kbarch

So that big cushion on the seat post; is that like a dollop of sour cream to make the spiciness more palatable?

I'm with you for the most part, but the drillium looks pretty radical, and I have to wonder what purpose the twiggy fork expresses.

chaadster

You're awfully snarky about a saddle that's been up bigger asses than yours, notably Armstrong, who rode the Concor Light to seven consecutive TdF wins. Contador has won the Giro aboard one, and if you count the lineage, back to the launch of the original Concor in the '70s, that's probably the most winningest and ridden "big cushion" in the pro peloton.

As for SRAM cassettes and Rotor Q rings which you call extreme "drillium," and the Wound Up fork you deride as "twiggy" and question the purpose of, those kind of comments just perfectly show how much you are unaware of not knowing; absolutely classic, arrogant noob stuff.

Scooper

That twiggy fork is a Wound Up. It's the only CF fork I'd consider putting on my Waterford.

RJM

Do you find those rotor rings to do anything special over round ones?

chaadster

One of my buddies has a Hampsten CX bike with a color-matched WoundUp...so choice!

Word on the street, for like 20-plus years now, is that a Wound Up, the only carbon filament wound fork in the world, is the most torsionally rigid and precise handling CF fork you can get. They're not as light as a layup Enve or something, but when you're hustling through the rough stuff or carving downhill switchbacks, what they say is Wound Up is the fork to have.

I don't have one, but I'd certainly want one on a premium steel rig where, often, the broad legs and crown of conventional CF forks look out of place. Plus, it's real American innovation in action!

chaadster

I've never used them, but a clubmate put some (Osymetrics) on last spring, and while she didn't get any faster, she says the pedal feel is more unified and harmonious, and maybe less fatiguing for that, so that's something!

I almost sprung for Q's for my Campy crank awhile ago; maybe I should give 'em a look again.

kbarch

Why? Because it's twiggy? Seriously, just trying to understand the "expression of purpose" @chaadster mentioned.

They sound very nice, but maybe being in shadow with the rest of the front made it look unduly weak - i.e., not up to the task.

Or maybe the purpose of that bike is to appear just barely up to the task - strong of heart, willowy of limb - which really is an interesting concept.

joejack951

You gotta admit those rings, regardless of their merit as a pedal stroke enhancer, look totally out of place on that Shimano crank. On a more classic looking crank they'd probably work on that bike. On that crank, no thanks, not that the standard Shimano rings would look much better.

kbarch

Geez - can't you take a joke? Hardly arrogant; but am I disturbing the Sanctum Sanctorum of bicycles or something?
I may be a noob compared to some, but I do have eyes. Just because you take something seriously doesn't mean it can't be a source of amusement. Maybe if you weren't so focused on technical specs, history, pricetags or whatever else you think is so important, you'd see it, too. Lighten up already.

I shouldn't have to explain this, but that comment about the saddle was in response to your remark that the bike was "zesty." Like food. It doesn't matter how excellent it is or whose behind it may have supported, in contrast to "zest" of the rest of the bike, that saddle still looks mild and soft, like a spoonful of sour cream.

BillyD

Gentlemen, we are NOT turning this into another hot or not thread, steel version. Just saying. We are NOT posting bikes here to seek somebody's approval, or to meet some arbitrary standards. If this thread gets too contentious, too critical, too intolerant, too dogmatic about how bikes should or should not look, it won't survive. We already got two threads for that mess.

Bob Ross

If that's the fugliest saddlebag you've ever seen you need to come visit my neck of the woods!
I'm not saying it's an attractive bag, but in the grand scheme of modern road bikes, that one strikes me as pretty benign.


Just to keep the thread on topic, here's a gorgeous Ellis Modern Classic, built by Dave Wages:

joejack951

Way too big for me so it loses a point, but it still gets a 99/100 in my gradebook.

3alarmer 

...do we have a thread for correct bar position ? I think folding that important topic into "hot or not" minimizes its importance and does us all a disservice.

3alarmer 

...if anyone wants some, there's a giant drawer full of the olde Biopace rings over at the co-op that you can have for a minimal investment, plus shipping.

Scooper

Dave was the framebuilder who brazed my 953 Waterford just before he left to hang out his Ellis shingle. He is one very talented and very nice guy.

BTW, can't wait to see pictures of your new Richard Sachs.

himespau 

You don't want to see the bags I use. Much bigger and floppier (converted WWII gas mask bags), but super convenient to hold just about anything I'd want in them and with leather straps from toe clips sewn on top so I can loop through my jacket or vest if it starts out cold and gets hot.

Now that is a bike I'd love to ride. It even looks about my size.

Maelochs

That Ellis is (to me) the perfect balance of lithe, spindly steel and modern headset/shifting. Work of art.

chaadster

Pegoretti's frames are an interesting juxtaposition of the classic and the modern. The frames have level top tubes in classical fashion, but the oversized tubing, construction and design flourishes (e.g. extended head tube) are elements you would not have found on bike 30 years ago. And of course between paint and equipment, the aesthetic is undeniably modern.

DMC707

Yes -- Thomas Edison would approve -- LOL

I turn my head for a couple of days and this thread is over 20 pages ---- the steel bike force is strong here

dmcdam

chaadster

Look at Masi gettin' in on the game!

I know they've had steel bikes on offer all the while, but USA made, TIG welded, race geo, and pictured with a frame fit...?!?! That's steppin' up to capitalize on what is clearly an identifiable and emerging view of what's cool. I like it!

Out with the old...



in the with the new...

Bob Ross

Fiery

That geometry is nasty! (Not in a bad way.)

jamesdak 

Well since it's out with the old, just send that "old Masi" my way, it's gorgeous.

chaadster

I know! I feel like that bike looks at me the same way she does: