JaccoW

non-fixie 

Excellent!

Assuming you're planning to climb some real hills with that machine you might want to have another look at shaving off some more weight. If the 14.6kg you mentioned in post # 91 is correct, it seems to me the bike is a bit heavier than it needs to be.

For comparison: I just finished putting together what is supposed to be my main touring bike for the season this evening and my luggage scale says it weighs ~11.5 kg as pictured. 63.5cm frame. I may add a generator and lights, but even then I should be able to keep it well below 12kg. Even if I take your Marathon tires into account, there's 1.5kg difference I can't really explain.

JaccoW

That's an interesting observation. I was already pretty happy with the weight of this (seeing as my bikes thusfar have been 22+ Kg behemoths)
I'm guessing it's in all the small bits and pieces here. Keep in mind that this is also Reynolds 531ST tubing, which should be stiffer but also heavier.

• Stainless steel fenders (400 grams?)
• Bashguard (130 grams ?)
• Cross levers (90 grams)
• Lights (120+63 grams)
• Leather mudflap (92 grams)
• Pedals (450 grams? for this setup vs?)
• Bell (45 grams)

That's already 1,3 kg, maybe less if the difference in pedal weight isn't as big.

Just weighed my front wheel and that is a sturdy 1990 grams. I'll look into it and look for ways to lighten it more.

non-fixie 

Sorry, didn't mean to mess up that warm cosy feeling ....

You're right. I does add up. I would expect about 200 grams difference in the frame tube set.

I guess you'll never again be able to look at that mudflap again without thinking "92 grams ...".

JaccoW

Don't worry about it. Horses for courses as they say. I'm fine with a slightly heavier bike, it is already a big improvement for me. We'll see if I ever get the itch in the future to lighten things up and go all drillium on everything.
I've never been a weight weeny, especially since I could probably lose 10 Kg myself (not fat, just knowing I have been 25 Kg lighter in the past when I was slightly underweight).

Besides, the bigger challenge will be the Gazelle Super Licht or the impressively lightweight Koga-Miyata 3-speed.

JaccoW

Got some MT Zoom aluminum jockey wheels. 11T so they do seem to be a bit bigger than the original 10T? wheels that come with the Sachs Huret derailleur. The SH has a slightly annoying quirk though, the jockey wheels axles are 6+mm whereas modern jockey wheels are 5mm. So I need to drill and sand these tiny plastic caps that come with the wheels to a larger size.

Looks good though.

JaccoW

First parts of my new wheel build just came in. Continental GP Urban 35-622
Until the rest comes in I will probably mount them on my current wheels to get a feel for them.

JaccoW

Teaser:

JaccoW

First impressions; Nice supple tyre. Seems to take out bumps well but I'll give them a longer spin this weekend.
Nice honey coloured skinwall. Seems to be about as wide as the Schwalbe's 37-622 that were on there before but with less of a profile on it they fit a lot better in the rear.
We'll see how the pucture resistance holds up as that is a major difference between these two. Then again the Schwalbe is 778 grams (slightly dirty) and the Continental is 330 grams and those ~450 grams have to come from somewhere.


I'm leaving the Schwalbe up front for now as I don't have a dynamo wheel yet and I don't trust the skinwalls with a sidewall dynamo.

That being said, the reflective strip blends in well during the day but does show up at night with a light on it.

non-fixie 

Looks a lot better already!

WRT the front: change that tire as well, and use one of these:



Only € 0.42, if you buy 25 of them.

JaccoW

Done. I've used some heatshrink over the current head of the dynamo but even with adjustments it is still mostly running on the skinwall itself. Not a great long term solution.

paulkal

That is a good looking bike, are you planning on doing a Randonneur ride?

JaccoW

Maybe, the idea of doing a 200km randonnee does appeal to me but for now I'm content with just going on longer rides for now.

I want the wheels sorted out before I go and do things like that. I noticed the rear axle is bent and is causing vibrations at higher speeds. Once that is done I'll see about joining the local club. The thing is though, that they organize most rides on the other side of the country and without a car it gets a bit tricky to get there.

JaccoW

Alright, first time building a wheel.

Step 1: Decide on and receive the hub for measuring.

