Current Projects chat and miscellany

as i said before, anything with "merckx" on it is welcome in my post

But I'd like to build a tallbike with it... ;) I pulled it out of a dumpster.. it's broken.

brakes stop you from 15mph to nothing in half the time than a road/fixed.

So can road/fixed wheel bicycle.

^ not sure if that qualifies as debate...

Any pics of the conversion^^^^^ I'm converting a Raleigh flyer atm and would like to see what you've done

I am going to take some pics once I have my new deep v's and B43 installed

This is what I've been doing yesterday, drilling 64 holes in an old Mavic G40 rim, spraypainting it black and countersinking the holes to get that machined look. Shaved 30 grams off the weight of the rim. Question is though, would you still ride it? Not sure if I should.. Thinking of building it with non drive side radial if one of the old wheels I have has the correct spoke length.

you ruined a rim for 30 fucking grams!!!

your better off shaving your head, body, face and eyebrows as well as trimming your nails hourly, picking your bogeys and going to the toilet at regular intervals regardless of supply and demand because that would save you more than 30 grams....

30 grams!

Some pics of my latest project. A carbon fibre Obree position bike that I aim to ride the hour on.
I'm planing a test run on the 4th of Sep so I have a some work to do...

Some pics of my latest project. A carbon fibre Obree position bike that I aim to ride the hour on.
I'm planing a test run on the 4th of Sep so I have a some work to do...

Beyond amazing. A proper project, notr just a lame bar swap .

How did you arrive at the aero design?
Have you done some of the little tweeks Obree did, such as greatly reduce the width of the BB?
What sort of processes are you using to produce the final CF frame?

I'm intrigued, as I'm sure others will be.

Good luck with it, and keep us posted.

@ sf its a carbon copy of obree's bike:

having no idea about CF- how long does it take to make/ cure?

good luck!!!

@TheFinalHour

I would work on the assumption that most rims have been lightened to minimum already. I actualy think 30grams is a notable reduction for a rim, but at what cost?

My 2p.

Rims are actually put under a lot of stress by the high pressures used with road tyres. A classic rim failiure senario occurs when people use MTN rims for touring wheels, assuming the rim will be tougher than a road rim. It many ways it would be, but it isnt deigned for the high pressures used in touring tyres, and splits along the spoke drillings. I can imagine this happening with yours. Also, non-drive side radial spokes will not help the situation.

BTW - I am not a pro wheel builder, just a keen wheel tinkerer, and this is just my opinion.

@ sf its a carbon copy of obree's bike:
having no idea about CF- how long does it take to make/ cure?
good luck!!!

Yes I think I may have seen it before ;)

I was thinking about specifics such as tube profiling, distance from stays/forks to wheel spokes etc.

Looking at the pics, it looks like a monocoque main frame, with the stays cast separatly to be bonded on after. This a pretty popular method (I think).

Bloody interesting anyway.

you ruined a rim for 30 fucking grams!!!

come on, give the guy a break, he's just trying to have some fun. the hair on your body and shit inside it does not actually spin (as much) as the rim spins when you ride, so saving 30 grams when it's static will save you more the faster you go.
on failure - it might, or it might not. i myself always wanted to try nds radial, so i could relate to the desire of novelty at the expense of common sense practicality :))

just waiting on some long drop brakes.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v247/kingcutter/BIKES/007-1.jpg

Hi,

What forks are those?
For long reach brake calipers 47-57mm?
I need one of those (1-1/8" steerer, preferably threadless, composite). Do you think these forks are available separately?

@ chrobin, that great. really looking forward to more pics.

it's more than likely for a mould

So can road/fixed wheel bicycle.

So Road Brakes are better than V's ... I don't think so.

So Road Brakes are better than V's ... I don't think so.

How are you judging 'better'?

With a road tyre of 23c the weak link is the tyre not the brake isn't it?

(assuming you have a very good road brake and very good v brake)

wood be heavy, no?

Balsa.

That rim-project is nice..

Aleksi; It's not like anyone wants those old rims anyway... I'm guessing it wasn't a pretty one.

How are you judging 'better'?
With a road tyre of 23c the weak link is the tyre not the brake isn't it?
(assuming you have a very good road brake and very good v brake)

I think sheldon Brown wrote a peice on the having the same strength, despite using different cable pulls. I would guess the modulation of V's is theroetically better, as they involve the pulling of more cable, with less mechanical advantage built into the caliper.

Locking wheels is easy, its the bit inbetween not braking and locking that counts ;)

Recently been making my Flying Scot a bit more rideable

And been cobbling together a mtb cruiser thing

V brakes have more power but not so good on the modulation, owing to various mechanical reasons too dull to go into here. A good, medium drop dual-pivot is the best thing for a light bike. Vs are excellent for extreme stoppage, or havy loads. Trouble with vs is they wear the rims and pads so quickly!
There have been some good in-depth articles in Vintage Bicycle quarterly (weww.vintagebicyclepress.com). Their conclusion is htta the best road/touring brake ever is the old MAFAC Racer, with Kool-Stop salmon pads in, and having tried that combo on several of my bikes now, I concur.

^^ nice - impressed you got such a good colour match on the pink, but white would be best imo.

Where did you get the mtb forks from?

@vandal, the scot's pretty! Just needs a nice saddle and some non-black brake hoods, and it would be REALLY pretty!
I always think its worth removing the lamp bracket from the forks these days though. unless you're preserving the frame in case of future restoration to original of course.

And been cobbling together a mtb cruiser thing

Clunkers FTW! can't wait to take mine down to Yorkshire for proper off roading fun.

Just got some DMR V12 for mine (price match FTW), internal gear and off road tyres and I'm sorted.