The Bikes
The Bike. It is the central tool in pursuit of our craft. A Velominatus meticulously maintains their bicycles and adorns them with the essential, yet minimal, accoutrement. The Rules specify the principles of good taste in configuration and setup of our machines, but within those principles lies almost infinite room for personal taste.
It seems in some ways like a kind of Stockholm Syndrome, the way we honor our machines. We love them to a point that lies well beyond obsession. Upon these machines upon we endure endless suffering, but also find an unending pleasure. The rhythm, the harmony between rider and machine, the outdoors, the wind in our faces and air in our lungs.
The Bikes is devoted entirely to our machines. Ours, The Keepers, and yours, the Community. It features articles devoted to our bikes, and proves a forum for uploading photos of your own machines for discussion. We will be harsh, but fair; this is a place to enforce and enhance our observation of The Rules.
If you’d like to submit an article about your own beloved bike, please feel free to send it to us and we’ll do our best to work with you to include it.
- Rule #12 and the Cascade Effect
That is a very reasonable opening salvo for the Rule about bike ownership. Three is good and certainly a minimum, and we are talking road bikes here, if there was any doubt. They naturally become ordered: the #1 is ichi-ban, top dog, go-to bike for every and all rides. #2 was the old #1, ... - Guest Article: Black Is Not The New Black@kogalover is singing my song here. Bikes are beautiful. ’nuff said. VLVV, Gianni With all those posts on riding in winter and being visible, either by putting Eyes of Sauron or other car melting devices on one’s steed, or by even considering a YJA instead of donning plain black kit, it was about time to finally get ...
- Dialing in the StableThis was going to be an article about Rule #45. It is amazing how much time is wasted and matches burned when professionals stop for that second bike change to get back on their #1. With all the jigs available to team mechanics it would seem they could set up five bikes exactly the same. And ...
- Matching the drapes to the rugAs a longtime titanium bike owner, I’ve always been jealous of a beautiful painted frame but Ti and carbon frames don’t need paint like a steel frame needs paint. But I want some painted beauty. It’s like buying a white car; I can’t do white, need some color. So between a Ti frame and a ...
- Festum Prophetae: Waiting for the HourEveryone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth. – Mike Tyson The one thing everyone should always plan for is that however well-conceived a program might be, things will never go to plan. The high level plan for my Festum Prophetae Hour Ride was as follows: Have a custom Hour Bike built by Don Walker. Because reasons. Reasons like custom ...
@UNPULL
That was a bad one mate,very sorry.
Very nice Merckx.Beautiful.
Sad…
@Oli
Sad yesss — but remember thinking in the hospital (neck brace on/broken-karate-chop-collar-bone) that I needed to start prepping my wife immediately on how I would need a better race bike. Elected to have a steel bar screwed across the top of my clavicle to know exactly 3 months out when I would start riding again. And had the Corsa Extra (photo above) built and ready to roll!
@JC Belgium@snoov @Marko @motor city and all concerned about foam, including myself.
Found this site http://www.carbonframerepair.com/ with an article about foam being used in the repair.
l spoke to my carbon – composite resin guy this morning and he mentions that epoxy used in carbon has the ‘best’ molecular structure and will resist solvents. Carbon fibre will have no problems dealing with expanding foam and solvents like, acetone, petrol, turps. Only paint and decals will suffer from solvent/s.
The only concern he has is the foam being able to exit whilst expanding, as foam expands ~25 times it volume, so you only use a tiny squirt. Use a low density expanding foam if you can get.
If the foam oozes out of the tubes, it will have to be cut away. No solvents will work in dissolving the foam, only on polystyrene foam.
I have also spoken with this guy who repairs carbon frames and he uses expanding foam all the time. Just recently he had a client with the same cable slapping in the rear stays and was able to squirt foam down the stays. AS LONG AS THE FOAM CAN ESCAPE = no problems. Should be a hole on the head tube and seat tube to the top tube.
