aixaix 

As a devotee of Olympia's racing bikes, I saw this project as both a departure and a natural fit. Olympias are cool and rare, and this one has no collector value so I can do whatever I like to it without guilt.


https://www.flickr.com/photos/28164070@N04/sets/72157641571560515/


It is an aluminum frame from 1993, the 100th year of Olympia's existence, duly noted on a down tube decal. The paint & decals are original. The frame came to me with Shimano Altus derailleurs, a mid-range Shimano crankset, an aggressively ugly Zoom bar & stem (too gruesome to use, even for me) and a urethane-sprung fork of unknown, probably undistinguished parentage. After toying with and discarding more expensive options (Ritchey fork, Rohloff 14speed hub), I decided to build it up with what I had on hand as much as possible.
Magura rim brakes were a no-brainer. I have them on a C'dale KV and love them lots. I acquired a second set when I bought a pair of rare drop-bar levers (still waiting for an excuse to use those). I got the EDCO shift/brake levers from another C&V junkie. They are seriously ugly, but they are beautifully constructed and go with the somewhat bizarre dirt drops. The fenders were a real find. New, from Amazon for cheap, on sale: they were made for "Ladies Electra Cruiser Bicycle" and turned out to be well made and easily adapted to this frame. The reliefs under the brake bridge and fork crown had to be lengthened to fit within the Magura booster bridges. I had to make up a way to secure thefront fender struts to the fork, which had no provision for mounting fenders. I used 5mm threaded rod and a bunch of hardware left over from a VO fender set. The fork itself had no elastomers left, so I bought some urethane tubing from eBay for about $15 and made some. I still have 18" left, which is enough to keep the fork usable for about 60 years.

I've put about 200 yards on it so far...

noglider 

Wow.

inkandsilver

I like it!

aixaix 

Wow? That's IT? Don't I deserve at least an ego-stroking "nice bar tape job", or "I like the roll-around tool cart"?
I mean, Wow is better than Meh, but I don't know anything about how the bike strikes you. Do you mean "Wow" in the sense of, "I can't believe you came up with such a bizarre build! What were you thinking?" Or, "That is the baddest ride I've ever seen! I must own it right now!" Or, "So that's what you're up to when your wife imagines you slaving away at work!"
Gimme something to work with, pal. I'm dyin' here.

The Golden Boy 

Are you all good with driving the BMW alloy rims in the winter?

I got the Tire Rack alloy rims for my snows- I'm kind of wishing I would have opted for the steel rims and gotten some wheel covers.

The USS Olympia is one of the few pre-Dreadnaught warships afloat. I'd like to visit it some day, but I've heard it's in rough shape.


Oh, and those Edco levers are pretty smashing.

aixaix 

I see you are confused. This Olympia is a bicycle: not a BMW and not a warship.

I am glad you appreciate the brake levers. If I could afford it, I'd put on A-cros hydraulic derailleurs, which match the EDCO/Magura Transformers aesthetic. I kind of like the whole early 1990s retro-techno look of the bike. It is a considerable departure from the mid-20th century road & track bikes that I grew up with and love.

Most BMW rims are better than a lot of aftermarket wheels, but they do bend and crack if you try hard enough. Steel is great for winters like this because it rarely cracks, and when it bends it can often be pounded back into roundness with no loss of strength.

seedsbelize 

The brake levers are the first thing I lit on too, and I like them. Sorry.

rhm

+1. Wow.

nlerner

Ow!

(Sorry, just bit my tongue after seeing pics of that bike.)

noglider 

Michael, my short response was intended as a placeholder. I have thoughts and hope to be able to express them eventually.

Chrome Molly

Oh man, it's so good. If you're going to do serious off road time with it you'll want to replace stem (and maybe the RD), but I'm really digging the fenders.

aixaix 

Ominous.

