Current Projects chat and miscellany

Can't deny that! Sick!

First try mole grips. I bet it'll work.
Then try the slot/screwdriver technique. You dont need a dremel to do this, just a junior hacksaw
Third try the drilling, this will be the hardest for sure, especially with that non-level broken surface on the bolt to start from.

Also invest in a tap to clear out the threads in the frame before running the bolts through (it'll be built up paint that's caused it to snap). It's the same size on all frames for every braze on so chances are you'll use it quite often (I think they're M5)

If all of that doesn't work get yourself some of these puppies from Clerkenwell Screws...(tip, start with pilot hole from small drill end then work up)

Finished the Bilenky.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/38604036@N02/4868430886/

That's super cool. How does it ride?

First try mole grips. I bet it'll work.

Doesn't work, it's screwed in too tight to even turn it.

drilling time, and if that fail, time to make use of the trailer and take the bike down to Putney on monday.

That's super cool. How does it ride?

Very fast. Very smooth. Handles the load so well.

The Bilenky look fucking awesome mate, disc brake FTW.

Do you find it a bit topside heavy with the load that far up?

The Bilenky look fucking awesome mate, disc brake FTW.

Do you find it a bit topside heavy with the load that far up?

Not at all. As i stated it handles the weight very well. There might be better solutions for handling very heavy loads, but whatever compromise there might be the geometry here really allows for
some serious speed while hauling

That sound great, I've rode a Bakfiet a while ago and was surprise at how stable it is (lots of flex though), and love the huge cargo capacity.

I cannot express how much disc brake are for the win, riding on drum brakes is pretty hard when you're riding on full capacity.

Parcels galore yesterday!

Iphone and pc are refusing to cooperate so I've stolen Hilarys pix:

The aim is to create a low spec version of velocio's "one-bike"... Its first incarnation being a singlespeed cross-ish bike, with flat bars.

Its 130mm rear spacing, so I'm using some shitty road wheels and then a spacer kit.

The biggest problem I have is the chainset as this will form the basis of lots of other decisions... I could really do with some advice on this.

I want to run it in 2/3 forms;

1. SS and geared mild off road, and
   
2. geared tourer.
   
   

My first thoughts were decore or 105s. The chainset is the most important thing, bc after that it'll only really be simple switches, like tyres or bar setup.

My concern with decore is the possible ratios for touring and the fact that if I want sti's instead of barends I might be fucked. But then a triple 105 has a 130bcd and I wonder if I'll be able to get a small enough ring for dirt. As well as the fact that I'm not sure how well 105s will hold up to dirt.

Any suggestions?

Also I'm clueless about gear ratios and set ups.

hugo, sign up for photobucket, then download the photobucket app - you should able to upload it straight away from the phone.

cheers for the tip ed... altho the photo I took is actually pretty rubbish compared to the ones above.

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biggest problem I have is the chainset... I could really do with some advice on this.
My first thoughts were decore or 105s. The chainset is the most important thing, bc after that it'll only really be simple switches, like tyres or bar setup.

My concern with decore is the possible ratios for touring. But then a triple 105 has a 130bcd and I wonder if I'll be able to get a small enough ring for dirt.

Seek out Shimano's less often seen touring Deore, 26/36/48 rings, if you're concerned about having a high enough gear for those touring descents. That way, you don't need to use an 11-up cassette. A 12-27 cassette with that will give you reasonably close ratios all the way from 1:1, below which you're walking, to 4:1, above which you can freewheel. Notwithstanding that, the Shimano road triples are 130/74 pcd, so although you can't go smaller than 38 for the middle ring, you can go down to 24t on the granny ring if you can find a front dérailleur to cope.

you'll need slightly more than 1:1 for some hills on a touring bike. Unless you literally don't mind walking or working really hard on every steep hill, the 24 would be the way to go.

....Shimano road triples are 130/74 pcd, so although you can't go smaller than 38 for the middle ring, you can go down to 24t on the granny ring if you can find a front dérailleur to cope.

When you say find a front derailleur that'll cope - I guess you mean that the drop will be so long that you need a big enough cage(?) to move the chain?

I was also thinking, that as cassets are simple to change, that might be an option... although I haven't actually looked into how much they range in ratios.

he means wide enough cage for coping with 11 speeds without rubbing the sides of the cage in either the high or low cog position. the drop won't be a problem. tripples aren't usually mated to 11 speeds in the back.

when i deal with this i just assume that i'm not going to be using the granny gear and the smallest cog, so i set it up to rub in that gear, which i never use anyway. sort of tricky to get it right.

^ sorry got confused between front and rear mech.

I think the 105 tripple is 11 speed - altho I need to check that the DA hubs I'll eventually use for the nice wheelset can take a 11 speed setup...

...God its amazing how much harder it all gets once you go past 1 speed :(

Sorry my mistake - 105 = 10speed

i'll eat my hat if the 105 is mated to 11 speeds.

No shimano is 11 speed afaik

he means wide enough cage for coping with 11 speeds without rubbing in either the high or low position. the drop won't be a problem.

No, I mean one which can cope with the drop, since the road triples come with a 50t outer; 26t between outer and granny can be tricky to set up. I'm pretty sure he wouldn't be using 11-speed, since it's exclusive to Campag and that doesn't seem to be on his shopping list, and nobody needs 11-speed anyway. If it were my build, I'd probably stick to 9-speed for now as there is more chance of getting decent second hand shifters in both drop bar and flat bar formats.

Cassette swaps are indeed easy, but shifting is compromised if you go from road cassettes to MTB cassettes, since you end up spending a lot of time trying to get an MTB rear dérailleur to shift on the faraway sprockets of the road cassette.

Incidentally, 10-speed cassettes are actually narrower than 9-speed, so FD chain rub in extreme gears is easier to avoid.

This plus triple crankset = lots of range.

(in theory that is, was told at Bikefix that it's entirely possible to run an internal hubs with double/triple crankset).

Front or back of bikefix? Not overly confidet of the shop part.

I guess a double might work if the chains 3/32 but I really cant image a triple would.

Yep, look like you can (double that is);

Can I use a double chainring with an Alfine hub?
If you use a chain tensioner (or rear mech!) with enough capacity to handle the difference in chain length, then yes. We haven’t tried it but reckon the Alfine chain tensioners will probably be OK for a 24T/32T double chainring. Triple chainrings will probably mess up your chainline a bit.

I spoken to Stuart about it who own Bikefix.

Can't wait to get the 11spd Alfine for the F.U.