C Line Impressions and Price Bump

The presale C Lines started shipping out to customers last week and initial impressions and feedback have all been great.

Here it has been a week of true satisfaction on the New C Lines tires.  With time constraints being pretty tight I was able to total up just over 60 miles so far, and the C Lines are perceptibly smoother rolling then the previous New Express Tires.  11.5 c line bump-1140908I have pushed them both on and off the pavement to see just how much abuse they would tolerate.  The sidewalls have faired ok riding through the rocky side trails that parallel sections of our local railroad lines.

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I did manage to get one flat from a significantly large goat head thorn, but is should be considered that I have paired these initially with a set of   super light Q Tubes, again for the sole purpose of establishing the boundaries for these will do in terms of flat resistance.  Also, of note are the numerous patches of broken glass and other thorny areas I have ridden through on purpose, and no other issues.  Thus, even with one flat this week, the ride quality makes the risk of flats well worth it IMO, and if thorns prove to be a problem there are ways to work around that without giving up much on the performance front.  I will follow up on these in a month, but these are going to be my primary tires this winter.

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The presale volume has been good, thank you to everybody who has made a purchase.  As of today all tires ordered prior the start of distribution have been shipped.  The initial sales volume has helped to establish better projections on where we need to price these tires to keep the project sustainable.  The price of $49 a tire is really a bargain for the level of quality and performance for a tire this unique in the market.  To keep things sustainable we will be bumping the price to $55 a tire this weekend, Saturday November 9.

We have a good stock of both colors on hand and ready to ship.  The presale price will hold on all orders placed through Friday November 8 by midnight.  As always shipping will still be free for two or more tires as all sales through out storefront over $75 ship free.

Click Here to Purchase

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Soma C-Line First Impression

The New C Line Tires are available CLICK HERE to purchase

We have been working with soma since last Spring to bring some wide, supple, high quality tires to market.  The results are in and the new C-Line tires are looking great out of the box, and on initial test rides.

Background:  There has been a bit of a hole in the market for a well made, light weight and wide 700c tire.  I have been happy with their New Express 700×37, but having ridden both the NE and B-Line versions of this tire in the 650b size I knew that there could be more.  Starting with everything good about the well-regarded Panaracer Pasela and New Express tires, the inquiry was made about the status of their 700x3xxmm molds.  Apparently it had worn beyond use, they were in the process of making new molds and we were given a bit of a clean slate.  Taking notes from the B-Line we asked for the tread width and pattern of the 35mm Pasela, the casing of the 37mm, No extra protective lining, a folding bead, and since we were going this far we asked for color options on such a relatively small run of tires.  Panaracer said yes, and the wheels were rolling.

The first batch made its way from Japan to Soma and now us.  Testing and distribution began yesterday.  Using aspects of a proven design and partnering with a high quality producer like Panaracer we are confident that the tires will meet and exceed expectations.  This batch has two color options, Terra Cotta with tan skin walls and Black with Tan skin walls.  The color does not influence performance, and is only aesthetic.  I will be riding a set of the Terra Cotta tires over the next few months.

10.28 cl initial WP-2Knowing that the question will be asked the first thing i did after opening them up was take them to the scale and compare the weight to an existing 700×37 New Express.

10.28 cl initial WP-114082610.28 cl initial WP-2-2The 76g drop per tire totals up to a savings of over a 1/4 pound of rotating mass.  Paired with a lighter wheel set like the Velocity A23 rims and some light weight tubes the weight savings can add up fast.  The weight saving in the tire comes from two places.  The C-Line has a different, slightly narrower tread pattern, as well as no hypertext protective casing.

10.28 cl initial WP-2-4 10.28 cl initial WP-2-3Both of these characteristics not only shave weight but decrease rolling resistance.  This translated into a tire that is easier to accelerate to speed, keeps rolling longer, and delivers the silk pillow like ride that only fat tires can give.  The days of wide tires being perceived as heavy and slow are quickly coming to an end.

Next up was getting them mounted up on My Velocity A23 rims, which are known to have a tight fit, particularly when tires are new.  I am happy to say that both front and rear went on with my hands only, no tire levers needed.  They inflated round and evenly along the bead without talc on the tube or any of the other tricks like soapy water at the bead.

10.28 cl initial WP-1140839Even with a week of my left hand attacking my right, there was new undue struggle or pain.

10.28 cl initial WP-2-5the tires slid on, the bead popped into place around 60psi.  I took them up to 110psi to give a bit of initial stretch and confirm evenness than backed them off to 60psi for a starting point to wide.  Initial width on the 23mm rims is 37.8mm, and I am sure they will stretch a bit in the first weeks of riding.

10.28 cl initial WP-2-6The only downside I can see to these tires is the lack of sidewall protection.  This is not a surprise and is part of the design.  Only putting the tread rubber where you really need it.  The thickened tread section wraps just to the road side of the tires apex or bulge.  The price of improved performance on the road means that these may not be the best choice for dirt roads with sharp or tall rocks.  Like all things in life there are tradeoffs, performance often coming at the cost of durability.

