Here is my current commuter, Schwinn Probe fixed gear conversion. Why(!!), you may very well ask? Wel, when you're a big guy, and someone says you can have something for free that almost fits, and you don't have a winter beater, and you're bored and have no other project going, and the dog gives you "that" look, how can you refuse?

In retrospect, this is a dog that should probably have been put down; this mangy "free" old mutt with fleas has about a hundred bucks into it altogether; respoked the rear wheel, replaced a bent axle, new track cog, chainring, pedals, BB, etc(of course alot of these were in the parts box unused). Still, now that it's spring it's still the bike I hop on to run errands and get caffeinated., plus I've taken it on a few 30 mile plus rides. 'every extra mile is a mile it might otherwise regret having missed', to paraphrase the Coen Brothers from Raising Arizona .

whats a real diff between a drop down and straight?

mine is straight.. i dont think i can handle a drop down.. i suck a lot on a bicycle

Drop bars just offer a larger choice of hand/riding positions allowing a rider to change positions during a ride. Much like we readjust our position to remain comfortable as we sit an watch a movie.

My commuter....1973 Raleigh Superbe. Throw my duffle bag on rear rack,raingear on front rack
and work boots in folding basket and off to work I go. Just started biking to work a few weeks ago.
Feels good to leave the car home and feel better when I arrive at work. I am driving a vehicle
all day so I really look forward to my bike commute! Got this bike through local ad in paper.
This was not the bike he advertised (which was junk) but before I left he said that he had
another one. He said he just bought a brand new bike and was not going to use the Raleigh
anymore. As soon as I saw it I said I'll take it! Got a really good deal on it! This is an awesome bike
that is made well and rides great. I never knew about the Superbe and just lucked out that
I went and checked out the other bike. By the way, this bike blows away his new bike.
He is probably thinking he should have kept the Raleigh. Just like my bike...that's all!!!

Hi here are pictures from my two bikes the Norco is used all winter and on rainy days and the Devinci is for fair weather days

Ahpook,

Nice Jamis. I have the year before model. I see they changed the forks to have a longer steerer, so the handlebars would be higher. That's nice. It looks nice with the fenders, a joy to ride, I'm sure.

Gardener

Hey Gardener -- From what the bike shop builder said the headset tube comes pretty long and they cut
it down to size. But once you cut it you can not go back, so he put those black spacers in for easy adjustment.
It has one spacer on top of the tube, then the stem/handlebars, then 2 more spacers.

But yeah, it is an absolute dream.

My commuter

interceptor,

That is a beautiful bike. How is it on hills?

Thanks! I don't know...it's all flat where I am at! The bike rides real nice though and the gearing is very nice. Never would have thought to use this type of bike for a daily commuter but I stumbled across it and am glad I did. Thanks again!

I'm diggin' the reflective patches on the rims!

Her name is Elke, and she gets my ass to work every day that it's not hailing. Two wheelsets (these are the 1.5" Michelins - also a 2.0" set), gel handgrips covered w/ foam tape, Crank Bros Candy pedals and lots of lights in the winter. Blue and yellow - a little Swede in me, no? >:^)

How is the Rainier shod with 1.5s? I have considered doing the same thing to mine so my touring bike doesn't take all of the abuse and my Rainier doesn't feel so neglected.

Okay some updated pics of the commuter. :)
1995 Diamondback Sorrento I picked up for $25.00. I've added:

Fenders (rains a ton here in Eugene Or.),
Rear rack -(need bags now)
Michelin 26 x 1.25 tires
Kalloy seat post
Specialized V-groove seat
Specialized Pump
Cat eye lighting

The frame is a little small for me so I think my riding position is a little off. I think it's all in the handle bars. Any suggestions on what I can do for riding position? I feel like I may be leaning too far forward.

The stock wheelset (Mavic) takes 1.5" tires - surprised me as well. I get noticeably more speed, but prefer the 2's though for stability. The second wheelset is totally worth the money. Just a simple Terra Max on sale at Performance.

