I am in the market for a new commuter*. I can find frames I like, but they all seem to put the disc-brake mounts in the wrong place (usually on top of the rear dropouts, not between the seatstay and chainstay. I am thinking about getting a stock frame (Surly Long Haul Trucker) and having someone braze on disc mounts. I would also swap out the stock fork for a disc fork, with possibly getting some rack-mount braze-ons added.
So, I am looking for referrals for a craftperson/framebuilder in the Metro area that does this type of work. Thanks.
* On June 1, I found my Giant OCR Touring had been stolen from my carport. I had mixed feeling about the bike--I had just discovered a crack in the frame and was in the process of getting the frame replaced under warranty. I had removed my Brooks saddle, peddles, and battery before the bike was stolen--so some criminal-type person stole a bike with no peddles, seat, and a broken frame. Smart....
everything i've heard says
everything i've heard says take it to tamara:
http://www.bicycleframework.com/
Contact Tamera(sp?), she's
Contact Tamera(sp?), she's in East Point.
http://www.bicycleframework.com/index.html
Thanks
I just sent her an e-mail.
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Calling her is better, IME
The answer is no
They don't offer adding disc brake braze-ons.
Any other suggestions for local frame builders?
oh boo! I've got some duct
oh boo! I've got some duct tape and a soldering iron..
costello. he's done stuff
costello. he's done stuff like that. and he's sufficiently smalltime that he wouldn't have to pay for something like liability insurance, so he wouldn't be legally obliged by his insurer to say "no".
I could definitively do
I could definitively do something like this for you, but for the same reason they don't want to add a disk brake mount I wouldn't recommend doing it (especially to a nice new frame). There is a very good chance that the frame couldn't take the stress and would either bend or snap completely thru. Frames with disk mounts (and for that matter forks) are reinforced on the brake side with thicker tubing.
Now all that being said there are definitively frames out there that could handle this kind of stress. I'd look for a cheaper bike, because the tubing wouldn't be double butted and there for the rear stays would be stronger. So my recommendation would be buy and old used steel frame and add what you want to it, and then if it did end up failing you wouldn't be out as much money.
Honestly, I wouldn't put my own time and money into adding a disk brake, because your not going to really notice a difference in power just in modulation. But if you want it done there are lots of people that can help you out. Almost anybody that welds has a torch and can braze one on for you. Less than a 30 min job and as simple as a job as there is to do. As far as rack mounts and other types of braze ons they should be safe on most any bike.
Anyways if your still interested or want some more of my .02 cents call me (770)714-3668
Have you considered a
Have you considered a cyclocross bike? They often have disc brakes.
Not just disc mounts but
Not just disc mounts but disc mounts in the right place... ie. the Rock Tour. However, one large and change for a frame that is going to get beat up commuting is a bit much to me (That and Gunnars use a mix of OX Platinum and 853... a bit exotic for a commuter, 520 all around is the way to go IMO for a commuter).
A Surly LHT frame with a Karate Monkey fork... disc up front with V-brake in the back for around five hundred.
Exactly my thinking
The disc up front is what I need--not so much in the rear.
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most road forks definitely can't handle the stresses of disc brakes.
Salsa makes a road bike built for disc brakes.
As a fair-weather commuter
As a fair-weather commuter who is trying to become more of an all-weather commuter, I've been looking at a new, more appropriate bike. It sounds like we're thinking similarly, as I too was thinking steel frame with disc brakes. I've been meaning to post and ask what the general consensus is. Are disc brakes overkill for a wet-weather commuter?
I'm also looking at internally-geared hubs. I'd like to have no derailers and a well-sealed hub. I don't think I need a lot of gears (I'm used to riding a fixed gear around town), but having a few would be nice. Crazy talk or good idea?
don't listen to me
i have zero experience with internal hubs, but isn't it the case that if they break, they're a pain in the butt to fix?
I've had a Rohloff for a
I've had a Rohloff for a little over three years now and have to say that it's THE solution to all of your drivetrain woes. Although, I hear that SRAM internals are great as well, and signifigantly less expensive.
Disc brakes on the road in a storm. [blind speculation alert] Never done it but i know how easy it is to lock up my wheels off-road with discs, and i know what happens when i lock up my wheels on-[wet]-road, so i would only imagine that if you lower the coefficients of friction between your tires and the ground and maintain the coefficients of friction between your braking surface and your brakes... well, yeah.
The advantage would be that you don't send nasty wet brake-soup all over your bike. The disadvantage might be that you would increase the risk of sending commuter soup all over the road.
