Chuck's Tech Opinion: List of parts to build a bike - record all bicycle components

Total geek-out posting today, but I hope you find it useful! When I build a bike, in my opinion it's best practice to keep a full list of all the parts used. I've found that it becomes an incredibly useful reference guide for later on. It's also quite satisfying to do while you go about actually building the bike.

How to do that?

Well, this is what I use. Here's my list of components that are needed for building a bike (note that some of them may not be required for a particular type of machine):

FRAME & MAIN BEARINGS

Frame

Forks

Headset

Cable hanger for front brake,steerer-mounted or fork mounted up-hanger

Bottom Bracket

Protective sleeve for lining BB frame shell
Chainstay protector

STEERING

Stem

Shim for stem

Spacers

Star nut or expanding bolt for carbon steerer

Stem top cap and bolt

Handlebars

Gel cushioning for bars

Handlebar tape or hand grips and finishing tape

Handlebar end plugs

TT extensions, clips and all bolts

SITTING

Seatpost

Saddle clamp

Seatpost frame clamp or bolt

Seatpost shim

Saddle

DRIVETRAIN & GEARS

Front mech

Front mech mounting bracket

Rear mech

Rear mech hanger

Chain catcher or dog fang

Chainset

Chain

Chain connecting link

Pedals

Cassette or freewheel

Rear hub spacers

Gear shifters

Gear cables inner

Gear cables outer sleeves

Inline cable barrel adjusters

Downtube cable barrel adjusters / stops

Bottom bracket mounted cable guide and bolt, washer(s)

BRAKES

Brake levers

Brake cables inner

Brake cables outer sleeve

Front brake mechanism

Front brake shoes and pads

Rear brake mechanism

Rear brake shoes and pads

Barrel adjusters

Rear brake cable hanger, seat tube clamp mounted

CABLE RELATED

Cable end caps, crimp on

End ferrules for cable outer sleeve

Cable grommets (anti-scratch)

Tape for fixing outer sleeves to bars, etc

WHEELS

Wheels

Rim tape

Inner tubes
Valve extenders (for deep rims)

Tyres

QR skewers or axle & track nuts or anti-theft bolted skewers

ACCESSORIES

Bottle cages and bolts

Computer, sensors and mountings

Light fittings

Mudguards

Luggage mountings

So what I do is list these in a spreadsheet, e.g. on Google Drive so as to be able to access it from anywhere. Then I note details next to each, such as cost, supplier, brand and model/type, frame number, and anything notable, etc. As I said, total geek-out, but well worth it when three years later, you're trying to remember the specs of something or where you bought a part from. The spreadsheet can also be used calculate how much the bike cost to put it together, and more importantly, whether resources are being spent wisely on important stuff, or not!

Genesis Equilibrium Build Log Part 3: "Pretty Weirdo"

As a build log, this will be rubbish! I say this because the bike is finished, but I didn't take any pictures along the way. So, I present to you: Pretty Weirdo!

Why that name? If you remember, the build criterion was use whatever stuff I have lying around. Because of that, I ended up with a good looking 6 speed road bike, running cross tyres!

Rear derailleur: Shimano Tourney RD-TX35

Cassette: Shimano 6 speed 14-28T (screw on freewheel type)

Chainset: Mighty 170 alloy cranks 44T steel teeth

Bottom bracket: Neco Shimano compatible square taper cartridge

Chain: KMC with quick link

Front chain-keeper: Deda dog-fang

Shifters: Sunrace 6 speed bar mounted lever

Headset: Ritchey Logic V2

Handlebars: ITM Vitus alloy 46cm (I think this is the o-o measurement, but haven't checked) 

Bar tape: Deda, champagne

Stem: Ritchey Comp 120mm

Brakes: Miche Performance dual-pivot caliper, long drop 57mm

Brake levers: Tektro

Frame: 56cm Genesis Reynolds 725 heat treated chro-moly steel alloy butted (rear dropouts standard road ~130mm), two bottle cage mounts, mudguard eyelets.

Rims: Weinmann AS23X alloy, nutted axles

Hubs: Quando alloy

Tyres: Maxxis Raze 700x33 folding

Basic pedals. Below, grab your steed and jump on! 

Seatpost: Alpina alloy 27.2mm

Saddle: Charge Bucket

Forks: Genesis carbon, alloy steerer 1 1/8", (standard road width ~100mm)

The frame looks beautiful and feels great to ride. Comfortable, yet lively. However, it is too small for me and I can't get over that fact. Therefore, she's on sale now (please see the CTC forum, and later next week, on eBay.co.uk).

