1992 Mercian King of Mercia

1992 Mercian King of Mercia
Fast road geometry and setup rather than touring setup.
Optional mudgaurd eyes front and rear with pannier mounts on rear also.
Pump nipple behind headtube.
Finished in British racing Green with white head tube, seat tube band and lug lining.

I did have plans for today (and/or tomorrow) to head down to fellow retrobiker Epicycles (Brian) place for a ride out to Strathcarron around lunch after I had built the Mercian up. I wanted to get it finished as I really needed to get a couple of nice rides in on it before the winter so I could decide whether it stays and gets renovated or it goes. I also had to make sure the rear mech hanger was realigned properly as I had to give Brian back his alignment tool he loaned me. (Thanks mate)
It was time to do it as its been sitting in my loft dismantled for the last 2 years almost.
The plan was to build it up with what I had in the shed and spares box etc, and then if it goes as well as I think it should with a few different things on it then I will get it painted hopefully before spring and build it back up with a more relaxed type build. My spares box is mostly Dura Ace 7400, 7403 and bits and pieces of 7700 and 600 tri colour stuff so that was a good starting point, some 3ttt bars and stem were chosen and a new Brooks saddle that I had picked up very cheap last year. I did have to buy some Exage brakes to get it going as the Dura Ace, both 7400 and 7700 just didn't have the reach. New Deda bar tape to match the saddle.
I do have other machines but Brian had his Andre Bertin ready to roll so it was decided to have a lugged steel road ride, I could have taken the Merckx but it seemed good timing to get it sorted. At least if Brian was on his recently acquired road bike, that I know he has been working on then at least I wouldn't feel guilty or lonely stopping to adjust and fettle.
Anyway the morning was spent putting bits and pieces on the frame while my young son, who wasn't well, had his breakfast and played in the living room. I needed to go to town late morning to get a cassette as the Dura Ace rear mech has a max of 26 teeth and, of course, the lowest I had in 8 speed was 28. I said to Heather I was just heading to town and would drive rather than ride as I wanted to be quick as I might still try and get sorted for this ride. Anyway I was at the bike shop for a while longer than I anticipated and probably would have been quicker with the hour and a half round trip riding to the shop, as long as I didn't get chatting again.
I should mention here that I am very lucky as I returned home to find Heather cooking lunch of Pancakes with Bacon smothered in Maple Syrup. Yes they are capitals as this is my favourite breakfast of all time
Once home I then spent the afternoon outside fettling the bike on the stand doing the usual sorting of gears and adjusting the mech hanger slightly, not surprising considering how far out it was the first time.
Anyway it was a nice sunny and warm afternoon spent building up the bike and doing family stuff. Once the bike was sorted I headed out for a short test ride. I got about 20 metres when I realised that I hadn't tightened the brake levers. Brakes worked but the levers were twisting on the bars. Anyway that sorted and back out. I did a couple of miles and adjusted the seat post and moved the seat forward slightly, let a bit of pressure out the tyres but otherwise all was pretty good. So I kept going on a bigger loop.
Hopefully I can get away tomorrow to Brians for the ride.
The Mercian handled really nicely, very light and I had put on my old wheels from my Merckx, Ultegra and Open Pro and put on some Vittoria Randonnuer 32 tyres. This was a different feeling as it was still very sharp handling and with sure footedness but with a bit of 'give' from the larger size tyres. Very nice as the roads around here are just falling apart. I run 23mm on my Merckx and even those I have started dropping pressure, especially on the front.
I was well pleased and so went a bit further than intended and all was well. So for now it is definitely staying. I will give it a few more varied rides to make sure before it gets pulled down and put away until it gets painted. When it does get painted, the build will be different again as it will be a more light touring/audax setup befitting its King of Mercia title. Most likely a stronglight chainset, nitto randonnuer bars etc, the stuff on it today was from the spares boxes and while great stuff its a bit more racey than I need. Save that for the Merckx.
Anyway I hope you all had a nice day whatever you were up to.
Will change and update this thread as it progress's.
Here's some pics.

