Welcome to BikeRadar Builds<\/h2>\n
BikeRadar Builds is our occasional look at the team\u2019s personal bikes, including custom rigs, commuters, dream builds, component testbeds and more.<\/p>\n
This is our chance to geek out about the bikes we\u2019re riding day-to-day, and explore the thinking (or lack of it!) behind our equipment choices.<\/p>\n
- Alex\u2019s Marin Alpine Trail custom test bike<\/a><\/li>\n
- Simon\u2019s Planet X Exocet 2 time trial bike<\/a><\/li>\n
- Simon\u2019s 2009 TCR Advanced SL<\/a><\/li>\n
- Jack\u2019s refurbished touring tandem, Cecil<\/a><\/li>\n
- George\u2019s Mason Bokeh gravel bike<\/a><\/li>\n
- Matthew\u2019s Genesis Croix de Fer 853<\/a><\/li>\n
- Tom\u2019s Santa Cruz Chameleon mullet singlespeed<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>
<\/p><\/div> <\/section>
Provenance<\/h2>\n
![\""Jack\"]( "\\"\"Jack\\"\/")
<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>Lee Cooper has been producing bikes under his own name and others for decades.<\/span><\/figcaption> Jack Luke \/ Immediate Media<\/i><\/span><\/div>\n Earlier this year, I decided I wanted a go-fast(ish) road bike of my own to complement my All-City Mr Pink<\/a>.<\/p>\n
After a call out to my beloved Instagram followers, I ended up picking up this Lee Cooper<\/a> Reynolds 653-tubed frameset from 1994 (all for the price of three beers and some gravel tyres \u2013 thanks Tom!).<\/p>\n
Cooper is a highly respected custom bike builder<\/a> and continues to manufacture frames for a number of brands, including the highly-regarded Stanforth Cycles<\/a>.<\/p>\n
I got in touch with Cooper to find out what I could about the origins of the bike. Unfortunately, he couldn\u2019t supply any specific details because his build logs were lost in 2003, but he suggested the frameset was most likely built for a local shop.<\/p>\n
That might sound unusual today, but it wasn\u2019t that long ago that many well-established bike shops worked with local builders (or in-house builders) to supply customers with bikes \u2013 if you were a serious rider, you were as likely to order your new bike in this manner as you were through a traditional distributor.<\/p>\n
Cooper was able to confirm that, according to the serial number stamped onto the bottom bracket<\/a> shell of the bike, this particular frame was the seventh he built in August 1994.<\/p>\n
In the years since it was originally made, the frameset has done the rounds via various London Fixed Gear And Single Speed forum<\/a> members. Trawling threads on the forum has revealed some of its history.<\/p>\n
![\""Jack\"]( "\\"\"Jack\\"\/")
<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>The bike was originally red before being resprayed black.<\/span><\/figcaption> LFGSS Forums<\/i><\/span><\/div>\n It appears the frame was originally painted red before getting a black respray around seven years ago. The frame was then resprayed the resplendent blue you see now in 2020, at which point it was also ridden with a colour-matched carbon fork for some time. It then ended up with the aforementioned Tom, before finally landing with me.<\/p>\n
The frameset is beautiful \u2013 much like me, it is elegant, simple and skinny.<\/p>\n
The top tube is a diminutive 25.4mm in diameter. The down tube is similarly slender at just 28.6mm in diameter.<\/p>\n
Such skinny tubes were the norm for many years, but these days, it\u2019s unusual to see something quite so narrow on a production steel bike.<\/p>\n
By way of comparison, the top tube on my Columbus Zona<\/a>-tubed All-City Mr Pink is a comparatively porky 31.7mm and the down tube a veritably expansive 35mm.<\/p>\n
(As a fun aside, Reynolds 653 is a bit of an odd 531-adjacent tubeset with a fuzzy origin story that no one can quite settle on. If you\u2019re a tragic steel bike nerd like me, this interesting thread<\/a> and blog post<\/a> give some insight into it.)<\/p>\n
Reynolds offered 653 tubes with domed ends (as opposed to standard slotted ends) and these have been specced on the bike. This creates a lovely smooth transition from the tube to the dropouts that I absolutely love.<\/p>\n
![\""Jack\"]( "\\"\"Jack\\"\/")
<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>The fork is the highlight of the build.<\/span><\/figcaption> Jack Luke \/ Immediate Media<\/i><\/span><\/div>\n The stunning straight-legged \u2018stiletto\u2019 fork is the real highlight of the frameset. Its willowy blades are a perfect visual match for the frame and I love the semi-sloping crown.<\/p>\n
As well as looking great, the fork is more flexible than a flexy thing.<\/p>\n
You can see the blades wildly fluttering fore and aft as it skips across chattery ground, which is really quite unnerving at first.<\/p>\n
In practice, the fork is absolutely fine under even heavy braking. It\u2019s perhaps a little bit vague on fast descents with lots of braking, but it\u2019s not a huge problem. The flex also adds a pleasant degree of additional comfort on rough roads, which is welcome.<\/p>\n
![\""Jack\"]( "\\"\"Jack\\"\/")
<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>The frame needs a bit of work done to restore it to its former glory.<\/span><\/figcaption> Jack Luke \/ Immediate Media<\/i><\/span><\/div>\n The frame isn\u2019t absolutely perfect and it\u2019s showing its age in some places.<\/p>\n
