I enjoyed riding my Surly KramPug 29+ single speed last summer and had many enjoyable evening rides
Nice but needs gears;
The 29+ was crying out for gears to make the most of what is my most versatile bike, and so it got some gears.
The Karate Monkey was not seeing much use now in the shadow of the 29+ so it got the single speed Surly hub- a basic hubs swap in the man cave by friend Colin....
Again the Karate Monkey was nice to ride as an SS, but again it lacked a real purpose in my bike collection so to make it more versatile again it went back to 3x9 gears again! and then got the Drop bar conversion making it a great bike which really does what i wanted the Salsa Fargo to do but was for myself far too harsh a ride off road unladen with luggage.
What i did like riding single speed;
Was the fixed road bike,
You may remember i also was given a Pearson Touche Fixie bike a couple of years a go from my big bro, a lovely wee bike-...
`wee` though was the right word for it as it was too small for me being a 52cm frame, The plan was to swap the bikes build onto a larger frame. I did ride it the odd day to work or into town although too small and a bit cramped, and i enjoyed the same silence as the other SS bikes and like the simplicity, gearing was too high though at 53/18t for relaxed cycling, headwinds and the odd hill around here...
Back on eBay;
I recently bought a vintage French Peugeot frame set on eBay to do this and build a cheap bike that would make a good winter hack along side the old Peugeot Triathlon....
Not sure on the age of this frame, prob late 1970`s early 1980`s...
French threads; Bottom Bracket types;
Before i bought this i did not think about the French BB though!, and this bikes BB axle is for a cotter pin crank.
Nearly all bikes bottom brackets today are British thread- crank side is left hand thread
Older Italian thread bikes have a right hand crank thread, and use right hand threads on both sides
French thread is a different thread to Italian thread but also both right hand sides
You can read all about what threads are on what bikes here on Off The Beaten Path
A solution!,
Is to buy a square taper BB available in French thread from here at Freshtripe, oh i could spend a lot on that website!.
A change of plan;
This frame set was going to be built up as a fixed bike for commuting but now it will not be with the Pearson Touche build kit-but with another fixed rear wheel and old parts for this winter as a cheap work hack, why?, because a 56cm frame set turned up on eBay which was under a year old and looked real clean so i put in a bid on it... and i won and it turned up on my doorstep Thursday!, the Pearson Touche frame set was put up on eBay last Sunday as a `buy it now only` and sold after only 3 days at a fair price, the new frame set arrived on Thursday, the Pearson Touche frame set went straight into the box it came in and the box was re-posted the same day...
There Is No New Black;
What was inside?, this 56cm Surly Cross-Check frame set!
Surly frame No 5......
52cm frame swapped out for a 56cm...
There is no such thing as a free lunch...
Indeed, and the new frame set would need a couple of things;
Regular 1" 3/8th headset,
Canti brake calliper's (i could of used the Pearson's side pull callipers)
front centre pull cable hanger,
Inner brake cables,
Clip less pedals,
A lower 20 tooth Surly screw on rear cog- the 18t cog fitted was too high for on/off road riding around here...
Lets build another bike!...
With that lot ordered on line and delivered a few days later i built the bike up on Friday evening, starts with a frame and seat post, and some stickers.... :)
Yes that is a carbon seatpost! came from the Pearson build, i would never again have one on an MTB or Fatbike but happy to have one on a road bike, i bought some carbon assembly paste for it...
Pressed in the headset. I bought a Cane Creek as more than half the price of a Hope headset at £30. I have found these reliable, the original Pugsley still has it`s `Forty` headset with new bearings fitted last year...
The Pearson build had a long stem, too long for my preference so i sold it with the frame set along with the internal headset, these bars are fine and indeed a nice bend, but the flat oval tops mean i cannot fit my lights brackets...
So on went the Genesis Cdf 100mm stem and bars, these were swapped on my Cdf for my Salsa Bell Lap bars and stem. I plan to swap these out for Bell Lap bars too in the future, as i really like them for off road...
Fork steerer tube is a decent height so i left it alone..
While my hands were greasy in went the 68x100mm BB which was recently new in the Pearson bike before my big bro gave me it...
And then with the cranks...
The Cross-Check comes with a 130mm horizontal rear drop out which caters in typical Surly style for all types of rear hub/gear set up. removing the wheel position screws and it is single speed ready for my 120mm bolt on fixed rear hub...
Wheels on and chain- i somehow thought the bike needed an 8 speed chain, doh!, so the bought chain won`t do!, so added to the spare parts pile for an existing bike. Its the wider BMX pitch needed and the Pearson chain was too short, so in the meantime i nicked the chain of the old Schwinn Klunker to use until another comes, which is a half link BMX chain to guarantee the right lenght, this chain as you can see needs a half link added to reduced the lenght...
Brakes, always handy!...
This never came with the frame but would have been it it`s box when new, a rear canti brake hanger. I have a couple of these from 2 Pugsley frame sets, so finally one was used...
Added the calliper's...
And cables...
Then wrapped the bars with the old tape having done my DIY foam strips underneath...
Tooled up...
My fatbikes share the same tools with just a tube swap for each size bike, but i prefer my road bikes to be tooled and pump fitted to just go after a quick check of tyre pressure, so i made up a tool kit with spare tube and an old but reliable (and rebuild able) Blackburn pump. Needed a 15mm spanner for the bike`s bolt on wheels so that Surly Jethro Tule i was given at Forth Fat would now come in handy!...
I needed/would prefer an 8mm Allen key for the cranks being a single speed so i swapped out an 8mm on this old multi tool i found in the man-cave...
Vola!, sorted!...
Another Topeak seat bag was ordered like the Genesis cdf has-surprised the seat clip only is not available to allow the bag to get used on more than one bike, but i guess that is the art of the marketing!.
Pedals on and the bike was ready to roll...
Rolling...
Home from the coast on the Pugsley by 2pm on Saturday i rode a little 10 mile loop to see how the bike rode.
The compulsery `new big hung on the road sign` pic...
Happy to say it is ace!, Fits like a glove and is a real nice ride. The Cross-Check is a frame set that is popular for it`s ride and versatility, after a short ride i can already understand why...
Think this bike will see a few miles this summer...
Yep i really like this bike!, rides so quiet and smooth being single speed, and gives a comfortable ride on rougher roads...
JMW tested and approved :) ...
No adjustments needed after a quick shakedown ride, the bike set up fits myself fine...
Loads of tyre clearance compared to my Genesis Cdf...
More soon...
Welcome to the Cross-Check club! I don't really have a point-of-reference as I've not ridden any other bikes of that type, but I sure love mine. Been thrashing it since 2008.
ReplyDeleteWhat gets me is how comfortable it is, even on a 35c tyre - an all-day bike for sure. That heavy steel fork seems so supple and if you look down you can see it flexing up and down like crazy on lumpy surfaces.
I'd be interested how you describe the handling compared to a modern bike like the Genesis. I've heard it described as slow and predictable but mine feels quite responsive to me, and I wouldn't want the steering any quicker.
I suspect there's a fare few of us with a Cross-Check / Pugsley combo.
Think i am going to be doing a lot of riding of this bike!,
ReplyDeleteI will be doing plenty of posts on this bike for sure!,
Again as mentioned a classic surly that still rides well, like the Pugsley and karate Monkey!,