Here we go again....
If you haven't read my previous post about this build, let me catch you up....
I built it, rode it, I screwed it up,
Well, sort of.......
Here's a link to Part One:
Raleigh 5 way Part 1
So in this series, I'm going to chronicle the rebirth.
With that said, the basic screw up on my part was not retrofitting the (not so sexy) cheaply made Taiwanese assembly line components with higher quality parts.
An example of this would be the fender hanger. I spent so much time and effort, (and money) on all of the big high end name brand parts that I didn't even think about it.
Why would I, it hangs the fender off the frame right? Well it was made of a soft white metal that if you bend it back and forth a couple of dozen times, it breaks! Riding 150 miles from the end point on a washboard road that happened pretty quick. Of course before I noticed it, the paint was scratched and a small gouge was created.
A friend of mine who likes to bring old stuff back to life took my frame and spent the winter buffing and touch up painting my frame and fenders trying to make it less noticeable.
As you can see in the photo above, I replaced the hanger with a Honjo specific hanger by drilling a few small holes. To the right of it you can see the repair job on the gouge and scratch. Luckily it sits under the seat rails so it isnt noticeable.
UPDATE 6/8/2018 I have since added a new set of Velo Orange Stainless Steel fenders....being shown by my grandson Austin.
The next issue was the handlebar wrap. It basically came undone while on the PALM (6 day tour) during a day of riding in the rain.
Since I was replacing it anyway, I decided to go all in and replace the seats and bags since I wanted the honey color Brooks tape and everything else on the bike was brown or aged brown.
The same friend that fixed my paint issues suggested wrapping the bars with hockey stick tape first.
WOW! Why it this the first time I'm hearing about this? Great Idea! Not only does it keep the tape from unwinding in the future, but it gave it an underlay that made the bars easier to wrap...I highly recommend this to everyone wrapping your own handlebars.
I'm actually thinking about doing a YouTube video!
At this point I also replaced the cable stays and brake levers and cabling.
I went with Dura Ace cabling and housing and some very cool levers I saw on a retro old school tourer a friend of mine built.
They are the TRP RRL's: heres a link:
TRP brakes
Here's a pic.
I also upgraded the Headset to a Chris King NoThread to match the Chris King bottom bracket I installed on the original build.
Ever see one of these?
Me Neither, but apparently you need it to replace a headset!
If you have been following my other blogs, you'll remember I purchased a wheel truing stand to build my wheels?
Well this is this years version of that!
My philosophy from the very beginning of my bike building hobby has been to always buy the correct tool when needed and buy the shop quality version.
That's how I ended up with this:
I could've taken my bike to the LBS and paid $50 to get my new headset installed.........
Next up is the Brooks B17 Special saddle. Since it came with copper rails, I decided I need more copper!
This is where the 'all in' comes into play!
I decided why not copper bottle cages? And copper chain? And copper pedals?
OPEN WALLET HERE!
Stay tuned! Final build pics to come shortly!
UPDATE 4/5/14
So, after 2 years and 2 builds, I cant believe its done!
Thanks for taking the time to read all of my blogs and feel free to comment. If you are interested in where I purchased the items most were from my friends at Tree Fort Bikes.
The rest was a combination of Amazon and EBay. Oh and lets not forget VISA/MASTERCARD and AMEX for their help as well! :)
If you haven't read my previous post about this build, let me catch you up....
I built it, rode it, I screwed it up,
Well, sort of.......
Here's a link to Part One:
Raleigh 5 way Part 1
So in this series, I'm going to chronicle the rebirth.
With that said, the basic screw up on my part was not retrofitting the (not so sexy) cheaply made Taiwanese assembly line components with higher quality parts.
An example of this would be the fender hanger. I spent so much time and effort, (and money) on all of the big high end name brand parts that I didn't even think about it.
Why would I, it hangs the fender off the frame right? Well it was made of a soft white metal that if you bend it back and forth a couple of dozen times, it breaks! Riding 150 miles from the end point on a washboard road that happened pretty quick. Of course before I noticed it, the paint was scratched and a small gouge was created.
A friend of mine who likes to bring old stuff back to life took my frame and spent the winter buffing and touch up painting my frame and fenders trying to make it less noticeable.
 | |
| White metal OEM bracket and newly installed Honjo fender support. |
UPDATE 6/8/2018 I have since added a new set of Velo Orange Stainless Steel fenders....being shown by my grandson Austin.
The next issue was the handlebar wrap. It basically came undone while on the PALM (6 day tour) during a day of riding in the rain.
Since I was replacing it anyway, I decided to go all in and replace the seats and bags since I wanted the honey color Brooks tape and everything else on the bike was brown or aged brown.
The same friend that fixed my paint issues suggested wrapping the bars with hockey stick tape first.
WOW! Why it this the first time I'm hearing about this? Great Idea! Not only does it keep the tape from unwinding in the future, but it gave it an underlay that made the bars easier to wrap...I highly recommend this to everyone wrapping your own handlebars.
I'm actually thinking about doing a YouTube video!
At this point I also replaced the cable stays and brake levers and cabling.
I went with Dura Ace cabling and housing and some very cool levers I saw on a retro old school tourer a friend of mine built.
They are the TRP RRL's: heres a link:
TRP brakes
Here's a pic.
 | ||
| TRP levers with Brooks honey bar wrap and D shaped tool bag. |
I also upgraded the Headset to a Chris King NoThread to match the Chris King bottom bracket I installed on the original build.
Ever see one of these?
Me Neither, but apparently you need it to replace a headset!
 | ||
| Park tool HPP-2 headset press and RT-1 headset removal tool and hammer |
If you have been following my other blogs, you'll remember I purchased a wheel truing stand to build my wheels?
Well this is this years version of that!
My philosophy from the very beginning of my bike building hobby has been to always buy the correct tool when needed and buy the shop quality version.
That's how I ended up with this:
I could've taken my bike to the LBS and paid $50 to get my new headset installed.........
Next up is the Brooks B17 Special saddle. Since it came with copper rails, I decided I need more copper!
This is where the 'all in' comes into play!
I decided why not copper bottle cages? And copper chain? And copper pedals?
OPEN WALLET HERE!
Stay tuned! Final build pics to come shortly!
UPDATE 4/5/14
 |
| Finally finished! All of the goodies are now in place. |
The Mirror finish Kleen Kanteen bottles are the cherries on top!
 |
| Kleen Kanteen mirror finish bottles with bamboo tops. (for display only) |
 |
| MKS GR-10 touring pedals in copper with Power Grip beige straps. |
 |
| D.I.D copper single speed chain. |
Okay, I admit maybe I overdid it......well, actually buying the Kleen Kanteen mirror finish bottles with the bamboo tops was actually going over the top since I probably wont ride with them, but I couldn't envision plastic bottles on this.
(and they look INCREDIBLE)!
So, after 2 years and 2 builds, I cant believe its done!
Thanks for taking the time to read all of my blogs and feel free to comment. If you are interested in where I purchased the items most were from my friends at Tree Fort Bikes.
The rest was a combination of Amazon and EBay. Oh and lets not forget VISA/MASTERCARD and AMEX for their help as well! :)
