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@Tijs your Muddy Fox build on bikepacking.com was probably my number one read webpage for about a year when I bought that frame!

Been a while since I posted on this thread. I built up the Muddy Fox and it's even better than before. Very happy indeed. Quick teaser photo for you all below

Found this photo of my Muddy Fox Courier Comp. This was my commuter for about a year and quickly became my favourite bike. It had mudguards in winter and the cavernous 139 wald basket was always useful. I took a fair few of the parts for the Randonneur build and stripped it down for transport. But now I'm thinking about building it up again. It was so good. And the paint is sick. It'll probably be a mix of all my fave parts from my various builds over the years for a more shred vibe. I've got an XTR M-950 group and ceramic wheelset and the outrageous paint matched stem. Nitto x Crumbworks KT bars.

I just got word that my stuff will be delivered from the UK this week so hopefully everything has survived. I didn't do a great job of packing my frames which was really stupid in hindsight. However, it's an absolute tank of a frame - so fingers crossed it will be fine.

Thanks! I sure do, see below! It's the Nitto NR-21 Rear Bag Support and a Nitto M12 up front.

I think this is done. Just waiting for my camping gear to arrive from the UK and then I'll do an overnighter up the coast to Bordeaux to see how it handles fully loaded.
The rear bag support is great! We rode to the beach on the weekend, I ran a very full Carradice Camper Longflap with zero issues.

FYI, I just measured my rear tyre and it comes up as 35.5mm. that's on an h plus son archetype rim which is 23mm.

Great pic! Your build looks lovely, and the scenery is delightful. The hill in the background looks very inviting. Where are you based?

Thanks man! yeah, I've done a few short rides but been pretty busy with work and moving into a new flat. Managed to get in a quick blast in the forest today which was great. there's a photo below.

I am indeed running a 35 GK slick at the rear. It's certainly a squeeze but seems fine to me. I did spread the rear end to around 132mm to run a 130mm road hub so that may have helped a bit tbh. I think I'll crimp the chain stays at some point but it's not a priority. I reckon the sandy trails around here will slowly wear down the chain stays where it rubs a bit and give me a few extra mm's over time anyway haha. The front tyre is a 35mm Panaracer GK EXT.

You thinking of building up something similar?

Had an excellent ride here yesterday, still buzzing about it. Really felt great to be out on the bike after nearly four months of living out of a suitcase and storage unit. First proper ride since moving to France, just over 70km - the first half in forests and country lanes, then back along the Ardour river on a cycle path home. The lanes were delightfully quiet, surrounded by beautiful farm houses, some nice gravel farm tracks too. The sun was shining for the first time in two weeks and I wore only a t-shirt. Found some nice single track in the forest, the trails are pretty sandy but the panaracer ext front tyre provided ample grip. The racks were solid and that rear Nitto one is too cute, although somewhat superfluous. Had a good conversation with a French man who suggested I head South and explore the Pyrenees.

The Randonneur was a delight, super comfortable, good handling, gearing is perfect and felt surprisingly punchy when I put down some power. I love it. Still need to tape the bars in front of the brake levers and switch to SPDs though. I didn't expect to stay out that long. One forest track was not rideable so I walked it, the amount of rain here over the last two weeks has been crazy and that path was basically a river blocked by many fallen trees. Nice to be alone among the pine trees, it's stunning and very peaceful. However, I did get chased by a big dog at one point which I guess was good for the adrenaline levels. Was very glad to have a flat riverside section for the second half as my legs are not what they once were.

Got dark and cold super quickly, but I had packed a gilet and a jacket in the front bag. Despite the lack of street lighting and being on the wrong side of the road, I really enjoyed punching a hole through the darkness. Overall, I'm super stoked with the bike and where I will be able to ride it over the coming months. Here's a few photos.

this sounds excellent, especially the fork. excited to see what you come up with

Cheers man! I also have a Woodrup and it rides like a dream. Love the paint colours and the extended head and seat tubes on yours. stem choice is perfect too

I don't think that shifting setup is anything new, apparently elite riders used to do it to save weight. I'll run it for a while and see how I get on, but I might switch it over to a bar end.

I ordered the Nitto NF-21 rear bag support from @freshtripe which should arrive today. Sam is always super helpful - he emailed to check it would fit the frame and refunded VAT and shipping once he'd got a fixed price. I've bought a fair few things from this shop over the years and can't recommend them enough http://www.freshtripe.com

I'll need to drill through the seatstay bridge to fit the rear rack - which should hopefully be fairly easy. I'm still waiting on the cantilever rack bolts for the front. Looks like there's going to be a big storm this weekend so should have plenty of time for these jobs.

I was wondering if anyone had picked up this frame. Excited to see what you make of it!

better pic of the bars

thanks, yeah I love these bars. they are Nitto x Rivendell Choco bars. super comfortable and great for me as I have a really destroyed left elbow and shoulder which massively limits my reach. they did take a while to get used to, but I wouldn't go back to traditional drops now.

yep that's right, 57cm. I need to add the decals I ordered from H Lloyd cycles - the previous owner removed them :(

Just finished my 1987 Randonneur. Very pleased with how it all came together, it's lovely. You can also check out the ongoing build thread here

thanks man! your Royal was a big inspiration for this one. I really love those bars. From that first ride the front shifting seems all good, but I had that same crankset (44/28) and front derailleur combo on a different build, so it's tried and tested. that dura ace 7403 fd suggests a max 16 tooth difference so that's what I went with. 20t sounds quite a big jump unless you're running a triple shifter. With the limit screws dialled in I tend to shift quite positively and then trim it after the chain has jumped (if that makes sense).

just fitted the 35mm slick and it clears like a dream, so I'll run that for a while. here's a pic from the test ride yesterday - very stoked! rides super smooth and comfortable for my janky left arm with the swept back choco bars.

