Arlecchino's consolidated CP Thread: mostly steel & outdated.

Finished another project: I turned the VanHaelen into a Fixed Road thing. The Frame wasn‘t drilled for brakes so I swapped the forks and made a bracket for a rear brake out of some spare pelago rack mounts. I also got rid of the starfish cranks cause I couldn’t find a sealed iso taper BB that would give me a proper chainline. In the end, I used a cheap Neco BB with french cups. Chainline is spot on now and it’s a lot smoother with the sealed HS, BB and Hubs. Arguably not as pretty as it used to be but I‘ll definitely get more use out of it as I wouldn‘t feel comfortable riding brakeless in Berlin - both from a safety and legal perspective. It‘s a spare parts build hence the mismatching wheels etc. First shakedown ride proved that it‘s good fun. Excuse the poor quality of the photo, will take some better ones when the sun is out.

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Nice! Looks good with the straight forks

Thanks. I think I still prefer the look with the OG fork but the „fixie“ look is growing on me. And it‘s good to know I can always return it into its original state :)

After riding almost exclusively with SPDs for the last couple of years, I treated myself to some new MKS lambdas. Tried them today on a muddy ride with a friend and I gotta say that i really rate them.

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+1 for lambdas
If you ever feel in need of more grip the MKS Allways are very nice too!

Or maybe these extensions?

https://www.somafabshop.com/shop/mks-gamma-side-step-pedal-extension-pair-6832#attr=5038

Just came across them recently. :D

Those won't help with grip unless you tap them and install set screws.

Good to know :)
@wenzovic that’s a clever add-on. I guess I don’t need the extra width but it’s probably handy when you ride with boots in winter.

Couple more pics of the road fixed. Really glad I get to use it regularly again after the conversion.

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I really like the look of that ti 26er.
Still have my eye on an abandoned ti 26er that's been there ever since we moved office 2,5 years ago. Just don't have the guts to go at it with assorted tools to set it freeeeee.
What's the rack btw? I noticed you don't have it on the latest iteration. If you want rid, give us a whisper. Will come pick it up and say hi!:)

Runnin' with the daevil 🤘

I’d say do it, sounds like a great project. You’re not just freeing the frame but also the bike rack for people to actually use it. Might as well try the legal route and ask someone from the ordnungsamt or sth.? I found the rack on kleinanzeigen, according to the seller, it was an oem bombtrack thing. It’s my camping rack for overnighters so I’m not planning to sell it any time soon. Just took it off for the winter time.

Is that cable guide hack just a cable tie plus washer?
😳

Thoses forks are good stuff !

It is.. it works really well. Even with compressionless housing ime

That's indeed fabulous.

Yap, exactly that. Someone posted it in the hacks/bodge thread a while ago.

Merci :)

Cheers! Hope you’re enjoying your new fixed as well :)

Why did you go with these over a set of normal platforms?
Just curious?

I think I found that rack bombtrack deck on kleinanzeigen but snoozed and likely lost. But I'll keep a notification on.

The bike in its sorry state:
I could try the ordnungsamt route

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“Normal” flat pedals either have pins that damage most sneakers or they have slim pedal cages that cut into the arches and are therefore uncomfortable. Also, I suspected that the long platform of the lambdas should work well with my preferred foot position - more of a mid-foot cleat position - and that seems to be the case. Plus I actually like the look of them :)

Interesting frame, the finish reminds me of those raleigh titanium frames. the STX groupset suggests it was some kind of budget-friendly Ti bike. Should make a nice project nonetheless - it’s a pity to see it abandoned like that.

Icy 60k on the fixed yesterday

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I inevitably put some Berthouds on the Bottecchia. They were an absolute nightmare to fit because the fork crown is quite narrow and the SK Gravelkings rubbed on the folded sides. So I had to convince them with the help of some pliers and a dremel - blasphemy I know. Now the tyres are no longer rubbing but they’re a very tight fit. Took the bike on a 200k shakedown ride on mixed terrain today and I’m very happy to report that they still don’t rub :)

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