Soma MiniVelo: Arrived!
09-06-12, 06:33 AM
#1
Idealistic Troublemaker
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Soma MiniVelo: Arrived!
I got the $750 deal from bikebiz -- to my surprise, it shipped (almost instantly) from SOMA themselves, here in San Francisco.
The box is marked 'made in Taiwan' but the bike was packed using pages from a July edition of Yomiuri Shimbun. Make of that what you will.
I was excited and surprised and stayed up late to assemble her -- nothing adjusted yet, but looks gorgeous to me!
The box is marked 'made in Taiwan' but the bike was packed using pages from a July edition of Yomiuri Shimbun. Make of that what you will.
I was excited and surprised and stayed up late to assemble her -- nothing adjusted yet, but looks gorgeous to me!
09-06-12, 03:59 PM
#2
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Congrats! I'm looking forward to hearing your ride impressions.
It's a handsome bike, and one of the only minis that I can think of that's going after the laid-back, country touring aesthetic. And at that price? Niceeeee!
It's a handsome bike, and one of the only minis that I can think of that's going after the laid-back, country touring aesthetic. And at that price? Niceeeee!
09-06-12, 06:31 PM
#3
Senior Member
Very cool! I must have missed that Soma makes these. It doesn't fold, right? Still, would be awesome as a bike with a smaller footprint (errr... wheelprint? whatever...)
09-06-12, 06:42 PM
#4
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Nice bike. It looks very classy in that color and with the leather bits. Congrats.
I too am curious to hear the ride report.
I too am curious to hear the ride report.
09-10-12, 02:34 AM
#5
Idealistic Troublemaker
Thread Starter
I've had a heck of a time finding time for much riding -- because I was, umm, riding a different bike for the weekend. This morning I dealt with the last bits of prep - adjusting the derailleur ranges and adding basic accessories - and rode around town a bit. Smooth and sweet and as much as I enjoyed riding the Nano this is really in a deservedly-pricier class. The Tange steel frame is lighter, the components smoother. I'm getting use to the bar-end shifters, that's a new one on me. So far my only negatives would be personal-preference ones: I'd rather have presta valve tubes, and maybe a narrower saddle (this is intended by me to be a city bike, so a touring saddle may be just fine). These are incredibly marginal -- so far very happy. I'll start taking it for longer rides all this week.
09-10-12, 06:58 AM
#6
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You should be able to get adaptors to make schraeder holes into presta ones.
In retrospect, I probably would have prefered one of these to the Nano, but the price difference when I bought my Nano was 900$ (IIRC, the price on the Soma was about 1200$). $450 more would have made sense as the components are certainly nicer on the Soma; however, the stock components on my Nano are pretty much gone.
In retrospect, I probably would have prefered one of these to the Nano, but the price difference when I bought my Nano was 900$ (IIRC, the price on the Soma was about 1200$). $450 more would have made sense as the components are certainly nicer on the Soma; however, the stock components on my Nano are pretty much gone.
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09-10-12, 08:35 AM
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Yeah, in retrospect I kind of feel the same way, although I'm not as taken with the touring look of the Soma, what with the bar end shifters, canti brakes, and longer stays, as I am with the road racer look of the Nano. I'll defer to Bjorke that the frame is nicer riding, although the Nano's butted cro-mo isn't total junk.
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