All-weather drop bar commuter based on Nexus 8?

[Tom B.]

This has been an idea in the back of my head for quite a while. At
first, I was thinking Rohloff hub, and so the idea never went anywhere
due to the cost. But then the Nexus 8 came out and now the cost
doesn't sound so prohibitive.

Here are some features that I'd like to incorporate:

- braze-ons for rear rack and full-coverage fenders
- non-rim brakes, meaning disc front (maybe Avid mechanical for road
levers?) and either disc or Nexus roller brake rear
- the best chainguard or chaincase I can get
- drop bars with Sheldon's bar-end doodad to mount the Nexus twist
shifter, OR some kind of stubby MTB bar-end if I can rig it up on drop
bars (doubtful)
- wheels like my current setup: CR-18 rims, Avocet 32c slicks, Mr Tuffy

As far as I can tell, the only turn-key drop bar Nexus 8 bike is
Sheldon's Bianchi San Jos8:
http://www.sheldonbrown.com/harris/bianchi-sanjos8/

It looks pretty good, but would take some work and probably a good bit
of cost to swap out the fork for a disc fork, front hub for disc hub,
add rear roller brake, and then add rack/fenders/etc.

So I'm thinking now about starting from a plain frame. How should I do
this? Some more thoughts:

- I'd prefer 700c, but 26" would be OK (also may be possible to fit
700x32c into 26" frame/fork when using disc wheels?)
- horiz dropouts should be much cheaper than an eccentric bottom
bracket
- do I just give up on the rear disc if using horiz dropouts? (and go
with roller brake)
[if roller brake, then Dia-Compe V-brake road levers? not sure if you
can use a Travel Agent with a roller brake]
- aluminum sounds good since it is light, cheap and good in the wet
- possibly Winwood cross fork with disc mounts?

And then at some point, I'd want to tackle the chaincase. The absolute
best-case scenario would be to come up with a solution like Alex
Wetmore's bike:
http://www.phred.org/~alex/bikes/chaincase.html

Thanks for reading this far. Obviously there are a lot of issues to
solve, the most important one being the choice of frame. None of the
other details are set in stone. I'd really appreciate some feedback
from others on this project.

 

[Nate Knutson]

Tom B. wrote:
> This has been an idea in the back of my head for quite a while. At
> first, I was thinking Rohloff hub, and so the idea never went anywhere
> due to the cost. But then the Nexus 8 came out and now the cost
> doesn't sound so prohibitive.
>
> Here are some features that I'd like to incorporate:
>
> - braze-ons for rear rack and full-coverage fenders
> - non-rim brakes, meaning disc front (maybe Avid mechanical for road
> levers?) and either disc or Nexus roller brake rear
> - the best chainguard or chaincase I can get
> - drop bars with Sheldon's bar-end doodad to mount the Nexus twist
> shifter, OR some kind of stubby MTB bar-end if I can rig it up on drop
> bars (doubtful)
> - wheels like my current setup: CR-18 rims, Avocet 32c slicks, Mr Tuffy
>
> As far as I can tell, the only turn-key drop bar Nexus 8 bike is
> Sheldon's Bianchi San Jos8:
> http://www.sheldonbrown.com/harris/bianchi-sanjos8/
>
> It looks pretty good, but would take some work and probably a good bit
> of cost to swap out the fork for a disc fork, front hub for disc hub,
> add rear roller brake, and then add rack/fenders/etc.
>
> So I'm thinking now about starting from a plain frame. How should I do
> this? Some more thoughts:
>
> - I'd prefer 700c, but 26" would be OK (also may be possible to fit
> 700x32c into 26" frame/fork when using disc wheels?)

You could do this with many frames, and it won't mess up the geometry
THAT much... but some.

> - horiz dropouts should be much cheaper than an eccentric bottom
> bracket
> - do I just give up on the rear disc if using horiz dropouts? (and go
> with roller brake)

AFAIK you have to give up on the rear disc if you're using a Nexus hub.

