doulos

It's an Orbea Carpe 30. Came with a narrow flat bar which killed my wrists after three months, I installed an On-One Fleegle bar with some knock off cheap-o ergon like grips and bar ends from e-bay. Love this bike. Time for some new tires. Ideas?

doulos

Getting used to this forum...meant to quote in my response.

chaadster

I've posted a pic of my commuter/utility bike in this thread a couple of times over the years, but have since added a nifty Xootr Crossrack and Crossbag to the rig...that, and my old server is offline so the pics aren't visible anymore anyway, so it's time for a new one.

The bike is an old Novara Buzz, about 7 years old now, with a few component changes over the years, most notably wheels and crank. Drivetrain is original, and next up for upgrades. The post protruding from the bottom bracket is a hitch for a Chariot sidecar.

monsterpile

Thats pretty awesome! I'll be interested in how you like that frame. I didn't hit quote I was referring to the Origin 8 buly, but the Buzz is pretty sweet too. =)

BarracksSi

Man, I'd like to find one of those now.

chaadster

If you're addressing me about the Big Buzz, I can tell you that it has been great!

First, the bike fits great; it does has one of those stupid 29er type forks that are extra tall to simulate the height of a suspension fork, but the head tube is rather more standard height, so a popped up tall front end is not a problem as it is-- for me-- on so many flat bar road and hybrid bikes of late.

It fits and feels like a road bike. Though I otherwise ride steel primarily, this feels pretty forgiving despite the alu post and frame; maybe it's the higher volume tires.

The handling is crisp and stable, without surprises. It's alu and solid feeling under power and through turns. I haul a couple of kids in a trailer and a third in a sidecar quite often, and have never noticed any significant or disconcerting flex.

It has a full complement of braze-ons (and chainstay bridge) for fenders and racks, and good tire clearance. I reckon it could fit 35s no problem, maybe wider, but I run 28s summer (as pictured) and 30s, Kenda Kwiks, in winter without any fender or other adjustments.

Decals are discrete, the satin grey paint almost metal look, the derailleur hanger is replaceable, and the cable routing is sane (particularly the rear brake routed along the top tube, which is positioned underneath at like 7 or 8 o' clock. Seatpost is a little odd, IIRC, at 27.0mm, but I could be wrong about that. Seat tube and DT H2O braze-ons, and internal headset. The fork is Al.

Newer versions of the Big Buzz frame look longer, taller in front, and more slack angled, though the component spec is similar. I have changed the crank, BB, stem, and wheels on mine, but that's it.

I hope that gets to what you were asking about!

Edit: Oh yeah, and the weld fillets are fat and lovely!

sgnl2nz

My own N=1, one year after I rebuilt it. It's still mostly a 1990 Univega Via Carisma. It did sport a honey Brooks B17 Special (and matching tape, of course) for 2000 miles, but that worked out only most of the time.

monsterpile

Those n=1 bikes are nice.

thugpipe

Thanks. The bully frame isn't bad, I love the geometry, the steel frame, and the fact that it had disc brake mounts but I don't love the horizontal dropouts and the stamped dropouts aren't the thickest. overall I love the bike but it really makes me want to do a custom steel frame in a similar format.

well I found mine less than 2 months ago and I have been in contact with at least 2 other guys who each recently found one, keep an eye out, there may be more floating around. If you are serious call around to some shops that deal with JB importers the one I got had been sitting in that shop in midtown Manhattan for 2+ years and was on clearance.

monsterpile

My dream bike is a monstercross minivelo. I hope one of these days I can make it happen.

I am pretty sure a small shop here in Lincoln actually had one of these Bullys in stock. I stopped and chatted with the owner and showed him my minivelo I think I had the Citta I got off eBay with me at the time. If he has them here in Lincoln I would think they have to be available in other places although this guy seemed to be quite the vet of the bike scene and was committed to selling stuff nobody else in town has.

pepox369

Scored a new to me bike, that I will soon be turning into a commuter (Never-minding that it is a ladys frame) I am 1.73m and it feels quite nice when I sat on it..

The bike came from my mother in law's coworker who crashed it when it was on the top of the car and broke the rear derailleur hook, bent the derailleur, and broke a spoke in the rear wheel. the frame looks intact.. the bike is 2 years old and she got a new one thru the insurance..

It is a Cube Town mat black.

Mumonkan

now with 32c Pasela TG's

$420 total

new headset and bb then Chip will be complete

took this guy on a century a couple weeks ago when it was still on armadillo 23s and it was great.
these 32s with the brooks makes it feel like riding on a cloud

BezO

^^^^
Nice Mumonkan!

chaadster

Hey, now, that's pretty cool! Looks purposeful, fast...and totally sane (e.g. V brakes! I never want to touch another canti for the rest of my life!). If I didn't need fenders, I'd ride that! Nicely done bike, sir!

Fizzaly

Crappy cell phone sneak peek at the Kuwie, finally got around to getting some done on her. Once I get it finished I'm gonna dig up the build post for it and update it.

Sixty Fiver

You really can commute on anything... took my Garlatti out the other day and opted to take the low road home. It was a little cooler riding on the trail beside the creek and the bike does not mind gravel and hard pack.

Sixty Fiver

Chip is very pretty.

Tractortom

Here is the latest iteration of my regular commuter...sitting at the house, waiting for the rain to stop.

keifer

My LHT. I fitted it with some Schwalbe Fat Franks so I won't lose my mind taking it over washboard roads when I visiting out in the country. I'm pretty sure I've got enough room to safely fit some VO Zeppelin fenders on there. I just need to get 'em and find out.







Super granny gearing. 34 tooth in back, 24 up front.



After the fenders, I'm looking to get a surly nice for up front.

PatrickGSR94

My MTB gearing goes almost as low as yours with a 22 front ring and 28 rear cog.

keifer

The silly part is that I live in Kansas. It's not so much the hills that are a problem (the steepest hill in the area is probably only 8-10% grade), it's trying to push those buckets through our winds while going up said hill. And, what can I say, I'd rather plant my leisurely tush in the saddle and spin.

RubeRad

Gotta love the littiers... and I like the artisinally crafted handles, 100% from post-consumer waste (i.e. old tubes)

xtheeliminator

Very nice. How much was the total cost of the build?

polishmadman

This is my cheap schwinn with its new bars.

thugpipe

Well its a hair more than too much at this point but I love it so who cares. I'd say like $1300 soup to nuts now that I added my birthday present, a shimano ZEE shifter+derailleur and a sram pg1070 11-32 cassette. Now I can call it "My ten speed".