Mad Cat had some time over the winter to take on a project bike, so we sought out an older frameset that would be worthy of restoration and conversion to a fixed gear road bike. A customer brought in this old no-name frame with some pretty cool lugs that we thought would work perfectly. The frame is old and heavy, but the lines were clean, no braze-ons and it was a reasonable size for conversion.

Learn About Her History

We then called around to see if any powder coaters in town would be willing to throw it in with their next job and give this old girl a fresh look. A guy in Rocklin said he'd was getting ready to paint a racecar frame and could do up our fixie for $75 in a gloss black. We took him up on the offer, dropped off the frame and began our wishlist for parts.

Here's our build kit:
-Soma Major Taylor Bars
-Soma track wheelset
-Surly track cog and lockring.
-Sugino 170mm track crankset
-Brooks b-17 honey brown saddle
-Brooks honey brown leather bar-wrap and Cinelli gel inserts.
-Nitto 100mm quill stem
-Tange-Levin 1" headset
-Sealed cartridge bottombracket
-Alloy seatpost
-Track pedals
-Continental Grand prix 4000 tires (brown tread)
-and a brand new seat binder bolt! :-)

After powder coating, we faced the BB and HS, and began the build.

HISTORY
Since we've finished "Project Fixie", we've spoken to the person who gave us the frame and he was able to get in contact with the person who originally owned her back in the 80's. This person sent us an email and here's what he had to say:

E-MAIL SUBJECT LINE: "I want my bike back!"
"Project Fixie, aka, the Purple People Eater. This was my first '10 speed' bike. -Built by my brothers - by decree of my mother. It was given to me for my 10th birthday....march 1980. I road this bike for several years, then changed it into a fixed gear, no brakes, painted it purple, and i road it to highschool for 2 years. Everyday, my goal was to ride all the way to school with no hands, without stopping, including crossing watt avenue. I made it most days. I also got into road cycling and racing. And while I eventually road a basso gap and raced as a Junior and Men's cat 2 by age of 17, I still road the purple people eater as a fixed gear to school to put on miles for the racing season.

When I moved away to college, I gave the PPE to my childhood friend, Ron. Ron gave it to you. You restored it, and tricked it out. And, as a fixed gear. Seeing the photos of Project Fixie brings the most kickass smile to my face. Now I want it back. And I'm not half kidding. What's the price?? And if I cant buy it, at least let me ride it once around the parking lot.....I'll drive up from Oakland just to do that.

Nice work. Thanks.

Rob
Oakland, CA.

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If you'd like a custom Mad Cat fixie, contact us. This whole process took about 3-4 weeks. Finding the right frame takes the most time, but if you've got something laying around, we can set you up within a few weeks.

Anything else? Call/Email us... :-)

Notes:
Our “Basic Tune-up” will address the needs of most bikes. We’ll adjust shifting, brakes, headset, hubs and bottom bracket (if applicable). We’ll also clean and lube your chain, true your wheels, wipe down the bike and take it for a test ride. If you are purchasing any parts or accessories, let us know and we’ll usually install those free of charge during a tune-up or overhaul.

Labor Prices do not include any parts needed

We are pleased to be your bicycle shop of choice, and we hope to make your
cycling experience a purrfect one!