Building a Road Bike-Part 1

So you want a new bike.  As with most vehicles, you can purchase one or you can build one.  There are pluses and minus for one verses the other.  The pluses include saving money, getting exactly what you want, personal touches, and for some, knowledge of the workings of a bike.  The minuses include: a bike that might not work perfectly, screwing up parts and having it cost more than it should have, alot of time, and the possible excrement of three not so fun bodily fluids: blood, sweat, and tears. 
A friend of mine is about to embark on his first bike build.  He sent me a e-mail stating that he purchased a frame and needed help with "the rest".  Since I felt that an in depth responded was warranted, I decided to put my recommendations here so that everyone on the dud dud dud had an opportunity to read them.  Of course, my recommendations are often disagreed upon, and sometimes even by myself, so take it with a grain of sodium.  Assuming that the frame he bought fits, has all the modern fittings, where do you go from here.

Sellers description, parred down to the useful stuff:"
Orbea Vitesse road bike. believe it is a 2002. The bottom bracket has English threads. Fork is an Easton EC90 Superlight  needs a new upper headset bearing ; the lower bearing is there.

The next three steps are component selection, assembly, and fitment.  In this article I will concentrate on component selection.  You will be on your own for assembly, and I will lightly cover fitment since the frame fitment is the most in depth and already predetermined in this case. 

The heart of a bikes components is the drive train.  Everything thing else in one way or the other is related to this.  The first thing I think should be decided upon is the crank.  A few things should be now considered:  triple or double, 9 or 10 speed, Bottom bracket, brand.

Triple or Double. Traditionally road bikes have two chainrings; double.  However in more recent years a granny gear, or a third small chainring has become very popular; triple.  The extra low gears allows steep hills to be climbed more easily.  Sure there are ways to lower the gears on a double, such a lower tooth count on the second chainring, or a mountain bike/larger rear gears.  However none of them do so as smoothly as having a third front gear.  The two main determining factors when deciding between the two is how many/big are the hills you ride, and what kind of riding power do you generate.  Events like the Death Ride and the Tour of the Rockies tend to lend itself to the use of triple.  However to show up to a race event with that third ring will have you laughed out of the peloton.  Deciding on a double or a triple might seem like a small issue and might not be the most important, however it should be considered early in the selection process, as other components such as derailleurs and shifters must be differentiated.  Another factor to consider with the 2 vs 3 ring selection is cost.  Road bike specific triples are a relatively modern thing. Where as I can get a 10 year old high end double, a good used triple might cost me a few more coins.   Finally to throw another wrench in the mix is the compact double.   These crank arms have smaller chainrings and thus also lowers your pedal generated top speed.  Compact chainrings have a smaller bolt pattern, which limits the selection of chainrings as well. 

Length- as a sub topic let's talk about length of the crank arms. The longer the arms to more torque.  The faster the arms the quicker the acceleration. Mountain bikes usually use a longer crank verse a road bike.  Uphiller: longer; flatland sprinter: shorter. 

10 speed or 9.  If you go out and buy a new crank, chances are it will be ten speed compatible.  The 10  or 9 number refers to the number of gears in the rear, such that a triple 10 is a "30 speed". So why is this important when selecting front cranks.  Since the hub spacing on the frames has been standardized, and the narrower the hub flanges the weaker the wheel, the only way you squeeze in that extra gear is to make everything thinner.  Thus a 10 speed chain is more narrow that a 9.  Though a 10 speed chainring will work with a 9 not all 9's will work with a 10.  Most new road bikes come with a 10.  Thus if you apply computer buying logic (buy the most up to date equipment so it does not become obsolete too soon) you will want a 10.  Things to note is that used gear will be harder to come by in 10.  Also due to the fact that everything is thinner means that it will wear out a bit faster.  Is there any advantage to 10 over 9.  You won't really notice the extra gear, but it does make hitting that right gear more likely.  Of course this is not the end of it: 8 and 11.  I would try to stay away from getting 8 speed stuff.  Applying the same computer logic, it is harder to find replacement parts for 8s already.  And know when to say enough.  There are 11 speed drive trains out there.  But who knows if that will last.  10 speed has been around for long enough that it is pretty standard.

