On Thursday, November 20, 2025 at 2:41:51 PM UTC-7 Roberta wrote:
Congratulations Max on the bike. It seems like it’s a grail bike for many people. What makes that so? What is it about this bike? I am truly interested and I’m looking forward to seeing more pictures and stories. Roberta I can try to answer: 1. For long-time fans of Rivendell, this is the model that best captures the spirit of what Grant originally set out to do. In an era of almost-universal 23mm tires and twitchy geometries and no fender or rack provisions, this was the only way to get a road bike that would accommodate fat tires, and that could be a one-bike-to-do-anything. (Using mountain bike tires, which were all 26" at the time.) In today's bike market, it's hard to remember how unique that actually was. 2. As a subjective matter, some people (myself included) really like the proportions of a large frame with small wheels. It's unexpected, if you're used to something else, but looks right if you think in terms of form-follows-function. 3. 26" wheels on a road bike are REALLY enjoyable. They have less inertial mass (is that a real term?), so they spin-up easier and allow the bike to accellerate faster. They also have a lower gyroscopic center of gravity, so they corner well and feel more planted. I can't overstate this, and I'm not alone. Whenever I ride a different road bike and come back to my AR (or XO-1), it just feels "right" - even if another bike might fit a little better or be more relaxed or a little lighter. 4. When bikes had shorter wheelbases, as they generally did at the time, the smaller diameter virtually eliminated toe clip overlap, without making other geometry / handlingcompromises! 4. As a touring/travel bike, 26" wheels are (were?) ideal, because tires are available almost anywhere in the world. 5. During this era, Rivendell frames were built-to-order, so they were essentially "custom," even as one of the semi-standard models. They had some of the best framebuilders in the world doing them, and they are like works of functional art. Joe and Joe collaborated on some of the nicest ones. It's hard to appreciate without seeing them in person and side-by-side with a production model, but the perfectionism and attention to detail is beautiful. Imagine the edge of every lug being touched in some way, filed and thinned and perfectly brazed. On Wednesday, November 19, 2025 at 11:49:12 AM UTC-5 maxcr wrote: Hi Everyone, As mentioned in the CL thread, I was the lucky buyer of the AR from eBay. Here's a bad photo from my basement last night after picking it up. I promise better photos at some point in the future: [image: IMG_8327.jpg] I've always been curious about the early models, the 26 wheels on large frame with a tighter geo, canti posts and great tire clearance made it super appealing to me. The price was fair, larger ARs don't come up for sale often. I'm really happy that my hunch was correct, it's a 59! Which is the goldilocks size for me and more appropriate than 57 or 58. The seller said that the owner was a doctor who recently passed away and his wife has been slowly selling his bikes through a friend who used to work at their LBS (he has a couple of tandems, a Jack Taylor, a Ti Seven and others that he's going to list). The bike has the original owners name in the top tube, which is kinda cool, to keep the legacy going for him. Now the details. The bike is an early model. Based on the serial (JS0030) and the JB in the chain stay, it's a Joe Starck /Joe Bell combo from 2000. It's also number 30. 30 what? I don't know, the 30th All-Rounder ever built? Maybe. The metallic blue paint with the cream head tube is just amazing even after 25 years. There are some minor blemishes and chips as you would expect from a bike that has been ridden, but it's really in top condition. I will probably ride it as is for a bit, but have plans to rebuild it. The Ultegra group with brifters isn't what I want. I will probably keep the drops (they say N Grand Randoneur which I assume is a Nitto noodle variant) but need to see if they will work for me. I also plan to swap out the drivetrain - probably put on a NOS Ritchey Logic crankset that I have or a TA Carmina that I recently acquired paired with an XTR rapid rise RD (or maybe an OM-1?). For tires, I'd love your thoughts. I'm thinking of RH Rat Trap Pass tires, unless you convince me that the Naches Pass or the Simworks Homage are a better option. I might want to keep it fendered, not sure... but these fenders won't clear a really wide tire. Anyway, please offer your suggestions as I rethink this build. It won't happen until next year given my time availability and other projects in the pipeline. As you can see my downsizing isn't going well. I think I'm up to 11 with the latest purchase of that time capsule brown Saluki and this AR. At some point some will have to go, but I have a feeling that the AR is a keeper. Cheers Max in Boston -- 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 [email protected]. To view this discussion visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/be590834-1828-4996-a402-ba80c0e1adbcn%40googlegroups.com.
