Your latest bike project?

[hozn]

@KayakCyndi 160079 wrote:

Of course Hans is welcome to do that but he needs thru-axle and specs that I don’t have. But just to test fit, anytime.

Yeah, I guess if it’s not tight, then I could probably just borrow someone’s ( yours! ) QR 650b wheelset and position it close enough to confirm. I may try to find some measured diameters and cross sections and just make a model of the tire profile, etc. and use a tape measure. I should be able to prove this out with enough confidence.

[EasyRider]

@KayakCyndi 160079 wrote:

Of course Hans is welcome to do that but he needs thru-axle and specs that I don’t have. But just to test fit, anytime.

How do you like the tires? A little more tread than WTB Horizons, looks like?

[KayakCyndi]

@EasyRider 160083 wrote:

How do you like the tires? A little more tread than WTB Horizons, looks like?

This is just day one. They roll nicely on pavement. I’ll have to report back once I get them out on the canal, Loudoun gravel and/or local mtb trails ….

[Greenbelt]

Single speed to 1×10 converted my Unit to, well, it’s no longer a Unit!
[IMG]https://scontent-iad3-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t31.0-8/18489946_1354807071252673_5541479772460441692_o.jpg?oh=fbeb9ce56e8c6f6aaad52e5a4197dce9&oe=5976E5F0[/IMG]
[IMG]https://scontent-iad3-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t31.0-8/18449632_1354807064586007_7907049018901069480_o.jpg?oh=21224c50f357633fba85f5a774fde5e3&oe=597B6699[/IMG]

[Harry Meatmotor]

Tubies.

FarSports 38T x 25mm 20H/24H laced to Bitex SLF85W and SL210. Sapim CX Ray radial front, CX Ray NDS radial, Laser 2x DS. 1340g, no skewers.

Specialized Tubular All Around 24mm. These are definitely made by Vittoria Thailand, with Specialized’s own tread. Didn’t feel like waiting for the 24mm Hell of the North tires that should be showing up in September.

Now, here’s the kicker: I’m giving the new Effetto Mariposa Caronga tubular tape a whirl. Took less than 10 minutes to mount each tire and no mess. The tape should be fully cured by tomorrow, so I’ll see how they do on Sunday’s training ride.

Pics for clicks:

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[hozn]

@Harry Meatmotor 160398 wrote:

Tubies.

FarSports 38T x 25mm 20H/24H laced to Bitex SLF85W and SL210. Sapim CX Ray radial front, CX Ray NDS radial, Laser 2x DS. 1340g, no skewers.

How do they brake for you? I had a set of the high-temp-resin 50×25 wheels a few years back and they were fine (after I detensioning and rebuilt them — the original build was not great) but I had a few harrowing (not)stopping experiences that basically led me to write off rim brakes on carbon. But it might not have been any worse than rim brakes on other carbon wheels; I had nothing to compare it to.

Sounds like you built these up with BHS hubs?Good move. My set used the UL180 rear hubs which also proved less than sufficient for my weight/riding style.

[Harry Meatmotor]

@hozn 160402 wrote:

How do they brake for you? I had a set of the high-temp-resin 50×25 wheels a few years back and they were fine (after I detensioning and rebuilt them — the original build was not great) but I had a few harrowing (not)stopping experiences that basically led me to write off rim brakes on carbon. But it might not have been any worse than rim brakes on other carbon wheels; I had nothing to compare it to.

Sounds like you built these up with BHS hubs?Good move. My set used the UL180 rear hubs which also proved less than sufficient for my weight/riding style.

With Black Prince pads they feel a little better than my Rails. They’ve got some texture to the braking surface and feel just a bit more progressive in the brake lever feel. Compared to alu rims and Swiss Stop blue pads I don’t ever feel like I’m not going to be able to stop. Not planning on running carbon clinchers on any major mountain descents, but might trust the tubs more. Definitely not rain wheels, either of them.

[hozn]

@Harry Meatmotor 160403 wrote:

With Black Prince pads they feel a little better than my Rails. They’ve got some texture to the braking surface and feel just a bit more progressive in the brake lever feel. Compared to alu rims and Swiss Stop blue pads I don’t ever feel like I’m not going to be able to stop. Not planning on running carbon clinchers on any major mountain descents, but might trust the tubs more. Definitely not rain wheels, either of them.

Are those the”basalt” surface?

Glad they work well. I only ever used mine with the blue pads they ship; the interwebs suggested those were comparable in performance and I didn’t want to shell out the big $$ to maybe improve that. Yeah, they weren’t great in the wet. I remember having to bail into the grass going down Arozona to Canal when a car decide to stop despite the green arrow. They needed a lot of runway to come to a halt. People must just get used to that with carbon rim-brakes. I love good brakes. (And I love clinchers, so disc is my only good option anyway.)

[Harry Meatmotor]

@hozn 160405 wrote:

Are those the”basalt” surface?

Glad they work well. I only ever used mine with the blue pads they ship; the interwebs suggested those were comparable in performance and I didn’t want to shell out the big $$ to maybe improve that. Yeah, they weren’t great in the wet. I remember having to bail into the grass going down Arozona to Canal when a car decide to stop despite the green arrow. They needed a lot of runway to come to a halt. People must just get used to that with carbon rim-brakes. I love good brakes. (And I love clinchers, so disc is my only good option anyway.)

According to the folks I emailed back and forth with they’re *just* a high Tg resin, no more need for basalt. These are the “coveted” UCI-approved rims, whatever that means. Tho, honestly, brakes just slow you down, right?

[hozn]

@Harry Meatmotor 160407 wrote:

According to the folks I emailed back and forth with they’re *just* a high Tg resin, no more need for basalt. These are the “coveted” UCI-approved rims, whatever that means.

