jdawginsc 

This makes my heart happy!

When you do finish the gold cabling, you might want a smaller loop to the rear derailleur.

Strawbunyan

I agree. Definitely alot floppin around back there. Cabling seems to be an entire art form all in itself. I've got to get that done soon though because the black is killing my soul. I'll probably do it the next "week of rain" that we get, I don't want the bike apart on a beautiful day like today.

Strawbunyan

Alright. I couldn't take it anymore.




A bit of a hack job but it's gold.
Next up will be the FD cable. And when I change out the bar tape I will do the front brake, I think I am starting to get the hang of it....not really I didn't have anymore of the little end caps that keep the cable from fraying but I did have a box full of electrical connectors from back in the day so I snipped the tip off of one a clamped it down on the cable to keep it from coming apart and stabbing me.

Strawbunyan

So I took some measurements and did some math.
I appear to have atleast 18mm of clearance on at the tightest points between the tires and any rub zones. I lowered that to 15 to be conservative and used the tire size= gap-3mm×2+current tire width formula

(15-3)×2+25=49

Can this thing really fit that big of a tire? or have I failed too many math classes?
that is a 1.95 inch tire and seems insane.
I am not interested in that large of a tire, I really think skinnier tires look cooler on these bikes and, as we all know, looking cool is priority numero uno. But if it really will fit that, the world is my oyster for tire selection it seems.

jdawginsc 

The critical rub zone is between the chainstays at the crimp. I am pretty sure that was the limiter for me when considering tire sizes. I think I guesstimated a 32 was the max size.

Also remember, the rear tire goes in closer to the seat tube, then gets pulled back into the drops, so you need a bit there to keep from having to deflate the tire when installing or removing.

daverup 

My thought is that you should keep the AD on the tires you have now. You've written about the feel of the bike and the way it moves. Should you go wider, I think it will lose some of that.
Should the need for non-paved surface riding become greater, consider building a more gravel suitable rig. This can be done starting with a 90's hybrid without a great expense. Something in the 35-42mm tire size will be better in the small gravel without being miserable on pavement.

Strawbunyan

32 sounds a lot more like what I was expecting to find. I have to hunt down my micrometer and try this again.

I agree. I fully intend to keep it this way for quite a while atleast. I am just toying around and trying to gain extra experience, it gives my brain something to do after work
maybe the 90s neon Japanese gremlin I have planned for the future will see bigger tires.....but probably not, I really do like the smaller tire look LOL. And as you mentioned i obviously love the way they roll. the fact that I don't have anyone to ride ride with and won't be joining any "gravel" races as I am not interested in driving 100 miles to ride my bike means I can choose my routes, so if I find a road the bike won't handle, I'll just stay off of it. If I decide in the future that I want one to be more friendly for harsher roads I will probably build a separate wheel set with the larger tires and only use them for those "events" but i wont hold my breath on that....most gravel racers i see on TV at current might as well be riding mountain bikes....it is just "XC light"..they have even started adding suspension as.. though it is a new invention they just discovered
The hippest thing i might do as a cyclist is tour the natchez trace and that is nothing but smooth pavement.

Aubergine 

Re tire size, on a bike like that I've found that the Grand Bois 30 mm wide tires work very well. They are a bit more forgiving than the Herse 28mm tires (which I have on other bikes and really like) yet do not look out of place on a racing frame.

Strawbunyan

Obligatory drive side photos for the fans. 2nd commute to work, 3rd commute overall.




and a question.
My RD (and chain maybe?) makes a whole mess of noise when i go over heavy bumps. Is this normal? Should it be bouncing around like that?


EDIT: I am the world's biggest moron....the sound is my bike lock.

Strawbunyan

I reallllly need to stay off the internet.
is it just me or do I absolutely need these levers and brakes for this bike?

WOW!

And look at this RD :O

Whhhhaaaatttttttt?

jdawginsc 

They are pretty for sure. No cable adjusters on the calipers would give me pause and it looks like the gold is worn off at the finger part of the levers.

Derailleur is pretty, but likely limited.

Its definitely a rabbit hold I have found myself in! Bike part shopping I mean.

Strawbunyan

I noticed the lack of cable adjusters and the ad said "untested" so I figured this particular example of them was probably going to need a second set for parts hahahah. I actually liked the wear on them....as that one country singet said...nothinn ain't cool till ya wear the new off

And yes, this has become a much deeper hole than I imagined,my wish list has become a lot larger than originally expected. luckily my boss would kill me if i spent any more money on this stuff ATM, she keeps me down on earth level headed where I belong, so its all on paper for now and not strewn about my house hahahahahhahaha

jdawginsc 

Or garage... 😬

Strawbunyan

Really windy today, So I decided to get rid of the last of the black cable housing today.
I watched a video and read a few articles that said bar tape can be removed and rewrapped so I decided to just go for it.
it was not a success. The bar tape came off in multiple pieces and is going to be unusable. Ill have to go ahead and find a color i like and get it in route...Atleast I won't feel rushed with the housing now is cloth tape difficult to use? I saw something about shlaque?(I wish autocorrect could understand the words I butcher..no way I spelled that correctly...thick lacquer type substance).
Is leather bar tape a thing?

Aubergine 

the best cloth tape IMO is Newbaum's. It comes in a great variety of color and is easy to use. The word you are looking for is shellac. I am not a fan of leather bar tape. It does not like being bent or stretched, at least in my experience.

Strawbunyan

thank you!
That is the company I was looking at. I was on their web page and saw a that they have a lot options. I am assuming i dont need huge rolls of it, i saw that they sell it from very little to way too much.
round about estimate of the length one needs for a single set of bars? Should I order their SHELLAC(woo-hoo spelling) ? Or will any old shellac do the trick?
I know I can Google all of this but i am trying to stay involved with other humans and contribute to the forum however I can as opposed to just asking the AI bots. If my silly questions get annoying just let me know

Aubergine 

One roll generally is enough for one side of the bar. Skip the shellac for now.

jdawginsc 

BTP and Serfas have some very cool bar tape as well.

Strawbunyan

I checked out BTP, they do have some cool stuff.
I don't think I am trying to mess with cork but this Grandma's couch look really does it for me.

jdawginsc 

I have that one in my stash waiting for the right project...funny you picked that one!

daverup 

Sometimes the BTP tape will match the bike,

Aubergine 

That's brilliant!

Strawbunyan

like two peas in a pod

Strawbunyan

GOLD!