> [if roller brake, then Dia-Compe V-brake road levers? not sure if you
> can use a Travel Agent with a roller brake]

There's an inline version of it that would work with a roller brake. It
exists to adapt road levers for mechanical disc brakes, and mounts on
an unused canti post. It'll add expense and a bit of
complexity/inelegance, but no big deal. The 287v's will also work, and
they're reasonable levers but pretty expensive. It's been a while since
I've messed with these but I remember feeling a little less than
impressed with something about their looks or design when i did,
especially for their cost, so you might wanna get more opinions on them
or check them out before you commit. Sorry to be vague.

> - aluminum sounds good since it is light, cheap and good in the wet
> - possibly Winwood cross fork with disc mounts?

If you're going to be buying a frame and/or, you may want to consider a
Karate Monkey frameset. It depends on what you want to shoot for as far
as budget, weight, aesthetics, etc, but the monkey has a lot going for
it. It will run you about the same as a new generic al frame and that
fork, but be a lot cooler, probably last longer, be crazy versatile,
not really be that much heavier than the generic frame, etc. It doesn't
have upper rack eyelets, which is stupid but can be worked around.

There are other frames available whose geometry would make more sense
for a commute bike in some ways (I'm of the religion that loaded
touring type geometry with a low bb and long wheelbase is best), but no
current production ones with horizontal dropouts. You could get an 80's
touring frame with horizontal dropouts very cheap and stick a new fork
on that.

About the only time I'd be conerned about riding a nice steel bike as
an all weather commuter is when there's heavily salted roads... if
you're going to be in that kind of environment a lot, then the cheap
aluminum frame gains some appeal.

> And then at some point, I'd want to tackle the chaincase. The absolute
> best-case scenario would be to come up with a solution like Alex
> Wetmore's bike:
> http://www.phred.org/~alex/bikes/chaincase.html

No idea about the chaincase. I want one too, though.

> Thanks for reading this far. Obviously there are a lot of issues to
> solve, the most important one being the choice of frame. None of the
> other details are set in stone. I'd really appreciate some feedback
> from others on this project.

 

[David L. Johnson]

On Sat, 14 Jan 2006 05:52:28 -0800, Tom B. wrote:

> - braze-ons for rear rack and full-coverage fenders
> - non-rim brakes, meaning disc front (maybe Avid mechanical for road
> levers?) and either disc or Nexus roller brake rear
> - the best chainguard or chaincase I can get
> - drop bars with Sheldon's bar-end doodad to mount the Nexus twist
> shifter, OR some kind of stubby MTB bar-end if I can rig it up on drop
> bars (doubtful)
> - wheels like my current setup: CR-18 rims, Avocet 32c slicks, Mr Tuffy

> - I'd prefer 700c, but 26" would be OK (also may be possible to fit
> 700x32c into 26" frame/fork when using disc wheels?)

I doubt that the 700x32c will fit into a 26" frame. Besides, for the kind
of wheels you want it's easier and cheaper to simply put slicks on
mountain bike wheels.

> - horiz dropouts should be much cheaper than an eccentric bottom
bracket
> - do I just give up on the rear disc if using horiz dropouts? (and go
> with roller brake)

I'd imagine horizontal dropouts would not work well with a disk brake.
But that would mostly mean you'd take time keeping things adjusted. I
used the roller brake on my commuter for a while, and found that it was
great at everything except one little detail -- it wouldn't stop the bike.
One gentle downhill on my regular commute, I pulled on that thing as hard
as possible (and it wasn't that the lever bottomed out), and the bike
just did not stop until I had to use the front brake.

Any old-enough road bike that could have held 27" wheels will work for the
fenders and all, and will have the horizontal dropouts you need. I use my
'69 Frejus frame. These are basically no-cost items, which is good since
your disk fork will not be. Another option would be an old rigid mountain
bike frame, but fenders may be a bit of a hassle. Finding a rigid
mountain fork that can take a disk might also be a problem.

