Bicyclettes

[sycamore no more]

That looks like my Bianchi that got stolen.

[Le Dirte]

Yo, get that quick release off... now! Or I might come to your hometown and jack that rim for myself... Beware

[arevalo]

Yo, get that quick release off... now! Or I might come to your hometown and jack that rim for myself... Beware

Word.

I need me some pitlocks. My bike is locked up in front of my work and I can see it from the inside but I def need to replace that.

[mike lowrey]

damn those pitlocks are expensive..

I ended up buying a Trek XO since I got a really good price on it.. should get it tomorrow probably

[ChadM]

You guys are probably tired of seeing this ... but she's done.

Would you mind posting a bike check? It looks great!

[arevalo]

Would you mind posting a bike check? It looks great!

[vee_dub]

Picked the fucked up BMX from a skatepark today with my mate (new SF member: hueylui)

Clean it up and got rip of the rust and stickers...put some drop bar and new fork...Going to get some wheels and turn it into a minature fixie..!

[kiya]

Picked the fucked up BMX from a skatepark today with my mate (new SF member: hueylui)

Clean it up and got rip of the rust and stickers...put some drop bar and new fork...Going to get some wheels and turn it into a minature fixie..!

Miniature fixie? you mean a BMX bike?

don't be afraid to call it what it is, be proud of your BMX bike.

[vee_dub]

Miniature fixie? you mean a BMX bike?

don't be afraid to call it what it is, be proud of your BMX bike.

hehe I guess so BMX with drop bar and fixed gear..NOICE!..

[knucks]

I finally got my tires+wheels. Threw em on my bike. The chain I'm going to use is from my old mountain bike (it's been sitting in my basement for the past 6 years.) It has rust on it and I need to clean it...how do i go about that/

Also, what's a good hand/mini pump (around $20)? The wheels I have are 700x23c..100-150PSI w/ presta valves

[Tyro1]

mini fix? Is that for your pet monkey? You have any idea how hard that is going to be to ride around on...

Its a funny project though, good for novelty value!

[canice]

clean rust with wd-40, rinse, dry, lube.

topeak road morphs are the best mini pumps on the market. the gauge is about 10-20 psi off, but has a foot clip for leverage and a foldable handle. so good it's the only pump i own.

and never say never...

[wEstSidE]

oh yea well i have a red Fides.

[greentalks43]

Today was my first ride in the bay area, absolutely awesome. Five miles up and down multiple hills both mellow and steep was challenging but great. However, I think anyone that rides with no brakes is crazy, because down one hill and the cranks were spinning faster than I could pedal and my feet blew off the pedals like a 1/3 of the way down until I could use the front brake to slow down so I could get my feet back onto the pedals. I definitely need to pick up some stuff so my bike is alittle safer to ride. Very fun nonethelss.

[eldave04]

I am in Toronto, and really want a fixed gear for the summer, I have done some research and am looking at frames right now. As an new rider will I really be able to tell the difference between frames? what makes some frames better than others, other than material?

My understanding is that steel frames 'geared' towards fixies are basically ordered like: bareknuckle>soma rush>angus>pista/mark V/pake>lower end stuff.

Is it really worth it for me to shell out extra when they all seem pretty similar to me?

Does anyone know if the bareknuckle/rush are available in Toronto (I am pretty sure the IROs and pista are).

Thanks in advance, I didn t want to get pwnd on bikeforums.

[knucks]

Ugh I don't want to buy a chain ring..I have no money! But I need a chainring cuz the one I have is 52/40

[mlproject]

arevalo ... do you know kk?

[canice]

Ugh I don't want to buy a chain ring..I have no money! But I need a chainring cuz the one I have is 52/40

use the 52 and get a bigger cog, maybe 19 or 20?

I am in Toronto, and really want a fixed gear for the summer, I have done some research and am looking at frames right now. As an new rider will I really be able to tell the difference between frames? what makes some frames better than others, other than material?

My understanding is that steel frames 'geared' towards fixies are basically ordered like: bareknuckle>soma rush>angus>pista/mark V/pake>lower end stuff.

Is it really worth it for me to shell out extra when they all seem pretty similar to me?

Does anyone know if the bareknuckle/rush are available in Toronto (I am pretty sure the IROs and pista are).

Thanks in advance, I didn t want to get pwnd on bikeforums.

yeah that hierarchy's pretty spot on. i wouldn't say you need a higher end track frame from the start. i also wouldn't recommend spending a shitload on a fixed if you don't know you'll be into it -- test ride all of them, you might find you like the cheaper one better than the most expensive. you'll feel a difference in handling, since they all have different geometries, but that is more personal preference/comfort than anything. for the record none of those frames are similar, they're only the same insofar as they're all bikes -- all have different qualities of tubing, aesthetics, parts, perks (braze ons, brake holes, fender clearance).

i think cavern cycles can order in soma bikes, and i suppose anyone who carries eai parts would be able to order in a bareknuckle -- i'm looking to get one this summer. iro, de bernardi and fuji at bikes on wheels. sweet vintage and iro at cavern. khs, bianchi and their own frames (urbanites -- i own one) at urbane cyclist. trek at duke's, but those guys are assholes.

toronto has a very active thread on bikeforums, and we're all pretty nice.

