Gazelle Champion Mondial road build

I've been collecting bits to build a touring bike for a couple of years now, but recently my partner was offered a paid research PhD. in New Zealand. This means touring Europe is off the cards (although touring NZ is very much on), and it also means I've ended up with two frames and enough bits to build a decent road bike for this summer.

The starting point is my Champion Mondial, which I've been running as a singlespeed. I chose not to build up the touring frame as the CM is more fun to ride, and the tourer needs a bit of attention from a framebuilder which'll cost money, and more importantly, time. Here it is in 'warts-and-all' glory with mudguards and pump clip.

The whole build will be a hodge-podge of parts - most of which I have harvested from other bikes and then sold on what I didn't need. Drivetrain will be late 80s/early 90s Shimano Deore 3x7 with some odd old Shimano ratcheting shifters, brakes and levers are Shimano 600 (not pictured, they're in a box somewhere...), with headset and seatpost being Campagnolo Record (which I also have in a box somewhere...). The wheels are 32h Deore hubs on MA2 rims - I've also got a pair of 36h Shimano Santé hubs (in a box) which I might build up since the hubs are so handsome. And I've got some M520 clipless pedals somewhere, too.

I'm not sure where to go with tyres. Currently it has 28c Randonneurs which fit under the guards... just. I would like to fit Grand Bois Cerf tyres, but I don't think the 28cs would fit as Randos are narrow for their stated size... perhaps the 26cs would be a better choice. Or I could always go with the larger tyres and just not run mudguards - it is a weekend bike after all. Put the Randos and guards back on if it rains...

Hmm well, I've hit the first minor snag - fitting a touring triple on the old BB - I need a longer spindle for the granny ring to clear the chainstay (just). I want to ride it on Wednesday though, so I'll just keep it as a double. 44/34 on 11-28 cassette gives enough range now that I won't actually be carrying any weight on it. Took it for a test ride with the drivetrain all set up - the ratchet-return shifters are really nice to use, far better than plain friction ones.

Started cleaning up my Shimano 600 levers. The hoods are filthy - washing up liquid didn't touch them so I tried toothpaste (Euthymol, specifically, which is lovely and pink) and an old toothbrush - a 'before and after' shown below. They came up minty. I've also cleaned up an old Campagnolo Record headset which will replace the Shimano 600 one (I would keep it but it requires a star-shaped proprietary tool to tighten which I don't own and can't be bothered to fabricate).

Longer test ride tomorrow - 25 mile loop in rolling countryside, plus a 12% that's a bastard when singlespeed.

great toothpaste tip! Will try that tonight on my hoods. I'll be using Colgate...

Crap photo the second:

Took it on my usual 25-mile loop today (couldn't do it last week due to terrible hangover). Apart from the front derailer coming loose within the first 500 yards, necessitating a walk home and re-starting the ride, it all went well.

A couple of observations:

1. Bars could go up a bit. I've got a 70mm Technomic but I reckon that's too short - I'm searching for a 100mm one.
   
2. Saddle nose needs to go down a bit.
   
3. 28c Randos with mudguards designed for 23c was a bit optimistic... occasionally the front mech will shove the guard into the wheel, so the guard needs more trimming to clear it.
   
4. The gearing's about right for me. In the future I think I could do with a smaller granny for really long climbs, and the derailer can definitely take it.
   

Tried the 70mm Technomic - bars are now level with the seatpost. There's still about 4cm until the max. insertion line... these stems are ridiculously tall.

This morning I wrapped the bars in some old tape and took it out for a little 5 mile spin. Far, far more comfortable. I was worried that the short stem would make the bike twitchy, but it hasn't - with the 100mm stem my hands naturally fell just behind the hoods, but with this stem it feels totally natural to be on the hoods/in the drops - so the overall distance from the steering axis to my hands remains unchanged. I'll take it out on a longer test tomorrow.

In an ideal world I could do with a shorter TT, but this bike is a 64x58 and I don't think I could find a shorter TT without going down a frame size, which would consequently lower the bars. A custom frame is too much money at the moment (although a professional bike fitting isn't).

Looks a bit weird though; it has a whiff of Sheldon about it... or perhaps a stayer bike. I think I will paint the stem black - black stem/silver seatpost is pretty classic on 80s bikes.

edit - how long before this appears in anti?

Don't forget about handlebar reach as well, some bar have a massive 115mm reach whether some have 75mm reach.

Check the Bontrager SSR VR-C compact drop for a shorter reach of 85mm, or the Nitto Noodle classic bar at 95mm.

As for crankset, go for a compact, a much bigger jump between each chain to make a difference.

Bike fitting - talk to Scherrit of Bike Whisperer, I think it's best to consult him first before making anymore change.

Looks a bit weird though; it has a whiff of Grant Petersen about it...

fixed.

Yeah the current bars are Cinelli Campione del Mondo 63 which are about average in terms of reach - somewhat difficult to measure but about 100mm (78mm according to something I just read... how are you supposed to measure them?). They're pretty narrow at 40cm. I meant to swap them for the 44cm bars on my old Dawes but I forgot and sold them along with it. I think with the current set-up my hand position is about right, so the only advantage of shorter-reach bars would be a longer (and therefore more aesthetically pleasing) stem. If I find the requisite components going cheap then I'll get them...

The Campagnolo two-bolt seatpost is a bastard to set up. I bought an aero Sh600 one very cheap, so that's coming in the post; this'll make it much easier to experiment with saddle angles.

