Fireblade's Fixie
Fireblade96
Posts: 1,123
As promised !
A few weeks ago I bought myself this, with the aim of it being a project bike.
Shortly afterwards I bent my commuter bike, so this has been pressed into town-and-back service since. I now have the parts required to fix the commuter, so it's time to start thinking about what to do with the blue racer.
The cranks are somewhat knackered (left-hand crank arm is currently shimmed out with insulting tape so it doesn't wobble *quite* as much), and the chainwheels are a bit out-of-true.
It rides OK, I serviced the hubs which made a huge difference, but I wouldn't want to go far on it in case some of the suspect parts failed.
So....what shall I do with it ?
If I want to SS it, what do I need - BB, crankset, single-speed rear cog (it's old 5-speed screw-on) ? Anything else I need to think about ?
Or is it worth fixing and retaining the 10 gears ? I'm not overly getting on with the downtube shifters so tend to leave it in one gear most of the time anyway !
A few weeks ago I bought myself this, with the aim of it being a project bike.
Shortly afterwards I bent my commuter bike, so this has been pressed into town-and-back service since. I now have the parts required to fix the commuter, so it's time to start thinking about what to do with the blue racer.
The cranks are somewhat knackered (left-hand crank arm is currently shimmed out with insulting tape so it doesn't wobble *quite* as much), and the chainwheels are a bit out-of-true.
It rides OK, I serviced the hubs which made a huge difference, but I wouldn't want to go far on it in case some of the suspect parts failed.
So....what shall I do with it ?
If I want to SS it, what do I need - BB, crankset, single-speed rear cog (it's old 5-speed screw-on) ? Anything else I need to think about ?
Or is it worth fixing and retaining the 10 gears ? I'm not overly getting on with the downtube shifters so tend to leave it in one gear most of the time anyway !
Misguided Idealist
0
Comments
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Look at the mini 1980's mudguards!
Ah that takes me back!Fixed gear for wet weather / hairy roadie for posing in the sun.
What would Thora Hurd do?0 -
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I was toying with the idea of building a fixed from scratch.
Once I'd taken a look at bottom bracket sizings, chain line calcualtions and reviewed my own patience level and amount if time I had....
I just bought one second hand......
Don't let that put you off though - it would be great to do - if you can be arsedFixed gear for wet weather / hairy roadie for posing in the sun.
What would Thora Hurd do?0 -
Well, I have some more time on my hands than I had planned for this summer - and since its gone all typical-British-summer, I might as well spend it in the shed !
I've rebuilt a couple of other commuter bikes but they were MTB-based and I just replaced the broken/knackered parts with similar. This whole SS-thing is new to me, but I quite enjoy riding the Blue Racer as it is, and reckon with less weight and some decent transmission parts it could be really fun.
Plus, I feel left out of the Fixie Fashion Victim Clique
Misguided Idealist0 -
When i did my first fixed build (Old Raleigh Record) i ended up buying new wheels (also had a screw on freewheel and i wanted to go fixed but didn't want to do a Loctite bodge job), BB and cranks. Don't know what the threading is on yours but you may just be able to thread on a SS freewheel, although you'll probably need some spacers to fix the chainline.0
