Urbanus Magnus

Well, I now have to wait a few weeks longer to get hold of that cx700 frame - a mix up during shipping meant I got the wrong size frame; 50cm as opposed to my order of 56cm. Oh well. Such is life in Moscow. Erm, Toronto. I meant Toronto. I give 'er the run down when that frame arrives. Wish me luck!

I had been looking at frames for a while, when I stumbled upon this: Credit where credit is due: Picture stolen from <www.team-bicycle.webpowered.com> That, my friends is the new Cx700 frame offered by Origin 8. From what I've heard, it is pretty awesome. Here are some of the highlights: - Triple Butted steel - ~5.6 lbs, frame +  fork - Canti/V-brakes or  Disks - 2.1 in tyres in 700c size - this is what I'd be willing to call a "29er"! - All the touring braze-ons you'd ever need Don't get me wrong - this is by no means an endorsement/promotion for Origin 8; I just happen to love the idea of a go-anywhere, do-everything frame. This is one of the first  frames I've seen that can be full touring/cyclocross/road or offroad with just a change of tyres, other than the Surly Karate Monkey (can be finiggled into "light touring" mode), the Salsa Fargo (an off-road tourer), or the Rawland Drakkar frameset (like a more off-road version of ...

Many thought it impossible; to construct a fully-fledged loaded-touring bike for under $500. I have gone to the "possimmpible" - the land beyond impossible, to a place where the possible and impossible meld and intertwine. Reality must then surely be warped, I can hear you all saying, if I was able to build up a touring rig for under $50 dollars!  It all comes down to the fact that many people in Canada, especially the now-ageing baby-boomers, want to get rid of   (*gasp!*)  their old bikes cluttering up their sheds/yards/garages/evil laboratories, and so can be had for free most of the time, sitting sadly by the roadside of many suburban residences. No, I did not lick out and find a nearly-complete touring bicycle that I used $35 dollars on to refurbish. But, I did the next best thing, which was to convert an old 70's Peugeot UE-8 frame and wheelset to touring quality! I must correct myself; for there are those Peugeot junkies here on the interwebs that are ...

It has been quite the while since last post. School has been busy, so I offer no apologies. What I do offer is my take on the now "outdated" 7-speed drivetrain. That is, 7 in the rear, as I am an avid lover of double/ triple (especially triple!) cranksets for any mult-purpose machine - they help a lot for loads and/or hills. What with 8, 9 and 10 speeds all commonly available from Campy, SRAM and amongst the ubiquitous Shimano offerings, I hear many call 7 speed dead. I say, far from it! Its still here, baby, as strong as ever! Actually, probably even more so, although in low-level groupsets available like Tourney. Why do I like this drivetrain so much? Not all for the performance, for sure, or I'd be rocking a 10 speed Dura-Ace'd bike, but rather I feel that 7 speed has a good balance of availability, low pricepoint, durability, and yes, performance in there too: Advantages I see: -7 speed freewheels can be retro-fitted to an ol' ten speed (provided a washe...

I was wrong - the city is actually making pace with construction down by the bluffs. In fact, they currently have finished the  path connecting to Gates Gully.  I'm quite surprised at the speed with which they are progressing every day; after visiting the construction site a few times, they seem to mark progress with posts, which (by my measurements) average 4m of new road each day! At this rate, including all weekends and holidays, the 1.5 km segment remaining between Bluffers Park and Gates Gully should be finished in roughly one year from now. I accessed the trail via the Guild Inn, just as the last of the dump trucks and Toronto and Region Conservation   authorities were packing it in for the day. That's right - from what I can tell, this project seems to be planned from a "parks and rec" as well as "watersheds protection" angle, not so much for cyclo-commuting (insert sad emoticon of your choice here). But, I didn't really expect that it would eve...

I have other loves in life other than cycling - some of them being electrical projects. I've been working on this baby for a while - but, only recently has it recieved its power transformer. I pulled the transformer from an old ceiling fan; 120v to 24 volts, with ~ 1/3 amp supply capability. And that voltage happens to be *almost* exactly what I need for the heater filament of the single 25EH5 tube that comprises the amp. However, measuring the wall voltage at an actual level of 126 volts, the voltage coming out of the transformer is actually above  25 volts (ie. 120/24=5, 126/5= 25.2 volts). This is well within the 10% tolerance of  the vacuum tube's operational voltage range, being only .9% off of ideal. Right now, until I find/build a proper wooden cabinet for it, the entire amp resides in an old margarine container. Fire hazard: kids at home, never  mount a transformer to anything using tape. Even if the tape is electrical tape. The...

For any of those who don't know, the Sport Check in the Scarborough Town Centre is going out of business... and so they are having a closeout sale. No, this is not a promotion for the store - I simply saw a 7 speed wide-range cassette on sale at that store for 30% off, dropping the price to $15. Knowing that my bicycle's gearing is a bit high for fully loaded touring up big hills (I'm not super strong, either), I took the opportunity and bought the SRAM 12-32 gear cluster to customize my ride. Unboxing  I didn't have what one would call a "high" low gear before this upgrade - with 700c wheels, an 11-28t cluster in back and a 22-32-42t front crankset allowed for a lowest gear of  21.5 in, and a high of 104 in. I almost never used that high a gear, bust still had some trouble up hills with that low gear (especially on tour/ with load). The new 12-32 casette drops a little high-end, in return for a greater low-end; a gear of 18.8 in to 95.6 in. Strangely eno...