This weekend saw two of the final parts of this particular jigsaw fall into place; I finally received the Campagnolo square taper bottom bracket that I bought off Trademe, and I built a sexy new quill stem for the bike.
Getting the bottom bracket was great because it meant I could heave off the adequate but not really visually suitable FSA cranks and mount my decidedly second hand but still sexy 175mm Campagnolo cranks;
This pleases me quite a lot. The BB is a very narrow one and there is only a couple of mm clearance of the crank to the chainstay, but it means I can run the chainring on the outside of the crank and still get a straight chainline...
The next thing to sort was the stem, as I was unhappy with the visual bulk of the quill stem adaptor and BBB riser stem, I was convinced it would look better with a sleek raw steel number.
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| More 4130 goodness from Lianne |
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| Some mitered tubes awaiting the balmy warmth of 3500°C |
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| My first legit fillet braze - yay |
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| I took an incredible amount care making sure the handlebar tube miter held the tube straight and true, there is no joy in a droopy bar. |
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| Cutting the hole for the clamp boss - I had made the boss on the Grayson a bit earlier but forgot to take pics |
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| Braze in that bad boy |
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| Then spend much time filing the fillets to look pretty, and also slit the boss and handlebar tube to form the clamping detail |
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| Another view of the results of laborious filing |
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| Finally fitted up to the bike after a slapped on layer of clear coat. I also made a new slightly sexier bracket for the Jtek shifter, but this was not very interesting and I forgot to take a pic of it. |
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| Much more in keeping I reckon, although I again apologise for the blue electrical tape - I actually went to buy some more and they didn't have any black, so it is not my fault. This will be rectified at the first opportunity, I assure you. |
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| The semi finished article |
I have probably been convinced that I need to paint those mudguards black, maybe this weekend will see some loving given in this direction. I also need to braze a brake light mount tab on that rack and lay down some clear coat on it, but in reality I think I am pretty much done. This is sad in a way, however it is hopefully the start of many years and miles of service for this trusty steed...
Soon I think I will get someone who is more competent than me with a camera (ie anyone over the age of five) to take some arty shots for me so I can frame them and send them to my family for Christmas.
