This sweet relic from 1982 rolled into the shop a few days ago. It had been sitting in a woodshed for the past 10 years, still owned by the original owner. Cables were frozen and the paint’s not looking the greatest. But, it’s still a classic 1982 Ritchey Mountain Bike. The pressed in cartridge bearings […]
Filed under: What's in the stand
This sweet early ’90s rasta/jelly bean Salsa came in originally to get the headset and bottom bracket installed and then have the WTB shift adapters positioned. It ended up as a complete build up. Turned out pretty nice too. I thought I took a few more photos, but alas, they don’t appear in my camera […]
Filed under: What's in the stand
Greg asked in the Biketober post if I could post information on the frames I’m planning to bring in from Taiwan. Here’s the info. I’ve also got it in a pdf format. If any one would like to receive a pdf file of this info, e-mail me and say pretty-please. blackmtncycles (at) gmail (dot) com […]
Filed under: Black Mountain Cycles frames, Shop stuff, Things I like
With steerer tubes on most higher end bikes these days being aluminum or carbon fiber, it’s easy to forget to apply a light coat of grease to the steerer tube if you find yourself installing a fork with a steel steerer tube. Why grease a steerer tube? Well, glad you asked. The steerer tube is […]
Filed under: Working on bikes
I’ve been meaning to write something on this for quite a while. Way back in spring there was a lot of “the sky is falling” kind of web banter. Get a bike now, or else… Prices are going to go up. Well, it’s happened. They’re up. Quite frankly, I don’t know why it’s taken so […]
Filed under: Industry commentary
I realized not too long ago that it has been over one year since I opened shop. I realized it when some folks in the shop asked how long I’d been here. Instead of my usual flip reply of “since 10:00,” I contemplated, realized it was September and said, “well, a little over year.” Wow, […]
Filed under: Uncategorized
Since I’m not too interested in the most recent ultra-light carbon wheelset, carbon frame, carbon handlebar, mega-mondo travel suspension bike (there has to be as many categories of suspension bike alone as there are every other bike category combined)…Interbike was a little less interesting for me than in years past when it was my job […]
Filed under: Industry commentary
I’m not always sarcastic and critical (okay, most of the time). There were two booths at the show that had bikes I place in the category of “bikes-I-didn’t-design-but-would-like-to-own.” The first is the new Salsa Fargo. The second were the bikes from Rawland. I got a chance to talk with both Jason (and Mike – Mike […]
Filed under: Things I like
Dear Marty, I’m writing to let you know I’ve been doing well out here in Marin County. I do miss the seasons in Wisconsin, but I’m done freezing my stays off during winter. My new owner has been preoccupied the past year with proving he’s tough by riding his ‘cross bike where he really should […]
Filed under: Uncategorized
Said, of course, with a Jackie Stewart Scottish brogue. It’s been way too long since I got out on a mountain bike. I picked up this old 1991 WTB be-decked Merlin a while ago and finally put my touches on it so it could be up to my standards. This is the bike that had […]
Filed under: Uncategorized
How hard can it be to remove those little pieces of tape that brake makers fix to their road brake calipers to protect the finish in shipping? It’s the first thing I do when I install a brake on a road bike. And it’s one of the first things I’ll do if it’s on a […]
Filed under: Things I dislike
Knickers, 3/4 pants, pedal pushers, capri pants, manpris, shants, the basic mid-calf riding pant is a good piece of bike riding gear for cool crisp mornings. I’ll cover my knees in weather with temps below the mid-60s. My knees thank me for keeping them out of the cold air. When I wear lycra, I’ve got […]
Filed under: Things I Want To Like