Or Simplex Prestige! Steel is real, and plastic is fantastic!

Cool bike, btw.

What are you going to lever against?

I'll ride about anything, but very particular about what I pay for; if I think it's an improvement I try to keep an open mind. The good thing these days is the internet; if something is dangerous or useless junk it won't last very long.


https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...6b43859c85.jpg

Hopefully you also have the anatomy skin suit to wear when you ride it. :D

What tool develops this view? I like Sheldon's calculator, but this visual is preferable, imo.

Ritzelrechner (Gear Calculator) There is a link to that particular setup in the link below the image. ;)

I wondered for years why road didn't go 135 for for a better wheel back when it was 8sp and everything was becoming 9sp. Just seemed rediculous to not and when I had a frame custom made I specified 135mm rear end and room for 40c tires which meant a road bike with xtr instead of DA which were some strong wheels with velocity aeroheads. Personally I like my 1x11 mtb setup for the simplicity of quick shifts to respond to random terrain off-road though I don't always like the jumps at the higher end. Nor do I think it's ugly.
for road there's a lot to be said about a nice, wider range double like a 50/34 and an 11-32 for going fast and climbing most things. But even then I like my 10sp for nice close jumps since I've never met a flat road and I do get tired over time. 5 speeds just doesn't have enough range without dramatic jumps that I can avoid with 10sp

Sort of funny because the 1x system isn't really new technology. If anything, it's a lot simpler with less parts to break than a traditional FD system that a tourer would use.

A large cassette is the same tech as a small cassette - it's more of a new implementation of a proven technology. I suppose you could say that a clutch in the rear derailleur and the narrow-wide chainring are "new", but they've been used for many years in the MTB world so in my mind they are both proven and readily available. In other words the 1x system would be less likely to break on tour and also I wouldn't need to worry about finding FD parts in a remote area.

It isn't but as you can see in this thread (1x Drivetrain for all round gravel touring bike - Touring subforum) the reactions are a bit mixed. :)

I'll give good odds that there's not 1 cracked pulley wheel on any of your rideable vintage classics.
And that goes for most of you folks.

Well, duh. If they had cracked pulleys they wouldn't be rideable.

Wow, I had no idea narrow-wide chainrings even existed. Thank you everyone for keeping me from doing or saying something stupid in the future! (Also for all the other interesting information in this thread.)

Nice site, nice adventures.
I wouldn't take a bike on adventures through India or Guatemala with a cracked jockey wheel, either!
I wonder what the inventory of 50tooth cassettes is in those places if it needs replacement? Or the rear derailleur? or even 11/12sp chains?

We all face trade-offs as cyclists. The joy of choice.

Sorta on topic, maybe, but IMNHO many things like flat bars and tubeless tires that make total functional, practical sense in the MTB realm do not make the same functional practical sense in road bikes, but get pushed as new and cool and usefull. I am not sure where wide range 1x systems fit. yes they cover a similar range, but with fewer steps to fine tune.

and of course beauty is in the eye of the beholder.....something can be really functional and still fugly

If there was a polished silver long cage rear derailleur with clutch I would definitely put it on my rando bike though. The 52/42/26 X 11-34 drivetrain could use a bit more tension and less chain slapping when I drive it up places it shouldn't be going.

I'm not convinced by the op's apology in the thread title.

On the contrary, I have bought used Campy RDs with cracked jockey wheels that show signs that they were ridden with such for many miles......

Do they continue to hold up if ridden hard?

Here's what I believe to be the original truss fork and frame, on an 1896 Pedersen bicycle. They were strong, rigid and light. Claimed weight was 17 lb in the smallest frame size. Note the hammock style saddle to compensate for the frame's stiffness on the rough roads of the day. Production of the Pedersen stopped in 1917 but was resurrected in 1978 and continues to this day.
https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...a985d57d6a.jpg

It actually a bit high for a touring bike. It’s what manufacturers might put on a touring bike but it’s not as low as touring gearing can go with just a little modification.

1x gearing is showing up in touring bikes but it’s got a lot of limitations. You can generally have a high gear or a low gear but not both. That means that you can climb well and spend your time on the flats poking along or you can go fast on the flats and struggle up hill. Most touring bikes aren’t going to accommodate a boost hub some the 10 tooth cog is kind of out of the question. There’s also the cost of a 10-50 1x system. Just the cassette is nearly $200.

I can make a wider range system that has a good high and a very good low for less than the cost of the cassette.

It’s a very good gear calculator. It also allows for comparisons of different drive trains. For example, this compares the 1x system above to a traditional mountain bike like touring setup. The high is much higher with a similar low. It’s not too difficult to get a lower low with just a 36 tooth cog on the cassette. Changing to a 20 tooth inner, either by using a 58mm BCD crank or by modifying a Shimano 64mm BCD crank (it’s not difficult), gives and even lower low with the same high gear. I fully appreciated this gearing on several tours in the eastern US where the mountains lack altitude but they don’t lack for attitude! The roads on the hills are much, much steeper there than here in the west.

I am interested in refining the gearing on my 81-speed. :) I've lived in the east for 53 of my almost 61 years. I know about the hills here... plus my power/weight ratio isn't what it was when I was 20. :thumb:

Great info with a picture to boot! You da man. What size wheels/tires are those? A more modern wheelset might push the weight down even more.

Maybe I don't ride hard. Cracked Campy pulleys work "forever". However, I don't know how long a cracked Shimano pulley will work. Does anybody know?

John Nicholson had special pedals where his shoes were bolted to them.

This bike would be OK until you had a crash. It would not be as strong in a head on collision, or even hitting a large pot hole.