Frame clearance between Ram and Cani-Rom the same?

[Rocky B]

I would like my Ram to be able to fit Jack Brown tires AND fenders.
Does anybody know if converting my Ram to a "Canti-Ram" allow me to
run this tire/fender combination?

Rocky

[clyde canter]

Rocky,

I believe it is possible to fender the Ram by going to the new Tektro R538 brakes with the added fender clearance.

RBW's site has pics of the Rodeo set up that way.  I think the Rodeo has a tad more clearance than the Rams did, although earlier (orange) Rams had a bit more than the newer (blue and green) ones did.  I think I'm right on that.

Depending on which Ram you have you might be able to do this by eliminating the front fender mounting tab and zip tie-ing it on.  I have a green Ram and that spot is the tightest when fendering.  Of course if you are wanting metal fenders the JB-Ram combo is probably out of the question with side-pulls of any flavor. Please share your experience if you decided to try this.  I have been wanting to try this on on my Ram for some time now.

Good luck,

Clyde Canter

 

 

Rocky

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[Michael Hechmer]

This sounds like a bad idea.  These frames were designed to optimize the ride with tires in the 28-30 range with fenders.  These are great riding road bikes, with these size tires.   Yes they can be trail bikes and can handle bigger tires for those applications but not with fenders, and not optimally.  Back when the Rambouillet was the RBW  road offering the major alternative was the  Atlantis and if you wanted a trail or touring bike that's what you were encouraged to buy.  Rather than getting into swapping forks and brakes it would be wiser to get a used frame, or new SOMA or Surly and set it up as a trail bike.

I have a Ram and always ride it with 26-30 mm tires & Al fenders, no racks.    I also have an Ebisu All Purpose which is quite similar to the AHH.  I ride it with 33-38 mm tires, steel fenders and racks;  but I have proven to myself that set up the same way, it rides much like the Ram.  Having wider road tires is nice for dirt & rough roads but the difference is not worth mucking up something that is virtually perfect for what it was designed to be.

IMHO

michael

[David Spranger]

I have a Ram with those Tektro brakes, 35mm Schwalbe tires and aluminum fenders that measure 45mm. There is plenty of clearance and the ride is very nice. I have thought about changing out my tires for the 33.333mm JBs to give it that little bit extra room.

David

[Michael_S]

On the Ram I used to own ( a green 58) I had R538's and I could fit a JB and fender in the back but there was not enough clearance in the front. Adding canti studs is possible but often the modified bike ends up with some brake chatter in the front as the fork was not designed for the additional braking load.

You could get a custom fork made to alleviate this issue.  I have heard from owners of the earlier orange ones that they had more room and made it work.

 

 If you have the room the Ram is built plenty sturdy to handle JB's and fenders.

 

~mike

[Rocky B]

Adding canti-posts was just an idea I was tossing around in my head.
 I wanted to "country-fy" my new-to-me Ram.  I've been riding the Ram
for the past 2 months and it does ride pretty sweet with 28mm tires on
there. However, I love JB Greens.  I have JB Greens running on my QB
and I figure why not the Ram too?!  BUT I wanted the Ram to be able to
run JBs WITH FENDERS.
I am going to try out the Tektro R538s.  I really hope they will give
me the clearance I seek.  If it does - Hallelujah!
BTW I have a blue Ram...

[Seth Vidal]

You might consider the paul centerpulls.

-sv

[Joe Broach]

> I would like my Ram to be able to fit Jack Brown tires AND fenders.
> Does anybody know if converting my Ram to a "Canti-Ram" allow me to
> run this tire/fender combination?

It should work with plastic fenders--doubtful or tight in the rear
with metal. I've run true 34s under SKS fenders on my canti-Rom
(which is spec'd at 54mm virtual brake reach). The tight spot is
under the rear brake bridge, which has a downward-facing boss that's a
little proud of the bridge. I remember some early Rams were spec'd
right at 57mm or slightly over, but I don't think that was very many.

I'm kind of clumsy by nature, and the toe overlap frustrates me on bad
days with big tires and fenders, too. Something to think about.

Also, the rear stays on the canti-Rom were beefed up for the brakes.
Something else to think about. Pretty sure the fork was/is the same,
though. Have fun!

Best,
joe broach
portland, or

[Horace]

Before altering the frame, you might consider modifying the fenders.

http://circlingbits.blogspot.com/2008/03/tight-squeeze-fenders-with-reacharound.html

On Thu, Dec 15, 2011 at 10:21 PM, Rocky B <rivv...@gmail.com> wrote:

[Jeremy Till]

+1 on trying centerpull calipers if you're looking to maximize clearance on a bike designed for 47-57mm calipers.  Either the Paul Racer M's or the Dia Compe 610's that Velo-Orange sells should (theoretically) maximize clearance for a given brake reach, since the pivot arrangement means that both arms swing up rather than pressing down into the fender/tire territory. 

[James Warren]

Rocky,
My orange Ram has always been great. Mounting JG greens on it 4 years ago made it even better. The archives probably have me raving about JB greens on a Rambouillet on this list about 8 times.

For me, 700x33 JB's optimized my Ram. However, I am using Shimano Ultegra longreach brakes and I can't do fenders with this setup. With different brakes, perhaps. I haven't tried.

-Jim W.

-----Original Message-----
>From: Rocky B <rivv...@gmail.com>
>Sent: Dec 16, 2011 9:55 AM
>To: RBW Owners Bunch <rbw-owne...@googlegroups.com>
>Subject: [RBW] Re: Frame clearance between Ram and Cani-Rom the same?
>
>Adding canti-posts was just an idea I was tossing around in my head.
> I wanted to "country-fy" my new-to-me Ram.  I've been riding the Ram
>for the past 2 months and it does ride pretty sweet with 28mm tires on
>there. However, I love JB Greens.  I have JB Greens running on my QB
>and I figure why not the Ram too?!  BUT I wanted the Ram to be able to
>run JBs WITH FENDERS.
>I am going to try out the Tektro R538s.  I really hope they will give
>me the clearance I seek.  If it does - Hallelujah!
>BTW I have a blue Ram...
>

[Michael Hechmer]

I don't believe that brakes are the limiting factor, but either the Paul's (which I run) or a single pivot will optimize brake clearance on the fenders.  Dual pivots all sit below the crown hole, while single pivot sit flush.  I ran my Ram for a long time with a pair of vintage campy Grand Prix single pivots and my wife's classic Specialized Sequoiagets good clearance with a pair of Suntour Superbe  brakes. 

michael

[Leslie]

Rocky,

I've not put JB's on mine to try;   I had Pasela 32s originally, but was getting a bit of rubbing w/ the metal fenders on the front (VO45mm).  A glass-nicked sidewall motivated me to put on new tires, I switched down to RuffyTuffys to clear the fenders.     But, I then got another glass-nicked sidewall  (we don't have goatheads around here, but we sure have a lot of glass!).

What I've ended up doing now, is, running a 32 Pasela in the rear, and a RuffyTuffy in the front.   I'm liking this combo;   I'm not little, but I've got the bigger tire under me, both are fitting under fenders.   

I think I might try going to a JB in the rear, keeping a RuffyTuffy in the front....

[Michael Hechmer]

Rocky, I know I suggested you not do it, but if you are still interested in converting to a canti fork,  I have a pristine, cro-molly, lugged & chromed fork, Electra 760.  It has canti studs, generous clearance and a nice bend w dble eylets on the drop outs.  I tried it on my '84 Trek 620 and wasn't entirely happy with the bike handling afterward.  I could sell it to you for $100, so you could at least try the set up out without making any permanent changes to your existing frame.

michael