Looks like a great ride, excellent work earning those descents!

@drVanTraveler
I think I'll keep my White Industries crankset, thank you. Now, if only I had a frame I could fit it on!!

@BicycleBuck they would be a challenge as they are just for drop bars. The key is that they'll run virtually any Shim/SRAM rear derailleur of your choice on your road, CX or gravel bike. Which means you can anything from 11-21 to 10-52 in the rear cassette depending on your derailleur choice.

@StuckMTB

Very nice!

Oh no! Take care of that one. Late to the party, but glad you're doing better.

@SilentbutnotreallyDeadly I have Microshift on my other bike, really solid stuff. I went Advent X since I didn't wanna pay for Deore or SRAM bits and not have an out of the box solution for drop bars and wide range. Works perfectly. No regrets. I would be happy with Microshift stuff.

@stuckmtb That looks fun. I'm not brave enough to go out on the ice, but it was soooo tempting when it had frozen before the snow came. Could have been clear skating for miles.

@vondon302

I mean...it works. Ladies love those roadie legs.

@benjrblant thanks!

@ibRAD I think so, or at least it's the first 'mass produced' one at any rate. Earlier models were more home-brew type specials with hand stitched tires and hoops that were welded together to make a wider rim. I found a nice quick read on the early history here: https://www.adventurecycling.org/resources/blog/a-brief-history-of-fatbikes/

The pugs has a lot of interesting details that have roots in it's origins as an ugly duckling in the early 2000s MTB world. They're primarily aimed at all-terrain touring so they used a lot of parts that were readily available at the time and were designed to be serviceable nearly anywhere in the world. This is the reason that both wheels use the common 135mm axle standard. This lead to the rear wheels very un-conventional axle spacing, but it meant that if your rear hub packed up in the middle of Chile, you could find parts to fix it in the nearest bike shop in town. You could even get yourself an asymmetrical front fork with a spare cog on the drive side so that if your drive train crapped out you could swap your tires back-to-front and keep on truckin.

alt text
There's a look at a Pugsley's offset rear end. A unique solution to an odd problem, but it works surprisingly well.

I haven't put mine through any kind of extended treks like this yet, but it's on my bucket list!

@spacekraken said in The mythical "buying bike parts in 2022":

The Kona (which, btw, I'm fixing up )

hell yeah! cant wait to see how it gets reincarnated.

@drvantraveler i did the Barnett school years ago. Really fun to learn systematic repair

@stuckmtb said in Sun in january!:

@drvantraveler how do you like those PDW fenders? I was considering getting a set for my Pugsley.

I think the back fender is just right. Easy to mount, stops most of the flying crud. The front, I've gone through a couple of revisions on.

Here's what I've settled on.
FrontFender.jpg

The Planet Bike Big Buck front fender and the PDW strap on a little lower, trimmed down a bit. You'll notice the zip tie lacing on the front. The Big Buck mounts are a little iffy, but the fender itself is pretty good.

@trivet
I know where to buy cotter pins. And I also curse every bastard who does them up too tight in the first place.

I'm also quite grateful they are ancient history.

@svend I shall have to look into that! Maybe for my nice road bike-both these bikes are aluminum, covered in scratches and see mud weekly, so I'm not particularly worried about keeping them pristine... but proper cleaning would be awesome once in a while

@stuckmtb people at work are refering to me as Santa

@spacekraken The last pic is EPIC!

@sovande Yep, I wanna do it when I get a 24-70 so I can get some landscape pics. I got a nice tripod too so, Should be really pretty

@spacekraken said in Any bike is a gravel bike if you try hard enough:

@wrong-wheel-drive Oh it's quite loose in actuality! Packed gravel but you still get lots of wheelspin... it's just so wet it kinda looks like macadam.

That sounds like a hell of a riot.

@azw123 Eh, I've looked at a few Triumphs but they don't do it for me. Besides I'm not looking for anything more than a 650 to begin with. Also these come with ABS and Brembo brakes so they're way safer than what was offered 11 years ago.

@jminer It really was!

@wrong-wheel-drive Well, I'm singlespeed on my MTB, so I'm ALWAYS in the wrong gear 😉

@awesomeaustinv said in BikeJalop rebuild news:

@drvantraveler Did Schwinn name a bicycle after a disappointing Cadillac, or does Cimarron have another meaning I’m not familiar with?

i have no idea. The Cadillac was only a couple of years before the Schwinn, so it's possible it was coincidence. The Schwinn is a well regarded early MTB.

