Originally Posted by big boy phil
Thats Awesome!!! Commander Taco I salute you, that is a great looking swift. The lines are so simple and clean. I hope you don't mind, but when I pick up my swift, I am going to use yours as a model to gain inspiration from.
How is the clearance with the 451 rims and tires? Any major modifications needed to run them?
Thanks! There is no issue with 451 rims and tire clearance. The biggest tire I could get was comet 1-3/8 (from bike friday), and there is tons of clearance. Stock brakes dont' work. I used paul brakes with pads setup high enough to be in line with the rim. This reduces leverage at the brake pad, but it is mitigated by using a brake lever meant for canti/caliper brake (not v-brake). v-brake levers pull a lot of cable and therefore have less leverage at the lever. Brakes work great, lots of stopping power. There is another option as well. You could use long reach caliper brake. Here is what Peter Reich wrote to me:
> On the aluminum frames, 451s will fit both front and
> rear, but you need an
> extremely long-reach rear caliper- I can't find a
> releable source, but you might
> have better luck. Front will just barely work with
> a 68mm Shimano, so you
> can only do a brakeless rear/fixed 451 with
> off-the-shelf components.
>
> The new steel one will work with 68mm calipers front
> and rear.
>
p.s. I measured the rear reach on my alu swift. A 68mm caliper should work.