Genesis Equilibrium Build Log Part 2: Drivetrain thoughts

In a previous post here, I described some ways of configuring single speed for a road bike conversion. The Equilibrium frame has vertical rear dropouts. These do not allow chain tension adjustment for single speed mode. You need to have some, because a slack chain is dangerous!

A common solution is to use a chain tensioner:

These normally screw into the rear mech boss and use a sprung lever to tension the chain, usually by an jockey wheel or similar, running against the chain. It's even possible to use an old rear mech as a chain tensioner (e.g. by running the chain round the lower jockey wheel only).

However, I don't like these ideas much, as the silent, simple, smooth, single speed feel can't be fully achieved when there's a wheel tensioning the chain.

One option is to forget about single speed, and use a cassette and rear derailleur. It so happens that I have some wheels that are nutted solid axle, the rear having a screw-on freewheel, and I have a suitable 6 speed block. The only thing that bothers me is the possibility that at extreme angles, the chain may drop off the chainwheel. A prevention mechanism for that is to use a chainset with inner and outer chain guards, but that may be hard to find at a reasonable price. Another option there is to fit an old front mech to act as a chainwheel chain keeper.

The concept for this build is to keep it simple, cheap, and that means re-using parts that I already have, so far as possible. It looks like I'm going to have to experiment quite a bit. As I said, this may end up a weird bike!

Genesis Equilibrium Build Log Part 1: The Frame

Genesis Bikes' Equilibrium frame has earned a great reputation. They struck a happy chord with this one, producing by all accounts a comfortable, rewarding and beautifully finished frameset. I had the good fortune to pick up a new example at a bargain price. My intention is to build it up as a commuter as cheaply as possible. That means using as many of my own bits and bobs that I have lying around. So there's a good chance it will end up a bit weird!

This is nominally a 56cm frame, but the Genesis website specifies seat tube (c-t) 550. It has a relatively short effective top tube of 558, suggesting it will have an upright riding position. Head tube is smallish 150, and the seat post is going to be long, given the sloping geometry of the frame. It's made from Reynolds 725 tubing as shown by the classic seat tube sticker (the description of 725 below is from the Reynolds website):

"HEAT-TREATED CHROME-MOLY STEEL
Using an industry standard alloy with mechanical properties similar to our famous 753 brand, Reynolds mandrel butt and heat-treat this alloy so that thinner walls can be used compared to non-heat-treated steels. 725 can be TIG welded and used within our "Designer Select" combinations including 853 and 631 tubes.
Why it works:
UTS: 1080-1280 MPa, density 7.78gm/cc
Based on a 0.3% carbon steel alloy which has been heat-treated and back-tempered for increased ductility. The chromium content promotes hardenability and resistance to oxidation. The molybdenum works in conjunction with the chrome to stabilize the alloy and maintain strength after heat-treatment and in use."

I believe the forks are carbon with alloy steerer (standard headset required, 1 1/8" size), dropouts and brake bushing. Certainly a magnet does not stick to them as it does to the tubing. DT cable guides already fitted, hmm, but am I going single speed? Mudguard eyes (and a paint scratch):

Neat welding and easy on the eye. Seeing the top tube cable ends - reminds me that I always forget to use frame protector cable grommets. Let's see if I remember this time.

BB shell is standard 68. A very sensibly engineered bridge between the chainstays, should make mudguard fitting much easier:

Quite a lot of dust on the frame - needs a spray of frame saver inside and a good clean outside before I start. Seat tube is 28.6 for front mech (if I'm having one, that is!).  

Below, you can see the straight stays and the geometry. Given the short head tube, I'll probably not cut the steerer, but let's see. 

The rear brake bridge (long drop 57) and seat clamp (29.8). Tseat post is 27.2 diameter - I have one of those in my bits box, but will it be long enough?

Stays are quite thin at the tips and the dropouts seem well made. 

Initially I thought that the kink on the inside of the drive side seat stay (below) was a show room dent, but then I looked closely and it's clear that it is deliberate shaping. Quite obvious that the paint was applied after the shaping. The shop told me that other people had queried it, and they'd already clarified with Genesis that this was a deliberate feature. Presumably it's for chain clearance, but some have commented that it is ugly and unnecessary. 

All in all a lovely frame, and I'm feeling quite excited to build her up, as I said, using what I have "in stock". I will need to buy long reach brake calipers though. After the satisfaction and simplicity of my last single speed build, I'm definitely keen to forget completely about gears... 

