Coffeeneuring Challenge 2019: Ride 6: Realfine Coffee

Today's ride was a bit different.  I needed to drop off my car for some brake work and since I had the bike (520) in the car I rode it from the repair shop to coffee and then home.  I went to Realfine, which is a nice little shop just not the easiest to access, minimally parking off a busy road,  but since I was a block away to start with it was easy enough to get to.

The coffee and croissant were very good and the space is nice but doesn't really invite you to hang out although if you need a haircut there is a barbershop adjoining.  One upside to having way too many bikes is that you can have a designated leave in the car bike and in that way the Trek 520 has gotten a number of rides in this fall.  Soon the 520 will go into the repair stand for its long over due spa treatment.

Fortunately by the time I was riding home from coffee morning rush hour had died down, the sky was blue but it was cold enough I wished for full fingered gloves rather than the finger less ones I had, oh well.  The payoff for the cold temps is the trees are still in brilliant fall colors. 

It was nice getting through 6 rides in the first 3 weeks now I have 3 weeks to do one last ride.  The Cresta GT needs its front brakes adjusted to get rid of an annoying squeal and I have been putting that off so now that we are down to ride 7 that will be my incentive to get it fixed so I can finish off Coffeenuring 2019.

The data:

1. Where: Realfine Coffee, 4480 Fauntleroy Way SW Seattle 98126
2. Date: October 30th at 8:20 am.
3. Consumed:  mocha and croissant 
4. Details:  Sunny, 40 degrees, no bike parking to be had but there are poles to chain to
5. Mileage: 2.5 miles
6. Bike Used: 1987 Trek 520 Cirrus

Ride. Caffeinate. Smile. Repeat

Coffeeneuring Challenge 2019: Ride 5: Caffe Fiore

It's supposed to sunny and gorgeous out all week so I couldn't not ride!  And I knew if I logged 2 rides this week then I would have 3 weeks in which to log ride #7.

Before riding though, I did a bit clean up, you may not recognize this shot, usually the table is covered in parts and  tools and there is a bike stand on a tarp on the carpet.  I even washed the table cloth.  I have winter projects and the bike stand will come back but its nice to have a uncluttered space for week or so.

My destination was Caffee Fiore which was twice as far any of my previous stops, a whole 4.6 miles round trip   ooooooh.

My Vintage bike of choice was the Moto_GT which felt a bit flexy on the way home but I think that has more to do with my croissant intake than the bike.

The Latte was a work of art and tasted good too and the ham and cheese croissant hit the spot.  Between my normal C&P coffee run in the am, waiting at Les Schwab for tire rotation and drinking their free coffee and this ride I am about quadruple my normal caffeine dosage today.  Yikes.  Dang forgot the patches again.

The data:

1. Where: Caffe Fiore, 2206b California Ave SW, Seattle, WA 98116
2. Date: October 28th at 1:45 pm.
3. Consumed:  Hazelnut latte and a ham & Cheese croissant 
4. Details:  Sunny, 50 degrees, bike parking right out front
5. Mileage: 4,6 miles
6. Bike Used: 1978 Motobecance Grand Touring

Ride. Caffeinate. Smile. Repeat

And then there were 5...

I mentioned in the last post that over the weekend I had sold the Trek 420, and then right after posting that someone bought the Novara,  I had the Ponderosa on both CL and FB and it was FB that came through. It sold for $50 so I got double what I paid for it.

Then today I sold the Takara which I also had on both CL and FB and it was also FB that came through on this bike also selling for $50.  To it break down for the Takara; I paid $75 for the bike and then stripped it of its SunTour bar end shifters and 700c Mavic/Ultegra wheels.  I got $26 for the shifters and $50 for the bike after I had spent $15 in parts and used some parts bin items to get it road worthy.  So in essence a very nice wheel-set cost me $14.00.  Because I purchased a vintage wheel-set for the Allez that is spec to the bike I will be selling the Mavic Ultegra wheels to offset my $90 outlay for wheels.  I think I should get at least $90 for the Mavics thus making the Allez wheelset effectively free.

