All-Rounder Deal - Anyone dig 26 here?

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Marty

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Jan 4, 2010, 6:45:40 AM1/4/10
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I threw in a bid on an All-Rounder that ended up in someone else's
hands yesterday via Ebay. Went for a little over 600, which I thought
was a great deal - but a few bucks past my limit. Hopefully someone
here snatched it up, and can report on the coming build. Guess I'll
upgrade my MTB conversion and wait for the next one. It's tough to
find a tall-frame 26"-wheel lugged steel ride, (my Trek is a 61cm, and
I'm running 1.75 Pasella's) and I happen to like the feel, not that
there's anything wrong with 700c or 650b... If I'm ever in the
position to have a custom built, I'd be tempted to build it around 26"
wheels. I know the prevailing winds whisper 700c for anything over
60cm,, but having ridden both styles, it's kind of a toss up to me.
The trick is finding that elusive tall-lugged-steel frame.

Marty

beth h

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Jan 4, 2010, 9:35:11 AM1/4/10
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Yes, it WILL be tough to find a really tall frame for 26" wheels.
(What size are you looking for?)
Maybe let go of the lugged requirement to make your search a little
more realistic. There are perfectly fine tig'd frames out there. Also,
realize that street-ified steel mountain bikes are the new rage so you
may have a harder time finding what you want.

As for me, I agree that 26" is totally fine! Three of my four bikes
take them.
Good luck on your search.
Beth

Dave Craig

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Jan 4, 2010, 9:47:29 AM1/4/10
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Marty

Are you aware that the Surly Long Haul Trucker is now available in 26-
inch wheels for all sizes? I know it is not lugged, but it's a good
bike that has developed a loyal following with bike tourists. I know
several folks with the LHT here in town and have met many, many others
on tours and they've all been very happy with their bikes. The 60 and
62cm frames (or complete bikes) designed for 26-inch wheels can be
ordered by any bike shop.

Dave

Marty

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Jan 4, 2010, 10:00:27 AM1/4/10
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Thanks Dave, I did not know of the LHT option - and it looks nice -
but I'm kind of devoted to lugged frames. I've had a few MTB
conversions over the years, and my current Trek may be as close as
I'll ever get. Beth, ideally I would end up with a 62 or so, but the
61 I have will fit the bill until I can go custom. Of course, If I run
into a 61 Riv All Rounder, I wouldn't complain.

Marty

Bill Connell

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Jan 4, 2010, 10:28:36 AM1/4/10
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List member Tim M will probably chime in soon - he has a 64 (62?) cm
All-Rounder with 26" wheels, and he's waxed enthusiastic about it on
the list many times. It's a beautiful bike, and that model is probably
your best bet for what you're looking for w/o going custom. Good luck!

--
Bill Connell
St. Paul, MN

Jim Thill - Hiawatha Cyclery

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Jan 4, 2010, 10:43:55 AM1/4/10
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Pretty sure Tim's AR is a 59. Tim is about 6'4", but that was
apparently the Riv-recommended size for him back in 1996 (now he'd
probably be on a 64 or so). In any case, Tim used his AR for many
brevets because it is comfortable to ride.

On Jan 4, 9:28 am, Bill Connell <bconn...@gmail.com> wrote:

Jim Thill - Hiawatha Cyclery

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Jan 4, 2010, 10:57:52 AM1/4/10
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One curious phenomenon is that Atlantis frames in size 58 (700c)
outsold those in size 56 (26") by a large multiple. I often got the
impression that folks exaggerated their PBH measurements because of
some apprehension about 26" wheels. After I had my Atlantis for a
couple years, I found myself wishing for the improved clearances of
26" wheels. My custom tourer/all-rounder is basically a 58 Atlantis
with 26" wheels. Apparently Surly saw the benefits of 26" wheeled
touring bikes, too.

On Jan 4, 9:43 am, Jim Thill - Hiawatha Cyclery <thill....@gmail.com>
wrote:

Bill Connell

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Jan 4, 2010, 11:09:25 AM1/4/10
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On Mon, Jan 4, 2010 at 9:57 AM, Jim Thill - Hiawatha Cyclery
<thil...@gmail.com> wrote:
> One curious phenomenon is that Atlantis frames in size 58 (700c)
> outsold those in size 56 (26") by a large multiple. I often got the
> impression that folks exaggerated their PBH measurements because of
> some apprehension about 26" wheels. After I had my Atlantis for a
> couple years, I found myself wishing for the improved clearances of
> 26" wheels. My custom tourer/all-rounder is basically a 58 Atlantis
> with 26" wheels. Apparently Surly saw the benefits of 26" wheeled
> touring bikes, too.

I've seen this too, to the extreme of a 5'2" rider refusing to buy a
road bike with anything but 700c wheels, with the idea that they
wouldn't be able to keep up on group rides if they used smaller wheels
(never mind that the gearing could easily be made the same). There is
a lot of value in trying different sizes for different applications (i
ride 64cm frames and have bikes of 3 different wheel sizes), but in
some cases the compromises involved get pretty questionable, and in
some cases it's downright unsafe.

