Ocean Air Cycles

1983 Sequoia Final Build - For Now June 21 2011, 0 Comments

The drop bars were not the setup of choice for my wife.  I figured that was going to be the case and had a set of Nitto Albatross bars and NOS Specialized dirt drop stem on hand and ready to go.  The grips and levers took a bit of time to get together, but the finished product looks pretty darn good in my opinion.  The only other thing swapped out so far was the pedals, as with the drops, clips and straps are not here thing at the moment.  The luggage is in the design phases and fenders may show up before the next winter rains.  I entertained the idea of a 650b conversion, not much to gain for her so we are going to hold off.   This is a fantastic bike, I wish you could still walk into a shop and buy something like this off of the rack for a reasonable price.

Weekend Project June 13 2011, 0 Comments

My Father-in-law has been riding his bike more and more recently.  Mostly for fun and exercise, but with the addition of the Acorn bag, the utility aspect really came home in the last couple of weeks.  It is amazing what even a small bag can add for those who have never carried more than a spare tube.  The bike is a Univega Alpina comp in fantastic condition with a great Suntour XC Comp / Ritchey Logic build that is still going strong 20 years now.  The original knobby tire was still on front.  This weekend I was able to put on a set of Schwalbe Big Apples and reset the cockpit a little with an Albatross bar.  The smile was instant as he took it for a test ride around the block.  It is really cool to get someone so stoked.  There is a bit more it will need like bearing repack, maybe some new brake shoes, but all in all the bike is in great shape and ready to go.