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Update : The transition of my Bianchi Via Nirone 7 Coast2Coast into a touring bike; for my requirements will soon begin.

Step 1: Basic Panniers.

A bit small- but for now they shall suffice.



http://www.flipkart.com/shimano-b-bc...86822&srno=b_2

Shimano OEM. :D

They are to be hung/mounted from the frame.

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On a side note- The Shitmano's on my bike aren't quite shifting.

The RD is shifting properly; (Shimano 2300) but; the FD is throwing up problems. Again; this one is a Shimano- but I'm not sure if it's a 2300. Might be something else- Claris?

Will try to DIY tune them. And use 'em for maybe ~1k kilometers. And then say goodbye to Shitmano for good.

Will shift over to Campagnolo. Italian gears on an Italian made bike! :D

I believe Campagnolo is Bianchi OEM; but as my bike is one of the ''cheaper'' Via Nirone 7's; mine comes with Shitmano as OEM.

Neways- I had bought my bike for the frame- and not for the gears. The gears- I knew were junk.

Campags have heritage- and they always remind me of the Tour De France for some reason. Proper; excellent Italian components!

@FINTAIL can you help me locate/procure a MTB handlebar that is

1) slightly more raised than normal (normally you have the flat kinds and the slightly raised types)

2) Around 26" wide in span from tip to tip.

My current one is 23" and just slightly bent so I have to bend down too much to reach it (which puts pressure mainly on my elbows)

I want a wider one so that with the side bull bar risers, I can still put full length grips and my hand does not get squished on the old narrow ones (that come standard on all grip shift bikes).

Have replied in a PM. :)

There was certain classified (:D) information- The best things are best not told publicly.
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Any Indian cycle that has a wider than 23" handle (MTB) ?

I got some really neat grips. Now I want to get some good bull bar raisers (for coasting and to come up for breath and release pressure on elbows) put foam tubing around them, and I'm set.

After the current tyres wear out (or start getting punctured) will change over to nice 26x1.75 Continental touring/city nylons. Current ones are also urban smooth-ish tread, 26x1.9. Should make things a bit easier/faster is the hope.

Right now I need to make my ride position more sorted. Which is the effort.

So went around looking for bicycles in my restricted budget.

I tried a few bikes, including a, A Schwinn Searcher(the 2015 bicycles come with pathetic grip shifters!), a Canondale Quick 5(2015, Hybrid), Bergamont Helix 2.0(2015, hybrid), a Bergamont Revox (29 incher, MTB).

While they were all very good to ride, the MTB made me feel a little more comfortable, but little heavier too.

Another option suggested by both, Surinder cycles and BOTS is to get a 29'er MTB with more road oriented set of tyres, as they are cheaper, stronger, look cooler IMHO as they are hefty, have suspension lockouts for riding on roads and mostly come with disc brakes. :D
I know that Disc Brakes are definitely not a necessity but they are definitely cool to have, and they do offer quite a feel.

The only downside is that MTBs are heavier than Hybrids, which, I have a feeling shouldn't be too much of an issue for me.

Two MTB 29er options I am looking at are:-

1. Cannondale Trail 7(29'er) - http://www.trackandtrail.in/index.ph...015&Itemid=175

2. Specialized HardRock Disc - http://www.bumsonthesaddle.com/displ...k-disc-29-2014

Both of them are similarly priced, specced similarly too, please suggest which one should I go for!

Edit: Just found out that even Giant has a Bicycle in my budget, well a little bit over it but manageable for sure.

GIANT Revel - http://www.starkennbikes.com/BikeDetails.aspx?id=621

Please help me zero in on one, I want to buy a Bicycle in the next ten days max!

The Giant looks better. Acera gears are really good components. The Cannondale would also be good. Don't know about Hardrock. Would personally stay away.

In this same price range would also urge you to consider Bergamont and Merida (both owned by cycling buddies - the Merida is lighter). Both are 26 inchers, but am sure they would be having 29ers as well.

An MTB with road tyres is a better option for you than a Hybrid because it is more versatile and built tougher, and can take more punishment and payload. The extra weight is marginal (less than a couple of kilos). An MTB would be around 14 kilos, a hybrid around 12, a roadie around 10 - all in this sort of price range. From there to reduce to 8 kilos and below, prices jump exponentially.

Ride the bikes, shift the gears, and see which bike fits you best and you are most comfortable on. As well as comfortable shifting and selecting gears on.

While GIANT has the brand value advantage and better components, it is about 5k more expensive than the other two.

The only advantage that the Specialized has is that it comes with a front suspension lock out feature. Which the other two lack. While Drivetrain can always be upgradwo lack. While Drivetrain can always be upgraded for cheap, upgrading forks is not the cheapest thing to do!

Bergamont has nothing in the price range as of now, only entry level hybrids, MTBs start well above 50k, I was impressed by the frame design of the Bergamonts though, reminded me of my Polo, plain simple German design efficiency!

