ExPo Build Project: Salsa Fargo

[Christophe Noel]

It begins!

I installed a few parts on the frame today. I've made the decision to stick with drop bars on this bike, probably as it should be. I went with the Salsa Woodchipper, and think I'll really like the wide wingspan and shallow drop they offer. I also chose to deck this bike out in silver bits where possible. I like the retro look of raw or polished aluminum and brown.

Headset: Cane Creek. I went with this because...I had it.

Seat Post and Stem: I'm a long time fan of Thompson components. I have them on almost all of my bikes and have come to like the symmetry of matching post/stem combos. I also like how raw aluminum doesn't fade like annodized aluminum, or show scratches as badly. http://bikethomson.com/

Seat: It's brown. That's why I chose it. Okay, it's actually not a bad sitter. I wanted something with more padding than my usual seats so it will be more forgiving on short commutes.

Victorian: You suggested a Brooks saddle. We agree. That's the way to go. Per your suggestion, we will seek out a proper leather Brooks.

The remaining components should arrive next week. As I said above, we're going in a fun direction with this bike. I'll do a full write up on the components and the amazing company behind them prior to hanging them on the frame.

It's coming along better than I expected!

 

[nwoods]

Looking forward to it!

 

[Christophe Noel]

I've been looking for this saddle for a while now. This is the Alp d'Huez limited edition saddle from Brooks.

Pretty awesome. Perhaps a bit too high brow for this bike project.

 

[keezer37]

Where'd that fancy Brooks saddle go?

Perhaps the B17 Aged with the silver rivets would be in keeping with your "silver bits" theme.

 

[Christophe Noel]

Where'd that fancy Brooks saddle go?

Perhaps the B17 Aged with the silver rivets would be in keeping with your "silver bits" theme.

For some reason the photo wasn't loading. It's back now.

I'm not 100% sure I want to ride singletrack on a Brooks. Don't get me wrong, I've got a few Brooks saddles on other bikes, mostly my vintage collectables, but singletrack? Ouchie. I will get one for this bike, but it may not be the primary sitter.

 

[thecriscokid]

Looks like a fun project!

I too am digging out some parts and putting something together. Something about fall makes me want to experiment.

I have tried a few of the "alternative" bar shapes and have never really stuck with any of them after a few singletrack rides. Don't get me wrong, I like the way they look and wish I could get used to them but I'm an Easton bar guy. Can't do it myself. Takes me a day or so to get the roll of my bars in the right spot, Hah! I always think my stem is about 5* off too...

Love the bottle bosses on the fork! Beautiful looking frame!

 

[Heifer Boy]

I'm not 100% sure I want to ride singletrack on a Brooks.

I broke the replaceable dropout tip on my Dos Niner just as winter started (about April over here) so swapped my wheels over and started riding my El Mariarchi offroad. It's my commuter/training/touring bike and usually has slicks on it (Conti Sport Contacts) but I love riding it off road and it's great in the mud with 2.3's on it.

I've had a Brooks B17 Narrow on it for a while now and was worried how a saddle like that would be in the bush. But I absolutely loved it!! Really cushioned the ride a lot and being a 'Narrow' still gave me loads of room to move in singletrack. Highly recommended!!

I even considered swapping it onto my Dos for a 100km race I did back in August becasue I had been riding for months. I think should have because my soft tender bits would have thanked me for it after the race :Wow1:

 

[Christophe Noel]

Okay. We've flushed all the Brooks fans out of the shadows. I guess I'll order a Brooks.

 

[FurthurOnTheFly]

I've been looking for this saddle for a while now. This is the Alp d'Huez limited edition saddle from Brooks.

Pretty awesome. Perhaps a bit too high brow for this bike project.

Wish I would have seen this before I ordered my An Atomica. Love that saddle though. Might need to order this one as a back up, though very cool and will match the topo grip tape on my bars. :sombrero:

 

[Christophe Noel]

The Drivetrain is here! WHITE INDUSTRIES

This is the surprise I was promising. We're going with a two-speed, single speed drive train! I know that sounds confusing. More on that later.

I'm pleased to announce that White Industries has jumped on board to help with this project. For those of you who might not be familiar with White Industries, they have been crafting beautiful aluminum components from their facility in Petaluma, California since 1978. This is a great group of people, who show a tremendous amount of pride in what they do. Their designs are innovative, yet classic in appearance, with precision in execution that is all too rare these days.

www.whiteind.com

Two-speed single speed?

