DONE IT! Scored meself a Fixie!!!

[flyingdutch]

Having just recieved a whopping freelance cheque i impishly decided to treat myself to a new toy, er, bike!

Its a track bike, chromoly-something, metallic blue (hmmm. shall i paint it green?) Sugino 165mm cranks, high flange hubs, sodding huge gearing (its gonna be the commuter... ) with a 52T and a double-sided rear hub with what looks approx 14 and 16-18 on either side. is this double-sided fixed common (only heard of the flip-flop fix/freewheel).

May need to swap out the forks (those luverly chrome numbers pre roady carbon might ake a comeback) altho the only reason Im contemplating that is cos there's no brake drilling. OMG!!! No brakes! That means putting brakes on it. it has drops so Im thinking of reprising the veloce ergo/s and said brake. Hmmmm, one or two?

I think the tyres may be singles. bette rcheck that out.

Did i mention its blue?

Gee, a nice white transfer of "FlyingDutchman" would look good along that top tube.

Its got a little transfer on one of the chainstays saying "By Kuwahara"
It wa slisted in the trading post as some other name. will look that up to confirm.

You may be thinking that Im a bit vague on all this but I just got home and he beauty is resting in the shed and Im trying to think of some way to break it to 'her-indoors' that I have bought yet another bike.
On a good note (her perspective, not mine :-( ) I have offloaded 4 bikes (or parts thereof) to good homes. So 'Bluey' is just balancing the ledger, right?

Hippy, et al. I may need advice on gearing, changeing cogs/rings, drilling forks? (and maybe back brake bridge too?)

oh, BTW, its blue. maybe it will grow on me?

VERY excoited

 

[Brian Watson]

flyingdutch wrote:
[...]

> Hippy, et al. I may need advice on gearing, changeing cogs/rings,
> drilling forks? (and maybe back brake bridge too?)

I have been hanging out in a fixed gear lists for some time and while
gearing always starts great debates the consensus seems to be that
around 70 gear inches is a good compromise between being able to climb
hills and not spinning out going down. So, with a 52T up front you
would be aiming for 19 (~73 inches) or 20 (~69 inches) at the back.
Personally I don't like big rear cogs (no real reason I guess) so I'd be
looking for a 42T ring.

My fixies are both converted road bikes so I have no advice on drilling
for brakes...

Have fun!

Brian

http://www.fixedgeargallery.com/2004/watson.htm

 

[NickZX6R]

Brian Watson wrote:

> flyingdutch wrote:
> [...]
>
>> Hippy, et al. I may need advice on gearing, changeing cogs/rings,
>> drilling forks? (and maybe back brake bridge too?)
>
>
> I have been hanging out in a fixed gear lists for some time and while
> gearing always starts great debates the consensus seems to be that
> around 70 gear inches is a good compromise between being able to climb
> hills and not spinning out going down. So, with a 52T up front you
> would be aiming for 19 (~73 inches) or 20 (~69 inches) at the back.
> Personally I don't like big rear cogs (no real reason I guess) so I'd be
> looking for a 42T ring.
>
> My fixies are both converted road bikes so I have no advice on drilling
> for brakes...
>
> Have fun!
>
> Brian
>
> http://www.fixedgeargallery.com/2004/watson.htm

love that bike of yours Brian. I remember seeing it when it was posted.

Must be a head turner.

--
Nick

 

[flyingdutch]

flyingdutch wrote:
[...]

> Hippy, et al. I may need advice on gearing, changeing cogs/rings,
> drilling forks? (and maybe back brake bridge too?)

I have been hanging out in a fixed gear lists for some time and while
gearing always starts great debates the consensus seems to be that
around 70 gear inches is a good compromise between being able to climb
hills and not spinning out going down. So, with a 52T up front you
would be aiming for 19 (~73 inches) or 20 (~69 inches) at the back.
Personally I don't like big rear cogs (no real reason I guess) so I'd be
looking for a 42T ring.

My fixies are both converted road bikes so I have no advice on drilling
for brakes...

Have fun!

