My American C&V bike turns Frankenbike ..............
09-15-13, 10:37 AM
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My American C&V bike turns Frankenbike ..............
The original rear wheel on my workhorse Trek finally gave up the ghost last week. Its such a shame that a guy can only get 28 years out of a wheel, LOL! Not being one to have a bike sitting around that can't be ridden, the old girl was converted to 700c with probably the ugliest wheel set known to man, hey, the wheels were in the rafters!
She's now a Frankenbike until I can obtain a nice set of Sun M13's on classic hubs. She is UGLY, although she still rides very nicely, Thank You.
OK, I'm done venting, have a wonderful day!
She's now a Frankenbike until I can obtain a nice set of Sun M13's on classic hubs. She is UGLY, although she still rides very nicely, Thank You.
OK, I'm done venting, have a wonderful day!
09-15-13, 10:45 AM
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No, I had worse. A set of medium blue Velocity deep V rims in medium blue on a light blue bike.
I think you got away with it, works fairly well in images.
I think you got away with it, works fairly well in images.
09-15-13, 11:00 AM
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Yeah, the design and low spoke count are NOT very reassuring to say the least! The wheels didn't cost me anything, just hoping I won't be buying a new set of teeth!
09-15-13, 11:05 AM
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32 is plenty. If you had 20's, 24's...
09-15-13, 11:17 AM
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I think it looks just fine.
I would just ride that nice Trek and enjoy it.
I usually avoid colored rims, but my Merckx came with red Aeroheads and I won't switch them just for looks.
Too much dilly dally. Imho
I would just ride that nice Trek and enjoy it.
I usually avoid colored rims, but my Merckx came with red Aeroheads and I won't switch them just for looks.
Too much dilly dally. Imho
09-15-13, 11:56 AM
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The front wheel is 24, and the rear is 28. 
I do ride this bike on the paved canal paths in Phoenix and they are pretty smooth. I'll just have to be extra alert for hazards until I get a set of 36's to replace them.
I do ride this bike on the paved canal paths in Phoenix and they are pretty smooth. I'll just have to be extra alert for hazards until I get a set of 36's to replace them.
09-15-13, 12:40 PM
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I don't think the blue rims and hubs are ugly; it's the garish, contrasting stickers on them. I like my bikes to carry the bare minimum of advertising, so the stickers on the rims are the first to go.
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● 1971 Grandis SL ● 1972 Lambert Grand Prix frankenbike ● 1972 Raleigh Super Course fixie ● 1973 Nishiki Semi-Pro ● 1979 Motobecane Grand Jubile ●1980 Apollo "Legnano" ● 1984 Peugeot Vagabond ● 1985 Shogun Prairie Breaker ● 1986 Merckx Super Corsa ● 1987 Schwinn Tempo ● 1988 Schwinn Voyageur ● 1989 Bottechia Team ADR replica ● 1990 Cannondale ST600 ● 1993 Technium RT600 ● 1996 Kona Lava Dome ●
● 1971 Grandis SL ● 1972 Lambert Grand Prix frankenbike ● 1972 Raleigh Super Course fixie ● 1973 Nishiki Semi-Pro ● 1979 Motobecane Grand Jubile ●1980 Apollo "Legnano" ● 1984 Peugeot Vagabond ● 1985 Shogun Prairie Breaker ● 1986 Merckx Super Corsa ● 1987 Schwinn Tempo ● 1988 Schwinn Voyageur ● 1989 Bottechia Team ADR replica ● 1990 Cannondale ST600 ● 1993 Technium RT600 ● 1996 Kona Lava Dome ●
09-15-13, 03:04 PM
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I agree. My intentions have been to sell these wheels on CL and thought it best to leave the stickers on. Now that I'll be using them for a little while, maybe I'll go pull those off.
09-15-13, 03:40 PM
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If you're planning on getting new wheels then you better leave the stickers on. Buyers will prefer to have the option to remove them themselves.
