Bikeforums.net is a forum about nothing but bikes. Our community can help you find information about hard-to-find and localized information like bicycle tours, specialties like where in your area to have your recumbent bike serviced, or what are the best bicycle tires and seats for the activities you use your bike for.frpax
09-11-09, 11:15 AM
Man,I tell ya... Sometimes things just don't work out.
I've been trying to take my old Miyata 721A and turn it into a "light" tourer. I've got a rear rack lying around, so why not? First step was to add the rack. But the bike is set up & geared as a road bike, and not a tourer, so I've got my work cut out for me. A project! YES! Just what I need!!
I took the 54/44 chainrings off, and got some new 48/34 'rings. Sweet! I'm on my way! I'm pumped!
So I take the sparsely spoked road wheels off, and got some 32 spoked ones. The 32 spokers came off an older bike that had a 7 speed freewheel, and I have 8 speed brifters, so that's no problem... change the freehub and re-dish the rear wheel. I'm OK so far. I'm still pumped and excited and I learned more about fixing/repairing bikes in the process!
Got a mountain bike cassette on hand, but it's a 9 speed. So I tear it all apart, use 8 speed spacers and build my own. I'm STILL excited. That Sheldon Brown guy is (was) awesome!
I figured I need something other than 700x25 tires, so I got some Panaracer Ribmo's in 700x28... and whadaya know? Front tire is too big on the front and won't clear the fork crown. It's a steel fork, and a bit of the steerer tube is protruding below the actual fork crown, so I figure I'll file a bit off. That can't hurt anything... So I do, and sure enough, still not enough clearance. The rear is no problem. I'm starting to lose my excitement at this point. I've not given up yet. Where there's a will, there's a way, right? Right.
So, I jump into filing (actually "Dremel-ing") the fork, and both front and rear tires go flat. All of a sudden, and within 3 or 4 minutes of each other. "What gives here?", I ask myself. So I pull the tires off and examine the tubes, and guess what? I forget to put rim strips in. What a dummy. So I patch the tubes, put rim strips on, and put the tires all back together and resume filing on the fork. I'm mad at myself for such a stupid mistake, and having to patch 2 brand new tubes, but I'm still bound and determined. Excitement? Uh, not so much. But I've got a project to finish, dangit!
I've resumed dremel-ing, and I swear, not 2 minutes pass by and BANG! Front tire blows again. This time, it blows the side wall off the rim, which is no small feat, since the tires are a bear to get the bead on even with tire levers.
That's it. I'm done. The bike goes back together this weekend as a road bike. I'll leave the rack on and use it as a commuter.
As for touring, I'll have to come up with some other plan for getting a touring bike with the limited budget I have.
I've been trying to take my old Miyata 721A and turn it into a "light" tourer. I've got a rear rack lying around, so why not? First step was to add the rack. But the bike is set up & geared as a road bike, and not a tourer, so I've got my work cut out for me. A project! YES! Just what I need!!
I took the 54/44 chainrings off, and got some new 48/34 'rings. Sweet! I'm on my way! I'm pumped!
So I take the sparsely spoked road wheels off, and got some 32 spoked ones. The 32 spokers came off an older bike that had a 7 speed freewheel, and I have 8 speed brifters, so that's no problem... change the freehub and re-dish the rear wheel. I'm OK so far. I'm still pumped and excited and I learned more about fixing/repairing bikes in the process!
Got a mountain bike cassette on hand, but it's a 9 speed. So I tear it all apart, use 8 speed spacers and build my own. I'm STILL excited. That Sheldon Brown guy is (was) awesome!
I figured I need something other than 700x25 tires, so I got some Panaracer Ribmo's in 700x28... and whadaya know? Front tire is too big on the front and won't clear the fork crown. It's a steel fork, and a bit of the steerer tube is protruding below the actual fork crown, so I figure I'll file a bit off. That can't hurt anything... So I do, and sure enough, still not enough clearance. The rear is no problem. I'm starting to lose my excitement at this point. I've not given up yet. Where there's a will, there's a way, right? Right.
So, I jump into filing (actually "Dremel-ing") the fork, and both front and rear tires go flat. All of a sudden, and within 3 or 4 minutes of each other. "What gives here?", I ask myself. So I pull the tires off and examine the tubes, and guess what? I forget to put rim strips in. What a dummy. So I patch the tubes, put rim strips on, and put the tires all back together and resume filing on the fork. I'm mad at myself for such a stupid mistake, and having to patch 2 brand new tubes, but I'm still bound and determined. Excitement? Uh, not so much. But I've got a project to finish, dangit!
I've resumed dremel-ing, and I swear, not 2 minutes pass by and BANG! Front tire blows again. This time, it blows the side wall off the rim, which is no small feat, since the tires are a bear to get the bead on even with tire levers.
That's it. I'm done. The bike goes back together this weekend as a road bike. I'll leave the rack on and use it as a commuter.
As for touring, I'll have to come up with some other plan for getting a touring bike with the limited budget I have.