New Bike Build: Part 4

Bike Build Part 1	Bike Build Part 2	Bike Build Part 3	Bike Build Part 4

Rufus Wright, yes... his name was Rufus

Apologies for the delay since the last bike build post. When I wasn't able to spend time on the bike I opted instead to write about all things bike-related. Now that the docs have cleared me to ride the trainer, all I want to do is ride -- and so the writing has been back-burnered.

Before we get started, a quick side story about the wrench photo above. In 1891, Rufus Wright and his son-in-law, Fred Morgan, started Morgan & Wright, a bicycle tire manufacturing company in Chicago. They also produced other bike components and accessories (like the wrench above). The company was very successful, later moving to Detroit in 1906 and bought by U.S. Rubber Co. in 1911, where their manufacturing techniques were utilized in the manufacturing of tires for automobiles. Rufus was a millionaire but lived modestly and was loved by his ~2,000 employees. Rufus married Helen Allen and they had two daughters. A brilliant inventor and craftsman, Rufus was also an accomplished artist. He spent a lot of time volunteering to educate poor boys in Chicago. He is noted for saying, "I never had any ambition for property beyond a comfortable recompense for my services and what I have I want to spend for the welfare of others."

Painting by Rufus (sold for $1,625)

In 1900, at the age of 67, Rufus was shot in the neck by a woman named Louisa. She was drunk and had asked Rufus to come over. They were talking when Louisa mentioned that she had a gun. He asked her to give it to him and after some convincing finally showed it to him. She refused, however, to hand it over and he struggled to take it from her. During the scuffle he was shot.

Louisa's words: "He fell back on the sofa and gasped that he was shot. I laughed hysterically and told him he was alright. He insisted that he had been wounded and begged me to call a doctor. I told him he was dreaming... I saw at a glance that the revolver had done deadly work, but I could not bring myself to tell anyone of the occurrence. I waited on Mr. Wright for about two hours before I summoned a doctor."

(green text to indicate drunken, slurred speech)

When help arrived, Rufus insisted that it was not Louisa's fault, but the police thought otherwise. He died shortly after from the wound. Sceptics suppose that Louisa had some mental troubles, was very drunk, and had told Rufus that she was going to kill herself. Rufus went to see her in an attempt to save her life – and in the process lost his. Even in his death his desire was to help Louisa, insisting that she not be charged with murder. In his eulogy, Rev. J.V. Blake said of Rufus, "Chicago has lost a mighty friend of charity in his death."

Rufus' headstone in Akron, Ohio

So why do I care? Well, he made a cool looking wrench, had a funny name, a mysterious death, and my great-great-great-grandfather's brother, George Wright, spent some time in Chicago in the late 1800s -- so there is a chance (albeit a small one) that I'm related to Rufus.

Anyway, enough somewhat-accurate, minimally-relevant, semi-interesting history. Back to the build.

When I was a kid, I loved taking things apart to see how they worked. Often, my curiosity resulted in my parent's disapproval, like the time I completely disassembled my sister's brand new home stereo, just two days after my father had purchased it for her birthday. I can still remember how angry he was when he discovered me in her room surrounded by screws, plastic covers, resistors, capacitors, wiring, etc. -- a screwdriver in my hand and a grin on my face. "It's alright dad, I'm going to put it back together." Somehow, he knew that when I finished there would be pieces left over... and the stereo would never work again.

Oops.

But I learned a lot from my youthful confidence, and the countless mistakes it resulted in. I have little doubt that the success I've had as a mechanical engineer could be attributed at least somewhat to the curiosity that drove my parents crazy for years. Problem solving techniques, out-of-the-box thinking, and the willingness to simply try something different have been huge in my professional development.

I have very limited experience with building a bike. But as I did so many years ago looking intently at my sister's stereo scratching my head with some needle-nose pliers, I'll give it a shot and see what happens...

Seatmast Clamp / Saddle / Di2 Battery

The Noah frameset employs the integrated seatmast and comes with the necessary clamp. The clamp fits snuggly to the seatmast and has a single hex key bolt to secure it. The saddle is held in place by a single hex bolt, accessible from the top. There are three saddle clamp positions for the hex bolt and a notched-hole for the Di2 wire that attaches to the battery.

