[steevo]

But I think it's going to work out fine.

Yesterday I put the finishing touches on the Curtlo softtail I picked up from Ebay back in December. All the parts were transferred from my dos niner. The headtube on this bike is a full inch and a half longer than the dos niner, so I couldn't use the stem i had. I found out about the avid saago stem (thanks JH_O_T_C) and that saved me from buying a new fork. Today was just the shakedown ride which was some easy trails before work. The seat is a little too low in the pic so the bars look a little high. I also may try some wider bars at some point.

Even though this bike wasn't made for me, it seems to fit very well. I bought it based on the ETT which is approx 24.7 in, about the same as my KM. Apparently the original owner was my height. It has HTA/STA of 71/71 and the chainstays are over 18 inches long. I figured this would make the bike feel completely different than the dos niner or my karate monkey, but it doesn't seem to handle any slower and it's actually just as easy to loft the front. I may notice a difference in the very tight and twisty stuff though.

But so far, i'm thinking this may be the best $438.29 I spent on a bike frame.

oh yeah...lesson i learned today: a lone patch of snow on the trail probably means there is ice underneath. I hit one and went down hard, but no damage to me or the bike.

 

[MMcG]

Very stealth looking. Was that stem pricey? Looks pretty cool on the bike that's for sure.

 

[steevo]

Very stealth looking. Was that stem pricey? Looks pretty cool on the bike that's for sure.

no, the stem was only ~$27 + shipping. it uses a collette (?) clamp thing, kind of like the way a drill grabs a drill bit, so you only need about 30mm of steerer.
The Curtlo stickers were sorta fugly and one was flaked off so I just peeled them off.

 

[MMcG]

That's a great price for the stem! makes it easier to shop for used forks now!

 

[Padre]

Great looking bike. It's rather refreshing.

 

[jh_on_the_cape]

hey that looks awesome. the curtlo was the other builder high on the list for me, so i am anxious to ride that!! sounds like you need to come down to the cape for some 'wedding planning'. my ted has a 24.7 ETT so it will be cool to feel how different the softtail feels. i cannot recall the angles, but i dont think it's 71 71.

glad the stem worked out. let me know if you need to try a different size. it's snowing out now but they are only calling for a few inches so maybe we can ride again soon.

i have been doing other stuff recently and not riding (running..). a visit would motivate me to get back out there more frequently.

those ice patches make for major sphincter pucker for me. just stay still until you cross the patch! or you get a big black and blue on the hip.

 

[GlowBoy]

Nice. I've always liked the stealth black look. How's the ride compare with the Dos Niner?

 

[steevo]

hey that looks awesome. the curtlo was the other builder high on the list for me, so i am anxious to ride that!! sounds like you need to come down to the cape for some 'wedding planning'. my ted has a 24.7 ETT so it will be cool to feel how different the softtail feels. i cannot recall the angles, but i dont think it's 71 71.

glad the stem worked out. let me know if you need to try a different size. it's snowing out now but they are only calling for a few inches so maybe we can ride again soon.

i have been doing other stuff recently and not riding (running..). a visit would motivate me to get back out there more frequently.

those ice patches make for major sphincter pucker for me. just stay still until you cross the patch! or you get a big black and blue on the hip.

That's exactly what happened...i landed on my left hip. The dirt was frozen solid, so the trails were very fast. I was cruising along and just didn't see the ice under the snow, and down I went.

I'll let you know next time I can get down there to ride. I'll try not to hit any ice patches with the Ted!

 

[steevo]

Nice. I've always liked the stealth black look. How's the ride compare with the Dos Niner?

I've only had one ride on it so far and it was not on my usual trails so it's hard to compare how it handles the same stuff I rode on the dos niner. It feels bigger...even thought the C-C top tube length is the same on both bikes, the ETT is a little longer on th curtlo, so I feel like I have more room to move around. It looks like the wheel is further out in front of me, so in the one semi-steep roller I did yesterday, my weight felt less forward and more comfortable when descending. I noticed that when I stood up to pedal it felt as I could sprint more effectively, maybe because I have more room, or maybe because the frame felt stiffer. Climbing felt good, but again, i didn't do anything crazy steep or technical with it. One thing I noticed immediatly is that the curtlo just feels more solid. It's definitely a lot heavier, but it's a smooth ride and I feel like the suspension is coming more from the fork and soft tail than the whole bike in general like with the dos niner. The dos niner shock is very different than the Curtlo's cane creek. The relish shock is low pressure, i think i ran it around 18psi and with the cane creek i have around 210 psi or something. I'm sure i'll need to tweak that a bit here and there. So it definitely feels different. I probably won't know if that's good or bad until I spend more time on it on the trails i usually ride.

 

[willapajames]

Haha, I was bidding on that one too. Damn you!