[T-CON]

I have this old road bike sitting around and would like to convert it to ss/fixed. It has almost horizontal drop-outs but the are REALLY shallow.

picture

So, the question is what to do. This is an "on the cheap" project. Should a machine out the dropout to the full depth of the drop out casting?

Thanks
Ted

 

[FatTireFred]

yes..

 

[racerx]

Yes

I did that myself. I used a drill (don't recall the bit size as I am at work) and it was pretty easy. Drilled two holes in each drop out then used a file to clean it up.

 

[tubafreak]

You can drill that, but if you use a router bit (one designed for metal) you'll have a better time, they're designed for lateral cuting, drill bits are not (as I've found out the hard way).

 

[dburns]

Should a machine out the dropout to the full depth of the drop out casting?

In a heartbeat. Those are nice dropouts. A drill, hacksaw and file would see the job done quickly and cheaply.