Planet X Nanolight High Modulus Build..

Chicane-UK
Chicane-UK Posts: 105
edited March 2011 in Your road bikes
I sold my Trek 1.5 last year to a chap on here with intentions of buying a Van Nicholas Ti bike, but my inspired by chatting to a friend (and with some positive reinforcement from my girlfriend) thought it'd be an education to build my own bike.

Several months later, and here it is :)

nearlythere.jpg

It's a Planet X Nanolight High Modulus frame.. picked up one in their big sale just after christmas for a very reasonable £500. That was always my budget for the frame and didn't expect to be able to buy into Carbon for that sort of money so was very pleased when the frame dropped to that price.

The rest of the spec is as follows:

* Shimano 105 5700 groupset - 11-25 cassette, 170mm crank arms, 50/34 compact crankset.
* Mavic Aksium wheelset, schwalbe stelvio tyres
* FSA SL-K seatpost
* FSA Omega Compact handlebars
* Charge Spoon Ti Saddle
* FSA OS115 Stem (110mm)
* Shimano 105 5700 SPD-SL pedals

It was really good fun putting it all together and it's now 95% there. Just need to get the steerer tube cut (one for the LBS I think!) and spend a bit of time sorting shifting on the rear derailleur.. front is fine but rear needs some adjustment. Had a quick ride round the block this evening after work and I'm thrilled with how comfortable it is, especially on the drops. The time spent measuring myself (according to the instructions in Zinn & The Art of Road Bike Maintenance) and going for the much shallower FSA Omega compact drops really paid off.. I'm thrilled with it!

I'll freely admit I might have made some roadie "faux pas" type mistakes, and there might be some bits which might not make sense - I just did as much research as I could and this is what I came out with.

Can't wait to get out on it :)
Planet X Nanolight High Modulus (Roadie) | 2008 Giant Bowery (Fixie)

Comments

  • craker
    craker Posts: 1,739
    Looking good :D

    I've just built one up myself and managed 30 miles or so. I'm finding the front end quite high - have you done any meaningful mileage yet?

    What's the point of the compact drops btw?

    Cheers.
  • Chicane-UK
    Chicane-UK Posts: 105
    Haven't done any miles on it yet - not till the steerer tube gets cut! Have only been round the block :( Dropping the fork off at the LBS on Thursday for it to get the chop!

    Regarding the drops, I never felt comfortable on the drops on my Trek 1.5 - they just seemed huge and, without trying to sound like an idiot, a long way down. I thought I'd try the compacts to see if they were a bit more comfortable. On my very limited test ride this evening I was very pleased with how they felt - and besides, at £15 if they weren't much good, I'd just buy some new ones and some new bar tape and try again - lesson learned. So far I think I've made the right choice.
    Planet X Nanolight High Modulus (Roadie) | 2008 Giant Bowery (Fixie)
  • tx14
    tx14 Posts: 244
    rear brake cable housing looks too long.
  • Chicane-UK
    Chicane-UK Posts: 105
    tx14 wrote:
    rear brake cable housing looks too long.

    That was my second attempt. Originally I'd cut it a bit shorter but found it looked like it was flexing / stretching a little - so I went slightly longer. I've still got some spare cable outer so may well cut it a third time!

    Appreciate there may be some details a bit wrong.. this is my first attempt at a build. The most advanced thing I'd done before this was changing tyres. But (I think) I did do it properly, torque wrenches, carbon assembly paste, etc!
    Planet X Nanolight High Modulus (Roadie) | 2008 Giant Bowery (Fixie)
  • bazbadger
    bazbadger Posts: 553
    Well done!

    That is looking good. Really liking the nanolight frames!

    Be sure to let us all know how it rides once its finished :)
    Mens agitat molem
  • tx14
    tx14 Posts: 244
    we all learn. i bought a stem with the wrong clamp diameter once :oops: .
    good place to start. http://www.sheldonbrown.com/
  • Chicane-UK
    Chicane-UK Posts: 105
    Got the forks cut at the LBS yesterday (did a very nice tidy job) but was out last night until late so didn't get a chance to put it together... so got up an hour early so I could sort it and ride it into work this morning :)

    All went together nicely. Apart from a very minor miscalculation with the fork "bung" and top cap. I think I got the tube cut about 2mm too tall for how I'd measured. The top cap for the bung is slighly bevelled and basically was tightening up against the nut in the centre bung rather than compressing the stem down. Balls. Had some spare spacers though so stuck one on up top and then it all went together proper - but that's no big deal. I can get it cut again at a later point.

    Rode in this morning and everything seemed fine - no teething problems as yet. I found it hard work going back to a geared bike again (been riding fixed now for a while) but can't believe the difference a carbon frame makes on slightly bumpy road surfaces compared to aluminium... it REALLY helps smooth things out a lot. Very enjoyable.

    Needless to say it's not getting locked up outside with the other stuff... have dragged it up into the office instead ;)
    Planet X Nanolight High Modulus (Roadie) | 2008 Giant Bowery (Fixie)

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