Charles Wahl

I don't really understand why someone would go to the trouble to build such a project and then sell it. The thrill is gone?

I especially like his closing remonstrance:
"Don’t be afraid to spend a lot of money on this bike. If we are going to get out of this economic mess, we are all going to have to buy expensive bicycles."

And I like the bars, too.

jan nikolajsen 

^^I actually think this is one of the better written descriptions I've seen on Ebay. I like the bike too. But not the price.

nlerner

Yesterday, I was able to snap a few pics of my Dawes, set up as a ranndonneuse (I guess),in a backdrop without too much snow. I'm not quite sure of the model, perhaps a Galaxy Touring, but it's likely of Reynolds 531 construction in the main tubes (takes a 27.2mm post), canti brakes, 700c wheels (Sun rims, Campy hua, Panaracer Grand Bois tires). I've set it up with a TA Cyclotourist crank with 50/34 rings, Brooks B17 saddle, Nitto Randonneur bars, Tektro aero levers, and the aformentioned Inujirushi handlebar from Jitensha, sitting on a Nitto M12 rack and attached at the top with a V-O decaleur. I went on a short ride through our mostly snow-covered streets, and it felt great. I look forward to many miles on this bike come spring.

Neal

jan nikolajsen 

There we go, Neal, beautiful. That's pretty much what I'm striving for. Probably won't be able to afford the TA crank.

Is it a 6 speed freewheel, and what range? Couldn't find any info on the tires on the internet, it seems like they have to be either GB or Panaracer. What size are they?

Amani576

I'm a little surprised Machka hasn't shown her face in this thread. She actively participates in this sport.
-Gene-

nlerner

That TA crank originally came attached to a Dawes, which I bought on CL for not a lot of money. That frame is now in the hands of BF member wahoonc, and the crank got some polish and new rings.

The cluster is a 14-32, I believe. Rear derailleur is a Shimano Deore w/ a long cage, which was a cheap eBay find. Front derailleur is a SunTour Mountech, I think, which handles that wide spread fine.

All of that budget consciousness gets thrown out when it comes to the tires, which are $50 a pop. They're sold in a few places, but I got them from Vintage Bicycle Press. They are listed as 30mm, but might be a bit wider in actual use. I do have to say that they are the most comfortable-and-fast tires I've ever ridden. I have them on my Raleigh Int'l as well.

Neal

Road Fan

The best collection of Trek's info is the Vintage Trek site, but does not have rake for every model and frame size.

After an ancient Ibob thread, I looked into whether the rake and hence trail values were the same within models and across years for the various 6xx (mostly 531) models. They aren't, for some reason. Some have "low trail" of around 40 mm, some are in the 52 mm range. The x60 (460, 560, 660, 760) frames were thought of more as racing frames, with shorter wheelbases, and have less rake and more trail, around 60 mm.

Plus the "flexiness" is not the same for all models or years. I have a 1984 610 that is rather stiff. A buddy has a 1983 (I think) 600, that is smooth and flexy, hugging the road like a snake, and with a little longer wheelbase than my 610.

Bottom line, they're not all the same.

I'd like to find a full 531 dB Trek, a 600 or 620 with the more-raked fork. I think that would be a real nice basis for a rando bike. So far, the 20.5 inch sizes are just a bit small for me, and the next size up is on the big side.

poprad

Thanks for the compliment; here she is in her summer century ride trim:

IceNine

Wondering how well it woks to do bar end shifters with a large rack-mounted handlebar bag? Neal, it looks like you kind of routed the cables over the top just a little bit on your Dawes. Awesome looking bike, by the way.

treebound 

Crater Lake? Looks nice. The lake looks nice too.

poprad

Yep, that was last summer's Crater Lake century. Perfect day for it too.

nlerner

Yeah, the cables are those flexy wound steel ones with no outside sheath that came with Barcons, and the handlebar bag just pushed the loops up a bit. Shifting seems unaffected.

Neal

fender1

Neal,

Great bike! What FD are you using?

USAZorro

Looks like an old Chorus.

nlerner

It's actually a Shimano Exage Mountain FD. I'm not sure of its original intended use as it has a 28.6mm clamp, so I don't imagine it went on a MTB, but I'm not familiar with that line. It works great for the range need on the 50/34 crank chainrings.

Neal

purevl

A lot of rigid steel MTB's had a standard seat tube.

jan nikolajsen 

This is a project under development. My socalled RGV or Randonneur à Grande Vitesse, inspired by the commuter train between Paris and Lyon, as well as everything I've picked on this thread.

