question and WTB for two new country builds

[Michael Baquerizo]

3rd time i'm trying this, ill skip pictures for now since they're crappy but recently built up an appaloosa from the FFHS and a stock Clem, with a few additions from the stock build. since this is boring without words i'll try to add the photos in subsequent posts. now my questions:

does anyone have any rack-less recs for sackville saddle bag thats an inch too low and touching the rear wheel? i was hoping to avoid racks on this back entirely just because my city bike has front and rear racks, and generally all the fixings. the bag is the slim sucker, before it was called the slim sucker. terms out it's not slim enough and i'm the sucker.

before the most recent iteration, riv used to sell self tapping (i think) set screws for grip kings. well it turns out grip kings aren't so grippy so i'd like to get a set of them for both bikes. does anyone know what the size spec is so i can not make a mistake ordering or buying them?

a double leg plestcher is rubbing against the knobs on my appaloosa tires. any tips for making that disappear? obvious choices are to file down the area on the kickstand, but i'm wondering if thats too obvious and a wrong choice.

the next is maybe a WTB - my wife's clem came with what i think are pretty terrible brake levers, I removed them and replaced them with a shimano offering I later realized was short pull and I need long for the v-brakes on there. i want to keep them silver and classic - most options in the well priced range are sold out or only available in black. i'm considering going for the IRD cafam (really i'd love to just get her paul comp but it would be a real splurge)

same goes for the rear shifter - the trigger on that back is maybe not the greatest for her. was thinking of just sourcing a sunrace rear 9 speed because it matches the front derailleur already on the bike. anyone have one lying around they decided they don't need?

thanks in advance!

[Michael Baquerizo]

typical of me i jumped the gun and did up the grips only to realize i'll need to remove at least one set to replace the shifter and brake levers.

[Michael Baquerizo]

pardon the disaster in the background, pretty happy with this build. fit is pretty close to dialed and it might be my favorite bike ever, on just a quick shakedown ride. this is before cable trimming and everything else.

[Johnny Alien]

I have a 9 speed indexed rear sunrace thumbshifter. Brand new. If that is what you are looking for shoot me an email.

[Coal Bee Rye Anne]

Re: Double Leg Pletscher:  I have no immediate recommendations for a double leg substitute with confirmed greater tire clearance but think some have been suggested here or on iBob in prior threads.  If I remember correctly some may not fold over to the single side like the Pletscher and may be more for cargo or long tail bikes.  https://velo-orange.com/products/vo-retractable-dual-leg-kickstand is another one that has the 'scissor action' but not sure how the clearance actually compares vs. Plestcher.

Anyway, I also found it interfered with a 29x2.xx knobbie on my Clem H.  What ever brand single leg kickstand Riv included with the completes flares out much more and clears the wide tire just fine so I simply went back to the stock single leg and set the double aside for another project.  I also found the Pletscher double had the same issue on another bike of my spouse's with 26" wheels... those were maybe nominal 1.95" wide and did clear a bit more than my 29" tires (which had negative clearance) but still too close for comfort.  Fortunately is works just fine on another 700x35 townie build.

Re: Grip Kings:  I also recall the set of screws they sold and with 3 pairs of Grip Kings in the household I was tempted at some point to order some but never did.  After they started offering the spiked VP's I just put a set of VP's on the bike I'm most likely to take off road but may still consider adding some spikes to a set of Grip Kings one of these days.   I also recall they mentioned the size of the drill bit for pilot holes as well... might be something that could be found in the wayback machine archives if nothing else turns up or maybe a call into Riv in case they still have any lying around?

On Wednesday, December 1, 2021 at 9:27:51 PM UTC-5 Michael Baquerizo wrote:

[Michael Baquerizo]

hey - thanks for the info RE other kickstands. i actually have a stock clem one (super light, and adjustable) and a greenfield one (although it's been cut in its life, not sure if it'll fit properly for the appa)

i was hoping for fixes on the current plestcher. it's sort of part of my idea of the platonic ideal of a riv. i'm weirdly inflexible like that. the guy at my lbs suggested a mix of bending the kickstand plate out a bit, and some filing of the leg in the offending area. i'm down to try those options (could not find my file for the life of me) but haven't gotten around to it. 

thanks Johnny for the rear sunrace shifter. 

