Genesis Volant Build for Grandson

arlowood

Just completed this build which will end up as a Christmas present for my grandson who has now grown out of his aging Trek mountain bike. The target was to provide him with a more road orientated bike but to stop short of the full drop bar experience,

As a result I have gone for the flat bar option with a CX chainset (46/36) married to a medium cage rear derailleur with a fairly wide range MTB type cassette (11-32)



Specs are as follows:-

Frameset:- Genesis Volant 6061 alloy (50cm)
Front derailleur:- Shimano 105 FD5700 band on
Rear derailleur:- Shimanoi 105 RD5700 GS, medium cage
Shifters:- Shimano Ultegra R780 flat bar 2 x 10
Brake levers:- Shimano Tiagra 4600 - flat bar levers
Chainset:- Shimano CX50 - 46/36
Cassette:- Shimano SLX HG81-10, 11-32
Chain:- KMC X10
Brake calipers:- Shimano 105 5800
Wheelset:- Shimano R500
Tyres:- Vittoria Rubino
Stem:- Deda Zero 1 - 90mm
Bars:- Ritchey WCS Alloy
Seatpost:- Ritchey WCS
Saddle:- Charge Spoon
Pedals:- Look Keo Classic

I've got the Look Keo's on ATM as I will be doing some test riding when the weather relents to make sure that all is securely together and the gears and brakes work properly. Everything seems fine on the workstand but a good road test will highlight any problems. I will then fit some flat pedals, as presenting him with cleated pedals would be a step too far.

A few more pics of the build are at this link:-

https://www.flickr.com/photos/39387382@ ... 163574278/

term1te

I think there is going to be one happy boy come Christmas.

napoleond

There's nowt more exciting than getting a new bike for christmas!

Looks brilliant!

veronese68

Excellent, lucky boy.

Cutlerclan

That's a well thought out build like that !!

arlowood

Cutlerclan wrote:

That's a well thought out build like that !!

NapoleonD wrote:

There's nowt more exciting than getting a new bike for christmas!
Looks brilliant!

Veronese68 wrote:

Excellent, lucky boy.

Term1te wrote:

I think there is going to be one happy boy come Christmas.

Thanks for the comments guys.

My strategy was to provide him with a set-up that was a bit of a "crossover" from what he was was used to on his existing mountain bike. Hence the flat bars, 46/36 CX chainset and the 11-32 cassette. He's 13 at the moment and if he gets more into road riding then I can tweak the gearing accordingly maybe moving to a 12-30 or 11-28 cassette.

Ultimately I could go the whole hog and fit a compact chainset, drop bars and STI's but that may be expecting a bit too much as he is by nature quite conservative. It's also likely that he may have grown out of the frame by then anyway

veronese68

Changing to drop bars as he outgrows it may extend the reach to buy a bit more time on it. Only cost effective if the bars and STIs can be transferred to the next bike though.

arlowood

arlowood wrote:

I've got the Look Keo's on ATM as I will be doing some test riding when the weather relents to make sure that all is securely together and the gears and brakes work properly. Everything seems fine on the workstand but a good road test will highlight any problems.

Just completed the first test ride yesterday as it was the first decent day weatherwise since the build was completed.

All seems to be working very smoothly - aside from the slightly comic element of me riding a frame that is approaching 3 sizes too small for me.

My first experience of flat bar shifters and I was pleasantly surprised at how well they performed. I suppose they are Ultegra grade so should be pretty slick. The combination with the 105 front and rear mechs is all good and my concerns about the wide range MTB cassette were unfounded. Indexing and changing across the full gear spectrum is spot on. I even tried running big/big and small/small because I'm pretty sure he will end up using them at some point despite warnings against. No problems with either extreme - the trim function worked well to prevent chain rub.

All-in-all I'm satisfied with the end result - just need to fit the flat pedals and he's good to go.