Well the the forum has been a little slow lately so I thought I'd give an update on my Sofrider V1
I've added fenders. Yesterday while looking for a bag I found a set of Bontrager fenders. They are silver with a chrome colored stripe down the center. The color match to my Sofrider is perfect in my opinion. The rear fender went on without too much difficulty however the front fork has no fender eyes. How I got around this small problem was to drill a small hole for the M5 bolt at the top of the dropout in the center.I then attached the fender brackets on the inside of the dropout. It worked out well and now I have a set of fenders for the wet side of Oregon.
Next, I had a beam mount rear rack but was unhappy with it. I have been reading up on racks and knew that Old Man Mountain racks would work on a rear suspension bike. I settled on the White Rock model for $44.99 I preferred the Red Rock for the longer top shelf but it wasn't available in my area. I wanted a rack now and didn't want to order by mail and wait. That's how much I detested the beam rack I had.
Finally I purchased some interesting lights. They are called Reelights and are powered by magnets attached to the spokes. I purchased the M120 model that are suppose to have a "stand light" but am disappointed in that feature. As my wheels spin the magnet passes the Reelight and induces current to make the light blink. It's nice to know that I have lights at all times and not have to worry about batteries. Reelights have been available in Europe for awhile now but are fairly new to us here in the US. Currently they have three models. A blinking only, a steady light only and a blinking with stand light. I'm told soon there will be a steady light with a capacitor for when you're stopped. If it's anything like mine I'd be disappointed again in the stand light feature.
Finally I purchased some pedals that have a little dynamo inside of them that powers three flashing LED lights. I'm not ready to go clipless pedals yet so I am using these in the intern. I wasn't full thinking when I purchased these. I have a couple of other bents that I knew these wouldn't work on. Velomobile, enough said here. GS GT3-II, high bottom bracket and fear of leg suck. The Sofrider has a lower bottom bracket so I thought these pedals would be great. Problem is the angle of attack. Neither the white forward light nor the red rear light shine in the proper direction. Only the center amber light is oriented properly. I had thought about returning them but all three lights can be seen from the side and also is just looks great with them flashing. They also incorporate a stand light and will continue to flash for a couple of minutes after I've stopped pedaling.
Now for the obligatory photos, enjoy.
P.S. I love my Sofrider but people at work don't understand when I tell them I'm thinking of selling it. They just haven't seen a Silvio yet! Perhaps one day soon.
I've added fenders. Yesterday while looking for a bag I found a set of Bontrager fenders. They are silver with a chrome colored stripe down the center. The color match to my Sofrider is perfect in my opinion. The rear fender went on without too much difficulty however the front fork has no fender eyes. How I got around this small problem was to drill a small hole for the M5 bolt at the top of the dropout in the center.I then attached the fender brackets on the inside of the dropout. It worked out well and now I have a set of fenders for the wet side of Oregon.
Next, I had a beam mount rear rack but was unhappy with it. I have been reading up on racks and knew that Old Man Mountain racks would work on a rear suspension bike. I settled on the White Rock model for $44.99 I preferred the Red Rock for the longer top shelf but it wasn't available in my area. I wanted a rack now and didn't want to order by mail and wait. That's how much I detested the beam rack I had.
Finally I purchased some interesting lights. They are called Reelights and are powered by magnets attached to the spokes. I purchased the M120 model that are suppose to have a "stand light" but am disappointed in that feature. As my wheels spin the magnet passes the Reelight and induces current to make the light blink. It's nice to know that I have lights at all times and not have to worry about batteries. Reelights have been available in Europe for awhile now but are fairly new to us here in the US. Currently they have three models. A blinking only, a steady light only and a blinking with stand light. I'm told soon there will be a steady light with a capacitor for when you're stopped. If it's anything like mine I'd be disappointed again in the stand light feature.
Finally I purchased some pedals that have a little dynamo inside of them that powers three flashing LED lights. I'm not ready to go clipless pedals yet so I am using these in the intern. I wasn't full thinking when I purchased these. I have a couple of other bents that I knew these wouldn't work on. Velomobile, enough said here. GS GT3-II, high bottom bracket and fear of leg suck. The Sofrider has a lower bottom bracket so I thought these pedals would be great. Problem is the angle of attack. Neither the white forward light nor the red rear light shine in the proper direction. Only the center amber light is oriented properly. I had thought about returning them but all three lights can be seen from the side and also is just looks great with them flashing. They also incorporate a stand light and will continue to flash for a couple of minutes after I've stopped pedaling.
Now for the obligatory photos, enjoy.
P.S. I love my Sofrider but people at work don't understand when I tell them I'm thinking of selling it. They just haven't seen a Silvio yet! Perhaps one day soon.
Anybody doing lay-aways plans for Silvio frame sets? :lol: I"m all in then..
