Baggage, Bonding & Time Machines

 

Now, short of a huge lottery win (The sort that buys large freehold property with even bigger workshops, welders, and all manner of tooling joy) I won’t be indulging but building Denise and to a lesser extent, Ursula’s upcoming modernisation has brought me back to the spring/summer of 1989 and Specialized’s Rock Combo.(11) Specialized RockCombo Owners | Facebook Many are now heralding it as the first gravel bike-a relatively lightweight go anywhere machine based around a cro-moly frameset. The 19.5-inch version had a 42-inch wheelbase, 17-inch chainstays and of course, four-point carrier fixings, big wide swoopy drops, Turbo saddle, Suntour XCD, thumb shifters and a triple 3x7 range.  

  

I recall it being pitted against tourers in a magazine group test and stock, with the 26x1.5 tyres it would’ve been a perfect off the peg mile muncher for me- had I the money- bearing in mind that I was on the cusp of turning 16 and I recall the Rock Combo being around the £450-500 mark. Bear in mind, I’d bought a used Claud Butler Super Dalesman from a dealer for £250 earlier that year, so there wasn’t the budget (or parental tolerance) for another machine. Time machine? Well, that would be seriously handy, and I would’ve corrected some decisions before they had the sometimes-lasting impact they did… 

  

Again, much as I love the Rock Combo and would give one a loving home, I wouldn’t pay classic, dare I say nostalgic prices for one. Between Denise and Ursula and their mix of retro and contemporary, my dirt riding needs are very well catered for.  

 

There were some great concepts that fell out of fashion, but a lot went extinct for good reason. Front loading stems being prime examples. Sure, they have a place on older builds, but I greatly appreciate the ability to pop the stem face off and slot the bars in place.  

 

No need to go through the rigmarole of removing the bar tape, accessories, brake levers etc.  Talking of retro, though I like Denise’s gear cable run, the Oxford Aqua Evo bar bag had me thinking I may need to reroute to prevent fouling… On balance, the Aqua EVO is possibly a better fit for the fixed gear winter/trainer, since it’s a disc setup, so no cable/hanger fouling hassles. We’ll see. 

  

I’m very fond of the Shimano PD ED 500 Shimano PD ED 500 Pedals | cycling-not-racing (sevendaycyclist.com) but changing the Wellgo MO94B WELLGO MO94B SPD PEDALS | cycling-not-racing (sevendaycyclist.com) was an inspired choice, the platforms giving greater support, especially off road and Denise’s lofty bottom bracket means no grounding issues, even when cornering aggressively along tightly winding singletrack. They’re staying.   

 

 

 

After some further reflection and light tweaking, the Suntour SE cantilevers and I bonded. Setup is a little more involved than a traditional cantilever but not overly complex. The arms are centred by loosening (one at a time) with a 5mm Allen key and aligning with a 16mm cone spanner. I took this opportunity to tweak the cable tension, pulling it fractionally tighter. There’s a little more travel at the lever than I was familiar with but when the pads bite, fierce, yet controllable power is on tap. 

  

Since I had the Allen keys out, I switched the Ergon All Road for the Madison Flux and then of course, decided the Carradice Carrady was a better bet, given the 600-denier polyester/PVC material was much easier to wipe clean. Of course, a ride the following morning confirmed it was too large and binding on the WTB tyre (!) Back went the SQR Tour. 

  

Now, while I liked the lived-in, long-standing patina, after 23 years, I was also conscious of it needing a deep clean and re-proofing. Ditto the Carradice Super C Rack Bag, which had served for a decade or so. The fabric is best cleaned by brushing residual dirt off and then lightly cleaning with a sponge and warm soapy water. Allow it to dry thoroughly. The reproofing wax only needs a light, sparing application and cured with a hairdryer on a high heat setting. I have every intention of keeping them going for as long as reasonably possible. I love the SQR system’s rigidity and carrying capacity both volume and weight.   

  

Talking of wax, I’ve switched Denise’s KMC chain to Blub Wax. I needed to give the Finish Line Grunge Brush a good testing. True to claims, it will work dry-I simply sprayed some neat degreaser on the bristles, chain and cassette and went to town. Rinsed with warm water, we’d gone from scuzzy to sparkling in a matter of five minutes. 

