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@Chuckles
I'm talking with Karl Wilkinson, who is interested in making a polo specific bike. I love my Archie, even though it's a prototype frame with weird geometry. The regular speedway bikes have great geometry. Here are some changes Iain and I have come up with to send to Karl. Can any Archie riders please add to/amend this list? It would be cool if we could send him an agreed upon list from all Archie polo riders. I envision these changes as ranked in order of importance.
A larger version of the existing speedway bike would be awesome. 56 or 57 would probably be best. The current geometry is great.
Forks – There is a problem with toe overlap. About 50% of polo riders ride fixed wheel (often with 700c wheels), and nearly every one who rides an Archie for polo changes out the forks. The bike needs a slightly larger rake (as mentioned before, the standard forks give toe-overlap with 700c wheels). I think the ashetic preference would be for a straight fork.
The headset – everyone swaps this, as his comes loose too quick. At minimum it needs a tougher headset. But it would be best to change it to a 1 1/8” threadless headset, because this is more standard and makes it easier to swap parts.
Cross supports on the rear triangle – The cross-support on the bottom chain stays could probably be removed. In general, a lot of players like to play with fat tires, so the more room for these the better. Adjusting the bridge on the seat stay may also be necessary to add more room.
Dropouts – These could be a bet longer, toward the frame, so the wheel can come right in to the frame. Currently, fitting a 700c while is a bit tight, and impossible for anything over 25c width. Some players like to run 28c, some ever fatter. Also, it might be nice to have a angled dropout, as about 70% of players use brakes and like to flip flop their wheels for commute and polo.