Hoping you guys can help me with a new build I am going to be starting on. It involves a bit of new stuff, a bit of old stuff being repurposed, and a bit of not knowing what I need.

For the new stuff, I have a frameset from Pedalforce (http://pedalforce.com/online/product_in ... s_id=20501).

Going onto the new frameset is going to by a rival groupset (standard crank) off of a old road bike. BB matches up and headset matches, so that should be taken care of. Other things that will come off the old road bike is stem, handlebars, and seatpost w/collar.

That should, if my count is correct, leave cables, brakes, saddle, and wheelset that are missing. Along with chain ring and cassette needing to be replaced.


1. What can be done with the chain ring and cassette? Swap the chainrings? Or the cassette? Or both? Is a 1x10 easier to convert to?

2. Going along with the drivetrain, what cables/housing are recommended? I am in the Sacramento area and expect to be riding/racing in a fair bit of mud and rain.

3. I assume that road brakes are not going to work. Is there a goto brakeset that everybody should run? And are inline brake levers useful?

4. Wheels... I have been reading that Tubulars are the way to go, but have also seen some mentions of Stan's no tube system. Will a set of Stan's alpha rims (28/32 probably) hold up well for a 175lb cyclocross noob?

And finally, the most important question, is there a bar tape in existence that will survive the mud and grim?

Until you have an idea if you are going to really like racing or just do it occasionally but also ride the bike a lot on trails I'd keep things simple.

1. 46 tooth chain ring to pair with the 39 (assuming 53-39) with a 12-27 cassette is a very versatile for racing and riding off road.
2. Tektro cr720 brakes with Kool Stop salmon pads (the pads are key)
3. Some decent clincher wheels with some Michelin Mud tires and good 25-28mm tubes.
4. Try to do full housing runs from shifters to derailleurs, no need for expensive cable sets if you can do this.
5. Inline levers, tried them years ago hated them, your mileage may vary.
6. Buy cheap bar tape and replace when needed.

Once I figured out that I really wanted to race cross seriously I built a second bike that's just for racing, single ring, light as hell with tubulars. I would never take this bike trail riding because the gearing isn't low enough. That's what I use my spare bike for.

I would do exactly what he said.

Durable bar tape = Fizik Microtex, scrubs up well after a roll in the mud, even the white comes out pristine

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Just ride

I'm building up one too! One thing you may have missed - you'll need a top-pull front derailleur (or a adapter for a bottom-pull derailleur). All of the cable runs are on top of the top tube.