Hello everyone!
I've just recently bought the SE Draft 2008. Now I already read your forums and know how much everyone "loves" this bike (the quotes indicate sarcasm :]), but this was all or nothing for me really. I'm a college student with very limited funding. With the recent MTA fare hike and my new college being half an hour away, this was sort of like a "blessing in disguise."
My knowledge on bikes is very limited, I have done my reading and am learning little by little but I need some advice right away so my question to you is:

1. What upgrades should I get?
I read that there was a problem with the "crankset," something about the pedals. So please let me know of what I can upgrade to make this a better commuter bike. (Aside from "BUY A BETTER BIKE")

To be honest I took the bike out for a spin and just biked the hell out of it the past few days, and it was a pretty damn good ride. I'm no bike enthusiast so I can't comment on specific stuff like you guys do but hey I enjoyed the ride and didn't really notice anything bad.
Please bare with me and help me out.

Thanks again! :]

the bike is really not that bad... it's just nothing like its closest competitors. it's hi-ten so it's heavy and it's got the cheapest of cheap components, like the one piece cranks and hilariously poor brakes. basically, it's a good bike for what it is but it's not even in the same ballpark as a bikesdirect chromo singlespeed or a schwin cutter.

for a commuter it's fine. keep it single speed and get a gear ratio that will get you up the steepest hill you need to climb during your commute.

upgrade the brake pads, if not the whole brake both front and rear.

also think about nicer tires, but keep them a larger size(28c if you can fit them) to dampen bumps... such a heavy bike is not going to be comfortable on small, high pressure tires.

if you can, get a nice set of panniers and a rear rack. this will help keep you comfortable while transporting gear and books to school. also think about getting road drop bars so you have more hand positions.

I have the 2009 SE Draft and I've ridden the heck out of it. In fact I rode my first century on it.

While mine has 3 piece cranks it still has that euro BB. There is an adapter for it. https://www.vorb.org.nz/rez_display.php?c=1&mode=product&pid=1549
Thats just an example of what I found after a quick search. One problem I've had is I keep popping spokes on the rear wheel. I plan to replace the wheel set with something from Bike Island. Before I rode the century I put on a pair of bare ends and wrapped them with gel handlebar tape. I also added a Myrical hybrid bar end mirror.

moddraft.JPG

Oh, I also added a bell I found in a dollar store and put my Brooks B-17 Imperial on it.

About the weight, I'm sure people that complain about it are probably pretty much weight weenies that complain about any bike over 15 pounds as being "too heavy" and a "boat anchor". Personally, I don't mind the weight of the SE Draft. I've had heavier bikes made of aluminum and cro-moly. I like the way the Draft rides. I've had a lot of fun on it. On the century I did there were a lot of people on some expensive geared bikes complaining about wind and such during the ride. When I pointed out that I was having a ball on my SS and had to just deal with the wind and (admitted ly easy) climbs with what I had, well they thought I was crazy for one thing and probably made a note to themselves not to complain around the crazy SS guy.

IIRC, it's got an ashtabula crank. That's bad, but not really a problem. You can get this adapter:



https://www.niagaracycle.com/product_...ducts_id=14342

That will let you put in a nicer crank and bottom bracket. I recently bought an Origin-8 crankset on eBay for like $40+shipping, and I'm pretty happy with it, but you can get a better one for more money. Measure you chainline before you change the crank to figure out what size bottom bracket you'll need.

there is nothing wrong with an ashtabula crank - make sure you've got a good saddle and comfy grips, and that the brakes are working and tires are filled, and then ride your bike



it's a good bike, and it's yours

Unless you want to change your pedals.


On the whole, this is true. There's really nothing wrong with that bike. For the price, it's a decent value.

I did try to change out the pedals once. The original pedals are Wellgo's w/ plastic in the middle and a strip of aluminum bolted around the outside that comes loose fairly often. I tried to put on a pair of old road pedals I had but they were a tad too large where they screw into the crank arms (I've used these pedals on other bikes and was surprised they didn't fit).

