Cletus says: "A Bachetta Giro ..."

[Ben Fox]

Cletus, You'll notice I said high BB "RANS" type seats. When most of my weight is on the tailbone
area,as on high BB's, my butt bottoms out on the hard seat pan of RANS seats. I have no problem with
Lightning type seats. Ben fox "Cletus D. Lee" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> In article <[email protected]>, [email protected] says...
> > ,I didn't keep mine because the seat gave me recumbent butt as do all high BB Rans type seats
> >
>
> I just measured the BB and seat heights of both my bikes Giro: BB = 26.75" Top of seat= 24"
> Difference= 2.75" P-38: BB = 25.5" Top of seat= 21.5" Difference= 4"
>
> --
> Cletus D. Lee Bacchetta Giro Lightning Voyager http://www.clee.org
> - Bellaire, TX USA -

 

[John W]

You can buy a brand new Strada from Hostel Shoppe for $1599.

John

"Ben Fox" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
> Used P-38's can be found for a heck of a lot less than $2600. I paid
$1400.
> for my 2000 model Campy model. Ben Fox "John W" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
> > Instead of a Giro why don't you get a Strada. You will have a bent that
is
> > as fast as a P-38 and costs $1800 versus $2600 for the P-38, and you
will
> > not have to upgrade the Strada. Better yet you could buy a Bacchetta
Corsa
> > for the same price as the P-38 and you get an M-5 seat and super
> components
> > and wheels and I bet its every bit as fast if not faster than P-38.
> >
> > John
> >
> >
> > "John Clarke" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
> > > Cletus, as one of the few people to have first hand ownership knowledge of
Giros
> > and
> > > P-38s, I find your comments from another post very interesting.
> > >
> > > "A Bacchetta Giro is a better bike out of the box than the Lightning
P-
> > > 38 and over $1000 less. I would prefer a Giro over a Phantom because
I
> > > can get comfortable on it and the seating is more comfotrable and adjustable. It takes a lot
> > > of work to get a P-38 in racing condition. I would like better seating but I have adapted to
> > > the limited angle of the Lightning seat. "
> > >
> > > From my readings of these posts over many months, my opinion is that
you
> > are
> > > extremely knowledgable, and I value your opinion. Without being
> specific,
> > I
> > > can recall a few posts where you mentioned this and that about fixing
> your
> > > P-38. Does the "frame structure" of the P-38 allow it to be tweaked to a performance point
> > > where it clearly outperforms the Giro, or can some
of
> > > those same tweaks be done to the Giro. For example, if you spend 500 tweaking the P-38, and
> > > 500 on the Giro, would the Giro still be as
good
> or
> > > better? Or, is there limitations with the Giro design that won't ever
> let
> > it
> > > be developed to be as good as a P-38? If you purchased a Giro and
spent
> > 500
> > > on it (still 500 less than a P-38), would it be embarrassingly better
?
> > >
> > > I invite your comments and those from others who responsibly follow
this
> > NG.
> > >
> > > Thanks, John Clarke
> > >
> > >
> > > PS I'm hoping to be visiting Jude M. this weekend to test ride a Giro
> (and
> > > Stratus), so all feedback is most appreciated.
> > >
> > >
> >
>

 

[R2D2]

Originally posted by John W
You can buy a brand new Strada from Hostel Shoppe for $1599.

I bought the Giro a year ago. Wish that I could have fit on the Strada (darn short legs of mine).

The Giro fits my riding to a Tee. It's the best handling Bent I've ever ridden, once you get the bar set up to your liking. Every bike will ride differently, so you have to really ride them all and see.

I replaced the Kendas with Conti Grand Prix's (quite a bit faster), and want to put a Mavic Crossmax SL rear wheel on it this spring. Does anyone know of a better 20" (406) rim for the front than the Alex DA16? Looking for something semi-aero, and Fast.

I like the Bacchetta seat quite a bit, but I realize everyone is built differently. My butt is in agreement with Cletus' butt regarding the two seats though.

BTW, the Hostel Shoppe is coming out with a new line of their own recumbents this year, very similar to the Bacchettas.
R2

 

[Dj Blag]

R2: When I bought my Phantom from Hostelshoppe, I questioned Rolf about using the Conti's. He was
concerned about there being 'enough tire' to absorb all the shock, since on a bent one can
hardly unweight. Have you had any problems?? Chas

 

[Tom Sherman]

R2D2 wrote:
>
> ... Does anyone know of a better 20" (406) rim for the front than the > Alex DA16? Looking for
> something semi-aero, and Fast....

See < http://www.velocityusa.com/ > for some rims that fit this description.