[lconley]

The spike bag says "TIOGA":

lAING

On Thursday, December 2, 2021 at 9:16:25 AM UTC-5 Coal Bee Rye Anne wrote:

[Coal Bee Rye Anne]

Nice, thanks Laing!  Didn't even realize they may have still been offered on the current site (admittedly didn't check and assumed they weren't based in Michael's request.)  Adding my email to stock notifications in case they do come back in stock.

Just remembered an alteration that could help - I recall mention somewhere of filing the hole in the kickstand plate to allow side to side offset of the kickstand... so rather than removing material and support of the kickstand leg itself you could just turn the bolt hole in the plate into more of a slot to allow some offset.  I'm pretty certain this came up in a similar discussion around the same Pletscher stand.  I likely forgot since I also found the Clem plate did not completely fit the stand I have... or vice versa.  Maybe just the thickness of the paint combined with some tolerances of the base of the kickstand itself but not only did the tire interfere but the stand was not fully seating into the bottom of the plate so I abandoned based on those 2 factors.  

Gus Boots and Susie Longbolts I think address the kickstand/tire clearance by offsetting the bolt hole in the plate.  But with a centered hole some round filing may do the trick depending how much movement you need and I'd be more comfortable filing just a hole in the plate than bending anything or filing the leg of the stand.  Just my 2 cents but best of luck on whatever solution you find works best!   

[dougP]

If the saddlebag is too low, how about a support such as the Erlen from Ocean Air Cycles:

https://store.oceanaircycles.com/products/erlen-saddle-bag-support-nitto-production

Hardly noticeable with the bag on.

dougP

[Brent B]

Michael, 

I also have a very small amount of kickstand rub on one of my bikes with a very slightly out of true rear wheel, and had a neat idea for temporarily fixing it the other day: 
 
I swear, I will true that wheel eventually, and NOT just totally forget about it because it's not making that noise anymore!

I've had some success using a "Pec Deck" style support for a rear saddlebag on my Atlantis. Gotta say, the idea sketches me out as-intended for a front handlebar bag, but as a means to buy an extra couple of inches of clearance over the rear wheel it seems safe enough. Worst case scenario is the bag rubs your tire a bit. 

I cobbled one together from Carradice Bagman support struts and a Nitto strut. In the attached I'm using a Road Runner Jumbo Jammer which is has a mount or strap every few inches all over itself. I can't tell if the Slim Sucker bag has any kind of mounting point around the rear/back of the bag that would work for this though.

-Brent

[Ed Carolipio]

> does anyone have any rack-less recs for sackville saddle bag thats an inch too low and touching the rear wheel?

I have small frames and low saddles. I've used both the Swift Industries Catalyst (reinforced X-pac) and the Jacks Supply Co Little Slugger (Cordura or X-pac) successfully. Both have a plastic insert which maintains the body shape when empty. Not very big but can be overstuffed and has loops on the lid to tie on stuff. Both also work well as handlebar bags with longer Voile straps and foam spacers.

> i was hoping to avoid racks on this back entirely just because my city bike has front and rear racks, and generally all the fixings.

Would you mind a saddle bag rack? The Carradice Bagman Sport works well with larger saddle bags, like the Swift Industries Zeitgest, and it's not as big a commitment as a dedicated rear rack. Someone mentioned the Ocean Cycles Erlen rack - very elegant and blingy but designed for the Nitto S-83 so can be a roll of the dice with other seat posts.

> the bag is the slim sucker.

Is your rear flap too long? I bought one recently and the bottom cleared by 3/4" even when I stuffed it but the too-long flap flopped over and rubbed the rear tire. Will said that was ...  not right - actually a couple of inches too long - and I returned the bag for a refund.

--Ed C.