Speaking of the Allez after getting the 700x28c panaracers mounted as I described yesterday I noticed that I the front tire looked very tall and on closer inspection I found it did not spin freely -the top of the tire coming in contact with the bottom of the brake caliper.  I kind of liked how the red tread looked... oh well.  I swapped over to the 700x23c Vittoria Zaffario's that came on the Mavic wheels.

In the mail I unexpectedly got the 7 speed FW I had ordered for the vintage Wobler, SunTour GPX wheels.

I had noted how nosiy the 28t cassette was so I ordered the FW with a 25t big cog,  I greased the threads got the FW mounted and confirmed the 25t cog is much quieter.  Not sure how hill practical the bike will be for me but I can always do a make over to a compact crank set and I already have long cage RD and a mega range 7 speed FW I would just need to change the shifters as the SunTour GPX don't play well outside their brand for indexing and I have been told by other owners that they stink in friction mode.

For now though the Allez is rideable and when the weather clears I will take it for a test ride with new wheels, FW and narrower tires. 

The nice 700c Mavic wheel-set I scavenged for the Allez is on CL and with any luck I can tell the story of how I got an Allez for a 6 pack of beer.

I spotted a set of Continental Ultra sport II 700x25c tires for down the road when the Allez gets the spa treatment, complete with red stripe.

I was happy to achieve my goal, from the spring,  of thinning the heard and getting down to 4 bikes; Cresta, 520, Handsome Devil and Moto_GT.  And then of course the Allez came to me out of the blue for bike #5.  I sold the 6 bikes I had targeted plus the 2 additional ones I picked up and now I just need to control myself for a while. LOL.  The next thing I want to do, aside from more coffee rides is to give the 520 the spa treatment, fortunately I have all I need accept a few shift cables so it won't require much $$.  And on sunny days I want to noodle around on the Allez and see how I feel about it.

Ride. Sell Sell Sell. Smile. Repeat.

Allez Stock wheels and other stuff

As I mentioned I broke down and purchased a set of wheels that are the exact spec that came on the Allez when it was new.  They came off a Bridgestone RB-1 from the same year.  The seller did an excellent job packing them, they arrived safe and secure in their box.

They are as described in the 89 Specialized catalog; Wobler grey anodized rims with Suntour GPX hubs and they are in very nice shape.  They cost me $90 shipped to my door which I think was a very fair price based on what I have seen on ebay and I think I can cover that cost by selling the Ultegra wheels.  Yes the Ultegra wheels are probably nicer but these are very good and the exact right vintage and it keeps the vintage fleet on a Freewheel standard.    In other circumstances I would keep the Ultegra wheels but I have no need of them and I am trying to keep costs down.

The hub markings on both wheels is in great shape for being shape for being 30 years old and since I had a pair of Panaracer Ribmo 700x28c tires hanging around I decided to throwthem on the SunTour wheels.  These tires were last on my Miyata 912 so they have been out of service for 7 years.

The red tread tire on the red frame wasn't as garish as I feared, once I get around to rebuilding the Allez it will probably get black walled 700 x 25c but I wanted to see if the 28's would fit, I don't think width will be an issue but height may be.  I checked the rear for fit between the chain stays but didn't bother mounting it as A) the FW won't be here till next week and B) I would have to deflate the tire to get it past the brake pads. If the Panaracers don't work I can always mount the 700 x 23c Vittoria's that are currently on the Ultegra wheelset.  I plan to strip the Ultegra wheels of tires tubes and cassette anyway before I try to sell them.

I took a stab at cleaning up the very grungy white brake hoods first with Clorox wipes..

