Shamelessly stolen from mister bike snob...
I was just thinking...in an accident the rider would probably lose their fingers...or at least horribly mutilate themselves...
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I was just thinking...in an accident the rider would probably lose their fingers...or at least horribly mutilate themselves...
What the deuce? I hope for the rider's sake that rattle can paint job doesn't peel off the seat in the summer heat.
This weekend there was an alleycat race in Fremont. An alleycat race is an informal race set up by bike messengers - or in our slightly updated case, urban cyclists. In this race, over a hundred fixed gear and single speed riders raced through the sleepy streets of Fremont. From Ohlone college to the base of the Dumbarten bridge, these people ran stop lights and stop signs in an effort to win the day's goodies - bike parts.
Sadly, no roadies allowed :(
I didn't get to make it out, but my friend Kenny was kind enough to share some with me. Excuse the gore.
I guess I forgot to note that Kevin got this bike from the trash. That's sort of an important point to note. So it's literally a piece of shit. Anyways, I couldn't resist the urge to get my hands dirty again with bikey stuff after wrapping up Garry's bike, so I spent a few hours on the Mixte sitting out on our deck.
Notes:
- Paint: I had to resist the urge to splurge $100 and give the mixte a new paint job. I guess in the end, this thing is still going to be a junker. It's probably even better if I decide to commute around campus on this thing.
- Cranks: Taking off the cranks and cleaning them was a bitch. I put them on the wrong way too, and I almost busted an elbow fixing that. At least the suckers are grime/rust free (about the only things on this bike besides the pedal that can make that claim).
- Grime: I cleaned up the frame to get rid of that grimey feel it used to have. Frame still didn't look any better unfortunately. For as dirty as it is, the bike has stood up pretty well. The bottom bracket and headset are still in pretty good condition. While any long term plans (or resale plans) for this bike will necessitate an overhaul of both, for now it's satisfactory.
- Wheels: I think the biggest cost of this bike will be the rear wheel. Of all the things I've settled on not splurging on, the rear wheel is not one of them. Going to replace the hub on it with a flip-flop hub. The front wheel is missing a cone (aggravation!). Might just replace the hub on that too so they match, or look around for a cone. Also need to buy skewers since the last ones have rusted to hell.
- Brakeset: I've cleaned off all the rust on one brake caliper. Just one more to go. Also need to buy some brake lines, I guess I'll just keep the current brake levers.
It wasn't a particularly painful job (I did come super close to losing a finger though). It just took a lot longer than I thought it would. Here's Garry's Mercier - with brake levers, Sora brake calipers, a new 40t chainring and a 16t rear singlespeed cog. I replaced the the pedals with a pair that are a little bit more functional and I created some makeshift brake guides.
Additional Comments:
- Stem: Might need to replace this with a longer stem as the frame might be on the smaller side for Garry. Not sure how much can be corrected by the seat position, but we should probably try that first before buying a new stem.
- Brake Levers/Position: I've been riding it for a few days, and we may need to get new levers. The current position is fine if you you're keep on staying upright - it isn't however the best for maximum control of the bike.
- Front Wheel: The front wheel didn't come true - it's not a super big problem, but eventually it'll have to be straightened if it gets too bad.
So I got this bike from my friend Kevin. In it, I saw some potential. So I'm going to convert this thing into a single speed and see how much I can sell it for. First, I'm trying to take off all the parts. But I've been having a lot of problems removing the seat post, and I all but gave up on this project weeks ago. It was rusted in or something.
Today I bought some penetrating oil and I was able to dislodge the damn bastard. At least now I know I can move forward with this project without having to wonder whether or not someone would buy a bike without an adjustable seat post. Now all that's left is to clean this bike up, strip down the paint, and repaint it it, and buy some conversion kit. Hell, maybe I'll turn it into a fixed gear bike. Who knows, the possibilities are all there...
At the very least, it's fun to fiddle around with it.
i'm the dude who comments on your posts at 3:00am in the morning.
