Looks great. I hadn't seen those Grand Bois cranks before, they're cool. How does the bike ride?
On Monday, December 23, 2024 at 9:49:32 AM UTC-5 Robert Blunt wrote: > Here is a shot of the Elephant National Forest Express I recently nabbed > on the bay (apologies for all the shadows on the bike). I went with Mafac > raids as a friend had a set and the price was right. Albatross bars, silver > shifters, Paul levers, VO zeppelin fenders, grand bois rims to shimano > silent hubs, grad bois double crank, VO constructeur rack, grand bois > hetrres, Berthoud touring saddle, Riv setback seatpost, Riv lugged stem, > cork grips, grand bois flashlight, alumalite rear light. It is not a heavy > bike. > > Robert Blunt > Pennington, NJ > > On Mon, Nov 4, 2024 at 8:36 PM Robert Blunt <[email protected]> wrote: > >> As soon as I get it I will post pictures. It's on its way. >> >> On Mon, Nov 4, 2024 at 5:41 PM P W <[email protected]> wrote: >> >>> Let’s see this Elephant then! >>> >>> P. W. >>> ~ >>> (917) 514-2207 >>> ~ >>> >>> >>> >>> >>> On Nov 4, 2024, at 2:32 PM, Robert Blunt <[email protected]> wrote: >>> >>> >>> Peter Adler, >>> THANK YOU! I have a fantastic mechanic up in the Water Gap who has spare >>> Mafacs laying around (Racer and Raids) so as soon as the frame gets here, >>> we will try every Mafac he has in stock. I think I will give Paul a call >>> and ask them if they might work. These are definitely not canti-posts so if >>> I were able to make the Pauls work I would invest in them. I have them on >>> my saluki and I am pretty blown away by their power. Do you or anyone else >>> have any experience with Dia Comp Gran Compe centerpulls? >>> --Rob >>> Pennington, NJ >>> >>> On Mon, Nov 4, 2024 at 4:24 PM Peter Adler <[email protected]> wrote: >>> >>>> MAFACs have the virtue of being widely available (cannibalized off 70s >>>> bikes, if nothing else) and therefore cheap. If you have none of your own, >>>> and there's no abandoned 70s bikes out on the sidewalk in your area to >>>> cannibalize, your town is between Princeton and Trenton; surely they have >>>> community bike shops with scavenged components. >>>> >>>> Paul centerpulls (which they're apparently making in both original >>>> <https://www.paulcomp.com/shop/components/brakes/center-pull-brakes/racer/> >>>> >>>> and "medium" >>>> <https://www.paulcomp.com/shop/components/brakes/center-pull-brakes/racer-medium/> >>>> >>>> style again, after discontinuing them for a while a couple of years ago) >>>> use the same pivot post diameter as MAFAC centerpulls; it's that: 1) >>>> Paul's >>>> centerpull/canti pivots are longer than normal centerpull pivots, to >>>> accommodate the pivot booster and 2) centerpull posts have a different >>>> placement from cantilever posts*. >>>> >>>> So you can't mount Paul centerpulls on posts for cantilever brakes, and >>>> vice versa. I'm unclear what would happen if you tried to mount Paul >>>> calipers on standard-length posts; personally, I'd want to phone Paul and >>>> talk to a person who could tell me, before committing $300+ to a brakeset. >>>> >>>> Usually, the spacing between the posts is also wrong for switching >>>> brake designs, and this is a place where the selection of centerpull brake >>>> comes into play. The spacing between all the non-RAID MAFAC models is >>>> 62-83 >>>> mm C-C, while the 650B-centric RAID is 75 mm (the adjustable reach Top 63 >>>> is 73 mm, but they're very rare). Measure your posts and see what you >>>> need, >>>> with the understanding that there are Dia-Compes (some branded as Grand >>>> Bois or Rene Herse) that fit those spacings. >>>> >>>> Here's a Google Docs spreadsheet (snitched from Bike Forums) with a >>>> breakdown on different centerpull models, including post diameters, post >>>> spacings and caliper reach: >>>> >>>> >>>> https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1ze6QFPgZFbBQmgM8ATWDE5JStRur-Q3-Mmr4hMtclRg/edit?gid=295272010#gid=295272010 >>>> >>>> If I were in your position - well, I'd sample several of my vast hoard >>>> of MAFAC brakes (Dural Forge, Racer, Competition, GT, RAID) to see what >>>> fit >>>> the pivot posts and gave sufficient clearance for the wheels. If you have >>>> no such stash, local bike kitchens are the logical place to find >>>> candidates. Find out if there's a cheap salvaged brake that will work, >>>> before committing sizable money to new calipers; at least that way, you >>>> have a bailout option. >>>> >>>> * cantilevers place the brake pads above the pivot; centerpulls place >>>> the pads below the pivot; to fit the same size wheel, direct mount >>>> centerpull pivots need to be placed higher than cantilever posts. >>>> Typically, you can distinguish the two post placements by the distance >>>> between the posts and the fork crown/rear brake bridge; centerpull posts >>>> are usually placed so high you couldn't mount cantilever brakes on the >>>> post >>>> at all, as the crown/bridge would block the pads >>>> >>>> Peter Adler >>>> Berkeley, CA >>>> >>>> On Sunday, November 3, 2024 at 5:54:55 PM UTC-8 Oliver Moss wrote: >>>> >>>> Ah, so you're the one who picked that Elephant. That looked sweet! >>>> >>>> On Sunday, November 3, 2024 at 6:31:37 PM UTC-5 Robert Blunt wrote: >>>> >>>> Hello everyone, >>>> I just snagged an elephant frame whose geometry is modeled on the NFE >>>> (650B), but with center pull braze ons rather than disc brakes. I am >>>> looking for recommendations for brakes. From what I can gather, I >>>> basically >>>> can have the Herse or Compass center pulls if go new, and Mafac raids if I >>>> go old. I think the Paul racers won’t work since they are designed around >>>> a >>>> different diameter braze on. I would love to know if I am wrong about this >>>> as Pauls would be my go to. Anyway, the Saluki was last winter’s project >>>> and the elephant will be this winter’s fun. Thanks in advance for any >>>> anecdotes about any of the first three brakes mentioned or whether Pauls >>>> could work. >>>> >>>> -- >>>> 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 [email protected]. >>>> To view this discussion visit >>>> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/f437a46d-b22c-4ac0-8adb-a1d538344216n%40googlegroups.com >>>> >>>> <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/f437a46d-b22c-4ac0-8adb-a1d538344216n%40googlegroups.com?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> >>>> . >>>> >>> -- >>> 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 [email protected]. >>> To view this discussion visit >>> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/CAGTQPx_A%2B_zk2VX7u48r096cFqyB-e3zRUeczXPJOwCKEKUejg%40mail.gmail.com >>> >>> <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/CAGTQPx_A%2B_zk2VX7u48r096cFqyB-e3zRUeczXPJOwCKEKUejg%40mail.gmail.com?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> >>> . >>> >>> -- >>> 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 [email protected]. >>> To view this discussion visit >>> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/7BF09E1D-F076-4CF3-BAFE-20DE272155BE%40gmail.com >>> >>> <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/7BF09E1D-F076-4CF3-BAFE-20DE272155BE%40gmail.com?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> >>> . >>> >> -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. 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