EBC Revolution Streetfinder hybrid updating - 10 speed etc

[philepo]

Hello

I bought my Revolution Streetfinder around 2008/9 - here is a link to the machine:
http://www.edinburghbicycle.com/comms/site_news/news-archive/news-14-08-09.htm

Used nearly everyday for short commutes. I have become very fond of it, principally because:
It has a short reach to the bars so I can ride pretty upright (and a quill stem, not the hideously ugly(!) Ahead)
700c wheels with speedy comfy Continental road tyres. Brooks saddle with springs. Swept back 'north road' bars

But, the brakes, gears and so on are overdue for replacement. I tried a few bikes in the sales, but apart from the Genesis steel bikes (that are too expensive) I just don't find anything as comfy as the old steed, even if it is 1000 pounds. (Lighter yes, but that doesn't really bother me as I never need to pick it up). So, I wonder if anyone can help with some advice on upgrading? I was thinking:

• New rear wheel with 10 speed XT (?) cassette - are expensive wheels worth it?
• Change front to single cog (as hardly ever use the other 2) - has to be Shimano?
• New rear derailleur & RHS shifter - have to be XT? ANd do I need new brake lever too??
• New 29er type tyres, i.e. around 50 mm wide (plus mudguards) for even more comfort
• I even though of going mad with a carbon fork... thoughts??

Can anyone suggest anything else, or give advice on my plans. I am a good mechanic but not necessarily very knowledgeable about bike parts and interchangeability. So what kind of wheel should I look for and type of derailleur is a bit of a mystery.

I know this is not efficient use of money etc, but I'll enjoy doing it and then I'll still have my unnickable dirty grey scratched bike which makes me less anxious than leaving a new shiny one at the station or when on pub visits etc...

Cheers.

 

[Blue Hills]

Link to the current spec doesn't seem to work.

Though even without looking the carbon fork idea sounds like madness.

I know what you mean about the comfort of an "old" bike that rides well but looks unattractive to thieves. It describes my favourite bike which is by far the cheapest of the six I own. It definitely isn't getting a carbon fork or 10 speed though - I'd worry that it was going all prima donna-ish and trying to emulate the complicated beasts I left for it.

Try to find a link/spec list if you can.

Edinburgh Bike Co-Op - a good choice.

 

[mjr]

I have the same bike but most of its duties were taken over by a new-to-me Dutchie Dapper 3-speed last year. I have a spec list printed and can type it in if @Blue Hills really wants me to, but here are my thoughts:

• Get a new wheel if you need it.
• But why 10 speed? That means changing the 3+7 Rapidfire brake+shifter levers too, which is a big chunk of money mainly to get smaller steps between gears. I know the Streetfinder's MF-TZ21 freewheels are frowned upon on here as old tech and not as good as freehubs, but mine have handled a heck of a lot of hard work without problems and they're still easily available and fairly cheap at £10 in a high street chain store.
• Use your front shifter, or switch the chainset to something with a replaceable big chainring when it next needs replacement.
• Yes, if you replace the shifters, you need brake levers.
• 37mm is the widest I can make the bike take with mudguards without fouling something - a nice supple Schwalbe Delta Cruiser or whichever Vittoria is supple but with some puncture protection (I hate their naming) is pretty comfortable. I don't see how 50mm would fit.
• I know why you're thinking of a new fork (the stock steel one feels very buzzy) but I don't know the practicalities. Carbon seems a bit OTT - I'd probably look for better steel.

 

[Blue Hills]

Very kind of you to offer mjtay but don't go to the bother. Agree with all your post.

 

[philepo]

Hi - thanks for the feedback.
I want 10 speeds so I can snick through closer ratios as the 7 is quite wide but keeping a crawler gear appeals too. BTW I am upright riding but not that slow.
Yes, I want a single ring front - any suggestions?
OK, looking for brakes plus shifters - do I need to keep everything in the same group set of are different rear mechs, cassettes, shifters cross compatible?
I have 42c Continentals at the moment (but they measure about 37 mm by vernier caliper) and there is plenty of room for a few more mm thought the mudguards may need to be wider... so I though 50 may at least give 40+ mm
OK, any suggestions on a fork would be welcome...

 

[mjr]

I want 10 speeds so I can snick through closer ratios as the 7 is quite wide but keeping a crawler gear appeals too. BTW I am upright riding but not that slow.

I'd welcome other opinions but I've never thought that the MF-TZ21 was particularly wide-stepped, with 10-12% steps, but I'd welcome other opinions!

OK, looking for brakes plus shifters - do I need to keep everything in the same group set of are different rear mechs, cassettes, shifters cross compatible?

Some are compatible as long as they're the same number of speeds, but there are some notable differences like not generally mix-and-matching MTB and Road parts. I think the Streetfinder is generally MTB parts as supplied.