JoelMatthews

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Jan 4, 2010, 11:22:14 AM1/4/10
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Did not realize people were doing that.

Somewhat odd, all things considered. There are many quality 26" rims
available for nearly every type of riding.

With some skinny race tires excepted, most decent tires out there have
a perfectly acceptable 26" variant. And who buys an Atlantis or
similar bike with skinny race tires in mind?

On Jan 4, 9:57 am, Jim Thill - Hiawatha Cyclery <thill....@gmail.com>

> > > St. Paul, MN- Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -

Marty

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Jan 4, 2010, 12:38:13 PM1/4/10
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At my age (53) I'm planning to ride for another 30 years or so (knock
on wood), but with age comes shrinkage, (I know, lots of debate on
this, but I've lost 1/2 - 3/4 inch since 40 - FYI - Clint Eastwood has
gone from 6'4 to 6'1) so I want to be sure the investment in a custom
will pay me back in the long run. Another consideration is the on/off
leg swing, which maybe should have me thinking Mixte, but I'll likely
go for a lower top tube and hope to have the flexibility to get over
it so to speak. Agree that the options for nice-smooth-fast 26" wheels
are out there, but I'm not trying to keep up with anyone but me on
most rides anyway. Also, I'm not too put-off by the look of 26 wheels
on a taller frame, which seems to be more of an issue than actual
performance to some.

marty

PATRICK MOORE

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Jan 4, 2010, 12:51:09 PM1/4/10
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On Mon, Jan 4, 2010 at 9:22 AM, JoelMatthews <joelma...@mac.com> wrote:


With some skinny race tires excepted, most decent tires out there have
a perfectly acceptable 26" variant.  And who buys an Atlantis or
similar bike with skinny race tires in mind?

The great gap in 559 and 571 tires is in the high quality 25-30 mm range. Will someone please, puh-leeeeze make a Grand Bois in a 559X28?

There are many utility tires -- City Slicker type; the Pasela comes closer to a supple tire, but it's not really a top quality riding tire, in my experience with it. And there are a few 26X1" tires -- Conti makes one. I use old stock 26X1 Turbos because of the casing quality, but I do wish they were at least 4 mm wider than the 22 mm they measure on my rims.

FWIW, I just swapped out the rear Turbo after 1700 miles; very thin but no increase in punctures yet. The front of course is good for 3000 easily, unless I rotate it.

 

Steve Palincsar

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Jan 4, 2010, 1:03:01 PM1/4/10
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On Mon, 2010-01-04 at 10:51 -0700, PATRICK MOORE wrote:
>
>
> On Mon, Jan 4, 2010 at 9:22 AM, JoelMatthews <joelma...@mac.com>
> wrote:
>
>
> With some skinny race tires excepted, most decent tires out
> there have
> a perfectly acceptable 26" variant. And who buys an Atlantis
> or
> similar bike with skinny race tires in mind?
>
> The great gap in 559 and 571 tires is in the high quality 25-30 mm
> range. Will someone please, puh-leeeeze make a Grand Bois in a 559X28?

It'll never happen. 559 is not a size "I" has any interest in.


PATRICK MOORE

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Jan 4, 2010, 1:06:29 PM1/4/10
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On Mon, Jan 4, 2010 at 11:03 AM, Steve Palincsar <pali...@his.com> wrote:
Will someone please, puh-leeeeze make a Grand Bois in a 559X28?

It'll never happen.  559 is not a size "I" has any interest in.


There's your natural cynicism and misanthropy coming out again, Steve. The tooth fairy told me she was bringing me some 558X28 GBs (when she brings my next set of dentures).

Who is "I" and why is his er her er its opinion on the subject or role in the matter of any importance?



--
Patrick Moore
Albuquerque, NM
For professional resumes, contact
Patrick Moore, ACRW at resumesp...@gmail.com
(505) 227-0523



Steve Palincsar

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Jan 4, 2010, 1:29:47 PM1/4/10
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On Mon, 2010-01-04 at 11:06 -0700, PATRICK MOORE wrote:
>
>
> On Mon, Jan 4, 2010 at 11:03 AM, Steve Palincsar <pali...@his.com>
> wrote:
> Will someone please, puh-leeeeze make a Grand Bois in a
> 559X28?
>
>
> It'll never happen. 559 is not a size "I" has any interest
> in.
>
>
> There's your natural cynicism and misanthropy coming out again, Steve.
> The tooth fairy told me she was bringing me some 558X28 GBs (when she
> brings my next set of dentures).

The Tooth Fairy doesn't bring you teeth, she comes to take them away.


>
> Who is "I" and why is his er her er its opinion on the subject or role
> in the matter of any importance?


"I" is the proprietor of Grand Bois, who got into the tire business (and
the handlebar business) because he couldn't get the tires (and other
appropriate, classic looking parts) he wanted for his Grand Bois
bicycles -- which are very classical and AFAIK don't come with 559
wheels. http://www.cyclesgrandbois.com/
Everything Grand Bois exists because "I" is interested. I think it's
about as far as you can get from "market driven".

