17th October 2020, 12:29
| #4921 | |
| Senior - BHPian  Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Pune
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| Re: The Bicycles thread Quote:
It's got nothing to do with the size of the bike, which is 17 in this case (MTBs and Hybrids are sized like this ... Top of seat tube to center of BB). That's an M (medium) and should be ok for a 5'10" guy. Most Indian bikes are sized like this. That is, they come in one standard size. Their economies of scale do not warrant different frame sizes like L, M, S etc. Cheers, Doc Last edited by ebonho : 17th October 2020 at 12:33. | |
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17th October 2020, 12:30
| #4922 | |
| BHPian Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Hyderabad
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| Re: The Bicycles thread Quote:
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17th October 2020, 12:39
| #4923 | |
| Senior - BHPian Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Pune
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| Re: The Bicycles thread Quote:
 Cheers, Doc | |
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17th October 2020, 12:41
| #4924 | |
| BHPian Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Hyderabad
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| Re: The Bicycles thread Quote:
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17th October 2020, 15:00
| #4925 | |
| Senior - BHPian  Join Date: May 2012 Location: Himachal
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| Re: The Bicycles thread Quote:
On the downside, discovered that one of the local shops I often gleaned re-usable spares and bits from just tossed 50kg's of takeoffs 3-4 days ago... (Rrrr!!! So wasteful!). I'd told one of the guys to keep the stuff for me, but in the haste of company reorganization and cleanup, I never got a call... There certainly would have been some good tyres and brakes and changers, etc in that lot... Went around to all the scrap dealers I know and nobody seemed to know anything about it... disappeared into thin air. Ah, well. Bought a neon-green Dragon Hi-Bird (yes, "Bird") MTB junker this morning...  ...mainly for its rear disc-brake wheel, though it had a couple other good bits as well... No time to build the ACT108 right now, but thought it at least deserved to roll... so took that wheel off the Hi-Bird and got it mounted up quick, with another rear one minus freewheel reversed and hung on the front with one of those new discs...  I think It's gonna look pretty good with the discs and all assembled, when it gets to that stage... I'm tempted to try and see how a larger (700C or other) wheel would look on the front of this one, too... Would almost certainly ride better, and as I'm not touring and can easily patch tubes roadside, not gonna be carrying anything extra on account. Seeing it like this, had a wild idea and wondered if I should forego the full polish on this one and build it as a "Post-Apocalyptic Rat-Cycle" (keeping rat-rods and rat-bikes in mind)... ...maybe not, as the aluminum is getting corroded, and need to get that in check for the sake of structural integrity... ...but tempted to anyway... Re:tyres, I've seen a cracked Ralson or two up here... not sure of their age, may be better than the off-brands. But the Bontragers and Kendas seem absolutely fine even after many years sitting out. Apparently some compounds just can't take the cold -Eric Last edited by ringoism : 17th October 2020 at 15:05. | |
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17th October 2020, 15:48
| #4926 | |
| Senior - BHPian Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Pune
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| Re: The Bicycles thread Quote:
Hi-Bird is one of the lesser known but pretty decent quality Ludhiana companies which I happened to chance upon when looking for a bike for my daughter. I got her one that was a carbon copy of the BTwin ladies geared 7 speeder bike that was around 8000 bucks at the time. It came with either Sunlite (or some such Chinese brand) drive train or Shimano. Since I was ordering online I had now way of knowing which one I would get. Not happy with the "lottery" I traced down the HQ guy in charge of dispatch and managed to ensure that the bike that came to me came with the Shimanos. Beautiful bike. Friction shifters for the rear (super easy for newbies) and Index SIS for the front. 3x7. Nice knobbie Ralsons. And a killer white paint job. All for 5000 bucks. A steal. The stem was a bit off, so I replaced that with a spare brand new one I had lying around. I'm really excited about the ACT108 frame you have. Either looks like a one off prototype or a very limited production run. Cause I too could not find anything similar looking online. Look at the pivot point of the swingarm on the frame. That's not your run of the mill dual suspension monstrosities we get here with weird designs (like the more recent Hercules Roadeo). It looks very pro. Definitely a direct import. Its common to find these in the hills cause the enthusiasts, sports guys take them there, bash them, and then leave them there rather than spending more than what the bikes worth (after the bashing) to get them back. An interesting anecdote on the same lines, the Hercules Top Gear MTB I have (steel double bow top tube frame) was a limited run by TI Cycles for the National Games. Came