It's New Bike What?

[Corwin Zechar]

It's definitely not new bike day. That was back in the first week of February. Not even New Bike Month. So it's New Bike Quarter?

Anyway, I picked up my much anticipated and long-awaited custom Rivendell last month. Some interesting aspects include:

1) SRAM drop bar levers mounted on opposite sides (with respect to normal drop bar mounting) on Nitto Albastache bars - as suggested by Bill Lindsay.

2) A Fizik Aliante Gamma saddle recovered by Mick Peel in Australia and sporting the Rivendell logo.

3) A Rich Lesnik built wheelset with Onyx hubs and Velocity Quill rims.

4) SRAM rear derailer and SRAM bar-end shifters.

5) Shimano Ultegra 6650 compact double crankset with TA Specialities chainrings

6) Chris King bottom bracket with outboard bearings.

7) DT Swiss skewers.

8) Custom lug carving by Mark Nobilette.

9) Ritchey Micro Road pedals.

10) Tektro CX 8.4 short-pull V-brakes.

The main difference between my new custom and the old custom are the cantilever posts and lug carving.

I can report that my new custom feels just like my old custom - wherever it is. I rode the bike in the Redlands Strada Rossa last Saturday and it performed flawlessly - despite my lack of experience on dirt roads and singletrack.

A few photos illustrating the most salient aspects follow...

Regards,

Corwin

[Corwin Zechar]

Google Groups would not allow me to post all my photos. Here are more:

[Corwin Zechar]

And my last two:

[Eric Daume]

Looks great, and I love the color, and the fat tires with the Albastache combo.

I think you win the Riv with the lowest bars award!

Eric

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[John Bokman]

That ride looks like so much fun! Love the color pop of the Red brakes on Purple frameset. Reminds me of days on my 1994 Maroon mustached XO-3. Also my 1990 MB2 (because it was also purple). Thanks for posting Corwin.

John

[Corwin Zechar]

Yeah. Mark claimed no Riv customers slam the bars like me anymore.

CZ 

On Saturday, March 23, 2024 at 3:30:25 AM UTC-7 Eric Daume wrote:

[Patrick Moore]

Lovely and intriguing! Certainly an eclectic build -- that's a positive. How do you like the Hurricanes and the Ritchey Micros?

To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/78292adf-d5e6-4cf5-89b5-2aa08bd82e8an%40googlegroups.com.

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Patrick Moore

Alburquerque, Nuevo Mexico, Etats Unis d'Amerique, Orbis Terrarum

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[Corwin Zechar]

Hi Patrick -

Love the Richey Micros. They are one-sided and weighted to be in the optimal position when you want to clip in.

I've had lots of Schwalbe tires. I get flats on almost every ride with G-Ones. But the Hurricanes have never flatted. I have them on three bikes now: Hubbuhubbuh, Custom and Quickbeam. I really like the cushy ride of supple tires. But a tire that flats nearly every time I ride is of no use to me. Reliability is very important to me.

Regards,

CZ

[Jason Fuller]

Looks awesome, I didn't think Riv would even make a custom this 'racey' anymore! Maybe only because you already had the custom history with them? 

[Patrick Moore]

Thanks, Corwin. I'm a pedal snob and love lightweight SPD-type pedals, and there's a (earlier version?) pair of Micros on eBay for $25, but I just read reviews of the Micros and apparently their cleats and SPD cleats aren't compatible; too bad, since I have SPDs on all my bikes now. 

Bike Radar weighed the Micro version they reviewed at 208 grams, lighter even than the old Xpedo titanium spindle pedals with 180 lb weight limit in my pedal stash, and a good 5 oz lighter than my go-to Dura Ace spds.

To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/56b0f048-328d-4e25-8825-7b87cf03fdd8n%40googlegroups.com.

[RichS]

Corwin, an adventurous build for an adventure bike. You must have had a good time putting that one together. Love the result:-)))

Thanks for showing it off.

Best,

Rich in ATL

[Corwin Zechar]

Hi Rich -

I can't take credit for the build. Mark Abele at Rivendell did it all. Including getting the frame built by Mark Nobilette and painted by Joe Bell.

Regards,

CZ

[DavidP]

Corbin, the nice about New Bike What? (as opposed to NBD) is that the bike has some dirt on it!

-Dave

[Corwin Zechar]

Hi Dave -

It had a lot more dirt on it after last Saturday when I rode the Redlands Strada Rossa. Ride Report to be posted shortly...

