h2o_polo_boi

I've been cycling for about 5 months now and love it. So I decided to build my own bike for the first time. I don't know much about bikes and just had the Park Tool USA website and manuals from the parts to go on. I'm just happy all the parts fit. What do you guys think? Does everything look right? Is $1,500 a lot for this bike?



One thing I noticed about this bike is that it is a lot smoother than my aluminum/carbon '06 Specialized Allez Elite Triple. I would feel every crack on the ground with the Allez but it is a bit faster, stiffer, and more responsive. Also, the rear shifting seems to be reversed between the two bikes. By that I mean, pushing the black lever shifts to a smaller cog on the Allez and a bigger cog on the Cross-Check. I suspect it is the difference in mountain and road rear derailleurs. What are your opinions?

Specs:
Weight: ~25lbs
Crankset: Ultegra 52/42/30
Bottom Bracket: Ultegra Cartridge
Pedals: Crank Brothers Eggbeater Chrome
Chain: Ultegra with SRAM PowerLink
Front Derailleur: Ultegra
Cassette: 11-34 9-spd Deore XT
Rear Derailleur: Deore XT
Shifters: Ultegra
Brakes: Avid Shorty 6
Cross-Levers: Tektro RX 2.0
Brake Pads: Kool Stop Salmon
Wheelset: Mavic Open Pro 32H with Ultegra Hubs
Rim Strips: Velox Wide
Tires: Specialized Nimbus Armadillo 700x28c
Headset: Chris King No Threadset
Stem: Ritchey Pro Adjustable
Handlebars: Nitto Classic
Handlebar Tape: Cinelli
Seatpost: FSA SLK Carbon
Water Cage: Tacx Tao

Bolo Grubb

looks very nice

georgiaboy

Very nice CC.

Nice part selection. The gearing is very wide which will allow you to climb and cruise. I love the Ultegra Triple crank, great crank.

Will you be adding a rack, or seat bag? Are you going to install fenders? Fenders really help prolong the drivetrain life.

Cromulent

That is teh sweetness. Very nice!

jyossarian

Wow, that's nice!

h2o_polo_boi

Thanks for the response. I have a medium Topeak Aero Wedge saddle bag not shown in the picture. Negative on the racks or fenders since I prefer a messenger bag and it doesn't rain much here in the Bay Area.

Bklyn

I'd love to see a closeup of the rear brake cable. It looks like what I've got on a 1982 Fuji — the routing is attached to the seatpost, and everytime I adjust the saddle, the brakes are out of whack!

jimcross

Very nice build. I like the component mix you selected. It's very similar to mine but a step up the Shimano tree. I just geared my cross-check after a year of single speed. I experienced the same backwards shifting with my LX rear derailleur. That's what the rapid rise you see in the ads is all about. The spring tension behaves the opposite of your road setup. It's taking me a little getting used to. But I have barcons instead of STIs on mine, so I don't get too confused when I switch bikes.

Enjoy! I know if I could only have one bike it would be my cross-check.

h2o_polo_boi

Yeah, I thought it was tricky too especially when I have my saddle bag sometimes pressing against the cable. I just tried my best and wired the housing under the clamp like so:

void808

We're twins!


Built myself, but I got a good deal on Tiagra componentry. I'll be swapping pieces out campy style sooner or later.

ragboy

Nice! I'm thinking seriously of taking the plunge on a CC

georgiaboy

What a great idea! I bought the CC complete bike. I have never had a campy bike and that would be the way to go.

Psydotek

$1500 is alot, but getting a bicycle exactly how you want it is worth it. That being said, that's one sweet Crosscheck.

I almost built my own from scratch but after pricing everything out it would have been $1k+ for all the parts (and that's going with the inexpensive stuff). I ended up picking up a mostly complete used Giant TCX for $575 and i'm just swapping/adding stuff as needed (had to buy pedals and a saddle and i'm swapping out the v-brakes for center pull cantilevers).

BikeManDan

Its raining today and for the next week

h2o_polo_boi

About time too. Considering it has only rained for like two weeks this winter, it hasn't rained much in the Bay Area

JeffS

I can't tell if it's the angle of the shot, or if you just really like a long reach.

You clearly haven't learned roadie etiquite though. You're supposed to have the chain on the big ring, and the bike propped against a white garage door

h2o_polo_boi

With all due respect, forgive me for not being a roadie snob. But, if you think you can climb a 20% grade hill to get to my destination on a 52 in the front, be my guest. Besides, I thought this was the Commuting forum. If I was a roadie, I would have posted in the Road Cycling forum. Oh, and the LBS that help fit my bike for me said the reach was fine. After couple thousand miles and a century later, I believed them

p.s. you clearly haven't learned to spell etiquette yet

x37

That's a great bike -- excellent component selection. What kind of saddle does it have?

h2o_polo_boi

hahaha the saddle is a stock saddle from my mongoose mountain bike from wal-mart I don't know why they put road saddles on a mountain bike. Not the kind of saddle for upright riding

RomSpaceKnight

I always thought as cross check was a.......................

Indicated by....................................

And punished by.............................






Sorry being a goof, nice bike.

Brian Sorrell

Fine looking machine indeed. I'll admit to a twinge of jealousy. Ok, more than a twinge.

CrosseyedCrickt

I think he was being sarcastic, in a wink wink nudge nudge kind of way

nice looking ride you have there btw, and no price is too much to have exactly what you want and have built/assembled it yourself

h2o_polo_boi

Thanks for your compliment. And yes, it feels great being able to have assembled it yourself. I never thought I could actually build a bike. Then ride it after without it falling apart on you

h2o_polo_boi

You're absolutely right! That's what I always thought, especially when the brand is Surly. Doesn't Surly mean hostile and bad-tempered? Add to it the Cross-Check and you got a real combo. I think I'm going to take off the decals now

void808

dude, good luck. that process took me over 3 hours, and i'm missing fingernails as a result. Protip: an old creditcard and some goo-gone will do it, but your credit card will be completely toast.

I'm actually super excited it's raining right now, because I just dropped some super nice fenders on there, and I feel pretty tough.