My other two-wheeled machine

It's debatable if it's art, but this is my other two-wheeler I built:



It's an adjustable-frame-height tall bike with a cable-actuated steering system I designed. I built it to ride 150 miles for a charity event to raise money for the National MS Society. I built and rode a shorter one (~4ft seat) last year, and everyone told em to build a bigger one. With the frame fully extended, the seat height is about 6ft. Though, I usually ride it with the seat around 5'8", but at full extension, I can't reach the bars to get on.

It started it's life as two 90's steel MTB frames. It's has a 7-speed internally geared rear wheel with a roller brake (think shoe-less drum brake, not coaster brake). It takes about 300 links of chain to complete the drive train, and the rear brake and shifter cables are extra-long tandem cables due to the height.

Here it is before I departed for the first 80 mile day through not-so-flat Western PA.


It broke for the first time right after this picture was taken. I was only 50ft from the start. It continued to break 4 more times before the the mile 16 rest stop, but after that it stayed in one piece until I finished the next day at Lake Erie.

(Photos by robjdlc)

(Mods: Feel free to move this thread.)

as someone who's worked on countless bikes over the past two years, bravo mate. looks like a fun ride. good choice on the internal 8... much less work to deal with. how'd you work out the tensioner on the vertical chain? I would think that as Height increases the chain gets tighter? also wondering how you attached the chainring to the bottom bracket without a crank arm.... attached it to the spider then cut the arm off?

The sync chain is tensioned by adjusting the height. I thought about putting a spring-loaded tensioner on it, so height could be adjusted on the fly without changing the chain length, but I chose form over function and did without it.

The lower chainrings are mounted to a chain spider that started it's life as an old Shimano RSX crank.



Also, note that this was all built with basic hand tools, an angle grinder, and a small Miller MIG outside on a Black and Decker Workmate. My friends say it is the most work a Workmate has ever seen.

See alot of High Bikes in the Minneapolis area. Mostly the Gutter Punks ride'em. But, they are a blast if ya get a chance to ride one. This one posted here is the best one I have seen though. Good job.

They are really popular in Minneapolis. It's usually gutter punks in most cities that ride them--and most are sketchy builds at best.

ndromb said:

They are really popular in Minneapolis. It's usually gutter punks in most cities that ride them--and most are sketchy builds at best.

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Yup. I live in the Mpls area. Saw my first High Bike when I was 17 getting in trouble downtown. LOL Fun to ride, but can be nerve racking. Most of the gutter bikes were also dumpster find frames. So, who knows what kinda history those bikes had prior to the build.

I love riding them--I've put about 200 miles on this one this month.

I am trying to talk myself into setting the record for a cross-state race, CtC, 400 miles from Pgh to Philly. No one has ever done it on a tall bike, so as long as I finished it would be a record.

Cool! Looks so much like something I drew! i know the topic is a bit old, but i thought it would be nice to share

I have actually seen bikes you could have swore Dr. Suess designed himself.