Originally Posted by
g_firkser
Hey ya'll,
i'm currently a first time builder (to be), and I'm having a bit of trouble comprehending just about everything. I'm reading the Paterek Manual, I've looked through Sheldon Brown's site, and talked to various people. I've still got heaps of questions!
One that's getting me is that head tube size. I'm looking to make a single speed as my first build for simplicity sake. I'd like to have a 1 1/8" head tube. What size head tube should I be looking at purchasing? Various options include 31.7mm, 36mm, 46.4mm, etc. Sheldon Brown said that 1 1/8 is a 28.6, so is this the true size that I'll be looking for? If so, I guess I'm a bit out of luck at the moment with buying one that works for me!
Thanks,
Gavin
Q_f'ser; Best recommendation for the first 50 frames or so is to just visit one of the supplies from the "frame building suppliers thread" at the top of this forum and order one of their starter kits which will have all the tubes, the lugs, the bottom bracket, the misc bits, etc. That way you will have all the materials, correctly sized and sorted, to make a decent frame and only have to invest 15 minutes and a small amount of money to get to the point of starting the build. They even have special "beginners tubesets" that are really inexpensive (call them loss leaders). Picking and choosing individual tubes to build up you own tube set is what I would call an "advanced skill". Too easy to make mistakes and also to get lost for days in the minutia of it.
Hope that helps
/K