New Project Time
 

This is going to be a long process but I've run out of things to tinker with on my mountain bike and I'm shifting some attention to my commuter. It's a 2007 Fuji Track and I'm interested in getting a new set of wheels for it. I want to go with Phil Wood hubs I think but I'm not sure which ones to get... I'm a mountain biker and use this to get to campus... so I'm new to the whole road/fixie world. Be gentle.

What's the difference exactly between the track and road hubs. I want to keep it fixed.

I also have no idea what rims I should go with. I've heard a lot of talk about the Deep V's. Anything else I should look at/avoid? I need the front to be machined for a brake but the back doesn't need to be.

Also any crank, stem, fork, etc... suggestions are welcome. Thanks.

Here's a current pic... the Brooks is not mine so it's pretty much all stock except for the addition of a brake and the bullhorns.

whats wrong with the wheels that are on it? I'd say if you want to start throwing money at stuff i'd start with throwing money at a better frame.

That's probably a better idea... I guess I just figured if I use what I've got and just update as I go I won't have to fork out the cash all at once to put another bike together... then again I could just use this one like it is and start building another one altogether in my spare time. I kinda like the frame though and don't know enough about road/track bikes to trust myself picking one out. Anything in particular wrong with the Fuji frames I should know about or just not the kind of frame I'd want to put a bunch of money into?

phils and V's will cost you about as much as a frame upgrade unless you're thinking big.

to be honest, though, i'd save both for later.
a carbon fork and seatpost will be a much smarter upgrade on a commuter.
if that's the stock fuji track headset, i'd swap that out too-- go with an ultegra headset.*
much much (much) smoother and won't need the maintenance the stock one will.

after that, go with wheels. you'll get way more out of wheels for the money you're looking to spend than you will for a frame at that price point.
consider a radial laced front, three cross rear.

and good luck!




*if you really want to start having fun, swap the headset out for a threadless, get a new stem and go for a full carbon fork (or at least one with an aluminum steerer). with your threaded setup, you'll be restricted to a cromoly steerer. not that there's anything wrong with that, but it's something to consider.

you should get the new crank bros headset. its low profile. what you have now just juts out too much to be of any real use to you. you can probably turn your front wheel ok for now, but its bound to explode.

please tell me this is satire...

The most significant differences between track and road hubs are 1) track hubs have solid axles and bolt onto the frame, and 2) track hubs are double-threaded on the drive side for a left-hand threaded (righty-loosy) lockring to prevent the cob from unscrewing when you use your legs to slow down.

Track hub:
http://os2.dhs.org/~john/gipiemme-track.jpg

Road hub:
http://os2.dhs.org/~john/zeus-road.jpg

Thanks for the info. My main concern was with durability. I didn't know if maybe one hub was built to be a little stronger than another. Like a road hub having to handle not-so-well-paved roads while a track hub might be built a little less stout since presumeably track surfaces are smoother.