To start, there\u2019s a small crack at the base of the seat tube slot (a common issue on bikes this age) that I\u2019ll need to keep an eye on.<\/p>\n
The threads on the derailleur hanger have also been chewed up at some point, but a clever Problem Solver dropout saver<\/a> is doing a fine job of holding everything in place for now.<\/p>\n
![\""Jack\"]( "\\"\"Jack\\"\/")
<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>This style of cable stop was the norm for many years, but they don\u2019t play nicely with modern cables.<\/span><\/figcaption> Jack Luke \/ Immediate Media<\/i><\/span><\/div>\n The brake cable stops are also old-school Campagnolo \u2018diver\u2019s helmet\u2019 style stops, which require a step-down ferrule to work with modern brake cables.<\/p>\n
These are fine, but the ferrule moves a little bit inside the stop as pressure is applied, which makes the brakes feel a bit spongy. I would likely replace these with modern cable stops if I was having other work done.<\/p>\n
Finally, the DIY rattle-can paint job is fairly fragile and I\u2019d love to have the frame powder-coated in a fabulous shade of fuchsia.<\/p>\n
The fanciest parts bin on earth<\/h2>\n
![\""Jack\"]( "\\"\"Jack\\"\/")
<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>My accidental Lance tribute makes me laugh every time I use it.<\/span><\/figcaption> Jack Luke \/ Immediate Media<\/i><\/span><\/div>\n I am spoiled with an outrageously posh parts bin and most of the build has come from the depths of my Shed of Stress.<\/p>\n
For me, the key spec highlight is the gutted left-hand Shimano 105 R7000<\/a> shifter.<\/p>\n
A small spring inside this shifter broke, which I spent a lot of time trying to repair to no avail. I ended up blowing a whopping \u00a35 on a pair of Shimano 105 SL-1050 down tube shifters and fitted the left-hand shifter to operate the front derailleur.<\/p>\n
Lance Armstrong was famed for running a similar setup, though he did so in pursuit of weight savings rather than impecuniousness.<\/p>\n
The cable pull ratio of the shifter isn\u2019t a perfect match for the Ultegra R6800 front derailleur but it\u2019s absolutely workable for day-to-day riding \u2013 particularly as I\u2019m an absolute legend and just smash about in the big ring at all times anyway.<\/p>\n
![\""Jack\"]( "\\"\"Jack\\"\/")
<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>The Rotor crankset looks great on the bike.<\/span><\/figcaption> Jack Luke \/ Immediate Media<\/i><\/span><\/div>\n Up front, I\u2019m running a Rotor Aldhu crankset fitted with the brand\u2019s matching Q-Rings in a 52\/36 ratio.<\/p>\n
Rotor\u2019s slender alloy cranks are a much better visual match for a skinny steel frame than Shimano\u2019s cranksets and I think they look really great on this frame.<\/p>\n
![\""Jack\"]( "\\"\"Jack\\"\/")
<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>The cockpit of this bike makes me do an \u2018Italian chef hand gesture\u2019 every time I look at it.<\/span><\/figcaption> Jack Luke \/ Immediate Media<\/i><\/span><\/div>\n Though I\u2019m not usually one for a #murderedout bike, there is something deeply satisfying about the gloss black finish of the Tange Falcon headset and the way in which it elegantly flows into the 3T Quid quill stem.<\/p>\n
I am narrow-bodied but anything other than narrow-minded, so I was keen to see how I got on with a narrower handlebar on this bike.<\/p>\n
In the end, I settled on a 38cm Deda Piega bar (that\u2019s actually closer to 36cm when measured centre-to-centre).<\/p>\n
I admit to being fully influenced by my good friend and colleague Simon Bromley<\/a> here, who has long been a proponent of narrow handlebars on road bikes<\/a>.<\/p>\n
As much as I loathe to admit it, I think he\u2019s been right all along.<\/p>\n
I\u2019m a total convert and can\u2019t see myself ever moving back to 40cm+ bars on a road bike. A narrower bar simply fits me better and is more aero to boot \u2013 what\u2019s not to like?<\/p>\n
![\""Jack\"]( "\\"\"Jack\\"\/")
<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>Cane Creek\u2019s eeBrakes are stupendously light and super strong.<\/span><\/figcaption> Jack Luke \/ Immediate Media<\/i><\/span><\/div>\n The Cane Creek eeBrakes have been nicked from my fixed gear hill climb bike<\/a>. As well as being fabulously light, these brakes have an excellent lever feel and loads of power\u2026 if you set them up right.<\/p>\n
I have set up a fair few brakes in my time and, of course, I completely disregarded the brakes\u2019 instruction manual the first time I used these.<\/p>\n
This was a mistake, and 30 seconds spent reading the notes on cable length made a big difference to their overall performance.<\/p>\n
![\""Jack\"]( "\\"\"Jack\\"\/")
<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture><\/div>Standing in stark contrast to my claims of \u2018impecuniousness\u2019, I\u2019m currently testing a \u00a3390 saddle on this bike (and I really like it).<\/span><\/figcaption> Jack Luke \/ Immediate Media<\/i><\/span><\/div>\n The bike rolls on a Light Bicycle R35 wheelset, which is fitted with 25mm-wide Continental GP5000 TL<\/a>\u00a0tyres set up tubeless.<\/p>\n
- Simon\u2019s Planet X Exocet 2 time trial bike<\/a><\/li>\n
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