Show us your bicycles!

[Zensō]

As for a street bike, if I was building one of those from scratch, I'd probably build it around a Nexus hub, and certainly with tires in the 40mm range. But it would still probably have what passes in my case for a sport position--sitting upright like that is too hard on my posterior.

I‘ve had a few bikes with Nexus/Alfine internal gear hubs and for city riding they were nice, though I did have one take a big drink of water which resulted in a long series of issues. I think IGH’s that use grease lubrication like the Shimano are probably less reliable than oil bath hubs like the Rohloff. I’m also a big fan of belt drives in conjunction with IGH’s. Very low maintenance generally.

I have followed Rivendell and Rene Herse for years, and generally agree with their ethos. I've also bought a lot of stuff from both of them. But on fender days, I leave the bike in the garage. I live in a rural area and a ride to a town for me would be a 20-mile round trip on roads too crowded and too narrow for safe riding. I can get to the nearest village via back roads, but that turns a 4-mile distance as the crow flies to a 24-mile round trip on the bike. Hilly and fun! But nary a decent coffee shop on the other end, so I usually just turn around and ride back home. The coffee-shop rides around here are on a rail-trail or canal-trail.

It sounds like you may be a candidate for “Coffee Outside”.

So, my "all-surface" bike is my most frequent ride. I do have a set of fenders for it, but those hang on a nail in the garage. It's a Cannondale touring frame from the late 80's, with a mix of all kinds of stuff on it--Campy Racing Triple with Mirage brake lever/shifters, MLB brakes (French, but will accommodate largish tires), and 38mm tires. But no kick-stand.

I love those kinds of “Heinz 57” bikes built with whatever parts happen to be in the bin!

 

[Venga Velo]

I did picture one upthread, but mine is decidedly more vintage than yours. And downmarket, too.

When I lived in Dallas, Jim Hoyt and others worked with the City of Frisco, Collin College, and local supporters to put together the money for a velodrome (the Superdrome, RIP), and I bought this so I could enjoy it. I moved away just a few months later, as it happens, and now I use mine for riding on the local rail trail when I need to improve my leg coordination. My racing days, such as they ever were (and they never were), are looooong behind me, but I do enjoy riding a fixed gear for fun. But I did put a road fork on it so I could install a brake--the track fork is safely stored away.

The velodrome suffered a worse fate, falling into disuse and was dismantled four years ago. But riding on it was fun for the brief time I was able to do so. One thing is for sure: There was no sport on a velodrome where I would demonstrate anything but absolute incompetence.

I had no idea the Superdrome was gone. That's a drag. We lost the NSC Velodrome in Blaine MN a couple of years ago. Though I hadn't ridden it since 2006, it provided my very favorite racing experiences. I'm glad I had the chance.

Anyone want more bike photos? Here's my former Otso Voytek in winter trim with heavy studded tires. 23.9 pounds as shown.

 

[rdenney]

I love those kinds of “Heinz 57” bikes built with whatever parts happen to be in the bin!

Campy Racing Triple (Athena) cranks and 8-speed derailleurs, with a Campy bottom bracket that I actually had to buy to fit the threads on this bike. Stronglight Delta headset. Front wheel is a Mavic MA-2 rim on a Shimano Ultegra hub. Rear wheel is a Campy Chorus hub with a Campy Strada rim. Brake lever/shifter are Campy Mirage (which I will at some point switch out for 8-speed Athena or Chorus for the sake of durability, when the right unique buying opportunity comes along). Brakes are CLB side-pulls with Matthauser-style pads that I bought from Rivendell. Tires are pricey Compass (now Rene Herse) Bon Jon 120-tpi 38mm (which tells you where my priorities are). Seatpost is an old SR Laprade. Salsa welded steel stem and TTT bar. Cinelli tape (of course). Saddle is an old Wilderness Trails SST, which I like because of the deep eagle-beak nose--I have them on several bikes. Old Speedplay Frog pedals that I use with my MTB shoes, so I can walk around in them easily. I have racks (steel!), bags, and fenders (Zefal plastic from the 70's) I can put on this bike, but I don't ride in that kind of weather any more, or have any need for bags. Definitely a Heinz 57 bike.

