Greetings from the land of ravaged Citi Bikes:
Musta been utilizing these hookless rims.
One look on the entrance web page of your newspaper of selection will verify that there’s tons and plenty of necessary stuff occurring right here in America and world wide. However I don’t care about any of that crap. All I care about is my new Roaduno:
By the way in which, it appears like the whole Roadunos are at present bought out…BUT they nonetheless have scuffed ones accessible, and at a reduction. In truth mine is a scuffed one, although you possibly can hardly discover:
In case you’re utilizing the bike proper it must be not less than that scuffed after your first experience… Plus for those who’re as incompetent as I’m you’ll handle to scratch any new bike up fairly good throughout meeting earlier than you even get it out the door. And for those who don’t like scuffs or another person selecting your elements for you, you can even get the Roaduno as only a body.
Anyway, if it actually begins to trouble me I’ll simply apply some touch-up paint:
I spent plenty of time with the Roaduno over the weekend, not solely driving it but additionally making the same old changes and tweaks. For instance, the very first thing it wanted was some tape on the handlebar bends:
That is the place you seize the bar if you’re climbing out of the saddle, and because it’s a singlespeed you need some additional grip because you’re cranking on it fairly a bit more durable than you’ll on a geared bike. Please notice I stay deeply Newbaum’s-challenged and the taped portion on the left is longer than the one on the suitable, which makes no sensible distinction however psychologically is de facto annoying when you discover it. Additionally, I used electrical tape as a substitute of twine, which is in direct contravenance to the Rivendell fashion handbook. Nevertheless, I count on I’ll be experimenting with the bike fairly a bit within the coming months (swapping cockpits and so forth) so fussing over the bar tape at this early stage appears particularly pointless.
I’ve additionally modified the tires. The bike comes with Panaracer Gravel Kings, that are an awesome match:
Nevertheless, on my first actual experience I may really feel a little bit hop within the rear wheel. It clearly wasn’t a difficulty with rim trueness or roundness, so I eliminated the tire and checked the rim strip and tube; all that was high quality too. Then I remounted the tire, figuring possibly it hadn’t been seated correctly, however nonetheless the hop remained. Because it occurred, I had a pair of Bruce Gordon Rock n’ Street tires within the tire pile, which have been nonetheless in fine condition and have been shut in each measurement and spirit to the Gravel Kings. So I put these on, and whaddya know, the hop was gone:
Did I get a faulty Gravel King? I suppose it’s doable, although it’s additionally doable I simply didn’t spend sufficient time making an attempt to the tire. (In my expertise Panaracers could be fussy that manner…and sure, I do know the Rock n’ Roads are additionally Panaracers.) Both manner, the Rock n’ Roads additionally go well with the bike completely–a little bit heavier than the Gravel Kings, but additionally a little bit fatter–so for now I’ll simply hold them on and maintain the Gravel Kings in reserve:
Talking of fatter tires, the lengthy attain calipers afford the bike loads of clearance, although I seen the opposite day that one or two individuals commented negatively on their look and advised the bike can be higher served with cantilevers, V-brakes, and even discs:
After all all of that is extremely subjective, and if somebody doesn’t like the way in which one thing appears or prefers a distinct system I’d by no means presume to alter their minds, even when I do assume they’re CRAZY AND WRONG.
On the identical time, we’re all bike dorks in the beginning, so let’s take a second to discover the topic and nerd out on brakes. First, let’s contemplate the looks of the brake:
[How the hell did only the pedal wind up in focus? I continue to amaze myself.]
