NEW Bike Build!

[ilima]

Your bike looks great!

I just built up (well my mechanic built it up) a bike for commuting in a similar way with parts I mostly cobbled together off ebay and craigslist (still in the box Ultegra 9-sp shifters--yea!). I wanted a ton-o-gears so went with the Deore LX RD and mtn cassette as well. For kicks I went with a low normal RD, which means it shifts to bigger cogs easier (I live on a hill), but is backwards of my regular bike.

[Chicken Little]

Beautiful! But I agree- how about that saddle angle- is that comfortable for you?

[madscot13]

if you are talking about in the before pictures, yes. I had it adjusted perfectly. I was pounding down 40 and 50 mile rides no problem. But now with the new reach and whatnot, it is not. I have been trying to adjust it all night but I can't figure it out.

[Trek420]

But now with the new reach and whatnot, it is not. I have been trying to adjust it all night but I can't figure it out.

madscot, Chris of Robinson Wheelworks (my fave shop) reads TE from time to time. I rarely if ever quote someone much less their e-mail on TE but I'm quoting him here:

"the problem she is having with her handlebar slipping is based on the following compatibility issue. The old school Cinelli stem she is using has a 26.4 mm diameter and the Salsa Poco bars diameter is 26.0mm. Now 0.4 mm may sound like no big deal, yet the stems diameter is too large for the bar and the stem will eventually crack/break. Problem Solver makes a stem shim kit to correct 25.4 to 26.0, this is a 0.6 mm shim, and although close to the necessary shim providing a 0.6 mm difference. The proper and safe action is a new stem "

He suggests
"Salsa Poco handlebars with Silvia cork tape
Cinelli XA 80mm stem ...." and goes on to say

"I would probably give the bike shop a B score".

[Zen]

where have you been doing 40 - 50 mile rides?

(and I still give them a D, the backward wheel is a big deciding factor there )

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

My husband recently rebuilt his 10 year old Trek 730 as well. It's like a whole new bike, and looks and rides great. Those old steel Treks are wonderful bikes and worth upgrading. Your Trek should last you many more years.

I have mountain gears on my road bikes as well. One thing that pops out at me on your setup is that it seems to be a really big jump from your 39 tooth ring to your 53 tooth big ring. Were you not able to get a middle ring somewhere more in the midrange between your granny gear and big ring? Are you having trouble shifting between your middle and big ring at all?

Your rear cassette is the same as mine (12-34), but my gear rings are 24/36/48. I opted to give up one or two of the very highest gears to get the lower range for steep climbs. My highest gear seems to be plenty high for long speedy descents, for me anyway. At 40mph I stop pedaling anyway!

[madscot13]

"the problem she is having with her handlebar slipping is based on the following compatibility issue. The old school Cinelli stem she is using has a 26.4 mm diameter and the Salsa Poco bars diameter is 26.0mm. Now 0.4 mm may sound like no big deal, yet the stems diameter is too large for the bar and the stem will eventually crack/break. Problem Solver makes a stem shim kit to correct 25.4 to 26.0, this is a 0.6 mm shim, and although close to the necessary shim providing a 0.6 mm difference. The proper and safe action is a new stem "

He suggests
"Salsa Poco handlebars with Silvia cork tape
Cinelli XA 80mm stem ...." and goes on to say

"I would probably give the bike shop a B score".

no, it is most definitely a 26.0 stem. I was very careful not to buy an, in my opinion, obsolete stem. there are very few bars you can use 26.4 with. it could be tightened, it just wasn't.

[dachshund]

must find camera cord to please the masses...

Yeah, we're such an angry mob..............

[Trek420]

Yeah, we're such an angry mob..............

and we're swarming after you with torches (insert here the image I have of villagers from the Frankenstien movie, couldn't find one)

[Zen]

i don't think you can ride that on the canal but I have a bike you can borrow that will work just fine.

[Bad JuJu]

Great job on your bike! Cute photo of her waiting for you at the gate.

[madscot13]

and we're swarming after you with torches (insert here the image I have of villagers from the Frankenstien movie, couldn't find one)

ooh ooh let me find my camera again!

I actually tried to find gears that were closer to yours. Sugino makes a set, but I was not wild about them. Shimano XT-K are actually spot on but impossible to find. Dura ace 7703 was one of the few triples to have such a large gap between the rings. And I think you can only use one derailleur with it. Well actually the only annoying part- you can't switch out different size chainwheels. I can't say moving from low to high is difficult; I'm still getting use to the shifters. But should it take two swings of my lever to go from the middle chain ring to the large one?

I am heading back to the bike shop- not to chew them out for not checking over the bike before I handed over my credit card. I am going to ask a few shifting questions. One about the upshifting I noticed above and the other is about being in my small chainring. One thing I do notice is how messy it is when I am in the lowest gear. As in it wants to move up but it does not have the room too. I thought I had taken care of it by having a long rear derailleur, but I will have to take it back to the shop for some help. could it be an overall chain tension issue? or my front derail? Biking on a hill in my small chainring is very jerky. I can't pinpoint what is going on though.

Any thoughts?

I wasn't sure if 32mm wheels would be big enough for the canal.

[Zen]

32's? they're plenty big
it's hard to tell from the photos. They looked like slick road tires

[7rider]

I wasn't sure if 32mm wheels would be big enough for the canal.

I hope they're big enough. I have 32's (cross/knobbies) on my canal bike now.
BTW...very nice rebuild... No thoughts on your gearing/shifting issues....

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

I hope they're big enough. I have 32's (cross/knobbies) on my canal bike now.
BTW...very nice rebuild... No thoughts on your gearing/shifting issues....

32's can handle just about anything.