[knucks]

already bought a 16..guess i'll get a new chainring..hopefully the cranks work..

w/e i'm not in a rush..ill get it finsihed when im home after finals

[wild style]

Ugh I don't want to buy a chain ring..I have no money! But I need a chainring cuz the one I have is 52/40

Why is this a problem? Run the 40 on the inside of the spider, get short stack bolts, and like a 15t cog in the back.

edit: just saw you already have 16t cog. 40/16 might be a bit too low. rocketring ftw!

[mlproject]

those old road cranks will do in the meantime... 50x16 isn't too awful!

you should try to find some older shimano 600 road cranks or buy a set of sugino 75s when you have the cash to drop. the 600s will give you flexibility of choosing your rings and they are usually a really cheap, yet solid used road crank.

[eldave04]

Thanks Canice. How hard is it convert an old road bike? I looked on www.sheldonbrown.com and it doesn t look too bad as long as you have horizontal dropouts. It seems like a way cheaper alternative to a new complete, and if I decide I love fixed gear riding I can use it as a beater. Plus some of the vintage frames look sweeeeet:

http://cgi.ebay.ca/UNIVEGA-VIVA-SPORT-Road-Bike-Frame-49-x-55-CroMo-Lugged_W0QQitemZ130095752653QQcategoryZ98084QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

http://cgi.ebay.ca/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ih=007&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWA%3AIT&viewitem=&item=170097382138&rd=1&rd=1

http://cgi.ebay.ca/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ih=019&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWA%3AIT&viewitem=&item=290099892881&rd=1&rd=1

I am now thinking vintage frame with new wheelset (or back wheel at least) and if possible vintage crankset.

[holotekor]

i love that sheldon brown is an authority in the fixed gear world. he lives in my neighbor hood-- since i was little I would wave to him when he would bike by because of the eagle on his helmet.

[ericdw]

let me start off by saying that i know nothing about bikes, but i'm moving out of the burbs so i want an easy way to get around. my parents have these two vintage road bikes, they're both about 25 years old, but apparently they were pretty good quality when they were new. I'm gonna take one (probably the peugeot) to use and maybe convert it into a single speed, if i can do it cheaply.

peugeot:

raleigh:

any input or advice for a noob? thanks!

[canice]

peugeots use french (aka reverse)-threaded parts, so you are asking for a whole world of obsolete parts that are impossible to track down and a huge hassle considering every bike company now makes things in english or italian threading. that raleigh will probably be easier for you.

as for conversion, the back wheels on both of those are freewheels, not cassettes, so you'll have to buy a single speed freewheel and thread that on (a decent shimano one costs $20-30). or you could just spend about $50-100 and get an average quality wheel built up for you.

that said, they look like they're in really good condition, even the chains are rust-free. i'd probably keep them geared.

[wild style]

i'd probably keep them geared.

Blasphemy!

[ericdw]

thanks canice, i'm kinda disappointed to hear about the peugeot being a pain, i like the look of that one more, and from what i've read it's a better bike than the raleigh... does the fact that the peugeot uses reverse thread only make it more difficult when things break and i have to replace it, or will it affect the conversion too? oh well. if i just use the frame and not the wheels and gears, will that solve the problem?

i'm planning on going to a bike shop near me tomorrow and have them look at both. i'm hoping to spend no more than $100 to fix everything up and do the conversion. is that a realistic price range? probably not if i want to use the peugeot frame and redo everything else, right?

thanks again

[Dick Danger]

need to add a zero

[canice]

thanks canice, i'm kinda disappointed to hear about the peugeot being a pain, i like the look of that one more, and from what i've read it's a better bike than the raleigh... does the fact that the peugeot uses reverse thread only make it more difficult when things break and i have to replace it, or will it affect the conversion too? oh well. if i just use the frame and not the wheels and gears, will that solve the problem?

i'm planning on going to a bike shop near me tomorrow and have them look at both. i'm hoping to spend no more than $100 to fix everything up and do the conversion. is that a realistic price range? probably not if i want to use the peugeot frame and redo everything else, right?

the peugeot is doable, but only if the headset and bottom bracket are in good working order. they are serviceable for the rest of their lifespan, but once it comes time to replace, you'll have a hard time finding good parts for reasonable prices.

peugeots have a better brand reputation than raleigh -- raleigh used to be a fantastic manufacturer then dropped off into a degraded, mass production version of its craftsmanship heritage. that's not to say peugeot doesn't have bad bikes too, but at 25 years old, they're early 70's which slipped under the radar of late 70's/80's low-end road bike boom in north america.

if the wheels and components are in good shape, i'd say the only thing you might need to buy is a new rear wheel or some parts to convert the existing wheel into a single speed, brake pads, tires and tubes.

[knucks]

I need to figure out if I can take off the crankring off my Crankset? I know it's sugino w/ 52/40 chainrings..