--

David L. Johnson

__o | The lottery is a tax on those who fail to understand
_`\(,_ | mathematics.
(_)/ (_) |

 

[David L. Johnson]

On Sat, 14 Jan 2006 07:38:57 -0800, Nate Knutson wrote:

> ... The 287v's will also work, and
> they're reasonable levers but pretty expensive. It's been a while since
> I've messed with these but I remember feeling a little less than
> impressed with something about their looks or design when i did,
> especially for their cost, so you might wanna get more opinions on them
> or check them out before you commit. Sorry to be vague.

Au contaire. I have a set on my tandem, and I think they are fine.
Nice-looking, and they work well. The tandem has a V brake in the front,
and a U in the rear, and the levers work well on both (actually the rear
probably doesn't need the extra pull, but it works fine nevertheless).
Cost? About the same as any aftermarket set of aero levers. Heck, they
cost the same as a new set of hoods cost for my Ergo levers.

> If you're going to be buying a frame and/or, you may want to consider a
> Karate Monkey frameset. It depends on what you want to shoot for as far
> as budget, weight, aesthetics, etc, but the monkey has a lot going for
> it. It will run you about the same as a new generic al frame and that
> fork, but be a lot cooler, probably last longer, be crazy versatile, not
> really be that much heavier than the generic frame, etc. It doesn't have
> upper rack eyelets, which is stupid but can be worked around.

Those do look cool. The eyelets are easy to work around; use what are
called P-clamps that are meant to secure hoses and conduit. You can even
get them with rubber insulation that protects the frame.


> About the only time I'd be conerned about riding a nice steel bike as an
> all weather commuter is when there's heavily salted roads... if you're
> going to be in that kind of environment a lot, then the cheap aluminum
> frame gains some appeal.

For that you have to find one with both 130mm dropout spacing and
horizontal dropouts, since you can't re-space aluminum frames and most
with 130mm spacing have vertical dropouts. Maybe an old mountain frame
would come to the rescue here.

--

David L. Johnson

__o | I believe that the motion picture is destined to revolutionize
_`\(,_ | our educational system and that in a few years it will supplant
(_)/ (_) | largely, if not entirely, the use of textbooks -- Thomas
Edison, 1922

 

[Zog The Undeniable]

Tom B. wrote:

> So I'm thinking now about starting from a plain frame. How should I do
> this? Some more thoughts:
>
> - I'd prefer 700c, but 26" would be OK (also may be possible to fit
> 700x32c into 26" frame/fork when using disc wheels?)

700c would also be my choice, but it's a personal thing.

> - horiz dropouts should be much cheaper than an eccentric bottom
> bracket

Yes, but don't underestimate the hassle of tweaking chain tension by
positioning the wheel. OK, it's not as critical as on a fixie, but it
makes changing a flat more protracted.

> - do I just give up on the rear disc if using horiz dropouts? (and go
> with roller brake)

Roller brakes work OK IME (we have a Nexus Inter-8 with roller brake)
but the reaction arm is one more thing to undo when changing a flat, and
looks unsightly.

> [if roller brake, then Dia-Compe V-brake road levers? not sure if you
> can use a Travel Agent with a roller brake]

No, roller brakes need the same pull as cantilevers, not V's.

> - aluminum sounds good since it is light, cheap and good in the wet

Aluminium: cheap, good, light. Pick two.

> - possibly Winwood cross fork with disc mounts?
>
> And then at some point, I'd want to tackle the chaincase. The absolute
> best-case scenario would be to come up with a solution like Alex
> Wetmore's bike:
> http://www.phred.org/~alex/bikes/chaincase.html
>
> Thanks for reading this far. Obviously there are a lot of issues to
> solve, the most important one being the choice of frame. None of the
> other details are set in stone. I'd really appreciate some feedback
> from others on this project.
>
Think about gearing. 38 x 21 is good in a hilly area.

 

[Tom B.]

