:) Are y'all really asking me to defend why I'm upgrading a 30 year old bike for a very good friend of mine? Sheesh.
Of course I've gotten her input. Here's what she's said: - "I want a bike like [your wife's] bike, with those handlebars." - 45 Clem L with Boscos (also a bit too big...) - "No way, I'm not spending that much money on a bike, and you better not spend that much on a bike for me either." - We've all been there, and I won't, especially since Riv doesn't make a bike small enough for her. I'll split the cost of a custom with her if she catches the bug and nothing else will do. :) - "My husband got me another bike from someone he works with, but I just don't like the way it feels." - It's a 700c wheel bike with the seat all the way down and the adjustable angle stem all the way up to get the flat bars close enough for her to reach 'em so she's bent over riding it like it has ape hangers on it. This has happened like 5 times. - "I mean, I've never ridden a bike that fits, so I have no idea what kind of shifters I'll like. I just want a bike that's not a kids bike, and that fits, so that I can put my foot on the ground when I stop." - I know that that's not a criteria for what "fits", but it'll make her feel better riding it, and she can raise the seat when she's ready. I'd love to have gotten her to ride it first, but I live in Arkansas and she lives in Georgia. I did say that she's ridden my wife's 45cm Clem L, and it was a smidge too big. I also mentioned that I know her PBH, so I have a good idea of her saddle height, and this bike accommodates that with some room to go shorter, so she can get it low enough to put a foot on the ground. Finding a used (inexpensive) bike that's smaller than a 45 Clem L and that "isn't a kids bike" is not easy, so when I found one, I asked her if she liked the color, then I measured it when I checked it out, then I bought it (and I didn't pay COVID prices on a vintage MTB either, even though the asking price was obscene). The seat height will work. She'll have about a fistful of seatpost showing! If the reach is too short, I'll put on a longer stem. But I'm more concerned that even with Albas, I'll need to find a shorter stem and it'll impact the handling, so I may have to buy some Boscos, but I'm at least holding off on that expense. The derailers may be fine. I'll probably give them a try with new shifters just to see, but they are absurdly heavy and have some quirks that new derailers have improved on. They're basically Tourney level, which, even new, is lowest usable group in my opinion. And I have an new Altus in my bin that's been waiting for a bike, so why not! And, come on, rapid fire shifters from the early 90s feel like garbage compared to almost any other shifter ever made, even brand new. So I'm swapping them out so her first impression of the bike won't be "this feels bad". I appreciate the frugality of using everything as long as it works, but I'd rather give my friend a bike the feels good, than one with 30 years of gunk in it. I didn't have any 7 speed shifters in my bin, but I do have a nice 8/9 speed wheel and two compatible shifter options, so it seemed like I could get away what I had on hand, but it hasn't worked out that way. So I'm in about $40 for a cassette, chain, and shifters. I went with Sunrace shifters so the display will be on the outside of the bar so it won't take up unnecessary grip real estate. Either way, having an 8/9/10 speed wheel on it will be a little more future proof. The cantilever brakes work ok, and would be even better with new cables, but the pads are crispy and the levers that were on there were plastic!! I have v brakes, new pads, and nice Tektro levers in my bin that will feel better anyway. I actually got the levers and brakes for free to begin with, so it's actually cheaper for me to replace the whole setup than buy new cantilever pads. The bike IS in mostly good shape. I love the paint. A good friend of mine had the men's version with a similar paint scheme when we were in middle school. It's got me nostalgic. I honestly think this bike is beautiful, even well proportioned, which is hard to find on a small bike. But it's been maintained even less than it's been ridden. I've had to repack the hubs and the headset, no big deal. It's got a little rust here and there, some bubbles under the paint, so it's been stored somewhere dampish. But none of that appears to be the bad kind in the bad places, especially with tubing as thick and heavy as this bike has. The cables, chain, brake pads, and saddle were probably original! The previous owner (not the first) basically got a shop to make sure it was safe and replaced the pedals and grips. She then backed her car into a pole with it on the rear rack and ruined the front wheel. Thankfully the fork is fine. My friend wants a bike! She's talks about it frequently. But finding a bike for her has been a years long process for lots of reasons. She's bought new bikes from shops. The shop guy told her it fit, but the seat was too high, and the reach was too long. It had 700c wheels, and the handling was twitchy, and she wasn't comfortable or confident. So to me, it's clear it didn't fit and was poorly designed in general. She's ridden a bunch of hand-me-down bikes from "small" people. For the most part she can barely get the seat low enough to reach the pedals. They have all had 700c wheels, and on small frames, that makes the handling really twitchy, which isn't good, especially for an inexperienced and timid rider. Everyone on this list probably knows that already: to paraphrase Grant - big wheels + small frames = bad combo. I've only ever met one other adult as small as her. That person just rode a BMX bike. This is the smallest bike I've seen with 26" wheels. I know the saddle height will work, and the handling should be much better than everything else she's ridden, except for my wife's Clem, which costs 4x as much and wouldn't fit. If the handling is still bad, she'll have to find a 24" wheel bike. Since I think it will fit, I'm doing everything else I can to improve the riding experience so that she doesn't think, "Well, I have a bike that fits, but it isn't fun to ride. I must just not like riding bikes." Hence the question about shifters and what I can get away with for an inexperienced and timid rider. I'll take a couple saddles and stems with me when I give it to her. And I'll probably even take a couple options for shifters. So, if it fits, she'll be able to finally form an educated opinion about what she does and doesn't like. Maybe I'll eve take the set of black Loscos I have, and let her try them, but they'd go out on indefinite loan only. I'm attached to them, even though they don't work for me. And if it doesn't fit, which given her track record is a real possibility, the bike will be in Atlanta where it will sell for more than I have in it, or I'll let it go for free to someone it does. So thanks for the opinions on shifters. It's nice to see it's a pretty even split, which has encouraged me to give her the option, but I'll do it in person when she and I take it out for a ride together. This is gonna be a great holiday. Cheers, Paul PS If anyone wants this old stuff I've taken off (plastic brake levers, canti brakes, 7 speed shifters, cassette, chain, and probably the rear derailer and 7 speed hub and or wheel) keep an eye out on the list. I MIGHT offer it free for shipping when this is all said and done. Maybe there's a frame out there for them. On Tuesday, November 29, 2022 at 3:26:57 AM UTC-6 Garth wrote: > Did I miss the part where the friend actually rode the Hardrock as it is > to see how it felt in fit and function ? It seems that without some input > from her, you'd be trying to make her into something she is not. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/b800eb4e-345c-4508-81dc-a1640c97e9a7n%40googlegroups.com.
