And now the final bit, at least for now. I rode the new C-17 Cambium from Honolulu to Haleiwa (73.5 miles from where I started to where I stopped).
The saddle was fine and my rump doesn't feel like it had a bad time of it. I think that I might have been slightly more comfortable with one of my reliable B-17s (like the I did this ride with on Memorial Day). On the other hand it may simple be the way I was feeling today. I'd really have to A/B this several times to report reliably. The saddle did pick up a bit of dirt today, mostly from my hands though I tried to be careful. It is the natural color version and this wouldn't be an issue with black or another darker color. So far so good with the Cambium. I think it's really going to come down to a matter of taste as to whether one likes this thing or not. I'm not going to switch out all my leather saddles for the C-17, but I'm finding it to be a quality product that's comfortable without break-in, looks good if it's to your taste, and doesn't involve livestock. The ride itself was nice. I had a couple of mechanical issues after 60 or so miles. I started hearing a lot of rattling. On my RIvs that's pretty rare so I slowed and tried to narrow down the noise. Turns out that, even though I did use beeswax, one of my bottle cages had loosened. Not a biggie. A couple turns with a handy tool and I was off.... ...only to find that I could seem to select certain gears and when I tried I heard...a lot of rattling. Hmmm...this seemed a bit more serious so I immediately pulled over. Looking down at the rear derailleur I discovered that a bit of wire had wrapped itself around the rear cassette. It took a couple of minutes to untangle but didn't do any damage. Once I took off my gears worked normally and everything was silent again. When I got to Haleiwa I had a quick smoothie and then sat outside at a Thai place so I could get a nice bowl of Tom Ka - Thai coconut based soup. Yum. Just thing after a long ride. I then hopped the regular bus (all our buses have bike racks) and my troubles really began. I had no trouble putting bike in the rack, fit fine and the springed loop was tight around my front wheel. The driver braked and moved and braked while I was trying pay and I figured, "Oh great, a cowboy." How right I was. This guy really braked hard, cornered poorly, and I swear he hunted out potholes (though I won't put that one in my complaint). In any case as we approached town (after 30 miles? of cowboy driving) he called out and said, "You'd better get your bike, you didn't put it on properly." BS. In any case, the springed loop was off and my biking was leaning forward pretty far. I secured it and had to endure a lecture from the driver on using bungie cords (I've never needed one before btw). Finally I just said fine, I'll take my bike. I took it off, he drove away and I discovered I was f'd. The bike had leaned so far forward it has actually damaged my rear rim. It wobbled something fierce and I figured I'd have to true it up. I wish. As it turns out the rim was actually cracked. It didn't look particularly safe to ride, but after opening the back brake I gave it a try and decided that as it was broken anyway I might as well try to get home the final 6 miles. It held. Not something I'd really want to do but I take really low traffic streets so I figured it was better than walking. I've got a few photos from the ride today and you can see a couple pictures of the rim taken after the fact. When I got home I switched seat posts and saddles with the Quickbeam so I can ride to work tomorrow. I'll take a few pictures of how it looks on the QB and let everyone know how I like it on a single speed. http://www.flickr.com/photos/mgps-bob/sets/72157634040592240/ Aloha Broken Wheel Bob On Sun, Jun 9, 2013 at 12:21 AM, Ron Mc <bulldog...@gmail.com> wrote: > C17 si also officially a composite material - I think you nailed it there, > Doug - the frame is aluminum instead of steel. This saddle will open up a > market to them. They are not expecting to lose us over this saddle, > they're expecting to gain others. > > > On Saturday, June 8, 2013 9:02:18 PM UTC-5, Doug Williams wrote: >> >> I can't see the Cambium replacing my B17 Select anytime soon. But >> then...what does it weigh? I wonder if the Cambium might break into the "I >> like Brooks but they are too heavy" market? >> >> I wonder what a C17 on titanium rails would weigh? Perhaps Brooks could >> sell them to the carbon crowd? >> >> >> On Thursday, June 6, 2013 7:13:12 PM UTC-7, Statrixbob wrote: >> >>> I was chosen as one of the first 100 folks to receive a Brooks Cambium >>> C-17 saddle. Mine just arrived today and while I haven't yet mounted it on >>> a bike (probably my daily ride, the Hunq), I did take some pictures to >>> "prove it happened." >>> >>> http://www.flickr.com/photos/**mgps-bob/sets/**72157633977211833/<http://www.flickr.com/photos/mgps-bob/sets/72157633977211833/> >>> >>> I generally ride the B-17 model and I've got a bunch of those in >>> standard, Special, and the new Select. The C-17 definitely feels lighter >>> (though of course that's not really a concern). It also is made with less >>> material than a B-17 and doesn't have the 'skirting' down the sides. Since >>> it doesn't feel as 'slick' as worn leather I wondering if it'll grab the >>> inside of my pant legs. I guess we'll find out. >>> >>> The overall look of the saddle is pleasing and I'm sure it'll look nice >>> on my Hunq (or QB). I was sent one in 'natural' and I'm pretty sure it's >>> going to get dirty quick...I've heard that from one of the other testers >>> who read an blog entry I wrote when I was informed I'd been chosen. >>> >>> Unfortunately I've to run a non-bike errand right now so mounting it and >>> the first ride will have to come a bit later. I'm thinking I should just >>> mount it and and then swap seat posts between my Hunq and my QB to give it >>> workout on both bikes. >>> >>> While the first 100 have been chosen and probably have all received >>> their saddles (living in Hawaii I'm probably one of the last to receive the >>> shipment), the did open it up by 50 more. I don't know if they've been >>> chosen but Brooks did suggest everyone sign up because one could be chosen >>> for other products. The sign-up page is still open at: >>> >>> http://www.brooksengland.com/**cambium/<http://www.brooksengland.com/cambium/> >>> >>> Aloha! >>> >>> Bob >>> >>> >>> >>> -- >>> Robert Harrison >>> Honolulu, HI >>> rfhar...@gmail.com >>> statrix.com >>> >> -- > 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?hl=en-US. > For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out. > > > -- Robert Harrison Honolulu, HI rfharri...@gmail.com statrix.com -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. 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