She wants to ride l'Eroica

So the Carlton was finished in time for l'Eroica and performed beautifully. There's still a bit of work to do on the polishing of the wheel rims etc, but overall it came out great.

The only problem in pre-Eroica testing was the brake levers. I'd fitted some Weinmanns with black hoods that I'd picked up from a bike jumble, but my wife just couldn't get enough pressure on them to make braking comfortable or particularly effective (!).

In the end I refitted the original Weinmanns with suicide levers that came with the bike in the hope that she would find these easier, particularly on the steep descents on the strade. This turned out to be the best solution we could hope for because she said at the end of l'Eroica she wouldn't have made it without that option. It meant refitting the Brooks bar tape though, which is a monumental pain in the ass as anyone who's used leather bar tape will know.

The finishing touches were a Brooks saddle and bag combo, which like a chump, I left at home when I packed her bike bag for Italy - doh! I also added a nice chrome pump.

I'll try and take some better pictures at some point. All in all though she loves it, which makes it the perfect project for me.