Bottom Bracket.  This is the bearing set that the cranks pivot about.  I like the new 2 piece style cranks, or Hollowtech (Shimano). This is the type that has a large diameter hollow spindle which is have survived longer.  The common use of sport drink in water bottles contributes to the demise of the bearings due to the sticky fluids splashing out of the bottle and gumming up the bearing. 

If you have found the perfect crank and it doesn't have this type of BB, what type does it have ? The hollow Octolink cartridge style ones are ok.  The square taper cartridge ones kindda suck though last forever. Crank bolts are better than nuts.  And I will never hesitate to run an old school rebuildable.  English threads are the most common, and you just have the measure the BB shell length of your frame in mm to size to spec.  If you really want to get geeky with the old school stuff, you can spec and learn about other BB threads, various length of spindle, chainring, chain stay clearance, off set. 

Brand.  Though several bike component brands litter the market, almost all bikes use one of these three: Shimano, Campagnolo, Sram; Japanese, Italian, American.   The majority of bikes in America seem to run Shimano.  I personally have grown up using Shimanon parts almost exclusively.  I find that they have good quality, and a wide product line that covers high to low end parts.  I also find that the low end parts are of good quality with their down fall being weight and durability.  By durability, I mean how much beating they can take, and how long they might wear; not breakage due to normal use.  Sram is definitely gaining size in the market. Their product line is competitively priced, and delivers some innovations.  Sram is also the parent company for many brands such as Rock Shox, Avid, Grip shift, just to name a few.  Campy typically appeals to the savy road rider.  Their products are more elegant, light weight, and expensive.  Though they do boost a 11 speed drivetrain, they are not typically known for innovation. 

When selecting a brand, you should usually stay with one company within your component group.  This helps avoid incompatible parts.  Though differences in generation have more to do with mismatches, there are some stuff like Sram 1:1 ratio shifter not working with a Shiamno 2:1 derailleur.   The easiest way to avoid mismatch issues to is buy a entire "Groupo", new.  A groupo is all the component you need to build a bike, sold as a package often with a discount over buying all the pieces separately.  However even if you buy a groupo, this does not insure that you do not have incompatibility issues.  The parts still need to fit the frame and wheels. 

Hope you enjoyed reading  Part 1, in road bike building.  I'll let you digest that, while I cook up another plate 2.

Next time: derailleurs, shifters, gears and brakes.

My New Bike -Trek 360

For those who do not know: Steel is REAL. If you are a cyclist you must have heard that cliché a hundred times. But it is true. Especially when you are talking about True Temper Double butted 4130. Let's back up a bit and tell this story from the start.

Back when I was in high school I had my first bicycle stolen from me. A Motive mountain bike. Feeling my loose, my buddy from the Polo team gave me an old bike. A Trek road bike. That Trek, which I never knew the make (since it had already had a custom paint job), has been with me since that day. It was last configured as a flat bar road bike.

When I was employed as a bike mechanic, a customer brought in a Centurion bike as a parts donor. The bike was blue with chrome lugs. After I created a monstrosity of a bike for this customer, he gave the frame to me. A friend of mine had always liked those bikes. After a year went by and the bike never saw a complete build up, he propositioned me for a trade. The beautiful Centurion for a Yellow Trek 360. I accepted.

The 360 was almost identical to the Trek I was given in high school. Same size, and basic build, lugged steel. However there where three features that made this bike more appealing. 700c wheels, recessed brake bolts, and better frame material. My old bike had 27" wheels. This was the popular American "10 speed" size. Modern road bike typically run 700, millimeter diameter, "C" lincher wheel/tires. All modern road bike caliper brakes use a nut that fits into a frame recess. Modern dual pivot brakes are the equivalent to disk brakes vs drum brakes, when compared to old single pivot side pulls. Though I never knew exactly the frame material of my first Trek, due to the weight, I did not think that the steel was of the highest quality. Though the 360 is their lower line bike, the frame build up is still high quality. Often times the lower line is simply the same frame as the high end bike, with cheaper components.