Brian

http://www.fixedgeargallery.com/2004/watson.htm

way cool bike Brian. respect!

funny how everything old is new again. must have seen that curved style reprised a few times since that frame was 'new'. that's gotta be th shortest stem I have ever seen!

 

[geoffs]

Welcome to the asylum flyingdutch and congrats on your purchase )
I ride a track bike with a double sided rear hub and a ultegra front brake.
42 front ring and a 16 rear. This works OK for me in Sydney but if I can manage to improve on the power to weight ratio I'll change it to 42/15.
A front brake is a must for riding in traffic. Without it I had to slow up to much in case I had to do a panic stop. With the front brake it's no longer a worry but track bikes are short, so any sudden stops are done balancing on the front wheel. I have manged to hit 60kms/h a few times but its hard work.

Good luck and tailwinds

 

[hippy]

"flyingdutch" <[email protected]
>
> Its a track bike,

This is gonna be fun... ;-)

> gearing (its gonna be the commuter... ) with a 52T and a double-sided
> rear hub with what looks approx 14 and 16-18 on either side. is this
> double-sided fixed common (only heard of the flip-flop fix/freewheel).

Yeah, you will need to find a smaller chainring unless
you don't like your knees much.. high 60's/low 70's
gear inch range is the accepted starting point for fix.

> May need to swap out the forks (those luverly chrome numbers pre roady
> carbon might ake a comeback) altho the only reason Im contemplating
> that is cos there's no brake drilling. OMG!!! No brakes!

Well, to make it legal you need a brake. I think you'd be
somewhat insane to ride brakeless. This is where the 'fun'
begins.. ;-)

> putting brakes on it. it has drops so Im thinking of reprising the
> veloce ergo/s and said brake. Hmmmm, one or two?

Two if you've got them for symmetry - at least that's what I
was going to do, but it didn't happen that way.

> I think the tyres may be singles. bette rcheck that out.

More 'fun'

> Did i mention its blue?

Fine by me

> Gee, a nice white transfer of "FlyingDutchman" would look good along
> that top tube.

I need "Vegemite"

> Its got a little transfer on one of the chainstays saying "By
> Kuwahara"
> It wa slisted in the trading post as some other name. will look that up
> to confirm.

Kuwahara is a reasonably well known brand.

> VERY excoited

Sounds painful.. ;-)

Nice one.. now you need to find out about the tyres, fork,
what sort of cranks it has (for a smaller ring), etc..
You will of course keep us posted..

hippy

 

[hippy]

"geoffs" <[email protected]
>
> A front brake is a must for riding in traffic. Without it I had to slow
> up to much in case I had to do a panic stop. With the front brake it's
> no longer a worry but track bikes are short, so any sudden stops are
> done balancing on the front wheel. I have manged to hit 60kms/h a few
> times but its hard work.

Yeah.. that track geometry is gonna be fun
road riding on.. track bikes turn SHARP!

Read this:
http://www.63xc.com/gregg/101_1.htm

There will be a test.

hippy

 

[Koon Yong]

good job flyingdutch

welcome to the club ... maybe all the fixers in melb should start meeting up at the park or something like the NY messengers do at central park.

hanging out and watching bike ****. way cool

cheers
koon

 

[flyingdutch]

good job flyingdutch
welcome to the club ... maybe all the fixers in melb should start meeting up at the park or something like the NY messengers do at central park.
hanging out and watching bike ****. way cool
cheers
koon

...not up for that racing to specified location thing just yet like in them videos tho!
the gathering sounds like a cool idea.
Found out some more details from the shed...

