Build a fixie

[Grasen]

I have seen some that have used an old cassette wheel .
They have removed the cassette and filled it up with spacers and placed the single cog in line with the chainwheel. To me that seems an easy solution.

 

[PpPete]

Easy solution, yes if your aim is a single speed conversion, the OP wanted fixed, not SS.

 

[Grasen]

ok

in that case I would redish the wheel

 

[biggs682]

got an old peugoet carbolite frame in garage that is waiting for a set of wheels to arrive with a newer style freewheel unit then i am going to purchase the spacer and cog kit and bolt it together along with all the other bits i have been amassing over the years to do my first single speed bike , rather than a fixed wheel

 

[alecstilleyedye]

if you're going down grazen's route you'll need a chain tensioner on a bike without horizontal dropouts. you'll also have to piss about with the chain length of you want to change the gear ratio.

the best frame for a fixie is from a steel track bike, which will have rear-facing horizontal dropouts (track ends as they are known).

 

[RedBike]

got an old peugoet carbolite frame in garage that is waiting for a set of wheels to arrive with a newer style freewheel unit then i am going to purchase the spacer and cog kit and bolt it together along with all the other bits i have been amassing over the years to do my first single speed bike , rather than a fixed wheel

My first SS/ Fixie was also made from an old peugoet carbolite frame. In many ways it was a bad choice of frame. The bike was increadably heavy (not exactly what you want when you don't have gears) and when you heaved on the pedals to get it up an incline the bottom bracket would flex so much the chain would come off. The frame was also designed for 28" wheels not 700c so I had to use long drop brakes, which were pretty rubbish.

I would calculate just how much you need to spend in new parts to convert this frame. If you need to start buying new wheels etc then it might well work out cheaper to just buy an old complete second-hand bike.

 

[RedBike]

I flogged my carbonlite pile of rubbish on ebay for the best part of £300 to some londoner with more money than sense. Single speed bikes with cow horn handlebars seem to be highly fashionable.

 

[MrVandal]

what about this frame? Could I use it to build a fixie?

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Road-Frame-Ca...sure_cycling_bikeparts_SR&hash=item33610da97d

 

[4F]

what about this frame? Could I use it to build a fixie?

http://cgi.ebay.co.u...=item33610da97d

No, wrong dropouts

You want something like this http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Peugot-Road-Bike-/200522541601?pt=UK_Bikes_GL&hash=item2eb0132a21

 

[ASC1951]

if you're going down grazen's route you'll need a chain tensioner on a bike without horizontal dropouts.

You cannot use a chain tensioner on a fixed drive. Well, you can physically get it on the bike, but a) it won't stay on for more than a few hundred yards and b) if you are lucky, you will still be alive at that point.

The late great Sheldon has a good summary of how to create a fixie. http://www.sheldonbr...conversion.html

 

[montage]

The cheapest way is to do all the redishing etc of the rear wheel, but the more expensive way is as follows (will generally give you a better fixed machine)

1. Buy frame, £??
2. strip frame of everything
3. Shop around and buy wheelset - £100ish
4. Measure chainline of rearwheel, find a Bottom bracket and track combination which will give you the same chainline - £50ish
5. tyres and tubes £25 if you shop right
6. chain £12ish

Try to reuse bars, stem, cables, brakes etc

This type of conversion will cost you about £200. I've been doing one (you can see it in the photo's section) and have managed to spend a fair bit less than this by getting bargains etc, but it certainly isn't without it's difficulties!

Good luck

 

[swee'pea99]

'Better'? Why better? I went the 'cheap route', and there's no better fixie on the road I can assure you.

 

[ASC1951]

I never even got round to fitting any kind of fixing ring, but I've never had any unscrewing problems. Admittedly I don't do any fancy reverse/skid hard braking (tho' I do leg-brake...just not hard).

Hmm. That's a small amount of necessary work. If your sprocket unscrews you will almost certainly be dumped on the road when the back wheel locks - it's simply not worth the risk.

 

[RedBike]

That's a whole lot of unnecessary work and redishing the wheel is not a beginner's skill. It's much easier to just get a track sprocket of the correct width, which typically gives you a chain line part way down the old block. Absolutely no need to reconfigure the wheel at all.

I never knew there were different width track sprockets? Where do you get the wider sprockets from?

I had the hub on my fixie set up as double fixed (A sprocket either side). Because one sprocket was a slightly different width to each other I ended up using a thin 10speed cassette spacer behind one of them. We're talking about less than 1mm difference between the two brands though.

 

[swee'pea99]

That's a whole lot of unnecessary work and redishing the wheel is not a beginner's skill. It's much easier to just get a track sprocket of the correct width, which typically gives you a chain line  part way down the old block. Absolutely no need to reconfigure the wheel at all.


Hmm. That's a small amount of necessary work. If your sprocket unscrews you will almost certainly be dumped on the road when the back wheel locks - it's simply not worth the risk.

I disagree, on both counts. Moving the cones takes half an hour, redishing less. That's under an hour. And although you say it's not a beginner's skill, in truth it's really easy. I mean, really easy. First time I did it I couldn't believe just how easy it was. And what's a 'track sprocket of the correct width' when it's at home? 

As for the unscrewing sprocket, that's an 'If' I'm absolutely not worried about. I've been riding that bike hard for nine months now. It would take dynamite to shift that sprocket.