Comments on: When every bike looks like a project…

By: step through sizing / brake routing - Page 3

step through sizing / brake routing - Page 3 — Wed, 19 Sep 2012 05:53:57 +0000

[...] [...]

By: AlexWetmore

AlexWetmore — Wed, 19 May 2010 16:48:36 +0000

Ben — Trigger shifter. The Alfine trigger shifter is really nice. I didn”t notice any issues with shifting once moving it to exposed cable. The chainstay cable housing stop is in the wrong place on 99% of bikes for having exposed cable though.

John — If you modify your frame I”d be interested in seeing the final results. The Trek is closer to good already, it seems like just making a slightly taller fork would do the job.

By: John

John — Wed, 19 May 2010 14:55:46 +0000

Thanks for that tip, Alex. Fortunately, the Trek is a step-thru, not a mixte. Here’’s a pic before the Nexus 8, dynamo front, lights, and huge Wald basket:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/thingsofdotnature/2436887028/

That ought to make the mitering a tad easier!

Seems like the chainglider is a good compromise. I”ll buy one for her to try out.

By: Ben

Ben — Wed, 19 May 2010 14:37:37 +0000

Are you using a rapid fire shifter or the twist for the NExus? I noticed the un-housed cable along the downtube, has the shifting performed the same as completely housed?

I”m thinking about removing some of the housingwith my alfine/triger shifter on a Kogswell P/R

By: AlexWetmore

AlexWetmore — Wed, 19 May 2010 14:20:47 +0000

Oh, and if you do this John I”ll say that mitering the mixte stays is the hardest part. I was shooting for a bit longer top tube length, but nibbling away to get all of the miters right caused me to eat up 1cm. If I were doing this again I”d shoot for removing less top tube than you plan on.

By: AlexWetmore

AlexWetmore — Wed, 19 May 2010 14:19:31 +0000

Fred — A roller brake isn”t a bad idea. The bike already is getting pretty porky, but it would solve some other issues. I”ve done the spring loaded fender mount before, but it works best with a through drilled bridge and this one has a threaded hole. If I moved the bridge it wouldn”t be so far as to cause wheel removal issues, I”d just like to get the spacers down to 5mm instead of 18mm.

John — The chainglider makes sort of a light wooshing sound. It isn”t silent, it isn”t loud. It is quieter with a heavy lube, and I”ll be applying one once the final buildup of the bike occurs.

By: John

John — Wed, 19 May 2010 13:55:27 +0000

Great idea, Alex!

Now I”m also tempted to take my wife’’s step-thru to the table. The older Trek 420L’’s have similar issues to the Soma: steep seat angle, long reach, too low bb with 584mm wheels, etc… this is a brilliant solution!

Is the chainglider noisy at all? Seems like it would be…

Cheers,
John

By: Fred Blasdel

Fred Blasdel — Wed, 19 May 2010 06:48:00 +0000

You could always try mounting a roller brake too — the rear ones aren”t too bad (the front ones have a really low limiter).

Don”t move that chainstay bridge! I had tried to convince you before to modify the dropout to make it easier to get the wheel out without deflating the tire, but the answer was right there — replace the bigger spacer with a spring! I”d been planning on doing the same on my Kogswell, maybe we can do it at the same time.

The noodle on the front brake looks pretty close to the rack stay — would a Cane Creek Direct Curve fit? That would have the cable housing come nearly right down the middle.

By: AlexWetmore

AlexWetmore — Tue, 18 May 2010 16:42:32 +0000

Oh, and I had to switch to V-brakes on the front because the crown to rim distance is a bit longer on the new fork. That was necessary to keep the original geometry (my plan before deciding to move the head tube too). A higher offset fork increases the tire to crown distance if you keep the same axle to crown distance.

By: AlexWetmore

AlexWetmore — Tue, 18 May 2010 16:41:30 +0000

The brake levers are designed for V-brakes or canti/caliper brakes. They have an option to select between them.

I may put V-brakes on the rear too, but it isn”t too high of a priority. I don”t really like the long reach caliper brakes and canti brakes aren”t a good option on a mixte (heel clearance).

I”m not a stickler for having the same types of brakes front and rear.