mikemowbz

Well, not back yet. Sitting a bit outside Burlington, VT this afternoon...and thought I'd kick things off here with another project, since I can't actually get started until I get back to Montreal!

As I've mentioned in a few posts recently, I'm currently living in Montreal (my long-time home base) temporarily. Aside from my 1991 Marinoni Special, which frankly needs little attention aside from being ridden and kept clean, all my bikes/projects are in limbo - sitting in a storage unit 5000km away. Needless to say, the situation had got me a bit antsy, especially given that I'm sitting on a number of great components just itching for action.

So, I've been doing a bit of looking around for a frame to put those bits on. An ill-considered idea, perhaps - I'm supposed to move back to Vancouver in a couple of months, and some up this far north are almost giving up on the season. Nonetheless, I had to inquire when I spotted a post on the 'Frame doesn't fit' thread suggesting that member jonwvara had a superfluous Miyata 912 frameset in Washington County, VT. Well, it turns out that Jon works a 20-minute drive from my girlfriend's college roommate's family home outside Burlington. Long story short, Jon is a very affable fellow (though he drives a hard bargain, any American's day incomplete until they've taken one of us Canucks for a dollar ). The Miyata is now mine.

Black and pink, ca. 1986. Nice.

Build plan is not exactly catalog-correct. More like, 'what's in the bin'? But before long, this should be my first go at running Ergos (other than one brief test-ride on an Olmo some time ago). Chorus (or ?) early Ergo levers, RD, wheelset (Velocity rims). Likely throw on a Suntour Cyclone crank, Sprint FD and chain. Off the top of my head, all I really need to pick up are the requisite 26.8 seatpost and a pair of tires an tubes! Well, that, some wax, a bit of Permatex and some black touch-up paint...

Pics upon arrival, and more to come as things progress. Should be fun.

Drillium Dude 

Good deal - you're more and more infected with the virus with each passing month

N+1, baby - you're doin' it right!

Pics

DD

mikemowbz

Been a bit busy since getting back, or I would've had pics up sooner - and better pics, at that.

That said, here are a couple of pretty lacklustre shots:

Frame after a quick cleanup, some bad touch-up paint (and with the DT cable stops on backwards ):

Fork crown and head lug, a bit out of focus:


And the BB cluster, for some reason (perhaps because I'm in a rush to get out of the house, and this one is somewhat in focus!):


As of now, the bike has cranks (Suntor Cyclone 7000), brakes (Campy Centaur), FD (Suntour Sprint), stem (Specialized, by Nitto), bars (Modolo Professional), ergo levers (Campy Chorus? ca. '92/3), cable stops (Shimano, and the right way now!) in addition to HS (Tange Passage?) and BB (Shimano catridge unit) on there. Trying to make the old shifter cables work for me, though may need more length to run the RD, and I stupidly cut the brake cable a bit on the short side in my haste.

A couple of blips:

Looks like I'm stuck using the ca. 1992/3 Chorus (?) RD with a claw hanger, as the bolt won't mount in the hanger on the dropout. Appear both to have an incorrect bolt for that purpose, and, I think, to be missing at least one small part that would be present if a claw hanger wasn't used - that's how I got the piece from the PO. Should be functional, though I have to get a replacement screw for the claw hanger, as it doesn't quite reach through to mount as is.

Anyone have an idea just how much of a pain it'll be to track down the proper mounting bolt and probable missing small part(s) to mount this RD without the hanger in future?

For now, this is really just an ad hoc build to give me something to do and another ride around town, so I'm fine with the claw hanger - assuming it works - but I'd rather not be stuck with it indefinitely.

The other little bump, fully disclosed of course: the nut for the binder bolt is missing, and it looks like I either have to track one down (these old Miyatas used an odd-sized hex nut on one side) or file down the closest standard size from the hardware store to fit (which might take me a while, and a few tries, with a hand file). The seat lug 'ears' actually have a hex-shaped socket for the nut on one side, unusual design.

Any suggestion on that? I'm thinking that my odds are not great at finding one of the proper nuts, as I imagine most folks who have them also have the frame to match .