Tom Sherman - Various HPV's Quad Cities USA (Illinois side)

 

[John Riley]

R2D2 wrote:

> BTW, the Hostel Shoppe is coming out with a new line of their own recumbents this year, very
> similar to the Bacchettas. R2

When will pics/more info be available?

John Riley

 

[Dave Larrington]

I've been running Conti GP's on my Speedmachine in all weathers for about a year - I had S-Licks on
it over the winter of 2001-02. While the dual suspension probably helps, visits from the P*nct*r*e
Fairy have been surprisingly few. Though she *did* choose to show up when I was blasting home at
near-record speeds on Friday, aided by a ferocious tailwind. And by the time I had changed the inner
tube, it was chucking it down. Harsh words were said.

Dave Larrington - http://legslarry.crosswinds.net/
===========================================================
Editor - British Human Power Club Newsletter
http://www.bhpc.org.uk/
===========================================================

 

[R2D2]

Posted by Tom Sherman:
>http://www.velocityusa.com/[/url] > for some rims that fit this description.

Thanks Tom for the link. My first choice has been the Velocity Aeroheat. Still looks to be nimber one, unless I hear differently.

----------------------------------------------------

Posted by Dj Blag:
>R2: When I bought my Phantom from Hostelshoppe, I questioned Rolf about using the Conti's. He was
concerned about there being 'enough tire' to absorb all the shock, since on a bent one can hardly unweight. Have you had any problems?? Chas

Chas,
The Conti' Grand Prix's are very fast, very sure-footed, and very puncture resistant (as Dave L has also attested to). As God is my witness, I have never flatted a Grand Prix in the past 15,000 miles I've ridden them. I know it has to be pure luck, but it is true.

They are also the most comfortable high-pressure tire I have ridden. For instance, the Michelin Axial Pros are a little higher pressure and a bit faster yet, but not as smooth. And the Conti Top Touring 2000 are lower pressure, much more comfortable, better on the loose stuff, but significantly slower. To name 2 excellent tires.

In response to your query, I don't find the Grand Prix too harsh (and I have several herniated disks), but you'd have to be the judge - and do the old balancing act between performance and comfort. I do find that I unweight the seat a bit on big hits that I see in time (those gopher holes sure hurt!).

If you would want to name some of the tires you have ridden, then I'd be happy to offer a comparison. R2

-------------------------------------------------------

John Riley wrote:
>When will pics/more info be available?

John, I'll post a new thread, so as not to step all over John Clarke's post (even more).

 

[Tom Sherman]

R2D2 wrote:
> ... Posted by Dj Blag:
> >R2: When I bought my Phantom from Hostelshoppe, I questioned Rolf about using the Conti's. He was
> concerned about there being 'enough tire' to absorb all the shock, since on a bent one can hardly
> unweight. Have you had any problems?? Chas
>
> Chas, The Conti' Grand Prix's are very fast, very sure-footed, and very puncture resistant (as
> Dave L has also attested to). As God is my witness, I have never flatted a Grand Prix in the past
> 15,000 miles I've ridden them. I know it has to be pure luck, but it is true.
>
> They are also the most comfortable high-pressure tire I have ridden. For instance, the Michelin
> Axial Pros are a little higher pressure and a bit faster yet, but not as smooth. And the Conti Top
> Touring 2000 are lower pressure, much more comfortable, better on the loose stuff, but
> significantly slower. To name 2 excellent tires.
>
> In response to your query, I don't find the Grand Prix too harsh (and I have several herniated
> disks), but you'd have to be the judge - and do the old balancing act between performance and
> comfort. I do find that I unweight the seat a bit on big hits that I see in time (those gopher
> holes sure hurt!)....

Comfort with a particular tire will also depend on the rider, bike and riding conditions. My Sunset
had a rather worn 28-406 Conti GP [1] on the back, which I soon replaced with a new 47-406 Tioga
Comp Pool [2] that was included with the bike. I found the ride over high frequency bumps [3] to be
rather annoying with the GP. The Comp Pool is much better in this regard and handling on loose
surfaces is also much better with the Comp Pool. I would not use a GP (or Schwalbe Stelvio) on the
back of the Sunset unless I was riding almost exclusively on high quality paved roads.

As for the gopher holes, maybe Gay Balfour [4] could vacuum them up and sell them as pets.

[1] Typically inflated to 120 psi (8.3 bar) [5]
[2] Typically inflated to 90 psi (6.2 bar)
[3] Such as the reflection cracks from the underlying Portland cement concrete pavement in asphalt
cement concrete overlays.
[4] No relation to Dave Balfour, Dual 406-mm wheel Wishbone RT and BikeE AT rider.
[5] It should be noted that I probably weigh half again as much as the bike's previous owner who
preferred the GP to the Comp Pool.

Tom Sherman - Various HPV's Quad Cities USA (Illinois side)