Raised a new winter commuter bike [long-ish post]
3 Attachment(s)
Hi everyone!
After my old steel winter beater started to corrode in places I could not repair it, I started to look out for an aluminum frame. The bike coop I volunteer for had a very nice, almost complete 2007 Trek 6000 in the TODO-pile which I was able to free for a fairly low price. So here I was with a summer bike restoration project! The bike was pretty run down when I got it (likely no TLC since purchase), but all main components were in a good shape besides needing lots of standard maintenance. I had to replace chain and cassette. After years of cycling on an upgraded BSO, it is nice to have something lighter and smoother under my bum. My winter bike serves as everyday commuter (relatively short commutes, but it is a car replacement so it probably sees about 1500km a year + some courier-duties I started recently) in summer and winter. Winter here means lots of snow, slush, wind, and occasional black ice from December to March/April at down to -20C. Since my commute is short, I do not clean the winter bike after every ride (it would double the commute time...) and store it outside to avoid defrosting. I have recently added a good brush to my inventory to get a bit up to speed on quick cleaning. So, here's the bike: Attachment 590268 Aluminum frame, 17.5in frame for 6' guy, Avid BB5 disc brakes, rigid after-market aluminum fork, 9-speed deore-level drivetrain, Axiom disc rack, milk crate with DIY U-Lock holder, fenders with DIY mudflaps, and chainstay kickstand. In the summer, this bike is running 26x1.5 slick tires, in the winter I have the option of running standard Kenda MTB tires (handle snow and slush well, but no studs), or Schwalbe Winter Marathons (suck in deep snow/slush/ruts, but have studs). I am also promised knitted and lined bar mitts by my GF, as soon as I deliver useful measurements of the handlebar area :love: The milk crate bottom is lined with plastic against spray from the bottom and I have a dry-bag filled with bubble-wrap to provide some shock-absorption to more delicate loads, such as laptops or food deliveries. As this bike is now on the upper-level of bling-factor on my campus, I upped the security measures: stationary 16.8mm onguard brute U-Lock + mobile thinner U-Lock in holder on milk crate (picture below), quick releases replaced with allen key versions and key screws (holding fork, disc brakes, fenders, rack) now have torx heads with the security pin in the middle. Got those screws from ebay for a relatively decent price. For me, this bike is a little bit an experiment, as to how well I can prepare a fairly nice bike to survive a winter without going down the beater path given the level of care that I can reasonably provide. More on that later. Things to highlight: The bike came with a rockshox dart 1 fork, weights 2.5kg. I didn't need that, so I decided to risk a Taiwanese aluminum rigid fork with suspension-correction, ~800g instead. Having ridden it for 2 weeks now, I can say I like it quite well and it is confidence inspiring enough that I would ride it as a commuter. I would not challenge it to serious MTB or downhill rides. I also got a simple aluminum handlebar + stem, to replace the steel version that this bike came with. The U-Lock holder is a creation I am extremely happy with. I had to use screws to reliably attach the pipe pieces to the crate - zip-ties kept snapping: Attachment 590270 The lock rattles quite a lot in the holder. I'm still trying to think of the neatest way to stop that. The whole bike with U-Lock is probably in the 16kg range (manual estimation). Also, as mentioned before, I tried to winterize the bike as much as possible beforehand, to get through the winter with as little rust and damage as reasonably possible for my use case. Specific measures are:
Future TODOs: There are still a few items I am planning to do over the course of the next months:
Thanks for reading. I'm curious what you are thinking about going about a year-round winter-proofed commuter in this way. Any suggestions are also very welcome! Cheers. |
Nice job. Thanks for sharing.
Originally Posted by alias5000
(Post 20015261)
...Total cost of the bike is more than initially expected...
Originally Posted by alias5000
(Post 20015261)
Thanks for reading. I'm curious what you are thinking about going about a year-round winter-proofed commuter in this way. Any suggestions are also very welcome!
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Smart, clever and stylish! For the U-Lock holder, try foam pipe insulation (like pool noodles, but thinner).
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Here's the expense writeup (as far as I remember). Everything is in $CAD.
Some components have been moved over from my old winter beater (tires, bike computer, reflectors, lights, saddle, milk crate, pedals)
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Nice job on the build. It's a heck of a find for $90.
Winterize, yes, but winter-proof, no way. Water always finds a way to get through, carrying with it salt and dirt. I've ridden my own 'winter' bikes for a few southern Ontario winters now and I find the best way to preserve it is to give it a shower after a wet/slushy ride. I suppose the same thing goes for a car, though, oddly enough it's easier to do with a 2-ton car than a 20-lb bike. |
Thanks guys!
Originally Posted by kingston
(Post 20015534)
Since the frame is too small you should get the tallest stem riser you can find to get the bars up, maybe even a different stem and some riser bars. Also get some studded tires. I like schwalbe marathon winters. And some pogies.
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon....1Hgf5jz7JL.jpg The center line makes them rolling quite nicely on asphalt. If there were Schwalbe-quality studded tires with such a tread, I'd be happy. My Kendas will last another ~2 winters. Still undecided which tires I'll put on this year. About bike fit (thanks for you comments!): I haven't figured out the effects of changing things, yet. Some adjustments to get the reach comfortable seem counter-intuitive to me. People recommend to have a larger saddle set-back, and riser-bars. My touring bike frame is also too small, but it's very comfortable to me. Compared to my winter bike fit, it has less saddle set-back, a shorter stem (shorter saddle nose-handlebar distance) and the handlebar is much below the saddle (have to measure it, but it is extreme, 5-10cms). No numb hands, responsive handling and no feeling of being overly compressed on the bike. The recommendations I read make sense to me, but it hasn't translated to reality for me, yet. More trying needed.