@spacekraken I second the recommendation for 28mm tires. If the bike can fit them, they're fantastic to run. That added volume does wonders to smooth out bumps and chip seal roads.

@ita97 Ah makes sense. A nicer shifter may be in the cards for the Habit then.

@sovande Cheaper starting point, they're cheaper and I really like those old bikes. A new bike is defo better but I like these old frames. I could also get a newer bike. The Plaomar in the post is a newer cheaper one and I just want it for parts. I wouldn't mod one like that.

@rallywrench I fondly remember the that 29x3.0 setup on my former Stache 9.7 hardtail. I rode 'em at 10psi for carrying my 158lbs self. I liked the way they inspired confidence and laughed at sand, but eventually I got to the point earlier this year where I started riding a lot harder and faster and realizing how much speed I was giving up with that much rubber.

That led to my current Trek Top Fuel 9.7, as a down country bike on 29x2.4 rubber. I'm riding these 2.4s at 18 psi these days. The bike and smaller rubber is a lot better suited for the stuff I like to ride at a fast pace. I wouldn't mind another 29+ bike someday for messing around on, but now I'm converted to the church of full squish.

@s65 I have two shops in easy walking distance (< 10 minutes) but the demand is just crazy here. Maybe I'll just have it all done over the winter, maybe I'll clean my workshop out and do it myself (ha ha, probably not).

@spacekraken Its still a sweet ass whip though. Even their cheap frames are works of art. The way Cannondale does welds makes all others feel shame. I am constantly finding myself in want of another one, and am beginning to suspect my first road/ gravel bike will be one.

@spacekraken Congrats to your friend on the new bike. Make sure the carbon fork was carefully checked, if you haven't already. Sounds like a nice bike.

@ranwhenparked There are all sorts of huge luxury boats like this from the 70s all the way thru to the early 2000s that can be had for well under $10k - the later ones get too blobby and plastic fantastic for me, but some really cool cruisers out there. Very tempting. Not the genre of car I've ever been interested in, but really appealing to me lately.

@spacekraken said in Beater Hardrock update:

@drvantraveler They really do rock. Night and day vs the tired old no brand pads it had. Probably going to get a set for my proper full suspension MTB as well as it also runs v-brakes on 559mm wheels.

I've got some shiney Kool stop for a couple of road bikes too. I think they look as good as they work,
koolstopsad.jpg

@s65 I never worry about the level of overspend on bikes that are like family pets.
Bike painting, I think, is better done by those with real painting skilz. A hastily spray bombed bike almost always looks crappy. Guy in the video has many skilz.

@spacekraken looks like the perfect runaround bike!

@hammerheadfistpunch damn, that's an awesome build.

@stuckmtb Nice, I saw the union jack and the SS setup and was curious. Sounds like you're running a dingle in the rear. I couldn't zoom in enough to see how you had the front rings mounted. You just using a 2x crank? I would have thought there would have been interference with two similarly sized rings on the front.

Didn't even think about Raleigh as a possible option. I miss my singlespeed and want to fill that gap, but I think I want to do something quasi-gravelish. Something like this, Capture.PNG but single speed with some of the not quite drop bars like Surly Cornerbar or the Curve Remlaw.

@smallbear said in Night, Oppo:

I went for it... bit of light sanding, and a BrandX dropper fit right in. Beauty.

Excellent! Glad to hear it, still my favorite upgrade for the bike

@bicyclebuck said in X-bike updates: New stem cap, new mantra, lots of miles!:

"Did I ever tell you about the time I bunny-hopped a moose?"

@VincentMalamute I mean.... as long as your riding buddy isn't there to deny it, who's to say you didn't?

@forsweden Oh haha, my ebike is set up the same way. But also, Marathon e-Plus tires and self sealing tubes for good measure

@stuckmtb said in Kona one year rebuild/update:

Looks like a nice all around upgrade! I've been putting off doing a similarly thorough cleaning of my Straggler for a few months now while our house is under construction and consequently my 'shop' area is packed up in the basement. I think I'll probably just do a slightly larger rear cassette that I've got on there... probably 11-34 instead of 11-32. That plus a new chain and derailleur cabling should make it shift happy again. I did recently buy new WTB Byways to replace my GravelKing SKs for a bit more speed around town on pavement, but my GKs have a few more miles in them before I need to swap em out. Probably ought to work in a few more trail miles to get the most out of the lil knobbies before they're gone!

