Singlespeed & Fixed Gear - New Fixie Help

Hello all,

I'm a new member here and I just have a few questions about fixing up a fixed gear bike i just purchased from a friend.

First: I want to redo the paint job on the bike because it has terrible scratches all over it. What is the best and most efficient way to do this?

Second: Since this is a converted bike, it has those little notches with holes, for the brake line to the back. Do people ever saw these off and sand them down?

Third: I need a to get a new front wheel because it is larger than the back. What is a good priced yet dependable wheel i should get.

Thanks

P.S. Here is the bike, I love it so far. :)

http://img189.imageshack.us/img189/4300/firstfixie.jpg

I cut those little things off of my first bike.

You can spray paint the bike or get it powdercoated. Powdercoating is sometimes expensive, but lasts forever and is almost impossible to chip. Spray paint is cheap, but chips and dings very easily. You can strip or sand the paint off, apply primer, apply paint, apply clear coat. There are probably people here who have done a much better job than I did, depends how much time and effort you are willing to invest.

Hello all,

I'm a new member here and I just have a few questions about fixing up a fixed gear bike i just purchased from a friend.

First: I want to redo the paint job on the bike because it has terrible scratches all over it. What is the best and most efficient way to do this?

Second: Since this is a converted bike, it has those little notches with holes, for the brake line to the back. Do people ever saw these off and sand them down?

Third: I need a to get a new front wheel because it is larger than the back. What is a good priced yet dependable wheel i should get.

Thanks

P.S. Here is the bike, I love it so far. :)

http://img189.imageshack.us/img189/4300/firstfixie.jpg


First: You can go anywhere from a rattlecan job all the way up to having an auto shop do a professional quality custom paint job, how much you want to spend is up to you. Remember though, it is a bike and as such is going to accrue some scratches and chips if you actually ride it places, so don't be too attached to the paint job.

Second: No. It can be done, and frequently is, but don't.

Third: Do some shopping, cheap track wheelsets abound. You can usually get a decent set with something like Alex rims laced to Formula hubs for well under 200 bucks. However - and I'm not positive on this, older bikes aren't my thing - there's a possibility that those older wheels might not be the more common modern 700c size, they might be 27" or something. You can make new wheels work on an old bike, just be aware of it.

What frame is that? I think it looks rad the way it is and personally wouldn't paint it, scratches or not.

it's a royce union. i'm kind of debating painting it now.

Read this for the paint.

http://www.raydobbins.com/pantografata/after_touchup/after_touchup.htm

Pick your bike up off the ground and prop it up with something under one of the pedals.

And from what it looks like, it is a 700c rear wheel with a 27" front. There are a ton of 700c options out there, just check ebay. Also, drop by the lbs first and make sure that is the size you need.

How much did you spend on this btw?

are you running a 650c in the rear? if so, you should just switch for a 700c

no it is probably a 700c in rear and a 27" up front. You can put any road bike/track bike 700c wheel up front, but you are going to run into a problem:

The bike was made for 27" wheels, so if you put 700c front wheel on, the brake caliper isn't going to reach all the way. You can buy a long reach brake caliber, but that will cost another ~30 bucks.

Other than this brake problem, there is no reason not to replace the front wheel.

You can hack off the braze-ons no problem. Take a hacksaw to them and then file the remainder down with a file. Don't go too deep and damage the integrity of the frame, though. If you do this you are going to have to repaint the bike in order to get rid of the ugly spots that will be left behind from the braze-ons. So, if you are planning on repainting anyways, you should hack first, paint after.

Good luck buddy.

Thanks for all the help every one. Also, thanks for letting me know about that whole brake situation.

To the guy who asked me how much i payed, I got it for $180. I have no idea if that's a good or bad deal or not, but I don't really care much because I love riding it haha.

I'd say leave it as is; except for the wheel. If anyone else (or you) ever wants to convert it back, you'll miss those braze-ons. That, and the paint job looks pretty nice from the picture. But it's up to you.

A spot of encouragement: I was actually lucky enough to get a 700c wheelset to work with calipers designed for 27" wheels - so it is possible. That said, you should find a friend with a 700c wheel to see if yours work. You may get lucky. Otherwise, its a new caliper or a drop bolt:

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/home-drop.html