1. 130mm OLD
2. 9/10-speed compatible cassette hub
3. 36H
4. Shimano compatible
5. High flange
6. Sturdy enough for light touring use and able to carry my weight (~100kg/220lbs)
7. Shiny/silver

• Model: SXL136
• Weight:
  • Given: 275 gram (w/o QR)
  • Actual:
    • Hub: 324 grams
    • Skewer: 103 grams
• 36H
• 130 OLD
• Production date?: 304474 - 19.10.2015
• Flange Diameter: 75mm

• S = ~2.4+mm (Used a tooth pick but it was 2.1mm and slightly smaller than the hole so it is probably 2.6mm)
• dL = 65 mm
• dR = 65 mm
• A = 28 mm
• B = 48 mm
• wL = 36 mm
• wR=18 mm
• O.L.D. = 130mm (28+48+36+18)

JaccoW

While I am waiting for the rest of the parts I'm keeping myself busy. Time to take a look at that Zefal HPX pump!
I posted the steps here (Zefal Pump Disassembly - Bicycle Mechanics.

I'll probably do a full write up when I get the new pump and repeat these steps. Maybe I'll even make a video of it.

JaccoW

So I just can't stop myself from working on this bike, and I love it.

One of the larger jobs was building new wheels. Today I started on the rear and I'll probably do the front in the next few weeks.

Last week I received most of the parts I needed and today the wheel came in.


Parts:

• Rim: H Plus Son TB14, 36H
• Spokes: DT Swiss Alpine III (triple butted)
• Nipples: Silver brass DT Swiss
• Extra: Brass spoke washers
• Hub: SunXCD Rear Cassette hub, 36H
• Cassette: Sram PG-990, 9-speed, 11-34T
• Rim tape: Schwalbe high-pressure rim tape
• Inner tube: Schwalbe SV18
• Tyre: Schindelhauer/Continental Grand Prix Urban, 35-622

Building:
So I started out just laying everything on the table and adding the washer to every drive-side spoke.


This was my first time building a wheel and there were some confusing parts. I think it took me an hour to properly lace the first half because I got confused and had to relace everything.
But eventually, I managed.


The spoke washers are a subtle but nice addition to the wheel:


It wasn't all perfect though. After a bit of tightening the wheel was perfectly straight but once I tightened everything down some more I ran into an issue with a single spoke. In the end I could only cut it off because I just completely stripped the inside as well.


Eventually however I managed to get it right and finetune it using zip ties.


Future plans:
Next up, once I decide on which dynamo hub I want, is the front wheel!

I'm still a bit torn between the following;

1. Shimano DH-3N72
   • Deore LX, 560 grams, 60mm flange distance, fully disassemblable and lots of spare parts, ~€70 for the 36H version
2. Shimano DH-3N80
   • Deore XT, 483 grams, 60mm flange distance, fully disassemblable and lots of spare parts, getting difficult to find in 36H. 32H is €75, 36H is €115
   • One of the more attractive hubs IMHO
3. Shutter Precision PV-8 or PL-8
   • High quality but not user serviceable. 400 grams. 50mm flange distance. €90
   • Good looking hub. Might consider getting the centerlock version with a dust cover so the wheel could potentially be used with disc brakes on another bike.
4. Son Delux
   • High quality but not user serviceable. 390 grams. 50mm flange distance. €210
   • Really more than I really want to spend on a hub.
5. Son Delux Wide Body
   • High quality but not user serviceable. 390 grams. 68mm flange distance. €220
   • Potential option because the wider flange but again, more expensive than I want to spend

In short the DH-3N80 is more or less what I want but it is difficult to find. None of Shimano's current offerings would really fit on this bike.

Any ideas or opinions?

JaccoW

And just because there is a 10-image limit per post, here is the final result:

The 6-speed Sachs-Huret seems to shift this just fine though it sometimes lags a bit in the smallest 11T cog.

JaccoW

And some pictures in daylight.



I really should start making pictures while I am riding instead of just at the beginning and the end.

paulkal

As far as I know, the Shimano hubs are not fully serviceable and there are no spare parts available. I used a Shimano N71 for 6 or 7 years. It worked fine until it completely froze. I did manage to take it apart, but as there were no parts available, was not able to repair it.
I replaced it with a Son20, which is still like new after 10 years.
No experience with the Shutter Precision.
i would go for a Son, if you can afford it of course. It looks better than a Shimano and is better made.

