Got the conversion done yesterday and a very short test ride in before the sun went away. The frame's a 1998 Cannondale CAAD3 with a full carbon el cheapo fork. I picked up a WHite Industries Eccentric ENO rear hub and laced it up to a rim that my LBS gave to me (old sk00l Omicron rim, I think made by Campy). I'm gonna take her out for the first real ride today. I'll put a pic or two up when I take some.

First ride report: Bike kicks ass. Lots of fun. Only did 10 miles since it was over lunch, but it was a blast to ride. Need to move my chainring a bit to straighten out the chainline, but it's nothing major. Everything stayed where it was supposed to, including me. I only tried to freewheel once crossing a cattle guard, but learned quickly not to do that. Maybe a longer ride tomorrow. the 42:16 is great as far as gearing. Of course, I didn't really do any climbing, so we'll see what happens when the road pitches up a bit.

Ok, I'll bite. What is a cattle guard?

Something like this... the cattle find it almost impossible to walk across the bars, so it 'fences' them in.

Ah, the old grate. Imagine a driveway with a fence running to each edge. ----||---- Now visualize a tubular gate that instead of sitting upright is lowered to the ground. Normally there is a few feet of space under the cattle gate. Farmers would pasture their cattle in these areas and the cattle would not step on the gate itself out of fear. Therefore, a normal gate did not have to be opened and closed each time the person used the driveway.

Dave

Oh, and sounds like the bike has turned out nicely! All this talk of fixed gears is giving me the itch to try it out...

booyah, it's a blast.

Thanks, all, for covering the cattle guard. You have to hit them pretty much straight on or you risk a little extra slipping, which is alright if you're freewheeling but pretty disconcerting when you're new to a fix. Probably get a little longer ride in today.

booyah,

just cave in. i bought a fixie on pretty much a whim with our team order since khs sponsors us and let me tell you, it's by far my FAVORITE bike. i have other bikes that are worth significantly more, but i still love my fixed and have been crying the past few weeks as i wait for my new wheelset to arrive. fixed to me presents a game of gauging what actions people and cars will make and needing to dodge them. some might see riding brakeless as stupid, but i like the adrenaline.

I'm getting close to caving... though torn now between building one up from a thrift store special or buying a new Pista or Fuji Track from the LBS. I think I like the idea of picking and choosing the parts myself, and the emotional involvement of building appeals. I think I'll let the bank account recover for a month or so before I start though... many new toys have been bought lately!

ImprezaDrvr - looking forward to seeing some photos of yours!

Here it is:

And the all important, if not really visible, drivetrain- that fancy pants (as someone said in another thread here) Eccentric hub, RX100 170mm cranks, 42t chainring and pedals on loan from my roadie bike.