So what makes a high quality steel frame? Cromoly Steel, double butted tubes, with investment cast lugs. Steel alloyed with Chromium, and Molybdenum, is often referred to as Cromoly, Cromo, aircraft tubing or aircraft grade steel. Any of the various Cromoly steels will have a numerical designation which starts with 41xx. 4130 is the most popular for bikes. Cromoly steel has great strength to weight ratio, stronger and harder than the average steel, and easy to weld. Used in bike frames to AK-47 receivers. Stronger also means lighter since less steel is required to make the frame. I once read that a lightweight steel frame, if melted down, would result in a brick the approximate size of a deck of cards.

Straight gauge, single butted, and double butted are the various forms a bikes frame tube comes in. The primary difference being the thickness of the tubes. The primary stresses of a section of tubing exist at the ends where it is connected to another piece of tubing, either by welds or by lugged fittings. The center portion sees less stresses and thus does not require the same thickness of tubing as the ends. Double butted tubes are the lightest and most refined of the three configurations.

The preferred method for joining steel tubes of a bike frame is with lugs , or specially designed fittings which the tubes slip into. The tubes are then brazed to the lugs. Lugs are made in two ways: cast and stamped. Due to the complex geometry of lugs, stamped lugs are made in halves then welded together. The rough stamped lugs are then filled down. This filing make for poor fitting tubes and slope in the design angles. Investment casting is just a fancy way of saying lost wax casting. A wax part is created. A clay mold is made of the wax. The wax is melted out and replaced with steel. I am sure there is a more efficient mass production method of this form of casting which is used. I was very impressed with the lugs on this bike. The top tube/ seat tub lug, as a built in seat post binder, and strengthening nubs on the seat stay attachment. The rear dropouts which technically is not considered a lug shows it attention to detail. The chain hook, and the "69" which I am sure is not a serial number.

The thing that throws most people off is that I use a flat bar instead of the standard road styled drop bars. I am foremost a mountain biker. When on a road bike I never use the drops, and am not completely comfortable in that position. Thus I use a mountain bike type flat bar. I fitted the bike with primarily Shimano Ultegra parts with a few Dura Ace goodies thrown in the mix. I used a XT long cage derailleur mated to an 12-34, 9 speed XT cassette. Rear shifting is achieved by a Shimano Rapid fire shifters. However the front shifting is accomplished by a grip shifter. Rapid fire front shifters only allows a single fix position for each chain ring. However the grip shift have several clicks per ring to allow for fine trimming. I used non "V" brake style brake levers, which pull the correct amount of cable to match my dual pivot brake calipers. Rear wheel is a beat to hell ex San Fransisco messenger wheel, Shimano Ulterga hub and Mavic Open Pro rims. Front wheel is some dumpster radial laced jobbie.

Overall this is a very fast old steel bike. The frame has considerably more pop to it then the old Trek. I still need to dial in some cable routing and finding a properly size stem. But I have been riding it. Next time you see me rolling through your neighborhood on my Trek 360, you'll know: I am keeping it REAL!

Electra Bikes

New bikes these days tend to fall into two extremes. High Tech or Low Tech. On the cutting edge of technology, mountain bikes have multi link suspensions that are often more complicated than the suspension systems found on cars. Road bikes are built of space age materials with tuned harmonic dampeners. However new bikes are still produced that appeal to the classic in some of us. The single speed revolution harks to day of old, when all riders dreamt about was multi speed gearing. Beach cruisers have taken styling cues from the original Schwinn Phantom Bicycles.

Electra bicycles had made a niche for themselves in the classic/retro bike market. http://www.electrabike.com/

Catering, not to the hard core cyclist, but more to the bicycle lifestyle advocate, Electra carries a full line of bikes that span from antique euro bikes, to bad boy choppers. You won't be winning any competitive races on these fine looking machines, but will be wining style points at your local hipster cyber cafe.

