Laïti Mono, aka the brainbreaker
- Thread starter Raging_Bulls
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You’d better ask al.
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The History Man":r83m3q90 said:
That code for he’s already moved it on,
Same bike but different owner here - viewtopic.php?f=6&t=367675&p=2860297#p2860297
Although I think Al has an artistic block and has stood in awe at its funkiness scratching his head for the past year and a bit
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I'd have no trouble doing something with it...........
I might have a Laiti Mono Navajo to sell. Pictures will be coming up. This shall not yet be an official sales add. I am not yet 100% I should do it but I will then post it in the proper forum.
Here is the story:
A few years ago, I was also very fascinated by the the Laiti. I was then lucky enough to find a bike close to where I live in Germany which was virtually not used. It has some (very) light marks here and there but mostly from storage. No rust, no scratches. The bike was also completely original. I wanted to make it fit for my girlfriend to use it around town so I put some white tires and pedals on and exchanged the hard grips for some nice Ourys but I did keep all the original parts.
The problem:
This thread contains a lot of the problems Laiti bikes have due to its construction. I had a new wheel nut fabricated from aluminum because mine were round as well. My bike could be an early version because its nuts lack the allen key hole so have to be grabbed from the outside. This was an easy repair.
The brakes (drum brakes) are not comparable to good cantis. They do their job and could probably be improved if one took the time.
The biggest problem and actually the reason why my girlfriend does not use it is the chainline. The bolt on freewheel whobbles but the real problem is that it sticks so far out that it does not come close to what it should be in order to allow for a decent chainline with the front rings. I tried a few freewheels but that does not do the trick. Using a wider BB will velp but then the front derailleur may not be able to reach wide enough. In the end, my girlfriend lost interest and I did not try further. I assume the chainline problem is the reason why the bike was never used. Of course the seller only said that all the bike needs was a proper tuning - well sort of.
As the bike is so unique and in such good condition, I am really struggling to give it away but if there is somebody able to eliminate its flaws I might still do it. I am sure it can be done but a lot of time and experimenting will be necessary.
As I said above, I will post some eyplaining pics soon.
Cheers,
Andy
Here is the story:
A few years ago, I was also very fascinated by the the Laiti. I was then lucky enough to find a bike close to where I live in Germany which was virtually not used. It has some (very) light marks here and there but mostly from storage. No rust, no scratches. The bike was also completely original. I wanted to make it fit for my girlfriend to use it around town so I put some white tires and pedals on and exchanged the hard grips for some nice Ourys but I did keep all the original parts.
The problem:
This thread contains a lot of the problems Laiti bikes have due to its construction. I had a new wheel nut fabricated from aluminum because mine were round as well. My bike could be an early version because its nuts lack the allen key hole so have to be grabbed from the outside. This was an easy repair.
The brakes (drum brakes) are not comparable to good cantis. They do their job and could probably be improved if one took the time.
The biggest problem and actually the reason why my girlfriend does not use it is the chainline. The bolt on freewheel whobbles but the real problem is that it sticks so far out that it does not come close to what it should be in order to allow for a decent chainline with the front rings. I tried a few freewheels but that does not do the trick. Using a wider BB will velp but then the front derailleur may not be able to reach wide enough. In the end, my girlfriend lost interest and I did not try further. I assume the chainline problem is the reason why the bike was never used. Of course the seller only said that all the bike needs was a proper tuning - well sort of.
As the bike is so unique and in such good condition, I am really struggling to give it away but if there is somebody able to eliminate its flaws I might still do it. I am sure it can be done but a lot of time and experimenting will be necessary.
As I said above, I will post some eyplaining pics soon.
Cheers,
Andy
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Re:
hmm ... can't say I ever noticed any chainline issues.
Looking back at my photos of the Laiti, I do notice that it's not straight indeed when on the middle-middle combination. Not really a problem for me as I tend to be on the big chainring almost all the time anyway.
@Jackson14 : This bike has a single-digit frame number (there literally is only a single number stamped into the BB), so I'd be surprised if there is an earlier version.
Still I'd love to check out how the whole axle situation was handled on yours. By all means feel free to post pics of both sides.
hmm ... can't say I ever noticed any chainline issues.
Looking back at my photos of the Laiti, I do notice that it's not straight indeed when on the middle-middle combination. Not really a problem for me as I tend to be on the big chainring almost all the time anyway.
@Jackson14 : This bike has a single-digit frame number (there literally is only a single number stamped into the BB), so I'd be surprised if there is an earlier version.
Still I'd love to check out how the whole axle situation was handled on yours. By all means feel free to post pics of both sides.
mcgilikady
Retro Newbie
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Re: Re:
- easily swap between MTB and road wheels
- repair punctures without having to remove the wheel
- seeing as the cassette is fixed to the frame, you can remove the wheels for transport without having to faff about with the mech and chain.
Also, seeing as the front and rear wheels are identical you can swap those if you want. Handy for when a spoke breaks and you want to reduce the load on that wheel.
enc":1f2o1pid said:
- easily swap between MTB and road wheels
- repair punctures without having to remove the wheel
- seeing as the cassette is fixed to the frame, you can remove the wheels for transport without having to faff about with the mech and chain.
Also, seeing as the front and rear wheels are identical you can swap those if you want. Handy for when a spoke breaks and you want to reduce the load on that wheel.
Retro Spud":13bndt7k said:The History Man":13bndt7k said:
That code for he’s already moved it on,
Same bike but different owner here - viewtopic.php?f=6&t=367675&p=2860297#p2860297
Although I think Al has an artistic block and has stood in awe at its funkiness scratching his head for the past year and a bit
To have an artistic block, one must already have an artistic bent, and I only have a few kinks!
Truth is the bike stayed in the box it came in awaiting some love, but someone wanted to give it even more love than I was willing to give...I'm confused.
The new owner is spending serious dollar on getting the bike sorted, so I made the right decision to let it go.
al.
