Technical & Reference Section > Tech and Restoration
Birmingham WHEELS Pro
MartyC:
--- Quote from: dinglem on May 02, 2016, 05:55 PM ---From above as pictured it's 18.75inches.
--- End quote ---
Not too bad size wise and definitely old school!
Definitely one of my fav frames for it's uniqueness and style plus I have fond memories of my visits the Birmingham Wheels track, hanging out with and chatting to Andy Patterson on the concrete track and having him show me a few speed jumping moves and having a little jumping session with him!
dinglem:
It will be interesting when I add a reasonably tall seatpost for the Brighton ride; I imagine with that seatpost tube angle it is going to be quite a way back. It's a clever way of producing a longer frame without adding extra tubing (and hence weight). I have been after a Pro for many years so I am well chuffed with this. Due to the size I am building it to ride rather than look at. When I was visiting the WHEELS track BITD one of their riders let me ride the track on his bike; I vividly remember it having red detailing and red Skyways, and since that day I have always thought I would end up recreating that ride. Can't recall who it was but I know Big Trev and Clint Matthews both raced on Skyways at certain times.
As well as my red Skyways I've got an unused pair of red Spencer rims :Great_Britain: and some nice hubs as a back up (might use both so one for 'best' and one to ride), and I have an original Tange 125 headset in red ready to fit, WHEELS race bars, a lightly polished Pat Pending Tuf Neck stem, black and white Akron grips, rare and long (180) Hanabishi OPC, black ACS Stoker pedals, red Shimano Dx seatpost, large (46T) black Yes! Racing chainring, red Jam Buttie flex fighter and clamp.... Lots already ready for the build. Function over form at this stage I think.
dinglem:
...and of course the original black on white pads should look mega!
dinglem:
Thought i'd add a few pics of the parts I have gathered for the Pro. These are mainly for the London to Brighton ride and I want to try to get this together as soon as I can so I can try it out with a few training runs and get it set up as best I can. I've gone for a black and white theme to go with the original pearl white paint, with red accents.
I have had the new 46T Yes! Racing chainring anno'd red, and I have also decided to use another ROE Whale tail chain tensioner on the drive side only - hoping this will alleviate any chain slippage issues during the ride. Last thing i'd want. I have these chain tensioners on a few of my other builds as I remember them from BITD, and I absolutely love them. I have had this anno'd to match the chainring. I also had an odd pair of Spencer rims (one blue, one gold) so I had those done at the same time :Great_Britain: Not sure whether these will be going on yet as I am seriously considering using skinnies for the ride to lessen roll resistance.
[ Attachment: You are not allowed to view attachments ]
[ Attachment: You are not allowed to view attachments ]
I've managed to find an original Tange 125 headset, so that will be going on too.
[ Attachment: You are not allowed to view attachments ]
Seatpost is a Shimano DX item which was very rough when I got it, but it has now been polished up and looks great, and I have a red decal for that. Spider is a polished Bullseye item which has been drilled slightly to accept a OPC. I have sourced a rare 180mm Hanabishi crank for this build too. I am hoping the longer crank length and 46T chainring will work for me on such a long ride. Haven't decided on the freewheel size yet though.
[ Attachment: You are not allowed to view attachments ]
Seat post clamp and flex-fighter are red Jam Butties :daumenhoch:
I have had a very nice lightly polished 'Pat Pending' Tuf Neck stem sitting around for a while so that will be going on also.
[ Attachment: You are not allowed to view attachments ]
dinglem:
Bars are original WHEELS race items, and I have an original padset for it also.
(the top bars are brazed WHEELS Mini items which I have had rechromed at the same time).
[ Attachment: You are not allowed to view attachments ]
[ Attachment: You are not allowed to view attachments ]
As I have on my National Pro in blue, I have hunted down a super-rare black and white pair of Akron grips for this. I just love the way they look.
[ Attachment: You are not allowed to view attachments ]
Pedals - well I have been hunting for a pair of ACS Stoker pedals for as long as I can remember, and trawling through the For Sale section on here a while back I found an old post advertising a black pair. I messaged the guy and the original sale had fallen through so I threw out and offer and got them. They're lovely - perfectly black. The end caps are missing but have been replaced by some reflective decals which I didn't like in the pictures, but having now seen them I have changed my mind as they are very very well made. For the ride at least they will be staying put.
These really are lush pedals.
[ Attachment: You are not allowed to view attachments ]
[ Attachment: You are not allowed to view attachments ]
So that just leaves me thinking about brakes and a seat. I have a pair of red Tech-2's which I am considering. I have always been curious about them having never ridden with a pair before. I'll see whether they work with the WHEELS bars and see if I like the look/feel of them. I also need to make the final call on skinnies or regular sized rims and then select the calipers accordingly. People who have done the L2B before have advised fitting a front brake as well as the rear so I am going to go ahead with that I think.
Seat will most likely be something comfy considering the 54mile distance..... Might put and old school seat cover on it to maintain the overall look. I've also got a few Mirage race plates kicking about so one of those will be going on also, as well as perhaps a matching rear brake guard.
Hoping to get this all together in the next month or so - i'll be sure to post up some more pictures as it goes together.
Navigation
[0] Message Index
[#] Next page
[*] Previous page
Go to full version