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Stupid iPhone, it's supposed to say 'effective'.

What do you guys and gals suggest for increasing nighttime visibility from the side?
Spokelit, valve cap lights or something else highly gadgety and bright?

Thanks for the kind comments everyone. Impending sense of doom prevailed and I went back to toe clips for the time being.

@joesm

The frame has a serial number under the BB shell 'YF831C50434'. Read anything like yours?

Hi, I'm looking for a Chrome Metropolis bag as an upgrade to my old Crumpler which is a little bit too small.

Will pay £70 for used Black body bag (accent not important.)

Please PM or reply to this thread.

Did you really mean the "last 28" or "the last size 28"? Good business for Chris either way :-).

Haha! I meant the last size 28". Oh well, it's probably best that I can't get my hands on any right now, not like we're having much of a summer :P

'Fess up ladies. Who bought the last 28 Swrve shorts? :P

I've only taken it out to practise in the park next to my house. I fell off literally the second I clipped my first foot in though. That was a bit of a chuckle moment. I adjusted the pedals to their loosest, just have to get better at unclipping I suppose.

Yes it's fixed but the hub is a double track so I might add a freewheel and second brake in the future. Depends on if I get any better at riding fixed :P

I finished my first bike build today. It's a no name chrome steel frame from the 80s. No paint job as I told myself I'd do that when I got more money but now that everything's done I might just hold off on the paint.

Total build cost was about £200
Frame + Forks - used - £20
Front wheel - used - £5
Rear hub - System Ex - £20
Rear rim + spokes - Mavic Open Pro/generic spokes - £55
Saddle - Brooks B17 - £55
Saddle post - Used - £3
Headset - used 50p
Brake set - eBay - £10
Bar tape - Cinelli cork - £8
Crankset - eBay - £25
BB - Shimano UN54 - £15
Chain - Sram - £10
Pedals - Shimano M520 - £15
Tyres - Rubino Pro Slicks/Bontrager tubes - £25

Took her out for a couple of spins today and fell over twice :P Not used to the clipless pedals yet and the front brake needed a little adjustment. Dusted myself off and ready to fall over many more times in the future. (Might be time to invest in a better helmet...)

Unfortunately I've just had a pretty terrible experience with Evans' online service. Ordered a System Ex flip flop hub on 30th and still hadn't received it this morning, so I called them up to ask what was going on. Apparently it's out of stock, so I asked for a refund. Just checked their website and all 3 variations of their System Ex rear hub are still listed as in stock.

I also ordered a Brooks B17 saddle which arrived in 4 working days but the packing was already torn up. Aye, aye, aye. Got faster shipping from JE James, Wiggle, Planet X and every single seller I've used on eBay, all of which was free. Not to mention that Evans seems a little more expensive on parts than other stores. I think that's a wrap for me, pretty disappointing experiences.

Kind of looks like a hipster remake of 'Quicksilver'. Anyway, I just found out about this 5 minutes after I found out that Urban Outfitters sell fixed gear bikes. LOL. If you check out the trailer there's literally 10 kids asking 'what is he riding?' 'Where can I get one'?

-.- Of course I would see this ad after I shell out money to buy rear hub, Open Pro rim and set of tyres. I spent nearly £80 just for that! D'oh.

Hi! I'm looking for a pair of dead size 5 SPD shoes to butcher and extract plates for use in a conversion. Too miserly to spend £££ for SPD shoes :P

Please either reply here or PM me with price if you have something old and useless lying around that you won't miss.

@Rik

Yes forks came with the frame but I can't be sure they're original. Same nasty paint job though. They've got 2 holes in front and behind the stamped dropouts, presumably for fender and front rack/basket.

What do you make of those protrusions on the top tube? Pump holder?

Difficult to tell from just one picture - what makes you think it's italian?

Thanks for your input Rik! I took notice of lots of small details on the bike but didn't know what to make of them.

The bottom bracket as Italian threading and it was giving me a massive headache yesterday and the day before trying to source a bracket at my community workshop! Aye aye aye :P At first I thought it could have been French but when I figured out the threading, I became convinced it was Italian.

Here are some more pictures of various parts of the bike.

Other side of top tube
Kickstand mounting plate?
Head tube

Doesn't look like anything too revealing. It was a geared bike, I'm pretty sure from the 126mm rear dropout width. A clunker with a kickstand and chainguard seems to be the verdict :) I will try to find a number on it, maybe that will give me a year or manufacturer! All this sleuthing is making me hungry...

OK, thanks so much :) I can go ahead an pick up a 120mm hub I saw at the local community workshop!

You should probably remove the BB to take a look around before you rule it out. Could be that the rust is only on the outside, in which case a little clean up could be all it needs to be back to its former glory.

If it's not in a serviceable order or you just want a new BB and the current BB doesn't tell you its size, measure the width and internal diameter of the shell then check out Sheldon Brown's BB size database.

I think you can simply keep the old chain rings and lay the chain on the inner one if you don't mind the 'look' of it.

It's made of steel.

Hi everyone. I'm really new to this and Sheldon Brown's website has been my religious text for the last few days but I have a question I haven't found the answer for.

I'm searching for a flip flop hub. The rear dropout spacing on my frame is 126mm.

If a hub is too narrow, is it possible to switch out the axle for a longer one to accommodate wider dropouts?

Does anyone have any ideas on the origins of this frame? Some of the guys over at Bike Radar have pitched in that it's either made of piping or scaffolding. Pretty sure scaffolding is more likely as it's steel :P

I think it's Italian. BB is an odd 70mm width, 35mm diameter. Rear dropout is stamped. No discernible labels anywhere on the frame, no serial numbers etc.

I really love the mint green/black. Looks unique without being too flashy. What a great find.

Wow, this build looks so slick. Can't wait to see finished pictures!

Looking great!