And then with tool brush and dish soap method, I think the second method wins.  It would be easier to clean them off the levers but I have concerns about them tearing coming off or going back on so I think they will get cleaned in place,  The plan for now is to mount the wheels once the FW arrives and do a few rides as is.  The Trek 520 just needs shift cables to have all the parts needed for the spa treatment so its next in line.  After I gain employment I can start thinking about the Allez.

I initially listed the Trek 420 at $200 and after a steady march down to $175 if finally sold, to the college kid who came and looked at it last week, I told him at the time he might want to try out a slightly larger frame but he called me back on the weekend and wanted to buy it so I wasn't going to tell him no and he had test ridden it.  I did raise the saddle for him before he left.  After the last price reduction I removed the MKS AR-8 pedals and I think I can get $10-15 for them.  For a late October sale I am ok with the outcome.  On my coffee ride I was struck by how smooth this bike rode so I hope its a good rider for the young guy.

Speaking of rides it was so nice out today I had to go for a ride, although next week is supposed to be sunny I am not taking anything for granted and I know that at some point it will gray and drizzly for weeks on end.

EDIT:

Not long after finishing this post I had someone buy the Novara Ponderosa!  It went for $50 which was my floor, if I hadn't had any bites at $50 my next step would have been to part it out but I was saved that work.   This one also went to a college age kid.  I was very honest about the condition and so long as he keeps it out of the middle ring he'll be fine.  Doubled my money on this one so I am pleased.  That just leaves the Takara, which I will keep dropping the price on till it sells.

Ride. Take advantage of fall sun.Smile.Repeat.

Allez Short ride; first impressions

After doing some prep yesterday I had the Allez ready to go for Coffee ride #4.  After this photo was taken I did some saddle adjustments and after riding the bike I will do some more to dial it in.  I took some measurements last night too so I could compare to a data base I started on the fleet and I noticed this bike has the longest reach - seat post to handle bars of any other bike, so I made a note to pay attention to that when I rode.

I have already talked about the SunTour GPX shifters, derailleurs and brakes on the bike which are stock according the online catalog  The stem and bars should be Specialized but are Nitto and Sakae, the bars are a nice width but unfortunately have a big scrape near the stem.  I have done this before when I didn't check for burrs on the inside of the stem or failed to lube the bars before threading the thick middle through the stem.  I will have to see what some bronze wool does to smooth it out.  Not  a big worry its just cosmetic.

I have always loved an engraved seat stay cap and I am thrilled the Allez has them, just a very cool detail.

The bike would have come stock with SunTour GPX cranks, however Shimano 600 was used on the Specialized Allez Epic (carbon) bike of this year so this isn't too far off.  I have seen many examples of bike with components mixed and matched from the same year amongst models.  My Moto_GT for instance has the wheel-set of a higher end Grand Jubilee.

The purple splash graphics behind the brand and model decals is so 80s and although I usually like something more understated I was a young man in the 80s so I like it more than I am embarrassed by it  and it certainly makes it easy to identify the era of the bike.

The Turbo saddle is stock and in decent shape with a few tears, I did see a throw back Selle Italia model on Amazon for $57 but I will go with the one on the bike for now.

As I mentioned in an edit to another post I caved and ordered the wheels that are exactly what was specced on the Allez in 89, 700c Wobler rims and SunTour GPX hubs with a FW rear hub.  They cost me $90 but I think I can get that or more for the Ultegra/Mavic wheels so the price should be pretty small in the end.   I ordered a 13-25t 7 speed SunRace FW to pair with the stock wheels.  I can get the bike to shift to a 28t cog but its very grindy because the chain, jockey wheel and cog are all so close together, the 25t won't be as hill friendly but will run quieter.

Ok enough about components, the ride was short but good.  The bike is very light and felt effortlessly fast, might be the 23c tires, and responded quickly to pedal input.   The steering felt responsive without being twitchy and the long stem felt fine, not stretched out as I feared it might.  This bike is definitely a change of pace from the rest of the stable.  I am going to need to drop some tonnage to take advantage of it but once the stock wheels and smaller FW arrive I hope to do longer flat rides on this bike to see how my initial impressions bear out. Hopefully I will have a few dry days before winter fully sets in.  I have some 700c x 26c Soma tires that were on my Miyata 912 long ago I am going to run on the stock rims for now, they are red tread whitewalls so they will probably be a bit much but its just temporary.