Originally Posted by BobbyG
(Post 20015556)
Smart, clever and stylish! For the U-Lock holder, try foam pipe insulation (like pool noodles, but thinner).
Originally Posted by mcours2006
(Post 20015704)
Winterize, yes, but winter-proof, no way. Water always finds a way to get through, carrying with it salt and dirt. I've ridden my own 'winter' bikes for a few southern Ontario winters now and I find the best way to preserve it is to give it a shower after a wet/slushy ride.
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Originally Posted by alias5000
(Post 20015990)
Glad to hear from you. I'm just ~100km west of you. Was looking forward to your feedback. What do you use to shower your bike? Do you dry it? I guess, you can store it inside afterwards, no?
I do realize that not everyone has the luxury to clean, or even store, their bikes inside, but I think even a wipe down after a wet ride, perhaps with a spray bottle and warm water, is helpful in preserving the parts that are susceptible to corrosion. |
I have one of those hand pump garden sprayers that I use on my drivetrain.
So far just water, but I've been meaning to research something else I could mix in to more effectively desalinate my bike. I just rinse the drivetrain and wheels, not the whole bike. |
Originally Posted by Banzai
(Post 20016139)
I have one of those hand pump garden sprayers that I use on my drivetrain.
So far just water, but I've been meaning to research something else I could mix in to more effectively desalinate my bike. I just rinse the drivetrain and wheels, not the whole bike. |
I use one of these backpack sprayers in the winter when my garden hoses are put away. They go on sale for $20 all the time. It's good because it sprays more volume than the hand-held sprayers and you can pump it while you are spraying.
I've thought about getting one of these portable pressure washers |
Originally Posted by Banzai
(Post 20016139)
I have one of those hand pump garden sprayers that I use on my drivetrain.
So far just water, but I've been meaning to research something else I could mix in to more effectively desalinate my bike. I just rinse the drivetrain and wheels, not the whole bike. |
Originally Posted by mcours2006
(Post 20019883)
Is the pressure on these things sufficient?
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Cool bike, and thanks for posting up the budget - it's interesting to see. I thought about building up a winterized bike this fall and actually began with a '90s trek MTB, but decided to just see if my regular ride will be able to handle it. I live in Chicago and do pretty much everything within a 5km radius of my apartment so I figured building a dedicated snow bike was overkill. Hope this bike works well for you.
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Originally Posted by loosemilk
(Post 20020545)
Cool bike, and thanks for posting up the budget - it's interesting to see. I thought about building up a winterized bike this fall and actually began with a '90s trek MTB, but decided to just see if my regular ride will be able to handle it. I live in Chicago and do pretty much everything within a 5km radius of my apartment so I figured building a dedicated snow bike was overkill. Hope this bike works well for you.
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Originally Posted by kingston
(Post 20020308)
They're not as good as a garden hose, but better than nothing.
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Originally Posted by alias5000
(Post 20020720)
(also @Banzai). One more question. How much water do you use for one wash usually? I see some 1.5 liter things, as well as 1-2 gallon sprayers at local hardware stores. I feel that I would likely be too cheap with going for 1-1.5 liter tanks, but 1 gallon should do it, no?
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Originally Posted by alias5000
(Post 20020720)
(also @Banzai). One more question. How much water do you use for one wash usually? I see some 1.5 liter things, as well as 1-2 gallon sprayers at local hardware stores. I feel that I would likely be too cheap with going for 1-1.5 liter tanks, but 1 gallon should do it, no?
I just rinse down the chain, cogs, chainring(s) and wheels well enough to be satisfied that most of the salt got rinsed away, or at least diluted significantly. It's not actually a wash of my bike, just some salt/rust prevention. When it's well below freezing, the fact that it uses a lot less water than a garden hose is probably a good thing. |
Never mind. I just went and looked at mine. It's definitely 1 gallon.
Goes a long way. |
Originally Posted by mcours2006
(Post 20021144)
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Originally Posted by alias5000
(Post 20015990)
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Originally Posted by jrickards
(Post 20021521)
Thanks for looking this up for me, now all I need you to do is buy one, try it out and post the review. :lol:
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Originally Posted by mcours2006
(Post 20021546)
I am thinking about it. Seriously! All the other units at Canadian Tire, Home Depot, Rona, etc., sell for over $100, but for $20-30 it might be worth try. You could always return it if you don't like it. It's not like you're putting paint or deck stain in it.
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Originally Posted by mcours2006
(Post 20021546)
I am thinking about it. Seriously! All the other units at Canadian Tire, Home Depot, Rona, etc., sell for over $100, but for $20-30 it might be worth try. You could always return it if you don't like it. It's not like you're putting paint or deck stain in it.
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Originally Posted by kingston
(Post 20021799)
Not sure where you are shopping, but I have gotten 2 gallon sprayers for under $10 and my 4 gallon backpack sprayer for under $20. Home Depot has a 1 gallon sprayer for $8.97 US.
Edit: I just clicked the link. That actually IS my sprayer. |
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