  

The wax seems to cure in 30 minutes, seems temperature stable and does the typical wax thing, trapping grit and other contaminant before it can do anything destructive, then flaking off, leaving only a clean, filmy lubricant layer behind. Corrosion resistance seems better than traditional blends but the need to replenish if the bike’s not ridden for 48-hours is a little annoying. This sounds as if this is a component in common with its Ceramic stablemate. Ending on a lube note, here’s my review of the Wolf Tooth WT-1 All Conditions Lube Wolf Tooth WT-1 All Conditions Chain Lub | cycling-not-racing (sevendaycyclist.com) 

 

Reflections & Refinements

 

With the miles racking up and confidence in the Dawes increasing, I was able to enjoy its brisk, yet predictable persona and push it quicker along the lanes. The slightly wobbly rear wheel wasn’t causing any issues at this point, although obviously, I wanted a tweak on the jig- only at that point would I revise the rear brake’s setup.  

 

Everything else had settled down, although I wasn’t surprised to discover the quill stem wedge moving very slightly. Nothing, a more liberal turn of a 6mm Allen key wouldn’t cure. I pulled over mid ride to correct- no sense leaving it and I had a nice long 6mm bit handy, courtesy of the Cyclo 20 function multi tool CYCLO 20 FUNCTION MULTITOOL | cycling-not-racing (sevendaycyclist.com).  

 

A minute or so later, tool was back in the SQR Tour, and I was spinning home at a nice cadence. Talking tools, here’s Steve’s review of the Wolf Tooth EnCase System Bar Kit One Multi Tool Wolf Tooth EnCase System Bar Kit One | cycling-not-racing (sevendaycyclist.com)   

 

I’ve bought another 9 function Giant Continuum Wireless Computer. Yes, this one’s also pink. I like these since they’re easy to set up, intuitive to use and via my supplier, gentle on the wallet.    

 

No need to tweak the Microshift/Tiagra tag team at this stage. I may well upgrade Ursula’s Tiagra, post refurb, only because the existing mech has done a lot of work, year-round and if I’m rebuilding the bike, it seems silly to scrimp unnecessarily. However, I’ll clean it up and “take a view” from there.  

 

The weather has become more temperate, dare I say summery, so I’ve been able to get the miles in and reach much firmer conclusions regarding the Cycology Men’s Summit Long Sleeve Jersey and the Castelli Espresso Men’s Jersey.  

 

Both are very competent and true to some big claims, the Espresso is a lovely go-to. £130 certainly isn’t cheap and there are several competitors. However, some costing a good deal more. I’m hoping truing will address the braking issues, but I’ve also acquired a pair of these Suntour SE (Self energising) rear cantilevers, which I last recall from the late 1980s. They were something of a curiosity and rather like the XCD group (which I was also fond of) and in this instance at a price, seemingly impossible to resist.  

 

With their arrival, I’ve ordered some more straddle wires, since I had gone through my last supply and the Suntour weren’t supplied with any (not that I’d expected this). I’ve gone for Transfil, since they were favourably priced, and the brand are known to me. Transfil produced a very effective (if stubborn to fit) sealed brake and gear cable set but they also produce cables for the automotive industry.     

 

I’ve been warming to the Ergon SR AllRoad saddle, though not exotic materials-wise, it's not exotic, but very well executed, providing support in all the right places thus far.  The rear cutout has me curious and induced some laddish suggestions involving flatulence relief.  

 

According to Ergon, the “Deep Relief Channel” is, like others designed to relieve unwanted pressure. This design deepens progressively, leading to a small cut out. The design apparently gives greater “forgiveness” to the perineal region, while the hole’s positioning apparently overcomes some of the pitfalls of bigger cut outs.  

 

The obvious one that springs to mind is a very soggy crotch riding sans full length mudguards-gravel, adventure and cyclo cross bikes being obvious examples. It is noticeably deeper than I’ve traditionally come to expect and seems more than clever marketing thus far. One rider suggested the rear cut out was designed to protect the rider (indeed, stoker if fitted to a tandem) from fart reverb. I gave the sideways glance, but my inner child sniggered a bit.   

 

The Ergon will stay on the fixed for now, until I get the Dawes bedded in and refinements sorted. To a point where I can do something close to proper gravel and cross type off road duties. At that point, I’ll switch the rear wheel to a 42mm Continental Contact Plus. As I’ve said throughout, it's all part of the bonding process. Glad I had instated the Giant computer, missed being able to glance down and check my speed, distance and similar informative stuff.  I didn’t want an overly cluttered, congested feel to the bars either.