Anyhow, updates to come - including pics with the bits I've put on so far, hopefully a bit better than the first batch!

Chombi

Nice frame. These Japanese classic bikes just look so cleanly built compared to most bikes from other countries.
Maybe one day I'll do a full Japanese build. Maybe something like this or.......if I can ever afford my Japanese dream bike, a 3 Ren$ho. Doing full $uperbe build on it would be $o nice. It'$ ju$t thi$ $hitty economy that'$ keeping me from dreaming of doing bike$ like the$e in the future......

Chombi

roburrito

I dig the strawberry ice cream pink.

jonwvara 

Mike, I protest! You misheard me--what I actually said was "An American's day is incomplete until he's taken a Canuck for his last dollar." After you'd finished shelling out for the frame, I could see that there was still some money in your wallet, though, which is why I looked so glum as I was walking away. I had failed!
By the way, I did enjoy selling the frame out of my car trunk in the parking lot of my workplace--the furtive passing of cash gave the whole thing an enjoyably lowlife feel, like a scene from that [excellent Canadian] TV show, Trailer Park Boys.
Enjoy the frame! I hope the Italian parts issue works out. Nothing I'd ever heard of, though it further reinforces my determination never to own an Italian Frame or an Italian component--something I've successfully avoided for four decades now (okay, not counting the Campagnolo hubs on my 1971 Gitane).

mikemowbz

I apologize for misquoting you, Jon .

The parking-lot transaction did make for a good scene. A schoolmate of my cousin's worked on Trailer Park Boys, BTW - not on camera...

This is my first real foray into the Campy gear from an installation standpoint - all Super Record on my Mercian (now in storage), but I didn't have to put that together. Other than the set there, a stem/bar combo is about the extent of it in terms of Italian stuff. I don't think the weird mounting bolt I have on the Chorus RD is necessarily typical of Campagnolo (or Italian gear generally), but perhaps part of the work-around to install the RD with a hanger, perhaps required for the POs particular ride. In any case, I seem to have solved the problem - assuming I keep the claw hanger, which I will for now - with a longer screw to attach the claw in the dropout. We'll see about getting the Ergo transmission running smoothly, though...

Still, all things considered, the Italians seem to be more 'compatible' with my other gear than the French (a la Gitane...)

It's really coming together, and I think it'll be a lot of fun - both to build and to ride. Already enjoying the learning curve (though I still think it looks kinda funny w/o DT shifters). Not sure I really needed another frameset, but as Drillium Dude said, "N+1, baby!"

I especially like that it has a somewhat long wheelbase, something a bit different than the Marinoni. Sturdy frame too, good for the 250lbs+ on top. Check those beefy stays! And the famous Splined Triple Butted specialty tubing...

Thanks again for passing this along to me - and for taking time out of your workday for our parking-lot transaction .

mapleleafs-13 

I agree, next thing you know, you'll have so much stuff that you might have to open a website or store to sell it all....

but i don't know anything about that....

oddjob2

Every time the Looney exceeds the dollar in value, the whole nation north of the border (except where its south of Detroit) gloats!

Even the cashiers at the Chinese bakery off Kennedy and the cashiers at Tim Horton's gloat, cause I'm paying in US dollars! Mo' money!

I've bought two Raleighs and a PUG in Burlington, a very active market, but a lot of beaters too.

mikemowbz

I think I've seen your site looking up stuff in Toronto. I recall making a connection between one or two pics up there and stuff you've posted, if I'm not getting folks on here confused. Very well set up!

We'll see if it comes to that for me; I'm up to two complete bikes in storage in Vancouver + two frames/parts (probably enough to build three or four, actually ), and two here once I get this Miyata finished. Once I get back and build the Proctor & Apollo framesets sitting on the west coast, I may just have to find something to do about the extras ! As far as bikes as such go, I may have to hold onto that storage unit even after I get a new apartment...

mikemowbz

After a bit of work yesterday morning, this thing is really starting look like a proper bike. Waiting for wheels back from the shop (my tools are in Vancouver, and I thought it prudent to overhaul the hubs). Managed everything else, from headset overhaul to crank install and all the rest, with my trusty multi-tool, shears, a crimping tool, a socket set and a tube of Phil grease. Also waiting for an $8 Origin8 26.8 seatpost in black in the post. Here are some updated build pics:

