Bulletproof bike

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dominicy
Posts: 11
Joined: 19 Mar 2015, 9:43am

Bulletproof bike

Post by dominicy »

Hello All

I am looking for advice about a bulletproof bike.

I have been tooling around London for about 8 years on a Canondale Vintage (basically a Bad Boy with leather grips I think). It has been fine but over the years I have replaced almost all of the components. I think I have the original front wheel and one brake and that's about it.

Today, for the SECOND time, my handlebar snapped as I was riding and this time I took my first proper tumble. My dislike of my bike falling apart under me as I ride along is quite great so I have finally started wondering if I should consider a new bike.

My requirements are these:

- Very strong, in every component. Hubs, rims, frame, cranks (one of them snapped once too), lots of spokes, pedals and HANDLEBARS!
- Touring type setup - stand, mudguards, rack
- Ideally black(!)
- can take the strain - I am a pretty big guy (6'3" and 130kg which never goes down much despite cycling) and fit enough to give the bike a reasonably hard time with very strong legs.

What I do not care about includes

- weight. The weight of the bike is a rounding error in the overall weight of the setup with me on top
- gears. Well, I do care about them in the sense that I want some but I don't have particularly strong views and I don't use many of them so could go for a hub setup if they're any good, or whatever

I have been thinking about touring bikes which are built for the long haul with loads of stuff loaded on racks. Does that sound like the right way to go? I will mainly be tooling around London, commuting and general transport. Also any recommendations for shops?

Greater wisdom than I have to hand would be appreciated. I have been cycling a while on this bike but am not really very tuned into bike stuff so am pretty clueless.

Dominic
Brucey
Posts: 44517
Joined: 4 Jan 2012, 6:25pm

Re: Bulletproof bike

Post by Brucey »

big guys like you do tend to break bikes. It is a real problem for some. At 130kg you are already at the top end of the recommended total load for lots of bikes, and that is before you carry any luggage.

I take it you didn't break the frame yet? That is something I suppose.

You can buy stronger components for many parts of the bike but some are designed for downhill racing etc. What is 'strong for racing' doesn't always translate into 'strong for commuting'. There are wheels meant for tandems, wheels meant for carrier bikes, wheels built with 13G spokes, that kind of thing.

If you are the kind of rider that wrestles with the handlebars as you go down the road, you will break them. I'd suggest perhaps buying steel ones and just replacing them once every couple of years; they are not expensive. Same with cranks; when I started racing many riders would do one year on a set of cranks and then bin them, because they would otherwise be likely to break.

I'd also suggest that you have someone competent inspect your bike for cracks in safety critical components on a regular basis. Stuff doesn't 'just break'; it fatigues and there will be a crack that grows (over a period of a few weeks or months usually) until the part is weak enough that it does then fracture. If you look at the broken parts you will usually see that about half of the fracture will be bright and shiny and the rest may be discoloured because that part of the crack is older. The crack would have been visible during an inspection. Buy silver parts, not black ones; the cracks will be more easily seen. The interval between such inspections would be six months to a year for most folk but I'd suggest a shorter interval for you.

If you want an off-the-shelf bike that is strong, have a look at a Thorn Raven, Nomad, or Sherpa, and talk to the guys that sell them about your requirements.

cheers
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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Brucey~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
pwa
Posts: 17367
Joined: 2 Oct 2011, 8:55pm

Re: Bulletproof bike

Post by pwa »

Yes, talk to Thorn. They are not cheap, but they will sell you stuff that is strong.
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531colin
Posts: 16083
Joined: 4 Dec 2009, 6:56pm
Location: North Yorkshire

Re: Bulletproof bike

Post by 531colin »

In London, is it worth talking to the couriers, or the guys that fix the couriers bikes?
I know that you can pay a fair bit of money for (for example) Nitto handlebars, either straight or drops....what I don't know is if they are any more durable than any other handlebar. (I weigh around half the OPs weight....what do I know about durability?)
hopefully, some big guys will respond.......
dominicy
Posts: 11
Joined: 19 Mar 2015, 9:43am

Re: Bulletproof bike

Post by dominicy »

Thanks Bruce and all.

These handlebars were only about four months old so I guess I was just unlucky. But they did just break. Was cycling along, just kind of holding the handlebars really (not wrestling I don't think), then they snapped, I fell off. The previous ones that broke were about seven years old so were probably fatigued (they broke kind of slowly - bent gradually over a second or two - so I didn't come off). One thing I know about metal fatigue though is that it's often not visible via visual inspection. Ideally I want a bike which doesn't need constant inspections to be sure it won't fall apart on me - although mine ends up in a bike shop for servicing at least once or twice a year as it happens so hopefully they would spot anything observable.

Hence my preference for something over-specced for the task rather than just be the fat bloke on a flimsy bike. I will check out Thorn for sure. Someone in a shop mentioned Tout Terrain to me - anyone know much about them? The touring bikes seemed like they might be a good idea because they're designed to carry a fair bit of baggage as well as the rider.

