Category: Rivendell Bicycles

Rivendell produces fine, lugged steel bicycle frames.

A Tough Decision

A few years ago I bought a Rivendell Roadeo frame set. I always wanted a modern version of the Bridgestone RB-1 but Grant told me that would never happen. The RB-1 was a great bike and they sell for more nowadays than they did new, but Grant made compromises to satisfy sales people and company suits and bike dealers when he designed that bike, compromises he is no longer willing or required to make. So the Roadeo is probably as close as it gets, maybe- probably, even better.

But I also have a Rivendell A. Homer Hilsen and the two bikes overlap in design philosophy. So, after much deliberation, I have decided to sell the Roadeo frame set. No parts have ever been bolted on and the frame set is pristine. I even have the original shipping box.

59 cm
Threadless and un-cut steer tube
Frame and fork only…no headset or bottom bracket

I am asking $2000.00. New Roadeos from Rivendell are now $2200 and there is a 3 month (minimum) wait. If you are truly interested in buying this, please contact me (bikehermit at biketouringnews dot com)
Here are some pics:

Rivendell Bicycles

Chapter Last- Ready To Ride

Post author By Bike Hermit®
Post date July 27, 2011
2 Comments on Chapter Last- Ready To Ride

full view of complete bike — Complete Renovelo

The Renovelo project is complete and delivered to the customer. The final steps were wrapping the handlebars and installing the SKS P45 fenders. The Fizik Micro-Tex tape has a really nice feel and appearance and I know it’s durable. The P-45 fenders are sized nominally for 700c wheels and tires, but the 650b Nifty Swiftys are close enough in overall diameter that the fenders fit quite well with just a little bit of tweaking.

1/4 view of complete bike — Bikes somehow look more complete with fenders

rear view showing fenders — Nice racing stripes on the SKS fenders.

Photo of the brakes hood/ramp transition — The Cane Creek brake levers have a shape that allows for a nice smooth, flat transition from the handlebar ramps. Good for comfort on those long days.

rear fender — A decent fender line with 650b tires requires nipping the ends off the fender stays for a little tighter radius.

Tags Rivendell, Steel Bikes, Touring Bikes

Rivendell Bicycles

Chapter Two – Almost Finished

Post author By Bike Hermit®
Post date July 8, 2011
2 Comments on Chapter Two – Almost Finished

completed riv RenoVelo — Almost complete.

This is the third installment of posts about putting together a touring bike starting with a bare frame. The others can be found under “Rivendell Bicycles”

The new 127 mm spindle length bottom bracket from IRD works perfectly with the IRD crankset, and the rest of the build went smoothly.
Here’s a short rundown of the parts we used:
Wheelset; Shimano LX hubs laced with 32 spokes to Velocity Dyad 650b rims. (Velocity and Mavic are the only two brands to consider for rims when buying or building wheels)

Tires; Panaracer Nifty Swifty 650b

Shifters and Derailleurs; Shimano 8 speed bar end shifters operating Shimano Tiagra derailleurs. I really like the Tiagra level derailleurs. Even though they are not on the high end of the Shimano line, they work well and look good and they are made without a lot of plastic pieces.

Drivetrain; IRD Defiant triple crankset with 48, 36 and 24 tooth rings. Sram 8 speed cassette 11,12,14,16,18,21,24 and 28 tooth cogs. Sram 8 speed chain. Shimano PD-A530 dual sided pedals.

Cockpit; Nitto Grand Randonneur handlebars, Nitto Technomic Deluxe stem with shim, Tektro/Soma short reach brake levers, Shimano Ultegra seat post with the Gilles Berthoud Aspin/Marie Blanc saddle

Brakes; IRD Cafam cantilevers with Yokozuna Scott/Matthauser pads.

photo front brake calipers — The IRD Cafam brake calipers

photo of crankset and rear derailleur — Drivetrain

I used grey housing on all the cables to give a little bit of a custom look. I will wrap the handlebars after Karen has had a chance to ride the bike a few times and decides if the brake lever and handle bar positions are OK. Stainless steel water bottle cages by King Cage, fenders (probably SKS) will finish the bike, except for whatever racks and bags she uses for touring.

