Show us your disc modded retro

Aech · Jun 10, 2024

I've rode that aluminium frame for years as a fully rigid bike, yes it's light but it's also unforgiving at soaking up the bumps compared to a steel frame. I'm older now and I need some comfort so it's finally getting a suspension fork but I have far too many memories tied up in that frame to stop riding it, meanwhile the missus enjoys the comfort of a full suspension carbon bike that I bought her not long after we got married, so she floats along as I rattle my teeth out

I tried my friend's fully rigid titanium back in the day and it was an awful ride, it felt really harsh, he didn't keep it that long and went back to aluminium and eventually back to steel as he gave up being a weight-weenie and was willing to accept the weight penalty for a far superior ride quality.

Imlach · Jun 10, 2024

Aech said:
I've rode that aluminium frame for years as a fully rigid bike, yes it's light but it's also unforgiving at soaking up the bumps compared to a steel frame. I'm older now and I need some comfort so it's finally getting a suspension fork.

I tried my friend's fully rigid titanium back in the day and it was an awful ride, it felt really harsh, he didn't keep it that long and went back to aluminium and eventually back to steel as he gave up being a weight-weenie and was willing to accept the weight penalty for a far superior ride quality.

One of my main riders is Ti, and I concur, it is STIFF. I like it a lot but it does feel less springy than my Surly's. I'm not a big fan of squish but I do think modern suspension, even the less expensive stuff, is pretty damn good.

1whocan · Jun 10, 2024

Imlach said:
Is that the proper a2z one? Not really anything wrong with it, I think they do work pretty well but the issue is that they're best suited for flat dropouts and so not great for most steel bikes. I still think the ones attaching to the canti studs to spread the load seems the absolute best short of getting disc tabs welded. I've seen these around so good to know they're holding up to a clydesdale.

The A2Z adapter I used on the Rocky Mountain is a clone... This is my 2nd Disc Mod conversion.
Over 4years ago, I used the original A2Z unit on my brother's bike to perform the hack (at 3x the cost.)
This Chinese clone version (on ebay for dirty cheap) is an exact copy of the original and functions the same.

Yes, the adapter works best on aluminum frames with a flat plate dropout to secure the whole setup.

Another Disc mod I did 4yrs ago using OG A2Z unit.

Total agreed with reheating issues with welding aluminum as mentioned by @Aech.

Woz · Jun 10, 2024

Long long gone now. Parkpre 1994 / 1996. Happy days when you could get stuff from Paragon works under the radar and have a local aircraft certified welder who would charge about 20€. Agree, that it can be worth doing. Not worth molesting something decent either. In this case, the frame already had a repair to the BB (which later cracked again), and it was a useful experiment and a bit of fun.