Dominic
mig
Posts: 2702
Joined: 19 Oct 2011, 9:39pm

Re: Bulletproof bike

Post by mig »

re. handlebars. is the stem cranked up really tight on them? and/or does the stem have any damage to it that might create a sharp edge pushing into the bars? where do the bars break along their width?
dominicy
Posts: 11
Joined: 19 Mar 2015, 9:43am

Re: Bulletproof bike

Post by dominicy »

Mig, not sure. The bike now with someone who knows what's what so they might spot something. But having been replaced recently in a shop I was sort of assuming that it was all done properly.

Dominic
mercalia
Posts: 14630
Joined: 22 Sep 2013, 10:03pm
Location: london South

Re: Bulletproof bike

Post by mercalia »

an expedition class tourer?
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barrym
Posts: 634
Joined: 22 Jun 2012, 10:05am
Location: Corsham - North Wilts

Re: Bulletproof bike

Post by barrym »

Check out http://www.milkbikes.com/8-rda. I have no personal experience, but the website is quite compelling.
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Cheers
Barry
PH
Posts: 13106
Joined: 21 Jan 2007, 12:31am
Location: Derby
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Re: Bulletproof bike

Post by PH »

dominicy wrote:I have been thinking about touring bikes which are built for the long haul with loads of stuff loaded on racks. Does that sound like the right way to go? I will mainly be tooling around London, commuting and general transport. Also any recommendations for shops?
Dominic


Brixton Cycles - They build bikes up from some pretty decent frames, Surly, Genesis, Salsa. They'll talk you through the options and they know their stuff. General transport bikes are their main thing, though they cover plenty of other stuff as well.
http://www.brixtoncycles.co.uk/bikesstuff
pliptrot
Posts: 705
Joined: 12 Jan 2007, 2:50am

Re: Bulletproof bike

Post by pliptrot »

Wow. I have a lot of equipment of considerable vintage and I am beginning to wonder...........
Across Europe (particularly in Germany - the Dutch use sensible , err, Dutch bikes)- you see many, many bikes of great age and neglect. Often these are racing (read: light-weight) bikes used for getting around; left out in all weathers, never cleaned, filthy (although usually oiled at least) chains, and so-on. Yet never much in the way of cycle carnage. Am I (I'm 70kg and 5'10" so a donkey to Dominicy's Clydesdale) just lucky (so far) or is there some weight threshold at which fatigue is accelerated (IIRC 90kg pops up in many specifications)?
Brucey
Posts: 44517
Joined: 4 Jan 2012, 6:25pm

Re: Bulletproof bike

Post by Brucey »

I was recently discussing the very subject of breakages with the proprietor of an LBS. His clientele are pretty loyal and he makes a lot of repeat sales often over a period of decades. I guess in a year he typically gets two or three broken frames under warranty, half a dozen handlebars, a few pedals, a few cranks, lots of broken rear axles, and a few other odds and ends.

Some parts just break anyway (like rear axles on freewheel hubs) but the other parts that break all have one thing in common; well over half of them are broken by people who have broken similar parts before. Most are big lads and strong with it; a few are not particularly big but they do just wrestle the bike down the road.

The difference between some riders and others is startling; the worst of them will often break a frame when they are about half-way through the second rear tyre, or half-way through the second chain/cassette.

Most people don't notice small cracks but then most people are not looking for them. If you know what to look for and you have not (foolishly IMHO) chosen black-coloured components you can often see cracks well before the component fails. I've looked at dozens of failed parts and I have not see one that didn't fatigue yet.

cheers
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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Brucey~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Zanda
Posts: 483
Joined: 6 Jan 2007, 1:07pm

Re: Bulletproof bike

Post by Zanda »

I'd go for a touring frame and I'd spec steel as the material because steel bends before it snaps, whereas alu and carbon composite snap without bending.

26" wheels are stronger than 700c (all other things being equal). I'd be looking for handbuilt wheels with tandem-spec rims, and at least 36 spokes, for rim brakes rather than discs. Specify the strongest headset you can find, as the headset takes the strain when you brake.

I'd choose oversized handlebars. 'Oversized' here refers to the external diameter at the centre of the bar where it is to be clamped by the stem.

I'd also choose a saddle with solid steel rails, not hollow ones, being sure to clamp it in the centre. Clamping too far towards the front or the rear can lead to broken rails.
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NATURAL ANKLING
Posts: 13780
Joined: 24 Oct 2012, 10:43pm
Location: English Riviera

Re: Bulletproof bike

Post by NATURAL ANKLING »

Hi,
Simple...............a MTB built of second hand parts, well chosen will probably outlast all the expensive glossy poster dribble..........
NA Thinks Just End 2 End Return + Bivvy - Some day Soon I hope
You'll Still Find Me At The Top Of A Hill
Please forgive the poor Grammar I blame it on my mobile and phat thinkers.
bikerwaser
Posts: 359
Joined: 26 Aug 2012, 9:50am

Re: Bulletproof bike

Post by bikerwaser »

Thorn Nomad
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