Interesting; I wonder if they really put them through the extra testing that UCI mandates (also not sure what that means).

@Harry Meatmotor 160407 wrote:

Tho, honestly, brakes just slow you down, right?

Well, hopefully stop you too!

[Harry Meatmotor]

@hozn 160414 wrote:

Interesting; I wonder if they really put them through the extra testing that UCI mandates (also not sure what that means).

Well, hopefully stop you too!

I’m guessing the UCI cert has more to do with FarSport landing a decent OEM contract that specified that the rims must be UCI-approved than any actual changes to the rim construction. My limited experience with EN/CEN type product testing is that it’s more about having enough slack in stock to allow for a couple dozen rims to be destructively tested than anything else. It’s expensive, but not difficult to meet specs.

Here’s a neat little known fact: one of the EN tests is a pedal-strike lean-over angle test. It’s the sole reason we don’t see any mass marketed brands with low (better handling) bottom brackets anymore. But go to Sacha White and get a custom frame and the BB is gonna be a good 15mm lower than pretty much any bike on the road.

[mstone]

@Harry Meatmotor 160428 wrote:

I’m guessing the UCI cert has more to do with FarSport landing a decent OEM contract that specified that the rims must be UCI-approved than any actual changes to the rim construction. My limited experience with EN/CEN type product testing is that it’s more about having enough slack in stock to allow for a couple dozen rims to be destructively tested than anything else. It’s expensive, but not difficult to meet specs.

That’s true across a lot of fields–many of the tests are just documenting the stupidly obvious, and who wants to pay for that? (Either producers or consumers; at least in the US–in other places people seem to actually be willing to spend more for something that’s ISO or whatever certified [regardless of whether upon reading the testing requirements it seems worth spending money on].)

[hozn]

@hozn 159036 wrote:

.

So I’ve been enjoying this new frame (well, pretty much a new bike) a lot. From a spec perspective, it’s perfect. The tire clearance is ample (I’ve run 43s, but looks like 45 would fit fine, and 650×47 works) without sacrificing ability to run a big 1x ring. Thru-axle is fantastic as I knew it would be, etc.

It does have an annoyance, though, that has surfaced in recent weeks which I’m unsure whether to fault as a building defect (them), bad design (me), or simply an expectation of using a coupler bike as a daily rider (no one): it starts making noise (sounds like BB clicking) after a couple/few weeks of use.

Basically, when the couplers are greased up and torqued down hard (about as hard as I can with the provided 6″ish wrench) the bike is quiet no matter how hard I mash on it. I’ve taken it to the group hill rides — and I’m definitely a tall-gear masher, which I’m sure isn’t helping me here. I don’t check on the coupler tightness (which is maybe an user error), but after a couple weeks or so it starts making some noise. In one case, it seemed like it had come a tiny bit loose; tightening it helped. More recently it still seemed just as tight, but opening it up and cleaning it out and regreasing every aspect of the coupler interface made problem go away. Most recently it’s being a little more stubborn and still making some noise on out of saddle hill climbs despite regreasing. Maybe I didn’t regrease it quite as well as before. Not sure exactly which interface is rubbing/clicking/moving.

Maybe the tolerances aren’t quite as perfect. Or maybe the smaller downtube is to blame (to be fair, Waltly did originally propose a much larger down tube, which would probably have made a stiffer system down there).

@ginacico, have you ever had any issues with noise from your couplers (or heard of others with this problem)? Is there any regular maintenance you do on your coupler frame?

I’m hopeful that I can find a system and grease setup that will just work. I did order an official S&S wrench, because the provided tool isn’t very good and has caused me to nick the coupler interface in a few places (and I’m concerned that if I keep using it I’ll eventually be unable to property tighten the couplers). I originally tried the S&S recommended high-fluo-crazy-expensive grease. That seemed to work ok. More recently, when it made noise I decided to try something a little heavier, so am using copper anti-seize. But as that didn’t seem to cure the problem, I might go back . I’m going to take apart and fully clean the couplers as there was a lot of dust (maybe dust from the frame finishing?) in there.

If the pattern of needing maintenance every few weeks keeps up, though, I might consider relegating this frame to travel only and getting an identical-except-for-couplers version to use as the daily commuter. Waltly will give me a significant discount, at least, if I decide to do that. (They said it should be quiet when correctly torqued, but I don’t think they’d accept this as a warranty-able issue.) I’m a little picky, but nothing drives me crazier than a creaky bike (and right now the creak from my shoes is actually a lot louder, so I probably should figure that one out first).

[dkel]

@hozn 161913 wrote:

right now the creak from my shoes is actually a lot louder, so I probably should figure that one out first.

If you do figure this out, let me know…my shoes squeak intermittently, but when they do, it’s merciless. Scraping a little paraffin on the pedals and cleats helps briefly when the problem comes up, but then again, I can go days or weeks without it being a problem at all. :confused:

[hozn]

@dkel 161916 wrote:

If you do figure this out, let me know…my shoes squeak intermittently, but when they do, it’s merciless. Scraping a little paraffin on the pedals and cleats helps briefly when the problem comes up, but then again, I can go days or weeks without it being a problem at all. :confused:

Yeah, I have tried paraffin (with similar results). I have some silicone spray that helps for maybe a couple hours. Spraying chain lube on the cleats has a similar effect. Seems to be a bit dependent on humidity or temperature, haven’t figured it out exactly. Also, it’s relatively new development with these shoes, which seems weird. Maybe moving the cleats a little would help (?) — but they’re kinda in the right position now, so don’t really want to do that. But it’s driving me crazy!

[Author]

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