with special Revo Shift grip shifters, long cage derailleurs, and Mega Range rear freewheel, probably for the MTB events in the hills. I've seen dozens of Tog Gears. None of them come with the same drive train. I picked that beautiful metallic green baby up in 2001 for 3500 bucks brand new through a friend of mine who ran a local cycle shop (our toddler sons went to the same play school ... that's how we met on pick-up duty!) Keep us posted her on the build Eric! Cheers, Doc P.S. 700c wheels roll better. But 26 inchers are MUCH stronger, taking hits a lot better, as well as able to take a lot more weight. In fact a lot of long distance cyclists (around the world types) specially design their custom built world tour road bikes with 26 inch wheels for this very reason. Besides the fact that when they are riding through countries of the developing world, tyres in that size are much easier to get in an emergency compared to the 700c's. Just providing you with pros and cons. Last edited by ebonho : 17th October 2020 at 16:10. | |
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18th October 2020, 20:45
| #4927 |
| BHPian Join Date: May 2009 Location: Pune, Melbourne
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19th October 2020, 21:31
| #4928 | |
| Senior - BHPian Join Date: May 2012 Location: Himachal
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| Re: The Bicycles thread Quote:
You've got a lot of great knowledge, experience and anecdotes, Doc... glad you're here. Re: Hi-Bird, I was surprised (and pleased) to hear it wasn't Chinese. Mine does have the Sunlite derailleurs, shifters are Shimano. Will probably rebuild this winter and try to sell off in the Spring. Re: the 108Max, I just couldn't resist getting my hands on it today... tired of my other (eh, money-generating) shop work and rather eager to make progress...  After taking this pic I managed to get the chain and shifters/brake levers / front caliper on, hope to be riding it within another hours' work, and happily, I think I will have managed to get the whole thing together with new parts limited to the derailleur hanger (Firefox item @₹260), the seat-post clamp (which I probably could've eventually found second-hand, but at another couple hundred chose expediency), and some cheap Suncross handgrips. Otherwise just about everything (incl. frame itself) are salvage / secondhand items. Paid ₹1700 for the frame with cranks, forks, handle/neck and a rear wheel... which I think is turning out to be worth it. Acera rear derailleur was bought by weight as scrap metal, I've got options for the shifters but actually thinking twist-grips just for a bit of minimalism (only one moving part!), desi-nostalgia, and a kind of quirkiness. Being all plastic, they actually seem to be pretty lightweight, but will put them on the scale tomorrow and check vs. typical Shimano setups. I'll probably borrow the steel seatpost from the aforepictured hi-polish Firefox, as it's super-long and strong, and I'm tall enough that it'll have to be quite extended. Think Doc is convincing me to stick with the 26's for now at least... I don't really do trails or anything abusive where I'd need maximum strength, but that size indeed seems rather old-school MTB, which I like. I was expecting this thing to be pretty heavy once assembled, but it doesn't really seem to be, and I've only got the cables to put on now. And I think I am going to dub this the Post-Apocalyptic Battle-Bike... or Post-Apocalyptic Grasshopper, and leave the weathering as it is for the time being. Anyway, more tomorrow... -Eric Last edited by ringoism : 19th October 2020 at 21:46. | |
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19th October 2020, 22:07
| #4929 | |
| Senior - BHPian Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Pune
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| Re: The Bicycles thread Quote:
Look at that compact crank. The big ring looks even smaller than a 42T. Is the rear a cassette or a thread in freewheel? Either way, it looks big enough to be really helpful on the climbs. I'm not so worried about the drive train or the wheels or the chassis. I'm sure you will get all of them functioning well. Regardless of the aesthetics you choose for the bike. I'm actually wondering how you plan to refurbish the rear and front shockers do that they cease to be all or none pogo stick boing boing springs alone. That is what's going to actually make it break this build in my opinion. Cheers, Doc | |
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20th October 2020, 11:17
| #4930 |
| BHPian  Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Chandigarh
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20th October 2020, 12:30
| #4931 |
| BHPian  Join Date: Oct 2019 Location: MH12, MH06
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20th October 2020, 12:33
| #4932 | |
| Senior - BHPian  Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: Dubai/Bengaluru
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| Re: The Bicycles thread https://bumsonthesaddle.com/pages/repair-and-service This is informative. Plenty of YouTube videos as well Quote:
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20th October 2020, 12:47
| #4933 |
| BHPian  Join Date: Aug 2020 Location: Kanker