I forgot yours was purple! Love it. The Byways are pretty similar to the Ventures just with a faster center strip... I like them a lot except for cornering hard on pavement cause the knobs get squirrely at times.

@drVanTraveler @Sovande thank you!

@highlander exactly!

Well.... I can do this on my MTB as the rims and tires are from the same manufacturer and fit together so well I can set them up and they hold air without sealant!

My road bike on the other hand, those tires fit the rims like a square peg in a round hole, so inflating those requires a fair bit of mess and cursing. Those need to be topped up on schedule because if a flat or something happens for long enough for the bead to unseat, I'm not fixing it on the side of the road without a tube.

@bicyclebuck I have the height just where I want it and I am trying to avoid spending money on a stem. At this point I am about $60 into handlebars though... I think a little more width is all I really need. Until I decide I need to change something else.

@bicyclebuck Aside from the wastefulness of that approach nicer bikes are also nice to ride. I grew up on big box bikes (for the most part, I did have a 24" Gary Fisher when I was pretty young) and the difference in even a half-hearted attempt at a higher end bike is amazing. My first "higher end" bike was a $350 hardtail that I rode the piss out of for a couple years, broke everything, wore the rest out, but it got me in and led me to building a Banshee Paradox back when 29ers were not ubiquitous. THAT bike was fantastic. Enormous to fit me (XL frame) but smooth, lighter than it should have been, and just worked. Built like a tank and handled daily riding duties and trails 3-4 times a week.

Yeah I could have rammed through crap bikes but having one reliable, well built bike was so much nicer to live wtih

@benjrblant Backseat driver FTW!

@s65 it looks like it's a bout a 20 mile loop or so, which would be a nice ride.

I really like the C&O towpath. I have walked about 30 miles of it from DC west (so up to about Poolesville, MD) but the other day was my first time riding to Great Falls from my house (my girlfriend lives in the Palisades and I have done it from there before). Doing it from home adds about 15 more miles. The path is in pretty good shape and shade that is provided is a godsend around here in the summer.

The Range- IMG_1174.jpg
Very custom(setup for barspins, mullet, etc) older enduro race rig pressed into freeride duty, currently has a broken seatstay from hucking the roof of an abandoned KFC to flat.

Car equivalent- Your nephews lifted, salvage titled '03 WRX?

The CAADX-
IMG_1346.jpg
Fairly generic rig with genuine race pedigree(from local cx races, all the way up to pan american champs), has since logged FKTs on multiday bikepacking loops and been a commuter/hooligan xc bike replacement.

Car equivalent- Successfully club raced NC miata, turned to time/speed/distance rallying and backroads fun

@whatisthatsound titanium bikes are so sweet, but it's very much a luxury to spend that kind of coin on a hardtail. I'm already barely doing drops, due to lack of skill and the risk of injury and increased recovery time as I get older. I'm only 35 but I can feel it and I know my limits. Full time hardtail life is not what my knees need.

Finished up the Lemond,
lemondfinal.jpg

@silentbutnotreallydeadly Thanks, will keep in mind. Plan is SPD shoes and clipless for the gravel bike, and probably aggressive flats for the mountain bike

@dejock Gotcha, I'm in NJ although I have done some riding in Roanoke.

@amgtech Will do for all, thanks!

@benjrblant @Tripper Rocky Mounts Brass Knuckles... only thing that would lock properly around the fenders. I got two since the design seems solid to use with my MTB as well.

@LooseonExit Ah yeah... tbf the garage is full of stuff so no way to drive in and make that mistake haha. But that's something I'll have to be careful about for sure. And thanks! Color was a big selling point of the car

@spacekraken good night

@ita97 I really need to ride it to compare, but it's got about 2x the padding of the stock tape. Feels like a world of difference without riding it...

@ibrad Yeah trying to get some good use out of it! And yep, matching the car was a nice bonus

@kleebrz I plan on it...

@annoying_salman this wont help then... I've shot with a friend's D700 and it's awesome. 12mp seems low by modern standards but it's a really crisp 12mp with amazing tones

@cb @Noodles Ha yeah, I ended up just drinking half of it before riding home... I think you're right, the cup holder was designed for a travel mug.