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09-16-13, 12:23 AM
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+1. If you're not keeping them, don't pull the stickers.
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● 1971 Grandis SL ● 1972 Lambert Grand Prix frankenbike ● 1972 Raleigh Super Course fixie ● 1973 Nishiki Semi-Pro ● 1979 Motobecane Grand Jubile ●1980 Apollo "Legnano" ● 1984 Peugeot Vagabond ● 1985 Shogun Prairie Breaker ● 1986 Merckx Super Corsa ● 1987 Schwinn Tempo ● 1988 Schwinn Voyageur ● 1989 Bottechia Team ADR replica ● 1990 Cannondale ST600 ● 1993 Technium RT600 ● 1996 Kona Lava Dome ●
● 1971 Grandis SL ● 1972 Lambert Grand Prix frankenbike ● 1972 Raleigh Super Course fixie ● 1973 Nishiki Semi-Pro ● 1979 Motobecane Grand Jubile ●1980 Apollo "Legnano" ● 1984 Peugeot Vagabond ● 1985 Shogun Prairie Breaker ● 1986 Merckx Super Corsa ● 1987 Schwinn Tempo ● 1988 Schwinn Voyageur ● 1989 Bottechia Team ADR replica ● 1990 Cannondale ST600 ● 1993 Technium RT600 ● 1996 Kona Lava Dome ●
09-16-13, 12:42 AM
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+2 Leave the stickers if you do decide to sell the blue mavics on Ebay you should be able to get enough to buy another set of wheels if your an ambitious seller. Also those wheels actually look pretty good on the bike and should be fine for just riding if you want to keep it the way it is.
10-05-13, 10:21 AM
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My Trek has been De-Franked. I picked up what I thought was a great set of wheels from a forum member. I put a new set of Panaracer 700x25's on her and I think the bike still has a classic look to it, while being a bit updated.
The rims are 700c Sun ME14A's, 36 spoke front and rear with Wheelsmith DB stainless spokes and Campy Victory hubs. I also had Bob at FreeWheelSpa rebuild my Shimano 6 speed freewheel. The wheels are true and the hubs spin nicely. The wheels have a grayish blue anodizing and although plain silver would be my 1st choice I think these work nicely. A bit of brake adjustments are in order and I'll take her out for a good spin and start wearing them out.
Those Mavic Cosmos wheels will be hidden in the attic again, can't seem to get rid of them, they are ugly, ugly, ugly, LOL.
The new look .............. and no, I didn't align my valve stems for photo's.
Edit: The bike rides great, and talk about FAST, I passed every stationary object in sight and a few moving ones too!
The rims are 700c Sun ME14A's, 36 spoke front and rear with Wheelsmith DB stainless spokes and Campy Victory hubs. I also had Bob at FreeWheelSpa rebuild my Shimano 6 speed freewheel. The wheels are true and the hubs spin nicely. The wheels have a grayish blue anodizing and although plain silver would be my 1st choice I think these work nicely. A bit of brake adjustments are in order and I'll take her out for a good spin and start wearing them out.
Those Mavic Cosmos wheels will be hidden in the attic again, can't seem to get rid of them, they are ugly, ugly, ugly, LOL.
The new look .............. and no, I didn't align my valve stems for photo's.
Edit: The bike rides great, and talk about FAST, I passed every stationary object in sight and a few moving ones too!
Last edited by Bruce Enns; 10-05-13 at 04:39 PM.
10-05-13, 10:52 AM
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I think those look nice, much better than the Mavics did (though de-stickered they wouldn't have looked bad either).
I have the same year Trek 400. I replaced what I think may have been the original wheels (Arraya rims, Normandy or Mavic hubs, 27") with a set of 700c Matrix ISO II rims on Campy NR hubs, Trek SS spokes that I picked up on ebay. The rims are a dark anodized gray, but they look allright. These must have been a higher end Trek wheel originally (Trek 760/770?). Even after rebuilding the originals with G25 balls, etc. I didn't like the way they spun, and the Campy hubs are pretty much all I've ridden, so went for the wheels.
