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You had bad luck with your snap thats all.
Do Archie Wilkinson Cycle Speedway frame have clearance for 700c wheels then. I am guessing even though speedway frames run 26" wheels the larger tyre means there is clearance enough for a 700?
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Can i interest you in this?
for a cheap pub bike / conversion? S'got 26x1/4s on it at the mo, -
You had bad luck with your snap thats all.
Do Archie Wilkinson Cycle Speedway frame have clearance for 700c wheels then. I am guessing even though speedway frames run 26" wheels the larger tyre means there is clearance enough for a 700?
Yup, ive had a talk to him. He has one built up in his shop with 700's, Ive been planning to go for a look but without a bike to ride there I have been putting it off!
they need a different fork though, as modern speedway forks are ZERO rake, so a there would not be clearance for a 700.
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The whole point of single speed conversions (before they became trendy and hhslavery was born) was low maintenance and fkn cheap machines. Conversions were the name of the game. With my first SS, my LBSG (local bike shop guy) Mick said "you're not allowed to spend any money on your first conversion". I had a frame already, cranks were recalled Shimano ones and came out of the bin, tensioner was the old derailler, the rest is just removing parts.
Conversions are the heart and soul of single speeding!
Hipster bikes are the skate shoes of the person in possession of this heart and soul.
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[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oHvdr1E2esE"]YouTube
- Wacaday - Timmy Mallet[/ame] -
Without quoting from the man himself, Sheldon lead me into my scurillous life of ss and fixed with something like: track frames are always going to be stiffer and twitchier (and less forgiving on your derriere) than a road bike - they're built to ride in circles on wood. Road frames are made of (often) better tubing and designed to deal with bumps and pot holes and heavy braking and the rest. I've always wondered why folk prefer a track frame for riding london streets. They look good - no question, but I see no other obvious bonus. If you're shelling out for a frame you would like to keep for the foreseeable, why not go for a conversion - you might end up gearing that motherfucker up and strapping some (HEAVEN FORBID) panniers to it and riding yourself across a continent. Conversions rule.
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I've always wondered why folk prefer a track frame for riding london streets.
I don't know about "prefer" but an ordinary track frame can be a fast handling and very efficient town bike.
obviously, I wouldn't recommend a modern alloy track bike as a long distance machine, for putting the miles in in the cuntryside. But it has been done...I know some men who ride silly track bikes on long hauls then run a mile on it.
No point in being needlessly battered by a stiff bike if you can't/dont want to handle it on the road, but also no fun steering a barge-like cruiser round like a doughnut in granny's greenhouse.
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Without quoting from the man himself, Sheldon lead me into my scurillous life of ss and fixed with something like: track frames are always going to be stiffer and twitchier (and less forgiving on your derriere) than a road bike - they're built to ride in circles on wood. Road frames are made of (often) better tubing and designed to deal with bumps and pot holes and heavy braking and the rest. I've always wondered why folk prefer a track frame for riding london streets. They look good - no question, but I see no other obvious bonus. If you're shelling out for a frame you would like to keep for the foreseeable, why not go for a conversion - you might end up gearing that motherfucker up and strapping some (HEAVEN FORBID) panniers to it and riding yourself across a continent. Conversions rule.
I enjoyed that, you should be a life coach or something.
As for the gears+panniers=trekking thing.
I have this:
Im using it as my temporary ride, but I cant go very fast because the the steel wheels are full of knocks and slightly egg shaped. Plus the brakes have no effect (again steel rims)
I wanted to slowly turn it into a classic reliable 5 speed, for leisuirly winter rides in harsh weather. With a big front loading rack of course.
But Ive had to use it as an emegency bike, so I stuck on my fixed wheel so I can stop a little (just flat pedals) and some large path racer style bars. The bike looks a little awesome now, but it is a bad bodge job and very dangerous to ride! The super long wheelbase is definetely better for cruising about freewheel.
It cost me £10 aswell, from a chap who knew the whole history of the coventry bicycle manufacture and even gave me the name of the builder who made the bike!
Oh and PJ,
you may joke, but if you have any ebay skills and a little patience. You can find a quality italian road frame for £100. I mentioned the colnago, because that is what a friend recently bought.
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The one thing I don't like about conversions is the low BB. You can corner and really high speeds on a track frame, and it makes it a lot more fun! (I've never struck a pedal on the bareknuckle but ive tried..) Riding a conversion will make you lose that confidence for worry about pedal strike. Track frames normally have shorter wheelbases too, which I find to be much more fun riding in traffic.
Whilst track frames normally do have a higher BB/shorter wheelbase, these features don't always hold true. My mercian frame is quite old and has geometry similar to a lot of road bikes i've seen.
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Is a conversion a lesser beast? (a long poorly focused ramble here)
Posted by
@DFP
Ive been without a fast fixie wheel bicycle for a couple of weeks now.
It doesnt feel good, Ive ended up glued to the computer hunting parts for a new build while I envy the damp/sunny weather outside and all the possible skidding fun.
I have also been spouting a lot of nonsense on here, driveside leg still rolled up of course. I am stuck here pretty much all summer catching up with uni coursework, so am desperate to get a bike together quick!
I was planning to put together a high quality full build this winter, after becoming a 'seasoned' fixed rider over this summer. But as my bike gave up, Im trying to rush it now. I considered an off the peg for a moment but then saw sense.
Ive got wheelset sorted (£100) and parts should cost me no more than £70.
This leaves me with £100 MAX to spend on a frame, at £270 for a complete bike is lot for me considering I usually spend £15 on my bikes! I like classy lugged frames made out of nice steel. But anything singlespeed/track specific is waaay out of my price league thanks to fashion and such. Good quality steel road frame seem pretty easy to come by though, I have found a very nice looking columbus SL tubed frameset for £95 with campagnolo foward facing adjustable dropouts.
My only option for a single speed specific frame being a Archie Wilkinson Cycle Speedway frame. £100, probably way overbuilt, heavy plain gauge 4130 tubing. Plus id need to buy a raked fork to work with 700c wheels. Archie seems a nice fella though, a charming luxury to be able to get an affordable frameset direct from builder, but is it really suitable ? I dont really like the way they look, and I like lighter bikes.
I am leant toward getting the 80's road bike frame which is pretty gorgeous, and will not lose value if I need to resell (I hope)
My local bike shop mentioned all the fixed riders regularly coming in with trashed BB's etc, but I always dismissed it.
But as my conversion snapped at the driveside chainstay, might the stresses of urban fixed riding be too much for a old skool road bike?
thanks if you got to the end, any thoughts? Experiences of your conversions?