The whole shebang (so far):


Head-on:


Seat cluster:


Suntour up front, real nice Cyclone chainset w/SR (52) and Suntour Sprint (42) rings:


The Campy RD in question, which I'm guessing is 1992/3 Chorus based on the old catalogs, with unsightly but currently necessary claw hanger:


More to come when I get the wheels back, etc. No errands or work to do on it today, it's a waiting game for now!

mikemowbz

Impatient to get this build finished, so after a long day at work, at bit of indication of what's to come as I pull bit out to bring things towards completion.

Fair warning to those C&Vers of a conservative stylistic bent: as this is a "what's in the bin" build, we may have some clashing colours at the end of the day. Hopefully not too hipsterish, in the end. In any case, this'll be in service two months before winter and moving intervene and force dismantling of the currently nascent build. At least I refrained from employing the blue-painted Syncros stem I have in the box (though it would've matched the tires, at least ):

Honey Brooks Pro has been awaiting service since I decided I'm perfectly happy with the Selle Italia-made Concor-copy on the Marinoni:


Blue & black tires are Schwalbe Ultremo R.1s, the only tire I have on hand. Makes no sense to buy new ones, though these are apparently both high-performance and highly puncture-prone product, judging by reviews. We shall see:


Wheels should be back in my hands tomorrow or Friday...

mikemowbz

Wheels took longer than expected at the shop, finally done today. So I spent some time wrangling this thing: put on the wheels & chain to see if I can make her spin through the gears. As noted above, I've never done the Ergo thing before (or STIs...in fact, this is my first time setting up indexed shifting of any kind).

Definitely some hitches in the plan: the screw that mounts the claw hanger was too long, actually caught the lockring preventing the cassette from spinning. So I filed it down. I'm stuck using the hanger in lieu of a proper mounting bolt and at least one small part that holds the spring there in tension. Do let me know if these parts are readily available for a ca. 1992/3 Chorus (?) RD...or if you have spares!

Definitely having a tricky time with the FD. It'll change, but it's taking a lot of playing around with the cable tension, limit screws, and precise positioning to get it to shift both up and down AND not rub against the inside of the cage excessively. Any tips from y'all? I'm running a Sprint FD. I'm sure I'll figure it out. Never a problem with DT friction in the first place, though, in my experience...

Recycled chain might be about a link too short, or the extra distance the claw hanger pushes out the RD may be the problem, but I'm not quite catching my 26 cog inside. No matter, that, really - this is a temporary build, getting torn down in two months, and I don't really need that 26 cog rolling in Montreal.

Speaking of the fact that it's a temporary build...please forgive the recycled bartape (and its electrical-tape supplements for tears and short ends), the wild tire colour, and the sloppy cabling. I'm just making do .

Pic as it stands tonight (I'm exhausted, so maybe you can forgive this, too):


Now I'm just waiting for the seatpost in the mail! It was pouring rain today anyways...

mapleleafs-13 

LOL that may be me

mapleleafs-13 

i'll be honest with you, if this was my bike i would put these on:

https://www.ebay.ca/itm/Michelin-Pro-...ht_2335wt_1163



i think i may use a pair of these on one of my bikes, only the manliest of men ride pink.

mikemowbz

^ Yeah, the Schwalbes look like I'm trying to compensate for something, huh?
Keep my stereotypically gendered colours offsetting, right? A little blue to neutralize the pink...

Honestly, those Ultremo R.1s are just a deal I picked up and happened to have around when I realized I had a build on my hands.

If you don't believe this is seriously ad hoc build, check out the bar end plugs...courtesy of Liberty School Cab Sauv.

Those pink Michelins might well end up on the Miyata if I like it enough to keep it around long-term...I'll move the blue Schwalbes to a blue/white bike they were destined for prior to coming off the shelf and into service! Sometimes these things are called for. When the bike is black and pink may be one of those times.

mikemowbz

Pics of this thing put together: