English--Now with Enve 3.4's

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xrs2
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by xrs2

Final design for the English. Should weigh around 13.5 lbs with pedals and saddle.

The head tube is long and there isn't much drop. Not much choice, as I can only handle a limited amount of drop due to a crushed disc in my neck that occurred a few years ago from hitting a pothole at 30 mph. One 10-mm spacer under the stem so I can lower my position if I regain more range of motion.

I don't have the exact tubing specs, but it's mostly 0.7-0.4-0.7 with an aero 0.6-0.3-0.6 downtube, which should be functionally equivalent in terms of stiffness and strength to standard round 0.7-0.4-0.7.

The trail is higher and the wheelbase longer than normal for one of Rob English's race bikes; I requested that he make the bike relatively stable--the majority of my miles and time on bikes are on rides 50-200+ miles in length, and I'm not going to be racing, so I want a bike that isn't going to be dangerous when I'm tired or doing a long ride in the cold. For example, a few weeks ago I took out the current "race" bike on an 80-mile ride in the cold and rain and almost shook myself off the road and over a cliff during a descent.

The bike will be fitted with 26 to 30 mm tires, and an array of ultralight components. I didn't go as light as possible with all the components, as some of our rides can be a little rough on equipment because we hit a lot of gravel and poorly maintained roads. I'm using a Clavicula compact M3 crank; Super Record derailleurs and shifters, eeBrakes; Alchemy hubs with Stan's rims, Dash saddle, Enve compact bar and stem "barstemmed" by Calfee. Scaupla matte fork (miraculously found a new one for cheap on E-Bay). Seatpost will have an internal expander. Also have a tubular wheelset for some 27 mm FMBs or Dugasts. The seat tube will have an integrated tail light since I ride in the dark a lot (there is a picture elsewhere in this set). Tires up to 32 mm fit under the Clavicula/eeBrake combination.

It will be black-on-black, and the only bit of vanity is a carbon fiber headtube insert. (see the English Cycles website for an example). Rob tells me that the CF insert will add stiffness to my overly long head tube, but I'm not sure the effect will be detectable.

Overall, it's not a randonneur and not a race bike, and it is not a good representative of Rob's usual designs. It's more of a dirt-road steep-climb long-ride bike.

Coming in March!

Image
Last edited by xrs2 on Sun May 27, 2012 11:10 pm, edited 2 times in total.

xnavalav8r
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by xnavalav8r

Rob advised against using EE brakes on my English build. The internal cable routing simply didn't work well with those brakes. If you're going with external brake cable routing, or exiting from the top tube rather than the back of the seat mast (as I did) you should be OK though.

This looks like it will be a great bike. Enjoy!

by Weenie


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djconnel
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by djconnel

Wow! Fantastic.

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jdp211
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by jdp211

Are you sure you're going to clear 27+mm tires? I barely squeeze 25c vittorrias through mine

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Powerful Pete
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by Powerful Pete

Looking forward to this build...
Road bike: Cervelo R3, Campagnolo Chorus/Record mix...
Supercommuter: Jamis Renegade...
Oldie but goodie: De Rosa Professional Slx, Campagnolo C-Record...
And you can call me Macktastik Honey Pete Kicks, thank you.

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djconnel
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by djconnel

Isn't tire clearance a matter of chain stay design in the vicinity of the bottom bracket? Should be no problem to build for 30 mm. I definitely approve of the choice.

jooo
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by jooo

Looking forward to more pics.

Tyre clearance should be a relatively minor issue as it's designed for that size from the outset. Plenty of 29ers with chain stays only slightly longer running huge rubber like a 2.4 Racing Ralph! I think that includes some English's so I'm sure it's no problem.

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djconnel
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by djconnel

Here's a randonneur frame designed for large tire clearance w/ fenders:

Image

It's a 650B bike, but you can see how by bowing out the chainstays a lot of room can be created.

In contrast, here's a Cannondale: relatively beefy chainstays come in relatively straight, minimizing clearance:

Image

xrs2
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by xrs2

There's no problem designing the bike for an appropriate amount of clearance in the rear. The bigger issue is the fork/front brake. A 30 mm tire will fit, albeit tightly, under the eeBrake/Scapula SP combination I am using. I expect that I'll mostly be riding 27 mm tubular except on really long rides where there is a risk for multiple flats.

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elviento
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by elviento

Sounds very promising indeed. I am intrigued by Rob's work and this one should not disappoint either.

Pls post pics as soon as you can.
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xrs2
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by xrs2

http://www.flickr.com/photos/36397392@N ... 055711825/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Image

Image

Image

Fatbiker
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by Fatbiker

Damn this is going to be a sweet bike! Already looking forward to seeing the end result.

xrs2
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by xrs2

More amateur photos here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/36397392@N ... hotostream" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Rob is taking some nice photos next week.

Image

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djconnel
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by djconnel

Okay... so for one, I don't believe the CF insert does anything for stiffness. Even if the HT is perfectly stiff, the top and down tube can twist in response to moments applied at the head tube.

That said, it does look very cool! Very impressive....

xrs2
Posts: 221
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by xrs2

djconnel wrote:Okay... so for one, I don't believe the CF insert does anything for stiffness. Even if the HT is perfectly stiff, the top and down tube can twist in response to moments applied at the head tube.

That said, it does look very cool! Very impressive....


Yep, I agree it's not going to do much, but I do like the way it looks so what the heck? To be honest I'm not even concerned about ultimate stiffness. This bike is definitely not for races, instead it's intended for ultra distance (which for me means up to 600k).

by Weenie


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