Ride, Kinda New bike day, GRIN, Repeat.

Coffeeneuring Challenge 2019: Ride 4: Caffe Ladro

I saw a break in the weather this morning and decided to log ride #4, a short hop on the 89 Allez down to Caffee Ladro.

I had a mocha and a very nice cheese brioche, forgot the patches this time -darn!  While I was there I had a food request from my daughter who had been asleep when I left so I got to play not for profit Uber eats on the way home.

The data:

1. Where: Caffe Ladro, 7011 California Ave SW, Seattle 98136.
2. Date: October 20th at 10:45 am.
3. Consumed:  Mocha and a Cheese Brioche
4. Details:  drizzling, 50 degrees, bike parking right out front
5. Mileage: 2.0 miles
6. Bike Used: 1989 Specialized Allez.

It was my first ride on the Allez and although short  i have some thoughts to share which I will do in a separate post.

Ride. Caffeinate. Smile. Repeat

Coffeeneuring Challenge 2019: Ride 3: Olympia Coffee

Ride number 3 I also kept local as the shifting on the Ponderosa is just ok, fine in the big and small rings very sketchy in the middle ring, 

Olympia Coffee is primarily in Olympia WA, the state capitol, but they opened up a West Seattle location in early 2018. I rode the Moto_GT here last year.

I had a very nice mocha and a fabulous cheese crossiant, I almost ordered a second but stopped myself.  I remembered the coffee patches this time, I have a 3rd one somewhere but couldn't find it.  It was cool and blustery but I managed to miss the rain so I am feeling pretty lucky as its been very wet this week.

The data:

1. Where: Olympia Coffee, 3840 California Ave SW Seattle, WA 98116
2. Date: October 18th at 9:15 am.
3. Consumed:  Mocha and a croissant 
4. Details:  blustery , 50 degrees, bike parking half way down the block
5. Mileage: 2.4 miles
6. Bike Used: 1988 Novara Ponderosa MTB

Prepping for ride #4.

I have gone through the 3 bikes that are in CL and were in some danger of not being available, I just lowered the $$ on the Takara and the Ponderosa although I am about ready to either part out the Ponderosa or put on a new chain and make it my winter trainer bike.  I had a nice college kid look at the 420 today and he liked it but is looking at other bikes before deciding.  I think it made a good impression so fingers crossed,  If I am going to complete my theme of riding 7 different vintage steel bikes then the Allez needs to be rideable,  As you know from the last post it now has wheels and 12 functional gears, but the brakes weren't hooked up and it had no pedals.

I cut off the frayed ends of the brake cables and was able to get them hooked up both front and rear which should be adequate for a 2 mile coffee run.

And the Shimano dual side pedals were in the parts bin so I slapped them on the bike as a temporary measure.  The drive side pedal was a bit stiff going on despite my greasing the threads so I may have to check the pedal arm threads when I rebuild the bike,

As I was working on the bike it occured to me just how racy this model is, the 56cm Sport model I sold this summer was more relaxed with a triple crank and fender and rack mounts, this Allez has no braze ones, a fork with minimal rake and a short cage RD that isn't really set up for more than a 25t big cog on the cassette paired to a 52/39 crank.  It would be pretty easy to make this a more hill friendly bike, compact crank, Deore LX RD, 34t big cog in the rear, but I have lots of hill friendly bikes and I kind of like that this is different than the rest of the fleet.  Its why I keep wondering if I should just jump in with both feet and get the spec Suntour GPX wheelset to make it even more stock.  We'll see, lets ride it to coffee first.

Ride. Caffeinate. Smile. Repeat