Triple Butted 'EX' tubing, cromo 'Ishiwata' says the sticker on the seat tube

The BCD on the crankset matches my older mtb gear so looks like a replacement/smaller? chainring isnt gonna be a drama. Says Sugin GT on the crank arm

The sizing is actually pretty near spot on for me. 54.5cm x 54.5cm. The rear end isnt overly tight as there is a 1-1.5cm gap between the tyre and seatpost. always assumed track bikes would be as tight as possible.

the hub holds a 15T on one side and a 17T on the other
so with the current 48T that gives me 76" or 86". bit big for my hilly commute, me thinks to start with. maybe getting back to a 44Tx17T for a 70" is about right?

its got clinchers on so that's one less thing to sort out
Suzue 'Sprint' high flange hubs and Mavic Ma-2 (i think) rims. are track rims built for braking?
The spoking pattern is standard but with wierd little 'bands' holding the overlapping spokes tightly together. never seen that. strength i guess...

there's only a few scratches on it and minimal rust in them.
The rear dropouts have 'Sugino 10mm' on them. is this the 'gap' width where the axles rests?

but the angles do look steeper as mentioned by a few above.
Can this be alleviated by forks with longer rake? Is there a standard fork rake for track bikes that these current forks are likely to be? The number 42mm is stuck in my head. is that the standard-ish roadbike rake? and are track bike shorter?

How can I get that fork and rear brake bridge drilled to take brakes?
Should I be doing both front and rear brakes to avoid the base-over-apex dismount in emergency stops?

 

[NickZX6R]

flyingdutch wrote:

> Koon Yong Wrote:
>
<snipped>

Sounds great.

> The spoking pattern is standard but with wierd little 'bands' holding
> the overlapping spokes tightly together. never seen that. strength i
> guess...
>

They're tied & soldered spokes.

--
Nick

 

[mfhor]

"flyingdutch" <[email protected]
>
> Its a track bike,

This is gonna be fun... ;-)

> gearing (its gonna be the commuter... ) with a 52T and a double-sided
> rear hub with what looks approx 14 and 16-18 on either side. is this
> double-sided fixed common (only heard of the flip-flop fix/freewheel).

Yeah, you will need to find a smaller chainring unless
you don't like your knees much.. high 60's/low 70's
gear inch range is the accepted starting point for fix.

> May need to swap out the forks (those luverly chrome numbers pre roady
> carbon might ake a comeback) altho the only reason Im contemplating
> that is cos there's no brake drilling. OMG!!! No brakes!

Well, to make it legal you need a brake. I think you'd be
somewhat insane to ride brakeless. This is where the 'fun'
begins.. ;-)

> putting brakes on it. it has drops so Im thinking of reprising the
> veloce ergo/s and said brake. Hmmmm, one or two?

Two if you've got them for symmetry - at least that's what I
was going to do, but it didn't happen that way.

> I think the tyres may be singles. bette rcheck that out.

More 'fun'

> Did i mention its blue?

Fine by me

> Gee, a nice white transfer of "FlyingDutchman" would look good along
> that top tube.

I need "Vegemite"

> Its got a little transfer on one of the chainstays saying "By
> Kuwahara"
> It wa slisted in the trading post as some other name. will look that up
> to confirm.

Kuwahara is a reasonably well known brand.

> VERY excoited

Sounds painful.. ;-)

Nice one.. now you need to find out about the tyres, fork,
what sort of cranks it has (for a smaller ring), etc..
You will of course keep us posted..

hippy

excoited

does that mean you pulled it out of your, err, 'coit'?

way to go

MH

 

[Brian Watson]

flyingdutch wrote:

> How can I get that fork and rear brake bridge drilled to take brakes?
> Should I be doing both front and rear brakes to avoid the
> base-over-apex dismount in emergency stops?

My experience has been that just a front brake, with good pads, is
plenty. You will be amazed how much you can control your speed with
just the pedals - add a front brake and you should have all the stopping
power you need.

BUT - you will find that you are a different rider on the fixie, well I
did any way. I find myself taking much more notice of how and where I
am riding and (subconsciously?) doing all I can to avoid an emergency stop.

Brian

 

[Brian Watson]

NickZX6R wrote:

> Brian Watson wrote:
>
>> flyingdutch wrote:

[...]

>> Brian
>>
>> http://www.fixedgeargallery.com/2004/watson.htm
>
>
> love that bike of yours Brian. I remember seeing it when it was posted.
>
> Must be a head turner.

It might be if it got out a bit more. When I first built it I did quite
a bit (for me on it. But after a while I found myself wanting
something lighter, more agile etc. So I took the gears of my brothers
old unknown lugged steel "traditional" road frame with old Shimano 105
components, threaded on a 15T cog, added a few bits from eBay and that
is now getting most of my time.