As an ex-bike mechanic at my local shop, I still occasionally make guest mechanic appearances. This last weekend I had the pleasure to building a few Electra Cruisers. Though the "Sparker", with its beach cruiser style frame, giant rear tire, and radially lace front wheel, did little to excite me, the Delivery 3i (pictured above) was a beauty. With the modern aluminum frame material mated to the wood panel rack and delivery basket, the attention to detail was at a level not usually found on a bicycle. Though all of my old bicycles are truly old, and the $730 price tag is something I would not pay, the existence of a company that builds fine modern classic bikes is inspiring.

Downieville Downhill - My kind of Biathlon part II

If you live in Tahoe, you often hear talk of Downieville as the mecca of mountain biking. I actually think that Tahoe itself is the mecca. It just goes to show "the grass is greener" mentality of people. However you can not deny that Downieville does provide some fabulous riding, especially the world famous Downieville downhill. The DV DH is a 15 mile long ride which links several trails, drops 4000', and has about 1/4 miles worth of climbing. It is of moderate technical difficulty, except for a couple of challenging obstacles.

The ride starts at the top of Packer Saddle. From Highway 49 turn north at Bassests onto Gold Lake Rd. Take the fist left over the bridge onto Packer Lake Rd. Take the first Right to stay on Packer Lake Rd to Packer Saddle. Once over the saddle take a left at the "T", and you will find a well established parking lot a few hundred yards from the "T".

The most difficult part of the DV DH is setting up the car shuttle. To avoid the grueling Downieville Uphill, most people shuttle the ride. Setting up the shuttle takes two cars, a long time and a lot of driving. A good option is the use Downieville Outfitters. Each van ride to the top cost about twenty bucks. These guys also rent bikes. http://www.downievilleoutfitters.com/

There are two basic options for the downhill. Pauley Creek, or Butcher's Ranch. Butcher's Ranch Trail is the most popular and starts almost immediately from the top, where as the Pauley Creek Trail requires a few miles of dirt road riding to the trail head. Actually the true start of BR starts a little bit down the dirt road, but most people take Sunrise trail to link to BR. Sunrise at the time however still had many snow patches, which resulted in mud holes. I felt bad about having a ten person crew tear through those holes, but we did not know of its condition. The beginning of the trail is south facing and great. It isn't till a little ways in that you find yourself on the cold, snowy, muddy, north face.

BR seamlessly joins up with Pauley Creek trail. Then onto the third divide, dirt road, through the campsite, first divide, and into town.
http://www.downievilleclassic.com/images/downieville_course_08.gif

Bike to Work Week Champs

Our company did it!! We won the 3rd Lake Tahoe Bike to Work Challenge. The the most miles per employee and the most trips. Our company did a total of 643.5 miles and 133 trips. Beating out the two time champs: the Nevada Tahoe Conservation District.

Go Team LSC!

http://bike.tahoempo.org/

Bike Multi tool - 15mm nut

A friend of mine recently presented me with a question: What tool would you carry to remove a non quick release rear wheel of a bike? This seems like kind of an odd question with an easy answer: a wrench. But if you really ride bikes you would know this is not so. This is because most fasteners on a bike are Allen type, which require small tools. With almost all wheels being quick release the need for large wrenches have almost all but vanished. These days most cyclist carry a multi tool, a Swiss army knife of bike tools, which do not include a 15 or 14 mm wrench for removing nutted wheels.

With single speed bikes however, nutted wheels are still in demand. Some think that with the extra torque generated by only one gear, extra holding strength is also required. Thus the need for a large wrench.

-My first thought was the "Cool Tool". This was one of the first bike specific multi tools. Now the design is owned by Gerber.

It not only has a crescent wrench on one end, but a 14/15mm socket attachment. This is the tool that I carry, and have owned for over 10 years.

http://www.epinions.com/bike-Components-All-Gerber_Cool_Tool_CT41945#

-Having a bunch of old tools in my bike bin, I then thought of this ol gem. It has various sizes of socket like fitting including a 15mm. But having destroyed one in the past, I am not sure that it can deliver the torque requirements of a 15mm rear axle nut (30is ft/lbs according to Park Tools).

http://www.amazon.com/Tool-Bone-Bicycle-Wrench-Metric/dp/B000NJGOB2

But maybe I just had a crappy one, and one of better quality would work.

