Quick Store Tour

This is the bike shop I've been waiting for.

90% done, but oh, that last damn 10%!!!

Setup continues - full fitting studio ready

A few more deliveries yesterday (all the Juteau Cantin fitting tools), trainers are set (6 mag trainers and 3 computrainer lab units) and so all that I really have to do is build the change area beside the bike gear cubbies at the back of this picture. That and catch up on all the things that have either gone wrong (accounting software failure, need to re-receive) or that clean the place up (a few lights and some cabling).

Closed the 24th and 25th, back at it 12-8 the 26th and 27th. Indoor Cycle training begins on January 3 (http://www.hellovelo.ca/docs/iCYCLEJan09.pdf).

Ongoing cleaning project

The cleanup of the SRAM Red groupset from my racing bike continues; this time 2 times of concern.

When I disassembled the non-drive side bottom bracket and started to clean under the seals I found one side nice and clean and the other chocolate brown.  For bearings, this is never a good sign.  Giving the bearing a spin it felt rough and crunchy a sign that significant galling had taken place.  These are sealed pressed in ceramic bearings so not too much that I can do, although I will make an attempt at removing them to see if I can rebuild the BB instead of throwing it out.

  
Next up, the chainrings.  Inner was fine, the outer, not so much; one small and one large shear/gouge in the ring.  I know for sure it isn't a shift ramp as it is sharp and there is clear deformation of the chainring around the shear.

Is the crankset rideable with a bad bottom bracket and busted chainring?  Yes, but this is definitely not ideal.

New stuff

At the end of every night I try to do a little something that makes me feel great. With new items arriving every day and all the minor rennovations that are going an, a day can go by without even touching a bike. So last night I continued my clean up work on the group set that came of the BMC I just sold. Dental pick? Yep, removing the factory applied loctite.

New saddles from Louis Garneau came in, Men's and Women's Airstream 3.  Under 300 grams and the holes go all the way through the saddle body and top, and if you wear LG's shorts with  Airgel Chamois you'll get cooling all the way through to your bottom.  Should be great for the dog days of summer.  And both match the 2009 DH Flyers Team Kit.

 

2 Days of Rest

The shop is really coming together and I can't wait for the bikes and other 6 trainers to arrive.

I'll be away in London for Parker Family Christmas this Saturday so the shop isn't open.


I'll be back on Tuesday, open 12-8.

p.

Power cranks - Paul

So umm, here is how I did on my first ride.

What was most noticeable was that I have a significant dead spot on the left side, just after passing through the bottom dead centre of the pedal circle.

p.

Wednesday update

More stuff arriving, Chain-L No. 5, a great oil that will penetrate your chain and stay there.

The fit bike is also all hooked up to the computrainer and ready either to find your fit coordinates, fix your pedal stroke with the Powercranks or to be used to take your graded and maximal power output (measure your fitness now and track your development over the season).  Elite and Junior racers, I'll be calling you in next week to work on your positioning.

The sign is painted, but not yet mounted - I still need to install the bench lighting and run the wires.  Schwalbe Ultremo R tires came in as well; too bad about the ice otherwise I'd be out there giving them a try.

Powercranks and the shop moves forward

Lauri came by and put up the window film for me (sorry ladies, lads and ladyman ladies of the classifieds you are no longer my window screens) and Claudia came by for her sizing.

Claudia also had the pleasure of using Powercranks for the first time.

80% done, open Tuesday

Christopher, Chelsea, Toni, Andrew, Elizabeth, Andrew, Heidi, Mehdi, Michael, Jez and Marie Beath came by Friday night to slap a little paint on the wall and help sand the logo for the wall.

Melanie was here in the morning (to discover the over flowing toilet and centimetre of water on the floor) and made quick work of a very curvy logo. What a great job! I'll paint it red next week and hang it over the work benches.

So what's available on Tuesday?  Spring bike pre-orders and time trial sizing, Schwalbe tires, Pro and Shimano components, GIFT CERTIFICATES for Christmas for winter training or mechanic classes, tune-ups, winter bike wheel rebuilds, and the best chain lube out there.

Grand opening in January, but I am here for the next couple weeks from 12-6 Tuesday to Saturday.

Getting closer - open next Tuesday

I got the fitting and testing bike together (centre of picture) with the help of Emile, sorted through the tools and mopped 1/3 of the shop floor (I had one of those, how many times will I have to do this?? moments).

The shop/studio is really shaping up and if I am lucky, the super will drop off paint tonight or tomorrow and enough people will drop by to do a little painting on Friday. If there is no paint it'll be more of a pizza and drinks party (which ain't too bad).

I am off to instruct fitting to the next class of mechanics on Monday at the Winterborne Bike Institute so Tuesday I'll be open, working on bikes and planning the mechanic and training courses. More news about the team and club to follow as well.

You can drop by tomorrow (Friday the 5th at 6PM) if you want to check it out.

Getting closer to opening

I am getting down to bits and pieces, waiting for deliveries and doing the final touches.  Still a fair amount of cleaning to do and the super hasn't fixed the window sill yet, but I should be operational by Tuesday morning.

