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A new adventure/experiment: Custom Hardtail Frame!


gotdurt

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  • 3 weeks later...

Finally got it out for a ride, and it's a great start. He got the geometry spot on; geo nitpicks are on me.. I modeled it after elements that I like from Cotic, Stanton and Chromag frames, as well as what I've learned from my own previous bikes. Overall, I hit the nail on the head, however, I went out on a limb and made the reach slightly longer than my gut suggested (442mm sagged), based on offerings from the brands mentioned above (also the same as my FS). I like playful bikes, especially for my hardtails, and while the length is stable and fast, it is a tad stubborn for my taste... although close enough that I could probably adjust if I wanted.

The stays that he offers are also beefier than other steel frames I've owned or ridden, so it isn't quite as compliant as some, but conversely it is more responsive as a result. It also has that steel quality that makes it feel a little lighter and more "alive" than the aluminum frame it is replacing, despite being around 2lbs heavier. Another issue is that he was out of 110mm headtubes, so I opted for 120 over 100; the result is a stack height that has my stem on the headset, and my brake levers hitting the top tube... I don't crash often, but eventually the paint at that spot will get chipped away.

With that said, long story short, he's building me another one, once I tweak a few things, so I'll have the opportunity to dial the reach back a touch and go with the shorter headtube. I'm also going to reduce the seat tube to 16.5" from 17", just for a little more clearance and reduction in material to trim a few ounces.

2019-03-24 14.49.30s.jpg

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Those brake lever are pointed in a pretty aggressive downward direction. Any chance you can compromise the bar rotation and lever angle to get them to clear the top tube? I have a fairly low handlebar on my bike and my levers just barely clear the top tube. I have to angle my levers up ever so slightly to make them clear it.

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12 minutes ago, mack_turtle said:

Those brake lever are pointed in a pretty aggressive downward direction. Any chance you can compromise the bar rotation and lever angle to get them to clear the top tube? I have a fairly low handlebar on my bike and my levers just barely clear the top tube. I have to angle my levers up ever so slightly to make them clear it.

Under normal circumstances I definitely could, and it wouldn't take much, but I exploded my right wrist years ago and the way it healed after 2 surgeries, it does not rotate up (and is painful when pushing that limit), so this position puts it in a more neutral position for less pain/strain when standing in the "attack" position, which is where it gets the most abuse.

Edited by gotdurt
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1 hour ago, Ridenfool said:

Put some decorative duct tape around the top tube at the contact point.  🤣

 

You know me better than I would have thought... totally something I would do! I'm digging the cupcakes or the lips...

Edited by gotdurt
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7 minutes ago, gotdurt said:

You know me better than I would have thought... totally something I would do! I'm digging the cupcakes or the lips...

... but wait, there's more ...

https://amazon.com/s?k=decorative+duct+tape&ref=nb_sb_noss_2

https://www.duckbrand.com/products/duck-tape/prints/starry-galaxy-188-in-x-10-yd

 

Edited by Ridenfool
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1 hour ago, mack_turtle said:

Ya gotta do what ya gotta do. Keep the brake lever fixing bolts loose enough that they are more likely to slip than break in that case.

An old Dirtbike trick, until wraparound hand-guards got popular was to put teflon tape between the lever clamp and bars. Helped them rotate a little more freely. 

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23 minutes ago, RedRider3141 said:

An old Dirtbike trick, until wraparound hand-guards got popular was to put teflon tape between the lever clamp and bars. Helped them rotate a little more freely. 

Yep, I used to do that on my motos too, even with the guards, that way they'd fold in case my leg got trapped. I find them to be less vulnerable on a bicycle though, especially in the more vertical-biased position. I don't remember the last time I bent or broke one, except a few years ago when I dropped the bike on a rock, directly onto the end of the lever, folding the tip of it down... loose wouldn't have helped it in that case,

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5 minutes ago, RedRider3141 said:

If you don't mind me asking how does your final build compare cost wise to a similarly spec'd bike from the LBS? Obviously for a custom frame you've got to be way ahead. 

Hard to say, because I already have the parts that will end up on it (some of what you see is temporary using the parts that were on the frame that this is replacing; I have other stuff that I'll be swapping later); I get almost all of my components either as clearance/closeouts, or gently used, and I'm constantly changing stuff, so it's a pretty organic, ever-changing build process. My hardtail is also my secondary bike, so many of the parts I use on it are handed down from my FS... in the end, the immediate "cost" of this build will only be about $150 as a result (after I sell the Scout frame).

