Folding Bikes - Raleigh Stowaway ideas?

Going to refurbish a Raleigh Stowaway I got on CL.

http://flickr.com/photos/21984840@N05/2124685800/

I'm thinking:
replacing the wheels with lighter BMX ones
welding a track cog on the hub
changing to a pair of drops
get a leather saddle
probably going to keep the cottered cranks
rattlecan paint the frame

any ideas what colour would look good? (thinking neutrals: black, white, brown, metallics...)
Probably going to add decals or stencil design... (good contrasting colour?)

Any other suggestions to add?

Might be nice to get a proper track hub; though that might present problems with chainline. If it's a three-speed I don't see what good welding on a cog would do unless you mean welding it all together to make the worlds heaviest track hub :)

Mine is grey - it's a sort of bluey primer grey. Twenty's look really good in most colours. I have an idea with the non-folding frame I have in the shed to paint it in repro raleigh team colours from the early eighties; I think that would be a nice irony for the wee shopper.

I say go with colours you like or colours that fit the style you go for (ie commuter, trail bike, tourer, stripped down messenger etc...)

I'm thinking of welding a track cog onto the BMX hub that I'm going to use, along with the wheels
Thanks

Why would you weld a fixed cog onto a BMX hub instead of just buying a fixed gear hub? Fixed gear hubs aren't that expensive. If the BMX hub is aluminum then you can't weld it on anyway.

OK, I guess you guys are right. Fixie hub is probably the way to go.
Not worth sacrificing safety over a few bucks.

I've decided to paint it matte black, easy and sheek.
But I think I better keep the cranks on while doing this. ( to avoid complications)
Should I tape it off, or... What's the best way to do this.
Thanks

I think the front wheel fork spacing is NOT standard BMX. If you are not going to replace the fork then you should re-lace an alloy BMX rim to the original hub. The alloy rim = better braking. If you want to go fixed, get two rims and build the rear on a track hub.

For the bottom bracket, keeping the original is a good cheap option IMO. I took mine off and ruined the cranks doing so! On the other hand I bet the BB could use a rebuild. A bigger chain-wheel might be required for speed. Consider buying a cotter pin removal tool :-)

Yeah taping might be good. Will be fiddly though so you could use some of that 'paint on with a brush' rubberised/latex masking fluid you can get in auto-stores. It dries, you do your painting then just peel it off.

I understand if you use the right tools it shouldn't be too much bother the remove the cotters and get the crank off though. It depends on how well they were greased when last installed mainly.

What do you guys think of mag wheels on this bike?
I won't be doing any h-core jumping, just daily commutes.
So... do you think it's a good idea?
Thanks

You need to hit up Little pixel's site. In a previous life, his R-20 had mags on it :) Luckily for us all he photographed it. Here is his site http://www.littlepixel.info/twenty/AnotherRaleighTwenty/Gallery.html . There is also one on this Fixie site check this http://www.fixedgeargallery.com/2005/apr/adker_adker.htm
. thats a pretty stellar one if you can see it.

And about painting. One trick I learn in an auto class was using aluminum Foil. Yup, believe it or not. It conforms to just about anything. I used it when I was doing some custom work on an engine compartment back in the day, and it worked like a dream.

Good thing about black is it is easy to touch up, and even better that its matte.

Keep in mind that if you plan to use the original front fork, and a different wheel (hub), you will most likely need to file out the front drop outs. The same with the back drop outs too.

Read around and you will definitely get some great advice from this site and others.

Phatatude - "It will fit in your trunk... Trust me :)"

Swing by and have a looksie...
http://web.mac.com/phatatude/Green_Space/Raleigh_Twenty_Blog/Raleigh_Twenty_Blog.html
www.web.mac.com/phatatude/Green_Space/Raleigh_Twenty_Blog/Raleigh_Twenty_Blog.html