You say living room I say workshop

I don't really need a big living space. But it would be nice to have a workshop (or a guestroom... or an office). But the living room must suffice for all. When I'm in the middle of bike work, it become a mess. And this picture is after the bike has been removed from the center.



But now it's clean. Well at least by my standards, which tends to mean the floor is dusted and the surface areas are covered with clutter.



No matter. Katie's Del-Ray is finished. I biked her (the bike, not Katie) over to the bike store today and got a seat post ($20) and a seat ($25). It wasn't easy to bike on that seatless small bike, but I'm good at riding bikes. And the bike rides well.

Then I made a few hours of adjustments: The kickstand clamp was clamped over the rear shifting cable (oops), the right shifter was too close to the hand, the front derailleur needed adjustment (as it always will), the fenders stays had to be adjusted and tightened, the shifting cable housing between the frame and the rear derailleur had to be replaced (it was too short), I put on Zora's old front light, trued the rear wheel, and popped ferrules on the end of the four cables. She's a fine steed and good to go!

The Fuji Del-Ray

Katie may have a nice frame from between 1983 and 1986. Confirmed, I think, by the Dia Comp rear brake.

http://www.bikeforums.net/archive/index.php/t-99546

"I believe the Del Rey was Fuji's top of the line sport touring bike when it was first introduced. "

"I have a 1983 Del Rey, and I'm pretty sure it was the first year that model was made. It got a good write up in 'Bicycling' that spring, so I bought one. Price was $300. It came with Sun Tour Vx derailleurs, Sugino 52/42 crankset, Dia Comp brakes and levers, Ukui (sp) rims and I can't remember the name of the hubs. Nitto bars and stem. The weight was advertised as 24lbs. although I never weighed it. The frame is quad butted Valite steel tubing as T-Mar mentioned. And yes, the Del Rey model became a hybrid around 1986 ~."

"I've put over 50k miles on it over the years. I still ride it occasionally; although I've graduated to lighter and faster bikes, I never forget the sweet ride."

"The Del Ray was a 1980s model. I have specs for 1984-1986 and it cost $300-350 US. It's a bit arbitrary on where to draw the line between different levels, but I'd call this upper, entry level. At best, it's lower mid-range. All these version used Fuji's own Valite, quad-butted tubing and various SunTour/Sugino/Dia-Compe component mixes. The 1986 version did have a triple chainring, which would explain your touring description."


Note that Katie’s frame has little if any relation to the crappy aluminum hybrid bike Fuji now makes under the used-to-be-classy Del-Ray name.

Introducing Katie's Bike!

Just cause I don't post much doesn't mean I'm not busy building bikes. My friend Katie needed a bike. She was pretty jealous of the Bluebird, as she should be. So I said, what the hell, I'll put together a little something for you. This one I tried to do on the cheap. But that still means $500. But that's half the price of the Bluebird. I reused as many parts as I could. Not most. But I had cranks and chainrings and handlebars and brakes and a front wheel and a rear hub. All free! Well, free for Katie. I don't think anybody gave them to me. But I'm happy to put them to good use. And the frame was a steal on e-bay: $60 for a nice frame including headset, bottom bracket, and rear brakes.

So why can't a build a bike for less $500? Mostly the wheels. I won't chintz on them. Cheap wheels will give you a biketime of problems. And who’s going to be fixing my friends' bikes? Me, of course. So better they spend money and I make a good bike and have fewer hassle in the future. So even with a spare wheel and a hub laying around, the wheels still cost $210. The rear rim and spokes cost $62, the tires costs $90 for the pair, and fenders cost $45. That’s $220 right there. Add $70 for new derailleur and $25 for shifters and Bob’s your uncle.

I'm sold on expensive tires. Cheap tires get flats. So do old tires. And both can be dangerous, if they slip and fall when you need them most. Ultimately your life does depend on where rubber meets road. But it's the no-flat thing that sold me.

I accidentally bought $50 tires for my Bianchi last Spring. I thought it was $50 for the pair, but it wasn’t. So then I had to spend another $50 to complete the set. (I just found the same tires for $40 each when looking for Katie’s tires. I got two spare for me. But they’re still not cheap.)

Before I put on the expensive tires, my tires cost about half as much: $50 for the pair. I was getting flats about once a month. New York streets are rough. Lots of glass. Flats suck. Since I put on the expensive Continental tires in February of 2004, it’s been 16 months without a flat. They paid for themselves in saved tubes alone! And saved hassle? Priceless. I’m sold.

I didn’t take pictures of building Katie’s bike. We’ve been (slowly) working on it together for a little while. It’s pretty much done now, except for a seat post and seat. If only we had a good name.







I found that (yet) another bike can be kept in this nook in the bathroom. I’m pretty sure I have more bikes per square foot of living space than do most people.




Here are three of my bikes. In order: Katie's, the Screamin' Salmon, and my Bianchi. If I ever need a flag, I think I'll use these three colors. Not shown are the two outside and the folding bike in the closet.