How to Make a Freestyle BMX Practice Bike

BMX riding is one of the most rewarding sports there is. If you want to excel in this extreme sport, you are going to need to a lot of practice and dedication to get it right. That means a lot of falling and crashing. If you don't want to take the chance in damaging your expensive BMX bike, you can always get another bike for practice. A practice bike will help to perfect your skills so you can show off on your good bike without trashing it.

Things You'll Need

  • A BMX bike
  • Gyro
  • Platform pedals
  • Pegs
  • Peg washers
  • Low-profile handlebars
  • Complete Park Tool set
  • Grease
  • Shop rags
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Instructions

  1. Instructions

    • 1

      Obtain a stock BMX bike with a freestyle-specific frame. In choosing one, go for strength and reliability. This is more important than having a lightweight frame. With the constant battering your practice bike is going to be subjected to, going with a sturdier frame construction with double butted tubing and machined head tubes and bottom bracket is important. It will make your bike more durable and long lasting.

    • 2

      Add on a gyro. This is the device that will keep your cables from getting tangled, allowing the bars to freely spin in a 360-degree motion. To install the gyro, you will need to remove the handlebars from your bike. First, loosen and remove the bolt and locking washer holding on the forks. Remove your forks as well as the top bearing and top headset cup. Place your gyro on top of the head tube and put back your headset cup and reinstall the bearings. Reinstall the forks and add the locking washer and top bolt before adding the locking top tip plate.

    • 3

      Replace your stock handlebars with a pair of low-profile handlebars while you are adding the gyro. Handlebars with a low center of gravity will help with your ability to navigate, move and spin your bike in a tighter space. Before you add your new low-profile handlebars to the stem, add sufficient grease to both the forks and stem. Insert the stem into the forks and adjust to your height. Most freestyle bars are aligned straight up and down. Once you are happy with the position, retighten the bolts, using an "X" pattern to evenly tighten.

    • 4

      Run your top gyro cables first and then the lower brake cables. Insert the brake cables into the levers on the handlebars and then run them through the top of the gyro. Insert the bottom brake cable into the bottom of the gyro and run it to the back brakes. Connect it to the brakes, taking up any slack in the cables. Adjust and fine-tune to your needs.

    • 5

      Add your platform pedals. Platforms are great for beginners and allow you plenty of space to position your foot and allow you to remove your foot for any reason without them snagging on cages or sticking to the side of the pedals.Your pedals will have a stamped L or R letter on the end of the pedal to denote which side of the crank it goes on. Simply remove the old pedals, using a crescent wrench, and install your new platform pedals.

    • 6

      Install the pegs. Most freestyle bikes have four pegs. These are used for grinding and sliding and are made of materials like steel, aluminum, titanium, magnesium and even plastic. For a practice bike, a heavy material like steel would be best. Pegs go over the end of your bikes axles, on both the front and the back wheels. To install your pegs, remove the axle nuts and washers by turning them counterclockwise with socket set and driver. Slide the peg over the axle, using washers if necessary. Insert the axle nut in the socket driver, using an extension and driver, then reattach the nut by turning clockwise. Repeat for all four pegs.