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I found the lower half of a Stronglight needle bearing headset with the proper crown race size and matching lower cup so that’s going on the Clubman. I’ll polish up the top end of the original headset and it’ll be good to go.
Rims arrived today and I had forgotten how shiny these are. They are stunning, but just like buffing paint on one car panel or painting just one wall, even with the original color, these will really stand out. I have my work cut out for me polishing all the old chrome bits to get close. I should put a little more effort into the hubs as well.
Two hours later and I cleaned up the top end of the headset, the bottom bracket spindle, and the chrome "socks" of the rear triangle. It's all in bits at this point, not even a single sub-assembly is ready to go, but this is looking to be an extraordinary machine.
I have a 46 tooth 116 BCD ring on the way. It appears that 44 teeth in a 116 BCD "Continental" 3-bolt ring are as rare as hen's teeth. I can still get new production Stronglight and TA 3-bolt 116 BCD rings, but they are not the correct mounting. I need the direct mounting where the chainring bolts thread directly into the chainring. This is the way it was done before Stronglight changed things up with two-part bolts not unlike what we use today (just smaller). That ring is on the way from the UK. I could have sprung for a 44 tooth Chater Lea, but I really don't want to be extravagant, and I want my money to go farther; but that Chater Lea ring sure is pretty... I have a feeling the bottom bracket spindle is by Stronglight, as it has a stamped "S" right in the middle and is of extraordinary quality.
With my current build plan, I'll be running 46 teeth x 16/20 + 19 or 21. I am using a 16/20 tooth two speed freewheel on one side, giving me 77.6 and 62.1 gear inches; and a 19 tooth fixed, giving me 65.4 gear inches. I also have a 21 tooth fixed cog that I can use in case I really want to spin and climb hills with 59.1 gear inches (I am still on the lookout for a 44 tooth ring, but I'm not holding my breath.) I'm not a pedal masher and I like a cadence above 80RPM but preferably below 110.
I need to get a bunch of new ball bearings for my hubs, headset (top side), and bottom bracket. I want to start fresh with this build. I don't think I've been this keyed in to a bike build since I found my old Titan (rebadged DeRosa) and began training on it. I had always dreamt of owning and riding a DeRosa, and for about a year, I had one but it was too stretched out for me by about 2cm, so it had to go on to a slightly taller person. That was a late-80s Columbus SL frame and just stunning. I got it brand new, as it was unfinished and only had pilot threads in the bottom bracket, which turned out to be Swiss (what a pain!)

Phil
 
Phil,

Blood, sweat and tears are going into this bike.

Snarky Joe taught me the wisdom of 63 inch gear as being the ideal gearing for a single speed. You seem to have many bases covered. Very thoughtful the range of gearing.

Before Snarky Joe’s mentoring I had a 48-16T on my steel IBIS for a 72 inch gear (24 inch tire). This bike was great for sprinting and going fast, but on hills it required standing and using my entire upper body to try and break the chain. I would ride from the south side of Williamsburg to Douglaston and Forest Hills, and somehow cut through Brooklyn for about a 45 mile ride.

I feel the fluorescent orange paint helped prevent me from getting pancaked. Also know I had these mucho heavy Schwable Big Apple tires that have a belt of armor that weighed a ton. This bike had a very heavy build…

I guess I’m a bit of a masher, or at least in the past I was.

Because of Snarky Joe I had the Ti IBIS set up as a 63.59 gear inch. The rear tire was a narrow 23.5X1.5 inch Schwable Kojak that is no longer available. Pretty much was like a BMX bike as far as acceleration. Still it was a challenge doing the Harlem Hills in Central Park. Then I realized how insane my 72 gear inch was. A 46x17T provided ideal gearing.

Anyways sounds like a dream is coming true for you. Don’t make the mistake and rush through the process. You really want to spend the time to really bond with the bike, no rushing, and maximize the thrill of achievement. You already have waited a long time, so what’s the rush?

Do you have a name for the bike To personalize it?

