Jun 27, 2006)

j-dogg, you can't be serious! What could possibly be worth selling the fall guy?!? You've biked your ass off and worked your ass off to make money, and now this?!?! 

Heh, heh, that was quite a rant from me . . .  

But seriously dude, what's with that?


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## BikeSATORI (Mar 20, 2004)

J-dogg said:


> oh satori about the 20mm non disc, i may be replacing my front wheel with the non disc ringle boxxer if you're interested. or i may sell my whole tonic complete. pm if you'd be interested maybe


hey J-dogg...
what rim is the hub strung up to? how many spoke/hole? 32 or 36? do you have any pics? feel free to post'em up if you do.


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## J-dogg (Aug 7, 2006)

satorizzle, 32 hole on a bmx rhynolite. i may be replacing it, i'm not sure. i knew you were looking for something skin to it but i'll let you know if eastern goes through.


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## buckoW (Feb 7, 2007)

Hey Satori
I just remembered seeing Eric Porter's bike a couple of years ago when he was into hitting rails without pegs and he would hacksaw the disc mounts off his atomlab hubs to make a flatter place for the rail to sit into. Matbe you could dremel them down tastefully and avoid getting another wheel? Just a thought.


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## BikeSATORI (Mar 20, 2004)

almost forgot about this thread... posted another similar one on a couple of other forums too that I'll have to try to get around to updating...

Well, I did in fact angle grind my DJ2!
So now she's nice and clean shaved, no more dirty unused ISO tabs and also dropped the little tiny tab that was for screwing a plastic cable guide onto. And on top of that, I ground off all 6 of the bolt holes off of my front hub too!!! Looks much cleaner. Tried to make it nice and smooth but didn't want to go too thin there. This was similar to what buckoW was talking about in the above post I think, thanks for the idea man.

Also, while I had the grinder out, I cut off the ends of my chromo 14mm rear axle too. 

All in all, managed to drop quite a few nice size chunks on the floor and off my bike. Very clean, very trick, very sick. 
But, I clocked myself, I'm only faster on the top end by about 65.322 mph, but gas mileage is better and best of all, the ratio of panties on my bedroom floor (a tent now, haha) per bike ride minutes has increased significantly. Gettin' it!

Anyway, I'd post up some pictures right away here as I usually do, but I only have some temporary pirated internet atm and imageshack is NOT working with this slow connection. Sucks.


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## aggiebiker (Apr 18, 2006)

dude you took a grinder to a hub... nar-core.


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## BikeSATORI (Mar 20, 2004)

aggiebiker said:


> dude you took a grinder to a hub... nar-core.


haha...

alright, my internet is too slow to use imageshack which I usually prefer, so I resorted to inkbike with a P.

remnant shrapnel from the pnuematic war. Several casualties, luckily none including my fork lowers nor any spokes.  









































Please pardon my use of a brown sharpie as an attempt at color match-up, it's much darker than the factory brown. It works for me though, and I'm not going for "show" quality pop here, so if it's your pet peeve please let it go, it doesn't bother me one bit. Also, I know I could have gone smoother, both with the rotor bolt tabs on the hub and down thinner and flusher with the fork lowers but the way I saw it, it looks smooth from 10 feet back, and leaving extra material leaves much more peace of mind rather than having too little or going too thin with it just for a smoother look. I like how it turned out, and if I wish, I can always go back and hit it a few more times with the die grinder easily as that. Only took about 30-40 min total, including basic touch up with a faber-castell paint marker and a brown sharpie, haha. :thumbsup:

EDIT: alright wait... are the pictures showing up for anyone else??? I'm suddenly lost as to posting pictures here now that my trusty imageshack is not working due to slow internet... bunktified. 
So, how do I connect pics from pinkbike to here???


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## Epschoenly (Jan 25, 2006)

Ditto on no pics.


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## asianprideryder (Apr 21, 2007)

try photobucket?
u can use my account if u'd like


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## pavement_hurts (May 13, 2006)

just use the yellow mountain scene button. insert your pinkbike photo url's and you should be good.


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## buckoW (Feb 7, 2007)

Nice work Satori!!!
I have been involved in a couple grinding/drilling projects lately. Mostly geo mods on chainstays.....I will post some pics when I have time. I have been working on the WC 4X track with Phil Saxena in Champery and that was taking up all my spare time.
The other day a friend and I grinded a new 24" only dropout slot in the adjustable dropout plates of a 24 Pornking. The result is a Pornking with 360mm chainstays....


