Marcootsee's self-indulgence odissey (aka this bike will be the last one)

Big approve, very vibey. The expedition upgrade kit for the Bagman is worth buying if you’re bike has suitable eyelets

First day out with the Carradice, I'm 100% sold on this one.

I went with my partner to her parents house for lunch, bringing both our cycling kits in the bag. Right after that, we changed and took our "civilian" clothes around a 45k gravel loop.

Good weather, good roads, good puppers and a perfect jar of black cherry marmalade to finish it off.

I'm gonna buy the addictional struts for some gravel action and probably the front Carradice handlebar bag, since the actual one is not waterproof and really not suitable for anything off-road related.

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Also, the parts bin is ready for the bike box in the first page, which I'm gonna collect this evening.

I still need the wheels and the rear derailleur, which o borrowed to a friend who conveniently managed to snap the b-tension screw arm just yesterday.

Hopefully the bike will be ready in a week or so

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Well

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Here it is. 22" size BMC La Cabra. I've found this frameset here on lfgss (thanks @Jackness!) in march and, considering the geometry, the price and my parts bin, it was too good to be left there. A friend of mine helped me bringing it here in Italy, and i cannot thank him enough.

This kind of monstercross is not that common here in europe, let alone with modern mtb standards and in this size, without going the custom route. The paint, the stickers and the general finish are really high quality. I'm gonna build it with a "better leave the scale at home" approach, with meaty rubber, a dropper seatpost, racks and a wide gear range. Althought the Fairlight is already a very capable bike, this is the one i'll be looking forward to use in the alps and everywhere a full suspension is too much and a gravel bike is too little.

A lot of the parts i'll use will come from a hardtail 29er, except a wide Spank dropbar and the brake levers. Altough i'd like to buy the new GRX 12 speed brifters when they will come out, i don't think the astronomical price could be completely justified. In the meantime, i'll be plenty ok with TRP RRL levers and Hy/rd calipers.

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In the last few days i got the missing pieces to complete the Brompton.

First things first, i changed the most functional/useful parts: grips, pedals, seatpost and roller wheels. With all those things combined, the comfort and the practicality of the bike improved noticeably.

These grips are truly as ugly as they come, but compared to the stock ones offer a much wider area to rest the hands and I can also grip them on the horns like some fake dropbar levers. On such a little bike, the increased reach and the multiple positions do really make a difference.

The pedals, also, are a welcome addition. With the simmetric and wider platform, not to mention all those real pins, are grippier and comfier under my big feet. The Eerdermetal pedal holder is also a lovely thing, that makes everything faster and easier.

The longer seatpost, at max extension and with the rails on the upper pentaclip position, is just high enough for me to pedal comfortably. It's now lighter, flexier and faster to extend, without the need of micro-adjusting it every time.

At last, these roller wheels are just a basic model from decathlon, large enough in diameter but a smidge too wide. Now i understand why a lot of third parties offer eazy wheels that slim. Anyway, I think I'll just get used to not smash my heels into them and to fold the bike carefully, to save the frame from bending.

In ten days my partner will probably get a second hand Brompton M3L, with a rear rack she doesn't want to keep on. I guess I'll give it a try! Right now I have to swap the hinge clamps with newer ones and add a couple of Eerdeer pieces, then it will be done for now.

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Not much to report, other than a little sense of guilt and oppression for having too many bikes/stuff and too little time to spend with them.

Friends were met, cities were explored, live shows were attended and a lot of food was consumed.

Also, my gf finally got the aforementioned Brommie (the white one).

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Back to the current projects, the BMC La Cabra is (for now, almost) done.

After a couple weeks of brainstoriming and headaches about the dropbar setup, i went in the opposite direction and fit some (unnecessary posh) parts from the bin. Ritchey Kyiote bars (from the Kona), Ergon Grips (a first for me, very good indeed) and some old Hope Tech 3/X2 brakes.

Contrary to any prediction, the bike exceeded all my expectations! I took it for a trail ride somewhere where i usually go with my full suspension, and the scare/fun factor turned up a notch. The combination of a very compact geometry and all the hardware usually designed for a heavier use (tires, brakes, dropper and wide bars) made a stupidly fun but at the same time capable machine. The only real limitation comes up in the fast techy sections, where the limits of the rigid fork and the short wheelbase make the bike unstable and very uncomfortable.

Considering the versatilty of the frame, more so now with these components, and the fact that it rides almost everywhere decently, i'm really satisfied of the outcome; the itch for a dropbar conversion has, for now, lowered considerably.

The only things missing right now are the front rack, a one up EDC steerer multitool and the dropper cable/actuator. I'm afraid this one is gonna be a keeper.

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Looks fun! What's the stack on this frame?

For future reference, i'm going to make a list here, as a memento, of the bikes i actually own and want to keep for the foreseeable future.

I'm doing this in the vain attempt to insert some kind of order and proposition for the future me, knowing that i could very well change my mind in a couple days. Well at least i'm trying

• Olmo Syntex: MGOOF, a placeholder for some nice components which will eventually end up on a custom frame, if i end up actually doing enough road riding to justify the expense.
  
• Fairlight Secan: gravel/long distance/flagship dropbar bike
  
• BMC LaCabra: stupid endeavors, touring and offroad when the fully is too much
  
• Geometron G16: full squish for bike park days and tech rides
  
• Brompton: general errands and everywhere in between, where a folding bike can be useful
  
• Bianchi Spillo: pub/beater with racks and basket, too cheap to steal and to purposeful to be left behind
  
  

Some bikes which have already been featured here will be moved on, because for the life of me i won't have dozens of pads, cables, tires and consumables steal all my free time.