Jon Grant

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Jan 4, 2010, 1:53:52 PM1/4/10
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Steve Palincsar wrote:

Everything Grand Bois exists because "I" is interested.  I think it's about as far as you can get from "market driven".

-------

Now lemme see — who else does that sound like?

--
Jon “… annnnd … we’re back on topic!” Grant, in sunny, chilly
Austin, Texas

Steve Palincsar

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Jan 4, 2010, 2:40:03 PM1/4/10
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On Mon, 2010-01-04 at 12:53 -0600, Jon Grant wrote:
> Steve Palincsar wrote:
>
> Everything Grand Bois exists because "I" is interested. I think it's
> about as far as you can get from "market driven".
>
> -------
>
> Now lemme see — who else does that sound like?


I think GEP is a lot more driven by market forces than "I" is.

newenglandbike

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Jan 4, 2010, 2:41:15 PM1/4/10
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On Jan 4, 12:38 pm, Marty <mgie...@mac.com> wrote:
> At my age (53) I'm planning to ride for another 30 years or so (knock
> on wood), but with age comes shrinkage, (I know, lots of debate on
> this, but I've lost 1/2 - 3/4 inch since 40 - FYI - Clint Eastwood has
> gone from 6'4 to 6'1) so I want to be sure the investment in a custom
> will pay me back in the long run. Another consideration is the on/off
> leg swing, which maybe should have me thinking Mixte, but I'll likely
> go for a lower top tube and hope to have the flexibility to get over
> it so to speak.
> marty


When men lose height as they age, it is in the body (spine) rather
than the legs, so I don't think that should be a consideration(?)

Jason Hartman

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Jan 4, 2010, 3:10:56 PM1/4/10
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On Mon, Jan 4, 2010 at 12:51 PM, PATRICK MOORE <bert...@gmail.com> wrote:


The great gap in 559 and 571 tires is in the high quality 25-30 mm range. Will someone please, puh-leeeeze make a Grand Bois in a 559X28?

If you want them that badly, why don't you have them made.
A tire mold from Panaracer costs about $15,000
Figure in set up costs and the cost for the tire materials
and you could have 500 tires for about $25,000.

You will then have a lifetime supply of your perfect tire,
and if they are as great as you say, people will line up
at your door to buy them.

Jay Hartman
 

PATRICK MOORE

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Jan 4, 2010, 3:27:37 PM1/4/10
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On Mon, Jan 4, 2010 at 1:10 PM, Jason Hartman <rjason...@gmail.com> wrote:


On Mon, Jan 4, 2010 at 12:51 PM, PATRICK MOORE <bert...@gmail.com> wrote:


The great gap in 559 and 571 tires is in the high quality 25-30 mm range. Will someone please, puh-leeeeze make a Grand Bois in a 559X28?

If you want them that badly, why don't you have them made.

Reason below:
 
A tire mold from Panaracer costs about $15,000
Figure in set up costs and the cost for the tire materials
and you could have 500 tires for about $25,000.

You will then have a lifetime supply of your perfect tire,
and if they are as great as you say,


Not me, I am relying on others' opinions.
 
people will line up
at your door to buy them.

Jay Hartman
 

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PATRICK MOORE

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Jan 4, 2010, 3:41:09 PM1/4/10
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On Mon, Jan 4, 2010 at 12:40 PM, Steve Palincsar <pali...@his.com> wrote:

I think GEP is a lot more driven by market forces than "I" is.

Quoting from memory, from an ancient Rivendell text: "We are a product driven company, not a market driven company."

I have quoted scripture; there you have it.

EricP

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Jan 4, 2010, 3:56:10 PM1/4/10
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Okay, will "out" myself. Have one of the new LHT frames - 58cm and
26" wheels. Rides really, really nice. Much like my Atlantis.
Which, as it so happens is a 56 frame with 26" wheels. By all
accounts and standards, should probably be on a 61 Atlantis. But
after hopping on the smaller Atlantis a couple of years ago, just had
to have it.

Unlike most, I actually like the wider tires and really enjoy having
options of either Marathon Supremes or Big Apples under the frame.
Cushy and don't find them to be any slower. The engine is the problem
on these bikes. Or the option of throwing on Marathon Cross tires and
riding unpaved trails in my area. And the wider rubber is much more
forgiving.

Also, my background is different from most. When getting "serious"
about bikes, it was at first old cruisers, then the new(ish) mountain
bike boom. Those bikes just spoke to me. And still do in a way even
great road bikes never have.

Eric Platt
St. Paul, MN

On Jan 4, 9:57 am, Jim Thill - Hiawatha Cyclery <thill....@gmail.com>

Steve Palincsar

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Jan 4, 2010, 3:58:22 PM1/4/10
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On Mon, 2010-01-04 at 13:41 -0700, PATRICK MOORE wrote:
>
>
> On Mon, Jan 4, 2010 at 12:40 PM, Steve Palincsar <pali...@his.com>
> wrote:
>
>
> I think GEP is a lot more driven by market forces than "I" is.
>
> Quoting from memory, from an ancient Rivendell text: "We are a product
> driven company, not a market driven company."
>
> I have quoted scripture; there you have it.