Back to the gearhubs, grab an old SA3 and mod it to a two-speed fixed. [preemptively replace/reinforce your knees through the marvels of modern reconstructive surgery though]
I looked at the Rohloff, but
I looked at the Rohloff, but the price scared me off. I could replace an external derailer many many times for that kind of money.
but not an external der
but not an external der (front and rear), cassette, two chainrings (based on gear range), and a shifter (nevermind replacing...you don't have to ADJUST the damn thing, it's immune to cable stretch, and falling damage). AND, you would never have chain suck or drop again, ever. Oh, and you can shift it without pedaling (this is amazingly useful offroad or in situations where you go from full speed to stopped in a very short amount of time... or are stuck in sand). there's more... but i won't waste people's time.
bla bla bla all my stuffs
bla bla bla all my stuffs better than yours bla bla
not all of it. Just the
not all of it. Just the parts ze Germans have made.
Pretty close to my ideal bike....
http://swobo.com/catalog/product_info_b.php?cPath=201_204
The aluminum frame is the deal breaker.
Its a shame
because some of their other bikes are steel.
?
Aluminum won't rust.
true, but in my limited
true, but in my limited experience, I find steel a lot more comfortable to ride. maybe I haven't been on the right frame(s), but I find aluminum that's thick enough to be banged around makes for a harsh ride.
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tires give/flex a lot more than steel or aluminum, so that's kind of moot point.
if you want a more compliant ride, switch to fatter tires.
Not always the case. It's
Not always the case. It's anecdotal, but a steel frame has a different kind of give than an aluminum one.
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that's due more to the design of the tubes than the material
the design of the frame is a
the design of the frame is a consequence of the properties of the material... interestingly enough, the properties of the materials are contrary to the properties found in the frames... in general.
also, i have to agree with you from before paul, not so much on different tires, but inflation pressure. I used to 'show' people how compliant and comfortable 'newer' aluminum frame technology was compared to steel frames simply by sending them out on an aluminum bike with tires 5-10psi below recommended, and a steel bike with tires inflated 10psi above their rating.
as i've said before 80% of this industry is marketing bs.
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but panda, i weigh 135 lbf. if i don't pump my tires up to the MAXIMUM recommended pressure everyday, i'll get flats every three blocks and i'll go super SLOW. what do i do?!? halp plz
oh, why didn't you say so.
oh, why didn't you say so. in that case, you need one of these.
I have yet to ride an
I have yet to ride an aluminum frame that gives like a steel one. Not only can I feel the 'flexiness' of steel, but I can actually see it to. That's empirical evidence. Now whether the flex is good or bad... that's anecdotal.
But the both of you are spot on when it comes to tire pressure and the likelihood of working ones fillings loose. Strange how road cyclists seek the highest pressure before a flat and MTB'rs seek the lowest before a flat.
yeah
I'm not excited by the aluminum, either, nor by the flat bars. I'm starting to realize that controls for internal hubs and disc brakes are all intended for flat bars, and I'm staunchly attached to drops because they provide multiple comfortable riding positions.
Steel, drops, and disc forks
Here is my ideal commuter: steel frame, disc-spec fork, 700x35 wheels, touring triple up front, 9 in rear, touring/trekking bars with mtb shifters/brifters. I'm riding road bars now, and *never* use drops, just the hoods and tops. I have used touring/trekking bars in the past and really like the multiple hand positions--even more than hoods.
Trekking bars: http://tinyurl.com/2l3dzd
I have a friend who rides a
I have a friend who rides a rohloff on his road bike with drop bars. He took the bar, sliced them in half, slid the rohloff grip shifter on one of the tops and put the two halves into a stem with a very wide clamp to hold the two sides together. Seems to work. He likes it. So it can be done.It's a wide-ass drop bar though.
if it's on a ti frame, then
if it's on a ti frame, then i would say that i know the guy as well. i doubt that his bar is home brew so much as it is Kent.
Kent made himself (or itself as I'm unclear as to whether Kent is a person or a company or both) a thousandaire by devising a way of fitting gripshifters onto the tops of drop bars in the way you described. You may recognize his work from such bikes as the GMC Denali 'road' bike that wal-mart sells. Terrible idea, and a real tragedy that such a nice bike would be ruined with such a poor choice of such a vital part. YOMV.
as a side note:
If i read it right, there was an article a while back in Bicycle Retailer that told the story of how Kent would soon be bringing humanity to the day where carbon bikes are the cheap 'disposables'. That's right ladies, carbon-framed complete bicycles in the sub 500$ range (with STI shifters). Thank you William Gibson.
Indeed it is on ti frame. I
Indeed it is on ti frame. I wasn't aware that there was a company specifically doing this. Interesting.
sub-$500 carbon bikes? Pass the spray-on rust and the electrified security system, razor boy.
Brakes for wet weather
Listen to the Dutch. They have been riding in wet weather since God decided it would be funny to rain on a biker.
http://www.gazelle.nl/nl/productcategories.php?idParent=2&idChild=142&id...
I would think one could get one of them drum brake hubs, lace them to proper wheels and ride happy.
On the other hand, having taken a nasty spill on a long ride once for over braking, I think a little piece of rubber rubbing on a wet wheel is actually not a bad system after all and it has the advantage of being almost absurdly simple to maintain.