DSC_1560 by Jamie Dyer, on Flickr

DSC_1561 by Jamie Dyer, on Flickr

DSC_1562 by Jamie Dyer, on Flickr

DSC_1563 by Jamie Dyer, on Flickr

Breakfast of Champions
DSC_1565 by Jamie Dyer, on Flickr

DSC_1573 by Jamie Dyer, on Flickr

DSC_1576 by Jamie Dyer, on Flickr

A nice tidy build....in a very desolate location.....

Cheers Nob
In that last pic, that's Dunnet Head to the left of the road. The most Northerly point of mainland UK.
In the pic above that, behind the turbine is the island of Hoy, with Orkney just behind that. Its not the end of the earth but we can see it from here

Jamie

Another glorious day up here and while I didn't end up getting south for my planned ride with Brian, I did manage to get out for a decent ride later this afternoon.
Fitted my little seat bag to carry my multi tool so I could adjust anything if needed along the way. Ended up I didn't need to, it rode brilliantly Slick shifting and never missed a beat.
I did a loop through my part of the county on some roads I know and travel quite often and then explored a couple I haven't been down for a long while. Returned home along the coast, taking in a couple of loose surface farm type roads which the Mercian handles with ease, even on the loose stuff it was surefooted and quick.
The frame certainly feels light, though I have yet to weigh it, and the first thing my wife commented on when she had a brief ride was the weight. This feeling though coupled with the feeling of it being quick is all relative of course and could also be in part explained by several factors. Maybe its the usual slick Dura Ace geartrain running 51/39 to a 13/26 cassette, the lack of compactness is nice as well, and also the minimalist cockpit and the fact the brake hoods are lowish so that you are over the top of them, if that makes sense. I have also been putting a lot of miles on my tourer lately (Surly LHT) which is a heavy piece of kit but built for the job it does, which also hauls my sons 16 kilo around in either his seat or his trailer. So after that the Mercian as well as my Merckx feel quick I may have just answered my own query there
Anyway it feels nice, as I know it does, but I was surprised how nice with the build I cobbled together.
I must admit though that I would like to change the bars out for a set of randonnuer bars and just relax it a bit as I want to build this, once painted to be my audax machine and leave the Merckx to when I want to go quick.
So the king is staying, long live the king.

DSCN2936 by Jamie Dyer, on Flickr

DSCN2927 by Jamie Dyer, on Flickr

DSCN2923 by Jamie Dyer, on Flickr

Nice work Jamie looking forward to its final guise.

As I said in that other place, looks great Jamie.

Are you painting it then? Doesn't look like it needs it in the photos, or is it just a personal preference thing? I was gonna ask how it fits with the Merckx and the LHT but sounds like you've got just the right slot for it.

Thanks guys, it is definitely a great ride and you can tell by feel that its a lightweight quality ride.
You can't really see from the pics that well but it is in need of a repaint as there is a large section on the chainstay, just behind the chainring that is back to bare metal and looks like a section had been touched in with the cure rust type stuff that sends it black. Also the whole frame is undercoated/primed in white and the frame is peppered with chips so in the flesh they stand out. My plan has always been that if it is staying for long term and not just passing through then I would send it back to Mercian to have the dent in the top tube filled (or even do it myself) and then get it painted in a metallic green with white head tube, lug lining and single band on the seat tube. If you go to Mercians site and click on frames, then King of Mercia, then its the same green as the one shown.
As for where it sits with my two main rides, the Trucker and Merckx? I would think somewhere in between, or at least that is where I would want it to sit. Not setup full on tourer style like the Trucker, which can be a bit overkill on some shorter audax type rides like last weekends Highland 100 with lots of climbing and not as bum down head up style as my Merckx. To be fair, I think with its current Dura Ace build and 3ttt stem and bar set up is actually a bit more racey than my Merckx. Though now I know that it fits great and is staying I will slowly build up some parts to build it a bit more relaxed, a fast tourer/audax type machine which is what it was really made for and so should feel even better once done. Nothing too drastic, just a slightly higher stem and a set of rando bars also a set of guards, which will fit even with the 32 tyres along with a seat bag.
I must be getting old as the comfort is slowly overtaking speed in my setups, either that or my trucker has spiolt me
Due to family matters etc and time of year I can't really justify spending the couple of hundred pound minimum to get it painted anytime soon, so I may touch it up in places so I can ride it until winter hits properly.

