Very nice bike :)
So you ended up with the EA50's ... what cassette did you put on them?
Your saddle seems very low though ... are you sure it is properly fitted or are you simply not very tall?

I don't remember what specific cassette but it was lighter and changed the lower gears just a little bit. I'm fitted properly for the bike I'm just short as all hell, 5ft 4in's. Had a nasty fall down a hill today on my 15mi ride, rear derailer went into my spokes, broke the derailer clean off, sent me into a superman over the front handlebars. So its back at the LBS getting new parts and truing the wheels.

ouch. those hightech minimally-spoked wheels don't like that, either, and aren't easy to true up if a spoke gets bent or broken, because the fewer the spokes, the more tension they individually are under. me, I like 36-40 spoke rears and 32-36 spoke fronts. you can break a couple spokes and still ride home. I'm kinda old fashion that way.

I'm trying to imagine how jamming the derailleur into the rear wheel caused the front wheel to lockup... at most, it should have caused a tail skid, which shouldn't be -that- hard to control.

I agree it was weird, doing about 20mph next thing you know I'm over the handlebars rolling down the hill trying not to get ran over.

Unexpected loss of chain tension at speed as a rider is applying his weight to a pedal is kind of like stepping through a rotted floor board. If your support is taken out from under you, you're going down, unless you're lucky.

Makes you appreciate helmets, eh ? This happened to me once about 18 years ago when my MTB front wheel caught a rut on a steep offroad downhill. Could not believe how quickly my head slammed into the ground. It was so fast and unexpected that I did not have time to get my arms out to break the impact. Made me a believer in helmets for sure.

Damn ... and all that with the brand new wheelset :(
But at least you are fine ... you are still able to type text apparently ;)
Personally I have never fallen with a bike yet and hope I never will either.

The road is thirsty for the virgin's blood.

Would it ease your mind to know that chances are good you'll probably walk away with little more than a bit of road rash? Most bike crashes are harmless, but since people rarely tell stories about their tamer wrecks, it's easy to get hung up on the idea that all wrecks are traumatic (some are, but again, the minority). Just don't ride like an idiot and you can avoid some of the harder lessons that some of us have brought upon ourselves. If you've made it through your 20s without wrecking, then you're probably good, barring bad luck (which can get you anywhere, on or off the bike). Don't stress it and enjoy the ride.

Hey look, bike pics!

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4091/...d488c0e5_b.jpg

I hate large, garish logos. Would you buy a car if the manufacturer's name was emblazoned all the way down the side, in letters twelve inches high? Why do bike manufacturers think this is ok? On my lady's Trek, it states the type of aluminum used in four separate locations! It's hideous, and for years I've been covering my Kona with layers of stickers to cover up the original decals. At a certain point, though, excessive stickering rendered the Dorkcycle too dorky for even me (who's been pretty comfortable with his own dorkitude since middle school, some 20+ years ago). So, while the lady was out of town for the weekend, I broke out the noxious chemicals and stripped the stickers, paint, decals, and all off of the bike. Result? Shiny, non-descript goodness. Until night falls, that is. Then we roll...

http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4103/...b7f77c99_b.jpg
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4107/...d51f2d36_z.jpg

...like Vegas, baby.

I'm so happy that the sun is finally setting at a decent hour again. Sure, 20 hours of daylight is pretty cool, but do you have any idea how much moolah I've dropped on lights? And the encroaching darkness is the outrider for winter proper. Bring on the snow! Bring on the ice! My studded tires have been gathering rust in the closet, they need to roll. Not to mention my poor, neglected skis.

raleigh something
 

found this bike i think its a raleigh pioneer it was an ugly green wiv big wheels has altus
running gear - will change soon.. thanx..

Swapped out the Marathons for some Schwalbe CX Compes... will be ready for some fall and winter riding and the river valley and singletrack beckons.

These are some of the best tyres I have ever run on my hybrid... they are light, fast on the road @80 psi, and at 40 psi will take you pretty much anywhere else.

http://www.ravingbikefiend.com/bikepics/trekkercx1.JPG

Told you you needed the Schwalbe CX Comp's ;)
I love 'em too ... they are pretty fast on the road and even not too slippery on wet roads, because of their texture.
But when ridden in mud and sand, they hold up pretty well because of their spiky knobs on the sides, that will get traction once the tyre is sinking too deep.
I drove through forests and fields with them in not too rainy conditions and had no problems :D

You must be new here... :)

I have been extolling the virtues of the CX for a very long time and used to run them on my Trek... got amazing mileage and never had a single flat over 1000's of km. They give up a little to the Marathon when it comes to the mileage you will get but will take me more places and they look badass to boot.

http://www.ravingbikefiend.com/bikep...ekcommute2.jpg

With fall upon us we are getting more rain, it could snow any day, and the wet leaves are more treacherous than riding on ice and the CX digs through those pretty well.

