It took three years, or so, to set up the classic blue Rivendell Road Custom. <http://tinyurl.com/28hn6fs> Mostly, preference for a fixed-gear mid-80s Sequoia, a perfectly messy garage, and it being sorta okay as it was, slowed me down.
I purchased it from a too disgruntled iBob. He had three Rivs for sale; couldn't get them to fit his long torso comfortably. Oddly, this bike came with a too short for normal-torso-me Salsa stem. Also had ti eggbeater pedals, pretty narrow handlebars, campag brifters with 9-speed Centaur drivetrain, wireless computer w/cadence; no wheels, no saddle. I didn't take to brifters, asked about them on iBob, was assured by Sheldon that pretty much only people who hadn't tried brifters preferred friction shifting. I gave them a fair trial, before I upgraded to 7-speed friction shifting. Each to their own. I cleaned the garage last summer and fixed a few bikes, finishing the Riv Nov. 28, 2010: 36 spoke wheels (mavic hubs, MA2 and Torelli Master rims) with Pasela 28s, VO fenders, B-17, technomic stem, Noodles w/ tape & twine, 7-speed friction shifting w/ Suntour barCons, grip kings, Nitto front rack & Wald basket, bell. Ditched the cycle computer. I went for a brisk New England seashore November ride. The frame fits just fine. The bike is comfy. The drive train shifts smoothly & accurately. It's much quicker and easier to shift chain rings with friction shifting, replacing the wild multiple flapping brifter motions with a short, direct, efficient barCon movement. My hands rest more comfortably on the hoods; brifters always felt awkward, too big. The Paselas provide good shock absorption. It’s a Riv Road, riding better than a Dream. Best, Larry -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bu...@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en.
