"mad MAX" (aka Yokel-Motion 1.0)

Why the 55t and 15 and 16t sprockets?

Why not? Big sprockets run smoother.

If you're interested, this is the cutting schedule for turning Novatec axles with track nuts into bolt-ons as previously discussed, rear dished to align one sprocket at around 46mm to suit road chainset.

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Bars will be tweaked: today was just a shake-down.

Back brake for the time being: even with two, AX definitely fall into the "speed modulator" category. Thinking about adding a lever on the clip-ons for dual control of the front.

So at £45-odd being the going rate for a Phil, I might end up getting 55t and 56t rings together with a 15t (I meant to write "...if I then get a 55t ring and 15t and 14t rear sprockets..."), which would work out cheaper.

Just checked the 501, I thought it was 23mm, and it's 21mm. The Novatech/Rigida combo looks to come in around the £100 mark built up, so I think I'll go that route: what do you suggest for spokes?

Thanks for the schedule, most useful.

The Novatech/Rigida combo looks to come in around the £100 mark built up, so I think I'll go that route: what do you suggest for spokes?

With 32 or 36 spokes under cover and not much dish, you don't need anything flash, ACI will be fine if you're working to a budget, DT Alpine III obvs. if you can spare the extra few quid.

So at £45-odd being the going rate for a Phil, I might end up getting 55t and 56t rings together with a 15t (I meant to write "...if I then get a 55t ring and 15t and 14t rear sprockets...")

One tooth difference at the front is hardly worth having on a TT bike, whereas having two different sprockets gives you two properly different gears. Phil sprockets are pretty expensive, but at least they are a rare example of UK pricing being reasonably aligned to US pricing, since they are $66 at AVT, so you don't have to feel like you've been screwed :-)

Grizzly and Novatech have arrived.

Rosebikes are significantly cheaper for spokes than, for example, SJS; that much cheaper, that I'm suspicious that I'm looking at the wrong ones: am I missing something?

I've ordered from rose multiple times now and have never had a problem, i think it's just because they're german and get special prices/less shipping costs, probably a bit of both

what lengths do you need? i've got lots of dt comps spair and will be putting in an order at rose soon too

Fair enough.

A quick search of the usual suspects in the UK found the prices were all pretty similar, so when Rose came in a good tenner less (even with shipping), I thought I might be looking at a different spoke.

I haven't measured up yet: I'll give you a shout.

Bear in mind that Rosebikes price doesn't include nipples. Bike24.com is the other option for DT spokes, their price does include nipples, so they come out about the same. The choice usually comes down to whether you're ordering something else from one or the other, so you only have one lot of p&p to pay.

Both shops are recommended, for good prices coupled with the ruthless Teutonic efficiency you'd expect.

Rosebikes send you free mugs and snapbacks too.

Wrong link for Bike24, but I'm sure you can find the Alps from there, it's where I got my last lot since I was also buying a hub etc. in the same order.

Rosebikes send you free mugs and snapbacks too.

They've never sent me anything, probably looked at my order history and reckoned they'd already got me hooked :-(

I did account for nipples, but still found Rose markedly cheaper.

Either way, I'm reassured and will order once I've got the hang of the DT Swiss spoke-calc...

In other news, I've taken one for the team and ordered Challenge tubes, mainly because one size covers both 20mm and 23mm. A 20mm Evo CX is also en-route.

The 55t Gerbhardt is 6/7 grammes lighter than the 49t Goldtech; Halfords do 1R8; and I've snaffled another Phil cog: averaging £26-odd a piece so far!

When's your first race?

...The choice usually comes down to whether you're ordering something else from one or the other, so you only have one lot of p&p to pay...
?

I've binned the AX, after learning that they are the Adamas version (which have completely enclosed pad holders, that don't lend themselves to butchered, modern pads); and experiencing thirty year old pads...

There's a club 10 (B10/9) on the 24th and a VTTA open 10 (B10/38) on the 27th.

?

I'm sure they're lovely, but the TriRig Omega plus SRAM TT500 lever is cheaper, lighter and probably more aero.

No doubt, but stopping power has to come first on the list (especially with only one brake).

Hydraulic hose isn't fussed by routing, unlike cable, so that could even up the aero-score.

However I have no argument for "cheaper" (or lighter), which as I can afford neither makes this all academic. :(

Worrying about brake power on a TT bike >>>>

Hydraulic brakes would be a right pain with internal cable routing.

TriRig stopping power is enough for TTs, my exposed cable amounts to a total of about 2" so I'm not too fussed. Not even sure that the RT8TT would fit between my base bar and fork crown :-)

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Worrying about brake power on a TT bike >>>>

Hydraulic brakes would be a right pain with internal cable routing.
"If you want to go faster, get better brakes".

That only really applies on courses where you need brakes, and where your current ones are not up to the job. Since most bicycle brakes are good enough to lift the back wheel in dry conditions, adding more braking power is seldom essential to knocking seconds off your TT times.

[blah blah blah]

Would you sell this ^ to buy this?

With a 70mm x 35 degree stem I made the Max work (after a fashion) and it's also a good road bike, but on the face of it the Sonic is a better TT bike and if I was to HTFU, my 531 do-it-all could er... do all I need to to do: the Max just makes a lot it much more fun.

After a long, work-free Winter I'm pretty much starting from scratch and given my limited (physical and financial) ability, being able to dual-purpose the Max is an appealing option.

On the other hand, I have nothing to lose by going balls-first with a dedicated TT frame (apparently I'm not getting younger) and just getting on with the rest using the 531: train and race on the TT/commute and Audax on the 531.

As ever @mdcc_tester and @umop3pisdn are welcome to the party...

I'd buy that sonic. Nice short HT so you can do the stacked extensions properly. All about having dedicated bikes for things, switching bars gets annoying.