I said a lot more driven by market forces than Grand Bois, and I still
believe it.

Steve Palincsar

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Jan 4, 2010, 4:01:35 PM1/4/10
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> at your door to buy them..

Exactly. That is exactly what "I" did, and what Kirk did too, with the
Pari Moto. For that matter, it's what La Confrerie des 650B did as
well.

I suppose nobody cares that much about 559.

42MuskhamSt

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Jan 4, 2010, 4:49:52 PM1/4/10
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For years I believed 700 wheels were faster and better. I've now
ridden my Marinoni from Canada to Colombia (11,000km) and the SLX
Handbuilt lugged Colombus frame has been comfortable - Brooks saddle,
no bike shorts. I'm carrying around 50lb of gear. The rear wheel has
received much attention and now the rim is cracking. Guys on 26" wheel
rigs are not having these problems. I'm finally a 26" wheel devotee
trapped on a 700 body. The next bike I build up or buy will be with
26" wheels. Maybe even with cable pull disc brakes for the mountains -
heresey?

Should have bought that 56cm Atlantis when I had the chance. If wishes
were horses....

Not to change the subject but on the offchance anyone have an idea of
where I can find a touring rim between Cartagena and Bogota?


On Jan 4, 3:58 pm, Steve Palincsar <palin...@his.com> wrote:
> On Mon, 2010-01-04 at 13:41 -0700, PATRICK MOORE wrote:
>

> > On Mon, Jan 4, 2010 at 12:40 PM, Steve Palincsar <palin...@his.com>

doug peterson

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Jan 4, 2010, 5:49:51 PM1/4/10
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IMHO it's not the size but the quality of the wheel and how much abuse
it sees. Two of my touring buds have identical bikes, REI Safari with
26" wheels. One is about 1-1/2 years old, the other 3-4. Neither
rider is particularly careful. The older bike gets a trip to REI once
a year for service. The newer one came up with a destroyed rear wheel
on tour this summer. The difference? The guy with the older bike
weighs 170 & the guy with the newer 210. So there are places where
weight matters, & it ain't the bike.

If you're going to ship a bike a lot, smaller wheels make the packing
easier. I've had times I wished I had 26" instead of 700 on my
Atlantis. FWIW one of our SoCal Riv group has an Atlantis with 26"
wheels with Schwalbe Marathon Expedition (?) tires, big honking
monsters (2"?) next to my 35mm Marathon Supremes. He has no problem
keeping up, and is kind enough to wait for me at the tops of hills.

dougP

> > believe it.- Hide quoted text -

rperks

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Jan 4, 2010, 6:57:19 PM1/4/10
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You need to hunt down a set of the Primo Comet 26x1.5. I came into
owning a set of these through the purchase of an ebay tandem. They
are dirt cheap, about $25, and held in high regard by the recumbent
set. I have moved them arond on a few bikes and they are fast and
smooth as pillows, I dream of them in 700C at the 26"price.

Rob


On Jan 4, 9:51 am, PATRICK MOORE <bertin...@gmail.com> wrote:

Tim McNamara

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Jan 4, 2010, 8:01:00 PM1/4/10
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It's actually a 59.5- from 1996- and about 4 cm too small by current
Riv standards. I doubt Grant would even sell me a frame that small
now. A 63.5 works well for me, but the Riv is very comfortable
albeit with lots of seatpost and stem showing. There's an old photo
on the first page of my very old "tour of Lake Pepin" report from 2000:

http://www2.bitstream.net/~timmcn/tour2000.html

Now it has reverted to DT shifters and has a Mini rack on the front
(with a Platrack and purty matched bag in the offing, thanks Santa).
The stem is different now, too, a Nitto Technomic Deluxe, putting the
bars 3-4 cm higher.

I had for years groused about the 26" wheels on this bike, but the
Panaracer Pasela 26 x 1.25 are so good that they have eliminated my
complaints of the bike being slow on the road (unfortunately my LBS
won't have tanwalls anymore, though, as QBP is dropping them in favor
of the blackwalls. Boo!). All things being equal, small wheels will
have higher rolling resistance and for a long time this bike felt
like molasses on the road. Good road tires for 26" wheels were
fairly hard to come by, most of them having thick rubber and weighing
a lot. I never liked any of the 26 x 1.0 tires I tried and the
Avocet and Specialized 26 x 1.5s were slow feeling. With the
Paselas, the A/R now rolls well, rides wonderfully and is my favorite
bike. As a bonus, I rode the bike for 13 years without ever having
to true the rear wheel thanks to the 10% greater strength of the
smaller diameter hoop and the near-dishless 135 mm OLN spacing with a
36 hole 7 speed Phil hub. I finally had to replace the rim in 2009
when I found some cracks around the spoke holes.

Tim McNamara

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Jan 4, 2010, 8:05:03 PM1/4/10
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On Jan 4, 2010, at 11:38 AM, Marty wrote:

> Also, I'm not too put-off by the look of 26 wheels
> on a taller frame, which seems to be more of an issue than actual
> performance to some.