Basically the frame is too small for you. But for the super price you got it will do for a while. Generally it is suggested that the seatpost be raised to equal the size of a fist. As you can see in the picture of your bike the seat is raised much more than that. Unfortunately, you have to raise the seat to that level in order to have the right leg extension. Since the seat is raised so high now the handlebars are much lower than the seat. This causes you to lean forward so much. You need to raise the handlebar level if possible. Search for more upright stem or a riser bar with a high degree of rise. Eventually you will want to get a more correct frame size so that you won't have to take such corrective measures using seatposts and handlebar setup.

Thanks for the input. I see your point. I think I'll ride this a bit longer but start shopping for a new frame. :) I think I can transfer a lot of the parts over and upgrade others.

this is my new bike.

http://www.deviantart.com/deviation/18491180/

I can't see anything wrong with it.


Edit: Now that I can see it, I still can't see anything wrong with it. ;)

Here's an absurd resurrection I just finished for my Dad, redid his 40 year old 40 pound American Eagle.

Lowlights include:
-YST 3 piece bottom bracket kit (conversion from Ashtabula), $15
-Shimano Exage 400 crank with 52t Bio-pace chainring, free from LBS
-7 speed 13-34t Alpine range freewheel, removed from unused hub, so no cost
-SHimano Nexave (?) Megarange derailer, about $15
-new 7 speed chain, wheel bearings, and rear axle, $20

Just finished 15 mile test ride and nothing fell off. Hurray!

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...ehaslanded.jpg

Wow, nice job! I love the indestructible fenders... I had some that I swapped between some old road bikes, but sadly gave them to a friend on a bike once when I moved. How do you like the shimano derailer? I was looking at getting one of those for an upgrade/replacement to have on hand.

Steal is real...really heavy! Yeah, the fenders are indestructible, the whole bike was stolen many years ago, thrown in a creek and had rocks thrown on it, and it only needed 4 spokes replaced. I am very pleased with the performance of the derailer, shifts smoothly and handles the big jump from the 24 to the 34 easily.

Here is mine - Trek 7200, shown with all my storage options: rack truck, handlebar box, and grocery pannier, which hooks on and off real easy and has handles like a grocery bag.

Quite funtional with them all, but i rarely use all at once. The grocery pannier is great for big things like groceries, shoe box size stuff, and larger. (Very european with some french bread sticking out of it).

I usually just use the rack trunk for work and back, and also have a shoulder strap with it. It's my "purse" even when not biking, but for bike commuting or errands or wherever i can just carry it around on shoulder, kind of like messenger bag. Holds pants/shirt, books, videos, and my tupperwares fit in perfect.

Also as you can see in pic #3 i need some moldings!! They are friggen expensive. Anyone a good woodworker? I have a miter saw!!

Take care, love all the other pics as well

http://www.bikeforums.net/attachment...id=31052&stc=1
http://www.bikeforums.net/attachment...id=31053&stc=1
http://www.bikeforums.net/attachment...id=31054&stc=1

forgot one. one of my hobbies is flying, and i have a handheld GPS. i found a handlebar mount on the internet.

i rarely use it, too easy to forget on bike. but it comes in VERY handy if you're lost in a suburban maze of streets and need to find your way out

also it measure speed by knots, so have to convert...

i http://www.bikeforums.net/attachment...id=31056&stc=1

Here is the reincarnation of my commuter. It originally appeared in post #272 of this thread, but I have changed it significantly since then. The frame has recently been identified as a pre 93 Bridgestone. I have it set up as a fixed gear now and I think it is going to stay that way. I'm running a 42 x 16.

Velocity Deep-V rims
Suzue ProMax hubs
Honey Brooks B-17
Carradice Barley saddlebag
Some lights front and back
a bell
some fenders to keep me dry
speedplay frogs
DiaComp tandem dummy levers
an inline cross lever on the top bar for my front brake

http://img93.echo.cx/img93/1821/img2611113nv.jpg