Update to Bars and Cranks

18 Wednesday May 2011

Tags

a. homer hilsen, acorn bags, basket, nitto, rivendell, Sugino

New compact double crank and rando bars

OK – 2 days under the belt and about 40 miles. I like the cranks. It seems the 5mm difference is noticeable, but not a change for the worse. I seem to be fine in the knees, and it is not affecting my average speeds or feeling of power output.

On the bars, I’ve been tweaking the layout – I put the drops at about 17 degrees, and moved the shifters back a bit to fit my hands. It’s a bit weird to be so laid out, but not bad so far. My back and neck seem to be fine. I feel like it is definitely helping me fight the wind to be more aero. The problem with biking in May is I’m going into the wind both ways – it blows from the south in the morning, an the north in the evening. I love getting low in the drops when that happens. I do like the flare of the drops in the rando bars. I also don’t mind the narrow width so far compared to the 46cm Noodles I had been using.

The cassette is going to have to go. The 8-speed SRAM 12-30 is not ideal for the chainline – the spacer by the hub pushes the 7-speed cassette out, and this seems to help. I also like the 34 tooth big cog on the 7. I’m cleaning it up, and that bad boy is going back in service. The LX derailleur is no better or worse than the DuraAce it replaced. The front derailleur is still creeping in on the big ring, and I constantly have to trim it. I need a new derailleur – if I can find a nice Campy compact double, I need to snap it up. Riv used to sell them 😦

Oh yeah – no basket. I’m dumping the basket on the Riv. Going to stick with the Acorn bags…

MTB Update

18 Wednesday May 2011

Posted by Stonehog in Cycling

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Tags

brooks, MTB, Sugino, thumb shifter

My snow bike has been morphed back into a regular mountain bike.

I added a Brooks seat, properly color coordinated, and put Schwalbe Big Apples on it for commuting. It was used for my 9-mile commute and performed admirably, albeit sort of like a big sail with the upright position. With the shock and the Big Apples, it’s severely cushy, though. A real Cadillac.

I may keep this bike around for awhile, at least until I can add a newer steel frame to the stable. There are only a few components I will keep on this bike over time. The whole drive train is quite worn, and needs replacing. It’s amazing how much better the simple Sugino cranks are in comparison to the “modern” Shimano/SRAM stuff. The rings look like they were stamped from sheet metal and bent to shape. Garbage.

I also need some simple pedals that are uniform on both sides. I really like the MKS Sneaker pedals, and may try the Grip Kings for this kind of bike. I will keep the wheels and Big Apple tires – great ride on/off road if it’s not muddy. I may experiment with other shifting options – the XT Thumbshifters are nice, but I’ve moved on at this point, and can really see the advantage of a modern mountain brifter for off-road riding. I’m fine with friction for the road, but there are more extreme transitions in the dirt, and quickness can save your ass.

Cranks and Crankstas

18 Wednesday May 2011

Posted by Stonehog in Cycling

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Tags

compact double, crank, down-tube shifters, DuraAce, LX, nitto, porteur, rivendell, Sugino, wipperman

I am doing some changes on the Hilsen at a most inopportune time of the year – Bike to Work Month.

I had picked up a compact double Sugino crank in 170mm instead of my usual 175mm. As long as I can remember, I’ve always ridden 175s, and lately my psyche was telling me that my legs were extending up too far and it would help my knees to go with a shorter crank.

It seems like internet-lore is very inconsistent on the “proper” length of cranks, although there is a lot of pseudo science about it. I decided to do my normal “test it myself” routine. I left the Tange bottom bracket that came on the bike, and simply swapped the crank out. The old crank was a triple 24-36-46, and the new one is 34-48. I also changed out the chain and cassette as it was quite gunked up. I got a Wipperman 808 that I love – best connector link I’ve used – super simple. I slapped on my older SRAM 8-speed 12-30.

The DuraAce 7800GS I have used since the bike was new has never had a warm spot in my heart, and I had been reading good things about the LX derailers. I picked up one cheap on e-bay, and set it up, as well.

Since I was in a changing mood, I also swapped my Porteur bars and bar-end shifters for Nitto Randonneur bars and down-tube shifters. I always liked having the clean simplicity of this shifting setup, and it’s been windy lately, so I wanted to get more aero.

Phew – lots of change in the middle of a high-mileage month. I’ll give a more detailed report on how this is working out later this week.