the shogun.
ok, where to begin?
two summers ago i picked up this shogun kaze funny bike project from a guy named
joel off craigslist. it was already a thing in motion, as the frame was stripped of paint
and the package came with some parts + extras, including the original fork+wheel
which are way too crazy for the street. the tange 1 tubes are
seriously skinny and pretty damn light for steel, the seatpost being 26.8. however, i'd
say the best part of this buy was the kenesis aluminum straight-blade fork with 0 rake.
yes, zero rake.
meditating on the possibilities of making a steel sister to my baby suzie.
i have always wondered what the feel of this frame would be in another material
and saw my chance to make a proper dragster-inspired steed.
so, after weighing my options, i decided to pick up some paul drops,
and give this thing a new life, tentatively calling it 'the shogun', a
name which has seemed to stick.
so after some shop work, some problem solving and a terrible amount of patience,
this mutant creature was brought to life! (only to spend a year and a half in the basement.)
so after all of the dirty work was said and done, it was now time to complete the shogun's
destiny in paint...
not so easily done when you're working to barter with people who are already hella busy.
so after a prime and a quick sand, it laid dormant but somehow went from being a hot rod,
to a rat rod. but nonetheless it was still down there, waiting for the polished 80s + 90s era
components which had made their way into my collection. mainly the shimano ax
parts which are so weird, yet lovely in their own way. really it's the stem with the hidden
bar clamp which is so easy to miss, but really easy to appreciate once you notice.
what's less easy to notice, and even harder to judge, are the cranks/pedals.
the pedal doesn't have a spindle through the entire platform, instead the bearings
are placed inside, and just beside, the crank arm. the purpose being to place the
platform top at the pedal bearing center, in order to give added leverage to the pedal
stroke. does it work? come try 'em out, otherwise, 'i don't know' and 'it didn't last...' at first, i thought this was going to be an all-japanese build. and
besides the wheels, saddle and handlebars, i guess it is... and ideally this will get
another update one day, so perhaps an araya disc and a toshi saddle may make their way into my budget.
but for now, this ZIPP wheelset from 1992 kicks plenty of ass, so worry not. my favorite details are small, but make me happy, almost like i built it from scratch.
like the pump peg, or the chain catch, which you never find on a track machine.
and, of course, the rear 'fender' bridge which once accommodated a brake,
but was just too tight for the placement of the paul drops.
these mods, along with shaving the cable bosses and downtube mounts are all done
in the rat rod spirit, knowing that it's just not about the way your machine looks,
it's about how that damn thing hauls (and how loud your motor roars...).
regardless, this bike has seen plenty of incarnations(can you find the shogun in that post?), not to mention
the ones that i've seen online. so thanks for bearing with me on my story, i guess i feel like it's a
long time coming.
here's a whole mess of other inspiration collected over way too much time.
i hope you enjoy.