Cal
 
Late yesterday a set of SRP Steed Springs were delivered by USPS. Sometimes we get our mail after dinner time. Basically the service is bad.

The worse we’re LIC and even more worse the Post Office in East Harlem. Basically like visiting a Third World Country. Total chaos…

I ordered “green” color coded springs for a 130 pound rider because the “blue” springs were to stiff and were centered around a 150 pound rider. The problem is that the steel and Titanium IBIS Mountain Trials demands that you have to keep your weight right over the rear wheel, or otherwise bad things happen like you flip the bike, do an endo, or some other form of violent crash.

The result is you kinda develope an instinct for self preservation and keep/maintain a rearward position on the bike, unless you are mucho dumb. It does not take long to learn the lesson after the first few crashes. My friends were kinda scared to ride my steel IBIS, and they deemed the bike unridable.

The result/demand of my riding style that is mandated is that the front wheel is kinda unweighted, and since the front wheel is larger than the rear: 24 inch rear; 26 inch front; it is technically like riding a bike doing a partial wheelie all the time which is kinda unstable.

Anyways the point I’m making is that there is not a lot of weight on the front wheel and in a ways it is not too much of an exaggeration that it is a bit like riding a unicycle mountain biking. LOL. How crazy is that? Anyways, a different kind of fun that’s not for everybody. Actually not so popular maybe for a reason LOL..

On my steel IBIS I have a set of original green “Speed Springs” that are vintage and no longer available. The “Steed Springs are suppose to be a clone of sorts, but in fact last night I learned that the “Green” reissue Steed Springs are in fact stiffer than the softer original Speed Springs.

Oh well, $45.00… There is a yellow spring, but that is for versions of my Judy that are long travel. That would be the next step, but since two springs are used, one for each leg, I can do some fine tuning and use a hybrid cross with a Speed Spring and a Steed Spring on both bikes for a intermediate setting between both sets.

The Speed Springs are a little gushy, so I imagine this might work and be the “Goldilocks” combination. So call me a bike nerd, but I think I will totally optimize two bikes. I kinda love that I have somewhat the same bike, but rigged up two ways: one is a 2x11 XTR trail bike (Ti IBIS); and the other as a technical bike with very low gears and as a 1x11 XTR.

Even though one is Titanium and the other Steel, the weight difference is not so much and is less than a pound and a half. Know that the steel IBIS has 2.35 wider tires to be a step towards a Fat Bike. This is a lot of the weight gain, rotating mass. The steel bike is made for slow speeds and traction optimization. I had to shave some of the side nubs to get the rear tire to fit.

The wider tires also are an inch taller, so the CG is higher on the steel IBIS, the tires are actually a 25 inch rear, and a 27 inch front. Very unique, odd, and very different.

“Mucho style.” I say

This bike resembles a motor cross motorcycle a lot and looks agressive and in fact is. I love it.

So later today some field testing.

When I take “Maggie” out for her ride, the rides for me are slow and too short. Basically it is like walking a dog and just an act of nurturing. I have an ERG rowing machine, and my mountain bikes where I can come home and start the workout I need.

Anyways, this is what I live for and what makes me happy. Simple pleasures. Really Maggie is not an endurance athlete, and I’m cool with that. I‘m just doing maintenance so we remain active and healthy. The goal is to build a base, have fun, and enjoy life.

Cal
 
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Cal,
I think a unicycle would be perfect for you; think of it, mucho annoyance factor, and one of the best abdominal workouts you can get, probably the best when combined with the aerobic workout of singlespeed cycling alone. If you happen upon a decent one for cheap, definitely pick it up.
There is a guy here in Philly I see on a unicycle once in a while, who takes it offroad to the MTB trails in Fairmount Park. This guy is ripped like Bruce Lee and has balance to match. I’ve seen him both ascend and descend parts of trails which I’ve walked up mostly and have only cleared a few times. I heard rumor he’s a trials rider as well, and the training on a unicycle makes perfect sense.

Phil
 
Phil,

I came really close to buying a unicycle at Elephant’s Trunk, an antique flea market in Conn.