-The next tool to hit my brain was the stubby wrench. Maybe this would be a good alternative to a full size wrench. All the reliability, half the size. You wouldn't need to change up your trusty tool kit, just have a little addition. And they are so cute to boot.

-But if you are going to be caring a wrench for a single purpose, you might as well make it specific purpose, yet multi use; does that make sense at all. Introducing the Park tools single speed spanner. A 15mm stubby wrench with a six point socket, tire lever, and a bottle opener.

This little guy sells for under $15 dollars, and seems built for the job.

https://www.ebikestop.com/park_tool_ss_15c_single_speed_spanner-TL8349.php

This is a good time to throw in a short discussion on "points" of a socket. What six point socket vs a 12 point one. It is the number of possible contact locations the tool/socket can have with the nut/bolt head. A hex head nut has six sides, and thus the true maximum contact points is 6. The stubby wrenches shown above are of the 12 point variety. This does not mean that it contact the nut in 12 points but has 12 possible contact locations. This allows more indexing possibilities if you are working in a tight spot. A 12 point wrench will slip over the nut every 30 degrees apart, whereas a 6 point will only do so every 60 degrees. A open end wrench only contacts the nut in 2 points, and like the 6 point, govern by the hex pattern, indexes every 60 degrees. So which is the best? Generally a 6 point socket provides the most "grip" on a nut. Each of the six points grab more of the corner than a 12 point would. However if working in a tight spot a 12 pt might be necessary. A open end wrench is generally the worst, and most likely to round out your hex corners, but in some applications they are necessary when you cannot slip a box end or a socket over the end, such as a sensor with a wire or a nut on an all thread. If a high torque application of this type is required a flared nut tool or a sensor socket can be used, 5 point. But we will save that discussion for another time.

-Finally a little bit of warning. I would stay away from multi tools that claim to have a 15mm wrench, such as this one. I doubt that the 15mm cut out in the piece of steel will hold up.

So good luck Rob, and let me know what you choose.

Bob Trailer - Build your own.

If you have been a cycliclst long enough, you most likely know about bicycle trailers. One of the most famous one out there is the BOB trailer.


http://www.bobgear.com/


It is rumored that the name BOB stands for "Bring Own Beer", and that the trailer was designed to carry a keg. I am very familiar with the product. Not only do I own one, but am a sponsored rider. Sorta.


Bob trailers were originally started in San Luis Obispo, where I went to college. At the time of my senior project, I was working in the engineering project lab, the student machine shop. One afternoon, in walks a man who is poking his head around. My senior project was a gas power assisted recumbent bicycle. He immediately took interest in my project. I informed him that this was a restricted area, and he informed me that he was the owner of BOB trailers. We got to chatting, and i told him how I planned to ride my contraption from Ventura California to Las Vegas self supported. Do you want a sponsorship he asked.


My sponsorship included a BOB trailer, gear bag, T-shirt, stickers and pamphlets. The trailer was a broken late model prototype, which after seeing the miles of welds on my recumbent, he was sure I could fix. He told me that I could take this sponsorship as far as I wanted to, and that was the last time I spoke to him. I did however help show off his product on my trek. I wore his shirt and talked up his product to who ever would listen. I also plastered BOB stickers on every flat surface between Ventura and Vegas.


Fast forward 8 years. I get an e-mail one day from my buddy Ralf who did the trip with me. He asked if I still have the BOB, and was wondering if I was willing to sell it to him. Though it gets used only a few times each year, usually loaned to others, I was not willing to part with it, he could barrow it any time he wanted though). The main reason was the shipping to Michigan part; seemed to be a hassle and anti bike trailer purpose: CO2 footprint reduction.


These trailers are not cheap, with a MSRP of $289 for the basic trailer. Ralf decided to build his own.

Though almost all homemade, a critical part was needed to be purchased from BOB. The skewer. Also upon test rides it appeared that the skewer to trailer connection was a little weak, and that it might be a good idea to purchase the entire front triangle assembly.

http://www.biketrailershop.com/catalog/bob-replacement-parts-c-22.html

Last I heard BOB trailers is based out of Bosie Idaho, and they sell way more baby joggers then they do bike trailers.