Buy Eric's bike

Eric is selling this kickass full-suspension frame, and he wants to buy more toys, so someone buy it.

2004 Specialized Stumpjumper FSR Pro. Size XL (21in)
Fox RLC Triad Shock w/Propedal and Lockout (Rebuilt by Push Ind. last year)
Seatpost included (Sweet!)

Small ding in the drive side of the down tube and usual wear and tear throughout. Shock and pivots are in great working order.

Rack Test 2 (Anticipation)

I was wondering how much weight you could put in a milk crate on the DIY rack featured here:

http://sweetnourishingbikes.blogspot.com/2006/08/rack.html

This is too much:



The rack didn't fail. But the bike was so unstable I was white-knuckled all the way home fighting the thing. The weight wasn't necessarily the issue - it was the wobbling. I think the rack needs more lateral rigidity or something, because the only way to keep the front wheel from trying to kick out to the side was to keep my own center of gravity as low as possible, eliminating any stand-up pedaling. But the uphill grind home paled in comparison to the urge to reach back and drink the center of gravity down...

Catastrophic Failure

Behold the catastrophic failure of a hub:

About half of the flange on one side just broke completely off. Fortunately, it was right at a switchback, so low speed prevented a serious pile-up. Not so lucky was the resulting ~3 mile walk out of Guaje Canyon. I loosened the spokes as much as possible with the hopes of getting the wheel straight enough to turn inside the fork, but the best I could get was a really annoying rubbing sound every time the wheel came around. With the tire deflated, some persistent pedaling - even downhill, and a high tolerance for a nature-destroying racket for every tire rotation, some riding was possible. Most of the way, however, was on foot. At least it was a nice day.

Dave's commuter

Photos of The Commuter.




Dave sez:

I found this frame at the now-out-of-business Albuquerque Bicycle X-
change. They mostly sold a lot of fixed-up used bikes. There was a
side room full of crap that you could barely get into, and this frame
was hanging from the ceiling-- no wheels, seat, or seat post -- with
a tag that said "$30 AS IS." Given that this place made its money
from fixing up old bikes, I had wonder... as is *what?* But it was a
pretty tall road frame, so maybe it wasn't worth their time to build
up. So I bit.

A few months after I got it, a loud clicking noise started coming
from the bottom bracket. I took it to the shop for a new bottom
bracket. The repair guy called me later and said that the bottom
bracket was fine, but the grease had hardened! It was probably the
original grease. But the bearings looked fine, so he just cleaned
and repacked.

I included a crappy shot of one of the pedals. I put these on this
summer. When you're crossing a lot of intersections, its nice not to
have to think about where your foot is going to go. Its hard to tell
how big the pedals look, but its like a guy in a suit wearing Doc
Martens.

The Carradice saddle bag is awesome, but I've decided it really needs
a quick release of some sort. You have to buckle it to your seat.
I'd also like to modify the pannier rack with some fuel line
extensions to get it up higher.

Currently, the brakes are fairly sucky and need an upgrade. Also,
the wheels are on long-term loan from my road bike. I'd like new
wheels with fatter tires for better cush. Black spokes might look
good with this frame! Also, I'm very tempted to get an internal gear
rear hub. Something you can shift at a stoplight.

rack update

Originally one idea for the supereasy DIY rack was to pit J-B Weld against PC-7 Epoxy in a no holds barred deathmatch of destruction. The J-B Weld died a quick and painless death. Perhaps PC-7 will do better...


The consistency of PC-7 is very different - more like roofing tar. Pasty, but kinda stringy too, and without the nice surface tension that makes the "fillets" look nice. Definitely lumpier. It also takes way longer than J-B Weld to dry/cure. Overnight at least, and 2 nights would be better.

Stay tuned for the stress testing... Can it hold a 30-pack? On the trail?