684mm stack, 403mm reach. I can't recall the height of the spacers, but the stem is a +10/80mm.

Safe to say the bars are quite sky high, but that's fine by me :)

Lil green bike got some CAKE.

Really like the BMC, it almost feels like what the Dew should/wants to be. I don't like the drop bar look on it but this is great.

Thanks! Unfortunately the Dew is cursed with such a low bottom bracket that makes it almost unrideable (and I'm serious about that) in any sort of spirited manner. Switching to 700c didn't help much, since the clearance allows for something just a little bit taller.

In the end, although the Kona is a good bike and very capable for the money, I can't see a single scenario where the BMC could fall short in comparison.

Going out today for a 3 day small tour from Turin to Genoa.

The Fairlight is doing very well, but my girlfriend's bike not so much. I'll do a separate post about that bike in the near future, and I'll probably write something in the Touring thread when the trip will be over.

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bella marcoooooooooooooooo :D

Some random thoughts, after 250 km of mixed terrain riding, about the Carradice Camper Longflap:

Pros:

• Load it up like a bucket, with everything you’ll ever need, and you’d still have plenty of space.
  
• Get used to the laces, reject modernity and embrace tradition.
  
• Buy a couple of baguettes and discover how this loaf of bread is the perfect match for your culinary and bag-filling errands.
  
• Ride in tight spaces and door frames without the worry of getting hunged up like you’d do with traditional panniers.
  
• Remove the bag in a couple of seconds with the SQR system.
  
• Don’t bother with rain covers, you won’t need them.
  
  

Cons:

• As soon as you get off the bike and walk beside it, the bike will try in any way it can to lift the front wheel up and rotate around his updated new center of gravity.
  
• Being fixed in different points with the struts on the frame, you’re gonna miss any form of flex (and comfort) coming from your seatpost.
  
• As someone else already mentioned elsewhere, the Fairlight Secan has an undesirable tendency of wobbling when heavily loaded on the rear. This is much more noticeable as soon as you ride without your hands on the bars, even at lower speeds. Considering the usefuleness of no-handed riding, specially in long days, this is something to be aware of.
  
  

Overall, very satisfied with the product, especially when combined with the front handlebar bag.

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Not much happening, other than filling up the beater bike with groceries. Riding a loaded bike with a lot of stuff, knowing that 90% of the people would take the car for the same effort is pleasuring in a weird way

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Crossposting from the Brompton thread, let me introduce you the latest(ish) addition to the fleet. After a short ride on a friend's 6 speed bike, i started looking without too much hassle to find a decent second hand one. After a while, i stumbled upon this one, sold by a guy who bought it new in april and decided, after a couple of months, to upgrade to a T-Line (Y tho).

Right now i have transferred all the good stuff from my previous blue H2 (which I'm gonna sell soon) to this one (albeit i'm still missing a couple of finishing touches), i can't wait to load it up and ride some distance on it.

The shorter gear ratio is really an improvement, especially considering the fact that i'm gonna ride this bike like a "normal one", around gravel tracks and vertical elevation. I can't see myself ever getting rid of a Brompton, because it's versatility is really umatched.

I'm gonna depart in a couple weeks for a trip in northern/central Europe, hoping to ride it a lot and really make the most of it's folding abilities on the public transport services.

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Sold the Kona yesterday, to a chap that's gonna ride it from Nordkapp all the way down to Copenhagen. I'm really happy to have sold it to someone who will spend a ton of time riding it to the ground and taking it to some adventures that i can only dream of.

On a different note, the BMC is (pretty much) finished, and i couldn't be more satisfied. It weighs a ton, but once moving it glides without too much hassle, rolling around with his big rubber and wide bars. I still need to lower the dropper with a shim and adjust the front light mount, but i'm feeling very in line with the bike in general.

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As mentioned previously, i just came back from the trip in central europe with our Bromptons. The bikes performed well, with no major mechanicals (except a grinded indicator chain against a sidewall in a tight overtake). Some trivia:

• 12 days of travelling
  
• 1 crash in the middle of Paris at 5:30 AM (to catch an early train)
  
• 14 trains and 1 flixbus taken
  
• Places we've visited: Paris, Amsterdam, Zandaam, Haarlem, Zandvoort, Utrecht, Amersfoort, Den Haag, Delft, Rotterdam, Antwerpen, Bruxelles, Bruges, Gand
  
• 470 km in total (and a laughable total elevation)
  
• 6 different accomodations
  
• Eaten croissants: too many
  

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On another note, this monday i'm going to get the full suspension Nicolai rolling again, after 6 months of stop. Life got in the way, but i miss mountain biking too much.

The BMC now has all the previously mentioned things done, it's only missing a brake swap that i'm gonna do this monday (switching from those X2's to a couple of M7000's, to keep every bike in the stable with full Shimano stuff)

Looks like an awesome trip!

this monday i'm going to get the full suspension Nicolai rolling again

It took a full day of work, but the bike is as good as it's ever been. New brakes annd rotors, peeled out decals, new tubeless setup and a complete overhaul of the seatpost. Can't wait to go back riding some big stuff.

Also, i didn't manage to sort out the brakes for the BMC, but we're gonna get there eventually.

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Finally put some dirt on the bike. It's almost comical to see it next to a "classic" 29er (in Large size), but once you're on it everything make sense

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