Only $35.00 and it was a Schwinn. As usual I was a jerk and did not buy it.

I can see me now being known as the old vintage hipster who rides a unicycle everywhere in Peekskill. A childhood friend named Billy had a unicycle, and he was a great hockey player. His grades were not so great though. College scouts had an eye on him I would later learn.

So now I need a unicycle.

”Maggie” has work to do, so I’m thinking of doing a field test of the steel IBIS at Blue Mountain. Pretty much a long-slow ride to beat myself up. It’s a bit hot and humid to be in the woods, but dumb things are what I do. LOL.

It ended up that I like the slightly stiffer Steed Springs on the Ti IBIS. A bit less sag, and the softer Speed Springs on the steel IBIS serve that bike well.

There is less sag on the Ti IBIS and that suits that bike well. The softer and lengthier travel on the steel IBIS I feel is best to maintain.

I’m kinda excited to field test the steel IBIS: a lighter rear tire, a lighter front tire; and both 2.35 in width. The rear I had to shave some side lugs. Oh-well. I want the big volume of air and the added traction of a wider tire.

This bike is important to me. My first bike I bought in the late 1980’s. Did a lot of riding on this bike and mucho crashes. On one ride at a place we called “The Bone Yard” because it was near a graveyard, the first lap went fine because the ground was frozen, but on the second lap the steep downhill was muddy, and I tired to bunny hop a bath tube sized tank trap at the base of the downhill and quite didn’t make it.

So in ever slow motion I’m rolling and rolling on the ground, and in the corner of my eye I see my bike doing cartwheels right behind me, and it is catching up. Basically my bike is going to have a secondary crash that will be into me.

As I am tumbling I swing my arm to deflect the bike. I got up and caught up with my friends, Eric the “Tease Horse” and Iron Mike. My front teeth were loose, but otherwise no injury.

Mike or Eric told me to take off my helmet, and embedded into the plastic and foam was a chainring scar right above my ear. If I did not wear a helmet the chainring might of shaved off my ear.

Anyways that crash was on my steel IBIS.

BTW I took some cell phone pictures of our bikes, minus Maggie’s two orphan bikes. Looks like the 6-7 speed beach cruiser will be going down to the Jersey Shore to her sister’s beach house. Perhaps the Trek Domane AL-3 will be a spare bike or be sold at a big loss. That bike only lasted about a month.

Kinda ironic how I kept all my bikes. All keepers.

Now I have to get Maggie to forward those shots to you. I took a few of the Ti IBIS and Steel IBIS together so you can see the differences in the frame sizes, the different setups, the different configurations, and to see really how radically different these two bikes are.

The IBIS SS is currently a work in progress. I’ll send shots later. What a pretty retro bike. I love that it is a slightly smaller 17 inch frame. The upright position is mighty comfy.

Cal
 
I was in the woods for 2 hours 45 minutes. I checked out a trail I wanted to explore, and it got to be a bit endless. The trails are not so worn or marked so any exploration has to be slow. Pretty easy to loose the trail.

I was interested in “Dr Jekyll” because I’m looking for tamer trails because my bikes are neither full suspension or true Fat Tire bikes. I was also thinking it could be a very cool loop to get to “My Favorite Trail” and another trail that connects called “Rocky Glen.”

What I learned is that Dr Jekyll suits my needs, but the connecting trail MYX Monster has mucho technical rock gardens. Oh well.

I spent most of my time in my lowest gears perhaps riding at a fast hiking speed. This served me well to develop the balance needed to stay up on the bike, which is pretty hard to do because of all the rocks and roots that can at any time trap your front wheel.

I’m not so bad a technical descents, as long as I can control my speed and go slow. Speed is a killer though. I had mucho difficulties with the climbing, something I’m usually good at. I think I have to tweak my handlebars more back and lower. On the climbs I was not able to keep enough weight over the front wheel to have steering, and also I had difficulties with traction on the rear wheel. I have to try and get the ideal weight distribution.