Well done Genesis. Can't wait to see your new 953 road racing frame for the Madison-Genesis cycling team, Roger Hammond and Co. He's a cyclocrosser too, so I'll be cheering for them!

Cube Attempt to Cannondale CAAD8 frame swap

Take an Ultegra/105 equipped Cube Attempt:

 and a boxed Sora equipped Cannondale CAAD8:

unbox it:

check it out:

(strip it, not shown) then put the Cube components on to the CAAD8:

Before below; After above:

All the leftover bits will go on to eBay for auction, including the Cube Attempt frameset. This was a unique opportunity to compare quality alloy frames with exactly the same components. They are both cool-looking fabulous bikes. The difference in weight is minor, the CAAD8 being just a few hundred grams or so lighter. The CAAD8 is 6061 alloy with SAVE formed chainstays, while the CUBE is 7005 alloy, hourglass stays and rectangular-ish section chainstays. My comments that follow are merely fine hair splitting. The CAAD8 feels a little nimbler and I find it to be the more comfortable of the two. I reckon it's a tad faster uphill, but on the other hand, the Cube feels more "planted" or "solid" downhill. I don't know if it's merely the "new bike" syndrome, fitness, or whether it is indeed all about the bike, but first time out on the CAAD8, I set a new personal best on a local hilly 35km route by almost a minute and a half. I highly recommend both these bikes. 

Quick Release lever alignment

Michael Barry, the Team Sky professional rider, recently wrote about his favourite cycling innovation, the humble quick release lever (article here). The other day, I looked idly at bikes in a public rack. I noticed that people position the closed lever in many different orientations. Which way should QR levers point? A good subject for a "Chuck's Tech Opinion," I mused.

Sounds like a trivial matter? No way, I say! A good friend of mine had a minor crash on his beautiful all carbon bike. The front fork was gouged by the QR lever - a very expensive mishap. The lever had been locked in front of the fork blade, pointing up. I've also heard stories about a person who pulled a bike out of the rack, and only when riding discovered that the QR lever had been snagged open!

When you examine pro bikes, it's very interesting, as it seems that rear lever alignment is team, or should I say team mechanic, dependent. So, for example, TT bikes from Radioshack/Leopard Trek (including Cancellara), Vacansoleil (including Larsson), Saxo Bank (including Boaro), Astana (including Brajikovic) have the QR lever on the rear wheel pointing backwards, as in the photo above. The others have the QR lever positioned under the chainstay pointing forwards (e.g. Team Sky), or back and up, or in the crook between chainstay and seatstay like this:

"In the crook" also appears to be the way most pro cyclocross riders orient the rear wheel QR lever. I guess that is because the risk of snagging the lever (e.g. by a passing bush!) is lower in this position (it's tucked into the stays, which protect it a little). Another thing the pros have to worry about (but I don't!) is ease of access for wheel changes.

When it comes to the front QR lever, it's much simpler. Among the pros, as far as I can tell, it is always pointing backwards. Either under the fork, or backwards and upwards. The other pro thing is that the lever on the front wheel tends to be on the left side of the bike (on the rear wheel it HAS to be on the left side).

So, fwiw, here's my opinion. On the rear wheel of CX bikes and commuters that are often parked in racks with other bikes - where there is a risk of snagging the lever - I will orient it tucked into the crook of the seatstay and chainstay. Whereas for TT, I may have it pointing backwards. It really depends on the frame structure around the dropouts and the shape and configuration of the QR lever. I am not that keen on pointing it forwards and down under the chainstay - but I would do that if there is no other way (it depends on the configuration of the lever and type of frame - sometimes it won't go into the crook without fouling the frame, for example). On the front wheel, it's always pointing back, either under the fork or backwards and upwards behind the fork blade. Usually this is achieved with the skewers oriented so that each QR lever is on the left side of the bike.

And yes, I agree with Mr Barry that the quick release is a great bicycle innovation.

Peugeot Single Speed: more photos

I promised more pictures. Here is a rear view. Now sporting bottle cage, and yes, I preferred the green saddle (it's more comfortable actually).

Here is the internal brake cabling. Basically, just a hole in the top tube!

 The front entry hole.  You can just make out the bar end red LED lights. 

In the evening sun by the side of the road. Lovely!

So far, it's been a real improvement to my daily commute.

