LondonSkaters Speed Team - Speed Skating & Rollerblading Club in London

Eugene · Joined: 02 Jan 2007 Posts: 62

Hey guys,
I've got hold of a 1980s (I think) Raleigh steel frame racing bike from a friend and I'm planning to restore it back to working condition. However I'm a complete bike rookie (only own a cheap mountain bike, and I changed a bicycle tyre for the first time 2 weeks ago) so I thought I'd post here for people's opinions.

It's got drop handle bars with brakes on both bars, caliper brakes, old school steel wheels (old standard wheel size apparently), down tube gear shifters (2 x 5 gears) and 135mm rear axle spacing. I spent last Sunday taking it apart, which I have done all except the front fork which won't quite come out. A previous owner spray painted the bike without stripping all the parts off hence the difficulty removing most of the bits now.

The wheels are a little rusted on the outside but seem OK otherwise. However I'm planning to replace them with 700c wheels which will partly make the frame easier for me to ride.

Anyways, assuming I'll be converting to a commuter bike in London, I want a bit of advice on the following:

- single speed vs gears
I'm very tempted to go single speed (from what some of my uni friends have done) partly for fun, and partly because I can't work out what gear changing system/gear set I should change to if I keep it as a geared bike. But I also worry whether a single speed might be inconvenient on the flat or on hilly terrain...

- if I go single speed:
fixed gear vs freewheel - I'm guessing that I could buy one of these 'flip flop' wheels for this.
what price is reasonable for a decent single speed wheelset/hub and what brands to look out for etc. I've seen some stuff on Gumtree/eBay such as the following but I'm wary that they might be crap brands (like with skates advertised for sale):
http://www.gumtree.com/p/for-sale/new-charge-dish-track-fixed-gear-wheelset-700c-white-machined-flip-flop-complete-with-tyres/82120029
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Red-Single-Speed-Fixed-Fixie-700c-Wheel-Set-Tyre-/320704978817?pt=UK_sportsleisure_cycling_bikeparts_SR&hash=item4aab819f81#ht_3704wt_1036
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/REAR-FIXED-WHEEL-700C-ROAD-BIKE-FIXIE-WHEEL-BLACK-/380344640197?pt=UK_sportsleisure_cycling_bikeparts_SR&hash=item588e4ea2c5#ht_2243wt_1195

Being a poor student (still) - I don't want to spend more than £200 total for the entire conversion - plus I probably need a new crank set, pedals, bottom bracket, chain and brake pads. Is this feasible with a £200 budget?

Any opinions gladly received. I've read somewhere that Dan did a conversion to single speed, and I'm sure loads of others have done as well!

dan_b · Joined: 15 Jun 2004 Posts: 2428

Is this the bike that used to be in your old garage, by any chance?

I spent somewhere in the region of £60 on chainset and BB, £70 on a cheap and nasty pair of wheels (came with a 16T cog) and about a tenner on a chain. I think that was everything that needed changing. Oh, plus tyres and tubes and rim tape. You may want to add the price of clipless pedals and shoes to that if you don't already have some.

I went for a 78" gear (48x16, more or less) which TBH is slightly too high for traffic, but does make things more fun

Eugene · Joined: 02 Jan 2007 Posts: 62

Yes, it is! Did you have a look at it at some point then?

dan_b · Joined: 15 Jun 2004 Posts: 2428

Not to the extent of remembering much about it, but I did spend a lot of time staring at it blankly while trying to figure out how to fix the firebrox

Howard · Joined: 24 Jan 2010 Posts: 336 Location: W2 now init.

Christophe · Joined: 26 Feb 2004 Posts: 1652

Not that I want to hijack's Eugene thread, I'm also working on a project bike (also an old Raleigh). it won't be converted to a SS or fixie though, although that crossed my mind.
I'll post some pictures at some point.

Good luck with your own project Eugene!

Smile

peterc · Joined: 10 Mar 2004 Posts: 1284 Location: M3 somewhere

I've also done a fixed conversion on an old Raliegh (that I have had from new...)

I used a mountain bike front disk braked hub and a bolt on sprocket. Which is an option, picked up a full length solid axle and lots of washers, you can blame Josh for it, twas his idea.

Now this route did end up with me building a wheel, its complex and time consuming but not rocket science. (As long as you have the right tools.)

Eugene · Joined: 02 Jan 2007 Posts: 62

What's the benefit of using a mountain bike front wheel hub? I don't quite follow!

(Josh is clearly insane)

Howard · Joined: 24 Jan 2010 Posts: 336 Location: W2 now init.

I think Peter means he used a mountain bike front disc hub for the rear wheel. I assume he bolted the sprocket to the disc mount somehow and then built up a new axle for it. No idea how you'd get an acceptable chainline though.

Benefit being it would actually fit and work with the frame & parts he'd cobbled together Wink

Wheel building is fun, agreed, but not the for fainthearted. Do you have a truing stand, tension meter and dish tool Peter? Can I borrow them? I have some lovely X9 MTB hubs coming my way soon that need to be mated with some Open Pros...

JoshL · Joined: 16 Sep 2006 Posts: 23 Location: London, England

Hey All

It has been quite a while, hope everyone is good.

If you are commuting on it, single speed/fixed gear would be a good idea, less parts to go wrong, and not that many hills.
Have you tried fixed before?
The weakness with the wheels that Peter and I built is that they cannot be used for anything other then fixed (that said I have one sitting around, which you are welcome to try), so a flipflop hub would probably be better.
Having done it before, I would prefer building my own wheels, but it would be hard to do it cheaper then the pair you showed with Weinmann rims.
What campus are you on these days, if it is South Ken, lets get a coffee on Monday and we can have a chat!

-- Josh

peterc · Joined: 10 Mar 2004 Posts: 1284 Location: M3 somewhere

JoshL · Joined: 16 Sep 2006 Posts: 23 Location: London, England

I have built a few wheels since then.
Have plans for a nice wooden truing stand, but managed to borrow one for the last set.
One of the wheels was dished, it is a bit more tricky, but starting with the right length spokes helps.
I made a dish gauge using a big bit of cardboard and a ruler, looks like the ones you can buy and more then accurate enough!

-- Josh

Howard · Joined: 24 Jan 2010 Posts: 336 Location: W2 now init.

peterc · Joined: 10 Mar 2004 Posts: 1284 Location: M3 somewhere

just had another thought, I assume an old 5sp rear hub will not be a free-hub, does that mean you can screw a single speed freewheel on to it?

Eugene · Joined: 02 Jan 2007 Posts: 62

It all sounds pretty complicated - luckily with a bit of Wikipedia and Google I'm just about keeping up.

I did L2B yesterday and back (as far as Sutton) on a racing bike - 110 miles - and I definitely appreciated the gears. But I did see a nutter who'd made it on a single speed - not sure how he did it! Not to mention a clown on a unicycle... who'd made it as far as Ditchling Beacon when I overtook him...

Anyway back to the point:
- Would you guys advocate fixed wheel over single speed then?

- Wheel building. I'm willing to give it a go if I can acquire the right tools and friends for a Saturday afternoon of work... it sounds much more interesting than buying one off the net! However that throws up the massive dilemma of choosing hubs and rims. What are the differences between all these crazy Mavic hubs/rims etc that you guys keep talking about? Is it just the material/weight; surely they all perform the same function?

Peter - relating to your last post, I'm guessing not. What's the benefit of keeping the existing rear hub if it's a freewheel - is it just one of cost?