grinder | Ocean Air Cycles

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.

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.

Coming 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.

Coffee Gear

The most frequent question I get regarding the coffee outside routine is “what gear are your using?”. While getting my kit ready for tomorrow I took a few minutes to make some pictures and prepare some notes.

The contents of the kit reflect my preference for pour over style of brewing. I have tried everything from cowboy coffee to a small french press, and for me, the best results have been pour over. My usual stove and cook pot for boiling water has been the Caldera Keg Kit. The kit is super light, compact and has everything I need to boil water quickly. I brew the coffee into a 600ml titanium mug that replaces one end of the keg kit’s container. I support the paper coffee filters with a William Bounds Sili coffee cone. after testing out a few options I find it hits a sweet spot for function, weight and portability. The kit is rounded out with a bandanna, lighter, grinder and occasional breakfast snack

The latest addition to my kit has been the Porlex portable grinder. It adds a bit of weight to the whole package, but the quality of the brew jumps way up with beans ground at the time of brew.

This was an awesome birthday gift this year from my wife and her parents, and has seen daily use for a few weeks now. The bur grinding mechanism is robust, easily adjustable, and provides an incredibly uniform grind. It holds the perfect amount of beans for my large mug. Thus the increase in brew quality and ability to carry the fresh beans justify the added load.

All spread out it looks like a bunch of gear

but most of the components nest into the stove caddy and it is travels quite compact in the handlebar bag. I was pleasantly suppressed to even fit the grinder on the inside of the kit.

Over all weight is still respectable as well considering how much utility is crammed into that little space.

It is that simple, under two pounds and you have all the tools needed to brew a better cup of coffee than most people will at home, and you can do it just about any where you would like. True coffee/bike nerd stuff.

C Line 700×38 Poll

I have been talking with the great folks at Merry Sales about bringing a new 700x38mm tire to market fora while now. IMO the best platform is to use the existing Soma New Express mold and casing from the 700×37 tire they currently sell and have a batch made up without the hypertex casing. This has worked with great reception on the 650b version of the tire. Having put many miles on both versions of the 650b tire as well as the relatively new 700×37 New Express I am convinced that a “C Line” would be my Goldilocks tire.

At this point I need your help in picking a color for the first run

[polldaddy poll=”7161169″]

As with all projects of this nature there will be one color for the first batch, once consumer reception is felt out we can move to have batches made up in more than one color.