Seatmast clamp shown by professional hand model

I was not a fan of the hex bolt. With the saddle installed, it was difficult to tighten the bolt and I didn't like the appearance of it. Plus, my multi-tool doesn't (and to my knowledge, no cycling-specific multi-tools do) have a wrench in it for that kind of bolt. I decided to trade it out for a knurled stainless steel hex key bolt, which makes installation much easier and has (in my opinion) a "cleaner" appearance. And if I need to adjust the saddle during a ride, I can use the multi-tool.

Replaced bolt shown by professional finger model / new bolt installed

The Di2 battery mounts to the seatmast clamp behind the seat tube under the saddle. An unfortunate issue is that whenever the battery needs to be removed for charging, the saddle is sort of in the way -- I won't have to loosen the saddle to get the battery out, but it is a tight fit. The battery charge is reported to last 600 to 1,500 miles (depending on how often you change gears), so it isn't a huge deal.

Di2 battery connector mounted to seatmast clamp / saddle and battery installed

Most Di2 batteries are installed below the bottle cage on the down tube, but the Noah places Shimano batteries behind the saddle and Campagnolo batteries on the down tube. The aerodynamics are theoretically better with it behind the saddle, and there's less chance of water / dirt / grime damaging it -- but I'm not sure I like the look of it up there and though I don't use one, it eliminates the ability to use a seat bag. I may end up swapping it out for an internal battery installed inside the seatmast.

Guidelines on the SLR saddle rails make adjustments easy

Using a hex key through the slot in the Flow saddle, installing, adjusting, and tightening were quick and easy. When the build is complete, I will adjust the saddle, stem, and handlebar positions to reflect my bike-fit measurements. At that time I will cut the seatmast for the necessary saddle height, hopefully remembering to measure a few times before grabbing the hacksaw.

Headset / Steerer Tube / Stem

The Noah comes with an FSA integrated headset with a nice shallow top cap about one-third the height of the monster that Specialized uses on the Allez. The Noah's head tube is 30 mm shorter than the Allez, but still a tad tall for my taste at 175 mm, so a shallow top cap helps with getting the bars nice and low.

I greased the necessary parts of the headset (the bottom race, top race, bottom bearing, top bearing, and the bottom and top surfaces of the head tube). The bottom race is already pressed on the steerer tube by Ridley. The lower bearing is installed angled-side-up on the steerer tube, and slid down to mate with the lower race, then inserted into the head tube. The top bearing is installed angled-side-down, slid down the steerer tube to the top of the head tube. The upper race slides down the steerer tube to mate with the top bearing. Then the top cap (with internal O-ring) slides down to cover up the top bearing. It's a very quick and easy installation -- the hardest part is probably remembering which way the angled bearings face -- and making sure none of that "gross green junk" (wifey's words) gets on the couch.

Bottom bearing on steerer tube sliding into head tube / top bearing and race

I stole the 3T ARX Pro 110 mm, 17-degree stem from the demolished Allez and decided to try it out on the Noah to see if the length would work before buying a new stem. The Allez had a reach (horizontal distance from bottom bracket to top of head tube) of 397 mm and the Noah has a reach of 390 mm. So it may end up that I need a 120 mm stem to align with my previous bike fit, but with the stack (vertical distance from bottom bracket to top of head tube) and head tube both being shorter on the Noah, the 110 mm stem may just work out perfectly. With the Noah's head tube angle being 73.5 degrees, the 17-degree stem (flipped) makes the stem just about parallel to the ground. If I keep it, for aesthetics I'll probably use some acetone and a rag on the stem to remove the 3T logos (and maybe the stripe too).

With the back injury and unknown flexibility I fought the urge to slam the stem and cut the steerer tube accordingly. I added a 7 mm spacer on top of the headset and then another 5 mm spacer on top of the stem, giving me 12 mm of available "comfort adjustment" in case I find it's needed. If my post-recovery flexibility can handle the slammed stem I will remove the spacers and re-cut the steerer tube.

