Best cyclocross bike under £1000 and other CX chat

Apex+BB7 means you have an awful lot of lever throw before anything happens though.

The Travel Agent cuts ultimate power, but means that the brake bites much earlier in the lever movement, which makes it much more usable.

Dammit, which is better, the Hope V Twin or BB7?

I've got BB7s with Apex levers and not needed a Travel Agent. They are very sensitive to warped discs, as they have to be run one click away from rubbing.

This.

You need proper continuous cable outers etc blah blah blah

But ultimately they can be made to work just fine without kludges, especially if you have a shimano 'servo wave' STI leaver (5700, 6700, 7900 series)

Dammit, which is better, the Hope V Twin or BB7?

In my opinion the Hope setup, no question.

Howard has had better luck than me with the BB7s, although with Shimano levers rather than the SRAM ones which I used however.

I'd still go hydraulic.

The Shimano 105 for example is a noticeable improvement from the SRAM.

Tiagra's not too bad, on par with SRAM, and then Sora's awful.

the need for such an discussion is pathetic. this belongs in 1997

cable pull brakes?

Dammit

I have just been going through the parts for my new bike, I cannot find the brass cable locks that are part of the V Twins. Were yours already inside the rear end cover when you got the brakes? Did you install yours yourself or get some help?

I dont have a torx set to open up the rear end cover and check but cannot find the cable locks.

I've had much fun since i got this and if you fancy going SSCX then for the money I don't think the pompino can be touched
http://[url]http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7249/7045884755_946a58faf6_b.jpg IMG_9584 by cycleofaddiction71, on Flickr[/URL]

Hope responded early this morning to say the part i could not find is inside the brake units - though the instructions do say it would be bagged separately.

Panic over.

cable pull brakes?

yes, when got my first proper MTB in 1995 I had to mess around with
crap ritchey cantis for a while. spongy, erratic, weak. After that I just put
hydro rim brakes on all my bikes and haven't looked back.
just road bikes are stuck in the past.

Hope responded early this morning to say the part i could not find is inside the brake units - though the instructions do say it would be bagged separately.

Panic over.

As a Hope fanboy. I've found their brakes need less constructing than instructed. No need for bleeding after installation either.

Building up a single speed tubular wheel set for the upcoming season.

Considering either 32h Surly or Phil Wood hubs, depending on how flash I'm feeling, but not sure how to go on rims having no experience with tubs. Any recommendations? Do deep section rims really clear mud better?

why not try the new stans CX rims and go tubeless?

Tubs are superior to tubeless.

My view on equipment is to use what you can afford to trash, because it will get trashed eventually. For wheels I use Miche hubs because at £75 a pair knackering them out isn't too costly.

I use aluminium rims, as then I get some braking performance.

If you are interested in deep section tubs PX are doing a pair for £399 with disc hubs. Also have a rim brake track but you'll need pads for carbon. Price struck me as borderline disposable.

decadence

Damn you Howard.

With the new light carbon fork Neil, you'd have a reasonably light CX bike.

reasonably light.

reasonably.

Tubeless just seems a little bit of a compromise, especially for a wheel-set that will only really be used for racing and training. I've got clinchers with fat slicks for work and getting around town.

Now considering a cheaper machine built wheelset, that'd give me some money for better tubs and a bigger white industries freewheel for muddier conditions. I'm currently using the Planet X model B clinchers and haven't had any problems so perhaps I should go for the Model As. Only 28 spokes though and it'd be nicer to have a wider rim.

The Planet X Model A and B are 130mm spaced wheels with freehubs. You can run them SS if they fit your frame but they won't take a WI screw-on freewheel.

Think A and B just refers to the rim? "A" being a 30mm tubular rim and "B" being the clincher version.

Quick question for the CX doods.

If I take a roadbike and fit a CX fork, would I be able to race that or would that funk up the geo?

Yours,

Curious of West London

What brake are you planing to use on your rear wheel? Do you have enough clearance at the back to fit CX tyre?
With regards to geometry cross frames have shorter headtube to allow for longer forks to fit so it will definitely mess up your geo.

Also 'cross tends to have a slightly (few mm) bigger rake. With your road bike, question the strength of your rear stays and if they will take a wallop from a stick or clump of mud. Also the clearance for your rear tyre.

Also European 'cross bikes tend to have a higher BB to reduce pedal strike in ruts and on cambers, US seems to be trending towards lower BB to lower the centre of gravity. Your road bike will have a low BB so could cause pedal strikes on a heavily cambered course (these are typical in Central League, less so in the SE league). This just means you will need to run more.