23 March, 2009

Nice Bike Bits

Russ, The Epicurean Cyclist, applied toe clip leathers on his VO Retro cages with very nice results.


Austin on Two Wheels has a nice, and very positive, review of the VO model 8 saddle.


John's Saluki build is beyond nice. It is absolutely stunning! Note the Nitto stem he had chrome plated. And the Luxor taillight. Wow! The rest of the photos are here.

19 comments:

  1. Nice job on the Saluki. I wonder
    how much effort was involved in finding that Luxor taillight?
    Preston

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  2. Just a wee effort

    http://www.levelodansleretro.com/mag/en/list-195033.htm


    As for toe clipped leather cages. I'm in. That will be the solution for my current build. On my Kogs P, I use silver nashbar carbon cages that hold the KKs tight and quiet. They look fine with the bottle. But who really prefers carbon on an adult's bicycle?

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  3. That is a studio quality picture of the saddle. Who took it, and with what ?

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  4. The toe clip leather is genius! I use one of those retro cages as a coffee mug holder on my handlebars, and the friction coefficient between the plain cage and my stainless insulated mug is too low. This morning, as I rattled over the potholes, I thought of sullying the cage or my mug with duct tape or rubber bands--this is a much better solution.

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  5. Hey Burton, till you can install your leathers (which do look rather snazzy), just tighten up the cage with the handy tabs--that's what they're there for. I ride with a stainless coffee sippy in mine and it doesn't rattle. I carry milk in my other cage and a thermos of coffee in the bags--always a hit when you stop by the LBS in the morning.

    Tip for coffee sippy users--put it in the vertical cage for less slosh hazard. Also--never put a soft cup with hot liquid in your bottle cage. Please. ;-)

    The tail light...is perfection. Perfect height for practicality, up on the fender like that, and perfect gorgeous form. Would be nice to get something similar with an LED. :-)

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  6. >Would be nice to get something similar with an LED<

    That is the best idea ever, if it's possible. One in a hammered finish, one in a Zeppelin finish. LED, preferably battery powered.

    There's a great blog that focuses on vintage lighting here:

    http://aldoblog2008.blogspot.com/

    Also, I'd like new Cyclo derailleur cables, please :-)

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  7. Anon.

    I took that picture for our blog review of the VO Model 8. It was with my co-author's Canon EOS Digital Rebel XSi.

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  8. Wondering when you'll be getting a B68 version of the VO saddle

    Kathryn

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  9. Yes. I've mentioned these aluminum styled tail lights in the past. The levelodansleretro.com site is fantabulous. I've yet to hear back if bulbs are available for the lights they sell.

    I've been keeping it a little bit of a secret, looking for an LED unit I could transfer to an aluminum housing. Lens is the hard part; it's important to have a good pattern on the inside in order to maximize the light reflection.

    A battery powered and generator powered version each would be ideal.

    I like the tail lights especially that look like little cylindrical lanterns.

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  10. If anyone has a set of those shifters that are on John's Saluki and want to part with them, drop me a line at...

    lindaprice4 (AT) comcast.net

    Thanks,
    John

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  11. Man, those bars (on the Saluki) are freaking me out.

    Any of y'all riding them care to talk about them? I'd be interested.

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  12. The bars are a copy of a very traditional AVA randonneur bar. In fact, the bars on my 1947 Alex Singer are identical to the Grand Bois. Nothing new-fangled about them.

    The bars have no real advantages or disadvantages over regular bars. They offer more hand positions, so tend to be a little more comfortable for long rides, but it is certainly a matter of opinion.

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  13. bike porn :
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/ecovelo/3388297207/in/pool-417924@N22

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  14. reverend dick says:

    Man, those bars (on the Saluki) are freaking me out.

    Any of y'all riding them care to talk about them? I'd be interested.


    I'm not using them, but there's an article about them in Winter 2008 issue of Bicycle Quarterly
    http://www.vintagebicyclepress.com/BQ72.html

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  15. Here is a fix for putting LED's into vintage lights. I have all the parts, just have to get around to putting it together.

    http://www.ladyada.net/make/vintagelight/index.html

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  16. Eoghan,

    that is not a fix, it is a major undertaking with superficial benefits. But thanks for the pictures.

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  17. Thanks for the link, Eoghan. Even though I've done that sort of thing a number of times, I still learnt a thing or two.

    What may look like a superficial benefit to some can be a major upgrade to others. Also, one can easily buy LED drivers online, and save the trouble of building them.

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  18. If this were my blog, I would use the delete button with relish. That's the kind of claptrap that gives us honest Anons a bum rap.

    That is a very lovely Saluki. Thanks for posting the photos.

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  19. Eoghan, thanks for the link. I've got similar ideas about using the Planet Bike Blaze dyno light and the Spanninga Retroled to make a nice classic looking dyno light. Parts are on their way, we'll see how it goes.

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