locked up

I recently picked up a Douglas Fusion for my second frankenbike ... I mean "Suburbike II".

My original "Suburbike" was a Trek 4500 MTN Bike.
You can read about it here if you are intent on finishing the internet:
Trek 4500 MTN to hybrid "Suburbike"


So why did I switch?
-The frame was a bit to small for me. Although I was fitted on it when I got it my body shape has changed since 2008. I found myself with the seat pushed back beyond where it really should be to make it comfortable.

-The Trek was heavy, over 31 lbs.
-I'm stubborn and am constantly competing with myself.
Mix those two things and you have me launching it from every stop light and stop sign I come across. This was starting to irritate my elbow because it was having to counter all the downward forces of my dominant leg.

-I'd gotten to where I was no longer riding on any unpaved areas. So the suspension was unnecessary

-The components were showing their age and even though I had recently tuned it up, I knew it was really just going to be a matter of time before I'd have to start replacing things.



So, I searched for something lighter, sans suspension and found this beauty for sale and the guy threw in a bunch of stuff for me.
Full Ultegra components and replaced the grip tape at the shop for me.

locked up

I road it that way a few times but I did not like riding on the hoods. The shifting was buttery smooth with the Ultegra components.... but to get sufficient braking power I felt like I had to be in the drops (lots of soccer moms coming out of driveways here). I do not consider riding in the drops to be a comfortable position all the time. The narrow width of the bars also did not suit me.

Maybe I could have gotten used to all of that...but I'm not racing anyone (except myself) and I don't ride in a road only group that will shun me.
So I converted it to a flat bar.


Truvativ Stylo T20 Bar 680mm wide 30mm rise
Salsa 80mm 15 degree stem
Tektro 354ag MT 3.0 brake levers
Shimano Deore M590 shifters
Shimano Deore M591 rear derailer
Shimano HG400 11-32 cassette
Shimano 9 speed chain

So far it is like riding a totally different animal.
The frame fits me properly and I'm able to adjust the seat where I need it.
Dropping 13lbs off the bike has made it incredibly responsive.
The shifting is still superb compared to the Trek.
The new cassette helps to make up for the loss of the granny gear that was on the Trek. (11-32 vs 12-25)

I did need to remove some material from the shift levers to position them where I like them.
Seems my thumbs prefer them to be about 1" away form the grips.

I also put on new tires and brake pads because the originals were end of life.
I still need to dial in my seat position but I'm really loving it.


If anyone wants some of the take off parts PM me.

milan4ever

Great looking bike

Delwis

Very nice! Great job on it.

timgriffin2

Sorry about my ignorance - just trying to learn. The lower rear of the frame seems to be attached with a bolt or rivet on each side - is that normal? the right side looks like it's broken apart to me. I guess it's normal and the pic makes it look that way?

locked up

The the seat stay is attached to the drop out with a flat head hex bolt, yes.

There is some dirt in the crevice where the parts meet that make it look like it has broken away.




I'm not sure how typical the setup is in the grand scheme of things.

The frame is aluminum with a carbon seat stay and I suppose they had to make the connection somehow.
So for a mixed type frame I suppose it could be "normal".

andrei_r

How's the front shifting with the ultegra derailer/deore shifter combo? In theory it's not supposed to work well.
Same question about the long pull v-brake levers and short pull road calipers. How does the braking feel?

hokiefyd 

That looks great. I like what you did with it!

locked up

So far it feels OK.
I'm not finding myself shifting it frequently or under duress though.


The brakes feel the same as they did before.
The levers can be adjusted for liner pull or non linear pull.

I can't find the 354ag instructions online but I'm told these are the same but rebranded:
https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=...V-CECWBu0c5BuE

andrei_r

Thanks for the feedback. Awesome bike btw. How big of a tire do you think it can clear?

locked up

I'm not sure.
Currently running 23mm wide tires (stamped not measured).

The clearance between the brake pads is 25.5mm.

So a 25mm "should" fit between the brakes as-is.

I say "as-is" because if the wheels were wider then the brakes would be set wider and a fatter tire should go in I suppose.
Current wheels are 19.2mm external (from what I have read- 14mm internal).
So that limits me to maybe a 28 if I could adjust the brakes out to fit.

Course, if you are willing to reset the brakes every time you remove the tire it changes things too.