I picked up a fridge and filing cabinet yesterday.  The office looks good where it is and it is also far enough away from the front door (a little cold during the winter when the door opens).

I wrestled with the Ikea unit, getting it back up (almost took a hammer to it and moved on with my life).  This will be wear people can drop their bags and shoes for Thursday night time trial and Saturday morning brick workouts.

The peg board is up, benches varnished and Melanie has offered to make the Hello Velo sign for above the benches.

Tomorrow will be the last day of running around, some of the final cuts as well as sourcing the parts I need to put the fit/training bike together.

p.

Day 5

Finished the trim on the wall.  You can see how un-level the floor is.  The plan is to paint the base board and the wall white, leaving the rest of the wood unfinished.

Mark came by and helped me put the Kobila together.  This fit cycle (once I install the cranks, front wheel and computrainer) allows me to determine the perfect fitting bike.  It can also be adjusted to mimic the geometry of other bikes out there - say you want to see how a Medium Xenith T2 fits versus a 54 Cervelo P4.   No problem.

Beautifully machined to tight tolerances, the etched measurements let me know how a bike is configured in space in relation to the bottom bracket.

I'll be installing these on the bike to assist with fitting and so that people can use the bike as a training tool.  More on Powercranks here.

Lots left to do but the shop is definitely shaping up.

p.

4 days

Not too much building but lots of progress

So, we did a little moving around, a little more tearing down and settled on the location of the workshop.  Those tables probably weigh over 100 lbs each, are nearly 6 feet long and 2.5 feet deep.  Really ideal for working on (and I'll be renting the bench and tools out as well).

Still more fixtures to install and the lounge, which will give you a great view of your bike as I repair it.

The biggest find was this showcase from Recycled Displays.  Yes that is the 2008 cycling picture book and the latest edition of Rouleur under the glass..  Come by and have a read.

p.

Other Choices & Day 1 and 2 of rennovation

One of the things that I really wanted to be able to do was to start group rides from the front door of the shop.  And this includes the mother of all group rides that I organize, the Tour de Creemore 160.  A shop with a narrow front boulevard, a regular sidewalk or small doors just would not cut it.  I want to be able to collect 40-50 riders on a weekend and give everyone a chance to grab some water and get their chain lubed before the ride.  Of all the places that I saw over the last 8 months, this was the best one.

This is the entrance to the unit off Carlaw.

And the other side viewed from the unit. 

I made excellent progress over the last 2 days.  Took apart a wall, built another, installed the sink, counter and plumbing and built my 2 workbenches (which required a blow torch and a scraper - I'll tell you why when you come by the shop).

Tomorrow, finish the kitchen, the office wall, sign boards and pick up track lighting and a cash desk.

Lots of Choices

In November of 2007 I decided that it was time to go.  For very personal reasons, my seven year stint as a public servant was drawing to a close.  While my taste for working inside a bureaucracy had definitely faded, I can say that the people I worked with were both dedicated and a pleasure to spend 10 hours a day with. 

Finance, planning, budget work, human resources, large information system installs could all be rewarding work, but the core of that which I did was just not close enough to what I really loved to do.  Picture me winding myself up to work on a chart of accounts when I would rather be winding up the pedals on Scenic Caves Road in Collingwood.  So I made a choice and put in my notice.  First choice made and thousands more to go.  And here I am.  

Hello Velo will be located at 260 Carlaw Avenue, Unit 103.  The unit is just off Carlaw at the end of the loading bay entrance (this building was an old toy factory). If you zoom in on the map you can just about see the unit, just across from the white car.   

2 of the things I considered when choosing this location:

1) Location

It needed to be on the east side of Toronto, near the Lake.  There are a number of commuter oriented shops in the area but none dedicated to performance and training.  Proximity to Darkhorse Espresso Bar and home was also important.   I did not need a traditional retail location but it had to be close to other shops and services

2) Size and Amenities

I needed enough space for a full workshop, a training and instruction area and space for retail.  I also needed a bathroom with a shower and a full kitchen.  This space has all of this (although the Kitchen currently only consists of a drain and water hookups).  I also needed to keep things affordable and not have a mammoth location.  The unit works out to 1158 square feet - just right.

Here is what it looked like when I saw it for the first time.

Feel welcome to come by and say hello and watch it transform from the empty gray box it is right now to the shop and studio.  I am currently accepting tea and brownie (vegan) donations.

Riverdale Cross Championships

A cool but sunny day at the races for Edgars and Wes. 

Congrats on a great season!

Riverdale X

A WBI mechanic

The last few days were exhausting with topics ranging from shift tuning, hydraulic brake service to suspension fork maintenace.

This fork from a Trek 6500 and is a Manitou Axle Elite, a value oriented fork.  Don't worry I got it back together.  Anyone who has a fork on their bike would be smart to have their fork regularly overhauled and seals changed.

As a little side project I decided to take a look inside a very popular wheel set, the Bontrager Select.  This is the model of wheel on many Treks and Lemonds.  I replaced the poor quality factory grease with some quality gunk and adjusted the hubs for free spinning with no axle play.  A little maintenance will keep this wheelset on the road as long as many other higher quality wheels.

