Assembling the New Ride

Got around to assembling bike this week, and taking it on a maiden voyage.

Oddly, there were no directions in the box. I kind of like that. A pro thing. You should know what to do. There were some instructions on the outside, starting with how to open the box:

Apparently I was supposed to cut the bottom and lift the top off.

Whoops! Didn’t do that. I opened the top, cut the tie wraps and lifted it out. Meh. Got the job done.

They also had a tip for sizing up the frame:

If you don’t count my doo-dads dangling on the bar, it fits fine. Plenty of room.

They included a cool torque wrench for assembly:

No mention of what the grease was for. I’m guessing the steep threads of the pedals that are screwed into the aluminum alloy cranks. I used permatex no-seize. I am, after all, a professional.

The finished product:

It needs some tweeks. I need to change the seat. I don’t like how it fits. Too much pressure on my perineum. Still it’s not intolerable. Maybe I’ll move the front down a hair. It needs a toolkit, lights, and a bottle holder.

Friday I took it for a spin on the park trail near me.

The ride reminded me of my last mountain bike, a Nishiki that vanished from my garage when I first moved to Plano in 2001. Lesson learned. Close the garage door. But getting to the park was like blasting down the highway in a jeep with nobby tires.

It’s very light, and handles well. It has only one front sprocket, so there’s only the rear gears to deal with. It has a very torquey ride. Good hill climbing power. It didn’t seem that it was hitting the speed of my other bike, but my apple watch recorded a 13 MPH average speed – 2 higher than my normal ride. It may be the smoothness and speed at which it climbs hills.

It was a nice day, a great ride.

That said, I learned some things. First off, the front sprocket is relatively small. My other bike, the one I’ve had for years is a Specialized city bike. It has taller gears in the rear, and three sprockets on the crank, the smallest of which is nearly identical to the new bike. Maybe I click down to it when I’m on the trail.

This week, the older bike needs maintenance. It’s muddy from rides, needs degreasing and oiling.

I didn’t buy this one as a replacement. I’m pretty happy with the old bike, which is more useful should I want to head into town. It’s definitely better on the streets, since that’s what it was designed to tackle. This one is for actual trail riding, which I hope to get to when it cools down around here.