The frame, by far the most interesting part of the game, remain the big unknown. Two candidates are currently up for review: Trek 600 and Gazelle A-Frame. The goal for this Randonneur is to have a bike that is neither sluggish (read: touring geometry) nor overly jittery and harsh as many modern all-out racing bikes, but rather easily driven with adequate comfort for some of my long distance goals. With a slight bias towards speed over creature comfort the hope is to cover more ground quicker, leaving time for longer recovery breaks.

The componentry shown below is the working draft of what may be included. Some uncertainties remain. Old and new indiscriminately mixed. An equal dose of style and function was also employed in the selection. Pure function would move this post out of the C&V realm, while pure style is entirely too expensive.

Here's some of the choices, with comments:

Frame: Seventies northern European race brand with fender bosses.
BB: Campy Veloce sealed unit
Crank: Campy Veloce compact, 50-36. New, $42 delivered!
Freewheel: Maillard 7 speed 12-24
FD-RD: Mavic SSC, which just barely does this tooth configuration
Chain: SRAM 850
Hubs: Campy Record 36h from 1973
Rims: Torelli 700c
Spokes: Unknown, 3 cross
Pedals: Campy Record with chrome clips and VO straps
Brakes: Mafac Racer with Mathauser MTB pads and VO cable guides
Levers: Campy Aero
Shifters: Suntour Bar-Cons
Seatpost: Gipiemme
Saddle: Ideale 45
Handle bars: Unbranded randonneur
Stem: The ubiquitous Nitto Technomic
Headset: VO
Fenders: Esge 35mm plastic
Tires: Panaracer Tourguard 28mm
Front rack: Homemade, in concept stage






/

-holiday76

where did you get the veloce compact crankset for that price if you dont mind me asking?

kpug505

Looks like you're well on your way!


So what frame are you using?

jan nikolajsen 

Here. But, like all Ebay auctions, it will be hard to find the exact same deal again.

jan nikolajsen 

Probably a Gazelle A-Frame

bvward

I am building a Miyata Triplecross into a randonneuring bike... It has clearance for 700x30's, fenders, and has canti mounts from the factory. I am using Campag canti brakes, Mafac levers, Nitto randonneur bars, etc. The drivetrain is Campag Mirage with a Chris King rear hub and a dynamo front...

redxj

Good to see the bars ya got from me will find a use. I wanted to use them on something, but never found the right bike for them.

JunkYardBike

Planning to ride the NJ brevet series? My friend is trying to get me to ride April's Princeton 200K, but that's awfully early in the season, and 200K is probably the absolute farthest distance I'd ever ride in one shot (80 miles is my personal long in this region). However, this year's is alleged to be less hilly.

Back on topic: nice collection of parts! I have a bias toward mixed component builds (given my meager budget!). 36t front and 24t rear is a low enough gear for you on hills? Impressed!

Six jours

Late to the thread, but the topic is my favorite. Don't know how I missed it.

This one is mine:



It's not vintage; I built the frame myself a bit more than a year ago. The parts are almost all new and currently available -- TA cranks, Dura-Ace rear derailleur and DT shifters, 650b rims on a Schmidt Dynohub front and Ultegra rear, Nitto seatpost, bars, and stem, 42 mm Grand Boise Hetre tires.

As far as traditional randonneuring geometry goes, I've made quite a study of it in preparation for building these frames, and it's actually very simple: a head angle of 72-74 degrees with several cm. more fork rake than is typical these days. Nothing magical, and can most easily be obtained by buying an 80s sport touring frame and paying a builder to add a couple of cm. of rake to the fork. The entire point is to restore the stable handling lost by the addition of a front bag. If you are not going to use a front bag, then the extra rake will make the bike less stable than you want it to be.

As far as tubing, it's the same lightweight steel as we used in our race bikes up through the 80s. 531, SL, and anything similar is fine. I used TrueTemper in mine, and the one I'm currently building will use old stock 531 Pro. These really are "classic" race bikes modified for comfort and practicality. Most folks never consider a randonne to be a race, but many do try to "do a time", make a personal best, etc. Many others are simply trying to finish inside the (generous) time limits, and both goals are considered equally valid in the eye of the randonneur. Whomever mentioned "credit card touring" had the right idea: imagine a credit card tour with a time limit and you're not far from the truth. There is a need for a few readily available items carried with you -- warm clothes, night riding gear, perhaps an extra water bottle -- but you're not camping out and don't need to bring the kitchen sink.

650b is absolutely not necessary to make a "true" randonneuring bike. Many -- perhaps even the majority -- of old French rando bikes are set up for 700c clinchers. The only real advantage of 650b is allowing the use of really wide tires, like my 42s. This makes the bike extremely comfortable and entirely suitable to fire trails and such, with very little loss of rolling speed. If you do not intend to use tires wider than 30 mm or so, then there's not much reason to switch to 650b, IMO.

HTH!