Hi, new here...looking at donor bikes, etc.

[trapdoor2]

Mark B wrote: You like fixies, too???? Man, we must be brothers from different mothers.

Scary, ain't it? :mrgreen: Early this year, I happened to walk into my LBS to find a SOMA Rush on the stand in the window. It has "on-one" moustache bar, single Cane-Creek brake, Brooks saddle, 1/8" chain, flip-flop hub, light as a feather...all the good drool stuff. I don't think I've ever seen a bike that looks so "right". After a few weeks of leaving greasy noseprints on the window, I found they sell MASI Speciale fixies...which are cheap enough to allow test rides. I discovered that riding Fixed is some serious exercise!

So, I rationalized that 'exercise' into another bike. I built one on my younger brother's old 1981 Puch 10-speed but quickly found the 60cm frame to be about 5-6cm too big for me. So...the local flea-market provided a 1976-vintage Raleigh "Grand Prix" for $15. Rides smooth and slick. Weighs just over 20lbs. 30 minutes of moderate fixie around my little 2mi loop and I'm as worn out as having done a hot 20mi on the Baron. And, I can flop the hub to ride S/S on our local MUT w/o worrying about running down the local strollerista. So far, so good!

 

[Mark B]

trapdoor2 wrote:

Mark B wrote: You like fixies, too???? Man, we must be brothers from different mothers.

Scary, ain't it? :mrgreen: Early this year, I happened to walk into my LBS to find a SOMA Rush on the stand in the window. It has "on-one" moustache bar, single Cane-Creek brake, Brooks saddle, 1/8" chain, flip-flop hub, light as a feather...all the good drool stuff. I don't think I've ever seen a bike that looks so "right". After a few weeks of leaving greasy noseprints on the window, I found they sell MASI Speciale fixies...which are cheap enough to allow test rides. I discovered that riding Fixed is some serious exercise!

So, I rationalized that 'exercise' into another bike. I built one on my younger brother's old 1981 Puch 10-speed but quickly found the 60cm frame to be about 5-6cm too big for me. So...the local flea-market provided a 1976-vintage Raleigh "Grand Prix" for $15. Rides smooth and slick. Weighs just over 20lbs. 30 minutes of moderate fixie around my little 2mi loop and I'm as worn out as having done a hot 20mi on the Baron. And, I can flop the hub to ride S/S on our local MUT w/o worrying about running down the local strollerista. So far, so good!

OK, so now you're really scaring me. My fixie is an old Raleigh Technium I bought at a swap meet (flea market) for $7. :shock: It's got a rattle can paint job and is in it's second configuration. Originally, I redished some ancient 700c's ala Sheldon Brown and had drop bars. Now, she sports real-live fixie wheels with flip flop hubs and a cut down flat bar.

Mark