Daughter wants a new bike

[rjb]

Lots of ideas on this french site from Patrick. Or even commission one if you can afford it.! http://www.lesvelosdepatrick.com

[Bonefishblues]

I did this with a Raleigh Royal Lady some years back for a tall lady that was originally 6x2, Ultegra bar end shifters 12-27 9 speed and 50-34, the wheels Alexrims on I think some hubs that specialized were using as OEM worked perfectly fine.
You can buy a 33T ring to lower the gearing another 3% or so.
Royal lady.jpg

My wife had one of those. When it was traded it had been pretty much transformed, all that was left of the original spec was the frame, seatpost & bars. Wish we'd kept it, we'd have got way more stripping it and selling the parts. Oh well

If I recall I think it had a Sachs New Success long cage, I actually fitted the Suntour retro friction shifters to my Carlton and bought a Huret band on double cable stop, the original blue suede saddle I flogged on the bay of e for a tenner or so, the wheels/freewheel, calipers and brake levers I can't honestly remember what I did with them but the bike was in very tidy order so I probably got a decent amount for them, the c/set+BB/FD, bars, stem and seatpin I left in place.
The A550 dual pivots I've always been a fan of and look really nice too, I made a hash of the aero levers and had to reposition them.

I've done a fair few ladies bikes over the years, some of the nicer ones: Raleigh 'Royale', Clubman, Dawes Londoner, a very nice Gitane, all Mixte's plus normal downtube lightweight Gitane, another Royale, a Quinn Bros, not all drops and not all modern gear replacement.

Unless it's someone close to me or someone asks me to find and do one up and will pay a decent amount to do one up agreed in advance I just won't buy an older frame/bike to do up to sell on, most people can't appreciate an older but decent frame with more modern components to make them more usable/easier to ride whilst having the look so aren't prepared to pay the money for them. It's been almost 5 years since the last ladies one.

When hers left us it was sporting MA2 rims on 701(IIRC) sealed bearing Mavic hubs, handbuilt, a TA triple, Huret long cage front, Duopar tit. rear, Blackburn rack, SR platforms, and interesting blind bar stubs with underbar brake levers - proper ones, not the then en vogue dual ones (she didn't like using conventional levers). I'd really been to town on it

[The utility cyclist]

Those Mavic hubs were either 501, 531 or 571 but deffo you would have got more parting, they were very nice and I still have an earlier 500 on a mavic ceramic front that will eventually replace one of my other wheels when I get through it.
It sounds like a really lovely bike and a bit gutting to see it minus all the bits you put together for it.

[Bonefishblues]

Likely 501s then, and lovely little jewel-like things they were. IIRC I swapped a Feinwerkbau 124 air rifle for them. Should have kept that, too, they fetch strong money these days

[Mick F]

Marjorie Dawes has been stripped naked.

[philvantwo]

Hope you kept fully clothed mick f????

[Mick F]

No, I wasn't fully clothed. In fact starkers, but wore my varifocal sunglasses.
Same today in the beautiful warm Cornish sunshine.

Fitted the BB and the new Stronglight 48/34 chainset also spread the rear triangle to 135mm for the new Deore hub. Rebuilt the headset with clean balls and new grease.

Update so far ...........

1. A pair of Deore hubs and a cassette checked, and test-fitted.

2. The original cup and cone BB was too long by a mile for the chainline, so I fitted an old Campag Mirage one that used to be on Mercian.
Fitted a treat and the chainline is great.

3. The original rear mech didn't have near enough capacity, so I've fitted and checked out the Tiagra long cage that used to be on Moulton. The top pivot is worn a tad so it's not good for indexing, but as we're keeping the DT friction shifters, it won't be an issue.

4. The original front mech was ok to go from 34 to 48, but I had a wide ratio Campag Victory Leisure left over from Mercian from the old days. It works a treat with 34/48.

5. Fitted the new 9sp KMC chain at its full length and the rear mech and the chainlength is fine. Big/Big and Small/Small are perfect.

All removed now, except for the BB and chainset, and the front forks. Just got to arrange for new spokes ......... which is subject to a new thread.

[Cowsham]

No, I wasn't fully clothed. In fact starkers, but wore my varifocal sunglasses.
Same today in the beautiful warm Cornish sunshine.

Fitted the BB and the new Stronglight 48/34 chainset also spread the rear triangle to 135mm for the new Deore hub. Rebuilt the headset with clean balls and new grease.