Zog The Undeniable wrote:
> Tom B. wrote:
> 700c would also be my choice, but it's a personal thing.
> > - horiz dropouts should be much cheaper than an eccentric bottom
> > bracket
>
> Yes, but don't underestimate the hassle of tweaking chain tension by
> positioning the wheel. OK, it's not as critical as on a fixie, but it
> makes changing a flat more protracted.
I did a quick search for EBB frames. I like the idea for the same
reason you mention, but they are so rare, especially in 700c.

> > - do I just give up on the rear disc if using horiz dropouts? (and go
> > with roller brake)
>
> Roller brakes work OK IME (we have a Nexus Inter-8 with roller brake)
> but the reaction arm is one more thing to undo when changing a flat, and
> looks unsightly.
I don't expect the roller brake to be great, and I'm willing to accept
mediocre rear braking in exchange for getting rid of rim wear and messy
rim slurry in the wet forever. But is it so bad as to be worthless?

> No, roller brakes need the same pull as cantilevers, not V's.
Thanks. I didn't know this, and assumed V's since Nexus is designed
for flat bar bikes.

> > - aluminum sounds good since it is light, cheap and good in the wet
>
> Aluminium: cheap, good, light. Pick two.
OK, maybe not super cheap, but not really expensive either. I really
like my Cannondale CAAD2 touring bike frame (vintage '92 or so) a lot.
A frame built like that would be ideal.

> Think about gearing. 38 x 21 is good in a hilly area.
I do live in a hilly area, but I think 38x21 would be way too low for a
Nexus 8. Sheldon's terrific hub gear calculator says that would yield
a range of 25 to 78 gear inches.

I currently ride the largest 2 rings of my MTB crank (34/44) with a
12-23 cassette, and this works pretty well for carrying up to 25 lbs
with some steep grades (about 12% max). So I'd probably shoot for a
range more like 35 to 105 gear inches, so maybe a 46x19.

 

[Tom B.]

Nate Knutson wrote:
> Tom B. wrote:
> > - do I just give up on the rear disc if using horiz dropouts? (and go
> > with roller brake)
>
> AFAIK you have to give up on the rear disc if you're using a Nexus hub.
Yes, of course you are right! Silly oversight on my part.

> > [if roller brake, then Dia-Compe V-brake road levers? not sure if you
> > can use a Travel Agent with a roller brake]
>
> There's an inline version of it that would work with a roller brake. It
> exists to adapt road levers for mechanical disc brakes, and mounts on
> an unused canti post.
Didn't know about this, but if Zog is right, then road levers should
work directly on the roller brake.

> > - aluminum sounds good since it is light, cheap and good in the wet
> > - possibly Winwood cross fork with disc mounts?
>
> If you're going to be buying a frame and/or, you may want to consider a
> Karate Monkey frameset. It depends on what you want to shoot for as far
> as budget, weight, aesthetics, etc, but the monkey has a lot going for
> it. It will run you about the same as a new generic al frame and that
> fork, but be a lot cooler, probably last longer, be crazy versatile,
> not really be that much heavier than the generic frame, etc. It doesn't
> have upper rack eyelets, which is stupid but can be worked around.
This got me thinking about maybe the Cross-Check. It doesn't use
discs, but if I can buy the frame without a fork, then I can mount a
disc fork and go from there. I also think the forward-facing dropouts
could be a bit easier to use with fenders. And used Cross-Checks are
definitely floating around out there. Hmm, this sounds like it has
some real potential. I'll have to look at the Surly site to see if it
has all the desired braze-ons, but I think it does.

> There are other frames available whose geometry would make more sense
> for a commute bike in some ways (I'm of the religion that loaded
> touring type geometry with a low bb and long wheelbase is best), but no
> current production ones with horizontal dropouts. You could get an 80's
> touring frame with horizontal dropouts very cheap and stick a new fork
> on that.
I just don't have a lot of faith in putting a modern cyclocross disc
fork on an old frame, as far as steering geometry goes, not to mention
being constrained to 1" head tube. I think a new frame is the
direction I should go.

> About the only time I'd be conerned about riding a nice steel bike as
> an all weather commuter is when there's heavily salted roads... if
> you're going to be in that kind of environment a lot, then the cheap
> aluminum frame gains some appeal.
Well, I am starting to think steel is OK for the frame, especially if I
can use a non-steel fork. I've never heard of anyone having a
dangerous corrosion problem other than on the fork and steerer.

