91 Team Marin...all road tourer?!

[Tootyred]

Still waiting for my seatpost...should have been here end of last week.....grrŕrrrrrrr.

Annoying as i need it to set the saddle up, so i can work out the stem length.

In other news, thought I had a lead on some nice levers, but that didn't work out quite as planned either.....but that's another story.

Frustrating....and a good reason to hoard parts! If you have your own supply...this doesn't happen.

 

[Tootyred]

Seatpost came! Yay!

Go to love a bit of No. 22 on the table.

Should remove some of those pesky vibrations....plus its just 215g....not that thats an issue!

Now i can start getting some measurements for the stem....

 

[Tootyred]

Forward and reverse at the same time....found a 735 mech, put it on...all good.

Then decided to definitely go for xt v brake levers and m737 8 speed rapid fire shifters......over xc thumbies. I know the xc was more retro, but it pains me to say it the rapid fire shifters are easier to use, especially when hopping up and down gears a lot.

Once they were on, the m735 mech looked a bit lost....so ive gone back to the m750!

Well, i did say these things gain their own gravity field for parts!

In other news...I finally decided on a stem design/measurement/ angle and have set the drawing over to gav @August Bicycles . Hes also building the stem for my 92 team bike at the same time.

 

[Tootyred]

Been a while but some progress...so into the final stages.

Gav @August Bicycles finished my 2 custom stems a couple of weeks back. Lovely job...nice fillet brazing...spot on. Nice to see some real craft these days.



They came back from powdercoating yesterday with a few other bits, including some horrible state azonic bars, which now look good as new.



Just awaiting the new stem bolts to come, now I've been able to measure the finshed articles....

 

[Tootyred]

Stems in the bike....actually both are now in their respective homes.

Gav @August Bicycles made me a brass top cap for this one, reason will become clear later!

The fiddling about has all been worth it as both are spot on and the bikes are both really comfortable straight off the bat.

Plus, the design hides the height quite effectively.....so it doesn't look so stretched out......and there's loads of quill left should i need more!

Being realistic, its not the cheapest option for a stem (not that gav is expensive by any means), nor the lightest (this one is 395g with the bolt), but this is not a racehorse and the solidly / steel helps make for a comfortable, vibe free ride.

Plus, more importantly, it keeps me on the bikes I love.....and belive me its far far far cheaper than a custom frame.....even if you could find material as good as tange prestige....which i think you would struggle with imho.

Just need to sort a few accessories and make a rear light bracket and I think im there!

 

[mk one]

Nice looking stem.

Were you not tempted to leave them unpainted?

 

[bold stelvis]

chefs kiss on the stem!

 

[Tootyred]

I did consider having them blasted and clear powdercoated.....but decided black seemed to suit the bikes better.....but it is a shame to hide Gav's handy work!

 

[Tootyred]

Well....its finished...kinda....

Been on 2 decent rides. 1st was a fair bit of seat twiddling etc. But got there in the end. Nice and comfortable.

2nd just a jolly this morning....thought i would enjoy the sun rising and the misty fields.

Annoyingly im having issues keeping the post up. It gradually slips down. I've tried tightening it beyond a reasonable point, but it just very gradually moves.

Its probably the interaction between the alluminium shim amd the titanium post.

If you remember i had to use a shim as Marin in a design acid trip made these models 30.3mm posts....and they just are not out there.

Oddly the shim is actually 30.4 ( only one available) so it should be tighter than needed. It all goes together tight. The gap in the shim isn't completely closed on tightening and the clamp is well well tight.

I wonder is the very polished alluminium shim, combined with an ultra hard ti post is just too slippery? Might rough up the inside of the shim....

 

[Tsundere]

Looks like a comfy ride, very clean and could be a new bike!

Odd about the seatpost,
As nice as a ti post must be, personally I'd want confidence that the saddle will remain at the right height, so I'd look for one that really fits, especially if you're thinking of touring on it. Dismounting to raise it on a long ride will get really old really quick..