Max, While I initially thought trying out different forks or tires may satisfy, I think it's entirely possible your just "branded out" on the Rivendell design and the so-called "handling" characteristics, whatever the heck that means if anything. You know, like too many chocolate bars from the same factory !
So I'd be inclined to say yeah, try a whole new take on "the bicycle" from someone else, and in doing so you just might find you see and experience the Riv's you have in a different way, or be inspired to change something about how they're fitted. I wouldn't necessarily sell the Ram unless/until you were sure you like whatever frame you got. Even then, after trying something else, it may spark something creative to do with Ram. Maybe the bars, maybe your positioning, who's to say at this point. I know I'm set to put some low positioned Zipp XPLR drop bars on my Bombadil with a narrow road saddle. Since going back to low drop bars on my Franklin custom, getting a nice narrow road saddle and moving it very far forward from where it had been, when I hop on the Bomba it feels awkward and unrideable the way it's setup currently. How you're positioned on a bike can have quite an effect on how it feels and handles. I can't say the Crust frame you mentioned in good choice for you or not as I know nothing of them. Also, it's been mentioned here how low trail bikes like a front load of some kind, I assume you knew this and are okay with it ? Also, you needn't get a low trail bike for a completely different handing/ride/fun experience. The difference between my Bomba and Franklin are so totally different, and the Franklin is very much in the "neutral" handling category with a much higher BB, which is my preference. Yes, I feel a little more "atop" of the frame and I like it that way, it's like sitting atop a fine race horse, hell yeah, giddy up and go horsey ! In that vein, in a relative whim after working out the specs I bought a VO Rando frame during it's presale. I can't speak to how it rides as it's still in the box, but I look forward to hopping on that race horse too :) Point being, there's lots of chocolate bar factories to choose from ! -- 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/547be304-01b0-47a9-80f7-9d9a1a3a3e67n%40googlegroups.com.
