Monday, April 11, 2011

The Annoying Orange Lambert Grand Prix Fixed (fka The Death Fork)


Brown Santa finally dropped off my new brakes and I had a little time on Sunday to work on the bike when I discovered that the front brake didn't fit!  I think the problem is that the crown on the chrome fork is too high so I had to put the front brake back into the bag and into my parts bin where it will be comfy lying next to the anodized orange IRO track hubs that I have had for the past year and still haven't purchased hoops.


I went back to the original Diacompe center pull brakes that I had on there from the start.  The only reason I took it off is because I wanted to go back to the OEM Lambert Brakes but since the front didn't fit I got discouraged with that endeavor and went to the orange brakes.  The rear brake fit nicely.


This bike was made for my Brooks Saddle and it fits nicely.  The Lambert cranks are gone and in their stead I have 170 mm Sugino cranks with a big 52t chain ring upfront.  In the back I have an 18t cog giving me 75.9 gear inches, which might be a little tall for New England riding but as long as I have the momentum I can get up just about any hill around here.  Not to mention there is tremendous leverage with the Bullhorn bars.


Here is the finished product.  I still need to get a rear fender.  I have one but it's missing parts so I might have to find something on eBay or get one of those detachable ones.  I don't want to ride it to work just yet until I had a chance to take it out on a shake down ride.  I think that will be on Wednesday.

3 comments:

Sam said...

Hey there! I just acquired a similar looking early 70s Lambert on Craigslist for $35! It's in pretty bad shape... But will make a fun restoration project. Sadly, the frame has been painted. Where the top coat is chipping off, I can see a gorgeous metallic orange though... possibly like yours. So, I guess I've 2 questions for you: 1) is the above photo what the original paint looks like (if so, I'm stoked), and 2) what else do you know about the bike? What year?

Anyway, I just took a slew of photos, so I'll append this comment with a link after I upload them.

Thanks!

Sam said...

The link I promised: http://www.flickr.com/photos/sambotdotcom/sets/72157627894888121/

Mark said...

Nice bike and Great saddle! The Saddle is probably worth $35 alone. Too bad about the paint but it does have a newer fork so you are a bit ahead of the game. Are you going to go fixed/ss?