As I applied torque the front end tended to wheelie. Not good when you are climbing.

Anyways I’m trying to connect the trails to create a training loop. The trails are not so defined that I like, and pretty much I am “pre-running” them to know and learn how to gauge an approach.

Blue Mountain Preserve is over 1500 acres, and about 2 blocks from my house. On the big main trails there is lots of erosion and the rocks are like a minefield.

Anyways there are many more trails to explore. A bit of adventure that is almost my backyard.

Anyways I can see that some of my skills are getting better, I sweated a lot, which I needed to do because of the NYC trips where I would eat Shake Shack, and I was breathing hard for a while.

At the end of my ride I got to a gravel fire road. Pretty much I wanted out of the woods and I was tired. Part of the road was a downhill and I blasted away at a good speed. Then the road I could see was washed out in places, I hit the brakes, and luckily I scrubbed off enough speed to prevent getting washed out.

The heavy rains destroyed parts of the road, and I had to transverse deep gullies.

Mucho rock gardens at Blue Mountain.

Now to tweak the bike. Already checked for ticks.

Cal
 
A small tweak in the handlebar rotation made a big difference.

Today was rebounding with my old bike.

A salmon steak for dinner with brown rice is my reward.

More bike parts are expected Thursday or Friday.

Pretty much I now have a full spare 11-speed XTR drivetrain. Glad I have it as a backup, but also could be for another bike if another frame from heaven appears…

Cal
 
Added sleep was required for the old man’s body. Went to bed an hour early and got up an hour later than usual.

All those fitness guru’s don’t really promote the amount of rest required for older people to fully recover.

I think I will have to rotate the bars a bit on the Ti IBIS to somewhat replicate what I performed on the steel IBIS yesterday. A very dramatic difference.

If the weather permits we will pick up the grandson from daycare and go see the grand daughter play soccer. We miss them badly.

I looked into used unicycles on EBAY and now have remorse for not buying the Schwinn at Elephant’s Trunk in Conn. for $35.00. It should of been a no-brained. The shipping prices are mucho crazy and to me cost prohibitive. Oh-well…

I have the urge to go fishing again, alone, on a charter boat for the pure relaxation. Having and exploiting time is a great thing about retirement. I am not wasting time, and I am really nurturing and taking care of myself. My humble and simple life has a huge payoff.

”Maggie” and I could of afforded a larger home, but would that have made us happier? Glad we were practical and modest to go small, but not tiny. In the end we did the best thing. We will never have to downsize.

Cal
 
I wonder if unicycle factor is an unintended consequence of how I use and ride a bike. I tend to use my entire body a lot, my handlebar position is kinda low on both the steel and Ti IBIS’s, I tend to utilize lots of my upper body strength, and I tend to use my entire body when I use strength to push tall gears.

I am known to stand a lot, and kinda work a mountain bike a bit like a Stairmaster. For a rather small guy I tend to destroy chains I am told. Of course this is not very efficient, but it is kinda explosive. I have a good jump, and I am known for my remarkable hole-shot that can propel someone like Iron Mike drafting me into a lead in the front of a pack.

Anyways some of that definition of a ripped body is evident, but so is some of the water retention around my waist from salt. If I sweat a lot I look markedly skinnier and more ripped.

In my left shoulder is that pronounced vein that denotes low body fat that you see in Pro NBA Point Guards. I display the three fingers of cut that look like ribs like Bruce Lee but in fact are muscle, and I have the obliques that would be displayed in a Calvin Klein underwear ad. I don’t have a 6-pack, but I do have a 4-pack.

Anyways the two IBIS’s are a step towards a unicycle. BTW last night my right leg cramped up after I went to the bathroom in the middle of the night. I did not really do a hard workout, and pretty much the ride was a slow cruise that was more an exercise in developing skill and balance. Ironically going slow evidently uses different muscle groups.

My thinking is that I was using and relying on my quick twitch muscles in yesterday’s riding. Right now that right leg is still tight. I will stretch it out later before bed.

Do I really need a unicycle?