I would go for the bike fitting but at £200 (when I get the spds on) that's twice what the frame cost... actually it's nearly as much as the cost of the whole bike. When I have some money, I'll do it.

Anyway, I took it out on my usual 25m ride early this morning and it felt very comfortable; probably the most comfortable ride I've ever been on, in fact. I shall take it on a longer 50m+ ride this weekend. I've no worries about doing my first century on this (this time next month).

Lovely build, and I have no problem believing that it's comfortable. Looks like just the thing I should have myself (190 cm with long legs). Please let me know if you ever sell that technomic; I have a 100 mm deluxe now that doesn't quite get me the position I'd like. As for noodles, I'v tried them, but they couldn't compensate for the stem all on their own. Other than that, very comfy, even if the reach is not that short.

Thanks for the kind words! Incidentally how tall is your Deluxe - 195mm? I know it's not quite as tall as the Standard, but mine's not at the max. insertion line (not even near it, really). PM'ed you!

Last night I unpacked my old SKS full mudguards and tried them out on the frame by attaching with cable-ties. Surprisingly, they fitted over the 28c Randos - with far more clearance than the clip-on ones, in fact, which are constantly rubbing and squeaking. I just need to get some P-clips to attach them properly. If I was to ever get the frame resprayed, I would get a framebuilder to braze on some eyelets. I was worried about the lack of proper mudguards in the long-term, but I feel much better about it now. Good stuff.

The clip-on one have a max clearance of 28c (if it's the XL version, there's only two sizes).

The full mudguard tend to come in various sizes, sound like your is the 45mm version.

Ah sorry, I meant that there is more clearance between the mudguard and the tyre underneath the brake, or in other words, the clip-on mudguard is 'thicker'. Probably due to the slightly silly design whereby the thickest part of the mudguard (the joint between the two halves) is situated in the area where it needs to be thinnest (under the brake).

Thought I should update this since I've been doing a lot of riding/fettling.

Shimano 600 aero seatpost, Rolls, Deda Piega bars (made a massive difference to comfort), bar-end shifters, Jagwire cables, Rivendell Ruffy Tuffy 28c tyres. Oh, and I weighed it too - 10.5kg. Not bad considering the enormous frame. The only further change I might make is a wider 7sp cassette and a triple chainring (the derailleurs can handle it).

It's becoming more and more of a long-distance bike - done two centuries on it in supreme comfort. I've also got a massive bikepack.pl saddlepack, so with the addition of a bar-bag, it'll make a good fast tourer, perhaps. Lejog before I leave for NZ? Hmm...

edit - lol at the picture. It still looks like a stretched bike when you take a photo from side-on.

Looks very comfortable! Would you mind telling me if those bars are the same as these? They seem to be listed as having "anatomic" shape to the drops, do yours as well (look more like RHM shape -- or is that something that applies to all the deda bars)? Confused.

Them's the ones, they are RHM shape; 46cm width.

I would say this though - they're an absolute bastard to fit if you have a quill stem rather than an open-face stem. The curvature at the tops is so tight that I had to jam the quill open (which I didn't enjoy) and I still scratched the bars quite badly (I sanded them down with some emery paper and the scratches only went as deep as the grain of the anodising, so no worries about notch-sensitivity and subsequent bar-snapping).

Thanks, still a bit confused as to whether the ones I linked to are anatomic or rhm, does seem to be different shapes... But they are relatively cheap, so might try them and see (and could probably just return them as well). Waiting for a more classic var from planet x now (3t podium), which have a stated reach of 80 mm - but with trad shape they put the levers quite a bit further down. At 12€ + tax they are a steal, and free shipping since I'm getting a pro chrome stem as well (but pro chrome and compact bars - how original). Anyways, thanks!

Could you send me a link to where you bought those handlebars? Still haven't figured this out!

Just got them off of Wiggle:

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/deda-piega-handlebar/?referid=googwig&utm_source=Google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=RTC_deda&utm_adgroup=MS_Deda_Piega&utm_term=deda+piega+phrase&gclid=CILI2OewwbICFSPHtAodw38A_w

The description says they are anatomic - no mention of 'RHM'. I think the terms are used interchangeably, in this case.

Looks very comfortable! Would you mind telling me if those bars are the same as these? They seem to be listed as having "anatomic" shape to the drops, do yours as well (look more like RHM shape -- or is that something that applies to all the deda bars)? Confused.

http://www.bikebaron.com/shop/pc/Deda-Piega-Anatomic-Bicycle-Handlebar-40-x-26-0-Black-4p1571.htm

So you reckon that setting the bar that high is due to the saddle angle?

Was the rear cassette originally 6 speed?

Surprised to see this again.

The cassette was always 7sp; what I meant was that I could go with a wider 7sp as it's currently something like 13-28, but my long-cage derailleur can take up to 34t. Still haven't sorted out a wider BB spindle so it's still a double rather than a triple. I would go for half-step plus granny were I to do it again, but I'm moving in a couple of weeks (incidentally the bike is for sale - PM me as I haven't finished my classifieds listing yet). I have acquired an FW Evans touring frame which will be the basis of my next road build, anyway.

The only thing that has changed is the saddle, which is now a Specialized Romin
http://imageshack.us/a/img266/2892/p1140802.jpg

A compact/triple would work more to your favour, there are some good budget compact that would look smart with the frame such as this;

http://www.sjscycles.co.uk/alloy-compact-double-square-taper-chainset-50-34t-170mm-prod13441/

Nah, there's no point in buying new no-name 170mm cranks when I already have 175mm Deore XT, is there?