Update so far ...........

1. A pair of Deore hubs and a cassette checked, and test-fitted.

2. The original cup and cone BB was too long by a mile for the chainline, so I fitted an old Campag Mirage one that used to be on Mercian.
Fitted a treat and the chainline is great.

3. The original rear mech didn't have near enough capacity, so I've fitted and checked out the Tiagra long cage that used to be on Moulton. The top pivot is worn a tad so it's not good for indexing, but as we're keeping the DT friction shifters, it won't be an issue.

4. The original front mech was ok to go from 34 to 48, but I had a wide ratio Campag Victory Leisure left over from Mercian from the old days. It works a treat with 34/48.

5. Fitted the new 9sp KMC chain at its full length and the rear mech and the chainlength is fine. Big/Big and Small/Small are perfect.

All removed now, except for the BB and chainset, and the front forks. Just got to arrange for new spokes ......... which is subject to a new thread.

Just needs a respray and a new badge "Cornwall Conversions"

[Mick F]

[Bonefishblues]

I thought the 'Naked Fettler' might have been appropriate.

[Mick F]

Nothing naked these past few days.
Very very cold wind!

[Bonefishblues]

Nothing naked these past few days.
Very very cold wind!

Taters here too. Bitter. Did Mrs Mick go on her African trip in the end?

[Mick F]

Taters here too. Bitter. Did Mrs Mick go on her African trip in the end?

Have you got an hour to listen to the story?

She was due to leave on Saturday 21st March.
The 40ft container of donated stuff was due to arrive in Banjul, Gambia at about that time.
She was going to stay out there distributing to schools, hospitals, orphanages etc until the 29th April.

On the Friday ....... the day before going ....... she found out that the flight from Gatwick to Lisbon was going ahead, but the connecting flight to Banjul wasn't happening. She's still trying to get her flight monies back, but she'll have to kiss goodbye to the train fare to Gatwick return as the ticket wasn't refundable. Added to the mix was the foreign office only generally advising against going, and not saying anything stronger.

Meanwhile, her friend whom she operates with went out a week or three earlier, and is still there. She hadn't booked a flight back as her stay was going to be open-ended for a week or so into May. It looks like she's stuck out there ........ poor health-care, poor sanitation, overcrowded streets.

She and Mrs Mick F are leasing a ground floor flat and have paid for six months so the friend isn't homeless out there. Meanwhile, the 40ft container has been delayed and isn't due in for another week yet.

How this stuff is going to get distributed is anyone's guess. My bet is that it'll be looted.

https://www.facebook.com/Keen4Gambia/

[Bonefishblues]

Taters here too. Bitter. Did Mrs Mick go on her African trip in the end?

Have you got an hour to listen to the story?

She was due to leave on Saturday 21st March.
The 40ft container of donated stuff was due to arrive in Banjul, Gambia at about that time.
She was going to stay out there distributing to schools, hospitals, orphanages etc until the 29th April.

On the Friday ....... the day before going ....... she found out that the flight from Gatwick to Lisbon was going ahead, but the connecting flight to Banjul wasn't happening. She's still trying to get her flight monies back, but she'll have to kiss goodbye to the train fare to Gatwick return as the ticket wasn't refundable. Added to the mix was the foreign office only generally advising against going, and not saying anything stronger.

Meanwhile, her friend whom she operates with went out a week or three earlier, and is still there. She hadn't booked a flight back as her stay was going to be open-ended for a week or so into May. It looks like she's stuck out there ........ poor health-care, poor sanitation, overcrowded streets.

She and Mrs Mick F are leasing a ground floor flat and have paid for six months so the friend isn't homeless out there. Meanwhile, the 40ft container has been delayed and isn't due in for another week yet.

How this stuff is going to get distributed is anyone's guess. My bet is that it'll be looted.

https://www.facebook.com/Keen4Gambia/

I feel her pain.

We've just closed down the charity I was a board member of, but the good news is that we did that because the local NGOs in-country are now completely self-sufficient & funded, which is nice

[Mick F]

Horrors!

Just assembling the rear wheel.
Ordered a pair of Shimano Deore hubs in 36h from Spa Cycles.

Front wheel built up fine, and over the next few days I'll tighten it all up and true it.

This morning, over a cuppa, I started to assemble the rear hub ................. only to find that the hub is 32h.

Just sent of an email off to Spa. Hopefully they'll send me a 36h and a stamped addressed box to send the 32h back.