Paramount1973 

That tool chest makes for a busy background. Consider using a tree or a white garage door.

aixaix 

The stem is all kinds of awful:flexy and silly looking, but I need to figure out where & whether the bars work and an adjustable stem is helpful. Regarding the rear derailleur, I have my eye on a White Industries one on eBay. It would cost me more than the whole bike has so far, but its retro/techno mojo is enormous. Or I could mount a Campy Gran Turismo. Already got one of those.

pastorbobnlnh 

Electra fenders? Who'd have thunk?

Actually, I really like the eclectic nature of the entire build. Did someone really make hydraulic derailleurs or are you just pulling our C&V legs?

aixaix 

You kidding me? It is COLD out there.
i agree with you, actually. Boudoir photos will come later....

aixaix 

Rudi & Neal, go back to your elegant English confections. You'll never understand.


Bob, there are hydraulic derailleurs for real. They are made by A-cros, a German manufacturer (of course). https://www.acros.de/PRODUKTE/SCHALTU...ml?language=en

Here is a link to an article about their new road set-up:
https://www.bikerumor.com/2013/09/03/...la-rr1-brakes/

Paramount1973 

Actually, my comment was partly in jest. There happens to currently be an entire thread on backgrounds for photographing bikes.
https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...ing-your-bikes

pastorbobnlnh 

Who knew...
I only added the bold sections. Now I know we all make mistakes, me included all the time--- unless you are German (my friend Glenn always reminds me). But hummmmmmmm---- these guys and gals need to hire an editor, at least as a consultant. Maybe even a better advertizing person who can help with marketing.

I guess some MTBers buy components to be exclusive. How much lighter is a hydraulic line compared to sliding wires in cables? I always thought the wire was the cable, and the cables was a housing. Does Lighter means faster when riding an MTB? Never when descending, and isn't that the exciting part of MTB?

Now back to Micheal's programing on his amazing Olympus creation! I like your handle bars. Can you do an overhead shot so we can see more of the overall shape.

aixaix 

Hi Bob,
I added four shots to the Flickr set: https://www.flickr.com/photos/2816407...7641571560515/
(For some reason, I cannot seem to attach photos to posts from my computer anymore. I suspect a security setting changed when I updated some stuff, but I'm too lazy to pursue it.)
The bars, made by Eighthinch, have been hanging around my shop for a year or two: part of an assortment I bought for reasons now totally forgotten. I think they were marketed as track drops, but they are really shallow. More like dirt drops, really.

A-cros really needs a better translator. Technical German is nearly all literal, while English is not. I learned this many years ago, working on a prewar Mercedes, which had a fuse labeled "Brenstoffuhr". My college German translated this into "burn stuff clock" and my agile mind concluded the fuse was for the gas gauge (or "Gage", as General Motors spells it).

SJX426 

I like the color of the frame!

rhm

Actually, I think I do understand it.

First of all, from an aesthetic point of view, I love the way it's a 'modern' off road beast that will look comfortable next to your other beauties. Okay, it may still be a bit ugly, but it's ugly in a "this is my cousin" kind of way.

On the other hand, I also like it from the functionality angle. This bike will go places your other Olympiae can't go. Or, at least, I hope it can: I look forward to hearing about the ride/fit on longer rides. I kinda want to build a bike along those lines, for riding the sand roads of the New Jersey Pinelands, but continually run up against the problem that I have to ride 30+ miles before I even get to said sand roads, so whatever bike I use on the sand roads, it has to be a good road bike to get there at all.

noglider 

I'm thinking 650b fat and light tires.

aixaix 

Hi Rudi,
I admire the fact that you eschew the obvious solution: Throw the bike in the car.
That said, I don't think it is possible to build a bike which will be competent on sand and asphalt. I have a Cannondale KV that is a delight on dirt/gravel/mud, but is slow and unresponsive on pavement. Tom's endorsement of 650b tires echoes the experience of many who search for the same compromise, but nothing approaches MTB tires' grip on loose surfaces. Sprung forks are a pleasure on dirt but feel lunky on pavement.
Enduring 60 road miles on a bike built for sand isn't exactly hell, but it would discourage me as well. Is there a bus?

pastorbobnlnh 

Are the bars comfortable? I'll be on the lookout for a set to try myself. Cool.