> No idea about the chaincase. I want one too, though.
It's awesome, isn't it?

 

[gooserider]

"Tom B." <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> This has been an idea in the back of my head for quite a while. At
> first, I was thinking Rohloff hub, and so the idea never went anywhere
> due to the cost. But then the Nexus 8 came out and now the cost
> doesn't sound so prohibitive.
>
> Here are some features that I'd like to incorporate:
>
> - braze-ons for rear rack and full-coverage fenders
> - non-rim brakes, meaning disc front (maybe Avid mechanical for road
> levers?) and either disc or Nexus roller brake rear
> - the best chainguard or chaincase I can get
> - drop bars with Sheldon's bar-end doodad to mount the Nexus twist
> shifter, OR some kind of stubby MTB bar-end if I can rig it up on drop
> bars (doubtful)
> - wheels like my current setup: CR-18 rims, Avocet 32c slicks, Mr Tuffy
>
> As far as I can tell, the only turn-key drop bar Nexus 8 bike is
> Sheldon's Bianchi San Jos8:
> http://www.sheldonbrown.com/harris/bianchi-sanjos8/
>
> It looks pretty good, but would take some work and probably a good bit
> of cost to swap out the fork for a disc fork, front hub for disc hub,
> add rear roller brake, and then add rack/fenders/etc.
>
> So I'm thinking now about starting from a plain frame. How should I do
> this? Some more thoughts:
>
> - I'd prefer 700c, but 26" would be OK (also may be possible to fit
> 700x32c into 26" frame/fork when using disc wheels?)
> - horiz dropouts should be much cheaper than an eccentric bottom
> bracket
> - do I just give up on the rear disc if using horiz dropouts? (and go
> with roller brake)
> [if roller brake, then Dia-Compe V-brake road levers? not sure if you
> can use a Travel Agent with a roller brake]
> - aluminum sounds good since it is light, cheap and good in the wet
> - possibly Winwood cross fork with disc mounts?
>
> And then at some point, I'd want to tackle the chaincase. The absolute
> best-case scenario would be to come up with a solution like Alex
> Wetmore's bike:
> http://www.phred.org/~alex/bikes/chaincase.html
>
> Thanks for reading this far. Obviously there are a lot of issues to
> solve, the most important one being the choice of frame. None of the
> other details are set in stone. I'd really appreciate some feedback
> from others on this project.

Wouldn't a Surly Karate Monkey work? You could set it up with drop bars, it
has horizontal dropouts, disc mounts, eyelets, the works. I don't know about
a chainguard but I'm sure there's something on the market somewhere.

 

[Zog The Undeniable]

Tom B. wrote:

> Zog The Undeniable wrote:

>>Roller brakes work OK IME (we have a Nexus Inter-8 with roller brake)
>>but the reaction arm is one more thing to undo when changing a flat, and
>>looks unsightly.
>
> I don't expect the roller brake to be great, and I'm willing to accept
> mediocre rear braking in exchange for getting rid of rim wear and messy
> rim slurry in the wet forever. But is it so bad as to be worthless?

The rear roller brake is fine in use. It's just not very elegant.

>>No, roller brakes need the same pull as cantilevers, not V's.
>
> Thanks. I didn't know this, and assumed V's since Nexus is designed
> for flat bar bikes.

The Nexus brake levers actually have two settings: one marked
cantilevers/roller and the other marked V brakes. The Dia-Compe 287V
will be OK though, because it doesn't pull so much cable as a flat-bar V
brake lever.

>>Think about gearing. 38 x 21 is good in a hilly area.
>
> I do live in a hilly area, but I think 38x21 would be way too low for a
> Nexus 8. Sheldon's terrific hub gear calculator says that would yield
> a range of 25 to 78 gear inches.