I did the Sydney to the 'Gong on this bike (my brother's) last year with
gears. I am seriously considering doing it fixed this year. I know
it's nothing compared to some of the epics you read about but it will be
a challenge for me!

Brian

 

[Gemma Kernich]

"flyingdutch" <[email protected]> wrote in
message news:[email protected]...
>> The sizing is actually pretty near spot on for me. 54.5cm x 54.5cm. The
> rear end isnt overly tight as there is a 1-1.5cm gap between the tyre
> and seatpost. always assumed track bikes would be as tight as
> possible.
>
The distance between the wheel and seat tube depends on the length of your
chain!! You need some gap to allow you to push the wheel towards the seat
tube, so you can get the chain off the front chainring, then off the rear
cog, so you can remove the wheel without having to break the chain....

> its got clinchers on so that's one less thing to sort out
> Suzue 'Sprint' high flange hubs and Mavic Ma-2 (i think) rims. are
> track rims built for braking?

Those rims were commonly used on the road (they're not track-spefiic)

> The spoking pattern is standard but with wierd little 'bands' holding
> the overlapping spokes tightly together. never seen that. strength i
> guess...
>
They're little bits of wire, with solder (tied and soldered spokes). They
used to belive that that made a wheel more rigid (it doesn't). They do help
if you break a spoke though, they don't escape....

> How can I get that fork and rear brake bridge drilled to take brakes?
> Should I be doing both front and rear brakes to avoid the
> base-over-apex dismount in emergency stops?

Just get a fork 2nd hand to use a front brake on, don't worry about a back
brake. You'll want to keep the un-drilled fork for the track, when you give
it a go... *grin*

Cheers
Gemm riding a very unfashionable Raceline track machine.....

 

[flyingdutch]

>The distance between the wheel and seat tube depends on the length of >yourchain!! You need some gap to allow you to push the wheel towards >the seattube, so you can get the chain off the front chainring, then off the >rear cog, so you can remove the wheel without having to break the >chain...

Aah, that makes sense...

>Just get a fork 2nd hand to use a front brake on, don't worry about a back
>brake. You'll want to keep the un-drilled fork for the track, when you give
>it a go... *grin*

hmmm. one day, maybe...
as for the fork, got my original pre-carbon steel one. The rake on the fixed' looks shorter than my old drilled fork. Would this be expected, so as to give the track bike more 'twitch' at the front end? And will my old fork make it more friendly to ride?

 

[flyingdutch]

>The distance between the wheel and seat tube depends on the length of >yourchain!! You need some gap to allow you to push the wheel towards >the seattube, so you can get the chain off the front chainring, then off the >rear cog, so you can remove the wheel without having to break the >chain...

Aah, that makes sense...

>Just get a fork 2nd hand to use a front brake on, don't worry about a back
>brake. You'll want to keep the un-drilled fork for the track, when you give
>it a go... *grin*

hmmm. one day, maybe...
as for the fork, got my original pre-carbon steel one. The rake on the fixed' looks shorter than my old drilled fork. Would this be expected, so as to give the track bike more 'twitch' at the front end? And will my old fork make it more friendly to ride?

pics ahoy!

http://home.iprimus.com.au/adenhollander/fixed/0.jpg
http://home.iprimus.com.au/adenhollander/fixed/1.jpg
http://home.iprimus.com.au/adenhollander/fixed/2.jpg
http://home.iprimus.com.au/adenhollander/fixed/3.jpg
http://home.iprimus.com.au/adenhollander/fixed/4.jpg
http://home.iprimus.com.au/adenhollander/fixed/5.jpg
http://home.iprimus.com.au/adenhollander/fixed/6.jpg

 

[ritcho]

pics ahoy!

