Drugs, Sex, Rock and Roll

Mark B

Zen MBB Master
Not really, I was just seeing if anybody way paying attention. Seems like I take a few days off and everybody stops posting. Am I just being paranoid?

Mark
 

John Tolhurst

Zen MBB Master
Sure, Mark,

I took a ride on Sunday, hated the rear deraileur. Seems I got frustrated one day last month and kicked the pedal to free a jambed chain. Cause a twist in the chain, so just can't get it shifting right. I changed the cable too before this ride and teh cable seemed to stretch for ever, stopped three times in 40 minutes riding to take the slack up again.

Seemed to have bent the cage to on the Ultegra RD. I tried straightening it today, yet to test ride.

I think I want a new Silvio, one with the campag special deal groupset. :)
 

Mark B

Zen MBB Master
It pays to do a little maintenance now and again. My bike was making weird noises in certain gear combinations; it was annoying and in some instances, embarrasing. It really doesn't take long to go through the thing, thoroughly clean, lube, reassemble and tune up. I was certainly happy with the bike; it was like she was brand new again.

I was figuring it up and I have right at 5000 miles of Silvio riding in.

Mark
 

trapdoor2

Zen MBB Master
With all the 'non-rideable' weather we've been having, I chose to swap frames on my conversion and do some upgrades. So, mine's down while I get things back together. Saturday I received a new set of 26" wheels (Shimano Deore hubs, Mavic rims) and an Ultegra triple crankset. So yesterday I spent the evening assembling the wheels, installing and rigging brakes and installing the Ultegra triple crankset. No real problems but now I'm waiting on more parts...

This new frame's top tube has a 'bend' in it (actually just where the seat tube intersects the top tube) so the Cruzbike seat mount only contacts at either end. I'm going to have to come up with some way to better distribute the load or those contact points will end up denting the tube.
 

Mark B

Zen MBB Master
trapdoor2 wrote: This new frame's top tube has a 'bend' in it (actually just where the seat tube intersects the top tube) so the Cruzbike seat mount only contacts at either end. I'm going to have to come up with some way to better distribute the load or those contact points will end up denting the tube.

Consider balsa wood and fiberglass. Carve the wood to fit, then glass it for strength. If you have no other possible plans for the frame, glass it right to the tube permanent.

Mark
 

MrSteve

Zen MBB Master
Yes.
(Short answer.)
:?

Longer answer:
My severely sprained ankle is still recovering.
All my bike-miles are being done, while healing completes, in the
stupid gym on stupid stationary recumbent bikes.
:roll:

Clarification:
Wine is a drug, right?
:D

Steve
 

trapdoor2

Zen MBB Master
Mark B wrote:
trapdoor2 wrote: This new frame's top tube has a 'bend' in it (actually just where the seat tube intersects the top tube) so the Cruzbike seat mount only contacts at either end. I'm going to have to come up with some way to better distribute the load or those contact points will end up denting the tube.

Consider balsa wood and fiberglass. Carve the wood to fit, then glass it for strength. If you have no other possible plans for the frame, glass it right to the tube permanent.
Yes, esp. since I have built model airplanes since the early 60's...I have lots of balsa lying about. :cool: I also grew up with an older brother who misspent the early/mid 60's on a surfboard in So. Cal. We built many surfboards in our garage...the smell of F/G resin evokes childhood memories for me. :)

This bike's frame is just a bit wider than the previous one also. Thus, there is another problem with the radius of the seatmount...I may just do some 'body & fender' work on that mount and see if I can get it to sit lower on the frame. A little judicious "adjustment" and I may loose 1/2" or so of seat height...always a good thing. These are fun projects for the rainy season...I'll try to take some pix as I go along.
 

Doug Burton

Zen MBB Master
Hey Marc,

I'm thinking it might be pretty hard for the seat mount to actually damage that frame unless it's carbon fiber. I tried it on one of the aluminum frames I built and other than being tough on my lousy rattle-can paint, it seemed to be okay, and I was over 200 lbs at the time...

Maybe some pictures before you start the load-spreader development?

Best,

Doug
 

rearengine

Active Member
How about no seat mount...
78_f1ca710fffce2ac32b7e326e123b518e
78_2ef09d61be9a562825dfda8a0db999c0
 

trapdoor2

Zen MBB Master
LOL! Perhaps that's just 'forced air cooling'? :?

I have thought about just creating my own specialized mounting bracket (or cobbling together something that would work).

I'll see if I can take some pix, Doug...and you're right, it may be that I'm just thinking too much. Still, we're talking essentially about four contact points...I will be happier if I can get from "point loading" to "area loading". I don't know what the material thickness is in the top tube area...but I bet it wasn't designed to take much of a surface load.

I need to get this bike up and rideable so I can finalize the seat location. Pricepoint.com, here I come! :D
 

trapdoor2

Zen MBB Master
Well...I went ahead with "hot rodding" my seat mount. First, I 'massaged' the original seat bracket to better fit the larger tube diameter. When I disassembled the seat and removed the bracket, I found that the corners of the bracket had pierced the rubber pad and cut thru the paint. No dents but I've only sat on it twice...no riding. I'm convinced doing this modification is going to save my top tube from grief.

So, after some hammer massage therapy, the bracket fit the tube radius at each end. However, the bracket still only touched at the ends, no longer 'point loaded' but more like an edge bearing on the tube surface. Better, but not what I wanted.

After an hour or two contemplation, I decided to try the seat flat on the top tube (without mount bracket). This reduces the seat height by about 1/2" and drops the front of the seat rise by just a bit. The seat needs the support of the original bracket to help keep its shape, so I ended up sawing the center bit out of the bracket, essentially creating two "L" brackets. These bolt into their normal positions on the seat pan and hang right alongside the top tube...the original band clamps can be used to hold the seat in place but I need to make up some rubber protection (out of old inner tubes) for the top tube first. It is going to work fine...I think!
 
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