The Friday Fix: Back to School Special Fixed

Here is my Fuji Dynamic 10 looked like when it came into my possession. Front wheel missing, rear hub was frozen, rusty chain and components all over. While taking it apart I was able to show my daughter how various things on the bike should work.

Here is what the Fuji Dynamic 1 looks like now. A sleek, fixed gear conversion bike. It's a little small on me, 58 cm seat tube but that angled back head tube and shortened Nitto stem makes for a really cramped cockpit.

I think the cranks, from Sugino, are 171 mm long. There is a stamp of 171 on the inside of the crank, so I am assuming that is the length of the crank. Riding it around the drive way, it reminds me of my Raleigh.

Gearing is pretty tall, 50:14, or 96.4 gear inches, that's 22 gear inches more than the Stinson! This is not a bike for climbing in the Litchfield Hills. Even the Stinson is probably borderline for this area, as well, but the little squish upfront makes up for the crappy roads that is also synonomous with this area as well. The rear 14t cog was pretty unforgiving when it came to my existing selection of chains, so I had to get a colorful KMC chain.

I stopped by the Goodie Shop to see if they had any yellow Ourys but they didn't and it looks like you can only get yellow in mount grips and not road. If they come in I will have to pull these reds one off and replace them with yellow.

With all my fixed gear conversions, I like to ride these bikes for awhile before selling them on Craigslist. I put this one up just to see what the market is like and whether someone might be interested in it. If I am going to ride it, I will have to put on a longer stem, which I have, and I might go with a softer, gel saddle.

While I was taking these pictures, my son Elliot insisted on being photographed with bike. Who could resist a kid as cute as him?

With all my rebuilds, I always include at least one hand brake for safety. Riding in the Litchfield Hills, you need it because you never know when you will need it while decending some of these hills we have around here.

Beauty and the Beast, Redux

I found this pair of bikes across from Grand Central last week and I thought they might be another candidate for my The Beauty and The Beast series. The Beauty, in this case a Bianchi Pista, brakeless, sporting a deep V front wheel and spoke cards. The Beast, I would guess an late 90's mountain bike with a one inch headset, sprung fork, and bar ends resembling that of a fork lift. If I were to guess, this could be Special-Ed Stump Jumper with the stickers removed.

On closer inspection, the Pista looks worse than one of my better Old Crappy Ten Speed, Fixed Gear Conversions. The fork looks like it's rubbed up against many sign posts, other bikes, and brick walls to give it that Oh Man I need some paint look. Could even be on purpose as a theft deterent. I like the home made spoke cards that include a laminated Yuengling beer bottle label, and another laminated card with 40oz in sloppy ink. A true indication that the owner of this bike is probably a hipster.

Not sure what to make of the Stump Jumper owner. No evidence of racks or baskets means the rider is not likely to be a delivery person. In fact, during most of my trips to NYC as of late, it seems most of the messengers I see riding bikes are riding gears.

Across town, in the Theater Distric, I came across this fine specimine of the Old Crappy Ten Speed variety, a Raleigh Centurion. With QR wheels and only the frame locked to sign post. The owner probably figured that at 46th and 5th Ave was busy enough that it would be safe from getting his wheels stolen.

I didn't know spoke cards were allowed on Old Crappy Ten Speeds. Seems like an NYC Cycling faux paux. Quick, quick, some body alert the BikeSnob to this wanton act of cycling culture disobediance! Pure Nekulturny!

Fixed on the Water

At what point does a bike stop being a bike and become something else? Is a water bike still a bike since it no longer has wheels?

Saw this bike(?) on Rt 1 on my ride last Saturday in Old Saybrook and thought it looked pretty cool. No, I was not riding this when I had my previous run-ins with some below sea level situations on Saturday and Sunday rides. I wonder what this would be like on the water. I don't think I would try it on the sound but a small inlet or lake.

It has to be direct drive.

A Qball at KT

Yesterday's post was the specifics of Tim's Qball and here are some action shots. Here is a shot of Tim on his Qball at Kingdom Trails in Vermont. Tim is from Massachusetts and has brought (that I know of) the second Qball to New England.

Apparently, the trails were a little soft but his Qball just ate up the trails

Trail Work: Upper Paugessett State Forest

Did some trail work on Sunday at Upper Paugussett State Forest. I thought some people that I regularly ride with were going to be there but they didn't show and I still go a lot of work done. There are more pictures on the The Upper Gussy Blog and some great examples of benching.