That would be about right - the bottom gear is similar to the 26 x 26 on
my Thorn Nomad (a 26" wheeled tourer). My wife rides the Nexus
sometimes, and she isn't going to spin out a 78" gear on the flat!

Incidentally, the roller brakes can get spectacularly hot under hard
braking, e.g. when you have to stop for a junction at the bottom of a
long hill. I burned my finger when demonstrating this to other riders...

 

[Alex Rodriguez]

In article <[email protected]>,
[email protected] says...
>This has been an idea in the back of my head for quite a while. At
>first, I was thinking Rohloff hub, and so the idea never went anywhere
>due to the cost. But then the Nexus 8 came out and now the cost
>doesn't sound so prohibitive.
>Here are some features that I'd like to incorporate:
>- braze-ons for rear rack and full-coverage fenders
>- non-rim brakes, meaning disc front (maybe Avid mechanical for road
>levers?) and either disc or Nexus roller brake rear
>- the best chainguard or chaincase I can get
>- drop bars with Sheldon's bar-end doodad to mount the Nexus twist
>shifter, OR some kind of stubby MTB bar-end if I can rig it up on drop
>bars (doubtful)
>- wheels like my current setup: CR-18 rims, Avocet 32c slicks, Mr Tuffy
>As far as I can tell, the only turn-key drop bar Nexus 8 bike is
>Sheldon's Bianchi San Jos8:
>http://www.sheldonbrown.com/harris/bianchi-sanjos8/
>It looks pretty good, but would take some work and probably a good bit
>of cost to swap out the fork for a disc fork, front hub for disc hub,
>add rear roller brake, and then add rack/fenders/etc.
>So I'm thinking now about starting from a plain frame. How should I do
>this? Some more thoughts:
>
>- I'd prefer 700c, but 26" would be OK (also may be possible to fit
>700x32c into 26" frame/fork when using disc wheels?)
>- horiz dropouts should be much cheaper than an eccentric bottom
>bracket
>- do I just give up on the rear disc if using horiz dropouts? (and go
>with roller brake)
> [if roller brake, then Dia-Compe V-brake road levers? not sure if you
>can use a Travel Agent with a roller brake]
>- aluminum sounds good since it is light, cheap and good in the wet
>- possibly Winwood cross fork with disc mounts?
>
>And then at some point, I'd want to tackle the chaincase. The absolute
>best-case scenario would be to come up with a solution like Alex
>Wetmore's bike:
>http://www.phred.org/~alex/bikes/chaincase.html


The VanDessel SuperFly would have met most of your criteria, unfortunately
it seems to have been discontinued. I have one and it is a good bike. I'm
in the (slow) process of making some modifications. I removed the suspension
seat post and when I get a chance the fork is also going. They both added
weight and were poor performers. It has an Avid front disc brake that works
well. The rear roller brake is poor. This frame does not have canti nor disc
brake mounts, so I'm stuck with it. When I was in China a few years back I
bought a flying pidgeon chain box. I haven't taken the time to modify it to
fit, but right after I swap out the fork, it is the next project for the bike.
I might also upgrad the rear hub from 7 spd to 8spd, not to get one more speed
but because I understand the 8spd hub has less drag and is generally a nicer
hub.
-------------
Alex

 

[Tom B.]

Alex Rodriguez wrote:
> In article <[email protected]>,
> [email protected] says...
> The VanDessel SuperFly would have met most of your criteria, unfortunately
> it seems to have been discontinued. I have one and it is a good bike.
Interesting, and you're right, it was a pretty close fit, especially
with the mech disc front & roller rear brakes. Or so says this
interesting website:
http://www.bikesdetails.info/Van_Dessel_Cycles_Super_Fly_2002.html
I wasn't too up on the Van Dessels from previous years, but I did check
their 2006 lineup, and they no longer have anything similar.

> I'm in the (slow) process of making some modifications. I removed the suspension
> seat post and when I get a chance the fork is also going. They both added
> weight and were poor performers.
Good move. I recently bought a city bike for my dad, and it took some
work to find a decent rigid fork model. I got the shop to do an even
swap to scrap the worthless suspension seatpost. Good luck on the fork
-- I guess the key will be to find the same crown-to-race distance on a
new fork with disc tabs. Maybe a Winwood cyclocross fork?

