cooperryder

Your Cannondale turned out really nice!

Albatross bars?

I need to try some tape on mine.

cooperryder

Cool bike!

I'm guessing it's a pretty unique bike?

Wharf Rat

@cooperyder. Thanks, I might leave it alone for a bit now. The bars are Soma oxfords. Pretty much albatross knockoffs. I would have gotten the real albatross, but these were half the price. I run the albastache’s on my commute and these feel similar, just not as aggressive.

DQRider 

I've used the SOMA Oxford as well, very nice, especially the black one. But if you're going to cover it with tape, you might consider this, for about eleven bucks cheaper:



Nice Bike, BTW.

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rjhammett

Very rare model of Cinelli. All Campy components.

DQRider 

Finally finished this one; I think it turned out pretty well. "Finished" isn't the right word... I've still got some touch-up paint and polishing to do, and those cables are a bit unruly, but the shakedown ride was a success.





That long wheelbase, Reynolds 531 frame rides smooth as buttah, especially with these tires. This is one comfy ride.

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Wharf Rat

That Dawes looks great. I’m not normally a fan of the wooden fenders, but I really like the ones you’ve got there. They don’t look like bent planks. Any chance of a closer pic? As for those sunlite north road bars, I’ve got a set of them on another bike an I don’t like the forward curve. It’s too sharp to comfortably ride, and that’s one of my favorite grips on the somas & albastaches.

Clang

Sweet looking setup! Those wooden fenders play nice with the tanwall tires, and even details like the gold ano pedals (Wellgo?) echo the Reynolds decals.It's hard to tell from the photos, but are the rims silver or color anodized?

Interesting shifting configuration. Manual front derailleur, or is the big ring mainly to act as chain retention for a 1X setup? What's the thumbshifter you're using?

DQRider 

I'll get some closer pics after I clean her up some. She got filthy yesterday. I really shouldn't ride this bike on our salt-sloppy roads right now.

Okay, from the top...
Pedals are unknown brand, bought used at a swap meet. The wheelset is very special; gold-anodized rims laced to Deore XT hubs. The big ring on the crankset will get its teeth ground down so it acts as a chainguard. I'm using a Microshift 10-speed shifter. The bike rides super-smooth and comfy, exactly what you want in a city bike. Out of all the bikes I have right now, this one makes me feel most like a kid again. I can ride this thing all day long, poking around and shooting photos, stopping here and there for refreshment. This is a true adventure bike.

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jamesj

My 1987 Specialized Streetstomper. Have added a lot of different parts.

Korina

Damn this thread has some beautiful bikes.

DQRider dumb question; how does one go about grinding down that big ring that I never ever use?

DQRider 

That's a timely question; I was just asking our resident machinist (I work at an aerospace test equipment manufacturer) the same thing. I was planning to use a grinding wheel, which would work with steel, but this is aluminum. Aluminum loads up the stone and needs a lot of cleanup afterwards. He talked about chucking it up on a lathe and trimming the teeth that way - about a 5 minute job - and really that's the best approach for a detachable chainring. Unfortunately, I found out that this Sugino crankset is special - the chainring is an integral part of the crank - maybe press-fit? I'll have to look at it when I get home. I may end up going at it with a sawzall and a file. I'd better load up on patience before I tackle that.

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Iowegian

Maybe try some sort of cutter on a compass like contraption. Put one leg in the middle of the crank bolt cover (drill a pilot hole in a sacrificial steel one) then set the compass and repeatedly score the ring at the desired cut-off point. If nothing else, it would make a groove that could be used for some other cutter but I imagine if you used something sharp that it would make quick work of the ring.

DQRider 

Then again, maybe I'll just stuff my pant-leg into my sock like I did when I was a kid.

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2cam16

Did it to one of my bikes with a Dremel. It works for me!
IMG_9182 by 2cam16, on Flickr

squarenoise 

My new favorite thread! Some really cool builds here and looking forward to sharing mine as soon as it's ready.

