Hey guys,

I've been hinting at a new commuter/hauler build I've been getting ready to do for quite a few weeks, and I think it's finally ready for a build thread of its own. I've also been helping my girlfriend build herself a nice city bike for commuting and errand running, so I'll be outlining both builds in this thread. We've both been accumulating parts during our busy schedules and they'll finally be coming together during the next couple of weeks.

I've been commuting 5 days a week since January on my 2000 Jamis Nova CX bike. It's held up really well and it's a fantastic bike, but I wanted a dedicated commuter that I could throw some racks on and load up for errand running while keeping my Nova for more spirited rides. I started with a bike I already built up in college with a hodge-podge of parts aquired for next to nothing.

The frame was a 2002 Raleigh M50 and the fork was a mid-90's Cannondale Pepperoni. The goal of the first time I built it up in college was for a goofy, unusual, drop-bar, 1x7, fat slick-tired bike for fun.






I've decided to build it again, with better parts, as a goofy, unusual, drop-bar, 1x8, fat slick-tired bike for fun.....with front and rear racks for commuting . I've just completed the painting stage and will be playing the paint-curing wait game for the next 5 days or so. Here are some pics of the prep, paint and mock up. It should be a blast to ride once it's finished.


Shooting the fist primer coat

Two coats of black primer, one coat of gray. Baked for 2 hours between coats, on the garage roof under the California sun....

4 coats of satin Italian Olive paint, baked in the same fashion

Headbadge mock-up (still needs touch-ups)

New wheel and tire mock-up (Granted, just the bare frame). Wheels are Vuelta Zerolites and the tires are CST Cyclops 2.4" that I mentioned in an earlier thread

I also recently introduced my girlfriend to the beauty of road cycling/commuting. I gave her my '03 Specialized Allez that was a smidge too small for me when I bought my Jamis, but she soon got hooked on vintage/classy city bikes and fell in love with the Brooks B18 embossed saddle. I suggested she build up an older steel-framed bike for commuting around that saddle. After scouring Craigslist for a few weeks, we came across a mid-80's Ross Eurotour with a 3-spd IGH that was completely stock down to the tires and had very little rust. She's decided to outfit it with the Brooks B18, Brooks slender grips, detailing the lugs, Linus panniers and front and rear racks. She's really interested in the Civia Loring racks, but we're unsure if they'll fit with the caliper brakes. She also wasn't a fan of the coaster brake, so we deleted it and found a matching Shimano Tourney caliper for the rear. Here are the pics so far:


Earliest picture we have. She was so eager to clean it up we didn't even take a picture of it whole.

Her gorgeous saddle


The lug detailing she painted herself, as well as stripping the worn decals and touching up the paint chips. This girl's a keeper...

Hope you guys enjoy!

The bike, or the girlfriend?

Dude, those Vuelta ZeroLites are the best bang for the 26" buck. Can't wait to see completed pics.

I knew someone would call that one out. Definitely the girlfriend, hopefully the bike works out too!

Let me ask ya something.....I love to tinker and build things. Haven't done a bike really but would love to build a commuter/touring bike. ANy advice on what to look for as far as a frame etc....? Ideally i'd like to put fenders, pannier etc.......

Thanks....

Yeah they look like they'll hold up well and most reviews have been amazingly positive. I was worried about the rim/tire size discrepancy, since the Vuelta's measure in at ~17.5mm inner bead width which is supposedly way out of spec for 2.4" tires, but I've heard of MTBer's using similar combinations at lower pressures and more abusive conditions. I emailed the Vuelta customer service to be sure and told them the size and pressure of tire I wanted use on their MTB wheels and they responded with "Vuelta and ZeroLite clincher wheels are designed to work with virtually any quality-manufactured tire and tube combination. Always refer to the tire or tube manufacturer's recommended inflation pressures for best tire performance and service life." The general statement doesn't ease my concern that much, but considering I'm going to be riding at 45psi+ I don't think I should have too many problems with the tires rolling off or pinch flats. Whether the rim walls will hold up, I'm not sure, but they seem confident in their product and the reviews from consumers seem positive.

I'm definitely not the foremost authority on this topic, and much of it comes down to personal circumstances/preferences, but maybe I can steer you in the right direction. I'm a tinkerer by nature as well. Bike maintenance and repair is a great thing to get into and is really a manageable thing (even in a small workspace... we live in a 1 br apt.) once you understand the systems involved. The possibilities are pretty endless, but with that also comes a slew of exceptions to rules and sizing caveats to watch out for. Bike forums has been one of my top resources for researching what I wanted for my commuter build, only matched by Sheldon Brown's bicycle information database.

In my opinion, an older steel framed bike would be the way to go due to the (generally) comfier ride (and the fact that it could make the total build significantly cheaper). I'm only going with an aluminum frame/fork on my commuter because it's what I had on hand, it's a stout frame, and I'm compensating heavily in the comfort department with the most massive tires i could squeeze into the frame. For fenders and racks, you'll definitely prefer a full set of braze-ons (eyelets) both on the fork and the frame, though you can get by using p-clamps or other types of racks (which is what we'll have to do for the Ross and the front rack for the Raleigh). Past that, take a look around the commuting, C&V, touring and utility forums for drivetrain setups and compatibility. Research is your friend, and any problem you've run into, someone else definitely has too, so try searching in the Mechanics forum. Most importantly, have fun!