Also asked him about frame dynamics, no problems with foam in the top tube.
If you’re worried about ~5 grams weight of the foam, have one more drop on your nature break before the ride.
Tips, because expanding foam sticks like shit to a blanket, lightly grease the cable with say Vaseline and WEAR GLOVES.
I hope this information helps you in your decision. After speaking with the carbon guys, I’d be trying the foam.
The decision is ultimately yours.
Remember the decision process the first time you shaved your legs? :-)
@UNPULL
Are you going to do the FBCC this year?
@Anjin-san
Oh yeah — although I see (ashevillebike.proboards.com) is concerned with someone stepping up to take charge of that race. July ??
@sthilzy
Frame may be beyond any warranty — but this will muddle with any warranty. I’m just saying.
@sthilzy
Good info, thanks for the contribution.
@UNPULL
That’s another thing to take into consideration, but a wee drop of foam inside the top tube would be hard to find. I’d imagine that most frames that get replaced under warranty get a quick look and then go straight in the bin, not too much time spent on inspection, that costs money.
@all
Although it seems safe enough I’m not saying anyone should do this. If I had a carbon frame and the cables rattled around when going over cobbles or rough ground I’d probably do it but only because I’m confident I could pull it off and I have all the materials to hand. I’d try @Oli’s electrical tape method first, then @Lepidopterist‘s method, then the foam.
@UNPULL
Unpull, what did you hit? Is the frame jacked up too?
@niksch
@niksch
Hit a car’s front bumper — appeared just 6 ft before impact and blackout. You should see an arch in the down tube (compared to derailleur cable) and there is a bulge in the top tube just behind the lug. Raised my head up just to see the bike and felt stupid.
On a lighter note – but much harder. Robert Millar vs Pedro Delgado – Tour de France 1984 <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=04yQ2QaR8r4> Phil Liggett sounds the same.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=04yQ2QaR8r4
I think the only photos of my Ridley are bike only, so here’s one of bike plus rider, including the recently re-wrapped Fizik tape (which I still don’t like, sorry).
Taken while doing the cycle leg in a triathlon team. That’s the Abu Dhabi F1 race track.
I wish I could say I left all the triathletes in my wake but a 100km solo ride with a nasty headwind had me wishing for a TT bike. Not for a moment though did I wish I had accepted the offers of clip-on tri bars.
@ChrisO
Beautiful! I’ve been lusting after metallic orangey bike parts lately. And it goes so well with the brown tape.
@ChrisO
I’d say looking pretty fantastic there.
@ChrisO
Looking good. Nice tarmac as well.
Are you prevented from true Rule #41 compliance because of the construction of the frame or is that an unsanctioned personal preference.
Some of my bike and rider, not looking as fantastic as @ChrisO, but also with fresh fizik tape. Anything in the rules (apart from Rule #33 and arguably Rule #74) that I’ve missed before I take it on tour and get chastised with a chainwhip at @frank’s OCD scrutineering session?
@Chris
Impressive 1000 yard stare in pic 2…can’t say there’s too much else that jumps out.
@Chris
@Snoov
Cheers, I have to admit I bought that shot as I thought it caught my guns in an undeserved but flattering and lightly oiled light ;-) One of the advantages to Abu Dhabi is a year-round cycling tan.
Well spotted on Rule #41 but that’s just the way I’ve always done it. While not actually prevented from putting the QR upwards I do find it more difficult to release from that position so I don’t adopt it.
Man that looks cold where you are, but I like the killer look from behind the shades in the second shot.
However speaking of Rule #41 your front QR appears to be on the drive side. I don’t think the rules are specific about this but I suspect they should be…
@ChrisO
Oh shit, you’re right, what a fucktard I am. I’m going to have to do something beastly on the rollers tonight in atonement. I think it would be argued by the keepers that there’s no need to spell such a thing out in the rules, that if you can’t work that one out for yourself you shouldn’t have got as far down the page as Rule #41.