This is the White Industries Double / Double system. For our bike, this is perfect. The challenge with any singlespeed is finding a gear suitable for on-road use, while providing low enough gearing for off-road riding. This system uses two ratios carefully chosen to provide different gears without altering chain length. For our 29" wheeled bike that is a 16/19 freewheel and a 31/34 chainring. That gives us a 34/16 gear for on-road riding and a pretty low 31/19 gear for those slow grinds up the singletrack. We'll have the simplicity of a singlespeed, but with more useful gearing for knocking down bigger miles, or quick commutes. The quality of the rings and freewheel promise years and years of use.

Singlespeed on a non-singlespeed frame?

Because the Salsa Fargo was designed for gears, we went with White Industries eccentric hub system to provide proper chain tension. This is a beautiful component in design and execution. We'll obviously be mounting a disc on this hub, which begs the question, how do you mount a disc brake on an eccentric hub? With their eccentric disc brake mount! That is a pretty amazing bit of engineering. More on that later.

Commuting pedals:

Sticking to the plan to make this bike as versetile as possible, we went with White Industries' really elegant pedals. This will allow ease in commuting without having to resort to clipless shoes and pedals. We will pair these pedals with All-City chrome double toe clips and leather toe straps. Should look fantastic when all assembled. I love these pedals.

(Note the self-extracting crank bolts. One wrench crank removal will make repair and maintenance quick and simple. I've been using these cranks on two of my existing bikes and they're great. I love the gold accent to the crank.)


This is shaping up to be a really fun build. There are some other surprises on the near horizon. I'll be lacing up the wheels today!

I would also encourage you to swing over to the White Industries web site to take a peek at their full range of components. I think we're really fortunate to have such high zoot parts made right here in the USA.

www.whiteind.com

 

[chris_the_wrench]

I had an ENO hub and one of their singlespeed freewheels about 6 years ago and really liked them. And of course their cranks...back in the day! I have a hard time getting past the square taper bb these days though....

Looking good!

-Chris

 

[Christophe Noel]

Chris, I tend to agree about the square taper BB, but I continue to hammer the crap out of my WI cranks on my other mountain bikes and can't say I feel like it's a setback at all.

I also spent an hour today getting the rear hub and disc brake set up. Given this is a chainstay mounted brake, I had some serious concerns it would all mesh....it did. Kudos to White Industries. The chain line is a smidge off, but it gives me an excuse to put the shorter WI titanium BB axle I have in a bottom drawer into service.

Given the tight constraints on the brake placement, I have to say, this is a perfect application for a BB7 brake. The micro adjustments in the pad placement came in real handy.

I just have to finish the wheel builds, mount the tires and make some final tweaks. I also ordered a Brooks today as per previous discussions.


TIRES: I'm going to try Kenda Slant 6 2.0 tires on here for now. I might swap over later to something more commuter-ish. Cream colored Big Apples?

 

[thecriscokid]

That WI 2X is HOT! I would love to run that on my Rocky Mtn, BUT... I have been dreaming of one of those Schlumph 2 speed kick shift cranksets (I think that's the one?) that Willitts had on there townie a few years ago. Big BUT there...


Looking forward to riding down there with you next week. Maybe this machine will be finished?

 

[Christophe Noel]

The completed bike!!!

Here it is:

I went with DT rims, DT spokes, brass nipples for added durability and 2.0 Kenda Slant 6 tires. I love the tires. I've been using the 35c Slant 6 tires on my cyclocross and they're fast and just toothy enough to inspire confidence in the dirt.

The rear eccentric hub popped into place like it was born to be there. The eccentric disc brake mount made alignment of the caliper pretty easy. I wasn't entirely sure it would work. Worked like a champ!

The front hub has a classic, elegant shape. I can't convey how smooth those bearings are. Butta.

The Double/Double system works flawlessly. Swapping from the 34/16 to the 31/19 takes a couple minutes at most. I have no doubt I'll take full advantage of that feature.

Now, I didn't take this as just a graphic, but rather clear instructions on how to use this bike. :bike_rider:


As per request, I will get a Brooks saddle on here asap.

This project is far from over.



Anyone have suggestions for a rear rack, possible fenders, etc????

 

[Christophe Noel]

Brooks - ordered.