First road build EVER

[dyna-ti]

Hi all
Its not often i venture into here but i suppose there comes a time in every mountainbikers life when thoughts turn to Road work :shock:

Well,tbh,i've been thinking on this for a very long time I need something to help get me out more often as i dont seem to get out to the countryside much these days through unfitness and need to build a bike to do so on but keep on ending up building mtbs.If i can build this then perhaps ill get out more and help improve fitness levels to enable me to join in with some of the more epic macretro ride outs.
I originally joined RB to source a uber cheap potter about hybrid type thing to get out and about on,go to the shops for messages,down to the coffee shoppe for lunch that type of thing to start with.I wanted the bike to be reasonably worry free if i left it locked up on the city centre and as my usual builds are modern and flash it could have reasonable spec but not cost the earth therefore be not so desirable to thieves.
Hence building a road bike

I volunteer at the bike station so i can source parts that are vintage and perhaps a bit tatty but of high enough spec as to satisfy my lust for all things precision.
I'll start a thread on this build once i have the frame home.

So what is it you ask?

Before i tell you i have to first of all point out ive developed a compunction for building bikes that are too small for me to ride.Im 6'3" and all i ever find is medium frames and so far on here have built about 4 that were 19" and under
I thought i'd stick with tradition and opt for a frame too small.
It's a Sun something from about i think 1985 :? Other than the head badge[which is original metal one not a sticker]the frame has no decals but its lucky that the supervisor in bikestation knows which model it is.
It's polished chrome...And thats about all i know It has a 23" C-C seattube and 22 1/2" C-C toptube /I'll pick it up this week and get it home,
I've also got a choice as to what components to put on and so far have a bio-pace type triple SeakE i think is the spelling.Those cranks came off something else and ive polished them back to their original condition,I also have a rear mech or a couple rather and that gives me a dilemma as to what to fit.You see i have home for renovation a campagnolo 980 and a suntour V GTluxe and i cant decide whether to wait for more campag stuff to turn up and build it slowly or whether to use the suntour which there is more of in spares :? either way it will be a mix of parts and years.

Must say i like the look of the suntour mech .Its quite intricate looking compared to the 980 and i like that look.
Ive nothing yet in the way of wheels or bars ,brakes etc etc but i suppose ill leave that discussion to the build thread.

Also maybe got the chance of a mid eighties Carlton .its purple but very very rusty and might not be such a nice looking build,and of course its also too small for me

Anyone know what frame it might be? chromed.I think really nice lugs though some old bike donations have had belters so i hope im not being confused there with one of them :?

Pics up when i get it home.Feel free to add your own

 

[bm0p700f]

I think it is possible to ride a MTB that is too small and not hurt yourself. Ride a road bike s significant distance that is too small for you and it will hurt period. Get a frame that is the right size. In a traditional frame that will be a 60cm seattube assuming a inside leg measurement is 35". The top tube length is more important though as is the total reach. A 57cm top tube is what I have on my retro TT bike and I am 6ft with a 34" inside leg. You would be better off with a 59 or 60cm top tube. Other wise your stem will have to be very long like 140mm to make the bike work.

 

[tiermat]

I'll echo what bm0p700f says, I am infamous on another forum for buying bikes that are too small for me (and indeed there are 3 in the garage at the moment are thus).

It's very very easy to do when you are 6' with a 34" inseam!

I discovered the hard way how much it can hurt to ride a road bike that is too small for you any distance.

I bought a gorgeous Dave Yates in 531.

It was (and still is, in fact) 53cm.

I stripped it of the old wheels, groupset etc and rebuilt it with Tiagra (as it was destined to be a commuter bike).

I used it for one of our Friday Night rides, to go to Whitby this time, from York.

3/4 of the way I was struggling, then my left knee went POP! I limped (literally) on to Whitby but it took a good 3 weeks before I could ride again.

Now I only ride the ones that are the right size for me (and one, believe it or not, that is slightly too big for) if I am doing any sort of distance.

 

[anagrama]

980 was bottom-rung 80's Campag, so not particularly special.
Until their patents expired in the mid-80's, Suntour were streets ahead of everyone else mechanically, so would be the better option if you're using friction shifters and value reliability over bling..

 

[legrandefromage]

its a shame you are not nearer - I could sort you out with all sorts.

 

[dyna-ti]

Change of plan

Ive just bought off my sister a bike thats been sitting in the cellar since they moved in about 10 or so years ago
All original 1948 Rudge Whitwirth for £140

Rod brakes

Fickle Fred

On the plus side i also got a large old adjustable desk type lamp that looks to be about 60 or 70 years old.Quite sought after so ill sell that after giving it a clean up and rewire,to fund the rudge costs.
As far as im aware its a old original Police bike :? i think the desk lamp might have came from the same source.

The Sun also has a nice wrap around seatstay,so i will buy it and do that project when the Rudge is complete.