Truth is I lost some steam in the project when I looked in my garage and saw three other unfinished projects. So I sold the SASS and over the really long winter finished up the other projects and did some general house-keeping in the parts bin and tool box parts drawers. During that time frame I listed my wheels on craigslist and no one even emailed me (not even a scammer, pretty sad really) At this point I figured I couldn’t give them away so it was build a 650b or use the hubs for something else.

Here is what happened. I found a really killer deal on a Haro Beasley Frame and Fork so I bought it.

So the first thing I noticed was the really tall A-C. My 29er wheel fit with this no problem and plenty of room to spare. The second thing which sticks out to me is this Steel frame doesn’t use a 27.2mm seat post. I think it’s a 30.6mm but don’t know for certain.

The overall look is very clean the paint is a great color with it’s mild metal flake in it. The charcoalish color with the crimson and gold graphics give it a nice classic look.

The fork on this thing really makes the overall look of the bike come together. The crown with the Bee graphic looks killer. All though Haro surprised me again with the fork not having a drastic taper to the dropouts like other rigid steel forks do. I think the overall theme of this particular bike design is tough and rugged while maintaining a refined and classic look at the same time.

People have been questioning the need and validity of a bike that’s not a 26″ or 29″ wheeled design. Well I do have high hopes for this being a very fun bike to ride. Whether or not we “need” another wheel size in the US is not a relevant question for me. Ride what you have and ride what you like, and don’t worry about change. In the bike industry it’s good. Remember when people were asking why we needed suspension? In my case I don’t but I still like checking out other ideas and designs when I can!

Now go ride your bike, and just don’t think about it.

Cane Creek 110

The way Cane Creek is able to put such trust in this headset is the fact that they are made right here in the USA with US made Aluminum. There are really tight tolerance and quality controls you can have if you make something on site vs. sending it overseas.

Laid out 110 Headset

Some of the nice features of this headset include a sealed crown race for your fork. This keeps the bottom side of the headset relatively moisture free. Another nice feature is the sealed top cover and “captured” compression ring. It really does make set up and install a snap. The picture below shows the compression ring removed from the top cover.

sealed crown race and "captured" top cover

Overall this headset is on the spendy side. Your looking at about $150. But if you look at the cost as a $1.36/year for 110 years it’s not so bad. My favorite things about this headset are the fact it’s warranty surpasses Chris Kings (10 years) and it weighs less than a King.  King claims their Sotto Voce model at 126gr. and Cane Creek 110′s are claimed at 98gr. for the same size 1-1/8″ Threadless.

USA Made Cups with Bearings

Though the 110 doesn’t come in a million colors it is made in the USA, it is a good value if warranty and weight are concerns for you. If quality and looks are your thing you will still do great buying this headset!

Cane Creek 110 Top-Cap and Hardware

SOME BASIC SPEC’S FOR YOU

Crown Race: 30.0
Stack Height: 16 mm
Bearing Type: Stainless Steel
Material: Aluminum
Weight: 98gr

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Here are a few of the pictures I took while sitting at Mackenzie downtown and stamping Manifests for Stupor Bowl 14. Most are not good but I figured I’d get them out for people to see. Thanks to Tommy Big Nutz aka. Biggie for letting me tag along for his hosted Stupor Stop.

PBR SWAG for racers laid out nice like

White pants really? Just kidding look at the fly ass argyle!

Beards everywhere...beginning of the ironic pictures

Clean Beards are Ironic

Amish beard with a shot in hand...yup ironic

CLICK HERE FOR SUPERG’s STUPOR BOWL PHOTO COLLECTION ON FLICKR

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The Stupor Bowl is considered to be one of the longest and largest concurrently running Alley Cat in the country. All though I cannot pretend to have been at all of them, or even have cared about most of them, I do have personal interest in the race itself.

A long time friend of mine is actually Minneapolis’ longest working independent bike messenger. Generally he doesn’t race,  but helps organize the race or works a stop stamping manifests.

The weather this weekend in MSP should be great for Stupor. I will be seeing everyone down there. I am going to try to get to the Pre-reg Party put on by Bike Jerks. Should be a good time!

Non-Expert Starting line

On the course

More on the course

last of on the course

If you want to check out a few more go here.

Real Magicshine on a Real Bike

Sorry for the lateness of this, I wanted to give the issue some time to pan out. I have discussed my ideas with a few people (most of them Magicshine owners) and none of them think their light is dangerous.

Okay it’s time to start discussing this in more detail. I have a few reservations about everyone getting all whipped up about these lights being “recalled” when in fact they haven’t been recalled as of yet. In the interest of disclosure I must admit I work for a shop that sells Magicshine lights. We do not directly compete with Geomangear.com but some people will think we are trying to kick a man while he is down. I believe Geoman has done well by and for the mountain bike community as a whole and wish him all the luck and success. I also feel that healthy competition will drive the market towards even better and more cost-effective product.

Lets explore this “recall’ a little further. First off I have searched CSPC’s website for recalls and could not find any info on this. I was able to find a recall from Easton, Seattle Bicycle Supply (Redline), The Hive etc, but nothing for Magicshine from geomangear.com.

So here is my main problem with this whole thing: Geomangear.com has sold thousands of these things. It’s very apparent by the amount green lit controls you see on the trails these days. But why would you recall every single battery pack when you supposedly have only three incidents? I understand they seem to have been serious problems, but there has been no documentation as to what the actual problem has been.

It has been brought to my attention that even three incidents is unacceptable. I truly believe that as well. What I can’t stomach is that fact that so much alarm has been raised with people expecting these things to blow up, catch fire, melt skin etc. I honestly can say that we need to weigh the facts here.

