First look at the Soma Grand Randonneur: First 200km

[Nick Bull]

I bought the Soma Grand Randonneur because the '84 Trek 610 that I had converted to 650B service had minimal clearance for Grand Bois Hetre tires -- about a mm on each side at the chainstays.  That's fine for a bike that I bought to test whether I like 650B and low trail, but now that I've ridden it for a couple of years and know I like it, I decided it's time to buy a frame designed for that style of riding.  So I bought a Grand Randonneur from Mike Kone at Boulder Bikes.

The frame arrived nicely packed.  It's a pretty cream color with green highlights.  I think it's a very nice looking frame.  The TIG welds are not as excellent as on my Gunnar Sport, but they're perfectly fine.  The Tange Prestige tubing makes a nice "ting" when you tap it with your fingernail.  The main tubes are comparable to the all-Reynolds-531 tubes in the 610.  But the stays and fork on the Soma are beefier than the same tubes on the 610.  I'm not wild about the looks of the seat tube extension, but I rarely look there while riding, so it probably won't make much difference.  I didn't actually weigh the frame before building it, but built-up and with comparable parts to my other frames (610, Gunnar Sport, and Rivendell Rambouillet), it is the lightest of the bunch, but only by a few grams.

Almost all parts were then transferred from the 610.  But I left the 610 with it's Stronglight roller-bearing headset so I might later decide to transfer that if shimmy proves an issue.  Build (from the 610 except as noted "new"): Shimano 105 rear hub; Schmidt dynamohub; Velocity Synergy rims; DT DB spokes; Sugino XD600; SRam 11/34 cassette; Deore XT rear derailleur; a front derailleur pulled from my old 86 MTB; Dura-Ace 9-speed downtube shifters; Velo Orange Grand Bois bottom bracket (new), seatpost, handlebar, fenders; Ritchey headset (new); Nitto Technomic stem; Tektro CR720 cantilever brakes (new); Tektro R341 levers; Crank Bros Quattro pedals; Selle Anatomica saddle; Carradice Lowsaddle Longflap saddlebag (for carrying bulky winter gear); Nitto Campee front rack (not installed in photo).  Since the Campee wasn't installed, I used my old Lone Peak Altra H-100 handlebar bag, which rides a little higher than my Gilles Berthoud 28 bag.

After a couple of bike commutes to get the fit dialed in, I went for a ride on a 200km from Woodbine, MD through Gettysburg, PA to Dillsburg, PA (see http://ridewithgps.com/trips/2035531).  It's a moderately tough ride, about 8500 feet of climbing, mostly rolling, none of it big climbs.  On the flats, the ride of the Soma felt about the same as the ride of the 610 and my Gunnar Sport (which has also been converted to 650B).  All three frames absorb road shock nicely--what little road shock that gets passed through by Hetre's.  Where the Soma stood out is on climbs, where it felt like more of my effort translated to moving up the hill.  I'm guessing this is because of the rear triangle is stiffer than either the 610 or the Gunnar Sport.  On the other hand, when I switched the lights on at dusk, there is slightly more dynamo vibration getting passed up to the handlebars.  It's only a little more noticeable than the 610 or the Gunnar Sport (with A Homer Hilsen fork).  And because the big, Hetre tires don't transmit much road shock
anyway, the slightly-stiffer fork on the Soma doesn't affect road vibrations noticeably.  The low-trail steering feels the same as on my Gunnar Sport, which has an A Homer Hilsen fork raked to about 62mm.  When you stand up on a hill, the bike keeps its line and stays under you, instead of feeling more squirrely.  I didn't notice any shimmy worthy of mention.  On a hill where I was going slowly and pushing hard, I tried taking my hands off the bars and got a little front end vibration.  On the flat, going a little faster, I could take my hands off the bars with no problem.

Frankly, I'm not sure that I'm enough of an aficionado of bikes to know whether the bike "planes" or not.  At the end of a long ride, when your legs are thrashed, nothing much seems to plane. So ... to the extent that the 610 and Gunnar plane, then so does the Grand Randonneur, maybe even a little better.  My ride time on Woodbine-Dillsburg-Woodbine was about half an hour less than expected, so I was moving along well, which might usually mean I was riding closer to the limit.  Nonetheless, I didn't feel as much leg fatigue as usual when I hit the final 15 miles of the ride, which have a notorious sequence of very hilly roads: Buffalo, Roop, and Waterville.  So ... all in all, my first look was very pleasant and I'm pleased with the Grand Randonneur.

[Aaron Harris]

I became reluctant to use my cream tires with this frame color, but that looks alright.  Are you using VO Zeppelin fenders?  I started with an old set of those before giving the Berthoud 50mm steel fenders a shot.  I dare say the shorter radius makes them just barely suitable for 38mm tires, so I'll save those for another build.

[Mark]

Nice ride review and your GR looks very cool with white Hetres! 

Mark

[travis cooper]

I've done it on quite a few bikes. Usually trim the inside tangs. No Big Deal.

Travis Cooper
Cooper Cycles
1515 SE Ankeny St.
Portland, OR 97214
Www.cyclescooper.com

[Nick Bull]

Those are Velo Orange 700x48 fluted fenders.  They were on sale a few years ago, and at the time I was running 700x32's.  But when I converted to 650B, I figured that since the OD of a 650Bx42 is around the same as a 700Cx23 that they should fit fine with maybe a little more room.  Which is about how it worked out. 

[Philip Kim]

Nice ride! I currently have an '87 Trek 400 (531 Reynolds) that I converted for 650b, and like you my only gripe is they don't fit 42mm tires, don't have front rack mounts, and can be a bit flimsy under load.

 

Have you tried attaching low riders to the Soma GR? I was wondering if the GR could serve as my randonneur as well as my weekend touring bike, so I can get rid of two bikes.

 

 

I emailed Soma, and said their tubing is a bit more stout than typical sport tourers and randonneurs, which I can appreciate.

 

Thanks,

 

Phil

[Nick Bull]

The fork definitely seems sturdy enough for low-riders, though I haven't tried them.

[Evan Baird]

https://www.flickr.com/photos/yummygooey/14444485985/

[Jim Bronson]

The pink is quite jarring to my eye, but otherwise, very cool setup.

Maybe I should stop wondering about the ability of my Grand Randonneur to hold up my 260lbs of heft plus a handlebar bag...

https://www.flickr.com/photos/yummygooey/14444485985/

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Keep the metal side up and the rubber side down!

[Jim Cole]

This has probably been discussed, but what is the purpose of the extended seat tube on the Soma GR?  I did not like the looks of it when I first saw these frames, but it doesn't stand out so much on your built up bike.  Maybe my eyes were diverted by all that pink!  Hey, pink ain't for me, but you seem to rock it just fine and looks like you have a cool setup. BTW, I used to have a Soma Smoothie and was quite pleased with it.  

Jim Cole

Memphis, TN

[Evan Baird]

It makes the seat binder work better. It also matches the extension on the head tube.