Originally Posted by benny
I didn't mean to ruffle any feathers. I am just curious why all the time, labor and money is spent converting a road frame into something that resembles a track frame?
I read stories about shaving brazons off, welding on track dropouts, attaching a track fork and repainting road frames. This is allot of effort!! If you want a track frame why not get a track frame instead of converting something into one? I am not being a hater, just curiosity. In the beginning I picked up a conversion, but as soon as I really got into and did some research I upgraded to a track frame.
Because it only resembles a track frame- some of us want a front brake- and many proper track forks aren't even drilled. Also, I can't afford a nice lugged branded-tubeset track frame- new or vintage- and sorry to tell you this, most of the wannabe "track bikes" (like a Pista, Rush Hour, Langster, etc.) have deeply cut corners to keep cost down. Also. just because a frame has rear facing drop outs doesn't really make it a track frame (like if it has a 73 degree seat tube angle, for example). I really wouldn't want to ride 40 hilly miles on a track frame with no water bottle in the heat of summer...
You can find a decent old lugged road frameset with reynolds tubing for $50-100 without looking too hard- cheaper if you recycle your own old frame. How much would a real track frameset cost - lugged with decent tubes?
I agree with you - though- in the sense of radically modding a road frame to transform it into a track frame- that is a bit odd. People probably do it because of all the haters who rip on conversions.
