Conversion of original 700c Nordavinden to 650b?

[ViveLemond]

Hi,

You'd think this would have been covered, but I can't find it. For my 650b project, can anyone confirm if the 58cm Nordavinden (designed for 700c) would do ok with a 650b conversion? (brake reach, etc.?)
Thanks!

[Theodor Rzad]

Hi there,

I ran my Nord (medium, ie 56cm) with 650b for about a year. I liked nearly everything about it except for the lower BB. I measured 258mm estimating tire sag. This is not out of line with 50's-60's randonneuse geometry I've seen published. It mostly just felt weird coming off of my other regular bike at the time: an early 90's Salsa cross bike with a sky high BB.

You'll need longer brakes of course. I used Mafac Raids. The pads were ~ middle of their vertical range.

Here's a Flickr album of my Nord in 650b mode: https://flic.kr/s/aHskVErFMH

Have fun! Ted 

[ViveLemond]

Awesome, thanks, I think it will be great. Hoping my long-reach Tektros work on it, but if not something will work.

[Dan Widner]

Ted, those are some great and detailed comparison shots.  Looks like you have changed out the fork as well?  What is it?

Dan

[ViveLemond]

I did it - grabbing a Large Nodavinden frame, will update on conversion details. Excited!

[Theodor Rzad]

Thanks Dan,

Indeed, the chrome fork is a Soma Champs-Elysees for road calipers. They come in 380mm and 385mm crown-to-axle lengths. The stock Nordie fork is 380mm.

I picked up the CE fork for a few reasons: 

1. I originally had the concept of a porteur/commuter setup w/ the Soma fork and a lighter, randonneuse mode for the stock fork (easily swapped with a King headset and an extra crown race). 

2. the Soma fork has an additional forward boss at the tip; great for a large platform rack.

3. chrome looks retro-cool and is more durable locked to street posts

4. I was (needlessly) worried that the stock fork would be too flexible with a platform rack on there.

5. the previous owner of my Nord cut the steerer fairly aggressively. It's fine for my 'spirited' rides in the country, but was too low for an upright city position without a riser stem (which I hate the aesthetics of ;)

In the end, #2 is the biggest reason to go with the Soma. It is stiffer than stock, but the stock one's not super whippy. If it had the extra eyelets, I'd have no problem using a big rack on it.

The Soma fork is a little heavier and stiffer than the stock one, but not to the detriment of the ride quality. I think it's a great option. Plus, the 385mm version raises the trail figure for those who dislike the low 30's of the 380mm fork length.

Ted

On Wednesday, January 17, 2018 at 7:20:28 AM UTC-8, Dan Widner wrote:

[Theodor Rzad]

Congrats and enjoy! I look forward to your pix

Ted

[ViveLemond]

The Nordavinden

The Nordavinden is built and I took it out for it's first ride today. All I can say is, WOW, F'ING WOW!

It was as if Jan Heine himself was floating besides me saying "See, I told you low trail was better. And don't those flexy tubes feel good when you pedal? And can you believe other riders aren't riding on these amazing 42mm Compass tires?"

The wheels and tires and brakes are new, the rest of the parts came off my road bike I've had for 10 years or so, a 2004 Lemond Zurich. I really like the Lemond, but I feel the old racing style frames have become obsolete with the new tire technology and awareness that wider is better. Previous bikes were a Rossin race bike (Columbus SL), which was great but too small for me, a vintage Specialized Expedition touring bike which I never liked (felt heavy and dead to me), and the Lemond.

Luckily, the dimensions on this one are almost identical, so getting a good fit was super easy.

Thoughts on the bike:

- First, it's just beautiful, at least to my eyes. That always helps. It's literally brand new, not a scratch. Thank you previous owners for taking such nice care of it.

- Low trail: This was my first experience of it. I like it. It feels both lighter to the touch and more stable at the same time. There was certainly no downside I could detect and luckily there is no shimmy, thank God. I went down a hill with no hands at about 30mph no problem. I'm not familiar with the headset that came with it and don't know if it's standard or needle bearing.

- The frame. I think the flexy tube thing is real: it felt zippier to me than my Lemond, which is lightweight 853, but OS and ovalized and so on.

- the 650B wheels and tires: I have 28 and 32mm Compass ELs on the Lemond, so I'm used to the nice tires that are relatively wide compared to standard 700c race tires. I liked them so much more I wanted to get the full effect. These have Baby Shoe ELs on them. The roads we were on were pretty smooth and they just felt nice. I did do a small gravel trail for a few hundred yard and there they felt way more surefooted than a normal road tire would. I look forward to trying the local fire roads and smoother trails with these. I didn't get a chance to roll on some crummy pavement for any length of time where they will likely come into their own.

- One downside: the BB is low. I have to be a bit careful in corners while pedaling. It's not super low, but it's lower than I'm used to.

Next steps: i do want to get some nice Honjo fenders for it. Here in California I'll only need them for 5 months of the year or so, but it makes sense to have them and they look cool.

I'd like to get a nice rando bag in front, but they are so over-priced I'll probably pass, and I don't do monster ride anymore where I need to bring a lot of stuff, but maybe that will change.

Thanks to everyone here who chimed in with advice and I'll see you on the road, or trail, less traveled.