I added a pair of Forte plastic toe clips and straps to the pedals this evening (I live near a Performance Bike shop where I bought the Draft and while picking up the rear wheel that had 2 broken spokes I bought the clips and straps on impulse).

yeah pedal choices are pretty limited - I use BMX pedals on my bikes, and sometimes forget that not everyone else does


you can get some decent platforms for 1/2" size cranks, at least

Given the above comments, why are you talking about upgrading anything?

Probably because he reads too much BF and takes the advice and recommendations far too seriously.

OP, read less, or at least don't take the upgrade fetish baloney from "enthusiasts" as gospel; enjoy your bike more and save your money, a win-win situation.

i love my 08 does anyone know if a 650c will clear bar spins on 165mm cranks
?

why would anyone bar spin a commuter?

I owned one, I think it was like 2006. I ended up gradually replacing everything on it except for the frame and the headset. On the ride home from the bike shop I broke a spoke and both reflectors on both wheels fell off. Wheels were the first to go. Spokes would pop when the bike was parked in the shed from temperature changes. I was breaking one spoke per week on average. I paid $200 for the bike and ended up spending over $300 on upgrades. The frame was OK - I think it was made by Fuji - but the components were Walmart grade. Brake pads were horrible, I replaced them immediately with Koolstops. Then the BB started grinding. After all that, it was a great bike

To be fair, I was 230lbs at the time and the LBS warned me about the wheels: most customers ended up replacing them.

I've had my SE Draft for 6 months (was in a pinch like the OP and just needed a ride). All is well except the rear wheel, which is starting to pop spokes in pairs or worse. I'm 170lb/5'10 so probably not a weight issue as much as crummy wheels? What did you end up replacing yours with, Adam?

Yeah, mine were popping spokes in pairs too. The picture above shows the bike after all the upgrades. I don't remember what the new rims were, but when I looked at the larger version of the picture they're Sun Swift SII rims. The set was close to $200, I think I overpaid (shop was in Manhattan). Bicycle Wheel Warehouse has nice Mavic Fixed/FW sets for $150.

Don't upgrade now, unless you plan on upgrading or fixing your connection points e.g (i.e?) saddle, bars, pedals/cranks. If you do those and manage to get a more comfortable ride, then that's worth all the money. Hold off on other upgrades and save some money up for when something breaks, or you're just tired of something. The first to be changed should be the wheelset and tires.

Bought a 2011 Draft. It's been a LONG time since I've ridden a bike (80s BMX kid), and wanted something I could smash around town here in PDX, and get an idea for what I like and even if this is something I could do regularly.

I've ridden the bike at least 7-8 miles every day for the past 2 months. Cannot get enough of it. Of course, I'm now wishing I bought a bike with a little bit better components, but for the price, the wife and I were both able to get bikes.

The brakes suck. They seem almost dangerous. After busting 5 spokes in one ride I replaced the rear wheel with a cheap alternate until I could figure out what I really wanted in a wheelset. Should be getting my 36 spoke Deep Vs tomorrow.

I plan to replace the brakes ASAP, but am wondering what to do about the cranks. As a heavier rider (225 lbs), is there something in particular I should be looking for? I think the stock is a 42T, but with the hills of Portland, I could probably benefit from a smaller ratio to get me all the way up the steeper hills.

My wife wants a set of drop bars, any affordable options out there?

Don't mean to hi-jack the OP's post, but this thread's been dead for awhile and maybe the forum's advice could help others out as well. Thanks in advance!

I also would like to know on available upgrades. I'm trying to find out what brake calipers are best suited as an upgrade. I've been told "long reach" calipers are what I need... would that be the ones with 50-57mm reach? How about wheelsets? I'm a complete noob... so help on what kind of wheels I would need that would be better than stock.

Tektro makes some nice long reach brakes.