single speed photos

Here's a neat thread on MTBR.com's Singlespeeding Forum. Interesting mix of SS setups. Mine's in there too!

Tour Of The Firelies photos

biking buddy Jay has posted some photos from the Tour Of The Fireflies, check em out!

my current cog

was from my old 7-speed Shimano casette. I've found that an 18t rear cog is what I'm comfortable with.

The problem is long term wear. Being made of aluminum, this is quite "soft" for something that'll see a lot of use. So, one of my LONG TERM upgrades is the following:

Boone Titanium cogs and chainrings

They look real trick, and should last longer than what I have now. Boone also makes rings (as in for your fingers) out of the preciousmetal.

Hmmm. One gear to rule them all.

A chain is only as strong as its weakest link.

More so when you are on a single speed. I found that out much to my chagrin last Saturday, when on a steep climb, torquing t for all I was worth, I heard a crunching sound just as I applied my full weight on my right downstroke. SNAP! There went one of the links of my chain. POW! Was the sound of my thigh hitting my bike's stem. OUCH! (more like SHIT!) is what I exclaimed as I managed to unclip from the Tingle. After assessing the damage to myself and the bike (not in that order), immediate repairs were needed. Luckily I packed a chain tool and a dozen or so extra links of chain. Removing chain was the easy part, and I had some problems setting the replacement pins and links in. Luckily Job had a Shimano chain tool, which made the job much easier.

Pop quiz: how many mountainbikers does it take to replace a link on a broken chain?
Answer: I think more than one, perhaps even four, as that was our riding group that day.

What made things a bit worse was that this happened near the halfway point of our 45km ride. At least the big hills were out of the way. As we were pressed for time we decided to head back the way we came in, instead of completing the loop.

This meant bombing down the four climbs I painfully ascended. No problem if you are on a full-suspension bike (like my 3 amigos that day). But on a rigid single speed? It was my first time down that way.

My thigh was already a bit sore but I just said "what the heck" and decided to lead the group down. It was pretty hairy and pretty fun, surrendering yourself to gravity. When we hit the pavement ont he way back to the parking lot Polly told me we were going 53km/h. Not bad, not bad at all...hehe

After fashioning an ice pack from few plastic bags and a towel, I knew that was my last ride for the weekend.

Darn, that means I'd miss the Tour Of The Fireflies the next day.

It's Tuesday now, and the thigh is much better, thank you.

Ti-ngle

March 2005
Later on I met a fellow Caballero rider who previously had a titanium hardtail. Rommel, like me, was a hardtail holdout until the Cab came along. Coincidentally we had our bikes serviced at the same shop, and I asked him about his old frame. He told me he was selling it. We talked about the frame and our common bikes. He was real nice- used to race too.

The next day I received an SMS saying that a Caballero was stolen. Turns out it was Rommel's! That piece of news really sucked- it actually brought back memories when my Miyata QuickCross was lifted from our garage.

To cut a long story short, Rommel built up another bike, this time a Trek Fuel, and I just couldn't resist the lure of his old frame. Parts were swapped from the KZ-1x1 to the "Ti-ingle", and I must admit that titanium really is what it is all hyped up to be. Though I am running full-rigid, it still has a bit of compliance. It's comfy enough for long (50km) rides.

So for now, here is the parts-spec:
Sandvik USA Titanium frame
Rigid Alloy fork
Time Alium pedals
Club Roost Go Fast Riser bar (formerly from the KZ-1)
WTB Motoraptor 2.24 tires (bigger tires for more cushioning)
WTB SST.XR Titanium railed saddle (carried over from the Schwinn)
WTB Weirwolf grips
Azonic ORC stem (again from the KZ-1)
Cane Creek headset
Generic seatpost (traded with Efren for a Titec laidback one)
Mavic 230 BSP rims and Shimano Deore hubs (from the Schwinn)
Magura Formula 500 brakes (formerly owned by Efren)
Shimano Deore crankset and BB (purchased 2nd hand along with brakes)

going up the 1st or 2nd hill in Sta. Rosa. Good thing we stopped to take this pic. Momentum is key in getting up hills like these. It's a fairly smooth dirt road, but with some sandy portions which can really slow you down. It gets tricky when there are other riders going up too. I'd rather stop and let them go on ahead.The KZ-1x1 was probably my best climbing bike, with almost no flex. That's also the same reason it was a punisher in the downhills. 

it's back, this time as the KZ-1x1

Early 2005
Since I still had the Azonic frame, and a bunch of old parts from the Schwinn, I contemplated on building up a hardtail, as a second bike. Turns out, my riding buddy Jay converted his Specialized Hard Rock to a single speed. The concept piqued my interest and after scoring a secondhand crankset and brakeset, as well as a new rigid fork, my old steed was reincarnated and rejuvenated. The mish-mash of components sure didn't affect ride quality, or the fun factor for that matter. A neat side story is that the Magura Formula 500 brakes that I acquired 3rd-hand, were originally owned by my LBS(Local Bike Shop)'s head wrench!

If the KZ-1 was stiff with a front shock, imagine how brutal it was with a rigid alloy fork. It sure was super light, but you could feel every undulation and obstacle you'd hit on the trail. I was willing to soldier on, heck, it was my secondary ride anyway (the Cab was la primero).

Enter the Caballero

Late 2004
After weeks of research and careful deliberation, I decided to take the full-suspension plunge. My frame of choice was the Salsa Caballero, with a frame made of Scandium. Most, if not all the parts from the KZ-1 were transplanted to it. It impressed me with its comfort and surprised me with its climbing efficiency. I still had a soft spot for the old hard tail though..

the Azonic KZ-1

Forward to 2003
My good friend Benjie offered his old Azonic KZ-1 frame, along with a set of Magura HS33's and other choice parts. After fitting the replacement Marzocchi MX-Pro, I also upgraded the tires, wheelset and drivetrain. This was the same make and model used by our national team, and climbed like a billygoat. Problem was, being an aluminum frame, it was really harsh on rocky descents, and my back was paying the price for it.

Schwinndy

Flashback to 2002
After years of putting it off, I finally put together a decent bike. Using old parts which include pre-y2k items, such as:
Shimano Deore DX hubs, derailleurs, thumb shifters
Mavic 230BSP rims
Ritchey SPD pedals

as well as a smattering of new parts (then) like:
Avid SD V-brakes and levers
RST Aerosa suspension fork
and of course a brand new Schwinn Moab 1 frame

The bike rode well, despite the old-ish parts spec. 21-speeds was more than enough, and the thumb shifters were bombproof. It was a blast, until the cheap suspension fork died on me.