Jamie

The best colour scheme for vintage road bikes ever : British Racing Green frame with Leather Saddle and Bar Tape.........Good Job!!

Thanks for the kind words guys.
Here is a write up and some pics from a ride the weekend before Halloween. I originally posted this in the macretro section but thought as it was on the Mercian I would stick it in here.

Brian and I had been saying for a couple of weeks that we should get out for a decent shakedown ride for our recent retro road builds, me with my Mercian and Brian with his A. Bertin.
We had made very loose plans last week to maybe go for a ride on the weekend, unfortunately I couldn't get out on the Saturday due to doing some stuff for Calebs school and then on Sunday it seemed my day was looking clear so I sent Brian a couple of texts and while still awaiting a reply I loaded up and headed south. At first that was fine but then when I got about 45 mins from home, the heavens opened and when I hit the coast at Latheron it was looking black and bleak to the south. I tried Brian again and luckily got hold of him and he said it was fine at Dingwall. That was reassuring as otherwise it would be a 200 mile round trip and about 5 hours travel wasted.
Arrived at Brians just before lunch and after a quick coffee we decided just to take a few back roads and head to Strathpeffer first and then take it from there. A bit of a rambling gentlemanly shakedown ride, or a Sunday cruise. This play it by ear type route was decided due to the heavy black skies I had outrun before catching up to me. So bikes readied, jackets on and we were off.
A nice backroad run seen us getting to the cemetery on the Strathpeffer road for a first stop to get a picture as I said to Brian I needed one for the RBotM comp which is autumn themed this month and with no trees really up my way, I was going to get one down here with all the lovely colours we just don't see.
A very short ride later seen us stopping at the Café on the platform of the old Strathpeffer railway station. We parked up undercover from some spits of rain and indulged in a nice lunch of spicy parsnip soup, bread and washed it down with a coffee. Hard work these old bikes
The clouds by this time were giving hints and warnings of what was soon to come from these black storm clouds so it was decided to head back towards Dingwall but take a more 'interesting' route.
Well we took a turn off that I know well by now, though it is by Brians reckoning, a road, just not tarmac, it is a route that we normally use our Pugsleys on. This route has several sections where you can head back to the tarmac main road every couple of miles, so thought there is a route out before the 'swampy' section.
So I thought why not, If your not up for an adventurous detour then you wouldn't follow Brian out the door in the first place.
Well it started nice enough, wide farm track with two faint tyre tracks from a tractor, as this got closer to the railway crossing it tapered down to a single mud track. Due to the recent rain and the few damp drops today this was firm but greasy clay, so a few wheelspins were in order.
From here we rode along quite a few nice pathways that had a track through the grass, with the odd detour round a barn or house here and there. We did get to the old swampy part and Brian was right, in that the farmer had widened it, as it used to be just a thin track that was overgrown so much that you could barley walk through let alone ride. Now it had sections covered in sand and what seemed to be broken up pieces of pottery and tiles, etc. The start section of this was interesting as it was quite sandy and very uneven. It was along this section that I found my headset was loosening, so a quick tighten by hand, as I carried no tools on this shakedown ride ( a sign of faith) and onwards we went. I must say I really enjoyed this part of the ride as the bike was flying and handling brilliantly, I was getting into it sliding around at the back and only wished I had some better CX tyres on it.
The next section, while narrow, felt like it should have been a road at some point as it was embedded with these small rocks, almost like cobbles, again the bike was really handling great on these. Brian seemed to be getting right into the Andre Bertin as well. While this one has seen only slight sort out rides since he put it together, it is the same as one he had many many years ago in his younger days. I also think its the first derailleur he has had since his younger days as he seemed to have forgotten how to trim the front
We then took a right turn onto an unknown to me track. I use the term 'track' loosely and just for descriptive purposes. It was, if you can imagine, a faint parting of some leaves under a tree :facepalm: Slowly we seemed to wind down a slope through some heavy undergrowth, to emerge into a clearing with a stream in front of us with a steep climb up the opposite bank. With this I don't mean a ridable climb, I mean, Sven Nys, cyclocross on the shoulder, pulling yourself up by tree roots type climb.
Once at the top of the climb we had a short ride through a nicely wooded area on some smooth dirt trails to emerge up above the main part of Dingwall and about two blocks from Brians. Brilliant riding to have on your doorstep and was a relief not to do the big tarmac climb up to the house, much gentler this way.
So not a very long ride but an eventful and thoroughly enjoyable ride along some back tracks I hadn't been on before. It was also a great ride on the Mercian as I was well pleased with how it handled, I felt pretty confident on it and it was predictable throughout. Brian seemed to be enjoying his Bertin and I must say on the tarmac section earlier on he was putting a fair bit of pace on to get to lunch, that's for sure. So the gears and derailleurs obviously agree with you Brian
Brian doesn't like them and I don't think he changed gear more than a couple of times all day, but to be fair, it was on an old Bertin many years ago that he had an old Simplex rear derailleur disintegrate while on a steep climb and send him flailing onto the top tube, and he yelled to the gods (in his now high pitched voice) that he would never use one again. Or so the legend goes, it may have been embellished as it went down the generations. I also told him that they have progressed and are no longer made of wood and they have more than three gears I still don't think he likes them.
It was definitely a good shakedown ride as everything was very well shaken and for me I had my headset loosen and when taking off my pedals to put the bike in the car to go home I noticed my bottom bracket was quite loose, judging by the wobbling cranks :roll: It was good fun but I think I may get some 32mm Shwalbe CX tyres and maybe even some Mafac centrepulls and have a run in some local CX this winter. I said to Brian that once I restore it and definitely if I get an expensive Mercian respray, that there is no fu****ng way it will be doing that sort of 'road ride'
Remember if you head out on a road ride with Brian, be prepared.
Hope you guys all had a good weekend as well.