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## da_eddio (Sep 23, 2006)

satori, your a very bad man

now i wanna take a dremel to my frame and fork 

damn you!


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## da_eddio (Sep 23, 2006)

double post


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## Vinny A (Oct 8, 2006)

Wow dude thats really nice work, I wish I had the talent with tools to do that.


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## BikeSATORI (Mar 20, 2004)

pavement_hurts said:


> just use the yellow mountain scene button. insert your pinkbike photo url's and you should be good.


thanks... yeah, that's exactly what I thought... maybe I'm using the wrong url's from pinkbike???!! hmmm.... I'll try to post more later with imageshack when I get a chance.

and yeah, thanks guys... 
It really isn't the greatest work, but like I said, it was just a quickie job, and everything is still very safe and structurally sound the way I see it. Was more of a trial run that I can go back to and touch up if I care enough down the line.


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## BikeSATORI (Mar 20, 2004)

alright, new try at pictures. Had some more patience this time around.

schrapnel left over.

















hub









little peek through from the other side. you can really see that brown sharpie... shotty.









side









sorry, most of it is somewhat hard to really see in the pictures, but I think you can get the idea...

now seriously, I wouldn't really recommend this to most general riders (but if you're reading this, you're probably stoked on the mods too, haha). I'm not saying I'm a professional here by any means at all, which I'm not, more like a hack that likes to play with tools... but these minor tweaks and modifications aren't going to make your bike magically fly or even really improve or change ride or feel at all. They will pretty much just void your warranty and get the manufacturer pissed at the consumer for "improper use" or whatever, haha... It's just that my bikes are basically my little hot-rods (which I grew up around in my dad's work shop)... was into (still am in my head) fast cars as well as motorcycles for quite awhile, but just can't afford them at the moment, haha...


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## da_eddio (Sep 23, 2006)

so how much weight do you think you've shaved removing all those bits from your wheel and fork, not forgetting the stuff you took off your frame too?


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## fiddy_ryder (Jun 15, 2005)

smooth the fork down now and yer set..


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## BikeSATORI (Mar 20, 2004)

fiddy_ryder said:


> smooth the fork down now and yer set..


yeah, I already did a significant amount of "smoothing", that's why I was trying to explain that the pictures and shotty sharpie action throw it off. If you run your hand over it, it's nice and smooth, just raised a bit over the surface of the rest of the fork instead of perfectly flush. I wanted to leave a but extra material there just for now... an no, I'm not breaking out the bondo on this thing, or turning it into a lead sled, haha...

da_eddio, 
I'm not too sure how much weight was lost total. Nothing significant, I can say that much. maybe an ounce or two, but even if I could have access to my digi scale again, it might not be that accurate. A lot of material was lost in just dust from grinding and smoothing, etc... Who knows, maybe a guess around 60g or something... ?
This mod wasn't necessarily all about the weight though, it was just getting it smoother and something else that not many people you see out on bikes have done to their rigs. You know what I'm saying, to set this mean little hot-rod apart from a lot of those high dollar yuppie catalog queen bikes that are just bolted together from a person going through a catalog and pointing at the most expensive part possible, then simply putting it together. Anybody can do that, just look around the forums here. You pickin' up what I'm layin' down? :thumbsup:


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## da_eddio (Sep 23, 2006)

you pickin' up what im laying down, gotta love your street lingo talk 

yeah i get what ur saying, heck look at mine (well look at it in a week or so when i get my ruddy azonic momentum axle) its far removed from bling bling lol! i like the idea of shaving off those bits tho, seeing as im probably going to keep the bike now, im tempted to get rid of the gear cable routing, mech hanger and v-brake mounts then respray it for a chuckle. think the hub is a step too far for me tho 

try gettin a full size pic, see the whole effect


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## BikeSATORI (Mar 20, 2004)

da_eddio said:


> you pickin' up what im laying down, gotta love your street lingo talk
> 
> yeah i get what ur saying, heck look at mine (well look at it in a week or so when i get my ruddy azonic momentum axle) its far removed from bling bling lol! i like the idea of shaving off those bits tho, seeing as im probably going to keep the bike now, im tempted to get rid of the gear cable routing, mech hanger and v-brake mounts then respray it for a chuckle. think the hub is a step too far for me tho
> 
> try gettin a full size pic, see the whole effect


haha, yeah... I ground off all the cable stops, the V-brake tabs, AND took off a good centimeter+ from the end of the dropout plates while also making the slot longer for a shorter slammed chainstay length (luckily there was enough room there behind the chainstay weld to still clear the chaintensioner when slammed after the grindage...) all on my last bike, the Eastern 26 DJ-4 proto...  
All of those pieces shaved off actually lost quite a significant amount of weight! I was super surpised just to pick up all the pieces off the shop floor and hold them in my hand, had some weight to it. Those v-brake studs in particular that they used were solid little blocks of steel, very heavy and unecessary when I ran it with disc.