Headset installed with shallow top cap / spacers and stem setup

With the headset, spacers, and stem installed I marked the steerer tube with a paint pen and then disassembled it all so I could make the cut. I removed the top spacer to mark the cut line because I want the steerer tube to be slightly (2-3 mm) lower than the spacer to correctly install the headset preload expander. I used a hacksaw guide made by Park Tool, and a blade specific for cutting carbon fiber.

Steerer tube cut line just above stem / hacksaw cutting guide

The cutting guide clamps into a vice to hold the steerer tube steady while you cut. A standard hacksaw blade will work provided it has small teeth and is sharp. You want the cut to be straight and smooth, and remember not to inhale the carbon fiber dust (I think it kills you). Once cut, you can use a file or sandpaper to make the end nice and smooth.

Cutting the steerer tube / don't inhale the dust

After cutting it, I used the little trick of writing my info on the hidden portion of the steerer tube. It doesn't prevent theft, but it can help prove ownership if the bike is recovered. Taking pictures of everything is important too, including (especially) the serial number. Photo documentary, receipts, and a detailed list of bike components greatly assists with insurance claims too. I have a template you can download in my Insurance for Cyclists post.

Owner info / steerer tube cut 2-3 mm below the spacer

You can see how the steerer tube is 2-3 mm lower than the spacer to allow proper installation of the preload expander. The insert preloads the headset by expanding when you tighten the hex key bolt. It comes with an optional sleeve if you need it. I like the expander that came with the Noah -- the one from Specialized was finicky.

Headset preload expander with optional sleeve / installing expander

I tightened the preload expander until there was no play in the headset and then tightened the bolts for the stem (using a 5 N·m torque wrench). You want the headset to be snug but not over-tightened as it will affect steering and bearing wear. If the headset is too loose you can damage the bearings. Once the build is complete I will loosen the stem and expander and re-tighten it all again to make sure it is properly preloaded.

Adjusting the headset preload / tightening the stem bolts

Handlebars / Shifters

The 3T Ergonova Team Stealth handlebars were a take-off from a bike-shop build and offered to me at a great price. The weight savings of going with these carbon fiber bars is about 67 g, and carbon fiber should help with some vibration dampening. The Ergonova bars employ an "egg-shaped" top meant to provide more comfort (to be determined) and I suppose a little aerodynamic benefit. These bars have a 6-degree flare-out in the drops, making sizing a little different from other bars I've used (44 cm center-to-center is 42 cm at the hoods). The drop of these bars is 123 mm and the reach is 77 mm, both very close to what I am used to.

Installing the handlebars / installing the shifters

Installing the bars is easy. The handlebars have guidelines printed on them to assist with centering, then you rotate them for proper alignment and tighten the four hex key bolts (evenly) to 5 N·m. The flat top is noticeably large, which makes the bars look "heavy" to me -- but I'll try them out and see what I think. I don't ride on the tops much so the comfort of the egg-shape is not really important. I do, however, like the narrower hood location and the flare-out in the drops. And I'll have to do some riding before I can decide if I like the specific ergonomic curvature of these bars (I expect to like it).

Adjusting the height of the shifters / bars and shifters installed

The Ultegra 6700 Di2 shifters feel very similar to the Dura Ace 7800 shifters I had on the Allez. I prefer the feel of these Shimano hoods over the Campagnolo and SRAM ones. The shifters install on the bars by loosening the clamp using a hex key and sliding them up to the appropriate position on the bars. Again, there are guidelines printed so you can install both left and right at the same height. Hood location can be based on feel -- I like a smooth, flat transition from bars to hoods. When doing long hard efforts solo and trying to be "aero" I alternate between IAB (invisible aero bars) and the Sphinx position (which to me is more comfortable with a smooth transition from bars to hoods). Of course when setting up bars one must also take into consideration Rule #46.

Side profile showing bar rotation and shifter location

In Part 5 (which will hopefully be posted before 2015) I'll be installing the brake cables, Di2 wiring, derailleurs, bottom bracket, crankset, and chain.

Bike Build Part 1	Bike Build Part 2	Bike Build Part 3	Bike Build Part 4