fenders, panniers and a rack help a lot for the daily ride especially now with all the rain

I won a Van Dessel WTF frameset of of Ebay back in July, and switched everything over from the 29er frame that I'd been commuting on. I love this thing, even though it weighs a ton and turns like a boat. My only complaint is that, despite having contacted Van Dessel twice in the last two months to request cable guides and been told that they're on the way, I still don't have cable guides for the derailleur cable. I think the bike looks hella fly, but it would look so much more fly if it had fewer zip ties.





After class today I took out the recycling (no curbside pickup in my neighborhood). Nothing says "smugger than thou" than pulling up at the recycle center on a loaded bicycle; even the Prius drivers won't meet your eye.

In my case that's because they're usually too busy pretending not to notice that they're about to run me down. Seriously, I've had more close calls with Prius owners than any other particular make/model owner. It's downright spooky.

Excellent.

Pictures snipped for brevity . . . . .This is the most beautiful bicycle I have ever seen in my life. Is it internal hub or singlespeed? This looks like an urban dream bike. I'm on my way to buy some spray paint -

@tractorlegs:

She's a head turner fo' sho', but I'm not sure that I would call her beautiful; the pics don't really show how obnoxiously bright the paint job is. Cool, but not classy, you know? But yeah, it's got an IGH, an Alfine 8 that I'm going to replace with an 11 next summer.

If you're looking for a bright paint job, I liked what was done with the Nashbar C'cross frame in this thread. If I had a place where I could paint frames, I'd do something similar to my Nashbar bike.

Nothing says "homeless guy cashing in to get another bottle of Mad Dog" than pulling up at the recycle center on a loaded bicycle...

They're just miffed that, despite their $25,000, environmentally-conscious, "green" *coughcoalnuclearfishkillinghydroelectricallypoweredtoxicbatterycontainingstopgapmeasurecough* vehicle, you are out-"green"ing them for a fraction of the cost.

Possibly this upsets them at a deep, sub-conscious level; for, like most motorists, their car is deeply intwined with their ego and personal identity. By not hauling along a 2000 lb. metal cage whenever you leave the house, you challenge their sense of themselves as Earth saving crusaders, out-smugging every other non-hybrid vehicle on the road. And so, as an automatic defense mechanism to prevent the destabilization of the personality, the mind automatically removes you and all other transportation cyclists from the visual field before cognitive recognition. Maybe, anyway; it's just a hypothesis.

LOL, but we don't get paid for recycling up here. It almost costs more to ship it out than it's worth, and they won't even take bottles anymore since the recession knocked the bottom out of the recycling market.

Griddlecakes - I think we would have a good time riding together even though my new winter beast isn't quite as swanky as yours.

Have yet to see a flake of now here but I am ready...

Love the lines of that bike. I have a bike with similar lines- twin seat stays as the top tube. Pretty elegant, if you ask me.

That's one of the things I love about Bicycling, especially urban/commuting/carfree bicycling, is that our machines can be so beautiful and so useful at the same time. She is indeed a head turner!

Looks good to me. Are you running that 3 speed IGH/dyno hub in the back? That always struck my as a genius design, IGH + a dyno. And with only three speeds, I might be able to keep up with you, knowing the miles that you put in.

And I know that you've got some swanky bikes, even though your winter rides tend towards the utilitarian side. I dig the chainring on the Raleigh you posted above, and that CCM that you posted in SS/FG was absolutely gorgeous.

Curved top tubes are always sexy. I don't know why, they just are.

Running the same drive as I did last winter and used the three speed wheels off my Kuwie... although I rode some good miles have slowed down quite a bit but can still turn those pedals if the gearing is right and if it isn't I can go lower. Left the dual cogs in the event I decide to dual drive the 3 speed.

I just got this bike from the performance shop near the house at a special,... I thought it would be a good replacement for my heavy mountain bike that I converted for commuting. Its a scatante Roma and it has an internal Sram hub. It has a quick and spiffy ride. I added the lights and the rack and I think a brooks saddle, chain guard, bici stand and front break will finish it perfectly. I just need to find out the right chain guard for it and where to get it.... any suggestions or comments welcome!!

After trying a compact double (34/46) and road-style triple (30/39/50), I switched back to a Sugino XD2 triple (26/36/46). Works better for days when a 34/34 would be a little too tall. Stem height still needs to be tweaked (dropped), and I haven't got around to installing a front mud flap.

mark - That SOMA looks tight... such a well thought out build.

I don't like the feel one when I jump from one bike to another so I bought the same bike and modified both. The pretty welll feel the same when I ride them.

Masi 1- Single Speed: White Industries freewheel, cranks and pedals. Paired with Bruce Gordon half clips. Specialized Avitar saddle, Race Face bars with Tektro cross top levers. SKS fenders on top of stock wheels 700 x 32c. I have a pair of Mavic Open Pro's on Formula hubs to be installed.

Masi 2- 9 Speed: Originally set up as a 1 x 9 speed but decided to go the double root. SRAM Rival cranks with Soma track pedals, MKS toe clips and straps. Specialized Avitar saddle. Race Face bars with Tektro cross top levers. SKS fenders on Ambrosio Excellent rims on Formula hubs. 700 x 32 tires. Ultegra rear derailleur with a front to be installed. Dura Ace down tube shifters.





I ride the SS about 99 percent of the time as I am single speeder at heart but I am open to trying the other bike a little more next year.

Two my favourite bikes of all time are my 87 and 88 Kuwaharas which are a model apart but share the same frame dimensions and geometry and a few folks think they are the same bike.

One is set up for commuting / trekking while the other is my touring bike.

After some help from a forum member, I got myself a new bike....



...and so far after trying it out as is, I replaced the Ergo bars and seat suspension with a simple straight handlebar with Shimano grips and solid saddle post leaving the saddle which was quite comortable (Selle Royale); I also added a Blackburn Flea, Blackburn road mirror and rear Smart three led flasher. Next up is finding a good pair of panniers (difficult to get here in Greece). I'd appreciate it if anyone had an online source for good quality panniers!

Like the chainguard on that bike, Telly!

Even though it has the manufacturer's logo printed on it, I suspect it's made by SKS (as are the fenders). Here's the latest version available from CRC https://www.chainreactioncycles.com/S...SKS+Chainboard

My ride was really catching the early morning sun. It was glowing.

Do you commute through the Game Grid?

Replaced the DA 53/39 crank with a Sugino 46/36/26 triple, replaced the Nitto Randonneur bars with Salsa Bell Laps and replaced the STI shifters with bar ends and Cane Creek levers. I was able to finance the replacements by selling the DA 7400 parts.