I think I wrote up a thread on that stuff a long time ago too, maybe about a year ago...  I'm sure I did actually, I remember posting pics, but I forgot what kind of ridonkulous title I gave it at the time. You can search for it. might be included in the "smooth movin' steel" thread that I did about the entire bike, or it may have been a separate one... not sure.

and you know I have been tempted to do some speed holes! :eekster: possibly one on the bottom of my bb shell, but nothing as far or drastic as the Eastern Grim Reaper. And since it's a street bike 99% it hardly sees dirt or wet, and my Solid bmx headset already has unsealed angular contact roller bearings in it anyway, so I'm not that worried about grit or contamination.. I am actually going to drill just one hole through the dropout plate on each side of my frame just above the axle slot on a drill press when I get some time.
I actually met a guy out on a trail ride yesterday who fabricates his own full suspension chromoly frames. Super sick looking, and he had speed holes all over the place, but in each hole was another tube welded in. That wouldn't lose you any weight at all, more like add weight, but I thought it was cool just because it was different... interesting dude.


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## da_eddio (Sep 23, 2006)

hmmm, shorter chain stay length, thats an interesting idea as my frame can run 24//26 wheels and with the 24's it looks a little long to me, might have to look into that.

and yeah, the v brake mounts on this frame are big old square lumps of steel, i think removing those will deffo be noticable (well least in my hand haha)

forgive my ignorance, but speed holes, what are they?


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## BikeSATORI (Mar 20, 2004)

da_eddio said:


> hmmm, shorter chain stay length, thats an interesting idea as my frame can run 24//26 wheels and with the 24's it looks a little long to me, might have to look into that.
> 
> and yeah, the v brake mounts on this frame are big old square lumps of steel, i think removing those will deffo be noticable (well least in my hand haha)
> 
> forgive my ignorance, but speed holes, what are they?


haha... "speed holes" are an old hot rod trick... It's where you find basically any material you can, and just drill holes in it to loose a lot of weight! but, gotta watch for structural integrity, which many people weren't so careful of in some cases, resulting in a horribly bad reputation and seems sometimes as a somewhat comical modification, especially on a traditional bicycle which is already very minimal and basic.

Look for pictures of the Eastern Grim Reaper frame or the Harvester frame and you can see some modern version of the speed holes done in a new school way and actually by the manufacturer, not the consumer. 
LOTS AND LOTS of people are very skeptical and critical of this mod, and for good reason in most cases. maybe that's why I like'em.


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## Vinny A (Oct 8, 2006)

Looks pretty nice dude, I like where you went with this. 

And yeah I agree with you the Grim Reaper is a sick frame, now Eastern 26 has to pick up the slack and make a Grim Reaper 26 style!


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## aggiebiker (Apr 18, 2006)

holy crap is that a defgrip sticker!!!!????


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## BikeSATORI (Mar 20, 2004)

haha, 
I'm sure this one was looong forgotten, but I thought I'd revive it just a bit with a few pics I had here.


































Now, that's just a taste of what I've been up to... got some more in store, I'll post that up when I get closer to the finish in a couple weeks or so.

Anyone else, feel free to post up some pics you might have of some mods/grindage/drilling/dremel work/etc. that you might have.... 
Will? anyone?

might have to bring back the ol' "beef w/ weight weenies" thread too, haha! 

edit: oh yeah, aggie, that was a defgrip sticker...


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## NoBrakes! (Jun 15, 2007)

All that stuff is so awesome.

and to think i was happy when i toutched up a scratch on my white dj3 with a little paint... 
haha


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## frisky_zissou (Jun 4, 2006)

What tool are you using to do odd shaped jobs on the fork tabs and such?
And with the drill, how do you stop the drill piece from going all squirrelly before it locks in the indent its created? Hope you understand......

Thanks tom.


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## BikeSATORI (Mar 20, 2004)

tom2304 said:


> What tool are you using to do odd shaped jobs on the fork tabs and such?
> And with the drill, how do you stop the drill piece from going all squirrelly before it locks in the indent its created? Hope you understand......
> 
> Thanks tom.


using a combination of dremel w/ ac cord, angle grinder/cutting wheel, die grinder, and drill press and grinding wheels, files, etc....