But all my bikes were built from the frame up with whatever I could find, except for the Schwinn Homegrown MTB I bought back in the 90's to impress a girlfriend of the time (she was an expert-class MTB racer). I trained as a bike mechanic at Daniel Boone Cycles in Houston back in the deeps of time.

I built a similar bike on a similar frame for my wife to use on the dirt roads. Street pedals for her--she can't manage being clipped in. Sugino triple with Shimano Claris 8-speed stuff that I bought off ebay. Ultegra wheels which are pretty nice. Diacompe center-pull brakes that I bought from Rivendell to reach around the fat tires. I doubt I spent more than $400 building that bike.

Rick "whose bicycle acquisitions have always been a series of unique buying opportunities" Denney

 

[Zensō]

Campy Racing Triple (Athena) cranks and 8-speed derailleurs, with a Campy bottom bracket that I actually had to buy to fit the threads on this bike. Stronglight Delta headset. Front wheel is a Mavic MA-2 rim on a Shimano Ultegra hub. Rear wheel is a Campy Chorus hub with a Campy Strada rim. Brake lever/shifter are Campy Mirage (which I will at some point switch out for 8-speed Athena or Chorus for the sake of durability, when the right unique buying opportunity comes along). Brakes are CLB side-pulls with Matthauser-style pads that I bought from Rivendell. Tires are pricey Compass (now Rene Herse) Bon Jon 120-tpi 38mm (which tells you where my priorities are). Seatpost is an old SR Laprade. Salsa welded steel stem and TTT bar. Cinelli tape (of course). Saddle is an old Wilderness Trails SST, which I like because of the deep eagle-beak nose--I have them on several bikes. Old Speedplay Frog pedals that I use with my MTB shoes, so I can walk around in them easily. I have racks (steel!), bags, and fenders (Zefal plastic from the 70's) I can put on this bike, but I don't ride in that kind of weather any more, or have any need for bags. Definitely a Heinz 57 bike.

But all my bikes were built from the frame up with whatever I could find, except for the Schwinn Homegrown MTB I bought back in the 90's to impress a girlfriend of the time (she was an expert-class MTB racer). I trained as a bike mechanic at Daniel Boone Cycles in Houston back in the deeps of time.

I built a similar bike on a similar frame for my wife to use on the dirt roads. Street pedals for her--she can't manage being clipped in. Sugino triple with Shimano Claris 8-speed stuff that I bought off ebay. Ultegra wheels which are pretty nice. Diacompe center-pull brakes that I bought from Rivendell to reach around the fat tires. I doubt I spent more than $400 building that bike.

Rick "whose bicycle acquisitions have always been a series of unique buying opportunities" Denney

Cool bike!

I haven’t heard anyone mention Frog pedals is eons. I had those on a few of my recumbents many moons ago, the free-swiveling cleats were easier on my knees on those bikes, which could be hard on the knees (at least mine).

I had a Cannondale from that era (that looks like an 80’s vintage?), but it was a mountain bike frame. It was an undersized frame that I had built up as an observed trials bike with a tiny chainring and bash guard, high bars, and low saddle. I used it for plunking around in the forest near where I lived in Seattle. It was only good for that one purpose, but I had a lot of fun with it.

 

[Zensō]

Here’s a bike I no longer own but rode to work for a few years. Independent Fabrication Club Racer.

 

[Alcides]

My one of a kind Ritte La Calera with a Rohloff hub. Older geometry 29'er made of stainless steel. Weighs a ton.

 

[rdenney]

Cool bike!