The final practical exam was to assemble a bike that would be sent this weekend to a local shop for sale.  I squeaked by with 91%, loosing marks for being over time (first finished in the class though) and having rub on the front rotor.  The trick with hydraulics is to allow them to self centre by loosening the mounting bolts and then torque them down once they are centred.

A very nice bike - The Devinci Desperado SL2

My reward, a smapler pack from Wellington County Brewery.

Shimano Electronic Shifting

Yeah, but can it transform into an espresso machine?

At WBI, we had a chance to take a close look at the Shimano Electronic Indexing System (SEIS) or model 7970 tonight.  Right off the top: we could not derail the chain and it shifts very fast.  I think that you may be able to beat it shifting from the bottom of the cog set to the top but not with the same accuracy.  I'm going to focus on the shifters, as these have been subject to significant changes in order to make them work with the electronics and to improve ergonomics.

The shifter is shorter making it easier to reach, and is made out of sparkly moulded carbon.  Those are the shift buttons on the side of the levers.

On the left of the shifter head is a small plastic screw that you can use to adjust the reach of the levers, making it even  easier to adjust for people who have a difficult time reaching the levers.

Remember that you don't need to push the arms in order to shift, but Shimano built in a little swing so that the rider still receives feedback, in addition to an audible click.

Another improvement is the placement of the brake cable head seat.  It has moved to the side of the pivot to improve cable routing.  This pivot is also in a different position, supposedly to make braking on the hoods more effective, however it may not work very well with previous series brake calipers.

Exposed under the shifter hood is where you mount the cable that connects to the computer and power pack.  These cables are small, seem strong and are pretty unobtrusive.  The computer and battery mount in a unit just below the down tube water bottle.

There are 2 cable mounts on the shift levers so that the rider can position an extra set of controls at a different part of the bike.  You read correctly.  Cyclocross riders rejoice; no more cable splitters!  Think of the benefits for recumbent and tandem bikes; no ridiculously long cables!

The rest of the groupo continues with Shimano's focus on dark anodized metals and appears to rely on heavy machining of aluminum rather than carbon and plastic to reduce weight.  The derailleur is a work of art and even has a mechanism to protect the motor in the event of a crash.  

Here is what I think Shimano is looking to solve with this system: rider error and cable actuation issues.  Riders shift incorrectly and skip 1/2 gears sometimes (admit it) and cables are prone to wear, housing to stretch and ferrules will seat all throwing off performance (unless your bike sits in the garage all year-round and all you do is tune it).  Are these big issues in my book?  Nope, but I am not afraid of a little innovation and I think this is a pretty good system.  The computer takes care of all chain alignment and front derailleur trim, it is lightweight and the ergonomic upgrades are excellent.  The precision of it is simply excellent. Am I interested in rushing out and picking this up?  Nope, and here is why:

My Sram setup shifts wonderfully when the cables and derailleurs are adjusted properly.  Yes the front derailleur operation on a mechanical system is often clunky (admit it, all brands are clunky here) and I sometimes shift improperly and setup and tuning takes time, but I really don't mind these aspects of a mechanical system.  And ergonomically I think that the Shimano 7970 is really just a catch up to better fitting systems.  Yes they've built a better front derailleur but everything has stayed the same at the back end: a swinging derailleur with a chain and cogs exposed to the elements.  Electronic shifting at the back of the bike is just a shuffle forward in my books, not a great leap that would stir me to drop $12Gs.  What do I have to suggest?  Nothing really, but if someone could build on the Truvativ Hammershmidt and port that technology to the rear in a race ready application AND have it all electronic, I'd be selling my right kidney tomorrow. 

Estimated cost: 4X the amount of the mechanical version - around $12,000.

More:

http://www.testrider.com/fly.aspx?layout=player&video=2

http://bike.shimano.com/publish/content/global_cycle/en/us/index/news_and_info/news/dura-ace_di2_for_time.html

http://bike.shimano.com/publish/content/global_cycle/en/us/index/news_and_info/news/shimano_turns_on_the.html

http://www.velonews.com/article/81107

Winterborne Bicycle Institute

It has been a gruelling 5 days at the Winterborne Bicycle Institute's Pro Bike Mechanic course.

I've learned a lot, lost some bad habits and had the chance to interract with a diverse bunch of people in the cycling industry.

One of my goals of the course was to become proficient in wheel building and I am very pleased to say that my wheel today was 5/100th of a milimeter (that is 0.05 mm) BETTER than specficiations.

A beautiful fork crown that Jay at Winterborne may use to build you a custom bike.  Frame material options include steel, steel, steel and steel.

Some more lugs.

The perfect work bench.

Alan Medcalf, one of our patient instructors. 

Only 6 more days to go.  

Sunday Creemore Ride, Paul gives birth on the side of the road

The view from almost the top of Scenic Caves Rd.

"Mommy mommy, what is that man doing?  Is that where babies come from?"