Cal
 
Do I really need seven bicycles?
No.
But each has its purpose, with inherent positive attributes, as well as deficiencies; I can’t carry heavy cargo with my Miyata or Breezer, but it would also be very difficult to use the cargo bike off road or to hit 40mph on the road. Those are just a couple examples.
Personally, I should definitely hit the road on a unicycle, my mid-section would thank me. I know that riding fixed on the Clubman is going to help me boost my aerobic fitness and extend my anaerobic threshold, as a result, I should shed a respectable amount of weight within a couple months.
This winter is forecast to be warmer, but possibly with more precipitation than the past few winters. I may be able to bike to work through the whole winter. This week the temperatures have finally dropped to healthier levels and I’ll be riding (on the Miyata) to and from work tomorrow.
I have Friday off as a gift to myself for my birthday this weekend. I’m heading up north to check out the bike collection of a former customer (from the bike shop) and friend who’s moving back to the UK next year and wants to pass on the collection to folks who will appreciate the gear, and not strip or flip the bikes. Friday evening will be basically checking out a bike museum located in a barn up in Bucks County.
Cal, if I see a unicycle, I’ll let you know.

Phil
 
Do I really need a unicycle? NO
Do I really need seven bicycles? YES

btw, Phil you could save that stem. You would need to have it stripped of chrome, fill the hole and pitting and rechrome...

Joe
 
Phil,

Point well taken. I am getting old and need to stay on top of things. Weight is not a problem, but strength and cardio fitness needs a big strong base. Any help would be appreciated.

I’m not in bad shape, but I know I can be better, a lot better. I’ll never be young again, so pretty much I have to stay on top of it.

“Maggie” will never ever be an endurance athlete, so pretty much I exercise her. Good thing she loves the Yo Betty.

BTW how much weight would you like to loose? Two things I don’t eat is cake and soda. Also I don’t drink which I think has helped keep me young looking. Once you pass 40 it becomes more and more important to stay active and watch what you eat.

We Americans are like horses: we will eat our selves to death.

I kinda slowed down with mountain biking to avoid injury. This slow riding is a different challenge that requires balance and skill with lots of practice. What I learned yesterday, a different kind of strength that I think involves now dormant fast twitch muscles.

I think yard work, digging, mowing overgrown grass with a push mower, and all the manual labor to some degree has maintained some strength, My weight is kinda stable at 152 pounds. When I cut the salt intake and sweat a lot I am mucho cut. Maggie yells at me that I’m too skinny. The few pounds are all water, and of course the water gets stored in the fat cells: tiny love handles only visible when wearing tight pants, shorts or knickers.

I just need long rides on a bike, a strong base, and some hill workouts; and I think I’ll be where I want to be.

That’s good news about the milder winter. I’ll try to make the most of it. Already I loaded up last year on warm bike clothing during the clearance sales. Snarky Joe made me aware of these blow-out deals. I love riding on fresh snow, and the weather is always mild and calm after a storm. The bonus is that the snow cleans the bike.

In Blue Mountain there is a gravel fire road that cuts across the preserve. Nice and safe. Not far from my house, perhaps a quarter mile road ride, and there is also a trail nearby that is rideable. I think I like the road ride for the trip home because it is a descent where it is a short ride home once out of the woods.

How perfect is that?

Cal
 
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Cal,
I do find it a little amusing that you love your short wheel base bikes then complain that you can't keep weight on the front wheel...
Joe
 
Joe,

Kinda like driving a Porsche. They stay glued to the road, until they don’t.

My experience as a co-pilot in a Porsche 911 Turbo wide body Cabriolet says that at a certain point driving is more like piloting a plane. We accelerated out of a cloverleaf at 90 MPH approaching 1G In third gear.

The Ti and steel IBIS have 40 inch and 39 1/2 inch wheelbases respectively. On the steeper climbs in Blue Mountain Preserve the weight transfer is enough to the rear that basically the front end wants to wheelie. If you move too far forward the rear end losses traction.