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5 hours ago, gotdurt said:

Finally got it out for a ride, and it's a great start. He got the geometry spot on; geo nitpicks are on me.. I modeled it after elements that I like from Cotic, Stanton and Chromag frames, as well as what I've learned from my own previous bikes. Overall, I hit the nail on the head, however, I went out on a limb and made the reach slightly longer than my gut suggested (442mm sagged), based on offerings from the brands mentioned above (also the same as my FS). I like playful bikes, especially for my hardtails, and while the length is stable and fast, it is a tad stubborn for my taste... although close enough that I could probably adjust if I wanted.

The stays that he offers are also beefier than other steel frames I've owned or ridden, so it isn't quite as compliant as some, but conversely it is more responsive as a result. It also has that steel quality that makes it feel a little lighter and more "alive" than the aluminum frame it is replacing, despite being around 2lbs heavier. Another issue is that he was out of 110mm headtubes, so I opted for 120 over 100; the result is a stack height that has my stem on the headset, and my brake levers hitting the top tube... I don't crash often, but eventually the paint at that spot will get chipped away.

With that said, long story short, he's building me another one, once I tweak a few things, so I'll have the opportunity to dial the reach back a touch and go with the shorter headtube. I'm also going to reduce the seat tube to 16.5" from 17", just for a little more clearance and reduction in material to trim a few ounces.

2019-03-24 14.49.30s.jpg

Looks good!

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  • 4 months later...

Okay, so update... we (he and I) went through the process again, and designed the perfect bike, then all this happened:

https://singletrackworld.com/2019/05/marino-bikes-sell-off-of-sick-bicycles-frames/

https://www.pinkbike.com/news/sick-bicycles-manufacturer-selling-off-sick-branded-frames-claiming-lack-of-payment.html

https://www.archynewsy.com/manufacturer-of-sick-bicycles-that-sell-frames-claiming-no-payment/

Followed by this:

Wife in the Hospital...

So, we'll just have to make the most of the frame I have for now... I went ahead and built it as-intended:

20190731_194358.thumb.jpg.b8afe72a2d424609b79b45f5901068a7.jpg
20190731_194347.thumb.jpg.e24397b5946cdbd943ebae2de46070bb.jpg

 

My shoulders finally felt good enough to get out on it since the previous post, and I have to say, this thing feels even better than I remembered; I pretty much hit the nail on the head! If I ever get the new one, it'll be the perfect hardtail, IMO (it's already the best I've ever ridden). But alas, my shoulders didn't last long, so I'm going to chill until at least fall...

Edited by gotdurt
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  • 3 months later...
On 8/9/2019 at 3:40 PM, gotdurt said:

Okay, so update... we (he and I) went through the process again, and designed the perfect bike, then all this happened:

https://singletrackworld.com/2019/05/marino-bikes-sell-off-of-sick-bicycles-frames/

https://www.pinkbike.com/news/sick-bicycles-manufacturer-selling-off-sick-branded-frames-claiming-lack-of-payment.html

https://www.archynewsy.com/manufacturer-of-sick-bicycles-that-sell-frames-claiming-no-payment/

Followed by this:

Wife in the Hospital...

So, we'll just have to make the most of the frame I have for now... I went ahead and built it as-intended:


 

 

My shoulders finally felt good enough to get out on it since the previous post, and I have to say, this thing feels even better than I remembered; I pretty much hit the nail on the head! If I ever get the new one, it'll be the perfect hardtail, IMO (it's already the best I've ever ridden). But alas, my shoulders didn't last long, so I'm going to chill until at least fall...

Have you been able to get back on this thing yet? 

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On 11/11/2019 at 3:50 PM, RedRider3141 said:

Have you been able to get back on this thing yet? 

Nope, shoulders and elbows have just been too bad. I've been trying not to do anything that I don't absolutely have to. Getting seriously stir crazy though, which is usually when I do something stupid, like start riding again and make it worse...

Edited by gotdurt
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  • 1 month later...

Sheesh... I feel bad now. I had kinda written off the replacement since he was having the issues posted above. I was about to send him a follow up today to see what was up and searched for the last email to reply to, only to discover that just a few days after I posted above, he apparently sent me an email that I did not see... with this photo and a request for approval before finishing...
 

001_IMG_20190814_171316.JPG

Hopefully we can still pick up where we left off...

Edited by gotdurt
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