Tags Touring Bikes

Rivendell Bicycles

Chapter One- A Rookie Mistake

Post author By Bike Hermit®
Post date July 1, 2011

Now that I have all the parts, it’s time to start bolting them onto the bike. And the first part out of the box is this piece of jewelry:

photo of IRD crankset — This is the IRD Defiant touring triple crankset

Interloc Racing Design is a small company that has been around since 1984 and the moniker seems a little dated since they now make a lot of parts for touring and utility bikes. I need to confess that I didn’t consider the crankset/bottom bracket interface when I ordered the crank, and the bottom bracket that came with this frame has a spindle that is too short to use with this particular crankset.

photo of Sugino on left and IRD on right — The Sugino XD-2 on the left- IRD Defiant on the right

Since the interface is recessed on the IRD crankset, compared to the Sugino XD-2 I need either a 127.5 or 122 mm bottom bracket spindle, rather than the 107…so I ordered both and I will use the one that gives the best chainline. This is what I’m talkin’ about:

photo of crankset on too-short bottom bracket — The chainrings hit the bike with the too-short bottom bracket spindle

Meanwhile, here’s a taste of what the bike’s going to look like!

Photo of Nitto handle bar and stem — The Nitto Grand Randonneur handlebar and Technomic Deluxe stem

photo of partially completed bike — Sweet studio shot!

Tags brake levers, Handlebars, nitto handlebars, Touring Bikes

Rivendell Bicycles Touring Bicycles

A Touring Bike – From The Bare Frame

Post author By Bike Hermit®
Post date June 23, 2011
4 Comments on A Touring Bike – From The Bare Frame

Over the next week or so I will be putting together this:

photo of Riv renovelo frame — RenoVelo, a Rivendell Sam Hillborne

This bike will be used for touring and this is an ideal frame with which to start. The steel tubing is of a gauge or thickness to contribute to the rigidity of the bike when loaded, and the geometry of the bike will make it solid and stable on the road. The 650b wheels with some nice cushy tires will make the ride super plush. In it’s first life it was a demo bike at Rivendell World Headquarters in Walnut Creek, CA and now it is reincarnated as the RenoVelo.
Some other details that make it a good touring frame are:

renovelo rear spacing — 135 mm between the dropouts accepts a "mountain" or touring hub. A wider bracing angle makes a stronger wheel than the 130 mm spacing on a standard "road" wheel, and it makes the frame rear triangle stiffer too.

rear braze ons for racks and fenders — Lots of places to bolt racks and fenders.

renovelo headtube — The head tube extends above the top of the top tube. Makes it easy to get the bike "riv'ed out"

renovelo kickstand plate — A place for a kickstand!

bottom bracket renovelo — Simple, durable square taper cartridge bottom bracket

cantilever brake studs — Studs for cantilever brakes. Depending on the model, better stopping power and clearances than side pulls.

If you are interested in following the progress of this build, as you should be, check back here starting next week. More photos on our Flickr page too. (click the photo banner on the right)

Tags Rivendell, Steel Bikes, Touring Bikes

Rivendell Bicycles Touring Bicycles

A Bike For A Bike Overnight

Post author By Bike Hermit®
Post date May 24, 2011

The weather looks a little sketchy for our planned Memorial Day overnight bike trip so it may be postponed one week. Not that it’s going to be horrible weather, but it will be more fun when a little warmer. Maybe I should call this Fair Weather Bike Touring News?

Sky King’s bike is ready to go.

Grant Petersen at Rivendell pioneered the use of an inexpensive wire basket zip tied to a Nitto rack for overnight bike tripping. Sort of primitive but it looks like it should work. (Notice I’m letting Sky King do the experiment)

Zip tied Wald basket — Zip Ties are the preferred method for attaching the basket to the rack.

Nitto M18 rack fork brake bolt attachment — The Nitto M18 attaches with a metal tang which shares the front brake bolt.

Nitto M18 stays mounted to metal clamps on the fork — For a bike without mid-fork eyelets Nitto provides these stainless steel clamps.

Nitto R10 Bag Supporter mounted to seatpost and seat stays — The Nitto R10 Bag Supporter

The Nitto R10 Bag Supporter is a real minimalist rack but she is just going to use it to support a large rear saddlebag and a sleeping bag.

Photo of Rivendell Bleriot ready for overnight bike trip — Sky

While almost any bike can be used for an overnight trip,Sky King’s bike, Sky, sports road style drop handlebars, bar end shifters, a triple crankset with an 8 speed cassette and relatively voluminous tires about 34 to 35 millimeters wide. The wider tires will offer some cushion on the gravel roads we will be traversing. The small front chainring with 26 teeth combined with a large rear cog of 32 teeth provides a low gear of 21 which should get her up any of the hills we will encounter. (see my post about gear inches to see what that means)

More about the actual packing, the Bike Hermits setup and the route will be the subject of future posts.

Tags bike camping, Bike Gear, lightweight touring, overnight, s24o, Saddlebags