jamesdak 

I've been going back and forth on this one. Sell it, keep it....upgrade it....sell it.....hmmmmm.......

Anyway off on leave but injured and unable to ride. So this morning I decided to go ahead and do what I had originally planned with this one and upgrade it to STI 8 speed. I had gotten some like new Claris STI shifters this winter for this so today I put them on. Then I put on a set of Campagnolo Zonda wheels that had a Shimano freehub on them. Threw on a SRAM 8 speed cassette and then broke out my final set of new Shimano cables and housings. I also got rid of the funky stem and handlebars swapping in a nice Icon Graphite I had and some brand new Deda Handlebars. New set of black downtube adapters went on also along with a decently matching set of steel grey Bontrager bottle cages. Put some Conti GP 4000s II 700 x 25 tires on the Zonda and some new Bontrager cork tape on the bars.

When I brought this one home it had 7 speed shimano indexing DT shifters but a set of Gipiemme Parade wheels with a Campagnolo 10 speed cassette. The RD was not adjusted to work with the cassette though in friction mode. I did get the stock 105 wheels though also. It weighed in at 24 lbs 2 ozs. When I got done today I checked it again, now 22 lbs 15 ozs.

Anyway, still going to list this locally for sale I think. At least that's the plan this minute. Gonna lose money on it but wanted to send it back out on the road better than I got it.

And some pics, sorry for the poor quality, poor midday light and me rushing just to get done with this project.


How I've finished it up pretty much.

Nice 8 speed STI shifters now

The new Deda bar, pretty compact.

Cages match up pretty good I think.

Stock 105 brakes are plenty good enough.

Icon Stem, 2 bolt versin

Zonda goodness and upgraded to 8 speeds

This Shimano 600 headset should last a long, long time.

Sort of wish it still had the original steel fork but this isn't a bad "alternate"

105 FD get's the job done.

jamesdak 

53/42T

105 RD

How I brought it home.

I should mention that this frame is made from decent Tange Infinity steel tubing.

habes78023 

No apologies necessary, thanks for sharing the build!

I had a Softride once, was cool to have the suspension beam under me on the bumpy asphalt roads, I kept mine in the Triathlon configuration it came to me in, thought I did have two 650c wheelsets, Spinergy wheels and kept the regular training wheels on when I sold it. Mine was the Power V model I think, whichever was the full composite one, not the aluminum one. Ended up finding a small crack somewhere so essentially sold it as wall art price. Didn't end up losing money there because the spinergy wheels still sold for good money.

You did a great job on the bike, the next owner should be very happy. And you have a good reason now to start a new project! or could just keep the momentum going on others.

mgopack42 

jamesdak I like the original wheels! Rolfs? Funky wheels for a funky bike!

jamesdak 

Yep, they are Gipiemme Parade wheels. Cool looking but really heavy and supposedly fairly flexy. I'm still trying to figure out what to do with them. I did drop around $60 bucks in them having the bearings replaced when I couldn't figure out how to get into the rear hub.

jamesdak 

Wasn't happy at all with those first pictures. So I cleaned it up a bit more and then reshot them.

jamesdak 

DiabloScott

I'll bet that's a real conversation starter.

I remember they tried to sell the softride beam as an after market add on for horizontal top tube bikes. It seemed like they had enough interested people but the result looked like a kludge, so they invented these specific frames and had a little more success. I think I've only seen a few.

jamesdak 

I still have a love/hate relationship with this bike. It just does not appeal to me at all visually. Yet, it's repeatedly faster than any of my high end bikes and so smooth over rough surfaces. I've had it listed for sale for awhile with some nibbles but no takers. Then the other day I saw these listed locally and went and grabbed them to see if they really kick the speed on this bike up a notch. They did add about another full pound to this one but it was already my heaviest road bike. So I'm not too worried about that.