[Michael Baquerizo]

thanks for the recommendations and suggestions - managed to get a matching rear thumbie for the bike, and went ahead and ordered a set of paul levers because they'll likely be the last set of levers we'll ever need. been really digging old shimano mtb stuff lately but didn't want to hold out waiting for something in good condition. 

i think i might get an r14 rack eventually, i like the ones without the tombstone. erlen is out of the question, as is the bagman support as i think those are better for barrel shaped bags than for the riv offerings. heck, even a marks rack would do, but i already put one of those on my wife's bike. probably shouldn't steal it from her just yet.

the pec deck is an idea i've considered, but no, the slim sucker does not have any webbing  on the bottom which is a bummer, but it's small so probably would have been overkill. 

im gonna call riv tomrrow to ask about the kickstand. so far the rat tail filing out the hole to the left seems to make the most sense, and i get with enough torque there wouldn't be any reason for the kickstand to move back and forth along the elongated hole. we'll see if they cosign this idea or have a better one. i'm sure they've dealt w it before.

thanks everyone - better pics to come hopefully this weekend.

[Bones]

I had the Pletscher double on my old Appaloosa. It worked fine with 50mm Cazaderos on Cliffhangers. It's not even close to fitting on my new Appaloosa with those same tires/rims. I had trouble with single leg kickstands as well. I have since moved on to 55mm tires and I gave up on the kickstand.

Bones

[lconley]

Another option is to file off the threads of the bolt where they come in contact with the kickstand plate if you only need a little extra clearance. The threads themselves don't add much strength to the bolt and if you file off too much and the bolt breaks someday, bolts are cheap and the frame has not been altered..

Laing

Delray Beach FL

[Michael Baquerizo]

updates : 

spoke to vince at RIV about the kickstand and he hardly let me finish my sentence before saying it just wasn't going to happen. 

but then i came across this - which suggests otherwise. he kinda left me thinking it's not worth a try and now i'm just stuck in purgatory.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/bluelug/51441668141/in/photolist-2mnHZJM-2jdMVQX-2kH7s6w-2iZ2U5k-2jwLudZ-2kRmEj1-2m2qLeM-2kRmEhh-2dAstdc-2mkaTEH-2mk7cTn-2mk5QX9-2js8raj-2jsct4f-2brxWaD-2kw6o32-2mkaTzc-X8khsx-2m6k5gV-2js8ri5-2kQC16y-2jYTvzc-2jwMC47-2kMtPBF-2kQzArE-2m7yXBS-2mac9n9-2maeQEv-2m7vdEh-2k3huX5-2jsctcg-2m7yXAe-2m7rq4U-2jsctfn-GzCPNA-2m6C3Mn-2k49hox-2kXJVx6-2m7vdDR-2iuCBEd-2kQC16Z-2geTZS6-2k5qh7n-2k5msdK-2k5msnN-2k5mshN-2m3A8Vh-2m3DLu2-2kYNS92-2jdMVPz

happened upon a riv reader article that suggests 1/8" set screws are the correct size for grip king extra grippage.

got the rear rack sorted out. thanks for all the help here, all.

[Joe Bernard]

Michael, 

I suspect there's an official answer from Riv and what some folks are willing to file on to make that kickstand work. As Grant once said to me about some project or another I asked about, "...after that you're on your own, Joe."

[mbaqu...@gmail.com]

Jason - rack received and installed. bonus was the struts were a perfect length for my wife's mark rack to go straight to the fork ends. I used hers to go to my mid seat stay braze ons. win win win. happy new year. thank you again 

Best,

Michael Baquerizo 

www.mbaquerizo.com 

646-206-2913 

On Dec 28, 2021, at 10:31 PM, Joe Bernard <joer...@gmail.com> wrote:

Michael, 

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[Jason Glenn]

Fantastic!  Glad to hear it all worked out...

Looking forward to pics, although they would surely just further fan the flames of my desire for an App of my own.

[Michael Baquerizo]

added the rack for support. wrapped the bars some, managed to lose one of the washers  while readjusting the rear rack. i think the bars are too high but otherwise it's a fun one.

[Michael Baquerizo]

oh and, i temporarily gave up on the double kickstand and used the one that came with my wife's clem. i've determined non double kickstands suck.