I haven’t heard anyone mention Frog pedals is eons. I had those on a few of my recumbents many moons ago, the free-swiveling cleats were easier on my knees on those bikes, which could be hard on the knees (at least mine).

I had a Cannondale from that era (that looks like an 80’s vintage?), but it was a mountain bike frame. It was an undersized frame that I had built up as an observed trials bike with a tiny chainring and bash guard, high bars, and low saddle. I used it for plunking around in the forest near where I lived in Seattle. It was only good for that one purpose, but I had a lot of fun with it.

Yes, vintage 1987 or 1988, before CAAD, and back when C'dale used steel forks on the touring frames. These were modestly outfitted in the day--mine is a hodge-podge of stuff but all of it is functionally superior to the stuff it came with, at least if durability is considered. I'm also so accustomed to the Campy shifting universe that I put it on everything that uses brifters. My main road bike is an Eddy Merckx MX-Leader with Campy Chorus 8-speed stuff on it, and I have ridden that bike for 25 years with only minimal maintenance. It's a race bike but Eddy Merckx knows a thing or two about comfort--and torsional stiffness without too short a wheelbase.

I meticulously maintain those pedals--I don't want to have to replace them. I've always been a big fan of Speedplay pedals precisely because my knees appreciate the smooth lateral freedom of rotation.

Rick "divides his time between the C'dale and the Merckx depending on the surface" Denney

 

[escape2]

GT Transeo 2.0, bought around 2010. It's been sitting in storage for the past 10 years or so while I ride an old Schwinn bike. Time to get back on it, I guess.

 

[Somafunk]

Here’s a bike I no longer own but rode to work for a few years. Independent Fabrication Club Racer.

Indy fabs always had a touch of class about them, very popular in the single speed scene as were Spot bikes, below is a mates Spot.

 

[Zensō]

Indy fabs always had a touch of class about them, very popular in the single speed scene as were Spot bikes, below is a mates Spot.

Nice bike. IIRC, Spot was (is?) also an innovator in the implementation of the Gates belt drivetrains.

 

[Zensō]

Here’s one that got away, I regret selling it. We’re thinking about a pair of Bromptons with e-assist to put in the back of the SUV for our retirement travels.

 

[Venga Velo]

Here’s a bike I no longer own but rode to work for a few years. Independent Fabrication Club Racer.

View attachment 221668

That's fantastic.

 

[Bleib]

Nothing special. Quite a lot changed over the years + repaired.

 

[Somafunk]

Spot was (is?) also an innovator in the implementation of the Gates belt drivetrains.

I don’t know about that but upon leaving uni after gaining my elec/mech engineering degree I worked at the gates power transmission plant in Dumfries (30 miles from my home town in Scotland) for a few years starting in 1997 and whilst I was mainly electronic/mechanical design/maintenance I also spent a fair amount of time on the carbon belt development work, especially on the engine test rigs as I am a motor vehicle mech to trade, testing belts to destruction day in day out led me to tinker with the possibility of using belt drives on bikes as I had raced them for years, at the time the market was so very niche that there was no development criteria in place but I did have a few interesting conversations with head design offices in America - prob should have stayed on that company but I got bored and left - a few years later it was brought to market and is now pretty much de rigour on gearbox bikes such as the excellent pinion and nicolai designs. Bugger……I jumped ship too early

 

[Zensō]

I don’t know about that but upon leaving uni after gaining my elec/mech engineering degree I worked at the gates power transmission plant in Dumfries (30 miles from my home town in Scotland) for a few years starting in 1997 and whilst I was mainly electronic/mechanical design/maintenance I also spent a fair amount of time on the carbon belt development work, especially on the engine test rigs as I am a motor vehicle mech to trade, testing belts to destruction day in day out led me to tinker with the possibility of using belt drives on bikes as I had raced them for years, at the time the market was so very niche that there was no development criteria in place but I did have a few interesting conversations with head design offices in America - prob should have stayed on that company but I got bored and left - a few years later it was brought to market and is now pretty much de rigour on gearbox bikes such as the excellent pinion and nicolai designs. Bugger……I jumped ship too early

Ah, those roads not taken always make you wonder what could have been. In the 1950’s my father had an opportunity to get in on the ground floor with Honda, but instead chose to bring my mother from Japan to the US and start our family here. He had a good life but occasionally brought up that missed opportunity.

