7/4/14 7:06 AM

redneck, winkie means sarcasm. although in the american south, it's often used as a friendly, joking term of endearment between friends: "well, hell, son -- you're nuthin' but a redneck...lemme buy ya a beer and lets git ta watchin' this tractor-pull!!!!"

here's my final DT, added arc-en-ciel bands:

7/4/14 8:49 AM

...my favorite is still this one:



How can you not like a "Chinarello Dogpoo BS"? That pretty much says it like it is.

Of course, your frameset is not pretending to be anything it's not and it's probably built by a reputable manufacturer like Giant.

7/4/14 12:41 PM

Giant is not made in China. It's made in Taiwan.

Not saying it's better or worse. Still, Taiwan has a rather long established history of making high end carbon sporting products: bike frames, tennis rackets etc.

7/4/14 1:46 PM

I very much doubt that Giant built these Dirty Disco frames. But the frameset is rock solid and in fact overbuilt IMO.

7/4/14 4:51 PM

they make stuff for EVERYONE.

also, forget who asked, but plenty of room for phatter rubber...here are 25 section tyres:

7/4/14 5:41 PM

Walt, head over here with the bike on Tuesday, good chance to ride it on Tuesdays ride coming up.

I will be riding the TCX with 35 Ralphs.

Your new gravel grinder looks like some Fire-Cross 700x45C would fit. I miss those tires. Only thing I had that they fit was the Trek-in-stein...

http://www.everytrail.com/guide/crown-zellerbach-trail

7/4/14 8:03 PM

just finished tensioning/truing the front wheel. my first disc front build. weird building up a front with dish.

the front flanges are assymetrical, but theres no rhyme or reason to the differences in PCD. they oughta be like the powertap disc rear, with PCDs sized so you end up with the same spoke lengths on both sides of the wheel and more even tension.

went with the 2-piece rotor upgrade, to help reduce risk of brake squeal. lookit those old-school Sun rims!




Last edited by walter on 7/6/14 8:15 AM; edited 2 times in total

7/6/14 8:13 AM

busy doing yard-work, but here's a fresh pic with the proper front wheel in place, updated DT mockup, stem stripped back to black, and a couple stickers added...

7/7/14 4:27 PM

The different-sized front flanges, I'd guess that's to impart less torsion in the hubshell, since the larger-dia flange will stress it's spokes more readily in response to braking torque.

Wow, what clearance there, makes it look odd with the road tires in place.

I used to race XC on Panaracer "Smoke45" tires that were the predecessor to the FireXC45's, and ran about 45psi back then.
But FireXC's in any size are my favorite tire for riding dirt.

Hoping the build continues to proceed in aesthetically pleasing fashion, as tribute to Major Taylor.

How many Kg did you get up to on the spokes with those 32h Suns?

I would consider using Jagwire's compressionless brake housing/cable kit for road bikes with these brakes, it includes flexible housing lengths for under the bar wrap.

7/7/14 4:30 PM

I have done a 180mm front with a 160mm back rotor both times I did up a disc bike from scratch FWIW.

7/8/14 6:55 PM

Today's Gravel Grind ride was blast. And a north wind, even though it was quite hot, was blowing the cool air off the tree like a swamp cooler a lot of time.

38 miles, and I would have liked a little bigger tires than the 35C Ralphs. The return was fast after the last climb being a 2% neg grade for 6-7 miles to the end.

Love the TCX, great climbing bike. But maybe next week I will take the 29er. ;)

I was thinking about Walter's carbon gravel grinder every time I was hearing the stone clank off my AL TCX frame.

And often was this occurrence, ummm [Yoda voice]

7/8/14 6:57 PM

quote:

---

Hoping the build continues to proceed in aesthetically pleasing fashion, as tribute to Major Taylor.

How many Kg did you get up to on the spokes with those 32h Suns?

I would consider using Jagwire's compressionless brake housing/cable kit for road bikes with these brakes, it includes flexible housing lengths for under the bar wrap.

---

7/8/14 7:21 PM

Walter, did you choose tires yet? What direction are you thinking? And what might fit, look like pretty generous clearance there....

7/8/14 7:22 PM

Get some of the clear protective tape like on car bodies and put it on the down tube.

7/9/14 7:41 AM

IMO, the car film is too thin. There are products specific for the bike. Thicker and more absorbent.