I plan on spending more time in the river valley and if I do that I won;t be able to resist riding some single track and this is one hybrid that off roads really well... the MA40's I built up are some seriously tough wheels and the front is a 40 spoke tandem wheel.

My new Marin Bobcat Trail in front of a garage door. :)
http://i478.photobucket.com/albums/r...e/DSC05927.jpg

I put lock-on grips salvaged from the busted Kona. The stock grips were slipping. There were not the dual density grip Marin specifies in descriptions of the stock parts. I've found dual density grips stay put, I think because they don't stretch.

Hybridized with 1.5 Specialized Nimbus tires.

I added a front fender just so Wanderer wouldn't tell me I should get one.

The image is a reflection from the hubcap of a FedEx truck.

I am quite new here, but my remark was in fact intended as a little joke, hence the ";)".

Your bike looks like a blend between a cyclocrosser and a touring bike ... I'm sure that an experienced rider as yourself can handle almost anything on that ... even stuff most mountainbikers would be reluctant to try :)

If the back wasn't so f'd up I'd be out there on my hard tail seeing how high it can fly... but there isn't much riding around here that can't be done on any solidly built bike if you have the bike handling skills.

My Norco Ceres fully dressed and loaded for bear:

http://imgur.com/4f3fgl.jpg

You have one of the best Hybrids on the forum. There are to many road bikes though ! You got bashed for to many
add ons, ( Think About It )....Richard : )

Here's my new GT in front of the usual white garage door:
http://i9.photobucket.com/albums/a64...h/DSC03756.jpg
It now has lights, computer, and a front fender too.

It's taking awhile to decide on the right parts and get everything adjusted, but it's starting to become more comfortable. Only thing that's annoying at the moment is that it takes very little movement of the shifter to go through the 4 smallest cogs, while the other 3 seem to take more movement.

I hate to tell you, but your "new" GT is at least ten years old! :D Those shifter look kinda suspect. Maybe a different set would change the travel/shift issue. Check with the mechanics forum, it's a great resource! Interesting bars.

My hybridized MTB

I finally added bar ends. Used Bontrager Pluto. Also used Oury lock-on grips and a used bell (missing dome shaped compass)
http://i478.photobucket.com/albums/r...e/DSC05972.jpg

I scratched the sticker, then I realized I could remove it. I removed all the stickers, five, I think. Now my fork looks like bathroom plumbing. A clean look.
http://i478.photobucket.com/albums/r...e/DSC05973.jpg

Also added a fifteen year old used bottle cage in the worst color for this bike and a used fender. I think I finally got the saddle tilt right. Every time I thought I had it, when I tightened it down, the nose would drop. I rode for a month before I got it right (last night).
http://i478.photobucket.com/albums/r...e/DSC05975.jpg

I know that, but it's new to me. The shifters are some friction Shimano EM that I got in a trade. I did have Suntour Accushift ones on there, but they are offset, and on the H-Bar, that puts them a little too far away from the grips. I might have to find another Huffy MTB to steal the shifters off of, as I really like the ones I put on my Motobecane.

That looks to be a 1995 frame with a lot of different parts. per bikepedia, stock was Shimano STX derailleurs and index shifters. and brakes and crankset.

sounds like something is funky with your shifting... those appear to be friction thumb shifters? or are they index shifters? either way, each gear step should be an equal amount of cable, which is should be an equal amount of rotation of the barrel of the shifter.

edit: (just saw your 2nd post) if you're looking for better friction shifters, the early/mid 80s Suntour friction shifters were excellent.
http://www.oldmountainbikes.com/bike...7/PIC00011.JPG

actually, looking at your H-bars, using bar end shifters would be ideal. putting them on the top part of the H means you can't ride up there, which is the whole point of HAVING H-bars.

the other option would be putting the brakes and shifters on the crossbars

http://www.oldmountainbikes.com/bike...7/PIC00011.JPG

These are some of the nicest shifters ever made... will be fitting a set to a bike I am building right now.

Yup, I found a set to put on the road oriented hybrid I built up from scratch. my old '83 stumpjumper has them too, as original equipment.