A small bike suitable for building a wheel hoe out of.
All accessories have been removed and the bike cut apart into pieces. We will be using the rear frame assembly, rear tire, one main frame member, the steering column, and the handlebars.
Start by welding the steering column to one of the main frame members. Carefully fitting and cleaning the joint makes welding much easier. This is thin wall tubing and you may want to practice on some of the unused material first. Bronze brazing is probably easier than welding for beginners.
Next attach the lower frame to the long steering column/tube assembly. Fitting up and jigging the joint takes much longer than the actual weld. It works well to just align everything along the axis of the upper fingers of the rear fork assembly.
Here is the basic wheel hoe, minus the rear wheel, handlebar, and tool holder. Mount the rear wheel and handlebar, get your desired tool, and start to plan your tool mounting system.
Prop up the wheel hoe at your desired handlebar height and figure out how to mount your desired attachment. For Hoss tools, a mounting plate around 6" off the ground is just about right. You should have some height adjustment later by changing how the handlebar is mounted and tightened into place.
For this project we have decided to use a 2" x 3" piece of angle iron as the tool mounting plate. Here we are drilling mounting holes for the oscillating hoe attachment. This unit will also accept a turning plow when finished.
Here we have finished welding the angle iron mounting plate to the bicycle's crank housing. Fabricate the mount so that the tool is close to the wheel. Too far away and the hoe becomes more awkward to use.
Here are some different options for tools and tool mounting. Use the materials and techniques you are comfortable with.