I have the same year Trek 400. I replaced what I think may have been the original wheels (Arraya rims, Normandy or Mavic hubs, 27") with a set of 700c Matrix ISO II rims on Campy NR hubs, Trek SS spokes that I picked up on ebay. The rims are a dark anodized gray, but they look allright. These must have been a higher end Trek wheel originally (Trek 760/770?). Even after rebuilding the originals with G25 balls, etc. I didn't like the way they spun, and the Campy hubs are pretty much all I've ridden, so went for the wheels.
10-05-13, 10:58 AM
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Jeez, how tall are you?
10-05-13, 11:57 AM
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10-05-13, 12:29 PM
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The original rear wheel on my workhorse Trek finally gave up the ghost last week. Its such a shame that a guy can only get 28 years out of a wheel, LOL! Not being one to have a bike sitting around that can't be ridden, the old girl was converted to 700c with probably the ugliest wheel set known to man, hey, the wheels were in the rafters!
She's now a Frankenbike until I can obtain a nice set of Sun M13's on classic hubs. She is UGLY, although she still rides very nicely, Thank You.
OK, I'm done venting, have a wonderful day!
She's now a Frankenbike until I can obtain a nice set of Sun M13's on classic hubs. She is UGLY, although she still rides very nicely, Thank You.
OK, I'm done venting, have a wonderful day!
10-05-13, 01:14 PM
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Make me an offer if you like those butt ugly Mavics so much, lol.
Edit: Ended up with ME14A's .................. if you'd have read the thread.
Last edited by Bruce Enns; 10-05-13 at 04:48 PM.
10-06-13, 07:35 AM
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My Trek has been De-Franked. I picked up what I thought was a great set of wheels from a forum member. I put a new set of Panaracer 700x25's on her and I think the bike still has a classic look to it, while being a bit updated.
The rims are 700c Sun ME14A's, 36 spoke front and rear with Wheelsmith DB stainless spokes and Campy Victory hubs. I also had Bob at FreeWheelSpa rebuild my Shimano 6 speed freewheel. The wheels are true and the hubs spin nicely. The wheels have a grayish blue anodizing and although plain silver would be my 1st choice I think these work nicely. A bit of brake adjustments are in order and I'll take her out for a good spin and start wearing them out.
Edit: The bike rides great, and talk about FAST, I passed every stationary object in sight and a few moving ones too!
The rims are 700c Sun ME14A's, 36 spoke front and rear with Wheelsmith DB stainless spokes and Campy Victory hubs. I also had Bob at FreeWheelSpa rebuild my Shimano 6 speed freewheel. The wheels are true and the hubs spin nicely. The wheels have a grayish blue anodizing and although plain silver would be my 1st choice I think these work nicely. A bit of brake adjustments are in order and I'll take her out for a good spin and start wearing them out.
Edit: The bike rides great, and talk about FAST, I passed every stationary object in sight and a few moving ones too!
Those old steel Treks are awesome!
You even aligned the tire labels with the tube stems. That passes the anal thrifty bill test! I'll give you an A+.
The only thing anal bill would change is I would go with white bottle cages (to match the housing and bar tape).
10-06-13, 07:53 AM
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Looks great, 100% improvement!
Those old steel Treks are awesome!
You even aligned the tire labels with the tube stems. That passes the anal thrifty bill test! I'll give you an A+.
The only thing anal bill would change is I would go with white bottle cages (to match the housing and bar tape).
Those old steel Treks are awesome!
You even aligned the tire labels with the tube stems. That passes the anal thrifty bill test! I'll give you an A+.
The only thing anal bill would change is I would go with white bottle cages (to match the housing and bar tape).
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