custom fixed gear frame in 12 weeks or less

[Jack Brunk]

Who would be the best builder of a custom fixed gear frame with a waiting time of 12 weeks or less?

Thanks,

Jack

[gasman]

Co-motion here in Eugene. TIG or fillet brazed with 853 tubes. They are now 3-4 weeks out.

[coylifut]

you may want to check with Zank. DeSalvo may be an option as well.

[Lincoln]

Carl Strong might be able to meet that timeline this time of year....

[Jason E]

I believe our host is back to 5-6 weeks now that they've worked out the bugs of the Meivici Roll-out....

Just sayin' is all.



http://forums.thepaceline.net/images/misc/vbulletin3_logo_white.gifNot the only choice, but fer darn sure a good one!*











*the 'fer' was by choice, sticklers...

[cadence90]

Give Jim Kish a call. He's fast. TIG only. Heck, you might even make it ti.... :cool:

[Jack Brunk]

Thanks guys. Excellent choices so far.


Jack

[11.4]

Tom Kellogg has delivered me every frame I've ever ordered from him in that timeframe. He also has some of the best tweaks to customize the frame for that purpose, or as fixie-customized as you want to go. Tom is one of the two or three finest builders in the US today, so why not get the best when you'll need as much time and money to get something less from someone else?

To a recommendation above, yes, Serotta can do a fairly quick turnaround. They have made a couple fixies for me (one Colorado III steel, one Legend Ti). I'd consider a Legend fixie if the cost isn't prohibitive -- it makes for a very comfortable and low-maintenance winter bike. I have a Kellogg fixie as a winter training bike for track, and got it partly because I so admire Tom's work and partly because I could get it with a steel fork. Unless you do something ungainly with a cross carbon fork, you basically don't have the clearance under the fork for a full set of fenders. Depending on your weather and your determination to ride in all weather, you may find fenders on a fixie to be really useful, or an obnoxious non-necessity.

Most people think that a fixie is just a road bike with track ends, but there are more issues than that. I'd go to a 6 cm bottom bracket drop or less so you have plenty of pedal clearance on turns or ramps. Chainline is also very important on a fixed gear and if you are mixing road dimensions with track dimensions on the frame or components, you can run into chainline problems. The horizontal slots cause the wheel to drop relative to the rear brake blocks, so if you change gearing you have to adjust your rear block position as well; you can correct this by tilting the track ends upwards to the rear. You can also order the bike as a 120-spaced traditional horizontal road-ends rear with a derailleur dropout and all the accessory hardware and set it up as a traditional 10-speed in the summer. Then you just use 3/32" cogs and chain in the winter and any track hub in a spare rear wheel. Note that if you use fenders and rearward-facing track dropouts, you will likely have to deflate the tire to move it back enough without running into the fenders. This is a pain.

What size or particular custom features are you looking for?

[Jack Brunk]

11.4,

Thanks for the info. I'm really enjoying the C40 fixed gear so what I would like to do is build a retro set of track wheels and use a cool set of track cranks. I want a light steel frame based on my Meivici build measurements. It won't be a bad weather bike as I have my 2 moots for bad weather riding but I live in Southern California so it's not much of a problem. I would love to have one done within a 4-6 week period so I'm probably limited in builders. Serotta is a great option because of the owners club with priorty placement. Again thanks for the insight.


Jack

[sbornia]

Another option - albeit lower budget than others previously suggested - is a Bob Jackson Vigorelli with custom geometry. These frames are more road-fixed than track-specific. Given that winter is approaching in the UK, the build time might meet your time frame. See here:

http://www.bobjacksoncycles.co.uk/product_info.php?cPath=28&products_id=307

[Steelhead]

I'd try Soulcraft, Gunnar, Sycip and Indy Fab.

[Smiley]

Serotta , they have great looking track drop outs if you have not seen them. I had a fixee built for a client and he opted for the F2 fork at the time. Loves the frame. I can bet you that you won't find a lighter steel frame then a CC Nobium tubeset .

[Kevan]

He can make you a sexy number out of rebar. Course, there's that problem with the front fork not turning, but I think he's trying to work out the kinks.

[coylifut]

Note that if you use fenders and rearward-facing track dropouts, you will likely have to deflate the tire to move it back enough without running into the fenders. This is a pain.



I saw a guy who mounted those sks break-a-way clips for the front fenders on the back on his bike with rear facing track mounts to rectify this problem. It appeared to be a good solution if one is faced with that problem.

[old_school]

I would try Mike Flanigan at ANT.

[Bruce K]

You know what you would get with a Serotta.

My Zanc is every bit as high quality and the attention to detail was tops.

Not sure about the 12 weeks. You'd have to ask him.

BK

[davids]

Serotta CDA.

http://www.serotta.com/pages/CDA_06.gif

Independent Fabrications Crown Jewel.

http://www.ifbikes.com/images2/2005/track-lg.jpg

[11.4]

Serotta , they have great looking track drop outs if you have not seen them.

One thing you'd like in a fixie is a fairly long slot in the stay ends. Otherwise you find that you don't have much flexibility in changing (or even in picking) gears. If you use a chain tensioner, you use up part of the length as well with the body of the tensioner. The Serotta track dropouts are very pretty but they need to be longer. If a particular gear just works out that your rear axle is half-way in the slots, then moving up or down by a couple teeth in gearing can run you past your limits in either direction. You can always finagle a better fit, but if you're fighting with chain length all the time to make different gears work, it becomes a bike you quickly come to sell. It's just not particularly viable on the track and a pain on a road fixie. (Bear in mind that Serotta isn't the only one with too-short slots on their track dropouts. Look at a Look KG496 or a BT and you'll see what track racing really likes to see in slot length -- it's huge, and it sure makes gear changing a breeze.)