Effetto Marioposa Shelter Downtube Adhesive is one:

http://www.jensonusa.com/!kVhymL3stnow0oAh9vdkwg!/Shelter-Downtube-Adhesive-2-Pack?utm_source=FRGL&utm_medium=organic&gclid=CKLtmcWsuL8CFYpefgodmrMA7w


I have a 2" wide roll of thick stuff [brand unknown] that has a few inches left. It was probably 5-6' originally. It is real thick, like .030", just went and out a caliper on it. So more like .025" after you pull the adhesive paper layer off.

Also look at http://www.racerstape.com, "Surface Protection Tape / Helicopter Tape" If really used for leading edges of rotor blades, should be pretty HD.
Sez 8 mil on the copy on one page I saw...


Then these may be something to think about??

Race Face Crank Boot Protectors

7/9/14 9:19 AM

It's good stuff. Goes on very clear, won't take paint off, comes off pretty clean. I use it for routing lighting wires under my TT. Comes in many different widths.

7/9/14 10:29 AM

They're certainly not a bad idea for a gravel bike, particularly if your main use for it is off-road riding, as opposed to just gravel or 'cross courses.

The Tyco helicopter tape I've used is very protective, but has a very aggressive adhesive that's a bear to remove. One caveat is that it's designed to handle small impacts from sand at high speed, not contact with large objects like rocks, which can shred it (it didn't work well to protect the keel of a kayak). It should be fine for protecting against gravel that gets kicked up when riding

Last edited by Brian Nystrom on 7/9/14 2:05 PM; edited 1 time in total

7/9/14 1:15 PM

its what i use as a matter-of-course for frame protection.

7/9/14 6:19 PM

with the top-tube shift cable routing, the cables got pretty jammed up front with really kinked ergo routing, so i went the criss-cross route over the top-tube.

need to true the front rotor, the slight wave forces me to adjust the pads 2 clicks further out than i'd like, so there's more lever pull than i'd prefer. rear is fine.

front brake housing routing needs to be sorted. there's a cable stop riveted on the back of the left forkleg, but it routes the housing up against the head-tube. placed as i have is much better, but it's fixed with elec-tape so i need to figure out something more permanent.

also need to finish up the shifting housing. the kit i got from VO came up short, so i subbed some black jagwire housing to keep going.

trim steerer-tube, wrap bars, and it'll be ready to ride! oh, apply the proper DT panel when it arrives, too!

7/9/14 11:38 PM

I switched to black housing (and black bar tape) on my Dirty Disco. Due to the full housing run for the rear brake, I thought the white housing stood out too much and looked sloppy from the left side.

7/10/14 5:49 AM

IIRC, Jagwire makes them and they come in black. I use them on my 'cross and mountain bikes to improve the cable routing and keep them from rattling against the frame.

7/10/14 11:19 AM

just ordered some!

bike is basically 99% built now. all-up weight with both cages = 9.05kg, so 19.9lb. not bad for a bike that was built on the cheap and has no lightweight ambitions.

<img src="http://brown-snout.com/cycling/bikes/chinaman_grinder-ac024/P1020249.JPG">
<img src="http://brown-snout.com/cycling/bikes/chinaman_grinder-ac024/P1020252.JPG">
<img src="http://brown-snout.com/cycling/bikes/chinaman_grinder-ac024/P1020255.JPG">

Last edited by walter on 7/27/14 5:06 PM; edited 1 time in total

7/10/14 11:47 AM

I agree on the white housing to the rear caliper. But I like the housings up front due to the white panel.

Me, I would use a cable joiner and make it black to the caliper right from/at the back edge of the white panel. ;)

7/10/14 4:52 PM

Forgot to add. It was the housing routing on the fork too that turned me off the white housing. Personal taste of course.

7/10/14 6:27 PM

the vittoria 28s arrived in time for this ride so i fitted 'em up. they measure up 25-26 on these rims, less than i'd hoped but i got a great deal on them from PBK. next time i'll get like 32s or more. even so, these make a meaningful difference in comfort -- compared to my go-fast bikes on these busted up roads, i wasnt quite floating like a butterfly but i wasnt wincing in pain from each pothole or crack i'd hit!

otherwise, the bike just rides like a bike. it reminds me of the rental giant i had a couple weeks back in san diego -- long front-center and short 12cm stem. plenty stiff, no weird handling. completely unremarkable compared to my go-fast bikes, which is a good thing!

disc brakes are a non-event. you pull, you stop. simple. i'm sure the differences are more meaningful in crappy weather. still need to tweak the front rotor, feels kinda spongy and too much pull before stopping gets serious.

the stays are beefy, along with the rear caliper, i get some minor heel rub on occasion...but i pedal pigeon-toed so not a big deal.

everything else...is just a bike! :-)






Last edited by walter on 7/10/14 7:38 PM; edited 3 times in total