Now I occur to assume that the single-bolt caliper brake is probably the most elegant of all velocipedal retardation techniques, and that’s no matter size. Actually for those who really feel otherwise that’s completely legitimate, however I’d implore you to not less than contemplate the chance that you simply’ve been brainwashed. Street bicycle brakes have been the sufferer of an insidious type of shrink-flation since just like the Nineteen Eighties, when just about all street bikes no matter supposed use began coming with short-reach brakes, a measurement that had beforehand been reserved for racers. So pervasive was this shift that the splendidly versatile medium-reach brake began to grow to be often called a lengthy-reach brake:
[A medium-reach brake]
As for precise brakes with lengthy attain, these have been quickly thought of so gargantuan that they didn’t even trouble inventing a brand new identify for them. Think about that Specialised likes to auto-fellate itself for inventing the comfy street bike with the Roubaix (HA!), and but even that bike got here with short-reach brakes:
As a substitute it had a “Zertz damping system:”
One way or the other this factor was thought of aesthetically preferable to a barely longer brake. Then once they have been completed mind-fucking us they stated, “Oh, you need clearance? Now you want a motorbike with discs!”
My level is that by progressively memory-holing sensibly-sized brake calipers, the bike trade created the present state of affairs, which is {that a} sensibly-sized brake now appears comically large to individuals. It’s like we’ve all been working towards foot-binding for the previous 40 years and so we now level and chuckle at normal-sized sneakers.
As for cantilevers and V-brakes, as a rim brake apologist I naturally respect each techniques. Nevertheless, let’s contemplate why these techniques exist within the first place, and it’s primarily to accommodate bigger tires and to ship extra braking energy. However keep in mind, it is a Streetuno, not a Mountainuno, and it doesn’t have to accommodate mountain bike-sized tires. Moreover, I can attest that the stopping energy on the inventory barbecue tongs is greater than sufficient, and also you’re most likely not going to load a motorbike like this very closely. So why design the bike for cantis or v-brakes, which require extra materials on the body? Along with bosses, cantilever brakes additionally require stuff like cable hangers, and they are often difficult to arrange. (“Have you ever tried toeing them in?” is usually the very last thing individuals say to pissed off canti customers earlier than they get punched within the nostril.) In the meantime, v-brakes could not want hangers and are usually extra simple mechanically, however once more, it’s a Streetuno, and if you wish to use drop bars (I’ll virtually actually put drop bars on this factor in some unspecified time in the future) you’re restricted to particular levers or kludgy adapters or mini-vs that require you to set the pad like 1mm from the rim. However a street brake is idiot-proof (take it from me, a bona-fide fool) and requires nothing greater than a pair holes within the body, and thus appears to me to be the best brake for this type of bike. Additionally, if we’re going to make extremely subjective aesthetic observations, road-ish bikes with v-brakes scream “hybrid,” sorry:
By the way in which, this simplicity extends to the 120mm spacing:
I admit that initially even I used to be like, “Huh, why not simply go 130mm or 135mm? Looks like you’d have extra choices.” Then I noticed that the trade is shifting away from non-thru-axle non-disc 130mm and 135mm hubs normally (to say nothing of singlespeed-specific hubs). Nevertheless, for the reason that fixie craze of the early aughts 120mm hubs have been each low-cost and ubiquitous, and naturally you could have your deluxe choices too. Positive, you could not be capable of throw some spacers on the freehub of your previous street wheel to single it up and apply it to the Roaduno, however so what? Additionally, since monitor bikes don’t use brakes, you gained’t run out of hub choices attributable to trade disc-ification, and since extremely individuals proceed to experience fixies you’ll most likely be capable of get 120mm hubs till the top of time. Once I began this weblog in 2007 principally to ridicule hipsters on fixies, who knew I’d wind up owing every part to them they usually’d find yourself saving us? Thanks brakeless fixie hipsters!
As for discs, with out moving into an entire “disc vs. rim” factor, suffice it to say that the whole trade has now moved to discs, and people of us who love rim brake bikes are deeply grateful to Rivendell for his or her ongoing dedication to them. We weirdos get our rim brakes, and the individuals who need discs can select from a couple of zillion different bikes, from boutiquey metal Crusts and Velo Oranges to the most recent plastic blob from Pon. Everyone wins! Particularly me, as a result of up to now I really like this factor:
Sorry about all of the brake discuss, however simply wait till I get began on gearing…
