• Rant: 26mm Road Stems

    Salsa and ITM stem

    I want a new stem for my Gunnar cyclocross bike.   The Gunnar currently has a Salsa steel stem that is exactly what I want, but a little too short.

    After an exhaustive search I’ve found very few road stems with the 26mm clamp.  Does Thomson make one?  No.  What about Moots?  No.  FSA?  Nope.  Salsa does make a couple stems with 26mm clamps, but the steel version doesn’t come in the length I want, and the one that is the proper length is welded aluminum and looks like it belongs on a downhill bike.  The rest of the current offerings seem to all be forged aluminum clones with slightly different but equally garish logos applied.

    I thought I found the perfect stem.  eBay came though with a new old stock ITM/Colnago Ergo Lite.  Unfortunately, the sellers description of a 1 1/8″ steerer with shim to 1″ was incorrect and I now have a nice looking but useless stem.  For anyone considering an Egro Lite stem, note that while there is a shim, it is in fact for angle adjustment and only works for a 1″ steerer.

    It seems that the perfectly adequate 26mm road bar has fallen out of favor for the ridiculous looking 31.8mm bar.  Moots, Thomson, Salsa and just about everyone else make varying assortments of 31.8 stems ranging from nice (Thomson) to hideously ugly (Easton).  While trashing my 26mm bar for an otherwise identical 31.8mm bar is a potential solution, replacing the bars, tape and computer mount just to accommodate a silly fad is unnecessary, expensive, and annoying.

    Currently it is a toss-up between a 26mm to 31.8mm shim or a new frame.  I’ll let you know what happens.

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  • MAKE Magazine

    MAKE Magazine

    I’ve been a MAKE Magazine subscriber for several years. Out of all of the logistics and details that come with an international move, my MAKE subscription has been the easiest and least problematic to deal with.  Not only did MAKE forward my subscription across the planet at no cost, they also mailed out an issue I missed (also at no cost).

    What else?  MAKE also has great tips like converting that useless PC into a Baby Rocker.

  • Cyclo-Computer Mount Repair

    Computer Mounted

    A few months ago I broke my Sigma 1600 computer when it (and the rest of the bike) unexpectedly met a stream bank.  The computer still worked, but one of the mounting ears was missing.  Initially I just used a pair of zip-ties to hold the computer to the mount, but the zip-ties moved around a bit, I wasn’t confident that the zip-ties would hold on rough trails, and it wasn’t easy to remove the computer from the mount.

    Zip-tie Repair

    As many of you know, inner tubes are very useful for a number of purposes other than holding air in your tires.  My new mount uses a standard 26 x 2″ mountain tube (I’m guessing it is a 2″ tube, I found it on the trail), and that is it.  I just cut a length of tube, cut a window for the computer display, and then another hole to fit around the mount base.  Normally I’d give a procedure or some simple instructions, but since all you have to do is cut two holes in an inner tube I’ll just post some photos:

    Broken Computer

    Broken Mounting Tab

    Cut Tube and Computer

    The cut tube prior to installation on the mount

    Inner Tube Mount

    Inner tube mount installed

    Computer Mounted

    Computer Mounted (with the buttons still easily accessible)

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