Project Carrera

[mpemburn]

I wish I'd been on Cycle Chat when I undertook this project—there's a lot of good advice available here.

Several months ago, I found it necessary to get a new bike frame. I had most of the parts, so I undertook to find a frame that was my size, and available at a reasonable price. I found this Carrera Nitro SL (carbon) frame on eBay that was within my budget. It's a few years old, but it's in really fine shape. Fairly light, though not really feather-weight.

The first thing that I discovered was that while I had the tool to install the bottom bracket, the force required to screw it in was greater than I was comfortable with. Thus, it was off to my LBS to take advantage of their greater experience. I've muscle f---- too many things in my time to ruin this beauty before I put a single mile on it. I did also decide to have them do the fine tuning on the shifting—and glad that I did. It was discovered that derailleur hanger was slightly misaligned, and they took care of straightening that out for me.

Now with several hundred miles under my wheels, I am really pleased with this beast. Building your own bike is not for everyone, but it's greatly rewarding to be able to turn an idea into a reality that you can ride.


Frame : Carrera Nitro SL
Crankset: Ultegra 50/34
Bottom Bracket: Ultegra BS threaded
Pedals: Exustar SPD-SL
Front Derailleur: Ultegra
Rear Derailleur: RD R8000
Cassette: Ultegra 11-32
Brakes: Ultegra
Bars: Bontrager carbon
Stem: Bontrager alloy
Seat post: Oval Concepts carbon
Saddle: Nashbar FC1
Wheels: Fulcrum Racing 5
Tires: Continental Gator Skins

 

[Spiderweb]

Looks lovely!
Well done👍

 

[T4tomo]

Ah I recognise those Fulcrum 5's with the anodised red nipples. You know you can get valve caps and cable crimps to match right off ebay?

 

[mpemburn]

Ah I recognise those Fulcrum 5's with the anodised red nipples. You know you can get valve caps and cable crimps to match right off ebay?

Unlikely, but thanks for mentioning! I have to admit that the blur of red from the nipples looks pretty cool when I'm riding along, though.

Oh and...after reading the wheel truing thread yesterday, I was moved to look up replacement spokes for these wheels. They require three different sizes—two for the rear and one for the front—and are sold in boxes of five for around $20 apiece. Yikes! Maybe I'll just get a pair of used wheels to keep around instead.

 

[Gunk]

That’s a really nice build, looks great!

 

[johnggold]

You have been fortunate. I specialise in restoring vintage racing bikes and had never had to touch Carerra bikes until lockdown when I had loads dumped on my front lawn needing repair.

Notwithstanding that getting spares such as plastic wheel dust covers - things which teenagers regularly damage, poor setup on gear changes after being serviced, the real issue was the lack of parts lubrication. Cable adjusters were locked solid, usually where they could not be easily drilled out. Ali seat tubes were welded solid requiring loads of WD40 and heat to free.

As a result I took to using copper grease on every bike, as preventive maintenance.

When I finally forced the local Halfords manager to get me parts, he admitted that failure to lubricate parts during manufacture was becoming a real servicing problem.

Tip: Halfords staff will always telly you they cant get parts, but the managers have access to the manufacturers and can get parts for any current model if you insist.

I did need a letter to Halfords Head Office to get the ball rolling.

I just recently took apart a 1950 Humber that had stood idle for 30 plus years. Every part unscrewed without issue. Go figure!

 

[DRM]

You have been fortunate. I specialise in restoring vintage racing bikes and had never had to touch Carerra bikes until lockdown when I had loads dumped on my front lawn needing repair.

Notwithstanding that getting spares such as plastic wheel dust covers - things which teenagers regularly damage, poor setup on gear changes after being serviced, the real issue was the lack of parts lubrication. Cable adjusters were locked solid, usually where they could not be easily drilled out. Ali seat tubes were welded solid requiring loads of WD40 and heat to free.

As a result I took to using copper grease on every bike, as preventive maintenance.

When I finally forced the local Halfords manager to get me parts, he admitted that failure to lubricate parts during manufacture was becoming a real servicing problem.

Tip: Halfords staff will always telly you they cant get parts, but the managers have access to the manufacturers and can get parts for any current model if you insist.

I did need a letter to Halfords Head Office to get the ball rolling.

I just recently took apart a 1950 Humber that had stood idle for 30 plus years. Every part unscrewed without issue. Go figure!

That’s not from Halfords, it’s an Italian Carrera, it’s like comparing a Ferrari to a Ford Fiesta, they’re not allowed to be sold in the UK due to Halfords copyright of the name here

 

[yo vanilla]

BB's can be a pain sometimes, and better safe than sorry so no shame in running to the LBS! I did the same to get one off the other day - I wasn't comfortable applying the force necessary and the LBS determined an impact gun was in order to remove it!