Phew that was a long post....

The rebuilding has begun! We got the frame refurbishing on the Ross finished, so parts started going back together a few days ago. Still awaiting handlebar grips, and deciding on front and rear racks. Any suggestions for the Ross? Here are some pics as it stands now:





The Raleigh was brought to the LBS last night for a headset install. The crown race on the Pepperoni fork was kind of snug, but was installable and removable by hand, so it needed a bit of knurling to get a good press fit. After that, my last shipment of parts came in, including the rear rack, chainring bolts, and the bottom bracket. Here's some parts I slapped together last night after getting the frame back from the shop. Notice the foam and plastic bag being used to position the front rack for mock up





Unfortunately, I had plans to run a Girvin Rock Ring bashguard as a chainwatcher, but apparently they used a smaller 7mm bolt diameter. The new 10mm chainring bolts fit the cranks/chainring, but not the Rock Ring .... I guess I'll have to do some drilling, but I'm undecided as of yet. I wanted to run the Rock Ring since I'm running a 48t up front which requires the ring to be on the outer ring position of the crank spider to clear the chainstays. The Girvin was perfect because it didn't replace a ring, but rather overlayed the ring in the outer position, and it could take the 48t ring (which is pretty hard to find). If anyone has any other suggestions as how to tackle this one, I'm open to suggestions. I'd prefer not to go to a smaller ring, but maybe a 46t and this is in order. I'm pretty sure that chainring guard replaces the outer ring, which would mean the chainring would have to clear the chain stays.....dilemmas.

Both the bikes are nowhere near fitted, so the positioning of stuff is very much off, but they're both coming along!

Both bikes look nice, but that fat Raliegh with the fat tires looks awesome. I can't wait to see it finished so hopefully you get everythign figured out.

I'd drill them to 10mm and be done with it--it seems like its the system that makes the most sense to you. Will be very easy to do on a drill press (or, if very careful, using a vise or c-clamped to a stable table). If you;'re worried about it, I'm sure your LBS would be happy to do it.

I just sold my similar build, and it looks like you did what I was forced to do. The MTB geometry with road bars makes the reach unacceptable. I had to go from a 110mm stem to a 70mm with compact bars, otherwise I'd have to be built like a gorilla to be comfortable. Dig the color of the frame.

My commuter bike, parked just outside my office in the hall, has a new set of the 26" Vuelta Zerolite wheels on it. Great wheels for a commuter bike. I got mine when they were on sale for $56 for the pair.

Yeah the first rendition of this bike (first pic in the thread) didn't take into consideration any kind of sizing, so it felt like I was riding the Bat-Bike from the Dark Knight, because the bars were so low and stretched out and the fat tires. This time around I put a bit more thought into it, and comparing (rough) measurements from my current commuter and the new build, it's really close. The saddle needs to be dropped a smidge, but the reach to the hoods is only about 0.5-1 cm longer and the saddle is zeroed out fore/aft in the pictures, so I should have a little breathing room. I think it will work, but until I ride it, I won't know. Fingers crossed.....

Back once again! I'm proud to report that I was able to finish up the drop-bar Raleigh MTB build. The chainring guard/ bolt problem was my error , as the new bolts I had bought were apparently 8mm in diameter instead of the more common 7mm. The nuts were all 10mm, which is where I got confused. I was able to get the chainguard and 48t ring on. It's maiden voyage was my 13.5mi commute to work on Friday morning, and that 48t destroyed me. I had done some gear inch calculations compared to my cross bike. With the 48t, it seemed slightly higher geared, but it's what I had on hand and I figured I could handle it. I underestimated the wider and heavier tires, so by the time I reached work I knew I had to gear it down a bit. I really only had the lowest 3 gears that were useable at that point. I crunched some more numbers and decided a 40t was much more reasonable. I was able to scrounge up a 40t ring at the local coop (bikerowave) and slapped it on Saturday evening. Much better! The 40t placed my cruising gear in the middle of the cassette and straightened out my chainline almost perfectly since I was able to mount the new ring on the inside of the spider.

This thing is a blast to ride! It's a little slow on the get-go, but once it gets rolling, it's pretty speedy and nimble (tires at 50 psi). It can also take anything I can throw at it and seems like it could survive the apocalypse. By the second day I was already happily hopping off 12 inch curbs and looking for potholes to roll over. Even with the aluminum frame and fork, it's really comfortable with the gigantic tires. I'm actually tempted to take it on some singletrack and see how it holds up. I was pleasantly surprised about the friction barend as it's fun to use and much more convenient than I thought it would be (coming from brifters).

My girlfriend took vacation and returned home for a week, so she's on hiatus from her build (I'd put it together for her, but it's a good learning experience and she's excited to wrench on it herself . Anyways, here are some pics from the completed build.

Sweet!

Looks great! I'm not usually a fan of aluminum MTB's of that era, but the paint really makes a difference. It looks so much better without all the flashy graphics.

I still haven't found a frame that will fit those chubby CSTs I bought recently, might have to grab the spray paint and broaden my options...

You need to get a picture of your girlfriend on the saddle in the manner of Brooks advertisement for that very model. Too lazy to find it and link it right now...but if you've seen it, you know...

That looks awesome!

You mean this one?
https://www.campyonly.com/images/modb...bottom_800.jpg

Cheeky Banzai...