BicycleSafari

I do weld/fab for an aluminum boat building company. My suggestion would be to roughly take the bulk of the teeth off with a bandsaw, and then use a freestanding belt sander (for wood) to take off the rest of the material. Sanders make quick work of aluminum so I'd suggest using a scrap piece first just to see how much material your grit is taking, and to gauge your pressure. You could leave the fine tuning to do by hand with a block and some 80 grit, put the ring in a vice with wood blocks so the steel jaws don't scratch up the chainring, and then you could step down your polishing passes with however fine of grit you'd like.
Having the crank and the ring as a combined unit does add another level of complication

BicycleSafari

How many teeth on your largest rear cog, and which rear derailleur are you using? I like the way you put this together, it looks super sharp!

DQRider 

The large rear cog is a 34t. The small chainring is a 39t, which is close enough to 1/1 that I can climb any paved hill on this bike. Thanks for the compliment. Cold-setting the rear triangle to accommodate the 9-speed Deore RD and 135mm O.L.D. cassette was a cinch, because the steel is 531 and the chainstays so long. I'm going to clean it up from the shakedown rides and try to leave it alone until the roads are clean again. I'll shoot some more photos of it when we begin to see some Springtime green around here. And yeah, this has become one of my favorite threads too. There's nothing like a sturdy bike that is still light enough to be efficient.

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danders

Opinions on this bar or similar options. 25.4/22.2
I bought a mid 90's Rockhopper, thought of doing drop bar but that would cost more than I paid for bike.
I'm finding that I feel too stretched out (long top tube and stem) combined 3" more than my road bike.
A bar that is pulled back some would be closer and the angle should feel better than the stock broom stick bar?

https://velo-orange.com/collections/...ndlebar-22-2mm

DQRider 

The VO Postino and Milan look to be quite similar. I've used the Milan on several builds and have been quite pleased with them; especially when installed with Ergon Biokork GC1 grips.

Here's one:



... and here's another, from a cockpit view:



Hope this helps.

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JacobLee 

This is my Soulcraft Option 3. Made in 1999 by the guy who was head frame builder at Salsa when they sold to QBP in 1998. This is #018. Bought the frame from the contractor who helped them set up shop in Ross Shafers’ barn in Petaluma, Ca.




Let’s just say this has been one of my great bike loves. It started to fade a little over the years as it was eclipsed by a dual suspension, and then a 29er. It started to bum me out when I rode it, and that REALLY bummed me out. Last summer, riding it in Olympic National Park, I figured I’d ditch the suspension fork, add a basket and some swept back bars, and see what happened. It was one of those setups that came out perfectly right out of the gate. The bar position is just amazing. I commute on it, explore on it, go to the store on it.

I thought it would be good to post, not because it’s super-vintage, but because it was a good way to ditch a suspension fork that was sort of a turd. I see lots of hardtails on here that still have forks that were no fun when they were new; now they’re toast! I had an lbs order me this Carver for $70. I made sure the axle-to-crown measurement was in the ballpark, and it turned out great. And with all that uncut steer tube, I could get very upright, indeed!

danders

I ended up with a VO Milan, I went to a bike shop I have never been to and they had a Milan on sale for $19
I still need to adjust position of controls a little but it is exactly what I hoped. Bars are now closer and lower.
Very pleased!

Korina

Very nice! I was going to suggest the Porteur, which has worked well for my RockHopper, but that Milan looks great! Have fun riding your new bike! Here's mine:



Pretty Purple Princess Penelope, never quite finished.

BicycleSafari

Thanks for the shoutout man! I really like the way your's turned out. Super slick, and that camera bag is really working for me.
Now the tables have turned, and I have put together a bike like yours! Blue with chrome fork! (yours is much nicer though)
I had a coworker bring this bike to me. He had gotten it from an old college buddy who went by "Fish Bone". My coworker wanted something he could bar hop with and this 88 Raleigh Technium Chill was in salvageable shape, and the frame fits him just fine. I'm bringing it to work for him tomorrow so we'll see how he likes it. It was a budget build, and there was plenty wrong with it, and there are lots of details that are a bit goofy for my liking, but I think it should give him a few years of good riding (provided that the adhesive keeping the aluminum main tubes fused to the steel lugs holds out). Seems like a foolish design choice to me personally, but I did a few hap hazard bunny hops just to test it, and it's held up so far.
It's a slick, smooth ride. Feels really responsive, and is easy to toss around. Definitely a fun masher.
I did a little write up about it on my website www.thebicyclesafaris.com/logbook