I've had people ask me if my A/R has 24" wheels. I've seen really
big frame bikes (64-65 cm+) on which 700 x 28s looked like 26"ers!

Tim McNamara

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Jan 4, 2010, 8:11:28 PM1/4/10
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On Jan 4, 2010, at 5:57 PM, rperks wrote:

> You need to hunt down a set of the Primo Comet 26x1.5. I came into
> owning a set of these through the purchase of an ebay tandem. They
> are dirt cheap, about $25, and held in high regard by the recumbent
> set. I have moved them arond on a few bikes and they are fast and
> smooth as pillows, I dream of them in 700C at the 26"price.

I've used the Primo (spelled "Pr1mo" on the sidewall) 26 x 1.25 tires
quite a bit. Too fragile, lots of sidewall damage and punctures.
And too hard to find, only stocked locally by Calhoun Cycles
(recumbent shop) and usually out of stock.

beth h

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Jan 4, 2010, 8:50:19 PM1/4/10
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Steve said:

>>I suppose nobody cares that much about 559.

Au contraire.

The number of real-world bike shops (i.e., those that focus on mass-
produced bicycles retailing for under $1,000) doing a roaring business
in 650b is VERY low. 650b, while it offers a lovely ride and a great
in-between wheel size that certainly fits a niche, is more likely to
be found through custom builders, and from mail-order houses
specializing in outfitting those custom frames.

At our shop, we do carry 650b rims and tires. We probably get asked to
build custom wheels in that size four or five times a year; and we've
sold exactly ten 650b tires to customers in the last 6 months.
We also carry 26"/559 wheels, rims and tubes. We sell them by the
hundreds.

The largest number of bikes I've ever seen with 650b wheels -- about
twelve of them -- were all in one room at the recent Oregon Manifest
bike show. All of those gorgeous bikes were custom built. Some were
available for sale and among those the cheapest one sold for around
$4,000. The winning bike at the show is currently for sale, for a cool
six grand. While these bikes represent some fantastic -- and even, in
many cases, truly sensible -- ideas in bicycle design, I do not
consider them to be real world bikes.

I consider a real-world bike to be a mass-produced, LBS-quality bike
that would retail for between $400 and $1000 complete. That is a bike
that the majority of hourly-wage workers in this country can afford,
even if they have to save up for it for several months (as a number of
our customers have had to do).
Based on that criteriae, there is not yet a real-world bike on the
market that is built around 650b wheels.
That's not to say it won't happen. I certainly could happen. But in
order for it to happen, 650b proponents would have to be willing to
accept a lower common standard in order to make the bike accessible to
many more people.

At present, 650b is still being sold on its performance, and in no
small part its hip, French coolness.
As an individual who loves hand-built bikes and beautiful components
that perform beautifully, I GET cool, I actually DIG cool and in fact
I am blessed enough to be able to RIDE cool to work every day.
But as a bicycle salesperson it is very hard for me to sell that kind
of cool to someone who rides daily for transportation, works in a
dicey neighborhood and has to lock their bike to the gas meter in an
apartment building basement every night. That level of cool is simply
too expensive to buy, and to risk, at the present time.

For my money, THE way to go for real-world bikes IS 26"/559. The wheel
size has been around for ages, offers zillions of tread choices and
price ranges, and can be cobbled together with a used frame and parts
to provide a VERY servicable, extremely rideable bike at a price that
an hourly wage worker can handle.

I love -- no, I ADORE -- the 26"/559 wheel size and I am sure I'm not
alone. That is why I worried when I heard that the Atlantis might go
away. The Atlantis is an absolute wet dream of a 559-dedicated bike
and it should live forever. I hope it will.

Seth Vidal

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Jan 4, 2010, 8:54:45 PM1/4/10
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On Mon, Jan 4, 2010 at 8:50 PM, beth h <periwi...@yahoo.com> wrote:
> For my money, THE way to go for real-world bikes IS 26"/559. The wheel
> size has been around for ages, offers zillions of tread choices and
> price ranges, and can be cobbled together with a used frame and parts
> to provide a VERY servicable, extremely rideable bike at a price that
> an hourly wage worker can handle.
>
> I love -- no, I ADORE -- the 26"/559 wheel size and I am sure I'm not
> alone. That is why I worried when I heard that the Atlantis might go
> away. The Atlantis is an absolute wet dream of a 559-dedicated bike
> and it should live forever. I hope it will.

To be fair - it sounds a lot like what you may want is what Matthew
Grimm is doing with his goals for 559-sized kogswells. A reasonably
affordable frame/fork targeted for 26" wheels with its own amount of
"cool" seems like a rational market.

-sv

Bruce

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Jan 4, 2010, 9:09:28 PM1/4/10
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A quick Google shows these for under $25 each at Ebikestop and Treefortbikes, among others.


Just FYI. I have WAY too many tires in my garage to be buying anymore to try. And that doesn't even count the pr I won on Ebay last night....