>It has an Avid front disc brake that works
> well. The rear roller brake is poor. This frame does not have canti nor disc
> brake mounts, so I'm stuck with it.
Are you aware that Shimano makes both a "standard" and "deluxe" roller
brake?
standard: http://aebike.com/site/page.cfm?PageID=30&SKU=BR7230
deluxe: http://aebike.com/site/page.cfm?PageID=30&SKU=BR7228
To my eye, the deluxe looks like it would stop a lot better.

> When I was in China a few years back I
> bought a flying pidgeon chain box. I haven't taken the time to modify it to
> fit, but right after I swap out the fork, it is the next project for the bike.
> I might also upgrad the rear hub from 7 spd to 8spd, not to get one more speed
> but because I understand the 8spd hub has less drag and is generally a nicer
> hub.
Good luck. I'd still prefer drops over moustache bars, but once you
finish the fork and chaincase, your bike will be totally killer. If I
ever finish this project for myself, I'll be a little paranoid about
having such an irreplaceable bike stolen (irreplaceable in terms of
rarity, not cost).

 

[SMS]

gooserider wrote:

> Wouldn't a Surly Karate Monkey work? You could set it up with drop bars, it
> has horizontal dropouts, disc mounts, eyelets, the works. I don't know about
> a chainguard but I'm sure there's something on the market somewhere.

Very hard to find actually.

See "http://www.allproducts.com.tw/manufacture6/sunnywheel/sw-771.html"
but you can't really buy one.

If it doesn't have a chainguard, it doesn't qualify as a true commute
bicycle!

I love the Koga-Miyate LiteAce on Sheldon's site,
"http://www.sheldonbrown.com/harris/koga/liteace8.html" but ouch $1570.

 

[Tom B.]

SMS wrote:
> I love the Koga-Miyate LiteAce on Sheldon's site,
> "http://www.sheldonbrown.com/harris/koga/liteace8.html" but ouch $1570.
It's pricey, but I could probably talk myself into spending that much
if it had all the details just right.

But it doesn't, not really:
- ridiculous, heavy, useless (for road riding) suspension fork and
seatpost
- "sit up and beg" handlebars work OK for short, flat rides; not well
for longer or hillier rides, including my commute
- a roller brake for the front? I wouldn't trust that down a steep
hill -- NO WAY!

I'm also not sure I would want to pay for the pre-packaged generator
lighting. I've already got my system worked out (rechargeable 15W
halogen on bars, 12W on helmet). I like it, it's paid for, and the
dual beams really work well. The bar mount identifies me as a vehicle
and illuminates the road. The helmet mount allows me to briefly
"flash" a driver who may not yet see me approaching an intersection,
and illuminates turns on the pitch-black portion of my route.

 

[Andreas Oehler]

Sun, 15 Jan 2006 02:31:28 GMT, gooserider:

>I don't know about
>a chainguard but I'm sure there's something on the market somewhere.

There is a new, very easy retrofittable all-closed chaingard on the
market: Hebie Chainglider. See: http://www.hebie.de/pdf/0350.pdf .
Price around 30 Euro.

I use it for about half a year now on my town bike and it works nice. See
my bike at: http://www.nabendynamo.de/bilder/rad.htm

The open chaingard in the first few pictures is a model by dutch company
"De Woerd".

Andreas

 

[SMS]

Tom B. wrote:
> SMS wrote:
>> I love the Koga-Miyate LiteAce on Sheldon's site,
>> "http://www.sheldonbrown.com/harris/koga/liteace8.html" but ouch $1570.
> It's pricey, but I could probably talk myself into spending that much
> if it had all the details just right.
>
> But it doesn't, not really:
> - ridiculous, heavy, useless (for road riding) suspension fork and
> seatpost
> - "sit up and beg" handlebars work OK for short, flat rides; not well
> for longer or hillier rides, including my commute
> - a roller brake for the front? I wouldn't trust that down a steep
> hill -- NO WAY!

