Kenty

Evening Folks , I peddle to work and back everyday , 40k round trip , East London is not flat , but one gets accustomed to the hills ....I've been commuting since 2018... In the last 2 years it's been on a fixed gear , a Giant OCR3 that I converted , as of two weeks ago , got my first proper fixed gear frame , a Simple SAM , ABSOLUTE value for money , it's nippy through the traffic , fast and light enough to peddle the hills .....I'm running a 46T chain ring and a 18T rear cog , not too spinny and manageable on the hills ...As said in an earlier post , I leave my work shoes at work and a small bag on my back for the daily essentials, socks , underwear and a neatly folded work shirt ... I have a cold shower at work which suits me and have worked out a system over time ....it's is VERY doable to commute by bicycle ..and on my fixie is so so simple....

I know this is from 2021 , but I've been looking for a fixed gear/track bike frame ever since I converted Giant OCR3 into a fixed gear ...Did 3000 odd kays on the OCR3 , but , it's not quite the real McCoy... As I got the hang of fixie peddling , I WANTED a proper frame , but these frames tend to be a tad pricey... Rook I was eyeing, but still not quite took my fancy and then happened on the Simple SAM website .. Did some more investigation, got to this thread and read even more and only found good solid things being said about the SAM... I've now acquired one , a Yellow SAM , and I tell you what , I am BLOWN AWAY!!!.. I peddle to work and back everyday and have already put on 250kays in a few days , SAM is nippy , fast and smooth as you like .. I put my own saddle and Thomson post on , with a decent set of handle bars... Next I'm swopping the Joytec rear hub for my Novatec sealed hub... So , all in all , I'm pretty damn impressed!!!

Good day Folks I'm looking for a GT Gutterball track bike... Thanks...

Mornings , I absolutely hear you and couldn't agree more , hence I'm on the look out for an old steel track bike frame in the 50 to 53 cm range .. .I will get one , in the meantime I will be "gently" be pedaling on the OCR3...

🙈🙈🤣🤣No ..not quite. ..I'm WAY TOO SLOW for that ...😆🫡

Ok , was not easy , half link chain helps a HUGE AMOUNT, but still missing the od few 5mils or so to get that tension on point ... I'm running a 42/18 as this is the same ratio as my SS MTB that I was using for commuting , 2.33 give or take a point....so , for climbing the 42/18 was just right and not too spinny on the flats. But...but...I still needed that extra 5 to 8 mill adjustment ...my one mate is a metal engineer, and he MacGyvered the vertical drop outs for me and it now works a treat ... The OCR3 weighs in at 7,8kg and the old Axis MTB I was using comes in at 13,4kg....HUGE difference and I tell you what , this OCR3 frame is SUPER nippy .. Sooo ..I'm very pleased and will now keep my eyes open for a 52 steel track bike for a future build .. Fixie riding is a drug....🙈😆🤣😆🫡🚴🚴

You took the words out my mouth , last week , just got that "relaxing" down ...must say , once I got that trick sorted , more control...flowing with the bike as it were....

Well , as you say the chain ...last week , I was on a downhill , and over a speed bump I went and chain was a tad slack , as I'm still getting to grips with the tension thing , and the chain hopped off...slight panic , and I put the old tekkies on the back tyre...🙈😆😆🤣...was pretty damn effective indeed ..

Well , it did in the beginning, now , it's just the very steep downhills that are still a tad tricky ....but , getting better all the time...East London is not exactly flat country...🙈🙈😆🤣🤣

Quite correct Boss ...first ride I pulled out of my driveway , 🙈🤣🤣...tried to adjust my helmet and freewheel at the same time , landed on the grass verge ....it's a VERY VERY STEEP learning curve ...indeed ...but...I'm going to be hard pressed to get back onto my MTBs ..

😉🫡🚴🚴Well , firstly , I've never ridden a road bike as such , only ever been around MTBs , then of course a fixie was just a pip of an idea in my head ...Sooo...this Giant OCR3 fell into my hands , I got "sucked" into this fixed gear drug by y watching many many videos in recent years , and way back in the 80s and 90s always read about the NYC bike messenger "underworld" ....has always fascinated me... Back to the brakes...🙈🙈🤣🤣...while I was building this OCR3 as a fixie , a front brake was ALWAYS in the plan.... But , my eagerness got the better of me and the build was 95% done and I just HAD TO take it for a spin ..the front brake still had to put together and in place ... It's now 4 weeks I've been commuting and the front brake is still sitting on my work bench🫡😉😆😆... Somehow , I just "took" to the no brake fixed thing , ...the skid , the conentrted back pressure to slow down , this then becomes part of the pedal every time I get onto the OCR3. .. Absolutely loving it ...

🤣🤣😉🚴😈😈

No brakes...

Evening Folks , wanted to share this pic of Vusi , he is a fellow commuter and his bike is an old frame he was given and then built the bike up to what you see .. Also a fixed gear...he is running a 47 chainring and a 16 rear cog...we commute about 8k together and then he turns off to his place of work ...