mack_turtle

Random tires I need to clear out. I make no guarantees that these tires will seal up perfect on first try. I recommend mounting them dry first (that's not what she said!) to see if they have any punctures that need to be patched up. Full disclosure: I found most of these tires at the curb along with some other large items at an Austin residence. Someone didn't want them, but also knew they would be too useful to someone to throw them in the trash can. Conti X-King 29x2.2 missing a few lugs, as Conti tires do Maxxis Ikon 29x2.2 Kenda Flintridge Pro 700x40, seems to have a wobble in the casing that only matters if you look at it Vittoria Terreno Dry 700x40 Panaracer Graveling slick 700x38, tanwall. probably measures out to a 40mm tire WTB Nano 700x40, has some wear and at least two patches glued in it WTB Cross Boss 700x35 Schwalbe G-One 700x38? weird Euro sizing labels this a 28x1.5. wtf Schwalbe? it's a free tire. I'm in southwest Austin, not far from ATX Bikes. I can leave any tires that interest you outside my house, or meet up if it happens to match my schedule some day.

Marino sent me the BikeCAD file they were working on. I think it's perfect. I even have a name for it. I haven't put any money down yet, but it seems like it's happening. https://www.bikecad.ca/1669304824234 (disregard the brown box, I can't make that go away.)

Well damn. I guess that's another option to scratch from the list. Horrendous customer service.

I have two large i-bolts screwed into a stud. The bolt i-ends are just far enough apart that they could be screwed in and a u-lock can fit through. You can't unscrew them with a lock through both at the same time. A determined theif would just cut the lock, but that would take a whle and make a lot of noise.

Riding a Canyon ebike on pump track sounds like a hoot.

Marino already got back to me. Here's the first version. Elijah says I need to add a bent seat tube for tire clearance, which I expected.

Actually, quite a bit of gravel. No trails though.

Convert it to 650b.

the seat tube angle on that design is so slack that I would not be able to ride it sitting down. also, standover clearance that I need to not smash myself completely disappears on the large size. Surly designed that bike to fit correctly—with a "long" stem and tight handling with a super-short wheelbase. I don't have any trouble controlling it, but it's not inspiring at speed.

Noted, @CBaron. I kind of like my BB to not be too low as I like that nimble bmx feel. That be 65mm drop that is so in right now just feels deep. I'm trying to adapt to lower though. I noticed that the Chumba Sendero has a high bottom bracket, probably for handling purposes less than rock strikes. Here's a drawing I made of what I might look like. adding in the details of a suspension fork was cumbersome, so I drew it with a rigid fork for simplicity. There are "sagged" numbers for a 120mm 29er fork. I'm still on the fence. on one hand, I can get a unique custom bike for very cheap. I'll probably have to wait a long time for it and there's a possibility that I've designed a monster that I won't like or they might make a mistake. I could also buy a Esker Hayduke or Santa Cruz Chameleon for about 2x the cost, but I can afford it. not the "perfect" custom bike, but something designed well and with stateside support.

It's been a year since we had foster dogs. picked up two new guests yesterday. Pickles is a dachshund/ chihuahua mix, probably two years old. Very affectionate. Jonas is a dachshund with pointy ears. loves to get into everything. He was found on the street and needs to gain some weight.

Marino has tons and tons of bikes in the wild, and while communication is not perfect, it sounds like everyone gets their bike eventually. I'll wait to hear if they ever get back to @gotdurt before i put any money down, but I'm designing something in the meanwhile. It's that or just keep riding the old bike until I break it, which is unlikely. Is it possible that they've just had the frame all this time and were waiting for you? It sounds like they build a ton of custom bikes all the time. Bad customer service for sure, but everyone makes mistakes. Like I said, I'm waiting to hear what you find out before I proceed.

here's the custom bike I am sitting on right now. it's basically a steel Specialised Fuse, medium size. all the dimensions are a nod to modern trends, but not extreme: longer reach than an XC bike so I can use a short stem, mid-travel fork 120-130mm, slack-ish HTA, adjustable sliding dropouts with a range of 420-435mm so I can tension a singlespeed drivetrain and experiment if I want a longer wheelbase, short seat tube so I can use a long dropper post, low stack. subdued teal pain with bright blue. for another $150, I can get a matching steel fork A friend has been considering building a backpacking-type bike from them, so if we do this, we'll ship two frames together for $150 instead of one frame for $110.

It seems like most people have had good experience with Marino so I'll give it another look.

I have zero interest in anything longer than 120. a 490 or so rigid fork would work just fine for me as well. personal experience tells me that I'm not going to ride anything where I would "need" more travel than that and the weight and movement is a liability at that point. I ran the numbers and a Middlechild with a fork that I'd want would have the BB dangerously close to the ground and the seatpost at flagpole steep.