Kick back w/ a beverage...

... relax.

Have a 5 minute zen moment.


Now, carry on...

Dov's Surly 1x1

The bike was completed yesterday, and ridden for the first time this AM. The verdict:

The Surly exceeded my expectations big time... Thanks again!

~dovi

Here are the specs:

Surly 1x1 frame
Rockshox Reba Race (w/ Poplock remote lockout)
Chris King headset
Thompson 100 mm stem
Thompson 27.2 x 400 mm seatpost
Bontrager Race Lite Lux saddle
FSA K-Force DH handlebar
ODI Ruffian lock-on grips

Avid Juicy 5 brakes (160 mm rotors)
ACS Claws 20T freewheel
Sram PC-1 chain

Crank Brothers Mallet C pedals
Race Face Evolve XC SS crankset
Surly New Disc hubs (front & rear)
DT Swiss Competition spokes & alloy nipples
Sun DS1-XC rims

All of above assembled by me:

New SS to be posted tomorrow...

This week is all about one speed.
Rode with Dave and his new Voodoo SS on the local Wed. night loop. His 2nd SS ride and he was crushing hills!
Dov's Surly 1x1 is built and ready to roll. Tomorrow morning we'll ride before work & I'll tow the new digital camera along. The virgin SS'er on a virgin bike. In the shop we've dubbed it "The Bruiser" since it is black and blue all over.

Time off isn't just good for the body in terms of recovery, its good for the soul too. I'm giddy about riding again. Maybe I'll rebuild the FXR next Fall... it is just taking time off.


Until tomorrow, peep this kid and his dope new SS

broken.

In times where it seems freeride reigns supreme, I have to give it to this poor XC rider who pulls the sickest riding I've seen in years.

SS again...

I couldn't resist.
A slow day at work and SS's on the mind.
A customer saw the recent SS Voodoo Project and ordered a custom-spec'd Surly 1x1.

So here's mine, converted in about an hour with some help:

Long Term Test: Fox Submachine Glove

I destroy gloves.
Coated with dirt and mashed between my palms and the grips, worn frequently and washed once a week, gloves could be the single hardest working piece of gear I own. On average I trash 2-3 pair a year, but these gloves are the hardest used pair to date, and after 9 months they are still going strong.

I'll be the first to admit, I am a glove snob and in recent years, have not tried any brands aside from Fox. Most shops carry the brand in stock, so for me it has been a no-brainer buy. Formerly a fan of the Fox Sidewinder, I was upset to see Fox trade the tried-and-tested double layer palm for the cheaper single layer Clarino synthetic leather palm. I cannot own a single layer glove: re-read line #1 for reference.

That said, before I get into the nitty gritty on why the Submachine is the best darn pair of gloves ever, let me explain the short-comings of my past gloves.
The biggest gripe is blown stitching. I've had gloves unravel at the seams in the first week of riding. I cannot for the life of me explain why companies put soft rubber bumpers on the knuckles, under the guise of "protection". Rubber is for condoms and tires, not for gloves. It inhibits the breathability, limits flexibility and comfort, and they don't do anything for figner protection. Maybe the people at Fox think that with tough looking rubber pads on the knuckles you get some street-cred, and should any hikers mouth off you'll be showing them the action side of the gloves.

Gladly, The Submachines have no padding... What they do have is a massive terrycloth thumb and back area, handy for winter rides where your nose runs faster than your tires and for wiping the chocolate Hammergel from your lips. If your thumb gets too crusty from an hour of snot-rockets, guess what? You have a second one, so get those boogers off your nose you freak! The rest of gloves' back is made from a stretchy spandex-like fabric with an urban cammo motif. Ugly, but with just enough snugness to keep your hands perfectly cradled in comfort and thin enough to breathe on hot days, I'll take ugly any day. Oh, did I mention they are great when the weather is cool? Well now I did, so stop wondering.

The comfort of these gloves is what really sets them apart. I wear them at work often since I have to be outside in the cold while testing bikes. I wear them when driving too, keeping a thin barrier between me and the ice-cold steering wheel. I wore them while shoveling out (3 days in a row now) both work and home driveways.

These gloves won't do your taxes, but if you let them I figure they'll do just about everything else.

SS Update

Joe Murray rocks!

He wrote me back within a day... how's that for customer service???
Whatever Dave decides to do with his Voodoo, I wanted to applaud Joe and Voodoo Cycles for showing me that the love runs deep int he MTB community. There are so many new brands out there that neglect customers. Out of sight, out of mind i guess.

The SS is nearly complete... the headset we chose isn't working out and we still need to get a legit tensioner on there. Should have it done and rideable for our weekly Wednesday Night Ride.

Also in the works, a home movie documenting our Wed. night rides, a tradition that goes back quite a number of years. (I've been riding with Dave since about 1993)

The Snow Storm of 2006 seems like it isn't much of a blizzard, and seems like it won't affect our riding too much.

Building a Single Speed: part uno

For the past 2 winters, I've converted my Vicious into a single-speed. My former boss David who moved to open a shop in New Mexico was an avid SS'r so I joined the ranks on a whim.

Today I started passing the on the proverbial sprocket to a totally different Dave, owner of this original 1997 Voodoo Bizango:




killer headbadge


The Bizango was retired many years ago and left to collect dust... a night ride left the frame damaged, when one of the old heavy Niterider waterbottle batteries tore the cage and braze-on out of the frame. At that point, circa 2000, Voodoo was out of business. (although the brand was resurected, they won't honor the old warranty according to Dave. Y'all at Voodoo reading? Contact me if you change your mind)

tis' a shame...



The current Voodoo Bizango is welded from a Reynolds 853 tubeset, which is an air-hardened micro-alloy steel that gets stronger at the welds with better grain structure than some older steels. My 'cross bike is 853 and it rides like a dream.

Made in the USA of Tange Ultimate Ultralite steel


Joe Murray


As far as parts were concerned, we had a mixed approach. Some borrowed parts, some new old-stock, some brand new. To start, I lent Dave my old CODA cranks from my retired Cannondale F2000, as well as a 10 year old octalink BB that spins smooth as new. These were mated to a Blackspire 32T DS chainring. All of these were originally used on my first SS project in late December 2004.


Next I pressed in an old and simple Aheadset, and we're using a Vicious Cylces rigid fork to steer the front end. This fork came from a custom painted bike, but the owner Michael decided to run suspension up front so the fork has sat unused for several years. He let it go for a song and both parties are thrilled to see it going to good use.





For wheels, we took some Bontrager Dual Duty mtb wheels that originally came on a Gary Fisher Opie. Mark, a shop employee who bought the Opie only wanted the frame, as it is the same frame on Fisher's top of the line G.E.D. and put on parts he stripped from his Azonic Steelhead. Heavy and cheap, but they are free so who are we to argue?

To finish of the wheels, we used Dave's old Salsa rasta-colored skewers, and dug deep into my collection of cassette spacers to space out his cog for a nice straight chainline. I raped a used cassette for the 21T cog, but since it has ramps on it, we'll change it out once we figure out what gear Dave wants to push. The cassette also had an 18T available, but I figured that would be too much to push up hills since Dave doesn't ride much in the winter.

ghetto fab


That about wraps things up... we're waiting on parts (tomorrow?) to finish the bike off. A 26.8mm seatpost, bars & stem, and other assorted goodies to come. I'm loaning out my Rennen Rollenlager until Dave decides which tensioner he wants.

Part 2... stay tuned!