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| Re: The Bicycles thread Bought these padded shorts a while ago. Two weeks of daily 20-km cycling and I can say that they do the job pretty well for the price. The fabric is also breathable and they provide enough cushion to mask any discomfort faced by the butt.  http://dl.flipkart.com/dl/lycot-soli...oduct.share.ppLast edited by Abhi5868 : 20th October 2020 at 12:48. |
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20th October 2020, 21:21
| #4934 | |
| Senior - BHPian Join Date: May 2012 Location: Himachal
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| Re: The Bicycles thread Quote:
 It's a threaded freewheel... I've got one with a much larger 1st gear, even... but 2nd was smaller than on this one, so figured I should wait and see how I end up using it first. we do have some moderately steep gradients on roads here, but not as much as some hill-stations, and I'm not doing trails at this point.  Twister-shifters seem okay for me, I had them on the Firefox prior to fitting the Altus/Acera, and never really had a problem with them. As it turns out, with plastic-clamped alloy levers they weigh within one gram of the run-of-the-mill Shimano integrated shifters. One practical benefit is that the orientation doesn't change between seated/standing positions... just twist 'em, nothing else matters. And as I said, only ONE moving part. Extremely humble and eminently plasticky, but kinda likeable (to me).  Rear brake is a very heavy piece simply marked "MX" and finished in white powdercoat. Will find something lighter in time. Front is apparently the original. Discs themselves are likewise not of the thinner/lighter type, so room for lightening there, too (rear is of smaller diameter than the front, if anyone was wondering...) and then there's that long steel seatpost and rather heavy seat... Not building this for racing or getting anywhere fast, more for exercise and pleasure, but within reason still want to minimize extra mass. It's sitting at 17.5kg's right now - definitely no lightweight, but a whole lot better than a customer's 22kg Suncross 27.5" (front suspension only) I've got sitting in my shop, AND it should be easy/fairly cheap to shed a half kilo or more from it going forward. Wife's alloy Firefox was at 16kg, and my Merida Matts 20 @14-15; I figure if I'm under 17kg's with full suspension and fairly stout, trailworthy wheels and other gear, I'm doing fine for my purposes... I lost 6kg's myself this past month, so am.well.ahead of the game, and it's all good, lol!!!  As for suspension, rear shock is a Chinese KS ("Kind Shock"! And it does seem to be showing its kindness to my 50+ year old spine and, eh, seating area... It has a pretty stiff spring and set with a bit of preload, much more taut than the shock on typical desi cycles - so exactly what I want: just something to soften the bigger impacts, not to bounce around and soak up cranking energy. Fronts loosened up with only some good Würth anti-rust spray (which has a pleasant citrus scent in there btw). They have some fore/aft play but not enough to compromise control, and they don't knock around on full extension/sharp potholes like really cheap ones do. I'm gonna have to open and grease them and see what else they may need.  It all came together surprisingly easy, only snag was that some idiot had forcibly threaded a right-hand pedal into the lefthand crank... took me a long while to get it out, thought at points I might not manage it - but on the positive side, the hack hadn't got it in all the way, so I still had enough of the original threads to hold the proper (left-side!) replacement. Rides very well considering I've yet to service all the bearings and that the tyres are a pretty aggressive and wide Kenda/Ralson combo. I expect this will be a long-term keeper - deliberately drove it straight through some abrupt/nasty potholes, and it's just stunning to feel none of the bad jarring I've become accustomed to from the other two household bikes.  This has just been great fun, and the Merida's officially available for sale... ...but of course this project is not likely to end here... Long live the Post-Apocalyptic Grasshopper!!! -Eric Last edited by ringoism : 20th October 2020 at 21:51. | |
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20th October 2020, 22:13
| #4935 | |
| Senior - BHPian Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Pune
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| Re: The Bicycles thread Quote:
Helicoiling the crank might be a better long term solution for a keeper. Pedals have a way of parting ways with the crank at the most inopportune of moments and circumstances in my experience. Those tyres are really good. You're in luck. You should get good mileage out of both. A 700c up front might have fouled with the top of the fork on full compression by the looks of it. Or come very close, giving you not much clearance in mud in the rains. 17 kilos is very decent for a dual suspension Indian bike. I would never compromise on a lighter seat post at my 85 kilos. I tend to ride pretty carefree and fast regardless of surface. And my undercarriage is still precious to me at 50. Lol I have exactly the same adjustable Pro Sport stem on my ACT and mine is jammed solid in multiple seasons of rain. So it's with great envy I note you've managed to free yours up and put the bar fully upright. Wurth again? How about WD40? I've tried oil with zero luck. It's the small toothed wedge piece underneath at the bolt that's jammed. Cheers, Doc | |
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