650b Croix De Fer - Congratulations, it's an apple.

Hupdates!

Thanks to @roadwarrior I've got my hands on a 2014 Croix in a rather nice flat green that I think will look pretty sweet with black components, so that's what I'm gonna do!

It's a brand spanker, and I am very, very pleased.

This is the only picture I have so far. Soz.

Thorn fork is on the way from SJS in matt black, though I'll probably have it powdercoated to match. Also snagged some TRP Spyres from another forumenger, which should arrive this week.

Dynamo will be on the way quite soon too, so hopefully I can get the wheelbuild moving once I can convince my LBS that velocity do make 650b rims.

Atlas, not A23.

I agree, 17mm internal was fine with 42mm tyres, profile shape didn't change that much when using 21mm internal rims.

Cool, thank you! You reckon Atlas is a better/stronger rim for the carrying of things? They don't come in black :((((((

I build an Atlas recently, they're heavy but heinously strong.

Why don't you go for MTB rims? like the Mavic XM119 Disc?

looking forward to seeing this built up rather than sitting on my wall!

Totally up for using MTB rims, it's just that I know nothing about them, and finding reviews/views for their suitability for carrying things was a bit tricky.

Some rims I liked the look of seemed like they might be a bit on the light side - i.e. not strong enough?

I thought the Velocity Blunt, Blunt SL or Pacenti TL28 could be contenders.

Me too! Hopefully I'll do it justice :P

It's lighter because there's no braking surface to worry about.

I tour on ZTR Crest which is very light, 42mm tyres and didn't have any problem (40psi rear 60psi front).

Fack! They are light. Makes sense on the braking surface I guess - way thinner sidewalls?

Have got the LBS on the Velocity Blunt/SL/SS case, see what turns up!

Thinner sidewall, they advised not to use high pressure skinny road tyres (25mm) but work well on mine when I had the 700c version.

Magic. Cheers again for the advice. Thread is living up to its title in a big way!

The Thorn forks have arrived from SJS. Luckily they're without damage despite being spectacularly poorly packaged.

I'd originally intended to have them stripped and recoated to match the frame, but the matt black finish is quite nice, so now I'm less sure than I was.

I tend not to be too keen on mismatched frame & fork colours (unless chrome). But given that the rest of the components in the build will be black, it might work?

Comparison pic is below. Thoughts?

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Now I've uploaded the photo, the green looks far brighter than it really is, but you get the gist...

could always try it with black and if it pisses you off get them painted at a later date

I can imagine someone going "Man this colour is really pissing me off! god" while starting at their fork waiting for the traffic light to change.

Ha! Once they're on the bike/built up, they'll never get changed. My laziness would outweigh my distaste for certain.

Black's nice. Will match other black componentry. And it'll save you both money and time.

You're dead right, and it's the logically sound answer. Though it took at least 7 people between here and facebook to remind me of this :/

And this means they can go straight round to the LBS to get the crown race moved and steerer chopped. Also I'm ordering the dynamo today, and chasing my LBS for rim prices.

I'm a huge fan of black forks on a coloured frame, my fixed, roadie and tourer all have them and I think it looks great, but that matt colour on your Thorn forks is especially nice

^ This

Is that what you tell yourself every night at bed?

Different strokes for different folks!

No drain holes at all in the Thorn forks, which is a pain as it means I need to make one in order to internally route dynamo wires.

I have also been shopping - CNC-bikes.de is amazing. Dynamo, Ultegra front mech and Dura-Ace bar end shifters for €150.

Heavier, smaller, notchier than I imagined!

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Braeburn, the prince of apples!
It'll be reet once it's built up, as long as your rims aren't to weighty you won't notice the hub. It's a steel bike for touring, was never gonna be a light bike.