Jamie

Pictures are a mix of Brians and mine.

DSCN3021 by Jamie Dyer, on Flickr

Mercian & Bertin ride Oct 2016 by epicyclo, on Flickr

DSCN3022 by Jamie Dyer, on Flickr

Mercian & Bertin ride Oct 2016 by epicyclo, on Flickr

hiding from the rain?
DSCN3029 by Jamie Dyer, on Flickr

I was hiding as well
Mercian & Bertin ride Oct 2016 by epicyclo, on Flickr

DSCN3033 by Jamie Dyer, on Flickr

DSCN3036 by Jamie Dyer, on Flickr

DSCN3039 by Jamie Dyer, on Flickr

Mercian & Bertin ride Oct 2016 by epicyclo, on Flickr

Mercian & Bertin ride Oct 2016 by epicyclo, on Flickr

DSCN3046 by Jamie Dyer, on Flickr

A road ride he said..........
DSCN3047 by Jamie Dyer, on Flickr

DSCN3052 by Jamie Dyer, on Flickr

DSCN3056 by Jamie Dyer, on Flickr

Mercian & Bertin ride Oct 2016 by epicyclo, on Flickr

DSCN3057 by Jamie Dyer, on Flickr

Mercian & Bertin ride Oct 2016 by epicyclo, on Flickr

Just a quick update for my Mercian thread.
Having not really done anything major over the winter with the Mercian and with a recent Jack Taylor joining the stable, I pulled the Mercian out the loft and put it back together hurriedly on Saturday afternoon. Originally it was going to be back together with new/different parts to have it ready for some audax runs early this year, some other things have got in the before it so it's sat idling patiently. It was more through just wanting to ride it more than anything else that made me decide at a very late stage to pull it down. It all went back together easily but took a bit of adjusting once on the road. The seat was just a bit out and the stem was way too low but just couldn't work out at first why it felt not quite right. Once sorted it was really nice once again.
With temps around only 1 or 2 degree and a late afternoon start it was just going to be a gentle hour or two out around the coast. Lights fitted just in case and ended up thankful I did as it was just on dark when I got back in.
Nice to have it out again and still think that it will be far more comfortable on long runs with a set of randonnuer bars, something like some Nitto's or such.
Anyway, here's a couple of pics.

Jamie

DSCN3383 by Jamie Dyer, on Flickr

DSCN3387 by Jamie Dyer, on Flickr

DSCN3392 by Jamie Dyer, on Flickr

DSCN3388 by Jamie Dyer, on Flickr