I wish I could say that I must have put the wheel back in the wrong way wound after I stopped to remove a spoke that had popped out but those shots are before that.
It was a tad chilly, 4C at the start. Later on once the sun came out and all I seemed to be doing was climbing, I began to regret the merino wool base layer and snood. The guns were good though so there was no way that I was going to stop. I dod almost fall off in front of the last cameraman when I tried to zip my jersey for the shot on a 12% gradient. Communing with butterflies pace, for me, is not fast enough to be done no-handed.
@all.
So, um yeah.
Just found this little tidbit on the webby thing.
Shall we have another conversation about discs on road bikes?
@Chris
What I do find to be “fantastique” in your first photo is the way the valve stems and therefore the wheel graphics line up.
With regard to @ChrisO‘s comment, is the wheel back to front or is the skewer just the wrong way round?
@mouse
I don’t give a flying fuck about the brakes, that frame looks fantastically awesome, grey, white and red – I LOVE IT!
@snoov
Do you not align your wheels at the beginning of each ride?
Wheel the wrong way round. (I think, I don’t think there is anything directional about it. I need to check now. That’s a bit like having a nagging feeling that you’ve left the iron on)
@Chris
Oh my Merckx! I’ve never even thought of doing that! I thought that if you go round as many hairpin bends as I do on my many many climbs then with the front going farther than the rear they’d get out of sync. Not to mention when my rear wheel spins as I take off from red traffic lights, unless the road has that grippy stuff, in which case my front wheel lifts from the ground under the incredible force of my acceleration!
Depending on the tyres there may be direction of rotation arrows to help you decide if it’s the wheel or skewer.
@snoov
Surely skilled modulation of power or bringing your front wheel down at the right point would maintain the aura of fantastiqueness?
I will check for little arrows tonight, but I’m not sure that there are any.
@Chris
Plenty power, lack of control. There was a great photo a while back of Fignon in an ITT with perfectly synced discs and an awesome photo of the British track team with perfectly synced cranks. I can’t find them though.
@snoov
The most impressive part of the Fignon pic was the fact that the wheels were different sizes…spectacular piece of chance timing from the photog.
I’d try @Oli’s electrical tape method first, then @Lepidopterist’s method, then the foam.
that s the plan, guess I will be test riding on cobbles a lot…
the express my gratitude (if this is the pic you are looking for):
@JC Belgium
You are most welcome.
The photo is this one but thank you for trying.
So here’s my pedalwan learner’s new gravel rig we finished up last night in the shop. All new Ultregra gruppo with a mix-match of parts I’ve had laying around for years waiting for a new home. Sweet bike and he’s really excited about it. Perhaps I should have waited for him to post it himself but fuck it, this is a cool bike. The green tape is tits.
@Chris
More than a passing likeness to the God of Thunder
@Tartan1749
I could think of worst people to be compared with but heavier boned chaps like myself are unlikely to be mistaken for Wiggo or Frandy
@Chris
Go with ZIPP Service Course or 3T tape — then forget matching fizik tape.
@Marko
Please do not let your friend go too long on the compact !! And another seatpost !! Love GREEN — GREEEEN !! GREN.
@Marko
I’m an ass — your kin’s bike is great!. Sometimes the wrong coffee makes me say the wrong thing.
@Vin
It’s a cyclocross bike. They usually have smaller rings.
@Vin
Seeing how it’s a cyclocross bike I think it’s acceptable. It’s a 44-36 so super compact for CX. I hear you on the seatpost. It’s an old one of mine but he’s a college student and it took him 5 months to put the money together for the gruppo alone so other parts will come. I’m sure the bike will evolve over time but this will get him riding a sweet bike. He’s already shopping for road bikes though. The green is tight. I wouldn’t do it on a road bike either but I think some quirk is cool on CX bikes.
