The Monkey Lab: Spot

Showing posts with label Spot. Show all posts

14 April 2014

Spot Honey Badger Mountain Bike with Schlumpf Mountain Drive Crankset

Singlespeed mountain biking has gained a devoted following in recent years, as more and more riders have been thinking outside the box and opting for simple, stripped-down bikes that let them focus solely on the experience of the ride. The flipside of that simplicity is that the gearing limitations of a singlespeed just don’t suffice on some trails, especially in steep hilly areas. We put together this belt drive Spot Honey Badger for a customer who told us he enjoyed singlespeeding but needed a gearing boost to get up the steeper hills on his local trails in Santa Rosa, California. We added a Schlumpf Mountain Drive to give him an ultra-low gear to get up the most extreme grades on the trail while still retaining the simple singlespeed aesthetic and belt drive compatibility.

Spot’s Honey Badger is designed as a comfortable, capable trail bike, with a good combination of stability and responsiveness. Like all of Spot's bikes, the Honey Badger was designed to be compatible with a belt drive system. Interchangeable dropouts allow for single speed/internal gear hub or derailleur use. The dropouts slide to adjust chain or belt tension with a single speed/internal gear hub or to adjust wheelbase with a derailleur. The steel frame has a few interesting features that set it apart from most hardtail frames, including curved seatstays and a time-trial style cutaway seattube that flex to provide some compliance and make the ride more comfortable. The downtube is also stamped into a wave design where it meets the headtube, creating a stronger weld that serves as a strengthening gusset. Overall, the frame is designed to be as versatile and robust as its namesake Honey Badger, a weasel-like animal with extremely tough skin that roams the plains of Africa.

This customer wanted to retain the same essential feel of singlespeed riding while also eliminating the hike-a-bike portions of his ride that were necessary with only one gear. To meet his criteria we installed a Schlumpf Mountain Drive, which has a 2.5 reduction ratio, to offer a low gear for super steep climbing. To shift to the low gear, a rider simply has to tap a button in the middle of the right side crank arm with their right heel. To shift back to the high gear, the rider taps a matching button on the left crank with their left heel. This heel-activated shift system eliminates the need for a shifter and cable on the handlebars, keeping the bike’s cockpit uncluttered. It also provides a simple, adjustment free option for changing gears.

The bike comes stock with a Gates Carbon Drive belt drive, which was a priority for our customer. He loved the fact that the belt drive system lasts at least twice as long as a chain and doesn't require any maintenance aside from periodic silicone spray to resist squeaking in dry, dusty conditions. For mountain biking in particular, the belt drive is ideal because muddy and dusty trails can take their toll on a conventional chain much quicker than on the road.

If you’re interested in a Schlumpf-equipped mountain bike of your own, contact us to start a conversation about what type of bike is best for you. We have installed Schlumpf cranksets on just about any type of bike, including mountain, commute, fixed gear, cargo, and recumbent bikes/trikes. Schlumpf units can also easily be combined with a Rohloff SPEEDHUB to create even more gear range for people riding steep hills or carrying heavy loads.

Build Details:

• Frame: Spot Honey Badger
• Fork: Manitou Tower Comp 29er
• Headset: FSA integrated
• Stem: Truvativ Stylo T20
• Handlebar: Spot 700mm
• Shifter: N/A
• Grips: WTB
• Seatpost: Truvativ Stylo
• Saddle: WTB Pure V Race
• Seat Clamp: Spot
• Front Hub: Sun Ringle Charger
• Rear hub: Sun Ringle Charger
• Spokes: Wheelsmith J bend
• Nipples: Wheelsmith
• Rims: Sun Ringle Charger
• Tires: WTB Bronson 29x2.2”
• Cranks: Schlumpf Mountain Drive
• Pedals: Shimano XTR
• Bottom Bracket: Schlumpf Mountain Drive
• Chain ring: Gates Carbon Drive
• Rear Sprocket: Gates Carbon Drive
• Chain: Gates Carbon Drive
• Brakes & Levers: Avid Elixir 5
• Rotors: Avid

18 January 2013

Rohloff-Equipped, Belt Driven Spot Sprawl Commuter/Touring Bike

We built this bright green commuter for one of our customers in Anchorage, AK. He had been commuting on an aluminum cyclocross frame and wanted to switch to a steel bike for better comfort. He was also looking for a more durable frame to do some touring on. He had picked up a used Rohloff SPEEDHUB 500/14 and sent it down to us for an overhaul and to be built up with a Chris King front hub into a wheelset. He wanted to put the new wheels on a frame that was Rohloff, and ideally belt drive, compatible, so the Spot Sprawl fit his needs.

