AC,
Let me give you an example of some technical info one might receive on
the BaronOwners group regarding the installation of a carbon fiber
boom on a Baron, and then you decide if this is information you would
like to have if you had a Baron and were contemplating the purchase of
a carbon boom for it:
Let`s say that someone had purchased a Baron Discus, which has a
triple crank, and after riding it for a couple months, decided they
would like to make the bike a bit lighter. They notice that Optima is
now selling a carbon fiber boom for the Baron and would like to
purchase one for their bike. If they just go ahead and purchase the
carbon boom without prior knowledge what they will need to do to make
it work, they may be in for a rude awakening when they put it on the
bike, and here is why....the deraileur tube is located in the middle
of the boom,(hopefully they will eventually be manufactured
offset)while the stock boom has an offset deraileur tube. Even at
maximum adjustment, a deraileur such as an Ultegra triple, will not be
able to shift the chain onto the large chainring due to the location
of the deraileur tube...it is too far away. To get around this
problem, the deraileur must be moved closer to the chainrings. This
can be accomplished by making a spacer from a piece of aluminum tube
that has an O.D. of 1-3/8" and an I.D. of 1-1/8"....it will need to be
about 5/8" wide, with a slot cut through one side. Slide the spacer
over the 1-1/8" deraileur tube, then slide a deraileur with a 1-3/8"
clamp over the spacer and clamp it down in the proper position. This
will effectively move the deraileur close enough to the chainrings to
allow the deraileur enough range to shift the chain onto the large
ring. Bottom bracket spindle length should be about 118mm. Other
things to consider are...there is no cable stop on the carbon boom for
the deraileur cable, but a 1-1/8" clamp-on cable stop works well.
Also, since the finish of the carbon boom is so smooth and shiny, it
tends to slip sideways when enough pressure is applied to the pedals.
The cure for this, is to scuff up the portion of the boom that fits
into the frame with a ScotchBrite pad and then spray the scuffed up
area with 3M Super 77 spray adhesive or something similar and then
insert it into the frame tube after letting it dry a minute or
two...this will cure the slipping, while still allowing the boom to be
easily removed again if necessary for some reason. Also, finding a
high quality deraileur with a 1-3/8" clamp is extremely difficult, if
not impossible. Best thing to do, if a Dura Ace/Ultegra quality
deraileur is preferred, is to purchase a braze-on deraileur and a
1-3/8" clamp adapter. Anyway, one thing that should be mentioned, is
that the low Baron`s different frame geometry requires the deraileur
tube to be at a more radical angle than the standard Baron. Kamil at
Velokraft(manufacturer of the carbon booms sold by Optima)can make the
carbon boom with a custom deraileur tube angle.....30 degrees works
well for the low Baron...
Don
anonymous coward <
[email protected]> wrote in message news:<
[email protected]>...
> > AC,
> > I`m sure all our members would disagree with your view of our group,
> > or they wouldn`t have joined.
>
> Well, good luck to you.
>
> > We have some members in the BaronOwners
> > group, myself included, that are very knowledgeable with this
> > particular bike, and can offer valuable technical advice and
> > information to those Baron owners that seek it.
>
> Are Baron's so very different from other lowracers, that there's no
> transfer?
>
> > I think its very
> > convenient to have a place to go to when you need good reliable info
> > or technical assistance from other owners of the same bike that you
> > ride...
>
> It may be that I'm missing something, but I never find it easy to search
> Yahoo groups, in the way that Google can scan the newsgroup archives. For
> a while I thought very seriously about buying a Baron, but I'd probably
> never have found any posts about them that were sent to a Yahoo group.
>
> AC