JaccoW

Ah it seems you are correct. There are parts for the cheaper models but not the ones mentioned above. It can be disassembled without delacing the wheel but if you break the connector you are out of luck. :/

Hmmm, something more to think about. Thanks.

EDIT: You can simply buy a completely new inner, with axle, dynamo unit and bearings on one side: eBay for about €35.

JaccoW

Ordered some parts to start the front wheel and rewire some of the lighting.

In the meantime I am taking the old Zefal HPX apart so I know what to do with the brand new one.
I have some plans to turn it into something inspired by the classic Zefal Competition pumps.


For those interested:

Disassembled head. The silver screw in the bottom is what you have to unscrew with a long flathead screwdriver (or extensions) to take off the handle.



With the exception of the plastic switch and the replaceable plastic inserts on the pump head everything is basically metal (aluminium)

I'm not done yet but this is more of a proof of concept so I'm not putting too much effort into this one.

noglider 

Those Zefal pumps are damned good.

JaccoW

A few days ago I received some more parts to build the front wheel but I am still missing the rim at the moment.

It's an excellent reason though to rebuild the rear wheel! When I built it a few weeks ago I didn't use any lube, had an ill fitting spoke wrench (3.3 mm instead of the 3.2 mm I actually needed) and didn't check for correct dishing.
Rounded a few spoke nipples in the process and stripped a few others... Let's just say you learn more with each wheel you build...

Luckily though it was just the spoke nipples and a pack of 100 or so is fairly cheap.



I am a big fan now of Parktool's 4-sided spoke wrench, so much easier and no slipping at all.

After riding the wheel for a bit I noticed one side had gotten black on the brake track while the other side was still shiny. Even after adjustment the brake pad was still rubbing, a sure tell that wheel dishing was off.
Watched a few Youtube videos on it and noticed one comment saying how he made a quick and dirty dishing tool; two cups and something underneath to measure like a stack of papers.


It worked extremely well and required no drilling and sawing wood at all!

Rebuilding the wheel took no time at all and it's almost perfectly true. Nice.

While I wait for the rim to arrive I took a look at the dynohub. I opted for the Shutter Precision PL-8 (the centerlock version) after hearing positive comments from a local Brompton dealer and some more digging around.
Now, while I may not have disc brakes on this bike, I might switch this wheel around in the future. And I think the PV-8 (rim brake only) version of the hub is just really ugly with the unused axle.

That does leave you with an exposed centerlock track though. Luckily, SON sells the SONdelux/SON 28 centerlock cap in polished, red or black anodized aluminum.
It just slides on and stays in place using a rubber ring on the inside. SP does seem to have a slightly wider axle nut but with a bit of grinding it fits perfectly.



I opted for the red since I have a theme going but I am sure that the polished version would have blended in just perfectly.

Bring on the rim!

JaccoW

So what have I been doing lately?

1. Rebuilt the rear wheel using DT Swiss Pro head spoke nipples and Bison metal lock as spoke prep. I may or may not have stripped a few before.
2. Built the front wheel!
3. Drilled some holes in the stainless steel VO rack.

Not much to be said about the first two points. Just look at these beauties:









Weighing in at 1912 grams (4.2 lbs) for the rear wheel. (Including 9-speed cassette and tyres but without QR) and 1678 grams (3.7 lbs) for the front wheel (Dynohub and tyres but without QR).
Both are 700C 36H 3-cross wheels and should be good for some loaded riding. I'm pretty pleased with them so far.
The metal lock works as a cheap spoke prep offering lubrication when building and locking the threads once I am done. I had practically no spoke windup on both wheels using this.

As for the front rack... I contacted VO to inquire about drilling holes to guide the wires through the stainless steel tubing. Plenty of room inside but it wasn't entirely free of any burs on the inside it seems.
I can get a thinner double stranded wire through just fine but SON's coaxial cables seem to get caugh on something.

Stainless steel is ... unpleasant to drill though as you need special, extra hard, drills and take it slow. If you run the drill too fast it will cause the metal to work harden which makes it extra difficult to work with.
Slow speed and firm pressure is where it is at. And that's kind of tricky with small tubing XD

How slow you ask? These two small holes below took me 30-40 minutes to drill using a cordless hand drill.

All that is left now is to pull the wire for the dynamo > front light connection.
I'll try again in the morning but at the very least it seems worth it for the rear light already.

mountaindave