I take no shame in having difficulties. I am riding a retro bike in a place where a full suspension Fat Bike would be the ticket. A 2.5 wide tire is the basic admission. Clearly fatter tires are better. My tires are skinnier and perhaps inappropriate.

The abundance of rock gardens and roots; and on the more used trails erosion makes for very-very technical riding. Remember that the Hudson Valley was formed by a glacier and that the entire Hudson Valley can be considered a massive Forje or what ever that they have in NORWAY.

Peekskill is the Gateway to the Hudson Highlands, so there are mucho rocks and boulders that were deposited here.

I would not say that yesterday’s ride was fun: it was a challenge. Also I’m exploring trying to find the tame trails that I would deem rideable. I don’t mind some rock gardens, but too many is another story. I reported one trail I discovered was tame, but the second connecting trail had so many unridable sections.

There kinda is a reason why Blue Mountain is kinda underutilized. In my almost 3 hours in the woods I did come upon one person and that rider had a full suspension Fat Bike. He had stopped and I moved on ahead of him, later on in a rock garden I prudently was walking my bike, and I pull it off the trail to let him pass. He went off a drop off and caught some air as well as speed. He ended up off the trail and luckily stopped before hitting trees.

Blue Mountain is no joke.

Also on a Metro North train ride I saw this black man wearing full body armor with a radical and expensive full suspension 29’er. I felt compelled to ask where he was heading to ride, and he said Peekskill. Then he told me that Peekskill has some of the best technical single track in the northeast.

Years later I would learn he was not lying.

I would say my friend AJ has the trials skills to ride my steel IBIS. He was a NORBA Pro downhiller. Now he just has a bike shop, but he still does motorcycle trials and enduro’s. Anyways AJ I would call an expert rider: I am by no means an expert rider; pehaps just a foolish rider.

Anyways, I’m in over my head, its a challenge to learn, and pretty much I’m minimizing risk to avoid injury by going mucho slow.

Just know that I am cleaning patches of trail that earlier I was unable to clean. Practice-practice, and more practice. Riding slow is hard.

Also speed will certainly lead to crashes and injury. I almost saw it happen yesterday.

Cal
 
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Joe,

The short wheelbase makes the bike more agile for sure. This is both an advantage and disadvantage to an extent, but a long wheelbase bike would really be a struggle uphill, and perhaps the advantage of the long wheelbase would be at high speeds on the downhill.

Also know I’m also still tweaking the bike. I think the riser bar rotation is a bit of a game changer. It gets me into a lower position where my back is flatter and I am less upright.

I felt the old handlebar position had me too upright, and that unweighted the front wheel on climbs.

Descents are tricky also with a short wheelbase, but because of the agility of the bike I can manuver and pick lines as long as I can control speed. If I just go slow I will be safe. Momentum is a bad thing on descents, and only one way to curb momentum: slow down.

Cal
 
Joe,
I may pull the stem/bar combo apart, have a drop of bronze solder put in to fill the hole, then have it rechromed. If I could use some low temp silver plumber's solder and MAP gas, I could do the metal work in my driveway then take it to a motorcycle shop.

Phil
 
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Cal,
Go hit the Troy Lee Designs website, sign up for their email promo discount, then get a kit of helmet, neck guard, elbow, knee, and shin pads, and maybe a lumbar/sacral piece of armor. Seriously. I've seen some of the crazy stuff at Blue Mountain on you tube videos and a slow speed fall from normal riding height can profoundly change your life. My left shoulder and the end of my racing career are evidence of this. I was 33 years old when that happened and it was at about 3-4mph. I had numerous crashes before in my young life before I joined the Navy: boxers fractures from handlebars hitting trees, every finger broken for one reason or another, a cracked heel, hairline left wrist fracture, a few high speed crashes on fast gravel fire roads (I was picking gravel out of my skin over a year later), but none of them really HURT me and caused me disability like that slow dooring accident in 2009 which had my left arm connected to my torso by only muscle and skin.
You made it this far, protect the rest of your years and keep enjoying them.

Phil
 
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