For sure there must have been some construction variation in the Rambouillet/Redwood lineage that led to differences in tire clearance. The 66cm Ram I had previous to this one had no dimples at the chainstays, whereas this one does. I think the brake bridge is slighly higher with this one as well. The 66 only took Jack Browns, with anything bigger started to get a little too close under the Tektro dual-pivots I was running in 700c mode.
The conversion certainly does place the pedals closer to the ground, but I don't generally pedal through turns nor do I lean over dramatically. I doubt it'll be an issue. As far as the brakes, the DCs are the only ones that will reach. I expect some fiddling will be required, as I am not anticipating rear wheel-raising braking power from them. Many folks do get good performance out of them though, so I'm sure it will be fine. I did a test conversion with Hetres before and the ride was, of course, sublime. I sure am looking forward to spring! KJ On Sunday, January 11, 2015 at 6:12:38 PM UTC-5, David Banzer wrote: > > There must've been a design change in clearance at some point. When > researching my interest in a Redwood (a less fancy Ram, but identical in > geometry) I got feedback that the Ram didn't really clear larger tires, &c. > I thought, what the heck, I can live with 32mm max tires. Turns out it fits > true 700x38mm tires under Tektro brakes. > I've been toying with the idea of a 650b conversion. It's a 77mm bb drop, > which might've been close back when 650b conversions were the rage, but > with the advent of thinner pedals, that gives back some of that clearance. > Your Ram looks wonderful and is inspiring me to contemplate a 650b > wheelset to swap out occasionally. > Did you find that you needed to go with DC 750's because Tektro > long-reaches weren't long enough, or did you just prefer the centerpulls? > I've 750's on a 650b conversion and found when setup properly with good > quality brake pads, they stop just fine. > David > Chicago > > On Sunday, January 11, 2015 at 3:28:05 PM UTC-6, Kieran J wrote: >> >> Honestly, there's gobs of tire clearance. Without the fenders, I'm sure I >> could get some 27.5 x 2.1 knobblies in there. >> >> I just weighed the thing, and it comes in at a respectable 27 lbs. Can't >> wait to do some rambling and ambling on this guy! >> >> KJ >> >> >> On Sunday, January 11, 2015 at 3:16:59 PM UTC-5, Kieran J wrote: >>> >>> Hi Alls, >>> >>> After having a too-small 66cm Ram in 700c for a bit, I recently acquired >>> a 68cm frameset from listmember Geoff Wendt (thanks Geoff!). I proceeded to >>> build it up in a 650b Alba-barred all-rounder. Something like a pimp pearl >>> orange Cadillac. If that doesn't get your juices flowing, I don't know what >>> will. >>> >>> The build includes Compass Babyshoe Pass tires, Grand Bois/A23 wheelset, >>> Albas, 130mm Tallux stem, VO 50.4 BCD double, and a couple of Riv bags. >>> >>> It just needs bar tape at this point. I have about 4 months to complete >>> that task, so no rush. It's early January and I've already finished my >>> winter project. That's a dangerous spot to be in. >>> >>> Check it out here: >>> Flickr Set >>> <https://www.flickr.com/photos/70712473@N05/sets/72157650235648021> >>> >>> I'm also looking for an Acorn "Handlebar Bag" to hang on the bars. I had >>> one in my Acorn shopping cart a week ago, but I was thwarted by their >>> anti-Canadian shipping policy. Drop me a line if you have one to sell. >>> >>> Cheers, >>> >>> Kieran >>> Toronto, Canada >>> >>> >>> -- 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 post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch@googlegroups.com. Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