From: Tim McNamara <tim...@bitstream.net>
To: rbw-owne...@googlegroups.com
Sent: Mon, January 4, 2010 7:11:28 PM
Subject: [RBW] Re: All-Rounder Deal - Anyone dig 26 here?

I've used the Primo (spelled "Pr1mo" on the sidewall) 26 x 1.25 tires 
quite a bit.  Too fragile, lots of sidewall damage and punctures. 
And too hard to find, only stocked locally by Calhoun Cycles 
(recumbent shop) and usually out of stock.

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cyclotourist

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Jan 4, 2010, 9:20:40 PM1/4/10
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Beth, great write up on the the 559 perspective.  Thanks for taking the time to do it!

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Cheers,
David
Redlands, CA

"Bicycling is a big part of the future. It has to be. There is something wrong with a society that drives a car to workout in a gym."  ~Bill Nye, scientist guy

PATRICK MOORE

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Jan 4, 2010, 9:38:57 PM1/4/10
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On Mon, Jan 4, 2010 at 4:57 PM, rperks <perk...@gmail.com> wrote:
You need to hunt down a set of the Primo Comet 26x1.5.  I came into
owning a set of these through the purchase of an ebay tandem.  They
are dirt cheap, about $25, and held in high regard by the recumbent
set.  I have moved them arond on a few bikes and they are fast and
smooth as pillows, I dream of them in 700C at the 26"price.

Alas, 1.5s are too fat; I want something no fatter than 30 mm, or about 1.2, one big reason being so that I can fit fenders over them -- my Rivs will take 32s with fenders, barely, but no more.

PATRICK MOORE

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Jan 4, 2010, 9:41:57 PM1/4/10
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 I never liked any of the 26 x 1.0 tires


Did you ever try the old 559 X 1 Turbos that measure a real 23 mm, or 22 on my skinny rims? Wonderful tires, only too skinny: smooth, roll fast, and, very odd, far fewer flats than Paselas. I just pro-actively replaced the rear at 1,700 miles although there was still a bit of tread left and I was not getting flats. (Thanks, Ryan!)

PATRICK MOORE

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Jan 4, 2010, 9:45:29 PM1/4/10
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On Mon, Jan 4, 2010 at 6:50 PM, beth h <periwi...@yahoo.com> wrote:
I love -- no, I ADORE -- the 26"/559 wheel size and I am sure I'm not
alone. That is why I worried when I heard that the Atlantis might go
away. The Atlantis is an absolute wet dream of a 559-dedicated bike
and it should live forever. I hope it will.

Beth: is there any way someone could come up with a real, Grand Bois quality 28 mm tire?

Personally, were I to spend all the thousands I've spent since I got back into cycling circa 1987 on a couple of new customs, I might very well go 622. But 559 does have very real advantages -- I feel them every time I climb standing a steep hill for half a mile -- and a top quality road tire would be a great boon to many cyclists.

Justin August

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Jan 4, 2010, 10:12:40 PM1/4/10
to RBW Owners Bunch
Well, Matthew Grimm recently pushed the 650b version of the Kogswell P/
R to Anthony @ Longleaf so MG could focus on a 26" wheeled version for
the foreseeable future.

I still kick myself for getting rid of the 58cm lugged 26" wheeled
frame I found on the side of the road in San Francisco. Had quite a
few nice rides with it built up with closet parts. Moving across the
country makes you part with the strangest things...

On Jan 4, 4:01 pm, Steve Palincsar <palin...@his.com> wrote:
> On Mon, 2010-01-04 at 15:10 -0500, Jason Hartman wrote:
>

> > On Mon, Jan 4, 2010 at 12:51 PM, PATRICK MOORE <bertin...@gmail.com>

Angus

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Jan 4, 2010, 10:39:50 PM1/4/10
to RBW Owners Bunch
Marty,

My 59cm All-Rounder has 26" wheels, the 64cm Atlantis has 700c.

Both work fine, at different times I have prefered one wheel size over
the other, to me the biggest difference is tire/rim selection. At the
moment the tire selection for both diameters is quite good in the
larger sizes I use on these bikes.

Angus

On Jan 4, 5:45 am, Marty <mgie...@mac.com> wrote:
> I threw in a bid on an All-Rounder that ended up in someone else's
> hands yesterday via Ebay. Went for a little over 600, which I thought
> was a great deal - but a few bucks past my limit. Hopefully someone
> here snatched it up, and can report on the coming build. Guess I'll
> upgrade my MTB conversion and wait for the next one. It's tough to
> find a tall-frame 26"-wheel lugged steel ride, (my Trek is a 61cm, and
> I'm running 1.75 Pasella's) and I happen to like the feel, not that
> there's anything wrong with 700c or 650b... If I'm ever in the
> position to have a custom built, I'd be tempted to build it around 26"
> wheels. I know the prevailing winds whisper 700c for anything over
> 60cm,, but having ridden both styles, it's kind of a toss up to me.
> The trick is finding that elusive tall-lugged-steel frame.
>

> Marty

Tim McNamara

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Jan 4, 2010, 10:45:34 PM1/4/10
to rbw-owne...@googlegroups.com

On Jan 4, 2010, at 8:41 PM, PATRICK MOORE wrote:

>> I never liked any of the 26 x 1.0 tires
>
>
>
> Did you ever try the old 559 X 1 Turbos that measure a real 23 mm,
> or 22 on my skinny rims? Wonderful tires, only too skinny: smooth,
> roll fast, and, very odd, far fewer flats than Paselas. I just pro-
> actively replaced the rear at 1,700 miles although there was still
> a bit of tread left and I was not getting flats. (Thanks, Ryan!)

