details, details, details. what are you particular about on your bike?

[ron l edmiston]

smell'n the odor of 70 --- mentally & physically just get'n on with a smile and ride --- no better it gets...

ronnie

[j44ke]

I'll have a full report over the weekend. Be scared - be very scared atmo.

Pie charts or bar graphs?

[Justin@BlackOakVelo]

I'm with Wayne.

FIT is the biggest thing for me. All my measurements need to be spot on.

All the details matter though. I definitely spend more time on everyone else's bike than my own.

My bikes get build and then ridden and then overhauled yearly. A few wipe downs in between, tire pumpings ( I'm kind of crazy about tire pressure), and on the road der adjustments.

[Luke]

Clean...straight...level...quiet...lubed...tight.. .equal...EVERYTHING!

(A mis-clocked stem cap will mind f*ck me in my sleep)

;)

[thollandpe]

Confession: I cut the shift cable housings about an inch too short on my latest build (for me, I'd have fixed it for anybody else) and it gnaws at me.

[Sola SL]

For me it is handle bar angle and hood position on the bar. Nice flat transition to the hoods and neutral wrist angle in the drops. It is amazing how attention to this area can help out with fit issues!

[mimbresman]

I ride a single speed and it seems I'm a slob compared to all of you, but saddle height is really important or my knees bother me. It needs to be just right. I also like my brake levers at a certain angle, about 45d. Stem has to be perfectly aligned (obviously). I get weird about the tire logos being lined up with the valve stem, but don't obsess about it. Tire pressure is important, and I like fat tires (2.4 Mutanos) at about 35 p.s.i. since I use a rigid fork. Other than that, I just ride it.

[coolberto hipsterdor]

Fit, mechanical reliability and safety, general cleanliness, I feel like my standards aren't that high but then I see and ride other people's bikes...

[jerk]

It doesnt really matter, but a I am miserable without narrow handlebars, a 54/42 crank and 177,5 or 180 cranks. That being said I just rode seven hours a day for ten days on the alpes on a rental bikr with a 175.triple, a dumb saddle and it was fine. I dropped the stem, the shop pht 38cm bars on the thing and.it was fine.

[CXinNH]

I care mostly about fit - it has to be perfect.
And a quiet drive-train, but mine is usually dirty (sorry Gary) from generous applications of Chain-L and lots a dirt roads.

Oh, and I always clean my tires, but hardly ever clean my bike.

+1 fit
+1 chanel
+1 dirt roads

-1 never clean tires, don't clean bike, do clean drive train

[blasdelf]

Saddle as far back as I can possibly get it (almost always, until I make a full set of customs with 71° STAs so I can get some adjustment range)

180mm or longer cranks

Round deep 40cm c-c bars. No, deeper than that, a fucking inch deeper than the bullshit that passes for deep these days. Cinelli 66 and clones are my jam.

Bar angle must be perfect, with the drops angled about a degree from horizontal, getting the levers clamped in just the right place might take two hours of cursing and drinking.

Bars have to be at least several inches below the saddle so I can spend time outside the drops

Q-factor as low as it can get

Fast tires at low pressures, whether that's 23mm road tubeless at <80psi, 42mm Hetres at 30psi, or 62mm Racing Ralphs at 8-15psi

[WayneJ]

+1 fit
+1 chanel
+1 dirt roads

-1 never clean tires, don't clean bike, do clean drive train

Got up early and cleaned my drivetrain today.
It now sparkles.
I can't wait to get it dirty.

Oh, and I de-wormed the brake arches while I had the Simple Green handy

[e-RICHIE]

-1 never clean tires, don't clean bike, do clean drive train

Two out of three ain't bad atmo.

[Lionel]

Aliante saddle, campy drivetrain, veloflex tub, 44cc bars. All set.

[parris]

Being able to grab and go with the chosen bike of the day because I've kept on top of the details and don't have to worry about anything other than airing up the tires.

[classtimesailer]

Symmetry. Everywhere.
On the TDF bikes, the rear brake cable is always shooting out to the riders left. Way out there. It's probably smoother mechanically, but I couldn't look down at that for a moment.

[KeithNYC]

narrow bars, dead level Regal, clean as a whistle- always.*

*because I live in an apartment and one bike is stored in the living room and another in the bedroom.

[one60]

cannot abide a saddle bag that rubs my legs. I don't carry much beyond some allen wrenches, tube, patches & lenzyne pump but the bag always seems to shift and rub. Thought about purchasing a tool roll to keep in the jersey but I am thrifty (ok, cheap). A Thomson stem bag is a perfect solution. Just the right size carries everything nice & flat. Even has room for the phone & wallet.

[devlin]

Too many things. The main ones.....

Bar straight
Levers level with each other
Clicks creaks and groans
Bag rub......
Flat spots in tyres, even the tiniest ones
Clean, has to be spotless at the start of the ride.

[cody.wms]

Two out of three ain't bad atmo.

This is still one of my favorite photosets on Flickr:


DSC00055 by e-RICHIE, on Flickr


DSC00065 by e-RICHIE, on Flickr