Still a few things to add / change - waiting on the rack bolts so I can fit the Nitto m12 front rack and not use the little restrap bar bag. I'm really tempted to buy the Nitto NR-21 bag support, but the Carradice bagman support will suffice. Also need to fully re-wrap the bars for multiple hand positions. Pedals are a placeholder, I tend to run spd's when I know I'm riding all day, and swap to flats for commuting and running around town. The MKS Sylvan Gordito's are a strong contender. Might replace the rear brake housing as it was an old one that's quite scuffed up, a spot of tinkering for the bar end shifter tension wouldn't go a miss either. New brake pads will arrive with the rack bolts and a frame pump. I also have a set of original decals from H Lloyd Cycles ready to go. But none of that is urgent, I just want to get out and explore!

thanks, I will check those tyres out!

you've lost me

I stand corrected! Was just being flippant in my previous comment. Using your calculation @Tijmen I get 1.1962890625. so yes, @MisterMikkel 20% increase is bang on. Maths is not a strength of mine..

Went for a shakedown ride yesterday with the 32c rear tyre and it was all good, apart from on some sandy trails in the local woods which made me want a bit of extra volume. The EXT up front was great, nice to have the extra grip there. Also, the 35c slick I ordered just arrived so I will fit that later and then make a decision on the crimping situation. I'm just a bit nervous about damaging an old frame, so any advice or previous experience on that would be appreciated!

Still loving the Nitto x Riv Choco bars. This time I flipped them to be sloping down slightly. Grepp Bar tape was a quick 5min job before heading out, I'll re-do that!

Parts list is as follows:

Nitto x Riv Choco bars
Nitto Pearl 120mm stem
Tange Seiki headset black
Dia Compe SS6 levers
Dia Compe DC980 canti brakes
Nitto S65 seat post
Brooks B17 Champion

SunXCD 50.4 Cranks w/ TA Cyclotourist rings 44x28
Shimano UN300 BB 68/117.5
Shimano Dura Ace 7403 Front derailleur
Shimano XTR M952 Rear derailleur
Dia Compe ENE friction shifters - 1x bar end, 1x downtube
Shimano XT 9 speed 11-34 cassette
TA self extracting crank bolts

Handbuilt wheel set w/ H Plus Son Archetype anodised grey rims laced to Ultregra 6800 front and rear hubs w/ Sapim race spokes
Panaracer Gravelking EXT 35c front tyre
Panaracer Gravelking SS 32c rear tyre (might try a smooth 35c)

Nitto M12 front rack
Tadah.id ALEDT bag
Carradice bagman expedition support
Carradice camper longflap bag

Had a small annoyance right as I finished building this. I noticed the front cantilever arm looking a bit wobbly, went to tighten the bolt and it snapped in the cantilever post.

Luckily, a quick trip to the local bike co-op featuring a lot of WD40 we got it out. If you're ever in the Biarritz area I recommend visiting Clavette & Cie. It's a nice shared workshop space with good vibes and lots of classic French bikes ready to be ridden.

Here's a pic of the fork with snapped bolt and a 35c gravelking SK not clearing the rear. I switched it out for a 32c semi-slick with no troubles. I might crimp the chain stays but also what's the point for like 3mm more of tyre.

I've also been saving this black Nitto Pearl stem for ages. Felt like the right time to use it, and I had a black tange seiki headset which was pleasing. Silver would probably look better, and I have a silver Pearl 11cm here with me, but I couldn't resist fitting it. Fitting the shim was a bitch. I quite like the contrast with the white headtube. The silver dia compe cable hanger throws it all off.. so that will have to change too. I've ordered a Zefal frame pump because it would just be rude to not use that rusty little pump peg. I want to go full rough stuff fellowship on this project.

Thanks @Marcootsee. I was tempted to strip the paint but I quite like the white head tube as well. Will probs repaint at some point.

@thebikefelix 650b is tempting for sure, but I haven't yet found a local frame builder here to help me. It would be sick to experiment with brazing and move the Canti posts but that'll have to wait until I have a second bike to ride / permanent place to live and work.

@ZenithE nice, got any pics? not sure I've seen any orange ones.

First I removed all the old parts, which took about 20mins. Everything came off with no trouble whatsoever which was surprising. After that it was a case of packing everything to move to France so not a lot happened apart from thinking..

The rear spacing is 126mm so I increased that to fit a 130mm hub. Other little mods to the frame include tapping the weird rear brake cable hanger so I can add a barrel adjuster for the Canti brakes. I also drilled out the fork crown to m6 so I could fit my Nitto M12 rack. It just had a threaded nut braze on thing which wasn't super useful to me, given the parts I already had.

See below for the original specs and a couple of pics from a very dark shed.