No, they were too hard to find locally; I only found one. I don't
care for using tires I have to mail order, I want to just go to the
bike shop when I need one. I think I may still have that foldable
Turbo I bought to stick in a saddlebag as a spare.

Jason Hartman

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Jan 4, 2010, 10:43:46 PM1/4/10
to rbw-owne...@googlegroups.com
On Mon, Jan 4, 2010 at 9:45 PM, PATRICK MOORE <bert...@gmail.com> wrote:


On Mon, Jan 4, 2010 at 6:50 PM, beth h <periwi...@yahoo.com> wrote:
I love -- no, I ADORE -- the 26"/559 wheel size and I am sure I'm not
alone. That is why I worried when I heard that the Atlantis might go
away. The Atlantis is an absolute wet dream of a 559-dedicated bike
and it should live forever. I hope it will.

Beth: is there any way someone could come up with a real, Grand Bois quality 28 mm tire?

I sent a message earlier today saying exactly what it would take for such a tire to happen.
It's not magic.
Rivendell has a bunch of different tire models.
Grand Bois is run by one person.
It just takes some money and time.

Jay Hartman




 
 

PATRICK MOORE

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Jan 4, 2010, 11:15:05 PM1/4/10
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On Mon, Jan 4, 2010 at 8:43 PM, Jason Hartman <rjason...@gmail.com> wrote:



I sent a message earlier today saying exactly what it would take for such a tire to happen.

Anyone else?


 
 

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Marty

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Jan 5, 2010, 7:02:43 AM1/5/10
to RBW Owners Bunch
Good discussion all! Almost makes me think I should have bid higher on
that AR...Maybe it's not too late for Riv to consider a 559/59+cm
version of the "new" Atlantis? (I'll take a 62 please) I recall an
earlier Reader that had a nice article about cycle aesthetics, and I
pretty much agreed with all of the points GP made in it. (Now where
was that...) When I built up the Trek 850 (559/61cm) and took a long
look at the thing from every angle, I was surprised that with fenders
and the right size tires, a tall-frame 26er actually looked quite
balanced. Not so much with typical MTB tires, but it came together
once it was set up in AR mode. Here's a link to those pics for those
that had not seen it before.

http://tinyurl.com/ygerbmv

Marty

Steve Palincsar

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Jan 5, 2010, 7:27:29 AM1/5/10
to rbw-owne...@googlegroups.com
On Mon, 2010-01-04 at 22:43 -0500, Jason Hartman wrote:

> I sent a message earlier today saying exactly what it would take for
> such a tire to happen.
> It's not magic.
> Rivendell has a bunch of different tire models.
> Grand Bois is run by one person.
> It just takes some money and time.


And the will to be a Champion.

Steve Palincsar

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Jan 5, 2010, 7:59:42 AM1/5/10
to rbw-owne...@googlegroups.com
On Mon, 2010-01-04 at 19:12 -0800, Justin August wrote:
> Well, Matthew Grimm recently pushed the 650b version of the Kogswell P/
> R to Anthony @ Longleaf so MG could focus on a 26" wheeled version for
> the foreseeable future.

Yes, as I recall what he said, he's concentrating on a market that has
junk MTBs laying around with recyclable wheels, aiming to sell them on a
frame that's more suited to practical tasks than the MTB frames those
wheels came on.

That's almost an operational definition of "bottom feeder," isn't it?
And it's hardly a narrative to inspire.

Bruce

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Jan 5, 2010, 8:31:58 AM1/5/10
to rbw-owne...@googlegroups.com
My Ram (52cm) came with 26" wheels so that the frame geometry would be better than with 700s, per GP's notes when the bike was still for sale on the RBW site. Since then, I purchased a second set of 26" wheels which can carry bigger tires than the stock Arrayas or go on another bike. Just for fun, and using the long reach Tektro calipers, I put the 26" wheels on a 53 CM frame that came originally with 700 wheels. The brakes juuuuusssstttt had enough reach to make it work. The handling was a bit too twitchy with the severe change in trail, but I did like both the look and the ride. 

So yes, I dig 26." Wish that there were more road centered tire choices in the 28mm ish range. (Running Conti Ultra Gatorskin 28s now)

Tailwinds 

From: Marty <mgi...@mac.com>
To: RBW Owners Bunch <rbw-owne...@googlegroups.com>
Sent: Tue, January 5, 2010 6:02:43 AM

Subject: [RBW] Re: All-Rounder Deal - Anyone dig 26 here?

cyclotourist

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Jan 5, 2010, 11:49:06 AM1/5/10
to rbw-owne...@googlegroups.com
A 26" wheeled Ram with two sets of wheels (light go fast/heavy trail use) sounds like an awesome bike!  Rivendell has been so invested in 650B I forget they have 26" bikes also.