http://home.iprimus.com.au/adenhollander/fixed/0.jpg
http://home.iprimus.com.au/adenhollander/fixed/1.jpg
http://home.iprimus.com.au/adenhollander/fixed/2.jpg
http://home.iprimus.com.au/adenhollander/fixed/3.jpg
http://home.iprimus.com.au/adenhollander/fixed/4.jpg
http://home.iprimus.com.au/adenhollander/fixed/5.jpg
http://home.iprimus.com.au/adenhollander/fixed/6.jpg

Now that is a bike a retrogrouch can be proud of! Even better, it will probably look and function as well in 20 years time [1]

Ritch

[1] If the course 'crashes 202' doesn't get taken too many times

 

[hippy]

"flyingdutch" <[email protected]> wrote in
message
> http://home.iprimus.com.au/adenhollander/fixed/0.jpg
> http://home.iprimus.com.au/adenhollander/fixed/1.jpg
> http://home.iprimus.com.au/adenhollander/fixed/2.jpg
> http://home.iprimus.com.au/adenhollander/fixed/3.jpg
> http://home.iprimus.com.au/adenhollander/fixed/4.jpg
> http://home.iprimus.com.au/adenhollander/fixed/5.jpg
> http://home.iprimus.com.au/adenhollander/fixed/6.jpg

That actually looks more like road geometry, in that
the gap between front wheel and downtube is quite
large compared to most track frames I've seen.
e.g. http://www.fixedgeargallery.com/craigsinanian2.htm

The gap between back wheel and seattube doesn't look
too far different from my track bike. It might just be the
way they were made back in the day..?
e.g.http://www.thehippy.net/gallery/thumbnails.php?album=60

It looks pretty good.. How much was it?
What's written on the dropout?

hippy

 

[Suzy Jackson]

flyingdutch <[email protected]> wrote in message news:<[email protected]>...

> Having just recieved a whopping freelance cheque i impishly decided to
> treat myself to a new toy, er, bike!

Congrats. Welcome to the dark side.

> Its a track bike, chromoly-something, metallic blue (hmmm. shall i
> paint it green?) Sugino 165mm cranks, high flange hubs, sodding huge
> gearing (its gonna be the commuter... ) with a 52T and a double-sided
> rear hub with what looks approx 14 and 16-18 on either side. is this
> double-sided fixed common (only heard of the flip-flop fix/freewheel).

My rear hub is double sided. They're reasonably common. Back in
ye-olde-days riders would have a flatland gear on one side and a
climbing gear on the other (and pull the feet off the pedals to coast
down-hill - ouch!).

> May need to swap out the forks (those luverly chrome numbers pre roady
> carbon might ake a comeback) altho the only reason Im contemplating
> that is cos there's no brake drilling.

Be careful. Most dedicated track frames have fairly steep head tubes,
so will need a fork with thirty something millimetres rake, rather
than the 43-45 that's common on roadies. If you put a 43mm rake fork
on a track bike, it'll make it _very_ unstable. I compromised on my
road/track fixed gear, with a 40mm rake Look HSC3 fork, and 74 degree
head tube.

> OMG!!! No brakes! That means
> putting brakes on it. it has drops so Im thinking of reprising the
> veloce ergo/s and said brake. Hmmmm, one or two?

If you like the drop bars, you'll probably want a pair of brake
levers, to give you something to hold onto. I never use a rear brake
(even on my road bike) so just put the front on, but found it was a
PITA climbing with only one brake lever. The solution to that was to
spend more dough and buy bullhorns.

> Hippy, et al. I may need advice on gearing, changeing cogs/rings,
> drilling forks? (and maybe back brake bridge too?)

Ya wanna go around 70-72 inches. Any higher is cheating. Drilling
the fork crown is generally okay, unless it's a twin-plate design or
something weird. Most track forks have round blades, which flex
impressively when you brake.

Cheers,

Suzy

 

[Suzy Jackson]

flyingdutch <[email protected]> wrote in message news:<[email protected]>...

> as for the fork, got my original pre-carbon steel one. The rake on the
> fixed' looks shorter than my old drilled fork. Would this be expected,
> so as to give the track bike more 'twitch' at the front end? And will
> my old fork make it more friendly to ride?

No - more rake will make it twitchier. Less rake will make it more stable.

Regards,

Suzy