In our last gripping instalment your faithful correspondent had offered some half-hearted excuses and tried to explain the rational behind his latest cycling folly. So what did I buy?? Ladies and Gentlepeoples, let me introduce ‘Little Blue’

This is the eBay picture which instantly caught my roving eye as i scrolled down the endless listings for second-hand frames. So why this particular rather plain-looking frame? Well, it ticks a lot of my personal ‘must have’ boxes. Small British brand that probably most people haven’t heard of? – Check. Steel? – Check. XC biased geometry ? (longish top tube and a head angle that’s unfashionably steep) – Check. Compatible with most of the components I’ve got scattered about? – Check. And most importantly, its small enough for my short little Hobbit sized legs to straddle without looking like it’s a Christmas present I’m still waiting to grow into. As an added bonus its got a lovely Chris King headset included for even more extra biking snob points from those ‘in the know’

Now we come to one of my cycling strengths. Perhaps the single aspect of the two-wheeled game at which I’ve maintained the form and suppleness of my youth. In fact, thinking about it I’ve probably actually improved a bit. I think you’ve guessed I’m not talking about my climbing prowess. I may not be able to dance up the climbs anymore with the carefree abandon of a young Marco Pantani, but I can still hold my own when it comes to building a bike up. Ok, due to budgetary constraints I havent had much experience with the latest Di2 tech from the all mighty Shimano, and I’m also lacking the myriad of oils, lubes and seal kits required to rebuild one of the more modern fiendishly complex suspension forks. If however you need somebody to practice one of the lost arts of cycle maintenance such as installing and setting up a triple front mech so it both changes and the chain doesnt rub I’m your man. In fact if I’d spent more time training over the years and less time happily twiddling barrel adjusters in search of that perfect down change things could have been different. (Ohhhh the agony of self-delusion)

So here we are all happily clamped up the trusty Lidl workstand (still easily the best £30 I’ve ever spent on a bike related item) with the bottom bracket and rather worn Deore crankset in place. To my mind the external cup bottom bracket and the Hollowtech crank are one of the best technical changes to have come about in recent times. Easily setup, long-lasting and pretty much idiot proof I wonder how we ever thought the square taper was a good idea. When I recall the agony of trying to remove over-tightened expensive alloy square taper cranks for some of the more ham-fisted riders in my old cycling club I still mentally tense my right hand in anticipation of the spanner smashing my knuckles as the thread strips out of the crank arm sending the puller across the workshop and my hand into the chainring……… Removing the cranks in those primitive times was never undertaken lightly due to the twin spectres of potential blood loss and the equally terrifying possibility of introducing an intermittent ‘creak’ into the drivetrain. Now a few seconds work with an allen key and a light tap with a rubber mallet and everything is a part with minimal swearing and no loss of skin. Assembly as many instruction manuals I’ve never bothered to read says is smily the reverse of removal, so in sort order the cranks and bottom bracket cups were whipped off the old frame and installed with a light smear of grease into their new home. In a perfect world I’d have replaced the bottom bracket bearings as the drive side one is a little rough, but this is a strictly budget affair so back in they went. Afterall, there’s no sense in spending lots af cash on this bike till I’ve at least ridden it a couple of times to see if I like it!

Anyway, I’m digressing again. A remarkably short time late there’s an almost rideable bike clamped in the stand. Its nor quite finished, the nasty when they were new Continental tyres have thankfully perished slightly whilst languishing in the shed so will have to go, and the equally never that good anyway Avid brakes have also failed to survive their long hibernation. I could probably rebuild the brakes, but I just can’t be bothered. Bleeding Avid disc brakes of this vintage is a deeply thankless task, they need new mounting washers and pads as well, the rear caliper is partially seized. I’m getting older and fettling these brakes would cost vital minutes of my life that I’ll never get back…… and even after lots of work they’d still be a bit crap.  I’ll steal a set off one of the other bikes for those first ‘proof of concept’ rides, or I might surf eBay again, but that as previously discussed is a dangerous pastime.

So what have I created? Well it’s certainly neither up to date or fashionable. It is definitely ‘retro’ and I think in a good way. Its steel, its got a triple chainset, the seatpost is firmly fixed in one position and the only suspension is at the front and that has less than 140mm travel. This is not a bike that screams ‘hardcore hardtail’ at you. It’s not going to turn many heads in a trail center car park or win many rounds of MTB Top Trumps. It’s a total contrast to the big green 29′ wheeled machine its sharing garage space with, and that’s the point. Which is better? well that’s a subjective question that can’t be answered till they’ve both been subjected to a rigorous back to back data driven testing program.

Or I could just ride both this spring and see which I start to instinctively reach for when I’m loading the car before heading out for the day. Speaking of the possibility of riding anytime soon it’s not looking too good as a prolonged period of kneeling down in a small crawl space at work has resulted in my ever clicking right knee going into a serious sulk. It wasnt the most co-operative joint in my body before but now its really complaining and refuses to bend past 90 degrees or let me kneel down without it feeling as if there’s a vindictive leprechaun stabbing me under the knee cap with a rusty blunt carving knife.

More on the joys of self-help internet researched knee pain diagnosis and treatment next time …….