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Jon Grant

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Jan 5, 2010, 12:00:48 PM1/5/10
to rbw-owne...@googlegroups.com
cyclotourist wrote:

A 26" wheeled Ram with two sets of wheels (light go fast/heavy trail use) sounds like an awesome bike!  Rivendell has been so invested in 650B I forget they have 26" bikes also.

-------

I rode with an RBW listmember a couple of weeks ago, Sean O’Bryan. He rode a smaller-framed, 26”-wheeled Rambouillet that looked perfectly proportioned, to my eye. He likes it pretty well, as I recall. Also, he had no problem wielding it to wax my ass on every uphill. He and his randonneuring buddy Jeff graciously waited for me at every crest, it seemed.

Happy New Year!
--
Jon “Tandem-weight on a Single” Grant
Illustration + Information Graphics
Austin, Texas
jgr...@papagrant.com
512-284-9599

cyclotourist

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Jan 5, 2010, 12:43:26 PM1/5/10
to rbw-owne...@googlegroups.com


On Tue, Jan 5, 2010 at 9:00 AM, Jon Grant <jgr...@papagrant.com> wrote:
cyclotourist wrote:

A 26" wheeled Ram with two sets of wheels (light go fast/heavy trail use) sounds like an awesome bike!  Rivendell has been so invested in 650B I forget they have 26" bikes also.

-------

I rode with an RBW listmember a couple of weeks ago, Sean O’Bryan. He rode a smaller-framed, 26”-wheeled Rambouillet that looked perfectly proportioned, to my eye. He likes it pretty well, as I recall. Also, he had no problem wielding it to wax my ass on every uphill. He and his randonneuring buddy Jeff graciously waited for me at every crest, it seemed.

Happy New Year!
--
Jon “Tandem-weight on a Single” Grant


 
I've noticed I tend to be the last one up the hill no matter what wheelset I'm using!  Luckily I'm pretty quick at getting down the other side!

Bruce

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Jan 5, 2010, 1:16:58 PM1/5/10
to rbw-owne...@googlegroups.com
Yeah, something about the motor making more of a difference....


From: cyclotourist <cyclot...@gmail.com>

Swashbuckling Dandy

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Jan 4, 2010, 10:08:28 PM1/4/10
to RBW Owners Bunch
Go Beth! You nailed it. Thank you for reminding me that when I bought
my first mountain bike 18 years ago, I sold my Raleigh Team USA for
$100 in order to make it happen. After years of fussing about this
brake or that tire or what saddle works best for under $200, it's easy
to forget what reality is like for most folks. My Atlantis frame cost
around $1000 several years ago. That's about what an LHT sells for now
as a complete bike, last time I looked. Even at that price, a good
many of the folks for whom it would be an ideal bike consider it
beyond their reach or even outrageously expensive.

I keep building "grocery bikes" mostly out of parts I have lying
around, because I'm not comfortable locking my nice bikes up at the
supermarkets in my area. Inevitably, these grocery bikes end up with
cool stuff on them and it becomes apparent that they are no less
likely to be ripped off. Just easier to replace. That just seems
hopelessly silly, but I can't help it.

JoelMatthews

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Jan 5, 2010, 2:08:46 PM1/5/10
to RBW Owners Bunch
> Even at that price, a good many of the folks for whom it would be an ideal bike consider it
> beyond their reach or even outrageously expensive.

Perhaps unfortunately so beyond the reach of some, but not
outrageously. There is nothing outrageous about paying a fair price
for quality built by people expert in their craft.

On Jan 4, 9:08 pm, Swashbuckling Dandy <swashbuckling.da...@gmail.com>
wrote:

> > and it should live forever. I hope it will.- Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -

PATRICK MOORE

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Jan 5, 2010, 2:19:02 PM1/5/10
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On Tue, Jan 5, 2010 at 12:08 PM, JoelMatthews <joelma...@mac.com> wrote:
> Even at that price, a good many of the folks for whom it would be an ideal bike consider it
> beyond their reach or even outrageously expensive.

Perhaps unfortunately so beyond the reach of some, but not
outrageously.  There is nothing outrageous about paying a fair price
for quality built by people expert in their craft.

One option, of course, is to spend double (at least!) on each of your bikes what you spend on your car. (I do realize that, for some, a car is not a plaything or a status symbol of some very weird sort, but a necessity.) I have seen many people poor enough to be hard pressed to pay their monthly insurance premiums making payments on cars far, far more expensive than what I drive; not to mention fast food bills and fancy cell phones and iPods and what have you; my ex, a pediatrician, saw many Medicaid patients carrying Vuitton and so on. I'm not ranting about welfare queens, but our country is so rich that even many of the poor can afford decent bikes if they really wanted them. I've seen poverty in India and Pakistan, where a bike means, or used to mean, practically middle class status.
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