Drill press keeps things generally straight.

I've recently recieved quite a few helpful tips from Greg (from GMDesigns), so realize that these photos posted above are from quite some time ago and somewhat rough as well.


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## XSL_WiLL (Nov 2, 2004)

I used a punch to make a dent and then drilled to keep the bit from wandering.


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## XSL_WiLL (Nov 2, 2004)

Copied from my thread
Well. I got bored. So I started poking holes in my bike and taking off knobs and stuff. Shorter bolts... etc. I'll eventually get around to cutting off the v-brake tabs and cable guides. Can't do anything about the ones on the top tube though... The guides for the hydro hose are one piece with the guides for the shifter cables. I'm thinking about stripping the bars... or getting white MG1s to go with it. And I kind of still want to drill the very ends of the bars. It's not like there's tons of leverage on the ends.

I shaved and drilled the levers... but the picture didn't really show. Also drilled my Thomson seatpost. The holes aren't perfect... I may have been slightly under the influence when I did this.

Scale at work teeters on 28 pounds... but I think it might be a bit off, it feels lighter.


























































Don't criticize how clean the bike is... It gets wiped down after every ride so I can keep it in the house.


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## minus9 (Oct 7, 2005)

Just 'cause you can drill it doesn't mean that you should...


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## BikeSATORI (Mar 20, 2004)

minus9 said:


> Just 'cause you can drill it doesn't mean that you should...


have you been spying on me? :skep: 

man, if I had access to the photos on my laptop at the moment, I'd post up some funny ones. Including one of a NS capital proto that had absolutely no seattube...  I think I made a thread about it here probably around a year ago or so.

edit: man, I just looked closer at that photo and damn, look where the cranks/bb shell is in regard to the tire! now THAT is some short chainstay length... The rest isn't so impressive as a trials bike overall, but I just thought that high bb and short chainstays was pretty cool... Looks like the bb shell is pierced right through the chainstay tubing.
haha, and even crank arms drilled out. He must spend all of his time on the back tire only and have ridden it as a disposable.


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## DJskeet (Oct 19, 2007)

I've been thinking about a few ideas as well. Such as follows:

1) saw off your seat post, drill a bunch of small holes in it, and then sand out the middle

2) Drill holes on the under side of the seat where the rails are and then cover the inside with some kind of tape or rubber so the foam doesn't come out

3) carbon fiber bar ends such as these: http://www.bti-usa.com/public/category/GR/GREP/all/DE78?page=1#DE78

4) if you have a bash gaurd, saw off the top part you don't use or drill holes in it.

Thats just some things i was thinking of. Are they ok to do?

I have alo heard of sanding down every other tooth on the sprocket. Wouldn't that be really bad?


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## aggiebiker (Apr 18, 2006)

The carbon plugs are for drops, they would get shredded if you fell on them.

The seat post idea would work.
I dont think drilling your seat pan is worth it. Youd lose strength and not much weight.


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## XSL_WiLL (Nov 2, 2004)

If you cut your post make sure you leave enough insertion so that it extend atleast past the first weld/junction. My Thomson is already oval shaped... but you can bore it out to an extent. I drilled the clamp.

Drilling holes in the bash is fine, but go slow. I just cut off the section behind the crank arm.

Just get a lighter chainring... the e13 is crazy light. DO NOT sand/cut off every other tooth. I saw that in another thread... it was a joke.

As mentioned those bar ends are for drop bars. It won't fit right. Carbon fiber isn't always lighter.

The foam shouldn't come out even if there were holes, but water and grit would get in there and make the seat even heavier. I did take the bumpers off my seat though... Lost like 5 screws, 2 plastic pieces and a few staples.


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## BostonStreetRider (Sep 21, 2007)

DJskeet said:


> I've been thinking about a few ideas as well. Such as follows:
> 
> 1) saw off your seat post, drill a bunch of small holes in it, and then sand out the middle
> 
> 2) Drill holes on the under side of the seat where the rails are and then cover the inside with some kind of tape or rubber so the foam doesn't come out


A couple weeks ago I was getting bored of not riding for most of the winter, so I took my Haro F3 apart and took it down to the post office and weighed it on the scales there. I had basically the same ideas you did, and sawed off the ridiculously long seat post and drilled mad holes in the 2.5" or so at the bottom of the post that is inside the seattube all the time. Chopping the post is pretty common, but I don't know about the drilling. I did the math and figured out that the drilling took off 1/3 of an ounce, haha, so it was mainly to keep me busy. Cutting the post probably took off more weight though. Also, I cut the 990 mounts off the fork and did a rough job of smoothing off the places where they had been with a file- again more of a cosmetic thing than to actually lose weight. Last night and today I stopped fiddling with the bike and put it all back together again in a hurry because the snow's melted off the skatepark and I'm gonna go riiiiiiiiide!