Will look at Merida too. I like to check out all the options always, even if I am looking for a pair of jeans, so will definitely not hurry into buying a 40K bicycle.lol:

Thanks Doc.

How is Specialized as a brand, is it as big as say, Cannondale?!?!

Bergamont which my friend has (in the bad night photo I posted) is just a shade under 40K and definitely has a fork lockout. As does the Merida of my other pal. Also 40K, with lockout, and definitely lighter.

Frankly if all you are going to be doing is cycling on roads, having a front suspension makes no sense. Since 99% of the time it is going to be on lockout anyways. It just simply adds complications, maintenance and most importantly, WEIGHT. An alloy fork would be so much lighter. Ditto discs versus calipers. Modern calipers are VERY powerful, even at full speed downhill.

Do not buy a front suspension bike without a lockout. Period. You'll hate it, keep bobbing up and down like a pogo, and tire yourself out.

Also, you could change over to 700C semi-slicks from the shop itself. Either in exchange for the balloon knobbies (totally useless for road, and too fat) or extra. Your legs would bless you.

I was told by a colleague that Giant bikes made in Taiwan are "better" than those made in China. Check where your Meridas and Specialized are made at. And Bergamont too (is it made or only designed in Germany?)

All these are rumors mate! I have heard the same argument for the Sony TVs manufactured in Indonesia as compared to the ones made in China. I don't think it makes any difference. All these products are subjected to the same quality control. If not, then the brand is at stake

In other news, the Italian lady has come out of the hiding and I have started the commute to work, 2 days a week. To and fro 60K (round trip, HSR layout to Manyata), and I am loving it, proves to be faster than car

Pardon the messy photograph, this is where all our family bicycles are kept.

I'd go for the Cannondale. An excellent all round bike. :D Besides; brand value of C'Dale is excellent! :thumbs up

And yeah- For any inputs as regards to the Giant Revel- PM @lohithrao.

He had a Revel. A fairly good bike-IMO. But as the dealer in Poona is an absolute crook (Gave me a 1,000 buyback for my 2012 Montra- just to give you a hint); I'd rather avoid Giant.

I've witnessed useless problemshooting skills from the Giant ASC/Mechanics.

Go to Surinder- and buy a Cannondale Trail. 29er. With slicks.

Spent all of Saturday evening working on my bike. Using tool sets from Doppie and my 390, plus screwdriver and allen key and hex bolt pipe spanner sets it took me some time to figure things out (like how to loosen and tighten brake cables and how to get off and put back on tight fit handlebar grips) but I managed after a lot of adjustments and re-adjustments, and the feeling of achievement of working on your own bike was priceless!

I present to you my old lady, my 2002 Hercules Top Gear MTB.

Got this new wider 25" Raleigh MTB riser bar shipped from Ludhiana. The black one is a shorter new old stock 24" Hero MTB one I picked up from a shop here in Pune (with a longer wedge bolt quill and 3" stem). My existing OE handle was a standard 23" one and my shoulders were feeling cramped as were my hands on the short 3/4 grips because of the short handle, bar-ends and grip shift (no place to adjust and move controls inwards).



The new wider cockpit with the intermediate Hero handle fitted (am leaving the Raleigh with fatter more comfortable grips for later). Much better. Also fitted (and calibrated) the Cycle Computer I got from Dubai some time back and has been lying unused, still packed. Redid the brake and bar end angles for a more ergonomic angle (trial and error rides around the block gratis). Those are Dual SIS Shimano 3x6 MegaRange Indexed shifters. Cleaned them out from within for smoother shifting as well.



Played around with a self-made plumb line (string with a acorn shaped pendulum weight of an old dismantled cuckoo clock ....) to check for front of knee to center of pedal spline in 3 o'clock position. My knee is about 1.5-2 inches ahead. But no space on the seat rail to push it an more back. Only solution would be to get a top curved seat post (like the old BMX cycles - will look around).

The seat height is now perfect (straight leg with heel on pedal, with slight 15 degree bend with balls of foot on the pedal), so no tension there. The longer seat post I got a couple of weeks back as the first of my cycle mods helped with this. Problem is that the handle feel too low (I bend more than my friends on their MTBs/Hybrids do), so next mod will be the longer Hero quill stem which should increase handlebar height by 1.5-2 inches. For now I've rotated the handlebar two notches forward.

Also readjusted the angle of the seat (was sloping forward slightly initially) to almost horizontal visually (no spirit level as recommended ....)

The seat .....



