Tag Archives: Photographs

These are my photographs

Custom Front Rack In Progress

I took my idea and asked a good friend who has the materials, tools and space to allow me to make a front rack for my touring bike. It’s so cool that I could make this, I’m glad to have good friends.

I made the cuts and bends one day. On the second day and after a quick lesson in brazing I jumped in and started with this as my first project of this type. Right now it’s not much further than the photos show but it’s straight and fits.

Next step is to clean it up a bit and then figure out how to coat it.

I wanted something that could carry front panniers low like my old Blackburn FL-1 Front Rack and also have a top rack over the front wheel like the poorly designed Jandd Extreme Front Rack I wasted money on. I could not afford any of the big Nitto racks.

Previously: Custom Front Rack Idea

 

Berries

On this day I was glad to have a spare zip-lock in my panniers. But it wasn’t 24 hours before they were all ate. Then for days my eyes were scanning both sides of every road. I found more but these were the best.

 

Custom Front Rack Idea

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I’m not sure if this would work. Each color is a separate bent tube. I think it would be easier to get the pieces right if none has more than two bends.
It would have attachment plates at the forward eyelet on the dropout and at the mid fork. And a connection at the fork crown.
Also not in this sketch are a few straight pieces to make the top deck give more support.

Ps this is a test post from my iPhone.

Panasonic RF-P50 FM-AM Radio

Shiiiiiiit. How am I not gonna take a radio?

I have an iPod but I never use it. Why? I don’t have one of those add-on speaker things and I can’t ride with headphones. There is no NPR on my iPod. iPods have to charge on a wall somewhere. This has a speaker, tunes NPR and runs on double A’s.

Bought at B&H in Manhattan

Cost:$14

Made in Indonesia

 

Phil Wood Rear Hub 48 Hole

I could not find a stock photo of the rear hub I’m running so I took a photo of  my own.

This is a Phil Wood rear hub. Shimano 10 speed compatible, spaced to 130mm, and drilled for a 48 hole rim.

Phil Wood is about as good as it gets.

My first set of wheels on my touring bike were 36 spoke. I got about 700 miles and my rear wheel basically feel apart. Money and time fixed it and it was not the worst thing that could have happened, but still.  I finished that tour on the rebuilt wheel with no more problems. And even did another, shorter tour without error.

Later, when I was shedding rusty parts and doing a rebuild of the whole bike I decided to ditch the old 7 speed rear hub for 10 speed. I did not want to tour on 36 spoke wheels again. I could have up it to a 40 spoke but what’s that?

I think some people have thought, Why would you want so many spokes? I equate 48 spoke wheels with two things, tandem bikes and pol0 bikes. On tandem bikes they make sense because the bike weighs twice what a normal bike weighs and has the weight of two riders on just 2 wheels. With bike pol0 there are times when the ball, the mallets or other bikes get all smashed up in wheels and those wheels take serious damage but must keep working to finish the game. You could rip 3 or 4 spokes out of a 48 spoke wheel and the chances are you could still ride it.

So with one and a half times the spoke count per/wheel as compared to a normal 32 spoke wheel means I can double the weight carried and take damage but not be stopped on the side of the road looking at a useless wheel.

Is it heavier? Just the weight of 12 extra spokes per wheel, not much.

Ordered from Phil Wood in 2009. And in that same year, on a supported group tour, I put over 4000 miles on it without fault.

Made in USA

philwood.com

 

July 2009, supported group tour camping

West Texas somewhere

Here is a look at one day of my last tour. That’s my tent and old bike. Touring in an organized group was fun because I had my own space but I was with a group of people all doing the same thing. I did not have any say in our route or our riding schedule, but I didn’t have to pay for camp sites or hotel rooms either. I should say that this was less than your average supported group tour because we were hired as “endurance cyclist” and compensated to wear branded jerseys and participate in promotional events in certain markets. All for a vodka company owned by Bacardi.

We had hotel rooms on most nights, camping only sometimes. On the next trip I take it’ll be nearly all camping. And I’ll likely be riding solo. And I’ll rarely visit private campgrounds like this one. I prefer State Park camping or free camping in quiet places. It’s mostly because of the money. Why would I want to pay $10 – $20 just to set up a tent for a few hours? Now I look at this photo and I picture everything behind my bike and tent gone, the eight tents and two passenger vans replaced by trees and grass. That’s what my next tour will look like.

I really wish I could have the company of so many good people as I travel again, and having a big company foot the bill in exchange for wearing a free jersey is a dream come true. But that’s not gonna happen again. Much more likely is saving some money, collecting the gear and finding the time to just go.

 

Touring Bike Rebuild

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This is my bike in April 2011. After fresh powder coat, before installing new components. The only original parts, aside from the frame/fork are the stem, seat post. And rear rack was purchased at the same time as the bike. The wheels here are new Phil Wood 48 spoke hubs to Velocity Dyad rims.