Andy in Germany
Guru
- Location
- Freiburg im Breisgau
The Elder Son is growing fast and eyeing my commuter bike, which currently does a sterling job of being too boring and unglamorous to get stolen while I'm at college or work, and a pretty good ride when I use it.
This means that long term he or I will need another bike.
For the replacement I'd like to try an experiment; I have some experience working on bikes, mostly mountainbikes during a part time job in my local LBS, and also maintaining the family fleet, so for the next bike I'd like to build my own from old parts.
Ideally I'm aiming for a very traditional bike that I'll like but is too unique and retro to steal. With this inmind I'd like:
Steel frame. Weight isn't a great issue, but I like the narrowness and flex of steel.
18" frame, 26" Wheels. My friends describe me as 'The size of a Hobbit' which isn't quite true, but I'm not that big and an 18" MTB frame is a good size. It also keeps components like wheels the same size as other bikes in the stable which is handy for swapping wheels ot tyres in an emergency.
Drop handlebars (rare in Germany, thus unattractive to thieves, and also better for my wrist which is compaining at my straight bars)
Bottom bar friction shifters (Unatractive to thieves, cheap and compatible with whatever is hanging off the back of the frame)
Vee brakes (seems to contradict the whole 'retro' vibe but we have murderous hills and I need reliable stopping power)
I know this is theoretically possible, but I'm not experienced in the whole mountain bike / Drop bars mix. My current plan is to get an old 18" MTB frame, or used bike with a frame of the right type, and strip it down.
What should I look for though? Preliminary investigations brought this up: (German text)
http://www.ebay.de/itm/gebr-trekkin...891775?hash=item3d09e33aff:g:ZmcAAOSwRLZT5j6m
I'm not likely to get an unseen Ebay bike so I would be unlikely to buy this, especially at the price, but it is an example of what I'm looking for, simply for the frame. I figure once I have that I can replace components at my leisure and rebuild when I've collected what I want, but to take this example, how easy is it to upgrade such things?
The BB looks a bit old: Is there any chance of fitting a sealed unit in there?
Woiuld those ancient brake braze ons take modern V brakes? I've come across bikes like that in the past that the braze ons were too far from the wheel rims.
Could I replace the stem with one that could take drops?
What should I be aware of with the diameter of components or frame parts?
Are Vee brakes really that much better than good caliper brakes?
Apologies for dumping lots of probably daft questions on the forum, but my LBS would laugh in my face at even the suggestion of such a project, so I have very few places to turn to for advice.
This means that long term he or I will need another bike.
For the replacement I'd like to try an experiment; I have some experience working on bikes, mostly mountainbikes during a part time job in my local LBS, and also maintaining the family fleet, so for the next bike I'd like to build my own from old parts.
Ideally I'm aiming for a very traditional bike that I'll like but is too unique and retro to steal. With this inmind I'd like:
Steel frame. Weight isn't a great issue, but I like the narrowness and flex of steel.
18" frame, 26" Wheels. My friends describe me as 'The size of a Hobbit' which isn't quite true, but I'm not that big and an 18" MTB frame is a good size. It also keeps components like wheels the same size as other bikes in the stable which is handy for swapping wheels ot tyres in an emergency.
Drop handlebars (rare in Germany, thus unattractive to thieves, and also better for my wrist which is compaining at my straight bars)
Bottom bar friction shifters (Unatractive to thieves, cheap and compatible with whatever is hanging off the back of the frame)
Vee brakes (seems to contradict the whole 'retro' vibe but we have murderous hills and I need reliable stopping power)
I know this is theoretically possible, but I'm not experienced in the whole mountain bike / Drop bars mix. My current plan is to get an old 18" MTB frame, or used bike with a frame of the right type, and strip it down.
What should I look for though? Preliminary investigations brought this up: (German text)
http://www.ebay.de/itm/gebr-trekkin...891775?hash=item3d09e33aff:g:ZmcAAOSwRLZT5j6m
I'm not likely to get an unseen Ebay bike so I would be unlikely to buy this, especially at the price, but it is an example of what I'm looking for, simply for the frame. I figure once I have that I can replace components at my leisure and rebuild when I've collected what I want, but to take this example, how easy is it to upgrade such things?
The BB looks a bit old: Is there any chance of fitting a sealed unit in there?
Woiuld those ancient brake braze ons take modern V brakes? I've come across bikes like that in the past that the braze ons were too far from the wheel rims.
Could I replace the stem with one that could take drops?
What should I be aware of with the diameter of components or frame parts?
Are Vee brakes really that much better than good caliper brakes?
Apologies for dumping lots of probably daft questions on the forum, but my LBS would laugh in my face at even the suggestion of such a project, so I have very few places to turn to for advice.
