Brewster My Bombadil is quite stiff. Bikes that "plane" are really flexible. My Bombadil does not plane. My Rawland Stag with 7/4/7 standard diameter top tube and downtube does plane. My Bombadil is very stout. I use it for camping and trail riding. At times, I am carrying most of the gear for a family of four. When my bike weighs over 90lbs, the extra few ounces of the second top tube does not bother me. Of my 10 bikes, my Bombadil is definitely the most stout. My Ibis Tandem is also very stiff, with radically oversized steel tubing, in addition to a long additional diagonal tube between the top tube and downtube.
For what it's worth, I share your opinion that a 59cm Soma San Marcos, which is supposed to be a sporty road bike, maybe doesn't need a second top tube. But in general, when a bike doesn't appeal to me, I just don't buy it, and leave it at that. Maybe somebody else does love it and wants to buy it, and if that gets them riding, why not! For what it's worth 2, I'm kind of glad my 56cm Sam Hillborne doesn't have a second top tube, because in my application I don't need it. That bike is currently built up quite light, and I just put a pair of 700x38 extralight Barlow Pass tires on it. That bike should really sing on the road now! I'm excited. On Thursday, February 26, 2015 at 11:49:11 AM UTC-8, Brewster Fong wrote: > > > On Thursday, February 26, 2015 at 11:13:15 AM UTC-8, Bill Lindsay wrote: >> >> I own a 56cm Rivendell with a second top tube. Brewster Fong thinks my >> bicycle is stupid and worthy of ridicule. I think my bicycle is beautiful >> and I love riding it. >> >> My Bomba >> <https://www.flickr.com/photos/45758191@N04/8474652710/in/set-72157632769612752> >> >> Brewster Fong thinks it is wrong for Grant to insult carbon fiber, but he >> doesn't mind insulting my bike. I get it! Brewster Fong says "whatever >> gets you riding!", but obviously doesn't really mean it. I really mean it. >> If you love your bike, >> > > You're right Bill. I should have clarified, I wasn't talking about the > looks of double top tubes, but the *need* for it, especially on a 56cm > bike? Maybe you can tell us how wonderful it rides compared to a single > top tube. Personally, I never ridden a bike with two tts, but think it > would stiffen the bike. Wrong? Hey, since my foot is in my mouth, maybe > the double tt helps the bike "plane!" Further, the double tt is not > limited to Rivendell, there's a guy at my work who rides a Sycip with 2 tt: > > http://sycip.com/project/cruiser-town-bikes/ > > Btw, I have a 18 year old carbon bike that many people find ugly! It's a > Calfee with the gussets (webbing). There are many, many people out there > who think its one of the ugliest bikes made. I agree, its not the > prettiest, but man, it is so comfortable to ride! Oh yeah, and very > durable too! > > Nevertheless, I still think its wrong for Grant to insult carbon. Hey, he > makes a good product and should be proclaiming the virtues about steel and > his bikes. After all, doesn't he have like a 3 year wait list for one of > his customs? > > So go enjoy your bike! Since it doesn't rain here any more, that means > more time to ride! Good Luck! > > > >> that's awesome! >> >> Bill Lindsay >> El Cerrito, CA >> >> On Thursday, February 26, 2015 at 9:46:43 AM UTC-8, Brewster Fong wrote: >>> >>> >>> On Wednesday, February 25, 2015 at 3:15:16 PM UTC-8, Steve Palincsar >>> wrote: >>>> >>>> On 02/25/2015 05:39 PM, Brewster Fong wrote: >>>> > Now, this is nothing but anedotal and just one example, but for my >>>> > buddy, the right tool got him going! I don't care what it was made >>>> out >>>> > of, but the supposedly stiff, uncomfortable aluminum frame road bike >>>> > got him hooked and we love it! >>>> >>>> Some of those Alu Specialized road bikes have riding positions very >>>> similar to what GP was advocating back in 2002. I know quite a few >>>> people who have them and like them a lot. I think the Zerts inserts >>>> are >>>> pure placebo and the bikes would be better off with something wider >>>> than >>>> a 25mm tire, but for something you can just walk into a LBS and get for >>>> (by modern standards) relatively cheap money, there are lots worse >>>> bikes >>>> people could buy. >>>> >>>> Yes, it is not just Specialized, but all the biggies - Trek, C'dale and >>> Giant to name a few - now offer more "upright" riding position for all >>> their bikes. For example, Trek sells its carbon bikes with a H1 fit. >>> That's the standard racing fit with low, low bars and super high saddles. >>> BUT, they also sell the same frames/bikes with a H2 fit that has higher >>> bars and a more upright riding position. In fact, this is how the >>> new 10.25lb Trek Emondo, or whatever it is called, is being offered. Then >>> again, if you're really going to spend $15k for a bike, it better be >>> available in any position that you want! >>> >>> I believe the credit for this positioning goes to Grant and his famous >>> "raise dat stem" article that came out in the late 90s?! Now, if we can >>> only do something about G's fetish with double top tubes (on a 56cm frame!) >>> and carbon bashing, we might have something....Good Luck! >>> >> -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch@googlegroups.com. Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
