Barlow Pass

13 Tuesday May 2014

Tags

a. homer hilsen, Barlow Pass, compass, cypres, fenders, Gran Bois, honjo, Hunqapillar, jack brown, rivendell, tires, toe overlap, VO, Zeppelins

After putting 38mm tires (Compass Barlow Pass) and new fenders (VO Zeppelins) on my Hilsen, and riding them for a month or so, I have the following observations.

They are cushy and ride well
They are light (I have the Extra Lights) and don’t slow my pace down
They increase stand over height by a half cm or so (it is noticeable)
The bike handles about the same
The tread is very grippy – I like the sure-footedness
There is now quite a bit of toe overlap, and I have bounced the fender several times during slow maneuvers
The difference between my 31mm Cypress and these 38mm Barlows is much less evident than jumping to a 42mm Hetre

I am slowly coming to the realization that I like smaller, fatter wheels on road bikes, but if I’m on a 700c, 33.3mm is the most I need. On both the Hunqapillar and my Hilsen the favorite tires for pure road riding have been either Gran Bois Cypres or Rivendell Jack Brown (Greens). Both combos make the bikes feel fast, agile, and just “right”. They also do a good enough job to absorb road bumps that I don’t feel beat up even after a long (200k/300k) ride. When I have a bigger tire (35mm+) on a 700c wheel, the bike feels a bit ponderous.

I really want to like the Barlows – but they are just not Hetres, and they aren’t feeling significantly better or more comfortable than the Cypres/JBs. I don’t know if the added volume makes the toe overlap worth the bother. I also like the hammered Honjo fenders I had on this bike. They added a touch of class…

New fenders, old bike

23 Monday Sep 2013

Posted by Stonehog in Cycling

≈ 6 Comments

Tags

B&M, B17, Bar Wrap, bosco, brooks, compass, hammered, harlequin, honjo, Luxos, Miyata, resurrectio, rivendell, sackville

I have an old mountain bike that has become one of my favorites. Not sure why, but I think it’s the pump peg. It’s always the simple things that give flame to our obsessions.

Old version

The Miyata has a few issues, but I’ve solved a lot of them in the past year, getting rid of the front rack and basket (too much trail to handle well), and adding the awesomely great Compass 1.75″ tires. They are like Hetres for a 26er, but with useful tread. I even harlequined the hell out of the boscos. OK – there are a few other things that need changing, like the crappy VO crankset, slippy MKS pedals, and plain old Brooks B17, and I may have the frame powder coated some day, but I’ll leave that for a while and keep enjoying the retro color scheme. I also needed lights for the perfectly good unused Shimano dyno hub. Enter the Luxos B:

New hotness

Another problem with said bike in that it had ugly black fenders. Those had to go even though they were perfectly adequate (well – not really – they were too short to keep the front splashes off my feet in really big puddles). I picked up some NOS 26″ hammered Honjos last year intending them for this bike but uninstalled due to time commitments.

Bad ass fenders

I took it for the inaugural ride today and had no rattles, log-jams, or other inconveniences. It is still living up to a favorite! This will be my winter ride. I may even use it on a brevet if the main bike is in repair…

Rear view

Oh yeah – the bell is totally divine! Multiple timbres and tons of decay, while not being too intrusive/obnoxious.

Nice foreground to a vodka yacht (Serene)

Pretty!

This frame is 25 years old, but it’s starting to have a new life. I’m guessing it will go at least another quarter century if these fenders do their job in rainy Seattle…

Wheel Carrier

08 Thursday Dec 2011

Posted by Stonehog in Cycling

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

bicycle wheel, brooks, honjo, rim, rivendell, Synergy, transport, velocity, wheel carrier, zip tie

Wheel Carrier, a set on Flickr.

I had to carry a rim home tonight, and could not devise a good way to put it on the front rack. This seemed to work out pretty well, and I got home with nary a scratch.

I used zip ties to try to keep everything snug and rattle-free (at least on the fender). I had done this method of wheel transport before, and every bump bounced the bottom of the wheel off the fender. Tieing it down really helped this time.

I had to watch how close I got to traffic, parked cars, and other bikers, but it wasn’t a problem. I did have a bit of scratching on the top where the rim was held by the straps and buckles. This was likely due to the rim coming in contact with the metal seat loops that the bag straps use. Nothing a light sanding won’t remove, but a slight annoyance in the occasional rattle department.

Next – on to the build…