Category: gear

Tinkering Bell

I have an affliction, when I get an idea in my head, and work the whole thing out, I need to make it real, or it will haunt me.  Since I built up Rambler No. 1 the problem of a bell location has been haunting me.  I even considered adding a brazeon during the initial design phases.  Then this morning it hit me,  and when I had 10 minutes to spare at lunch, I was at the bench cutting up a perfectly good Crane bell.

It fits near perfectly over the cable stop, everything works like it should and the way the hammer strike bells work there should be no Auto ring from bumps.

I have seen this done before with the spring strike bells to dress up a naked shift boss, but as far as I know I am the first to piggyback a hammer strike bell like this.  If you have seen it out there let me know.

Now back to work, oh and Happy Friday – Play outside!

New Parts

I was able to unpack today’s delivery from the big brown truck!

As always the fit and finish is incredible on these finely crafted US made components.  I will be setting two of the bikes up this week with the 46/28 wide range doubles, and all place holder seat posts will be replaced with the new Tall and Handsome from Paul.  I am not sure I will need all of the Tall part, but will resist cutting them short for now.

If you have had a Rambler on your mind and wondering what you were going to hang on it to transform it into a complete bike, I should have plenty of options soon.  For the “American” build I have accounts in place with Paul Components and White Industries.  For the bits and pieces you may have a hard time sourcing I can get what you need from Compass or Velo Orange.  I have access to many of the other bits add pieces as well.  I am working on sources for saddles, wheels and lighting.  There are custom racks and bags still in the planning phases as well.  Never a dull moment at OAC lately.

I have used many of these products for years if not decades, some are new.  I will be sharing all of my impressions as I press them into service.  Those that make the cut will be available through my upcoming eCommerce site to build up the Rambler you have been waiting for.

T-Shirt Feedback

I am working through an order for my first run of t-shirts and the options are a bit overwhelming for something that should be so simple.  I know what I want to do for the art, first round of shirts will be a simple 5″ square logo on the chest.  The Dark blue area will be replaced with the color of the shirt and the text or line art will be in a contrasting color.

The next step is where things get to be a bit much.  I know what I like, but that is not always what others do.  Then there are all the social, environmental and stylistic issues that play into the mix; i.e. organic, made in the U.S.A., fit color etc.  It seems you can get one of the three, sometimes two, but never the whole thing.

I am leaning towards the US made Royal and Navy options or the non US made version in Gold this one gets some of the high viability gains for actual riding without being, ….. well kind of gross the way some yellows can be if you know what I mean.  There is more in the works, but some thoughts and feedback would be appreciated.

I want to give you what you want!

Carradice Bagman Upgrades and Opinions

The question that always follows “are you still making saddle bags?”  is without a doubt “will I need a support and what do you recommend?”.  The answer to both is yes, and even with some shortcomings I still recommend the Carradice Bagman.  It is one of the only supports of its kind that ties the base of the support to the saddle, there by keeping a constant distance between the bag loops and the support base over a wide range of saddle positions.  The distance between a traditional rear luggage rack and the saddle loops is different on almost every bike, and can lead to a less than perfect fit for the bag.  Things either end up a bit squished or stretched.  Older models of the Bagman support were known to loosen up over time and you needed to keep an eye on the hardware periodically.   Even with this shortcoming they can be made to perform reliably with a couple of simple modifications, and the newest incarnations of the support are further improved.

The unit above is the most recent to pass through my workshop, and is the Bagman Sport Quick Release.  The plastic piece is a really nice addition to the kit.  It zip ties to the outside of the saddlebag, opposite the internal dowel, and provides a quick and positive connection between the bag and support.

The quick release mechanism is similar to prior incarnations, pinching the two spring-loaded pins toward the center.  Everything appears to be well made, and has less threaded parts to come loose during a ride.

The connection between the shaped support and the clamping mechanism has always been the weak point, and still is.  The 7mm stainless rod is more than enough to support a well loaded bag, as is the aluminum clamping piece that joins the support to the saddle rails.  The interface between the two is just plain disappointing.

In the past the round rod had flat spots keyed into it that are held fast by a set screw from each side.  The provided set screws always fail, it is just a matter of when.  This would result in the support sliding out of the clamp leaving the bag poorly supported at best.  The new version partially addresses this issue.  The flat spot on the tip of the rod has been replaced with a blind hole.

The set screws provided are still inadequate for the job.  Button head allen screws do not provide enough support to be well torqued without stripping out the heads.  I switch these out with a regular hex nut.

This allows the use of a regular 8mm wrench or socket to get the needed torque.  Backing that up with a jam nut and some blue locktite we have a belt and suspenders solution that will hold up for a good long time.

Even if things were to get loose the blind hole will keep the rod from backing all the way out, leaving you with a dangling bag.  This alone is a major improvement.

I have a couple of other ideas in the bank for a complete re-design, but these newest versions of the bagman are well enough made for me to keep the project on the back burner.  If you have any other ideas to keep these well made supports working even better please let me know.

Designer Builder Maker ?

While signing up for the Philly Bike Expo earlier this week the question came up if I was a “Builder”?  My first answer was no, “Designer” with an OEM contractor.  Then I filled in the description a bit more with “Bag Maker”.  The thing is, it is hard to describe this in one simple phrase.  Would I make the upcoming bikes if I had the means?  I am pretty sure the answer is yes, but the tooling and equipment are out of reach and not feasible in our current space.  For now I am a Designer with respect to the bikes.

On the bags I am designer, and maker at the moment.  Maybe that makes me a bag and wallet builder?  That is an issue of semantics.  For now I wear all three hats.

The bottom line is that I know what I like, the way I want particular things to be and perform.  This may sound selfish, but I love to make things.  I get an idea in my head, work it out on paper, and often take it into the workshop to bring it into reality.  Today’s example is a couple of revisions to the Makr style touring wallet.  Based on feedback from the first round, the design was revised into a wallet with more pockets and a version that can hold a boat load of cards for a trade show (NAHBS is this weekend). Two completely different wallets, and what was an item is becoming a line.

The wallet is going to a friend who will run it through the paces.  The card holder is for me.  The exercise helped fuel my creative energy to complete more complex designs, like the handlebar bag I have in the works.  Likewise it is a release so that I can better focus on the business side of things the rest of the day without the distraction of pent up designs floating around in my head.

I know how to design things so that they can be made over and over, in the hopes that more people than myself agree with my line of thinking and want one of my designs for themselves.   My qualifications stem from a 35 or so years of making things the way I want them, an engineering education, another 15 years of working in the post college world and a deep understanding of what I want things to be.  It is my hope that as Ocean Air Cycles grows, you will have faith in the ability of my designs, and through use transform the faith into understanding and appreciation.

…………………….

Enough lofty thoughts, it is Leap Day, get out and ride.  I can not imagine missing the unique opportunity, and having to admit that one did not ride a bike on Leap Day.

If you like the wallets, let me know.  I can get you a custom soon, or in a bit will be producing them in small batches.

As mentioned above, NAHBS (Hand Built Bike Show), is this weekend in Sacramento.  I am planning on being up there to walk the floor on Saturday.  If you see me and feel inclined, it is always nice to meet readers in the wild, stop me and say Hi.