Current Projects chat and miscellany

fork is a Gusset Jury SL trials fork

Cool. I'm looking for a disc only, segmented style fork for my Pomp. Can't see the canti mounts on yours, are they removable or is/was there a disc only version available?

Edit: I see them on their site now; I'm retarded. Could be just what I'm after. Heavy though, I'd imagine.

I like it a lot V-L, those frames look better in big sizes I think.

Have you posted a proper picture of yours in there yet?

Yes, for some values of 'proper'

V-L what wheels are you using on the dart?

Doicidi 42mm rear
Hed jet 90 front

Thoughts on an all-terrain touring bike for New Zealand.

I ride a 64x57 road frame. I was thinking of using a MTB frame as the basis for this project, but mountain-bikes (even lovely 80s ones) tend not to fit me as I have short arms/long legs - and as the top-tubes on MTBs are proportionally longer than the seattubes. I'm too stretched out on a large frame and I can't get the bars up above the saddle on a small frame (even with sloping TT and tall stem, I've been measurin' and pestering people on retrobike...).

So anyway, the idea is - use a touring frame. IME you don't need a mountain bike for 95% of what people term 'mountain biking' - I've ridden singletrack on CX tyres plenty of times with no problems at all. It doesn't work on rock gardens or heavy roots or extreme downhill (not that I've done any DH at all), but it's fine on singletrack and dirt roads.

Now... I've seen a good quality touring frame for sale (rare in 64x57 size - I've been looking for two years) which'll take 37c tyres with guards. With 35c CX tyres that's not a lot of clearance for mud/knobs, and perhaps not enough air to carry lots of gear.

So here's what I'm thinking: braze canti mounts on the frame and use 650b wheels - allowing me to swap between nice fat smooth road tyres or 650x2.0 MTB tyres, depending on the terrain, and giving mud clearance* too.

The ideal frame would be something like a custom monstercross frame, but I don't have enough money for this.

What does everyone think?

*won't be able to measure this until I buy the frame... if I buy it and it doesn't look like it'll work, I can just go with 700c wheels and CX tyres.

The widest point on a 50-559 (26x2.0 MTB) tyre is almost as far from the centre as the wide part of a 35-622 (700Cx35). You're likely to have trouble getting the tyre between the chainstays at least, maybe but less likely the seatstays, and probably the fork but that's easy to change for one with a wider crown. 650B are another 12.5mm bigger radius than 26", probably won't fit anywhere.

Yeah I've anticipated that. My current bike can fit 700x28 tyres, and it's touch-and-go whether it'll take 650x42 tyres (built up a mock wheel/tyre to try it out) depending on how true the tyres are to size - bags of clearance at the seatstays but it scrapes on the chainstays.

My thinking was that the touring frame has chainstays which are 17 1/2" with 130mm spacing - just done a bit of quick CAD and with a 650x50c tyre, and assuming the tyre is as tall as it is wide, then... it'll be scraping the chainstays. Ah. 42cs will fit, but there are no 42c (or narrower) tyres with any tread.

26x2.0 should fit, or 1.8 for a ton of mud clearance. But then I have to have 26" wheels.

would 26"x1.8 be high enough? - ie is there a risk that the BB will be too low? Especially as touring frames tend to have lower BBs.

The chainstays may be worked around by getting a frame builder to put dents(?) in for tyre clearance. The seat stays may be more of a problem (assuming they are a problem, which re-reading your post they probably arent)

£14.99 a pair for Shimano or £19.99 each for Éclat makes it a complete no-brainer even without the aesthetic considerations, and you get reach adjustment and SLR return springs with Shimano.

^^ That would be pretty close to a 700 with an 18mm tire.

I can modify the sprockets myself, but making a top hat sprocket require pro milling.

I think if you started with this:

the machining needed to make it into a top hat sprocket would be very simple, certainly simpler than the milling needed to make your adaptor. Boss dia. on 18t sprockets is 56mm, which seems about the smallest size which will go over the disc mount.

Touring New Zealand option 2:

Old On-One Inbred 29er frames are only £140 at the moment (plus fork... how much is a rigid steel fork these days?). It's got rack mounts and longish chainstays, and clearance for 29x2.2 with mudguards (or so).

I'd have to work out the geometry properly to see how well it would fit... time for more cad...

It would work well as a pure MTB or as an off-road tourer, perhaps a more versatile option than a 700c touring bike. On the downside, it's fugly.

^Where exactly in NZ are you planning on going? Unless you're very rural I'd definitely go for the touring frame with CX tyres. A older steel touring frame built for 27" wheels would have plenty of clearance for 700c with 35's + mudguards and would only require some new braze-ones for canti's etc. This would either work well or fail badly...

I'm moving to Dunedin; firstly I was thinking of going up the Rail Trail to Alexandria, then over to Cromwell and Queenstown then along the off-road trails around Lake Wakatipu for a while, then coming back on the Old Dunstan Road, then another time trying the trails from Blenheim>Hanmer Springs>Nelson. I've no idea how difficult these trails are, really. And also I'd like to have something suitable for exploring local singletrack.

The touring frame I'm looking at apparently has clearance for 37cs and guards, so 35c CX tyres for a bit of mud/knob clearance. Centrepull brakes will reach so no need to and canti mounts (unless I want to).

Dunedin's a great place. Huge amounts of fun to be had there if you like the outdoors and surfing in very cold water. I don't know much about the riding around there, except that the Rail Trail is quite easy going. I assume you've seen this? Most of which are really straight forward. I reckon you'll be spot on with the tourer, and if you want to get into any dirty stuff when you're there you can always trawl the NZ version of ebay for a cheap MTB - Trademe. Good luck,

Never been surfing but I suppose I will have to try it. I do love hiking and backpacking though, so I'm really excited about the whole thing.

I think the Rail Trail is so sedate it could be done on a Brompton.

I probably should've made a thread for this bike but here's some better pics I took of my 3rensho the other day (week?): http://imgur.com/a/i5CIR

god dammit i want DA wheels.

I could stare at those pictures for ages. Now I understand what Apollo meant when he said "peaceful."

Quite a stable shinkuu

Touring New Zealand option 2:

Old On-One Inbred 29er

Sounds good.

Even an expensive steal fork shouldn't be more than £200, so you'd hope you could pick something up for £50 odd.

Do you reckon a 35c-CX-tyred tourer would be equally good on non-technical off-road trails and routes, though? If the Inbred is going to be overkill, I'd rather build a more traditional touring bike with CX tyres for trails; more versatile, I think.

There is a thing called 'rough stuff', basically gravel paths, dirt roads, field crossings etc. which people on touring bikes have been doing for decades with no more adaptation than fitting slightly bigger and more treaded tyres, e.g. Marathon Plus Tour:

Much nicer on tarmac than CX tyres, and easily up to riding on any road passable by road vehicles.

Frame and fork sent to Armourtex, going for Telemagenta (RAL4010).

Interestingly the frame has "Nicole Cooke" and "Factory Team Rider" on it, makes me wonder if THE Nicole Cooke once rode it!

Building it up With 6500, half of which from Peter V: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/07bbzzqs1uwmpin/0INRu2yN77
With the other bits ordered, also went for these: http://www.ribblecycles.co.uk/sp/road-track-bike/Brakes-Road-Tektro-CR720-Cyclo-Cross-Cantilevers-Pair/TEKTBRAR500
Also these wheels are on their way: http://www.planet-x-bikes.co.uk/i/q/WPPXAL30/planet_x_al30_wheelset