Peugeot Lautaret Single Speed project - build log

Following on from my earlier update, here is how I built the bike. First of all, I took apart the headset (I've explained in previous posts about the quill-Ahead stem adapter, and funny French sizes):

I want to ditch the ball race cages and use loose balls. With loose balls, the pressure is spread out more within the cups because you can pack more balls in. So, using calipers, I measured the ball diameters:

Definitely 5/32", which is great, because I have some. Reassembled headset with loose balls (this is a view of the bottom cup - the frame is upside down):

Although with a cartridge bottom bracket, a plastic sleeve is not strictly necessary, I cut one out anyway from the Boss's old oregano spice packet:

Trimmed it down to size, making sure that the overlap is at the bottom so that water can drain out through the somewhat massive cable guide hole. Fitted square taper Shimano UN54 113mm cartridge bottom bracket:

Once that was in, I enjoyed some time gleaming up the frame with Simoniz car polish:

Tyres on, wheels on - Tiagra 32h on Omega Mach 1. Fitted the chainset, a Sturmey Archer 44T ally job with steel teeth. This was cheap yet good quality and also had a right side chain guard. Utilitarian, as I intend to use this for commuting. Pedals are MKS resin types for now, again chosen for practical reasons - I could ride this in flip flops - (later I may stick some single-sided SPD touring pedals on):

Using a steel ruler, I measured front chainline, which is from centre of seat tube to plane of chain ring teeth. It was a pretty lengthy 49mm. So, that means the rear cog position would be 16mm from right OLN ((130/2)-49mm). I'm using a Shimino 18T sprocket on a standard cassette type hub to give a gear of around 65 inches. The Velo Solo shims are great, because you can use different thicknesses to set the rear chainline. This is how I measured the rear cog position using two rulers:

After doing that, I did a secondary check on the chainline with a long steel ruler:

Much to my surprise, it was spot on, so the calculation had worked! Then I put the handlebars on. The front brake was a cheepo steel side pull unit off eBay. Rear was an alloy side pull unit (from my box of old unused bits). I also needed some bolt spare parts, again sourced cheaply from eBay. I fitted the brake levers in a position that suited braking from the hoods, as that is mostly how I will ride this bike. I don't want flat bars because I like the greater number of hand positions of drop bars. Fitted the cables, the only interesting thing here is that the rear cable runs into the top tube. I used a hook to pull top tube cable out of interior cable run. You can just about see the rear cable entering the top tube in the photo below [I'll need to get a better photo of that]:

I hooked up a SRAM 8sp chain, estimating length by running it around with the wheel in a forward position in the dropouts, taking account of the length of the Powerlink joining link. I decided to keep the rear hub QR skewer, because when I lock the bike I always run it through the back wheel:

On the front, I fitted a bolted skewer from Halo. Fitted saddle - I'm still umming and ahing over black or green (Charge Bucket, which is a cheepo one that looks a bit like a Turbo). Steel chromed 22.2 seat post. Handlebar wrap with Trek red light bar end plugs - once again, a practical thing for late evening commuting.

The only hitch along the way, was a problem with the seat post slipping (it went down about 1cm during a 1h ride). As a temporary solution, I did the "good old coke can shim thing". First, drink some coke, then rinsed the can and cut it:

Trimmed to fit and inserted inside the existing seat tube shim. Shoved the post in, taking care not to let the shim slide in fully. I did that by cutting slits in the top of the foil, to make tabs that I hooked over the edge of the shim. After tightening the bolt, I then unfolded the tabs:

So that I could trim off the excess carefully with a serrated knife:

Lovely jubbly! So far, the temporary solution has worked well. I've ordered a slightly thicker seat tube shim anyway, but hopefully, I'll never have to use it. I'm guessing that the original seat post would have been around 24.2mm. What a weird size. Let's see how it goes. To continue with the practical theme, I will probably fit some mudguards, but will keep them low profile!

Hope you enjoyed this build - click on single speed conversion project on the right for all the posts on it. It's very satisfying to get an old frame running again. It feels light and comfy and has cheered up my commute a great deal. So far I've got up to about 44km/h on it and at that speed it seemed sure footed enough, although not rock solid like a modern bike. I've surprised myself at the versatility of the 65 inch gear is - I've ground up some decent grades with it now. But most of all, I'm impressed by how efficient and quiet it is to pedal. So silent, that on one ride I was bothered by the noise of a crease in my jersey fluttering in the wind! Never thought that would ever happen!

Peugeot Lautaret single speed project

She's on the road, posing on the verge! These photos were taken on her maiden voyage. The roads were wet, but there was late evening sun. More later, including build details.

She feels light and lively. Just like any lightweight steel frame actually. But the thing that struck me most was the quietness while pedalling. As your legs turn the cranks there's no noise as the chain does its thing.