10.28 cl initial WP-1140842I have been able to get out for a quick 8 miles or so, and am very happy with the ride quality.  They feel in many ways just like the B-Line, as they should, but with the subtly different handling that the larger diameter brings to the equation.  Like new “component” day often does I am excited to get out there and put some miles on these.  Follow up impressions will come in a couple of weeks.

The C-Line tires are available through out storefront HERE at $98 a set

Racks that Fit

10.7 Racks WP-1140229Continuing our series on getting a proper rack(s) onto your Rambler, today we will tackle an easy one.  The Bruce Gordon Lowrider Rack with the upper mounting point in the vertical configuration will bolt right up.  It fits both the 700c and 650b Ramblers from the current batch onward with no modification needed.  These are hands down the best deal going for a strong and light set of front pannier racks.  I added the custom light mount, but for a nominal fee Bruce generally will add some custom details.

In the coming week I will be tackling a couple of Mark’s rack, the upper silver one, installations and document the process.

New Soma C-Line Coming Soon

Back in the spring when we visited with Merry Sales (Soma Fabrications) the conversation turned towards some projects that we would like to see come to fruition and possibly collaborate a bit on.  They have been good to me as a wholesale account for the parts I need on complete bikes, and their expertise and sourcing relationships in Japan and Taiwan run deep.   They see value in the fat tired road bikes, as well as the French inspired bicycle geometries, as do we.  Things went well and our first project is coming to fruition.

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There has been a bit of a hole in the market for a well made, light weight and wide 700c tire.  I have been happy with their New Express 700×37, but having ridden both the NE and B-Line versions of this tire in the 650b size I knew that there could be more.  Starting with everything good about the well-regarded Panaracer Pasela and New Express tires, the inquiry was made about the status of their 700x3xxmm molds.  Apparently it had worn beyond use, they were in the process of making new molds and we were given a bit of a clean slate.  Taking notes from the B-Line we asked for the tread width and pattern of the 35mm Pasela, the casing of the 37mm, No extra protective lining, a folding bead, and since we were going this far we asked for color options on such a relatively small run of tires.  Panaracer said yes, and the wheels were rolling.  I kept checking and persisting, then an email showed up confirming that the tires were done and shipping soon.  Continuing to push for info, I requested photos.  A bit of time passed, then this gift hit my inbox last week.

10.5 c.line-0414Coming in at 400g exceeded all my hopes.  At that weight we got everything we asked for.  This is in the same weight league as the well-regarded 650bx42 Grand Bois Hetre.  Combine this with the favorable rolling resistance data that the 700×35 Panaracer Pasela received in the Spring 2013 issue of Bicycle quarterly and I am convinced we hit it out of the park with this one.  This tire meets and exceeds everything that was good about the tire they reviewed and takes it a step further.

With delivery slated for early November I set up a Pre-Sale on out store front, the tires start at $49 each, buy two or more and you will qualify for free shipping.

I think this is just the start of some good projects with us and Merry.  They deserve a huge thanks for backing projects like this, as well as Panaracer for their willingness to make tires in runs of hundreds when they generally do thousands of a model.

Coaxial Lighting Wire

As part of the program here at Ocean Air Cycles I have been working on sourcing components and materials for complete builds.  Often times the materials or parts we are used to as cyclists end up being tied up by distributors who have exclusive import deals and will not work with us as a bicycle producer or based the fact that we do not have a physical retail presence.  As an aside we may never have a “retail” presence that certain suppliers define as a retail bike shop, and thus we have been developing alternate sources or products that may be familiar in the Rando or touring bike market, i.e. berthoud, Schmidt, and B&M are just a few.

The entire supply chain for high end dynamo powered lighting systems in the USA ends up being funneled through Peter White.  I am sure he is a great guy, I bought a fine set of wheels from him years ago, and those of you who have worked with him have your own opinions I am sure.  Aside from all of the great information on lighting and wheel building, he is also the importer and distributor.  Without the ability to get things wholesale, I started the search for alternates to many of the products offered.  Some are much harder to get than others.  We are still looking for a reliable source on the metric electrical connectors out favorite lights and hubs use.  I was able to source lights from Europe earlier in the year but that is getting harder.

When setting up the Lighting systems on the bikes, there is quite often a need for longer or better wire to make the long run to the tail light.  After a long search and testing a few different options out we have been having good luck with a coaxial microphone cable.

10.4 wire -1140641Setting up the ends is a bit more work with careful trimming, stripping and shrink wrapping.  In my opinion the results are worth it.  The cable itself is easier to run, the flexibility helps in fishing it through the frame.  The outer diameter is 3mm and fits perfectly though the guide eyelets on out Rambler forks.  The resilient outer casing will help reduce the chance of nick or breaks and possible short circuits.

The best part of the source?  Pricing is well under Schmidt branded wire coming from Europe.  In the next couple of weeks we will add shrink wrap kits to our offerings.

Special Offer:  For the first 25 customers we are selling the wire in a 9 foot length (enough to do most bikes front and rear) for $0.25 plus shipping.  I am limiting this to one per customer, and once all 25 are gone pricing will go to $0.32 a foot