noglider 

I got the bike in original condition from Frank the Welder some time back. Here is how I have it now:

• 35mm tires
• TA crank with 42 chainring and 155mm (yes, really) arms
• S3X 3-speed fixed gear hub, 16T cog
• mustache handlebars
• original front brake with Mafac lever

Gears are too low. I'll replace the cog with a 13t or the chainring with a 52t. But it's interesting how I can stop the bike by shifting down and then resist pedaling. It's easier than with a true fixed gear bike, since the ratio is so low.

Still have to make changes to make it more comfortable. I might ditch the handlebars. I still haven't learned to appreciate mustache handlebars.

The tires fit too tightly. I'll probably swap 32mm tires on.


Pictures

pastorbobnlnh 

Tom,

I like it. If you run smaller tires you could also run fenders and that would be really sweet!

-holiday76

I like it too Thom. I like that tiny crank. I kinda want to try something that short (twss).

noglider 

I haven't decided on fenders yet. I'm thinking this would be nice for snowy days. Fenders on snow are sometimes good and sometimes very bad.

ThermionicScott 

Cool build, Tom! You never know exactly how everything will play together on these scratch builds, so you get these puzzles to solve -- likely good for the brain. My vote would be for the larger chainring, if you can fit it. (twss)

Lascauxcaveman 

Ha! Three speed fixie, aluminum Death Fork and a plastic brake lever. Your Viscount is pushing the right buttons for me; except I doubt I'd be able to live with the mustache handlebars, either. What are the zip ties for? Surely you're not relying on them to hold the brake lever on?

(Also, is that one of the one of the plastic MAFAC brake levers I sent you, or did you already have a stockpile?)

noglider 

It is one of one levers, and it broke it this morning trying to make room for the cable ferrule. The zip ties are holding the ferrule in place. This is obviously not a long term solution. I guess the bad reputation these levers have is earned! But thank you for sending the, anyway.

The handlebars are super wide, and I think I just don't like wide handlebars. I'll try all-rounder or north road next.

JohnDThompson 

That's what I did with mine, using 25mm tires:

top506

reversed North Road would be my pick:



Top

John E

I would be inclined to gear it 50/15 or so, for a 90-inch top and a 57-inch bottom, and I would probably add a rear brake, but if I ever were to try fixed gear again, it would definitely be with a Sturmey 3-speed, rather than direct drive. (I like my gears too much to give them up.)

noglider 

@JohnDThompson, hey, same bike, kinda sorta!

@top506, I suspect that when I use swept back bars, I like them better when flipped up. Not sure why that is. I don't currently have an upright bike, so I think I'll do that next. Flipped down look better, but that's less of a concern than comfort.

@John E, that's my plan. 52:16 gives me an 88" top. To be honest, I don't need gears in NYC, as I don't frequent the hilly parts of the city much. The bottom half of Manhattan is fairly flat. I got this hub because it's cool, that's all.

The backlash of the hub is a bit disconcerting, but I'll probably get used to it.

Paging @Velognome: do you still have your S3X hub on your Raleigh Competition?

inkandsilver

Cool bike! But when I read "funny townie" I thought maybe you had built something like this:

noglider 

Heh.

lostarchitect 

Looks very nice! Not so funny, really!

Iowegian

Classic.

PS, nice build Tom. I have a Viscount hanging in the basement and this is inspiring....

Grand Bois

What brand are the bars? They appear to have the same bluish cast as the steel Nashbars that I just replaced because there was no comfortable position for me. The replacements are Cinelli Priest and I like them so far.

mharter

I like that setup. I sometimes thought about trying that style of bars and could never bring myself to part with regular north road style bars. The same is true for the fixed 3 speed hub. I am not adventurous enough!

Nobody asked if those are death forks yet. I assume they got retrofit at some point if they were.

noglider 

@Grand Bois, you are correct. They are the Nashbars. Is the Priest also a mustache handlebar?

@mharter, I'm told this is version 2 of the fork and thus not a death fork.

Grand Bois

The Priest is unique in that it's an upright bar designed to take road bike levers. They look cool flipped, but then the Cinelli logos are upside down. They are in big demand by the fixie crowd, especially in the UK. The clamp area is 26.4, so you have to either pay too much for a Cinelli stem or pry open a 26.0.

They've been replaced by the black Valencia.

VeloBase.com - Component: Cinelli Priest

rgver

I like what you have done with it, the biggest surprise in the thread is that it took 6 comments before "death fork" was said.
heres my Viscount in its latest configuration, the tires I got a brand new pair of Pro Race 3 but in yellow and I'm never one to turn my nose up at free brand new tires, even if they're yellow

noglider 

Some time ago, I sawed the handlebars shorter. I also put a bar-end bell on it. Nice sound but not loud enough. It will do.

Yesterday, I rebuilt the wheel with a regular old fixie hub, so it's now a one-speed. I had my fun with the 3-speed and don't want it any more. I passed the S3X hub to another bikeforums member.



I really like the way it rides. I rode it 10 miles yesterday. It feels really light and lively. I pumped the 32mm Pasela tires to 65/70. The ratio (52/19) is 74 gear inches, which is great for me. The 66-inch gear was too low. I seem to like my cadence, and my speed is keyed off that. I'm not sure what it is, but I guess it's around 90 rpm. It made me move slowly with the low gear. Now that it's a little higher, I move faster, around 15 mph.

On Monday, before the 3-speed-to-1-speed conversion, I rode the bike with 30 psi in the tires! It didn't bottom out, and it felt luxuriously smooth, though I suspect it slowed me a little. If it did, I didn't really perceive it, so I'm going to try it again now that I have converted it in an attempt at an almost side-by-side comparison.

RobE30

That bike looks great Tom. Almost makes me want to get mine back from Zaphodbeeblebrox or whatever his handle is on here

noglider 

Thanks. @RobE30. It weighs 23 pounds with the Dynamo hub and headlight. Nice.

I need to put on a stem that is shorter in height and longer in reach. I also need a brake hanger with a QR mechanism. I think I have these items in my bins.

Italuminium

My kind of townie.

vqstaphbeard

Cool!

Definitely experiment with lower pressures. 65-70 sounds too high depending on your weight.