ChrisF Posted Monday at 06:33 PM Share 10 minutes ago, Kenty said: 😉🫡🚴🚴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 ...  Back then many of us started with a back pedal brake. That was fun ....   Fixie .... it scares me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hairy Posted Monday at 06:35 PM Share 1 minute ago, ChrisF said:  Back then many of us started with a back pedal brake. That was fun ....   Fixie .... it scares me A fixie is only scary in the beginning when you forget you are fixed and the bike bucks you ... but you learn very quickly ChrisF 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hairy Posted Monday at 06:37 PM Share 15 minutes ago, Kenty said: 😉🫡🚴🚴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 ... I would say from experience at least fit a front brake .... when the chain snaps you are left with only the soles of your shoes on the tar or your front tyre to slow yourself down. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kenty Posted Monday at 06:42 PM Share 5 minutes ago, Hairy said: A fixie is only scary in the beginning when you forget you are fixed and the bike bucks you ... but you learn very quickly 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 .. ChrisF and Hairy 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kenty Posted Monday at 06:44 PM Share 10 minutes ago, ChrisF said:  Back then many of us started with a back pedal brake. That was fun ....   Fixie .... it scares me 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...🙈🙈😆🤣🤣 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hairy Posted Monday at 06:45 PM Share Just now, Kenty said: 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...🙈🙈😆🤣🤣 Have you learnt to "relax" your legs yet and "freewheel" while clipped in? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kenty Posted Monday at 06:47 PM Share 8 minutes ago, Hairy said: I would say from experience at least fit a front brake .... when the chain snaps you are left with only the soles of your shoes on the tar or your front tyre to slow yourself down. 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 .. Hairy and ChrisF 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hairy Posted Monday at 06:49 PM Share @Kenty so how did you convert a Giant OCR 3 frame into a fixie? Are you running a magic gear ratio? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kenty Posted Monday at 06:49 PM Share 2 minutes ago, Hairy said: Have you learnt to "relax" your legs yet and "freewheel" while clipped in? 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.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kenty Posted Monday at 06:56 PM Share Just now, Hairy said: @Kenty so how did you convert a Giant OCR 3 frame into a fixie? Are you running a magic gear ratio? 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....🙈😆🤣😆🫡🚴🚴 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kenty Posted Monday at 06:58 PM Share Just now, Kenty said: 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....🙈😆🤣😆🫡🚴🚴  Hairy and NotSoBigBen 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hairy Posted Monday at 07:08 PM Share 5 minutes ago, Kenty said:  Nice bike, but given this is not a bike with horizontal drop out I would honestly run the front and rear brakes to avoid the risk of failure with the current SS setup, and once you see some wear in the chain, your tolerances will be worse with more risk of failure. I have gone full circle with ghetto setups running SS and when you get a proper SS frame the difference in wheel security and ride feel with proper tension is night and day.... and our daily commute loop was 50km, in rain, wind or shine in CT. Something like the ROOK One is a good buy to get started on. https://rookcycles.com/collections/new-bikes-in-stock/products/rook-one-the-emerald Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hairy Posted Monday at 07:09 PM Share Or go a little larger  https://rookcycles.com/collections/new-bikes-in-stock/products/rook-race-2-matt-metallic-blue Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hairy Posted Monday at 07:14 PM Share This is my poor neglected GT Meatball that has seen very little to no action since working from home    Edited Monday at 07:16 PM by Hairy justinafrika, Maknash and mikkelz 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisF Posted Tuesday at 02:00 AM Share 7 hours ago, Kenty said: 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 ..  Sounds like you are ready to become a delivery bike pilot in NY .... justinafrika 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kenty Posted Tuesday at 04:55 AM Share 2 hours ago, ChrisF said:  Sounds like you are ready to become a delivery bike pilot in NY .... 🙈🙈🤣🤣No ..not quite. ..I'm WAY TOO SLOW for that ...😆🫡 ChrisF 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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