Ken Charlson Fixie Project

Managed to pick up an old Ken Charlson frame recently and have decided to turn it into a nice fixed gear.

he is an old bike shop owner from Bolton, but dont really know any more info than that. does anyone know anything about his builds?? really like the lugs on this frame thats why i snapped it up. but unsure of the tubes used to build it.. does anyone know what it would have been made out of?? frame and forks weigh in at around 6 lbs

anyway i took it upon myself to unclutter the frame and have removed the various cable guids


loving the old grease niple on the bottom bracket. not sure if it will ever get used again though.!!!

so all ready to go to the powder coaters for a new look but undecided on what to go with. so open to your views.

Hot pink with sparkles.

Puppy killing numpty.

There.....I've said it.

Do yourself a favour.....send it to Mercian or some such other reputable frame builder/restorer, get them to put the braze ons back, that you fucking hacked off, sell it to someone who will appreciate it and build it into the tourer it needs to be......then get a fucking 'fixie' from somewhere else.

That's a bit much, it's not a hugely special frame (no offence) so I wouldn't say any puppies have been killed. If a bike gets built up to be something that the owner rides a lot and gets pleasure out of it that's the most important thing surely?

Puppy killing numpty.

There.....I've said it.

Do yourself a favour.....send it to Mercian or some such other reputable frame builder/restorer, get them to put the braze ons back, that you fucking hacked off, sell it to someone who will appreciate it and build it into the tourer it needs to be......then get a fucking 'fixie' from somewhere else.

It's his frame, he's doing what he wants with it, what's your problem? There are bigger things in this world to worry about.

I cut the braze-ons off a frame which I literally said "I'll have that" as a lady was just about to throw it away in the scrap-metal bin. Please tell me more about how I'm a bad person. The whole point of a bike is enjoyment (in my opinion). There is nothing sadder than a load of old men squabbling how "it should have this crank on, not that" when in actual fact, the person who rides the bikes and enjoys it doesn't even give a fuck, not a single one.

Stop being so anal about small details, just see the positive that it's another frame being USED. I'd rather see a fucked frame that's being used than one that doesn't...

Back in 2007/2008 that sort of flaming people for removing 'clutter' like cable guides was pretty de rigeur.

People would probably have got flamed for starting their very own 'current project' thread too, since there's no need to start a new thread every time you build a bike. But that's what lots of people seem to do now. Meh.

I miss those days.

@op: hope you like the bike fixed, cos there's no going back now. Looks nice, I love the way forks were bent really sharply back then. Could be a nice bike fixed or geared or whatever.

^
^This.. If you are that bothered about old frames being killed you should dedicate your life to creating the worlds largest bicycle frame museum for posterity, who incidently wont give a fuck.. It's just bikes.. :-)

Are you his mates?

I reckon a lot of people would agree with me.
You might not think it's that special, but there are a multitude of 'fixies' for you to Pengy up to your heart's content.....leave a decent frame alone, IMHO.

In years to come, when you have moved on to whatever is the next fad, there might be an enthusiast of this marque.....that frame is now fucked. It only has original paint and features once.

I think there needs to be more people who give a fuck, as it happens, to stop people butchering frames to make one of them 'fixies'.

Just my opinion, and I would say it to your face, not just through a monitor. I don't hate you for it, I don't even know you, but I hate what you've done to this....

In agreement with stedlocks yo. Was lovely....

Oh Ribble what have you started, lol

The guy who had this frame, is proper proper into his bikes and his collection. His front room was unusable due to the 40 odd full bikes he had in there. He buys and sells bikes and parts all the time. When he gets a good 'un, he keeps it. To him this is just another frame and is more than happy that it is being used and not being 'recycled'. It is unbranded frame, made in a time when the braze on parts were how it was done. Knocking them off to make it how the OP wants it to look is no bad thing.

Oh and the paint wasn't the original paint, it looked like someone had painted it with a brush using emulsion.

However a bike is used it doesn't really matter, the most important thing is that is DOES get used. I am sure Ribblekid will use this, use it well looking how he wants it to.

I have a few 'vintage' frames in the cave if you want to save them before I dig out my Dremel.

Happy riding peeps!

Matt

didnt realise building up an old non discript frame would bring such passionate responces.
should i have left it in the eaves of that loft for another 20 years????

picking a frame for budget means you pick a cheap frame up that in all probability would have never got picked up for a retro build.. it was in a loft amongst many many better frames as mifkif has already stated. if i had took a dremmel to a reynolds 531 or better i can understand the onslaught...

its hardly a Colnago is it guys..

i dont have to justify my actions in cutting the cable guides off but in my eyes i am quite happy to bone a budget bad condition frame to get the look i want...

if anyone wants a budget frame from a relatively unknown bike shop in Bolton give me a shout as has been stated before i can get my hands on another couple to be restored to their former glory.

so do i kill this thread now or would it be right to get this machine rolling with some dignity and show it off for its aged beauty that it beholds.