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## DJskeet (Oct 19, 2007)

I am not too worried about weight, its just fun to tinker with the bike ang get it all nice and smooth. Drilling holes in the seatpost and chopping it off is something I have wanted to do for a long time but never got around to it. Could probly loose a few ounces on that.

Will, great idea on the bash gaurd, I realized I could cut off a lot of the extra stuff that goes under the crank arm and still maintain a good stability. I could probly also make it thinner. (its really thick)

Aggie your right on the bar ends, I might just try them never the less though, see how long they last...

And one more thing, how about a cabon fiber headcap? I have seen that a lot, is it ok to use? Where can I find one?


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## aggiebiker (Apr 18, 2006)

Just get a carbon frame.


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## XSL_WiLL (Nov 2, 2004)

DJskeet said:


> I am not too worried about weight, its just fun to tinker with the bike ang get it all nice and smooth. Drilling holes in the seatpost and chopping it off is something I have wanted to do for a long time but never got around to it. Could probly loose a few ounces on that.
> 
> Will, great idea on the bash gaurd, I realized I could cut off a lot of the extra stuff that goes under the crank arm and still maintain a good stability. I could probly also make it thinner. (its really thick)
> 
> ...


No... the bar ends WILL NOT fit. They are intended for drop bars where there's a little overlap from the bar tape.

There are aluminum caps lighter than carbon fiber ones... but if you're set on carbon fiber... go to your LBS.


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## Iggz (Nov 22, 2006)

XSL_WiLL said:


> DO NOT sand/cut off every other tooth. I saw that in another thread... it was a joke.


Ahaha, that was me


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## GravityWins (Dec 18, 2005)

aggiebiker said:


> Just get a carbon frame.


I've had this talk with friends, we call this frame the "One Hit Wonder"


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## DJskeet (Oct 19, 2007)

ilikemybike011 said:


> Ahaha, that was me


So you where the one that started that thread on pinkbike? Some people came up with some funny stuff.

Thanks will, I'll try and get some alum. ones.


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## XSL_WiLL (Nov 2, 2004)

For instance, I had a carbon fiber headset top cap that was heavier than my Chris King aluminum one. Now I take the cap off after preloading the headset.


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## Iggz (Nov 22, 2006)

DJskeet said:


> So you where the one that started that thread on pinkbike? Some people came up with some funny stuff.
> 
> Thanks will, I'll try and get some alum. ones.


Nah, I didn't start it, just pulled out some funny quotes from it


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## cmc4130 (Jan 30, 2008)

this isn't about dropping weight, but it is a mod....

take a circular saw and attach a grinding wheel. mill the dropouts so the slot goes further forward. i got my chainstay on my dk xenia to 15 7/8" with 36-16 gearing and a Shadow half link chain. i think the stock setup had it at 16.5" or something. anyway, here it is:



















i have been psyched on the xenia. first dj mtb after a lotta years of 20" bmx. just to switch things up, i am looking at new frames. maybe a custom nemesis project, a superco, or a 22.5" blackmarket mob. i want it long in front and a short as f-ing possible in the back.


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## BikeSATORI (Mar 20, 2004)

cmc4130 said:


> this isn't about dropping weight, but it is a mod....
> 
> take a circular saw and attach a grinding wheel. mill the dropouts so the slot goes further forward. i got my chainstay on my dk xenia to 15 7/8" with 36-16 gearing and a Shadow half link chain. i think the stock setup had it at 16.5" or something. anyway, here it is:
> 
> ...


Excellent! :thumbsup: 
That's a pretty damn good improvement over the stock cs length! I didn't go anywhere near that much on my eastern when I did it, more like only a 1/4" or so.
But it looks like you must have had a lot more room before running into that weld than I did on my old frame.

And when you're looking for a new frame, choose wisely, there are a lot of options popping up out there. Try Union Street Bikes Working Class Hero, Dobermann, Tonic Fabrications Howie, and the new Eastern Black Betty frame, just for a for a few more examples to check out.


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