frantik

I posted these in my "build" thread, but I'll post em here too lol.. converting my HardRock into an "urban assault vehicle" as Sixty-Fiver described it

Sixty Fiver

I have referred to my Kuwahara Shasta as a U.A.V. for quite a few years... the name seemed to fit.

rumrunn6

enjoy the conversion, even if you go "+1" some time down the road!

jbchybridrider 

Well there's not much happening on the forums tonight so I'm going to try and be a smart ass, more pic's of my hybrid.
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rumrunn6

dude, that bike is sick

giantcfr1

Ok, I'm jealous and dumb as dog sh1t. I can only see one shifter. What's the go here?

EDIT: I did some thinking and remembered this guy I met a few years ago had the same set up (kind of) and I watched him change the front chain rings with a stick...

Here he is, showing some of his other skills / stupidity...

jbchybridrider 

No thats skill "riding the bars" or stupid for a composite spinergy wheel "catastrophic failure" or smart for a rear only. Or a trick of the eye its only on for the photo.
Considering three options for that 1. just buy a cable for the deraillier or
2. a chain deflector or
3. I'm quite taken by the look of fully ridgid 29er single speed bikes and may build a new rear wheel with a internal gear hub and piss off the shifters and derailliers altogether or
4. I have a serious problem with spending to much money "HELP"

jbchybridrider 

Thanks mate.

giantcfr1

This forum is not the place for help to rectify spending too much, it encourages it.
Actually with regard to the bar riding dude, his bike was a real hybrid in it's own way. He built it the morning of the ride out of spare parts. It's a mixture of shimano / campag / track parts etc...

jbchybridrider 

[QUOTE= watched him change the front chain rings with a stick...
[/QUOTE]

He's most definitely a genius it looks like he has ten fingers and I want to see stupid people spending money.

jbchybridrider 

[QUOTE=frantik;12380685] converting my HardRock into an "urban assault vehicle" as Sixty-Fiver described it


A guy in a mtb forum described my bike as a road rat, I think that has a better ring to it.

frantik

haha road rat makes me think of rat-rod..

02Giant 

Sharp bike, obviously well cared for.

jbchybridrider 

What's wrong with road and mtb riders, why dont they see the light and get a hybrid ?

BarracksSi

I "had" a hybrid (a Bianchi Valle) until I converted it to drop bars. Now its closest category would be "light touring" -- not "heavy touring," because it doesn't have rack mounts on the fork legs.

Tires too skinny for offroading (and no suspension, either; my FS MTB is so much nicer to use offroad), not enough riding positions for spending an hour or four in the saddle... If those aren't important factors, a hybrid makes plenty of sense. But in my case, I nearly stopped riding my hybrid Cannondale when I got the road and MTB bikes.

But, for someone looking to get back into lots of riding, a hybrid makes perfect sense. It'll go almost anywhere and do almost anything, letting its owner decide where they ride the most and if a more specialized bike will suit them better.

Sixty Fiver

I ride them all... my hybrid is an excellent all rounder while my mtb and road bike are a little more specialized in purpose.

The hybrid does not roll out as fast as the much lighter road bike and although I have ridden the hybrid on singletrack and some extreme terrain my mountain bike was designed specifically for this and does it better.

frantik

thanks due to all the damn rain i've spent more time cleaning it than riding it lately lol. i think it sat in the previous owners garage for most of its life too so that helps

btw this sub-forum rocks i wandered around this site for the first few days trying to figure out which area was "right".. bike is too old sckool for the MTB forum but too new for C&V lol

andyman1970

Nope - you aren't the only one. Hopefully I can get some decent pics to share soon.

Push

Picked this Giant Cypress lx up over the weekend, I know nothing about it other than it is in awesome shape, my size and for what I thought was a fair price. I have a feeling that the shock may need a stiffer spring as I am a bigger lad but a quick ride around the neighborhood was interesting as it was my first time on a full suspension bike, will need some getting use to for sure.







As Ever
Me

jbchybridrider 

Nice thats the first soft tail cypress Ive seen, It looks like there might be another 10mm or so preload adjustment to make it stiffer put dont wind it off the thread it could ruin the thread going back again.

You lost 200 pounds did you say "200" thats impressive good onya mate. I just lost 8 kilo's after a resent back injury dont know what that is in pounds and thought that was good, onya mate.

jbchybridrider 

Its interesting when you have different bikes and thinking about the advantages and disadvantages of each one, Ive often thought of that while riding.

Sixty Fiver

I get to experience more than most... I work on them, build them and ride 13 of them and often look at bicycles with a builder's eye and will often transcribe measurements of bikes I really like. If a bike works well I want to know what makes it work well and if it is lacking, always look to see if I can improve it.

I prefer steel forks for many reasons but one is that it allows for fine tuning the steering and some older bikes had exceptionally long dropouts with sloping angles that allowed enough change in the rear height to change the head angle and further fine tune the bike. A change of one degree at the head tube can make quite a difference in a bike's trail and this affects handling.

While some might require a specialized bicycle for certain purposes, usually racing, most people are better suited to have a good all rounder that will serve multiple roles and handle varied terrain and more loads that what you carry when you are just playing or racing.

Specialized designs are nothing new as racing bikes have always been made of the lightest and best parts available but in the last few decades this specialization has gotten quite rigid and technology has evolved at a much increased pace.

Would not be surprised if one day electronic shifting won't be available on urban bikes... right now this technology is expensive and is geared to racers with deep pockets.

I prefer simple... have yet to embrace brifters on any of my own drop bar bikes and most still run friction shifters although for most people, indexed systems really make cycling more enjoyable.

Push

Hey thanks, 200 pounds is 90 kilos I am 3 years into the "health revamp"

The Manual that came with the bike mentions an 1100lb spring for heavier riders, there is a 900lb spring on there now. Unfortunately for me it is the first bike with a rear shock that I have ever ridden and have no idea how its suppose to feel but going off of the manual it would seem that a new spring is at least recommended by the manufacturer. The bike rode good when I took it for a ride but having a suspension under me felt very odd as I usually ride a hard tail mountain bike with a front suspension fork only, either way I like adding to my options on two wheels

As Ever
Me

supertky2

Here's my bike after hunting for a commuter bike to get to classes for about two weeks. I found it on craigslist for $80, and swapped the tires for skinnier tires and tire tubes, washed, scrubbed off the rust, waxed, and polished it. Runs so much quicker than my Wal-mart mountain bike! I get to class in 15 minutes now instead of 30. I just love how it runs. It's a Trek Antelope 800 with Shimano derailleurs, gears, brakes, and crank. It was pretty beaten when I found it but after some cleaning up it looks pretty decent.

And for some comedic effect, I added a picture I stumbled upon while passing by one of the physics building hallways. I thought it was pretty cute.

marmot

Yep, the hybrid specializes in not being specialized. Cyclists aren't like golfers: we can't carry a bag of bikes around and pick the one that suits each situation. So you ride the bike that works best for you. On a good ride I'll cover flats and hills, over smooth pavement, gravel, broken pavement, grass, loose dirt, compressed earth footpaths and crushed stone MUPs. A hybrid copes better than either a roadie or an MTB on this mixed bag of challenges, so that's what I've been riding.