Left and Right side views. Cycle Computer sensor and magnet fitted and aligned (it works! just the cell had to be replaced)





The rear 6-speed Shimano MegRange freewheel set. 14-34T in place of the standard more road-oriented 14-28T, with Shimano Tourney MegaRange long cage derailleur. The first 5 cogs are close ratio like the standard (14-16-18-21-24) and then there is a big 10 teeth jump to the lowest "bailout hill gear." After the photo session I laid out a newspaper and with cloth rags and screwdrivers, cleaned out the gunk from in between all the cogs, so that they are all shiny golden now. Need to get some sewing machine oil for chain lubing. My regular pump can engine oil which I use on my bikes is causing a mess.



Higher geared 48-38-28 3 ring road crank compared to the standard lower geared 42-34-24 cranks on today's modern MTBs. Also its happily a longer reach 175 mm crank and not the slightly shorter 170 mm one. The lower part of the derailleur cable end does not have the pinch cap and so the individual strands are opening up. Do you get spare caps which can be put over the ends after the strands are re-twisted tightly back together?



Rear 3/4 and front on views. Those are 26x1.9 road tyres. The next change will be to at least 26x1.75 touring/city semi slicks. Can we go lower than that on my rims? 1.5-1.55? I've read on bikeszone that 1.6 is the narrowest you can safely go on MTB rims. And most old school shopkeepers advise against changing my current steel rims to alloy ones, saying the steel ones are tougher. Some corrosion and weight saving (plus the possibility of putting thinner tyres) being the reasons I inquired.

Its always very satisfying to work on your bicycle and to have everything work perfectly in the end.

By the way, from your saddle height as compared to your handlebar height, I think you are accustomed to riding a slightly aggressive (forward leaning) posture with some weight shared by your hands as well. In which case, the saddle may lead to some discomfort because of its width. The saddle is designed for carrying a lot of weight with a rider sitting more upright.

If you are comfortable, don't bother with what I said. Why fix it if it is not broken.

Actually the saddle used to be lower. This is the new seat post to help my legs extend out more, and still be able to (just) get the tips of one foot down to the ground sitting in the saddle (actually I prefer getting off over the top tube, more comfortable - or look for pavement curbs to rest my legs on at traffic lights).

So the seat sloping slightly forward (to relieve pressure on the unmentionables) would put more stress on the wrists and elbows. So I straightened to seat out (just slightly low up front for reason mentioned above). The handle is still low. The reason for all this I guess is that I am trying to use a MTB for road riding, and modifying it one thing at a time to make the frame fit.

As you can see, the quill stem is also slightly raised - now at the minimum insertion limit. The handle even rotated a bit forward and up is making me crouch lower than my riding buddies on their Bergamonts and Fujis and Meridas and now Scotts.

So the next mod (probably tomorrow) is to try on the Hero quill stem that came with this slightly wider 24" intermediate handlebar (as a set).

That quill stem is both longer vertically and has a longer angled stem diagonally horizontally as well. I'm just hoping that the increased height (in comparison, the minimum insertion mark is at least 2 inches more) will not to an extent be negated by me having to stretch forward (and therefore lower) a bit more.

The one disadvantage of that stem over my OE one in the pictures above is that it is not an allen bolt flush on top but has a protruding hex bolt head which I've read is not the safest thing. Will probably find a way of covering it with a rubber plug or something. Or cycling tape.

Let's see. I'm trying to stretch out my 3.5K (in 2002) cycle to where she can, before my friends start leaving me behind.

Right now I am keeping with the above cycles over 30-35 odd kilometers, averaging around 19-20 kmph (overall, including climbs and flyovers), max speed around 41-42, but falling off slightly at the climbs (max 20-25 meters).

On the straights I find it much easier with my higher gears. And then I yo-yo back and catch up and stay with them pretty ok. Even my pedaling style/cadence is such that I prefer pushing higher gears than spinning at higher rpm's at lower gears.

Last night's ride, stretched out over the newly angled bar ends, I got a very nice low down stretched out climbing/fast position. Almost like drop bars. But the issue of finding a neutral higher perch for relaxing, catching breath, and straightening out (relieving weight on arms) during the ride remains. I can either get the bar ends up, or forward. Not both. And up is really too noobish. :) LOL

Would like to push to 50-70 kms on Sunday rides. And then start inching up a local hill climb.

P.S. I'm still on my bum-hardening spree and have not yet started wearing my Btwin red padded shorts. Still riding in my unpadded compression lycra tights and bums and inners are largely doing ok.

I see you are based in Pune. So, you have quite some nice climbs close to you. Therefore, its just a matter of time before you get fully hooked and start working on your pedalling technique and your bike to help you become better at climbing.

The biggest gain can be from foot retention. If you have doubts about how inclined you are to continue cycling for long and do not want to splurge, I suggest looking at toe clips and straps, and of course pedals that can take these.

You have mentioned an aggressive stance. This will sooner than later lead you to a narrower saddle. The sit bones hardly need the real estate your saddle offers. As your bum hardening spree progresses, you will realise that and will then think of narrower and firmer saddles, which will give your legs more space to move as you pedal.

You are headed in just the right direction. Keep going!