PeachyPM":1bzhw4kb said:
You've got more than £32 worth of hardware there! And a really comfortable frame...Bargain!
A belated update to the orange Cadet subthread ...
I cleaned up the frame, but I haven't bothered to treat the rust — at the moment it's not a mechanical issue, and it kinda looks the part.
I swapped out the BB and found some old 700c fixie wheels in the shed. I had to invest in long-drop callipers to fit, as the supplied centre-pulls were adequate for 27-inch, but didn't have the drop for the smaller, modern wheelset. I re-laced the front wheel with a dynamo hub I had on the shelf and fitted B+M modern LED lighting front and rear.
I've kept the stem and bars — narrower than I'm used to, but I am getting to like them — but fitted modern Tektro levers, cables under the bar tape, as I like the hood shape.
New seat pin and re-leathered Brooks B17, with a Carradice hanging off it.
And some bottle cages mounted with classic-looking clamps.
A set of black mudguards and long mudflaps and it looks very "fast-touring", i.e. "audax".
I've ridden at least 1,000 miles on it over the winter and it is, as you said, really comfortable — the ride is steady and smooth, you can see the fork flexing as it soaks up the bumps. By the end of a longer ride (200km+ audax) the palms of my hands aren't anywhere near as sore or broken up as when I rode my alu frame + carbon fork Specialized Langster. And I find riding on the drops is something I can do for hours into a headwind, which really helps on a long ride!
So I am really happy with it