Talk like a Pirate Day

Basket Woes

I've spent about 100 miles on the Stella, maybe more and I can't seem to get comfortable with the Moustache Bars. Part of it is that the basket interferes with using the brake hoods for a hand position. The basket should be lower.

There are some other solutions. Ahearne makes a wonderful rack, as does Paul. I put out a question to the BOB list and the estimable Kent Peterson sent this. I'll have to check with Acme to see if they can do anything.

That aside, I'm having so much FUN riding this bike. I just seem to become one with the bike. I love riding it. It's been a tough week, three morning of getting up before 5 AM and getting out on the road but when you get off work and see Stella there waiting for you, it all seems worthwhile.

What kind of bike

Jim at Oil is For Sissies writes about someone wanting to know what type of bike his Atlantis is. Reminds me of a conversation I had on the "Slow Ride" last week. I was riding the Stella and happened to mention I couldn't coast to a guy on an Aegis yellow carbon fiber thing.

He said something like, "Nobody makes bikes for this kind of riding, the kind of riding we do."

I said, "Well, there's Rivendell, Surly, Kogswell. They make sensible bikes."

"But those are niche producers, small. You have to get a Rivendell over the internet."

"Well, not exactly. They have dealers."

My point is that there are plenty of sensible bikes. As a category, "Sensible Bikes" is probably as attractive as sensible shoes. Maybe not, Birkenstock and Keen and Doc Marten sell a lot of shoes.

Here it is, 95% complete,

I've ridden it 4 times, tweaking it a little more on each ride. I think the brake levers are where I want them and I'll tape it after a couple more rides, commutes to work perhaps. The other thing I need is a freewheel and I'm not sure what size, most likely 18 or 19 tooth.

Before installing the basket, I should have taken a picture. But I'm going to ride with the basket so here it is.

In building it up, I found that the original brakes I had picked out weren't going to reach far enough. So I dug through the parts bin at Acme and found these Weinmann Centerpulls at Robert's suggestion. Robert is the former owner of SouthSide Cyclery. I installed Scott/Matthauser salmon pads on them. I'm told this originally had 27-inch wheels on it so check out the great clearance.

The handlebars are Nitto Moustache Bars, that I acquired from an i-Bob, along with the Nitto Technomic Stem, sanded down to fit the headset. Brake levers are Dia-Compe, unknown models that have a quick-release, also acquired through the i-Bob list. It has a 1/2 inch chain and the original, or at least the ones that it came with, crankset and gear. With the Surly 16 tooth, it has about a 67 inch chain. I'm using the larger of the pair as a chainguard. Down the road, I may install a newer bottom bracket. Petals are Lyotard, that Acme had available to fit the French crankset. Down the road again, I may install PowerGrips or new pedals, as wear and tear merit.

The City of Big Shoulders

Visiting my wife's sister and her husband in Chicago, I made it my goal not to get into a car. I took the L from Midway to meet all for dinner but was stifled by the rain so we rode back to their house.

Yesterday, we did hit it on 2 wheels. I borrowed Joe's 19 inch unsuspended Specialized Hardrock. (Wonderful bike that. Just some Albatross bars from perfection. I'd love to trade my 16 inch for it.)

Rode down to Uptown Bikes/Urban Bikes for a new saddle for Laurie's Giant Nutra. (What does that name mean? I'd prefer Nutria, like those water rats down in Louisiana.)I found a basket that easily transfers from one bike to another, only it rests on the brake cable and bought some TriFlow for the unattended HardRock.

What really impressed me was the way the shop and the city accomodate bikes much more so than my fair city of KCMO. Singlespeeds, old Schwinns (they were once built here) and all kinds of mixtes and sensible handlebars. And cheap,cheap bikes! I rode along, watching the sidewalk and racks for all kinds of old interesting bikes.

Millenium Park has a bicycle parking garage, for heaven's sake.

Out on the Streets

So I took the dogs for a run around the neighborhood yesterday, after spending about 2 hours reinstalling the OS on this computer. Fortunately, I didn't lose any data this time and I didn't have to rebuild my browser.

Anyway, I'm standing at the crosswalk, two dogs tethered to my waist, sunglasses and bandana on my head. Some dork, driving a pickup truck full of lawn mowers, yells "FAGGOT!!"

Oooh, I'm scared.

Closer

So maybe this week, the Stella Scorcher will hit the road. My Suzue finally came in to Acme last week and I got Sarah to build up a beautiful wheel with it, Mavic rim and all.

I chose some Michelin tires with reflective sidewalls, kevlar belts and knobbed shoulders for off-road use. Digging through my closet, I found some self-repairing tubes in the right size. These wheels will be bomb-proof and ready for anything.

On to putting the other parts together. A French headset requires a French-sized stem, so I spent an hour sanding down a Nitto stem to fit in the headset. It made my hands look like the Tin Woodsman from the Wizard of Oz.

Centerpull brakes with quick release levers, cork grips on Mustache bars and a Brooks saddle of some sort (I have 3 to choose from, a plastic messenger B-18, a B17 Narrow, and a Conquest that I bought for Laurie but is too narrow for her.) All I need is a chain and surely some other expense.

I awoke from my nap

to hear the speech and was reminded of this. Maybe, he does believe this malarkey. That might be even more frightening than my cynical response.

Who are they selling?
I was reading the latest issue of Progressive Grocer the other day and saw a full page ad for flavored cigars. Now, I'm as "laissez-faire" as the next guy but who are they marketing these things to? What adult wants to smoke a grape flavored White Owl? I'm not that disingenuous.

Real Project Bicycles

I had thought I was really building some Frankenbikes until my mother-in-law brought me a copy of the Chicago Tribune with this in it. I'm just trying to restore and make useful the bikes I've got, not so much trying to create art.

On the road to Cottonwood Falls 

Laurie passes the Schoolhouse at Z-Bar 

Brakes placed but hardly ready to ride 

Hemp twine to guard the chainstay 

Head tube, Stella 

Where they've been 

the Stella Frame 

Where I shellaced the first bit 

Another bit of hemp twine at the ends 

A round of Bar Tape