Larry Strung wrote:
>
>I am after the groups advice and consensus again. This time
>regarding the ethics of drilling forks and seat stay brace for
>brakes on a track bike.
Ethics?
>I have a mid-eighties Bianchi track bike (Columbus 3-tubes) that is
>basically a virgin, being bought a couple of years ago by yours
>truly from a dealer who had it nos. I've used it on my trainer, and
>on a couple of road rides. I was going to use it on the track, in
>an attempt to join our local racers in their weekly summer series.
>A crash on the track last summer (on a different bike) has lead me
>to re-think this path, and I am now tempted to drill the fork and
>seat stay brace for brakes.
The seat stay bridge is tricky, it's easy to go offcenter...but you really don't need a rear brake on a fixed-gear bike anyway.
Drilling the fork is pretty easy. It's best to remove the fork from
the frame and use a drill press, but if you've got a good eye you can
also do it freehand. Make sure that there's enough reach for the
brake you plan to use...some track bikes have _very_ tight clearance.
>Will I be spoiling a perfectly good track bike?
Certainly not.
>Alternatively, how much would I effect the geometry and handling of
>the bike if I bought a road fork to substitute for the track fork?
>The trail would be reduced with the road fork, and the rake
>increased slightly (by the amount that the road fork would be taller
>than the track fork).
>
>The crown is quite shallow on the track fork, which also makes me a
>little nervous about it's strength after drilling it.
forks never break there, it's the strongest part of the fork.
>There are lots of couriers riding around Toronto on track bikes
>(with and without brakes), so drilling the crown is common. That
>still might not make it right.
This is a technical issue, not a moral/ethical one.
Sheldon "Front Brake" Brown
Newtonville, Massachusetts
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