dude, you shouldn't waste so much time being such an illiterate moron who can't read a thread but nonetheless decides to post some mindless garbage that makes you look like a tool. good job. read the thread before you decide to post.

to the op: i love your project. a new bb/crankset and wheelset will make that bike ride beautifully. if you do decide to buy a new wheelset, a good place to start is bicyclewheels.com track section. Theres a good selection of wheelsets under $150 there. Another good option is bellsbikeshop, which posts a lot of sub-$150 wheelsets on ebay (example). If you don't see what you want on ebay, call Steve at bellsbikeshop and he'll either have what you want in stock or build you up whatever you want for no additional charge.

Another option to save a little money is build your own wheelset. its a lot of fun, especially for someone like you who has some time and some interest in learning about bikes. obviously, sheldon brown is a good place to start if you decide to go that route. probably only worth it if you have free access to some tools (stand, tensiometer, spoke wrenches).

edit: Spending a little money on a wheelset is my recommendation, even though the frame is low-end, because you can always put the wheels on a new frame down the road.

I'm almost done with my SS conversion/rebuild of the old Ross Europa I was telling you about and it's looking incredible. I let the the paint cure for 8 days and it looks great! A word of advice on the spraying: when you get towards the end of the can you'll lose pressure and the paint can come out splotchy with lighter ghost like patches. This happened on my second coat of color, so on the third coat I used a new can, but only 3/4 of the way through. This gave me an even final coat of color... but, once it cured and I began buffing the frame to a nice shiny gloss, I noticed in a couple of places i had gone down to the second coat, revealing a couple of those small discolorations. It's not bad, still glossy and just looks like it faded a tiny bit in a couple of very small spots. I heard they sell a cheap nozzle attachment for rattlecans so the pressure stays consistent throughout spraying. Otherwise, I would change to a new can about 3/4 of the way through. Shake, shake. shake the can alot the entire time you're spraying.

I'm exited about this rebuild as I get closer to full assembly - it's definitely not the 'new jack' single speed conversion that you'd expect, but unrecognizable next to what I started with. I've maintained a vintage charm while streamlining and simplifying. I will post complete bike soon -wish I had before photos... maybe I'll find that model out there for contrast. How's your project going?

PS. for any chrome or metal parts I've been using Blue Magic metal polish - and it has made everything look showroom new.. spokes, chrome, cups.. I even polished nut and bolts!

I'm getting stuck here on the bottom bracket...replacing old japanese b.b. with a sealed shimano, though the measurements don't seam to add up. The shell measurement is 70mm, while the diameter of the bottom bracket is 34mm...I'm having trouble finding a bottom bracket that fits that pairing, there are b.b. that are 70mm x 36mm or 68mm x 34mm, but nothing with the numbers matching what I need....

Also, I am worried about the chainline already. I dry fit the new wheels onto the frame and sighted the approximate chainline, ....I see that even though the wheel's hub is the appropriate width (120mm), with the single speed freewheel in place, a straight chainline puts me pretty much exactly at the edge of the bottom bracket. Is it possible that for the frame the bottom wheel is too narrow? I am stuck on choosing a spindle length for the bottom bracket to make sure the chainline is straight, I imagine from what I see, I need a very short spindle...

Thoughts????

***Making progress on the frame, Rainy days delayed the priming until today, First 2 coats looks great, I plan on wet sanding tomorrow and adding a third layer of primer...see below....

by the way...Judge_Posner...sorry missed your post, didn't see we're on page 2 already...great replies from all, thanks so much for your post... supergymnast - link/upload photos??? i think whats interesting is that these old bikes are possible getting some attention for the first time in 20-30 years...seeing how smooth the new hubs/wheels spin assures me that the effort is worth it...

Pics of Bottom Bracket Measurements (see above for Bottom Bracket question)