Re-building the Mercian Olympic - the challenges / the way forward

When looking to transfer my 1980s kit onto a 1970s Mercian Frame I might have expected things to be fairly straight forward; after all some of the kit is the same as that used on my original Mercian.

However looking at the details there are a number of differences in frames from the two eras that will require extra work or equipment. Realistically I won't be able to have the Mercian on the road for Eroica Britannia next week so have reassembled my MB Dronfield and will take my time with the restoration/updating. I intend posting pictures with my MB from Eroica following next weekend's festival and ride but here's one from last year.

The issues that have come to light quite quickly include the following:

• Gear levers for the down tube need to have a band fixing. My favourite Simplex Retro-Friction levers don't have such a band but I do have some basic Shimano ones
• No cable stops on the top tube - fortunately the original chromed clips were supplied with the frame
• The front gear mechanism needs to be one with a band so could swap my Dura Ace mech for a slightly older but suitable SunTour mech
• Bottle bosses are not present so to carry a bottle needs an old-fashioned cage with clamps or some form of adapter
• Older hubs with 5 or 6 speed gear blocks (before cassettes) were significantly narrower than modern hubs. To fit a modern hub in the stays would need to be stretched significantly (9 or 10mm). The solution may be to find an older hub either in a complete wheel or to build with new rim and spokes
• The 1980s brakes I have use Allen key fixings whilst the 1970s frame needs traditional nuts 
• The Mercian being a more relaxed frame that the purely race designed MB needs an extra few millimetres of reach on the brakes
• The saddle clamp uses a traditional and imperial sized nut and bolt rather than the newer allen bolts. The old style are vulnerable to damage and I had the one on my original Mercian Olympic replaced by the modern type

Some of the above fixes can be achieved quite easily but for the future there is always the option to have the frame itself updated by Mercian. Yes I am now considering an element of updating to the frame - the advantage with a steel Mercian frame is that I can get minor alterations and updates made to it by the company who built it and end up with a superb frame for much less than the cost of a new one.

I'd be interested to know what my readers think and would appreciate any comments on this blog, thanks.

Re-love your old saddles with South London Saddles - As seen at SPIN Manchester

Whilst visiting SPIN in Manchester I came across some great examples of craftsmanship and style at the stand of South London Saddles.

Suitably impressed by the display of saddles and bags, including those shown above, we stopped for a chat with proprietor, Emma, to talk about exactly what they are offering.

Emma, pictured at the stand above, will re-cover pretty much any old saddle with carefully selected new leather in a wide choice of colours. In addition to that she will also add your choice of design, including bespoke illustrations just for you, to the saddle using carving and colours. On close examination these look great and very well done.

For years I raced with Isca Selle Tornado saddles - I just couldn't get along with the Turbo's, Rolls or Concors that were popular at the time. Now I only have one tornado left and the cover is both worn and damaged to the point it has been repaired with Superglue last year (far from a perfect fix!). I can still find no racing saddle to match the Tornado but mine is now beyond use.

Here is where Emma and South London Saddles come into their own; for a price less than many new saddles (around £70) your favourite old saddle can be recovered, often making it better than new and creating a unique saddle, a one-of-a-kind just for you. For that kind of price it makes great sense and solves that problem of finding a new saddle that suits you.

Of course you can also buy a brand new customised saddle if you prefer and there are some special offers on the website at the moment. Maybe you have a saddle like my Brooks B-17 which is a design classic and ideally suited for its purpose but would like something a bit special - you could always ask Emma to add a unique design onto the leather....

As well as saddles South London Saddles also offer a range of uniquely designed bags and accessories including leather handlebar grips and clever D-Lock holsters that attach to your belt.

Well worth a look!


South London Saddles can be found at:

www.southlondonsaddles.com

and on Facebook at:

www.facebook.com/em.evansdesigns

For more information you can email Emma at:

southlondonsaddles@gmail.com

An interesting approach to luggage

Whilst visiting SPIN in Manchester I came across the Carradice stand with a great array of bags from the famous Lancashire maker of saddle bags and a wide range of bike luggage. You can find Carradice on Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/carradicebikebags

There were traditional bags in the still-as-good-as-it-gets cotton duck material, there were the quality workmanship and there were touches of a modern-retro feel. They've managed to produce cotton duck bags on new colours and there is plenty of Harris Tweed but for the real traditionalist there is still the original black.

For the more weight conscious there are bags made from Cordura, still tough and water resistant and in a range of models and styles. There are bags to fit to your saddle, to front and rear racks and of course as befits a British maker there are bags to fit the luggage block of the Brompton. You can read all about the current range of luggage from Carradice at their website here.

What really caught my eye, and got me talking to the representative on the stand was a whole new range of bags under a new brand name, UPSO.

UPSO bags at SPIN Manchester

These bags are made in the same factory, cut and sewn using the same equipment but the standout features are:

• They are constructed from heavy duty, waterproof, recycled lorry tarpaulins
• Each bag is unique with the colours and design or the material being used to create a brand new and eye-catching aesthetic
• There are brand new styles of bags including seat-packs and bags suitable to use away from the bike

The bags, see picture above, look good. They stand out and the re-use of material is likely to be popular among environmentally conscious cyclists. I've not had a chance to use the bags but the nature of the material, it's similarity to those used in other well known waterproof bags suggest that they will function and look good for a long time.

I had a good chat with the rep from Carradice who was happy to explain the design and production values and processes, including the relatively complex business of recycling the material and making sure it was suitable for purpose. The whole approach of re-use of materials and of new designs and each item being individual appeals usually appeals to me and should I have the chance I'd love to head over to Nelson one day and meet the designers and makers at Carradice.

Were I in the market to replace my current pannier bags then I'd certainly be heading over the hills to Nelson! You can read much more about the new range of UPSO bags here or from the front page of the Carradice of Nelson website here.

I'll be posting about some other interesting finds from SPIN over the next few days....