First, I added an 18t free wheel to the other side and thought that with my 45 chain ring, it might be a nice option for the big hills on my way to work. Also take advantage of those hills on the way home by actually being able to gain some speed by coasting down them. The cog is still a 16t which I've found to be great for flats.
Second was only logical. If you add a freewheel, you also need to add at least a front brake. I've resisted this as long as possible and probably have about 500 miles on this bike brakeless. But, my commute is much different than it used to be, and for this bike to makes sense using, I think a freewheel and brake might make the difference.
Third change was the drop bars. Just some old junk I had in the garage. I like the home-made bullhorns I had, but didn't have any brakes that would look good on them. So here they are with a vintage Dia-comp form my parts bin.
Last change was the saddle. Just a simple MTB speed-V. The other one I had on was not so comfy for 26 miles, and this was off another bike that won't ever see that kind of distance. I've found this to be a very comfortable saddle.
Now, I'll just wait for the day when I actually ride it to work. With my new Volae, that day seems far, far off. I'm sure I'll need a change sooner or later.
2 comments:
Jerome, I bought parts for my fixie a week ago at Hiawatha Cyclery. Just haven't had time to work on it. I am giving up the bullhorns for drops. And I'm adding a back brake in anticipation of using it more for winter riding. Also I'm considering a Surly Dingle cog instead of using a single-speed on my flip flop hub. I've realized the problem with using my flip flop hub is that all of the tires I buy these days have uni-directional tread patterns.
I've seen those dingle cogs and thought they would be pretty cool. I guess for winter riding, when you actually want a little more tread on your tire as opposed to slicks, flipping it around doesn't seem to work too good. The worse part for me is that I've orientated my spoke cards so they say a certain message on a certain side, the side that more cars see when I'm in traffic. That's all backwards when I flip. Mind you, I don't really ride in any traffic anymore. The cows could care less what my wheels say.
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