Thanks. Stem is a Nitto UI-12, 90deg, 70mm. I matched the setup on my CX bike useing bikegeocalc; since I wanted to match the setup as much as possible, I used the same handlebars (Easton AX series). Finding a 1" quill stem that took a 31.8 bar was challenging but this one fit my needs.


open face 1" quill stem

Sweet!
Just Perfect! I Love these retrofits.

I have a 730 in need of building up; how big are the tires on that sweet, sweet ride?

Thanks, tires are called 42 by Continental but I would re-label them "38"

This is my 2013 Kona Dew Deluxe with a bunch of parts that came out of other bikes.
Rear wheel is a ZTR Rapid laced to an SLX hub that came out of my XC bike.
Front wheel is a Vzan (local brand) rim laced to a Shimano Nexus Dynamo Hub with a cheap light that the local bike shop had, good enough for commuting.
Cassete, rear derailleur and chain came out of my fat bike.
Crankset came out of my Enduro bike, the chainring came out of the fat bike as well.
Brakes are Shimano XT Hydraulic and came out of another mountain bike.
Saddle is a Brooks CR3 that I got used and beat up and local shop restored.
Pedals also came out of one of my mountain bikes.
I bought this bike brand new in 2014 and as I upgrade my other bikes, whatever is good and fits gets fitted to this bike. It's an awesome commuter, very fun and reliable.

Here's my beloved beater. 2017 Specialized Hardrock. I was not kind to it in terms of maintenance over the years, and with local bike shops having limited hours/availability this past year have taken it upon myself to replace all the components that I've ridden to exhaustion. I don't have a before pic, but here is a stock photo of what it looked like new:




I replaced the nylon pedals it came with about 2 years ago, and just recently replaced the drive train (3x to 1x), brake and shifting levers, and the fork. The fork was totally shot from complete negligence on my part with the stanchions rusted in place. So went with a rigid carbon fork in it's place.




Here's the *almost* final product. I have some gravel tires I'm going to swap in for the knobbies.




Since I've been WFH for the past year, it's been serving more as a fitness bike just to keep the routine of daily rides. With that I've been paying a lot of attention to how I ride and am now looking at getting a proper road bike to build from scratch.

Rigid mountain bikes make excellent commuter bikes. that one looks simple and reliable I like it. As for building a road bike from scratch, I'd recommend trying to find an old steel bike to build upon. I found an old steel road bike made out excellent Columbus SLX tubing for cheap and it rides like a dream, I'm using nine speed Campagnolo Xenon, nothing fancy and it works very well, once that drivetrain is completely worn I can upgrade to something more modern without any worries because the frame rides great so I wouldn't mind splashing some cash on it.

Thanks, it's really been reliable. I took it maybe once a year just for a general chain/cable replacement, but other than that nothing, and it's held up well in East Coast weather year round. Not bad for a low-end $500 with bottom tier Shimano parts.

Regarding a road bike, I've never ridden steel to my knowledge, and everything I've read about it sounds really intriguing. Thankfully the pandemic hasn't hit us financially so I actually can spend on a decent build. I want to go to an LBS that carries steel bikes and test one out first though. I see you have several Kona's listed on your profile, I have Sutra and Rove on my potential frame list, any opinions on those?

I love Kona bikes in general but I've never seen those in person, the Kona importer here in Brazil shut it's doors in 2014 and there's no one else bringing Kona Bikes to the Country. I would love to own a Kona Sutra Ultd, looks amazing, but that's more mountain bike than road bike. My steel Kona Unit is an excellent bike, I've had people offer me more than twice of what I paid for it but I'm not selling it. In fact I'm in the process of getting a custom steel frame made locally to substitute the aluminum Kahuna because I just love riding steel. Modern steel bikes just don't show up here, the mountain bikers in Brazil all want carbon XC race bikes, even if they are never going to ride proper trails or race, it's a bit of wanting to flex expensive stuff and a bit of wanting to look like Henrique Avancini. Cannondale rules the market here, because of Henriques fame.

what bag is on your front rack?

It’s a Rixen Kaul that I pulled all the kickfix stuff off of but it’s since been replaced

My Lekker Amsterdam M2 8 Speed. I really love this bike


Lekker Amsterdam M2 8 Speed

Damn...that is good looking... You have no idea how much I am resisting the urge to find out if I can find that bike in the States or not...do they come like that without stickers and junk, or did you do all of that?

ThanksThere are no stickers or gawdy branding on the bike when you get it. The only change I made to it was swapping out the saddle for a Brooks C17

When it's nice I commute on my Salsa Marrakesh (flat bar model).....when it's crappy I use my Fairdale Parser.

It's getting closer to done, it's going to get some hand me downs from my other bike, some wider bars, a dynamo, and some better lighting.

Here's my ride. Equally good for groceries or work laptop in backpack.

What drove the choice behind/how is the front basket?

ANd is that a length of bike chain securing your brooks? How is it fixed to the seat and frame?

What's that front basket? I like the look of it.

That's a Stock Kona basket, came with the bike.

You recommend it? I got an aluminum in the rear to save on weight.

i have things, so i needed a basket to carry them lol. front rack/basket is the place to start for carrying stuff - keeps your bag where you can see it, no "tail wagging the dog" effect from weight over the rear, and way less chance of stuff bouncing out.

i just put it through the saddle rail and seatstay.

You can buckle or bungee things in the rear basket, which also prevents wagging. I think a front basket is for load beyond what you can carry in the rear. It blocks your view of the road. Would you recommend the model you have?