Regards,

CZ

[J J]

Congratulations, Corwin. It's lovely. It looks like such a fun bike. From what I recall, this has been a long time coming for you after your previous custom was stolen. 

A couple of questions: do you mind sharing what size it is? The slammed bar I think is making it kind of hard for me to ascertain proportions.

Also, besides the switch to canti posts and V brakes, how does the build/components collection deviate from your previous custom? 

Congrats again.

Jim

[Corwin Zechar]

Hi Jim -

It's been close to three years between the theft of the original custom and delivery of the new one. To be honest, the wait was about the same as last time. Back then, there was a big backlog of custom frames waiting to be built and waiting to be painted.

Regarding the size - it's a 60.2. According to Grant, that 0.2 cm really matters. Another difference between the two frames I neglected to mention is this one has the minimum upslope: 1.5 degrees. The original had what looks like a 3 degree upslope.

Regarding the components -- I will give you a detailed analysis.

Bottom bracket - Original had a Phil Wood with outboard bearings. The new one has a Chris King with outboard ceramic bearings.

Headset - Old was a Chris King Nothreadset. New is a Cane Creek 40.

Crankset - both bikes have (or had) the same crankset - Shimano Ultegra 6650 compact double. As I recall, the original custom had 46/34 chainrings. The new chainrings are 48/34.

Pedals - I had Tioga Surefoot 8 pedals on the original. Kept meaning to put clipless on, but never got around to it. The new custom has Ritchey Micro Road (one sided) clipless pedals.

Stem/Handlebars - I started out with 48cm Noodles and a 13cm Nitto threadless stem on the original. By the time I got things dialed in, I had switched to an 8cm Nitto threadless stem. The new bars are Albastache. The tape is the same between old and new - tan corkish tape.

Seatpost - Same for both - Nitto Frog (NJ-SP72 27.2).

Saddle - Old was a Fizik Aliante Gamma with Kium rails. New saddle is a Fizik Aliante Gamma R3 with kium rails. The old saddle had been Recovered by Carson Leh in Texas. By the time I contacted him again, Carson was no longer recovering saddles. Carson referred me to Mick Peel in Australia who recovered the new saddle and embossed the leather with the Rivendell logo.

Front Derailleur - Old was a Campagnolo Mirage. New is a Shimano GX. Although the bottom bracket drop and seat tube angles are the same for both frames, the new bike is limited in the gears I can use from the big ring. This could be due to my choice of a larger chainring.

Rear Derailleur - Old was a Shimano Ultegra 9-speed. New is an SRAM  X0 medium cage.

Shifters - Old were Shimano 600/Ultegra 9 speed shifting indexed. New are SRAM 10 speed bar ends shifting indexed.

Cassette - Old was 11-28 nine speed. New is 11-36 ten speed.

Brakes - Old were Tektro R539 sidepulls. New are Tektro CX8.4 V-brakes. I really loved the R539s. But I hate the lawyer tabs they added.

Brake Levers - Old were SRAM 500 aluminum levers. New are SRAM 900 carbon levers.

Wheelset - Went through several iterations on the old custom. Started with a SON Dynamo hub laced to Velocity Fusion rim in front. The rear was a Chris King Classic Cross hub laced to a Velocity Fusion off-center rim. I sold the front wheel after a year or so. Then had the rear wheel rebuilt with the Chris King hub and Velocity A23 rim. Before the rebuild, I sent the Chris King hub off for a new steel driveshell. I had a new front wheel built with a Chris King Classic Cross hub and Velocity A23 rim. The new wheelset is Onyx hubs laced to Velocity Quill rims. The Onyx rear hub has ceramic bearings and a noiseless clutch. It's wild sneaking up on people with a noiseless bike (even when coasting).

Tires - My biggest gripe about the old custom was that I had spec'ed it to take 35mm tires. Which it did. The new custom was spec'ed for 38mm tires and will handle tires wider than 40mm (without fenders).

Regards,

Corwin

[Corwin Zechar]

Hi Patrick -

Thanks for the info. I grabbed those pedals.

I don't think you are a snob. My wife calls me a snob - but I tell her I just know what I like, and don't feel bad about going after it. I define a snob as someone with strong preferences who looks down on others that do not share their preferences.

Regards,

Corwin

[Jim M.]

Wow, great looking bike and wonderful build! Makes me want a custom too.

jim m

walnut creek ca

[J J]

Thanks for taking the time for such a comprehensive response, Corwin. Super interesting and well thought-out choices.

 

(Your comments about the Onyx rear hub might be the final nudge I need to take the plunge on one!!)

Best wishes,

Jim