@Vin
What’s wrong with my fizik tape? You’ve got a pretty keen eye to spot the wrapping error from those photos or are you referring to the altogether more magnificent looking @ChrisO and the disatisfaction he’s expressed with his brown fizik tape?
@Chris
Nothing wrong with fizik tape (I loved it!) — just saying ZIPP and 3T has replaced it and wiped it from my memory. I am open-minded and may find my time to return to it.
@Marko
I can sew a ‘dumb-ass’ patch onto my jersey tonight. I must learn the whuuaays of CX and will find the time to do it.
@Vin
No worries, but you’re going to have to peel that jersey off my back first. Welcome, by the by.
@all I’m very excited for tomorrow, it’s finally happening. I’m going n (in my case 1) + 1. I’m giddy as shit.
The money is set aside and I will be test riding bikes tomorrow. Did I say I was giddy as shit?
Went to the shop today to give them a heads up, make sure any bikes I wanted to ride were built up. I’ll be testing a leftover Roubaix Elite, a Defy Composite, and a Supersix.
When I got the Caad I was un-informed, and un-initiated to the ways of cycling. I just didn’t want to be fat anymore. The bike however is not sized right for me, and is now showing serious signs of wear. I’m keeping it however as the rain bike.
I’m leaning heavily right now towards the Defy. Its not full on plush bike like the Roubaix, but not full on Race like the Supersix.
Any tips for the test ride, what to bring and how to do this correctly? It’s my first time going through the process.
@marko
Thinking abouts’ an inspiration here (or joke) — sewn on classic FAEMA-styled letters onto a wool jersey spelling DUMBASS. And then script Vin’cenza !!
@King Clydesdale
I actually dont believe in a test ride. Get the bike you like and make sure it fits. I got my SuperSix without sitting on it unroll I did the fitting.
@King Clydesdale
But if you want to feel the difference between the race Six and the more relaxed defy then the test ride would only work if both bikes were 100% fit to you.
@King Clydesdale
I’m going to disagree a bit with RR. At the very least, bring your pedals, shoes and simple measurements from your old bike: seat height, seat set back. After some pedaling around, whichever one “feels” right is the one. You can obsess over the fine tune of the fit later. You might even be able to swing a reduced price for a pro fit from the LBS as part of the purchase. Doesn’t hurt to ask. We’d do it for free if asked at the shop I worked at.
@King Clydesdale @RedRanger
Yeah that’s sort of a tough one – a test bike could be set up wrong, e.g. bars too low, stem too long, etc. and give you a wrong feel for the bike, despite it maybe being the right one.
I am also no expert. But when I bought my Felt the process was deciding my budget, then figuring out what bike I could buy with that (wound up with the z85), and then test riding. I went to one shop with a 54 (I ride a 56), and tested it. It seemed good.
I then found another shop with a better deal, but they didn’t have one in stock for me to test. But they said they’d order it for me and if I didn’t like it, they’d just sell it in the shop. Luckily I liked the bike.
For your situation, I’d bring your current saddle, pedals, and shoes if you plan on keeping all of those. Keeping those main contact points consistent I think will yield a better test of if you really like the bikes or not.
Thanks guys. The LBS includes a pro fit with any bike purchase of 700 bucks or more, so that’s no problem. I’m bringing in the old bike with me, and shoes, so they can take measurements (they fit me on this one originally).
@King Clydesdale
I agree w scaler- bring your contact bits – shoes, pedals, seat(albeit seat less so, but trying to minimize variables). Pick a test route including a hill you can do comfortably 3-4 times even if u cool down- each pedal swap takes time- and have at it. The cannondale, in my experience, just shines when you start going uphill. And I had thought that I would want to ride my plush(merlin ti/carbon hybrid) geometry bike on non- race related stuff long rides, but have found my race bike to be all day comfortable. Just less time in drops if don’t want to be aggressive.
Have fun! No wrong choice in that group- I rented a roubaix in Hawaii last October, put over 300km on it- no complaints.