autonomy

Yeah, good deal. You don't get the much better (IMO) red & blue colors but you get a reflective Co-Op logo. Personally, I'm probably going to wait until a sale on next year's models (May 2018?) in hopes they improve the color scheme and do some more upgrades (reportedly)... without increasing the price.

Miah66

Yes it is quite the entertainment center! I used a Novara brand mount that I found at REI. It has worked out well for holding my Samsung S6 in any weather and on any terrain.

I don't see it available anymore on the website, but it is similar to the Timbuk2 Skyline iPhone case

Miah66

It is a GREAT deal, and you will definitely be happy with the bike. I too really like the red, and I also really like the green of the new model!

gpshead

I rarely found myself riding in the hoods for long on mine due to the angle forcing an awkward narrow hand position. The dirt drops were quite natural for me to ride in.

Anyways, I finally just replaced the bars with a Ritchey Venturemax. Also 24 degrees flared and 44cm width but with a different bend profile leading to a much nicer hood setup for my tastes:

cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikeforums.net-vbulletin/640x480/mvimg_20180625_104826_1f6d8ae6ee924d6d301f9c12bb7b178a9c0ee78a.jpg
New freshly wrapped Ritchey Venturemax bars on my Mazama.

jefnvk

Dang. Had you done that a few weeks ago, before I settled on Cowchippers for another bike, I would have offered to buy your old bars off you!

autonomy

That looks good. Do you have a side view as well? What bar tape is that?
Also, both @gpshead and @jefnvk, what angle are/were you running the drops at? I have been having trouble finding a tingling-free hand position lately both on the hoods and drops. My drops are almost parallel to the top tube and I read people say that they should be more parallel to the ground... but after doing 10 miles of singletrack this morning I feel like I need to do the opposite, point the bar ends down some more.

jefnvk

This position:




Works well for me, allows my arms to come in at almost more of a triangle stance than dead on straight. I grip the tops of the brake levers almost as if they were MTB bar ends. Incredibly comfortable.

gpshead

The bar tape is Origin8 Diamond Performance. Plenty of accent colors available and it looked similar to the original tape. It's a bit cushier (but it also hasn't been wrapped around a bar for two years). So far so good on the tape.

I'm still not sure about my hood position but I'm enjoying it more than the previous setup. I'll try to get a good side view shot this week.

longtemp

The small Mazama looks to have a downtube length 1 centimeter less than the 49/50 Soma Saga.

autonomy

@gpshead, @jefnvk thanks!

autonomy

Finally got around to ordering and installing a new saddle (Charge Spoon) and offset seat post (21mm offset on Deda RSx02). Both were pretty cheap in the grand scheme of things.The Spoon is much better than the stock WTB saddle for me, though I can't say that it's super comfy. I think my butt prefers a flatter saddle.
The offset post definitely helps reduce hand pressure, I understand but I don't understand why REI went with a 0-offset post. I probably should've gone with a 25mm offset, but posts with that offset were more expensive. I like the contrast between the 'awful green' and the light brown of the saddle, eventually I'll match the brown on the handlebars as well.

However, now the bottom bracket started creaking. I need to take it apart and see if there's been any water or dirt intrusion.

jefnvk

Still loving mine, it just made the 400 mile trek through France with me and did a 36 mile race (slowly) the following weekend! Only complaint I had was loaded on the back with nothing up front it was the slightest bit twitchy, it doesn't have the longest most stable wheelbase, Still, a rather minor complaint (I did have a lot of wine in my panniers...), that could easily be rectified with a front rack, possibly a shorter back rack, and a better load.

paramount3

Has anyone swapped out the stock 160 mm front brake rotor for a 180 mm rotor? I want to do this mostly so that my wheelsets are interchangeable across different bikes. This was mentioned in a review as a possible solution to the caliper-spoke issue (which I don't have). I see no reason why there would be an issue, but just thought I'd ask.

gpshead

Yes, I have. I'm using a TRP HY/RD on the front with a 180mm rotor. The only thing I'll note is that I did have to use a 180->203mm post mount adapter rather than the 160mm-180mm post mount adapter in order for everything to line up properly. I rode it with the smaller adapter for a while but the pads were contacting the rotor too far down and rubbing on the splines. Much better after updating that. That extra 1.5mm of spacer mattered, no idea if this will be true for everyone.

plus.google.com/+GregoryPSmith/posts/9g5zX5kELGN has my photos, at least for a few more months.

paramount3

Thanks gpshead for sharing your experience with converting to 180 mm. Your 180 mm rotor seems to have a particularly narrow braking surface. Is it a "road" rotor? I just went ahead and did the conversion myself, using a Shimano RT-54 rotor and a Shimano 160-180mm post-post adapter. Mine seems to line up well (though I haven't taken it for a real ride yet). The RT-54 is a classic "mountain bike" rotor, and it's not surprising that the braking surface matches with the TRP calipers because the brake pads are interchangeable with the Shimano B01S (and similar) pads.

fietsbob

No because it's also the name of a Locally owned brewery- restaurant in Minneapolis https://surlybrewing.com/
they may have named the bike brand while drinking a few ,
QBP Is Located .. in Bloomington MN, Also, home of that really big Shopping Mall .. just south of there ,,..

gpshead

Those old photos had an RT-64/RT-66/RT-70 ish rotor on (forgotten which) and also showed the wear being in the wrong spot due to the alignment issue. Long since removed and recycled given the wear that setup had been putting on the splines.

I assume you just kept the Spyre in your conversion? Good to hear it's all working out for you. I don't think this bike needs a 180 at all, I did it just to avoid the occasional spoke/spyre rub. I've ridden some extremely steep off-road downhills and never needed more.

paramount3

For those who have an issue with the brake caliper nicking the spokes, I happened to see this rotor spacer sold on the TRP (Tektro) website. Since I can't post URLs, here's an approximation:

https://www.trpcyclingDOTcom/product/...-rotor-spacer/

gpshead

Yep, disc spacers may be sufficient. You can do similar things with Centerlock rotors. IIRC there is one place that actually sells centerlock spacers. But you can just obtain close enough shims from McMaster Carr. I've had success with their "18-8 Stainless Steel Round Shim, 0.3mm Thick, 35mm ID, Packs of 10" for that. Centerlock splines are a little wider than 35mm so you need to snip the spacer in order to get it to go on, but once it is past the splines and in place it does its job.

Also potentially handy if you've got multiple wheelsets who's hubs don't all line the rotor up exactly the same.