I have 42c Continentals at the moment (but they measure about 37 mm by vernier caliper)

Ha! This is probably our difference: I think 35mm Schwalbes measure 37mm with calipers, so that's why I really doubt 50mm would fit... blasted tyre makers!

 

[philepo]

Yes I was surprised - the Kenda tyres were 35 or 38 rated and were 36 mm wide. Ordered 42c contis and ended up with basically the same size tyre - tho the contis roll much better

In answer to general "why do that" I suppose I just want to tinker mainly and I don't care if its not that sensible...

 

[Nibor]

if you are interested in changing the back wheel why not take a look at alfine 8 or 11 speed hub gears?

 

[mjr]

if you are interested in changing the back wheel why not take a look at alfine 8 or 11 speed hub gears?

Vertical drop-outs, so it would need a tensioner. I don't think there's another serious problem with the idea. That and a single chainring (would a Nexus chainset fit?) would allow a plastic hockey-stick chainguard to be fitted...

Overall, it seems like a fiddly and fairly expensive but worthwhile upgrade for a workhorse bike. I think an Alfine 8 would almost reproduce the 3x7 range (missing one useful gear from one extreme and lots of near-duplicates), whereas an 11 would widen the range and give slightly smaller steps than a nearly-as-wide-range 1x10 setup.

 

[Nibor]

For a work horse commuter they make a lot of sense and dependant on wheel size you can pick up some bargains on ebay. Don't need to limit yourself to an alfine chainset I would plump for something in a hollowtech 2 like deore get that second hand the bottom brackets are really cheap and convert it to single ring using shorter bolts.

 

[the snail]

Another option might be to change the freewheel for a closer range set of cogs to reduce the gaps between gears. You'd lose lower (and maybe higher) gears on the back, but you could use the big/small rings on the front more to compensate.

 

[mjr]

Another option might be to change the freewheel for a closer range set of cogs to reduce the gaps between gears. You'd lose lower (and maybe higher) gears on the back, but you could use the big/small rings on the front more to compensate.

The stock freewheel is a MF-TZ21 (a 14/28 7-speed) and the chainset is a 48/38/28. What would you suggest, please?

 

[philepo]

Hi - thanks for the suggestions. Having thought about them, I think the reason I want to upgrade to cassette is the get finer, snickier gears, but as you have pointed out, the ratios I have on the stock one are fairly close, so perhaps a road bike cassette rather than an XT one would be ideal? I have never really needed either the granny ring or large one at the front so I was hoping to ditch those, both for aesthetics and save a bit of weight ad cluttering.

I like hubs on very sedate bikes, especially the old sturmey '3 drips of oil a month' hub (I have a 30 year old Dahon with this which I like very much - though it is heavy it is much stiffer than a wobbly Brompton when riding... wheels a tad too small tho). I also am suspicious of hubs from an engineering point of view because the loads in the gears are enormous (if not riding sedately, as most of them are), frictional losses are higher and the 'grease it and forget it' attitude is not for me.

Anyway, here's a picture of the workhorse. It was upgraded over the years to have a full SKS chainboard (chain guard), swept back bars, Brooks B17 Flyer saddle, Conti contact 2 tyres, side stand. What I've noticed from trying to find a replacement bike in the sales was that the efective top tube length on the Revolution is about 3 cm shorter than typical branded bikes. And since I am a sit up and beg (but quick) rider it suits me.

I'm still undecided about a carbon fork - I've read a few forum discussions and the consensus seems to be that know one knows whether they are truly any better or not, but they look good. I think it might be cool to have a 10 speed carbon-forked shed! Will update eventually...

Cheers

 

[mjr]

Apart from the large chainguard and lack of dynamo lights, that could have been mistaken for my "Rev" at some point. Do you still have the stock pedals and brake arms on? I upgraded both of those to good effect (respectively Vavert Commuters and Shimano Alvio - but don't bother with the rubbish free bundled pads) and they were fairly cheap and easy upgrades.

In case it wasn't obvious, your radical derailleur changes are beyond my experience. As to what you might get, I'd play with www.gear-calculator.com and www.SheldonBrown.com/gears/ for your current and proposed setups and see if it's worth it - it's never worked out so for me for anything I looked at.

As for hub gears, that I can comment on: the Dutchie in my current avatar is still too new for me to really hammer it, but I've thrashed an old three-speed "light sports" roadster at fairly high speeds/pedal-pressures around our rough roads and it's not broken yet (unlike various other bits of that bike! ), so I wouldn't be too suspicious of the engineering. But reportedly, Shimano hubs don't usually like such abuse as much, a three-speed won't give you the smaller steps you seem to want and I'm not sure a Rohloff's worth the expense for this application

 

[philepo]

Update: stolen
Really sad as it was a nice hack bike... and the Brooks saddle was nicely broken in!