[British]

What is that golden yellow coloured thing half way along the tt on the if?

[11.4]

What is that golden yellow coloured thing half way along the tt on the if?

Kashimax top tube protector. Without all the shifter cables helping keep your bars pointed forward, your bars have a disconcerting tendency to spin around if you're just picking the bike up, or rolling it forward, or tipping it over. They don't stop until they whack the top tube of your frame and you end up with a dent there. A top tube protector helps stop that. Some people use a wrap or two of handlebar tape, which is pretty much worthless. The Kashimax, though a ludicrous price (like everything from Kashimax), is still by far the nicest. It has a spring metal plate inside with a high density polyurethane cover about a 1/4 inch thick. You can just pop it on, pop it off. The metal plate ensures that when your bars hit, the plate distributes the force. If you just had the polyurethane (or whatever else you want to make one yourself from), the bars just go right through it. You get a tad of protection, but not when you really need it with a hard bang (most significantly, if you ever fall).

I sometimes make them up for people, but a few suggestions to fixie candidates on this forum: First, get a dense rubber or plastic. Tygon tubing works well (from Lowes or any lab supply). So do tubular inner tubes or several layers of the rubber sheet that physical therapists use for rehab (get the strongest stuff). Second, be sure to put a layer of plastic tape underneath, directly on the tubing. I use white plastic 3M tape there. If you let the tubing or inner tube make contact with the paint, they will cause the paint to discolor significantly over time. Plus, perspiration will get under the padding and the base tape layer keeps it off the frame. Let the base tape layer extend an 1/8" or so outside the padding layer above. Then use more of the same tape to wrap the padding, and you'll not notice the base layer. Padding should be close to 1/4" thick. More and it's ugly and just hits your legs; less and you may just whack right through it. The best home-made protectors I've had have been tygon tubing underneath with a strip of stainless steel from a craft supply that's wrapped over it; then the whole thing is wrapped with tape. However, after all the hassle, call me spendthrift but I still prefer the Kashimax. If nothing else, being able to take it off instantly to clean the bike or to move it if I change the bar position is worth the cost. (Oh, and by the way, if it isn't obvious, a protector needs to be positioned right where the bars come around and hit the top tube; I've seen ones that are mispositioned and totally useless.)

[Serotta_Andrew]

11.4,

Thanks for the info. I'm really enjoying the C40 fixed gear so what I would like to do is build a retro set of track wheels and use a cool set of track cranks. I want a light steel frame based on my Meivici build measurements. It won't be a bad weather bike as I have my 2 moots for bad weather riding but I live in Southern California so it's not much of a problem. I would love to have one done within a 4-6 week period so I'm probably limited in builders. Serotta is a great option because of the owners club with priorty placement. Again thanks for the insight.


Jack

Jack,
2 weeks for an all ti fixed.... 4 to 5 weeks tops for a painted steel (coeur D'Arcier)

[Jack Brunk]

Andrew,

Ashton will be calling tomorrow.


J

[11.4]

Jack,
2 weeks for an all ti fixed.... 4 to 5 weeks tops for a painted steel (coeur D'Arcier)

Jack,

I have a Legend Ti fixie and two weeks is amazing turnaround. It's that time of year, I guess. A fixie chews up your rear more than a road bike, and a ti fixie is a superb way to solve this. If price isn't an issue, it's a very different bike from a Tom Kellogg but equally smart on its own merits. Kelly did one for me that's worked out very nicely, with an F3 fork and mounting for both front and rear brakes, water bottle, and fenders. Bear in mind that many of the ti builders do very few track frames and honestly don't understand all the differences involved -- how many IF's, Moots, Sevens, etc. do you ever see on the track? You see a lot of Serottas, and as much as these other builders do nice road bikes, making a nice road bike doesn't equate to making a nice track bike. If you can get a ti fixie that fast and are OK with the price, that's a great way to go.

[Samster]

Some people use a wrap or two of handlebar tape, which is pretty much worthless.two turns of properly positioned cinelli cork tape plus some electrical tape in my favorite color works like a charm for me. ymmv.

[Grant McLean]

What is that golden yellow coloured thing half way along the tt on the if?

as 11.4 said....


here's a photo:



g

[11.4]

I've used bar tape protectors, but I've also put plenty of dents right through them. They may protect against paint chipping, but not against a dent if your bars come flying around. I'd really suggest using more than bar tape. You'll be glad you did if you ever take a fall and whack the top tube.

[Samster]

You'll be glad you did if you ever take a fall and whack the top tube.never "if" atmo. always "when" imo.

aside: with this post i hit 666! the sign of the beast.

[petitelilpettit]

Congrats with ordering your fixed gear bike! Judging by the posts, you are getting the Legend Ti fixed gear. Our mechanic Matt has a Legend Ti track bike that he is wishing to race on the track down here. I'll get you a picture so you can see how he has it tricked out (he's running the Dura Ace track crank, btw)

Pettit

[Jack Brunk]

thanks james

[Lincoln]

Jack,
2 weeks for an all ti fixed.... 4 to 5 weeks tops for a painted steel (coeur D'Arcier)

Wow. That's impressive.