For the wheels, we laced up the Rohloff SPEEDHUB 500/14 and Chris King ISO disc hubs into Velocity Dyad rims using Sapim Race double butted spokes and brass nipples. This is a configuration we build regularly for commuting, road, light to moderate touring, or cross country mountain bike use. Basically straight-forward wheels that will provide many years of reliable service.

The bike is built up with a collection of high-quality, durable parts to complement the nearly maintenance-free drivetrain offered by the Rohloff SPEEDHUB 500/14 and the Gates Carbon Drive belt drive system. For the brakes, we used the TRP Parabox mechanical to hydraulic disc brake system, which allows you to use any standard brake levers, which in this case are from SRAM. Brake cables run from the levers to the conversion unit mounted below the stem and are connected to small lever arms that drive fluid to the brake calipers. This system offers the solid lever feel of a full hydraulic system without being locked into a given manufacturer's brake or brake/shift levers. Like the Magura brakes we normally spec on flat bar builds, the TRP brakes also use mineral oil, which is less toxic than DOT fluid and doesn't require as much regular maintenance.

The Sprawl frame is marketed for commuting or light touring. The geometry is the same as their Mod cyclocross bike with that addition of rack and fender mounts. Sliding dropouts provide belt/chain tension, and the drive side one separates to install a belt. A Rohloff-specific left side insert is available for use with the Rohloff OEM axle plate. Tubes are True Temper OX Platinum chromoly steel, built in Colorado.

Build details

Frame: Spot Sprawl Steel
Fork: Spot carbon
Headset: Chris King NoThreadset
Stem: Salsa Pro Moto
Handlebar: Salsa Pro Moto
Shifter: Rohloff
Brake Levers: SRAM 500
Tape: Deda
Seatpost: Velo Orange Grand Cru
Saddle: Fizik Aliante
Front Hub: Chris King ISO Disc
Rear hub: Rohloff SPEEDHUB 500/14
Spokes: Sapim Race
Nipples: Sapim Brass
Rims: Velocity Dyad
Tires: Schwalbe Marathon
Skewers: Shimano XT
Cranks: Race Face Turbine
Bottom Bracket: Race Face
Chainring: Gates Carbon Drive Center Track Pulley
Chain: Gates Carbon Drive Center Track Belt
Brakes: TRP Parabox
Rotors: Magura Storm

27 October 2012

Rohloff-Equipped, Belt Driven Spot Rocker SS 29'er Mountain Bike

This steel Spot 29'er was built for a customer in Lynchburg, VA. The customer came to us looking for a bike with a Rohloff SPEEDHUB 500/14 and a Gates Carbon Drive belt system. These two products offer the high durability, low maintenance setup he was after for a high-mileage off road bike. After considering some stock titanium options as well as custom options in steel and titanium, he decided that this mostly stock steel frame offered the right combination of weight, ride quality, and affordability. Saving some money on the frame left a little more for the component package, which is made up of top quality parts.

For the wheels, we laced the Rohloff rear hub and a Chris King ISO disc front hub into a pair of No Tubes rims using Sapim double-butted and brass nipples. This gave a relatively light wheelset without being too delicate. The customer is fairly light, so we went with No Tubes lightest front rim, the Crest. Since the rear wheel sees more weight and impact, we used an Arch EX rim in the back, which has the same shape as the Crest but with thicker side walls. Race spokes are the standard double butted option from Sapim and were chosen for their combination of weight vs stiffness. Brass nipples were chosen for their strength and corrosion resistance.

The Rocker SS is Spot's steel hardtail mtb frame. The geometry is optimized for predictable single-track handling and all-day ride comfort. You get the lively, comfortable ride you expect from steel in a frame that is lighter than many other steel frames. Owing to the steep, technical Rocky Mountain trails in the backyard of the Spot facility, the head angle is about 2 degrees slacker on the Rocker SS than on your typical 29'er frame. This gives the bike more stability on steeper descents and at higher speeds compared to typical 29'er hardtails, which are often designed around XC racing.

At the time this frame was built, we were able to request slight customization in the form of Rohloff-specific cable guides instead of derailleur cable guides. This, along with the Rohloff-specific dropout that Spot designed for their sliding dropouts, gives a clean, integrated look for the SPEEDHUB 500/14. Unfortunately, with a shift to offshore manufacturing, customization is no longer an option directly from Spot. We can, however, have one of their current frames modified by one of the quality frame builders we work with to achieve a similar result. The alternative would be to use zip-ties to attach the shift cables to the frame as we do on most builds when using an off-the shelf frame.

Build details