The R3V Bicycle Thread

[leegf]

Anyone who can master downtube friction shifters is the man! It might surprise you that converting from down tube shifters to Ergo/STI might not be as easy as you think. Its hard to find the cable stops that go where the shifters used to be these days. The '90s ergo stuff works well, but the shifter/brake hoods are uncomfortable (ironic since they are ergopower...) Getting parts for them is even harder. The hub cassette body is different from the 9/10/11 speed hubs. I'd say bite the bullet and upgrade to Record 9 speed. Its bombproof. I rode 9 spd Chorus for a decade. The stuff would not die. The group outlasted 5 frames, and was on its 6th when I sold the bike. I went to Record 10 when I got a new frame that was black, and wanted an all black bike.

Will

Thanks. My next question: do you know when Record stopped being offered in silver? The bike is a classic steel frame, so even if I were to modernize the drivetrain, I'd still like to avoid black (or worse, carbon) components.

[BlackbirdM3]

Thanks. My next question: do you know when Record stopped being offered in silver? The bike is a classic steel frame, so even if I were to modernize the drivetrain, I'd still like to avoid black (or worse, carbon) components.

'99 or 2000 was the last year of polished Record. Nice stuff. I have a set of aluminum record cranks sitting in a box. The square taper bottom brackets are some of the best ever made. I still run them. The last of the aluminum Record is really really elegant and very well made. Better than the carbon stuff that followed it (Although, the later carbon Chorus parts are actually better than the Record stuff. A common upgrade is to put the Chorus G springs in the Record shifters after the Record ones break.) I really can't say enough good things about the last of the Record 9 speed stuff.

Will

[leegf]

'99 or 2000 was the last year of polished Record. Nice stuff. I have a set of aluminum record cranks sitting in a box. The square taper bottom brackets are some of the best ever made. I still run them. The last of the aluminum Record is really really elegant and very well made. Better than the carbon stuff that followed it (Although, the later carbon Chorus parts are actually better than the Record stuff. A common upgrade is to put the Chorus G springs in the Record shifters after the Record ones break.) I really can't say enough good things about the last of the Record 9 speed stuff.

Will

Thanks! That's good feedback.

2 past builds that I regret getting rid of;specifically the '84 U.S Olympic Raleigh.

Damn, I would regret getting rid of this, too.

[LateFan]

CX season starts tonight! Supposed to rain too - perfect!


I used to ride in Seattle with friction shifters on my steel Gitane. As they wore out and got sloppy, it was like an automatic transmission - as you accelerated from a light, the cable tension would pull on the shifter lever and would slowly rotate and shift one gear up, then another.... It would go up through about 4 gears by itself. I sort of liked it. Just couldn't crank those thumb screws tight enough.

But once I rode an ergo bike, I was never going to do that again - reaching down riding one-handed in the rain, next to a bus, with a sewer grate coming up fast....no way.

[LateFan]

Rolling Thunder - Missoula MT

[LateFan]

My old Gitane in Georgetown / DC when my son took it to school out there.



Still going strong - my wife's older brother bought it new in 1973 when he was a teenager. Been in the family every since. Original Stronglight crankset.

[LateFan]

recumbent wut?

[BlackbirdM3]

After a year of sitting in the corner after being beaten up by the refrigerator and some M3 wheels during an earthquake, my race bike is back with a new toptube and downtube. This thing is just stupid fast. I was making 20 mph into a 20 mph headwind after not riding it for a year (the geometry is steep so it works different muscles in the quads) and not riding for a month. Downwind I was doing high 30s spun out in the 53-11 (on level ground). I've never ridden the bike with fast wheels on it before. Holy crap, this thing moves. Its so much faster than my Litespeed Vortex.



Will

[LateFan]

Looks sharp. Downward Dawg stem! But then your drops aren't down on the tire - must be a good-sized frame?

Meanwhile, our wednesday night beer can cx races are going really well. 96 entries the first two weeks, 103 this week. This one was at a posh Scottish links golf course for the first time - really hilly, no trees. Grass is slow to ride on, then there were steep run-ups, hills, sand bunkers, paved sprints. It was brutal they said, but everyone loved it.

People sipping beers on the terrace as bikes went by, instead of pissing behind a tree and changing clothes out in the dust. There was a beer cart out on the course. They let the organizers use golf carts to set up the course - all very nice. Kind of great that a golf course owner would support cross-pollination with crazy bikers in striped socks.

It's a fun, community sport - hotshot fast guys, women, kids, masters, disabled people. It's really something to watch. It looks so hard - all out for an hour.







I'm told this woman is a national-caliber paralympian. She's there every week running up those hills.

[LateFan]

Last week was a dust bowl...

[BlackbirdM3]

"Looks sharp. Remember what the old mechanic said..."It ain't the bike, it's the pump." "

Yes and no. I've often thought this, but not in this case. The Tsunami is noticeably faster in every respect than my Litespeed Vortex. The Vortex is more comfortable for long rides, but the Tsunami is much faster in every way.

Nice cycloX pics. I might give CX a go this winter with the mtb.

Will

[LateFan]

Was just teasin'! Yeah, the balance between comfort, distance, and speed.

A lot of mtn bikes out there - seems a good way to try it vs buying yet another specialized bike. The newer cx bikes are coming with a single 42 in front, which makes them way less useful as daily commuter / knockaround bikes.

The disc brakes are crazy good, especially when it gets really dusty or wet.

My son's crank is a double Shimano with cx gears - can't remember numbers now, but they're different than road, and closer together in number. You never need full speed 52-11 gears, and you don't really need tiny baby gears - at that point it's faster to get off and run.

This week's course - it was about 1.5 miles x 9 laps in 50 minutes.

[155///MPH]

New Bike Day

Picked up a new ride to replace my broken TCR SL. The shop gave me a great deal on last year's Propel. Amazingly close ride feel to the TCR.

[LateFan]

looks fast sitting still!

[M-technik-3]

My old Gitane in Georgetown / DC when my son took it to school out there.

[ATTACH]100763[/ATTACH]

Still going strong - my wife's older brother bought it new in 1973 when he was a teenager. Been in the family every since. Original Stronglight crankset.

Reminds me of my old PX-10