Small world again. I did some review/testing for Civia back in the day. They sent me 3 bikes to review, they all had internal gear hubs, but were chain driven even though they had split frames in anticipation of eventually moving to belts. They were interested in getting feedback and promoting the Gates drives so they hooked me up with the rep from Gates who sent me sprockets and belts to retrofit a couple of the bikes. It took quite a lot of fiddling to get them running properly, but I really liked them once the quirks were addressed. I’d love to have a modern bike with a Pinion gearbox and Gates belt.

 

[Somafunk]

Yeah, missed opportunities plague everyones history but then again when we’re old n’ decrepit we can bore our carers in the nursing home with tales of that time when Neil Armstrong had a cold and you were called up to take his place but you declined as you had promised to help a friend move house (or a similar less fanciful scenario )

As for pinion/gearbox bikes I think that will be the way designs will eventually go, the drawback at the moment is internel drag and weight but as it’s centralised and low in the frame thankfully it’s not so noticeable when underway, Perhaps combined into a suitable electric drivetrain but talk of such a thing will have the purists spitting feathers. A nice n’ simple internal 3 speed gearbox situated In the hub (sturmey archer throwback?) would have been ideal for me on long tours, gear for hills, gear for flat, gear for down.

A book you may be interested in is Charlie Kelly : Fat Tire Flyer - Repack And The Birth Of Mountain Biking , an outstanding read and very chunky coffee table book chock full of original pics/flyers and details regarding everyone possible who was involved in the scene back in the day x very highly recommended.

 

[pseudoid]

...internal 3 speed gearbox situated In the hub (sturmey archer throwback?)...

Oh, so much great nostalgia but I must add my own about kickstands... and who needs them:
When we were growing up with our banana-seat Schwinn bikes, I don't recall that they had kickstands.
Someone had taught me the 'trick' of just backing the left pedal against a curb (or a step) as better than throwing your bike on the ground... I still use that trick in the garage...

 

[Chrispy]

A decade or so back, I tuned up and put new tires on my oldest bike, one from 1979. It weighed 10 pounds more than a new bike. I rode it on alternate days in a long 22 mile loop with low rolling hills. Late in the day, little wind usually. Did that till I had a good bit of days on old and new bike. I averaged according to the cycloputer 1.00 mph faster on the new bike. The real difference was in the gears, and maybe tires. The old one only had 6 cogs and the new one 10. So there were times on the old bike when one cog up or down wasn't so close to right as having 10 choices. The old bike had 28 inch rims so tires probably aren't as good nor do you have as many choices. I think more time riding only with 6 cogs I'd have closed the gap some. So on my 73 minute ride the old bike added 4 minutes. I could calculate the energy from extra weight if I knew the total elevation change, but it isn't much of that 4 minutes. Unless it was the kickstand. Didn't have one on the newer bike.

You might have 650B rims and thus suitable for "27.5" size tires which there is a great variety of....

 

[escape2]

Oh, so much great nostalgia but I must add my own about kickstands... and who needs them:
When we were growing up with our banana-seat Schwinn bikes, I don't recall that they had kickstands.
Someone had taught me the 'trick' of just backing the left pedal against a curb (or a step) as better than throwing your bike on the ground... I still use that trick in the garage...
View attachment 221770

The bike is just leaning against the glass in this photo, but yeah, I've done the pedal 'trick' before on several occasions.

 

[pseudoid]

The bike is just leaning against the glass in this photo,

Should have I revealed my copyright infringement? I really did try to find an image online to provide as example... but couldn't.