100 miles +!

So after 100+ miles in the saddle, I figure it's about time to deliver some information. I'll keep it brief-ish.

-The rear derailleur is starting to act like it needs some adjustment. Occasionally it won't shift properly. It grinds a bit and sometimes won't shift until you shift down and back up again.
-The rear brake is still squealing, even after adjustment initially. Maybe after 100 miles it will adjust properly.
-The Rondine saddle isn't bad. I still am not certain it's as good as my Brooks B-17, but it's far better for my rear than my Arione is.
-The bars seem to be doing their job just fine
-LOVE the shifters. So great! Indexing worked perfectly and is only now starting to get screwy.
-Canti's stop fairly well, but i still wonder how it compares to stopping with a fixed gear. I still often think I have better control with the my previous bikes
-The Surly Nice Rack and Ortlieb pannier's work great! Picked them up at bike stores in the Mission and Haight last weekend. Finally was able to test them out today along with my new Nau Pants. I have the Quintessential Charcoal gray ones. They're light and so far seem to be well waterproof.

Rain Gear


Surly Nice Rack


LOVE IT.

Booya!

Pictures!






Current build specs:

-56cm Surly Long Haul Trucker Frame and Fork
-Weinmann Rims laced to Shimano Deore Hubs
-Vittoria Zaffiro Tires
-Shimano 105 Octalink Double cranks and BB
-Nashbar 11x34 cassette
-Shimano Deore Rear Derailleur
-Shimano 105 front Derailleur
-Tektro Cantilever brakes and Tektro Levers
-Dura-ace downtube shifters
-Generic Stem and Seatpost
-Nitto Moustache Bars
-Fizik Rondine Saddle
-Cane Creek S6 headset
-Exustar ATAC compatible Pedals
-Cateye Mity8 Computer


On the way:
Fenders (picked some up tonight)
Front Surly Nice Rack
Ortlieb Panniers

Yay downcycling!

Chainstay Slap-guard made from an old tube


I've been holding on to some tubes that I can't patch (they're cut at the stem) wondering how I could still use them. I was going to buy a chainslap guard today when I realized I should just use an old innertube.

I know for sure this has been done before, but it didn't occur to me. After searching online for "reusing bike tubes" and similar things, I found near squat. Some company making bags out of recycled tubes won't take mine because they're too narrow, people making wallets, a site that tells you how to make rubberbands out of them.

So I'm trying to come up with other ideas that re-appropriate old tubes. Sewing them seems out of the question, so it'll have to be other things.

It's Alive!

Holy crap! It works!*




Universal Cycles kicks ass and got me my downtube shifters already! So after filling up on dinner, I came home and realized I might be able to get it working!

I popped on the DT shifters

Which I knew how to do after reading the heck out of the instructions since last week.

Running cables was next.

I started with the front derailleur. The instructions were super clear about the adjustment screws and which way to turn them, but I still got messed up with the cable tension and when I should have attached it or not. But eventually the front ran smoothly and noiselessly!

Got super worried about this guy!

So many potential problems. Will it index? Is this cable housing long enough? Then found out the chain was too short to loop over the 53x34 (not that I should ever be in that gear). After dealing with the same cable issue as the front, I seemed to have gotten it mostly dialed in. And what do you know? It indexes! Holy crap! There may be a bit of tweaking that needs to go on. It's a little noisey in certain gears, but I rode it pre-lube and the tolerances in my Nashbar cassette are pretty lax. You can see it wobble around when it's spinning. I guess that's what $20 buys you!


Speaking of cheap-o parts

I bought these on a whim from Nashbar. They wound up being about $16 and are ATAC compatible so I figured it was worth a go. I had to crank up the tension in order to get them to disengage where I wanted it to, although it seems like I have to put all my weight on it to get them in. Boo. We'll see if I keep them, or throw them at walls.

I took a test ride around my street and climbed up a fairly steep and long hill without standing up. Gears! Crazy! So far only I only noticed some minor brake tweaking that needs to occur and maybe some seat stuffs.

Better pics to follow!






*works until something explodes... which could happen anytime!

Moratorium... step 1

I've been stopped, well, I can't shift anyway! As I posted last time, I received a janky downtube shifter kit from Universal. Total accident, and they were super cool about replacing it. It's already on it's way after I contacted them on Friday. The only bad part about waiting for it is I can't dial in the derailleurs until I get it. I installed the chain tonight which may have displayed another problem: either the chain is too short, or it's just going to be a tight shift should I ever accidentally shift to the 53-34. I did all the math regarding Chain wrap and capacity and I was fairly sure I was fine... but maybe I'll have to do it again to be sure. I wonder if there's a link calculator somewhere as well.... but I suppose that would be impossible since chainstay length varies. Doh!
edit: there is! Chain Length Calculator. You need to know the chainstay length and luckily I do. It's 18.1" on a 56cm LHT! I still won't know for sure until I get the shifters on and adjust the derailleurs though.

So in lieu of actually trying to do anymore installation or tuning tonight, I thought I'd make a list of things I need to do.

-Flip around front brake pads
-Adjust front and rear brakes
-Install shift lever, run/cut cables
-Adjust front and rear derailleurs
-Install and adjust pedals
-Adjust seat height and fore/aft adj.
-Install front rack
-Run/hook up cyclocomputer - I actually wound up doing this last night anyway. What a pain with Canti's!

i think that's it for now...

Woohoo Bike Kitchen!

Spent 3 hours at the Bike Kitchen last night working on the Surly. After building the IRO there, I got pretty good at using some tools.

Pressed in the headset fairly quickly, but then got stuck waiting to use the steerer cutting tool and files. I worked on putting the bottom bracket in until I was able to get the front-end tools. Finally got the giant stack of headset spacers in and the stem and bars on.



Popped cranks on shortly after the BB install. Octalink is weird!



Spent some time putting on the brakes.


I've only really cut and run cable on BMX bikes, so I pretty much just guesstimated about how and where to cut the lines. It seems to work ok. The only crappy part is the routing on the front brake. The bend from the bars seemed to make too tight a turn so I routed it over the top and behind the bars. It looks a little silly. I'll pick up some more cable ends and re-route it at some point.

Wanted to run and cut the shifter cables before I left for the evening so I popped on the front and rear derailleurs real quick.



Big hiccup occured when trying to put on the shift lever. They're way more complicated than I thought! So I ran out of time and brought the bike back to my office.

After work today I spent time reading the exploded diagrams and installation guide for the shifters. It looks like there might be a little tab broken off. I also realized I was missing pieces! Somebody opened my box before I got to it. So I emailed Universal Cycles to try and get an exchange. After messing around with it, I was able to get it to what seems like "working". If I get a postive response from UC I'll exchange them anyway. There's cable ends missing and the little ferrules gone too. Bummer.

I tried adjusting the brakes, but that seemed to be a bit of an excersise in futility so I laid off and taped the bars. Which turned out fairly poorly. I blame the brake cables! What a pain!


So now i'm waiting to hear from Universal and reading up on brake adjusting tips to hopefully get them dialed in.

It begins!

Got the (i think?) last piece of the parts list today from Pacific bikes. I needed a good stack of headset spacers. Brought the frame in to have it reamed/faced/chased as well. Hopefully the build starts big tomorrow!



Got the cassette on, rim strips on and tires mounted.



Gonna try and get into the BikeKitchen tomorrow after work. Plans to at least get the headset on, BB in and steerer cut. And as much else as I can too.