Your frame etc etc, not gonna berate you for the murdered puppies.
The simple fact is, conversions look great with all the bits left on, whats wrong with having a road bike thats fixed? My First two fixed builds were road frames with all the brazeons and 2 brakes, looks far superior to a poorly thought out fixie. Far better than chopping the braze ons off and being left with the road dropouts. Makes it look well frankenstein. Now you've gone this far I hope you intend to get track ends brazed on to stop it looking a complete joke!

Wouldn't dream of putting track dropouts on it,
but I am thinking of putting some stickers on it when it's coated
I might even get some edmundro stickers made up for the down tube
With your blessing of course!!!!!!!

Don't close the thread, ignore the h8rs. Just build a bike that you will genuinely enjoy riding and if that's not how it was intended to be ridden if really really doesn't matter.

meh it's hardly a special frame but does seem a waste powdercoating it, paint looks nice as it is i'd just touch up the braze ons with a bit of white

Why not make it into a Bamboo bike? I was looking at Bamboo tubes last night, only a tenner for enough to do a frame.

Hacksaw the current tubes out, screw and glue some wood in there, be right that. :)

Matt

The simple fact is, conversions look great with all the bits left on, whats wrong with having a road bike thats fixed?

Like stedlocks I feel pretty strongly about this...
The majority of artisan steel frames will still be around bringing pleasure to their owners after we're all dead - we don't really own them and are mere curators, so we can hang whatever kit we want off them. I love seeing race bikes that have grown old with their owners. I saw an FHCarpenter last week with straight bars and a sprung saddle - stunning.
Personally I think it's wrong to start getting anal about period correct components, but when you put a grinder to a frame I think you cross over a line...
Back in the day loads of people used to fix their roadbike for the winter and stick gears on again in the summer - this is no longer an option....

What's done is done so do it justice with a decent build.

Anyone else embarking on such a project should seriously consider leaving the braze-on's and paintwork intact, or get an 1980's mass produced 501 frame (raleigh, falcon, peugeot etc) and go to town with the grinder, shorten the stays/forks to tighten it up and whack some track ends on it..... Check B0N0Rs Raleigh for inspiration, and leave the delicate flowers of British craftsmanship to the sympathetic!

Far better put than I.....

We merely look after our 'nothing special' frames while we have them. Once upon a time, my hetchins was just another frame.....

As rik says, just do the build justice.... I'm sorry if I pissed on your bonfire, but I love old frames from little known builders. There are multitude shitters out there that would be massively improved by a bit of creative building.
I've got some lovely frames, that get built up different ways all the time. In the classic way, with what you have to hand/can afford.....
That's all ;0)

Good luck with the build from now on though, and once again, I am not hating you..... Just your dremmell!!

Puppy killing numpty.

There.....I've said it.

Do yourself a favour.....send it to Mercian or some such other reputable frame builder/restorer, get them to put the braze ons back, that you fucking hacked off, sell it to someone who will appreciate it and build it into the tourer it needs to be......then get a fucking 'fixie' from somewhere else.

I agree. What's wrong with the original paint job? it looked quite nice to me.

Original paint job is basically emulsion paint

There is obviously more frames available than people want to take up the challenge of restoring them

Otherwise you guys would have all swamped me with bids for the other frames I have access to

As for the puppy slaying comments. Grow up or put your money where your mouth is
Key board warriors !!!!!!

There are a glut of frames and not enough capable people with the balls to take up the challenge. Get over it

I see this as a budget 70's frame Hardly drooling material

Well the paint looks nice on the photos.

My first fixie was a conversion from a 70's racing bike frame. My mates told me to hack the bits off it, as the frame was 'hardly drooling material'.

I'm glad i didn't listen to them as a few years later i rebuilt it as a racing bike and rode the Eroica on it.

At the end of the day it's your bike, but chopping bits off it does restrict your future options.

It just show how versatile a bike frame is: chop bits off = fixie skidder; braze bits back on = racing bike restoration.
You can do everything.

Quiet nice, look forward to seeing the end result.

My first fixie was a conversion from a 70's racing bike frame. My mates told me to hack the bits off it, as the frame was 'hardly drooling material'.

I'm glad i didn't listen to them as a few years later i rebuilt it as a racing bike and rode the Eroica on it.

What, this one...?

I think what jangles jimmies the most about cutting braze ons off is that there's really no point to it.

It doesn't turn a gas pipe road frame into a tight clearance, aggresive geo track iron with interesting heritage as I imagine the perpetrators of said puppy killings imagine it might, I think it's what I thought when I hacked up an old Raleigh or two.

It doesn't add any value to a frame or make it more desirable, infact quite the opposite.

So yeah, it's this guys property (for now, maybe forever) and he can do what he likes but when you consider it from an aesthetical, financial, and functional point of view I'd say it's quite clear braze ons etc should be left.