SpeedofLite 

If memory serves me, a rear disc and a front tri-spoke was the one of the fastest, if not the absolute fastest, wheel combination for triathletes in the late 2000s to maybe early 2010s based on windtunnel data. I remember how surprisingly fast my 1996 Softride Solo was with conventional wheels, so I'm eager to hear about your results when you launch this rocket with those wheels.

jamesdak 

Yeah, I am curious too. I just don't think my legs have what it takes to ride fast right now. It's been slow going since the knee replacement and I seem more likely to avg 16 mph on a "honest effort" ride than my normal 18 mph. Still I'm planning a trip nexxt week over to Antelope Island. The Causeway connecting it to the mainland is a nice flat and long route to test something like this out. I just have to figure out how to get air into the tires, LOL! My bike pump does not fit the narrow opening on the wheels. Didn't think about that.

juvela

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How much travel do you find there is in the beam, or have you ever attempted to measure it?


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jamesdak 

I forgot how I did it but I did have to play with the sag of the beam as I set it up. Unweighted I have the saddle about 3/8" higher than normal. This beam had the weight rating label missing so I don't know what it's "weight limit" really is. On the road you have to spin smooth circles or you will bounce and it can feel quite pronounced. Normally takes me 1/2 a mile or so to settle in and smooth out on it and then you don't really notice any movement. Just a super smooth feel to the back end no matter how rough the road surface is that you're riding over.

John E

The requirement to "spin smooth circles" is probably a deal-killer for me, since, as many have observed when riding with me, I am the opposite of a smooth rider. At the very least, I would have to gear down pretty radically, to keep my RPMs up. Might be good training for me, I suppose.

bargainguy

The bike in my avatar photo is a different beam bike, the Bike Friday Air Glide. It's a titanium beam vs the carbon fiber beam of the Softride, but the idea is the same. This is a folding bike; the beam comes out and the rear triangle swings up and under for suitcase travel.

When I got this bike maybe 15 yr. ago, I remember having to adjust in several ways to the beam.

1. Saddle height needed to go up. The bottom point of the beam's travel is lower than I would ride a saddle normally. If I don't adjust for this, not getting near full leg extension, which is a no-no for my knees.

2. Once I got saddle height nailed, it helped to shift my weight back ever so slightly over the rear wheel. The beam's comfort is most noticeable this way, really soaking up a lot of bumps. I had to de-learn the habit of avoiding minor road irregularities, because the beam would just soak them up. It became unnecessary. Different way of riding.

3. As far as pedaling tight smooth circles - it's really a matter of not fighting the beam. You can learn where the beam gives, and prevent yourself from pogo-ing by not pushing so hard as to induce pogo-ing. So there's a bit of patience involved and not wanting to get up to top speed in an instant. Once you have this figured out, it's fairly easy muscle memory. Before that point, not so much.

georges1

interesting, thanks for sharing

Wildwood 

I spent about a month riding my brother-in-law's Softride - on rough, central Florida roads many years back. It was a lesser model and the drivetrain was not very stiff. With 23mm tires the beam was most beneficial over bumpy roads. I do remember the bobbing effect at higher cadence. I also remember some sweet early morning rides where rambling and exploring were the purpose instead of speed.

The experience with the Softride is why my tandem stokers ride a beam on a Co-Motion Cappuccino.

Wildwood 

Given my experience, I would have to say that there is no one answer. In addition to the variability by rider's weight, there were different stiffness ratings on the beam assembly. On mine, medium stiffness from 1997, a 160-170 pound rider reduces saddle height by maybe 3 inches. Definitely a consideration when setting up the bike; however easily adjustable in my 2 experiences.

jamesdak 

Sorta serves the same purpose as my rollers, makes you spin smooth.

Retoocs

3 inches? That's a lot, I don't think it can move that much. I'm on a beam rated for 230 road. I'm 215. My beam sags 3 cm measure at the end of the beam.

AdventureManCO 

Faster than the Circuit?