Moulton spec questions.

[fossala]

As I've said before I'm in the position to buy a new bike soon (money comes in 3 weeks ). I'm looking at a moulton, just an idea at the moment but I'm going to test ride one later next week. I've got quite a few questions that I'm hoping people here can answer. They are all regarding a TSR30 frameset.

1. It looks like the frame is made to use a braze on front mech. What would be the largest chainring size? Could I get away with a 61T?
2. How do front triple mechs cope with such large chainrings? Would I have any problem with just grabbing a triple groupset (105) and changing the chainrings (spacycles has them in the right size and say they would work with the 105 chainset)?
3. Is the headset 1" threadless?
4. What is the size from the BB to the top of the top tube? I'm trying to work out what size seatpost I would need.
5. Is there anything that you think I should know before going out and buying parts?

[barrym]

Have you posted this in the Moulton group on yahoo? I have asked a number of questions there and get very comprehensive answers.

HTH

Barry

[rfryer]

I've got a TSR 30. The front mech is braze on, and the standard chainring is 58 tooth. My understanding is that to go to 61 tooth you need a shim between the front derailleur and the mount to push it back.

BB to top of seat clamp is 453mm.

Sorry, not sure about the headset, I'll check later if no-one else has helped out.

[fossala]

I've got a TSR 30. The front mech is braze on, and the standard chainring is 58 tooth. My understanding is that to go to 61 tooth you need a shim between the front derailleur and the mount to push it back.

BB to top of seat clamp is 453mm.

Sorry, not sure about the headset, I'll check later if no-one else has helped out.

By shim to you mean a washer or would it need something bigger? Could you get away with a 60T without the spacer?

I've joined the yahoo group but waiting to be accepted as it's a private group.

[barrym]

I've joined the yahoo group but waiting to be accepted as it's a private group.

This weekend there is a club get together at the factory in Bradford on Avon. If you were local you might be able to sneak in (it's members only really, dunno how they'd react to an interloper) on Saturday morning when all the experts, both factory an club, will be lurking about.

Barry

PS I'm not a member - yet.

[rfryer]

There was a recent thread on the Yahoo group about accommodating bigger chainrings. I believe that those who had been successful had made a piece to fit between the braze-on and the dérailleur.

The other thing to consider is that the rear mech might not cope with the increased range, so you might have to avoid some gear combinations.

I was quite tempted by the gearing on the TSR 27 (there's one on the "bikes for sale" section at the moment). However, I liked everything else about the TSR30 (drop bars, caliper brakes, lighter wheels) so went for it in spite of the slightly restricted gear range.

[fossala]

This weekend there is a club get together at the factory in Bradford on Avon. If you were local you might be able to sneak in (it's members only really, dunno how they'd react to an interloper) on Saturday morning when all the experts, both factory an club, will be lurking about.

Barry

PS I'm not a member - yet.

Sadly I'm in Cornwall (not really though, it's beautiful)

There was a recent thread on the Yahoo group about accommodating bigger chainrings. I believe that those who had been successful had made a piece to fit between the braze-on and the dérailleur.

The other thing to consider is that the rear mech might not cope with the increased range, so you might have to avoid some gear combinations.

I was quite tempted by the gearing on the TSR 27 (there's one on the "bikes for sale" section at the moment). However, I liked everything else about the TSR30 (drop bars, caliper brakes, lighter wheels) so went for it in spite of the slightly restricted gear range.

I really want to keep drop bars so the TSR 27 is out of the question. I going with 60-48-36/11-28 That will get me a 100-24 gear inches. At the moment I've got 116-26 but I don't really use more than 92 unless I'm going down steep long hills. Even then normally don't bother shifting to my large chainring anyway because I can't be bothered. I did think about capreo but then I don't want to tie myself into a singular cassette.

[rfryer]

I've just checked, and can confirm that the steerer is one inch diameter.

The following photo shows the clearance between the front derailleur and a 58 tooth chainring. As you can see, there isn't a whole lot of clearance.

Front derailleur clearance

The following photo shows how the derailleur is mounted.

Front derailleur mount

Hope that helps. I'd be happy to answer any other specific questions you might have.

[rfryer]

I just wanted to follow up on the questions about the seat post. I've been feeling that the seat angle is a bit slack on my TSR30, so I've done a few measurements off some photos. The actual seat tube angle is 70 degrees. However, the BB is behind the seatpost, not in line, which means that the effective angle for me (at 650mm from BB to saddle clamp) is a little steeper, at 71.7 degrees. However, with the layback seatpost supplied, the effective angle is no more than 69 degrees, which explains why it feels so slack!

As a comparison, my Genesis Day One shows 74 degrees for the seat tube angle, and an effective angle of 72.5 degrees from BB to saddle clamp. The measured 74 degrees tallies with the geometry that Genesis publish, so I'm inclined to trust the measurements.

Bottom line - if you like a steepish seat angle (I do) then get an inline seatpost, or one with layback that can be fitted in reverse. I'm on the lookout for a VK saddle adjuster so that I can experiment with moving the saddle forwards.

[simonineaston]

5. Is there anything that you think I should know before going out and buying parts?

Plus one for posting on the Yahoo group, too and to answer Q 5, 'Yes.' Be very careful when asking about the suitability of the parts you want to buy - very few cycle shop staff have the knowledge to know which bits will fit and which, expensively, will not. There are of course exceptions, like Warlands in Oxford, where both Steve and Andy are v. Moulton friendly...
The responces you get from the Yahoo group members (as well as on here ) will be detailed and thorough.

[GavinC]

I really want to keep drop bars so the TSR 27 is out of the question. I going with 60-48-36/11-28 That will get me a 100-24 gear inches.

Perhaps I'm missing something, but the stock gearing of the current TSR30 gives a range of 25-98 inches. It seems an awful lot of bother changing the 'rings, cassette and possibly mechs too in order to achieve such a small change to 24-100"?

[fossala]

I really want to keep drop bars so the TSR 27 is out of the question. I going with 60-48-36/11-28 That will get me a 100-24 gear inches.

Perhaps I'm missing something, but the stock gearing of the current TSR30 gives a range of 25-98 inches. It seems an awful lot of bother changing the 'rings, cassette and possibly mechs too in order to achieve such a small change to 24-100"?

I'm starting to think that. I'm limiting myself on my current bike to 26-102 (closest I can do with my cassette). I went to Penzance yesterday (but caught the train back as I'm trying a new saddle and getting blisters...) and found the gear range OK. I'm looking into capreo shimano system and bikefridays shiny hub to go with it but each cassette is 40 quid compared to 20 quid for a normal cassette of the same quality.

[fivebikes]

I have a TSR 30, bought from this forum! I find the stock gearing just fine in hilly West Yorkshire! It might be a tiny bit low in the highest ratio if you are strong enough to maintain a turn of speed for any distance on a flattish road but the bike is a little heavy to be an out and out 'speed' machine. It is a nice bike in standard form and feels surprisingly conventional in many ways. I think it's a 1 1/8 aheadset by the way but it's a bit dark to check.

[Thermostat9]

I think it's a 1 1/8 aheadset by the way but it's a bit dark to check.

They are 1".

[simonineaston]

It's probably easier to put drops on the '27, then re-gear the '30! I had a '27 for a while and one thing's for sure with that model - it's got a wide enough range to suit everybody... plus if you do need to nudge the over-all range further up towards 110", there's plenty of space, as the supplied chainring is 46 tooth (or something close, I can't recall exactly). Fitting a 48 tooth chainring gives you 20" up to 109"...
Sheldon lets you play. http://sheldonbrown.com/gears/

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