Well I thought that I'd hate a suspension seat post, but I rode a
bicycle with one, and I liked it. Yes the suspension fork is
unnecessary, but for a bike to run around town and to the store, the
upright handlebars are fine.

> I'm also not sure I would want to pay for the pre-packaged generator
> lighting. I've already got my system worked out (rechargeable 15W
> halogen on bars, 12W on helmet). I like it, it's paid for, and the
> dual beams really work well.

Still, the generator lighting is very inexpensive when included by the
manufacturer, rather than purchased after-market. It could come in
handy, even though generator lighting isn't nearly as good as
rechargeable battery powered lighting, in terms of seeing and being seen.

 

[Sheldon Brown]

Andreas Oehler schreib:
>
> There is a new, very easy retrofittable all-closed chaingard on the
> market: Hebie Chainglider. See: http://www.hebie.de/pdf/0350.pdf .

That looks very interesting, but it isn't clear how it attaches to the
bike...?

Sheldon "Puzzled" Brown
+---------------------------------+
| Is ambivalence a bad thing? |
| Well, yes and no. |
| -- Garrison Keillor |
+---------------------------------+
Harris Cyclery, West Newton, Massachusetts
Phone 617-244-9772 FAX 617-244-1041
http://harriscyclery.com
Hard-to-find parts shipped Worldwide
http://captainbike.com http://sheldonbrown.com

 

[Chalo]

Sheldon Brown wrote:
>
> Andreas Oehler schreib:
> >
> > There is a new, very easy retrofittable all-closed chaingard on the
> > market: Hebie Chainglider. See: http://www.hebie.de/pdf/0350.pdf .
>
> That looks very interesting, but it isn't clear how it attaches to the
> bike...?

If I understand correctly, the thing just hangs on the chain itself.
Here's the English brochure: http://www.hebie.de/pdf/0350_EN.pdf

More practical bike stuff here:
http://www.hebie.de/pdf/hebie_web_katalog_en.pdf

Chalo Colina

 

[Andrew Price]

On Fri, 20 Jan 2006 17:37:21 -0500, Sheldon Brown
<[email protected]> wrote:

>> There is a new, very easy retrofittable all-closed chaingard on the
>> market: Hebie Chainglider. See: http://www.hebie.de/pdf/0350.pdf .
>
>That looks very interesting, but it isn't clear how it attaches to the
>bike...?

From the looks of things, it doesn't.

The description "freitragende Konstruktion: auf ganzer Länge
schwimmend gelagert" suggests that it is a self-supporting, "floating"
construction, and a bit later on in the text, it says that spring-lock
chain links shouldn't be used, and that the maximum admissible chain
width is 9mm, also suggesting that it all just "floats" on the (right
kind of) chain.

 

[Andreas Oehler]

Fri, 20 Jan 2006 17:37:21 -0500, Sheldon Brown:

>That looks very interesting, but it isn't clear how it attaches to the
>bike...?

It just "floats" on the chain. The plastic is mixed in a way to reduce
drag and noise. Mounting is done without tools and takes just 2 Minutes.
Chainring has to be 38 tooth, sprocket 18-22 tooth. So it combines nicely
with classic 3-/4-/5-/7- and 8-speed hubs but not with Rohloff Speedhub. A
speedhub-version of the chainglider is planned for spring 2006.

Andreas

 

[A Muzi]

> Andreas Oehler schreib:
>> There is a new, very easy retrofittable all-closed chaingard on the
>> market: Hebie Chainglider. See: http://www.hebie.de/pdf/0350.pdf .

Sheldon Brown wrote:
> That looks very interesting, but it isn't clear how it attaches to the
> bike...?
> Sheldon "Puzzled" Brown

Other German and Italian designs have a support plate under
the right cup; the chainguard screws to that at two points.
Looks like that to me.

--
Andrew Muzi
www.yellowjersey.org
Open every day since 1 April, 1971