1: A CSPC recall has not actually been issued: This to me says that by US Consumer Safety standards that these lights have a low enough failure rate to be considered safe. We all know the CSPC takes its job of protecting American consumers very seriously.

2: Geomans website refers to having three incidents, with minor property damage reported: Not knowing the circumstances around the failures it’s hard for us as consumers to form an opinion for ourselves. Property damage can mean several things. In our litigious society one might consider property damage a stained garage floor (think the mark a firework might leave…and it doesn’t have to be explosive) What I’m getting at here is do we know if any of the issues arise from user error? Or did these three people use the product exactly as stated and instructed by Geoman? This is where I give Geoman the benefit of the doubt. It’s not his fault if some Fred decides to leave his battery on the charger for 2 days, or worse wants to try to test his run time without actually riding…air flow keeps these systems as a whole from over heating.

3: I have been in contact with the Magicshine factory in China and they claim Geoman wants brand name batteries spec’d, and they have no notice from the CSPC as to their product being dangerous.

(1) Well the CSPC needs time to evaluate the problems. BULLSHIT! If houses, bikes and people were burning, dying or whatever other associated ills with this the CSPC would be all over it. We all know we live in a sensationalized media driven society, do you think that if anyone caught news of houses burning down it would only be reported on MTBR.com and geomangear.com?

(2) But Geomangear is recalling these himself, why would he want to give up all the sales and let everyone think these are not safe? The answer for some may not be cut and dry, but if you think about the fact that these have had run time issues, and you are trying to get the factory to spec better batteries (that your engineers developed) you have a lot at stake in this. Why not make everyone that has one of these think they will melt your face or worse; melt your bike or home.

(3)  How do we know the factory in China isn’t lying? Well we don’t but it’s fair to consider both sides of the story. It’s not far-fetched to me anyways, that a company may try to force their hand on an issue like this. It may be a way to get people thinking any other person selling a Magicshine light is immoral, or worse intentionally trying to harm consumers. That’s simply not the case.

There have been many theories tossed around with this whole issue and I for one do not believe that in most cases there is an imminent danger to person or property with Magicshine lights. That’s not to say there will never be an issue with them, or any other item that uses rechargeable batteries. Let’s just keep this whole thing in perspective, these lights are from China and cost less than a $100 (808) and less than $125 (816).

On this scale and price point you are not going to get the latest in battery matching technology or battery charging. In the cycling industry consumers have always wanted the best of both worlds, they want cheap and they want the best. I can’t always work that way. I think Magicshine has come very close to striking that balance between value and performance. They are great lights and no matter where yours came from use it and have some fun night riding.

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Origin8 Scout Frame

With bold graphics Origin8 joins the commercial success of the 29er world. This frame has actually been out for a while. With this frame the second generation. The 1st G frame was an Aluminum frame. The current is a steel frame.  Here are some Vitals, 4130 Triple butted heat-treated tubing, Removable alloy cable guides, CNC machined dropout with integrated chain tensioner.

Headtube graphic

Okay so the frame has a nice paint job. It’s classy, just the right color that doesn’t scream look at me, but unique enough that people may stop to ask you what it is or where you picked it up at.

Driveside slider with derailleur hanger

It’s an unique feature these days to have a single speed bike than can also be run as a geared bike. There are a few set ups. Elliptical bottom brackets, adjustable drop-outs and this Fork-End with the derailleur hanger set up are all now commonplace. All though the set-up on this is not my favorite it is an effective use of materials to help keep costs down. My big gripe is it’s up to the rider to adjust the brake, chain and derailleur after getting a flat on the trail. It’s not a huge issue but it does take some time getting used to. Practice it a couple of times before getting out on the trail and you should be good to go.

Removable alloy cable hangers

One of the nicer features is the removable cable hangers. If you want to run gears or not there is a configuration that will look nice and you won’t have stops or guides hanging all over your frame unused. Since every one of the hangers comes off you could set this up fixed and still have it be smooth and clean.

Smooth and clean-looking doesn’t always translate to nice welds. I think since this frame is at such a low price point you aren’t getting away from ugly welds but not all of them were terrible.

Welds at BB shell

Welds at headtube (little better)

I know no one will admit to themselves that they are weight weenies. Resolution 1…quit lying to yourself and others. You care about weight. Here is the weight spec on this 2.85kg which translates to a little over 6.2lbs for all of you imperialist retro-grouches.

Not a supermodel weight

Frame Details:

Product Details

Neomoto weight

650b is kind a of lost wheel size for most of us here in the states. At one point it wasn’t a “New Trend” wheels size.  The 650b wheel size in fact is not new and is not trendy. The 650b is akin to mainly European touring rigs, with your Rivendells and what not. Just because these are traditionally European touring wheels does not mean they are afraid to get dirty.

QuasiMoto Tread Profile

The Quasi-Moto tires I have look to be a great cross-country tire for hard packed and dry conditions. They have a low profile tread allowing for fast rolling, while still being able to hook up in the corners.  The claimed weight was 560gr for the 650b x 2.0 and mine weighed in at 606gr; so not too bad.

Mounted to Blunts

My use of the B’s is in a conversion so it is important to check the clearance of the tires and fork crown. In my case the Bianchi Single Speed Series bikes were well-known for having a tall axle to crown allowing for fitment of larger diameter wheels and tires.

Same as above...but I think I need to dish my wheels

Notice the difference in diameter

All though not a dramatic difference like 26″-29″ wheels there is enough difference to make this a worthwhile exploration. Given the fact that the SASS is more of an all around bike for me the 650b will work well for me. I do have other bikes in 26″ and 29″ wheel diameters and I am excited to see how this wheel size stacks up to the others I have. If I like this set up I’m hoping to get a Rawland.

I’ll try to keep everyone up to date as to ride quality, functionality etc.

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