Hurricane special
Last September after hurricane Helene ripped through the Carolinas a local fb marketplace frequent poster had this frame listed for $25 as “Hurricane special”. So I did what any normal guy would do snagged it and turned it into my new favorite frankenbike.
The original 1998 Gary Fisher Hoo Koo E Koo came with a 65mm suspension fork. The first thing I did, having acquired only the frame was purchase the Origin8 suspension corrected rigid fork. I had the sunrise bars, drivetrain, bits and bobs in my parts bin. I also had a nice set of 26” disc wheels. The fork had disc mounts but the frame did not. So I had my buddy Ben weld the disc tab on the frame for me and in the process he set me up with this sick rear rack which installs into the no longer needed rim brake posts.
I rode it around as a pure 26er for a while and it was great. However curiosity got the best of me and I jumped on a used 27.5 front wheel when I saw it pop up. Cool thing was it came with a maxxis 2.3 to match what I currently had set up on the 26 set. So far I’m loving the much better rolling resistance up front. It feels like a bigger bike in a good way. Taking it out today for a shakedown but I’m already pretty sure I’m going to want a 27.5 in the back. Stay tuned for increased chainstay dimpling and me jamming some 27.5 2.1 in tires in this 27 year old frame.
by thisfugginguy
6 Comments
man i keep thinking about the modern day penny farthing. does one put a 26 road skinny in the back and a 29er 2.2 knobby in the front? what would happen? who’s gonna stop me?
This is so sick, love it!
Oh hell yeah I love that you welded on the rack!!
Technically a 27.5×2.1″ can fit right in the rear with sufficient clearance as little as 6mm, assuming you’re not planning to use fenders.
I did tried using 27.5″ tires on a 26″ frame for a brief time and it was better in terms of speed.
Questions for the fellow bike builders in here, why do the welds look like this ? I suppose it’s not just welded with the oxy-flame and brass or is it ?
I ask here because I know there are a lot of enthusiasts hzrew maybe someone happy to explain or talk about it, if not, I’ll try to gather info on my own ! Thanks anyways 🙂
OP, very nice ride ! Defo worth a second, third, fourth look haha
Hot damn.
Throw in a dropper and it’s my every dream