Serotta Update

Well, I have the frame in hand now.  57cm top tube, which is going to make this interesting because I am really a 60-61cm kind of guy.

Better or worse, 30-year-old road geometry is a little different.  Something in a 60cm back then would have an obnoxious seat tube length.  This Serotta already has a 60cm seat tube and I need no more than 200mm of seatpost.  If this frame were any bigger my saddle would be scraping the freakin’ top tube.

Having measured things out, I am going to try and get away with a 130mm stem.  That’s on the long side, but I run a 120 on another 58cm frame I own, and a 130 on another 58cm frame, so it could be okay.  A lot depends on the shape of the bars and the length of the hoods too, which is why there’s some variability.

It ain’t real easy to find yourself a 130mm quill stem on short notice; at least one that’s appropriate for this bike.  Fortunately, eBay is magic.

This just happens to be a 130mm quill stem, with a pair of 42cm c-t-c handlebars attached to it, which juuuust happen to be the right size.  What I know about these is that they’re Scott branded 3T components, and this is the same setup Lemond used in stage 20 of the 1990 TDF.

A little cleaning up and on they’ll go.  $36 shipped.  Note the rust.  Steel.  Everything is steel.  This thing is going to weigh something.

I have two saddle choices.  Some of you, when reading this are going to scream that I am insane but follow along.

Choice one is a Brooks Swift.  Not just any Swift.  It is a Fast Boy Swift that I purchased last year from Ezra Caldwell.  Only a handful were made, customized for Ezra by the only official Brooks repair guy in the US.  Ultra rare, ultra special, ultra appropriate.  The problem is, I am terrified of riding it, because I’ve heard the break-in period on these things is something like 500 miles of brutality.

Okay it’s time to release the vomit for some of you, choice 2 is a Specialized Romin (another eBay find) that I found in a reasonable looking color combination.  I use a Romin on the Rivet and have never had an issue with it, so it is a safe fallback position.  Relax, I didn’t actually weigh it, this pic is from the auction.  The only consolation I can offer is that it has steel rails.

Otherwise, I have most of what I need to get started.  Some castoff Ultegra 6500 brakes laying around, 6500 derailleurs, some 7700 downtube shifters that didn’t work out on the hillclimb bike last summer, a 6600 grey compact crank (it will work for now), some old 600 levers, or SRAM 900 levers.  Really want to find the right seatpost; I have an old EC70 that will definitely work, but man does it look bad.  Ordered some cheap white Jagwire housing.  Haven’t figured out what color to tape the bars.

For some reason this bike reminds me of my first road bike in the whole world; I guess that’s why I’m putting in the effort to try and make it work.  When it’s done, this is the bike I plan to commute on.  My commute is two hours/35 miles one way, so it needs to be right in the comfort department.  I do that commute once a week right now, and have done it on both the Rivet and my Langster.  The Langster is brutal, even with “25mm tires“.  The Rivet wants to break my wrists as we get closer to hour four.