Opinions of Rivendell framesets?..Romulus?

[CarlosContreros]

Hi Serotta types!
I'm very interested in purchasing a Riv Rom and going about
trying to turn it into a ...stable..comfortable..fitness 40K
cruiser.
I'm really do no racing...I just like to go out for a couple of hours
and go as fast as I can working my lungs....legs and heart.
I have a dream of someday riding the 40K in an hour..but as I'm
very close to mid-40 that time may never come!
I've always been very disappointed in the handling an stability of
racing bikes that I've owned..in that they are twitchy and just really
no fun...albeit except for the speed!
What I like about the Rom is it's wheelbase(longish)..it's low BB..and it's
chainstays on the long side.
I'm tall(6'4") and I'm mostly legs(37.25")..so I like the top-tube length
of the 63cm Rom..and I feel it's long chainstays will be a good fit since
I have long femurs(a lot of saddle setback).
My question....will this jut be a very comfy....stable...but SLOW touring
bike equipped with Ultegra and Conti 23's???
thanks!

[Needs Help]

I would think a 66cm Rivendell would be the frame size you should consider and if you preferred less of a riser stem then a 68cm.

[dbrk]

Follow Rivendell's sizing guildelines going _with_ their number when you want a very near level (or level) saddle/bar drop or one down if you want a few centimeters drop. Either way you will get a beautifully designed and comfortable bike. The six-person Toyo shop in Osaka makes the Romulus with meticulous care; it's modest price reflects simpler bits but no diminishment of quality since Toyo only knows one level of building, and that is superb. Of course, don't expect the refinement and detail you would expect from a custom Goodrich-built Rivendell but neither the cost nor the wait either. The handful of "cantilever Romulus" that are now available are tremendously versatile bikes: you can put skinny tires on them and race and you can put BIG FAT tires on them and ride plush and off road-ish anywhere but the most technical. The cantilever Roms were a "mistake" but they are a great value, a great ride, and, well, if I didn't have this covered I'd be all over it.

dbrk

[fiamme red]

I thought the Romulus model has been discontinued? So unless you can buy one second-hand, you probably want a Rambouillet?

[Needs Help]

I'm tall(6'4") and I'm mostly legs(37.25")..so I like the top-tube length
of the 63cm Rom..
Don't forget that if you have to raise the stem, it effectively shortens the top tube length. You might have to raise the stem so much on a 63cm frame size that the reach would be too short for you.

It doesn't look like Rivendell has any bigger frame sizes. Why not a 66cm Rambouillet?

[dbrk]

There is one last batch of cantilever built Romulus and then it's all Rambouillet (or other models, including Atlantis, Saluki, Wilbury/Glorius, Quickbeam, and a few in the pipeline).

Also, Needs Help is right about the stem coming up and shortening the effective top tube. Follow his advice!

dbrk

[Needs Help]

My question....will this jut be a very comfy....stable...but SLOW touring
bike equipped with Ultegra and Conti 23's???
Comfy and stable. Slow depends on you. Conti 23's?? Ride some Ruffy Tuffy or Rolly Polly 27's and you won't ever ask about 23's again.

[sg8357]

[snip]My question....will this jut be a very comfy....stable...but SLOW touring
bike equipped with Ultegra and Conti 23's???
thanks!

The Romulus is a racing bike, just from the 1950s, long chain stays
low BB and all. Back when the TdF was a manly 400k a day over unpaved
mountain passes, bikes were longer, lower and the tires were wider.
They feel less skittish than a Fierte for instance, Riv's also feel different
when you stand, more of standing IN the bike rather than on the bike.

Scott G.

[Marron]

The Romulus is a racing bike, just from the 1950s, long chain stays
low BB and all. Back when the TdF was a manly 400k a day over unpaved
mountain passes, bikes were longer, lower and the tires were wider.
They feel less skittish than a Fierte for instance, Riv's also feel different
when you stand, more of standing IN the bike rather than on the bike.

Scott G.

I've opined on this a couple of times based on my experience with the Ram; mount skinnier tires and you have an Italian race bike from the 60's-70's. I've also commented on fitting them a bit smaller than Grant suggests but that is just personal taste.

[eddief]

My 60 cm Rambouillet is simply a delight to view and to ride. A bit springy-er than my custom Steve Rex with carbon fork, but just about the same in contact point dimensions and angles. The R has a bit longer chainstays. I am always delighted to get on it and go. Mine is built with all modern parts and 700/23 Michelins and is the perfect thing for those two to four hour fast club rides, just perfect.

[pale scotsman]

I had a 63cm Romulus built with Ultegra triple and DA hubs w/ 36 spoke mavic open pros. Here's the pic - http://forums.thepaceline.net/attachment.php?attachmentid=1006&stc=1

Loved the bike but in the end didn't really like the color and the decals bothered me. I know it's petty but they looked like stickers slapped on and clear coated. Not what I would expect on a $900 frameset no matter the maker. But alas I regret selling it. With 28c Panaracer Pasela TG's it flew, I mean flew on rough roads. Comfort wise it was the most comfortable and versatile road bike I've ever owned. Rivendell is on to a good thing and I'd look at the Rambouillet if I were you. Last years orange is what I really wanted but nary a 62 was in sight. Better yet I'd keep the mx leader if you still have it and get the steerer threaded and ride the living crap out of it. My .02 Alabamian...

[Spinner]

Had my Chorus, Open Pro, San Marco Regal, Nitto cage, Giles Berthoud carbon fendered Rambouillet at the local Serotta shop a week ago. One young wrench in particular was drooling all the time I was there.

The Rambouillet has a very stable feel, even with skinny tires. This bike is very well suited for credit card touring.

Ciao!

[CarlosContreros]

All good info from everyone!!

PaleScotsman..yes I still have the Merckx MX Leader..but at 62cm its
just too small while I wonder if the 63 I have a deposit on will be
really that much bigger?
I know in concern to steerer it WILL be much longer(by 2") than my
current Merckx so vertically I can set it up anyway I desire...but will
it have that much longer of a wheelbase to make it's stability to
my liking?
I've considered as well I could always send the 63 Merckx off to
a builder and getting the fork bent to increase wheelbase.
The Romulus sounds like a great bike.....of course as to the question
in regards to it's speed might depend on my level of fitness(the old
strength versus weight equasion).
As to if a 63 Romulus is available?....they do have a 63 left over in storage.
so that's covered.
Also...I think I would go with the 63 just to try and get a more "racy" bike.
keeping in mind that with their top-tube angled up..and also with the
Riv headset a 63cm size will horizontally fit like a conventional 67cm bike.
thanks again!!

[pale scotsman]

Keep in mind that the seat height on my old Rom is set at 80.5cm on the 63cm frame. Isn't your seat height much higher?

Ian

[gabbard]

I had one, now sold, but make sure that if you want anything less than near level saddle-bars heights, I would go down a size from what Grant says. There is a headtube extension of usually about 1 cm, and there is usually a slope of about 1 degree to the top tube, so you get another cm or so. Add that to the fact that he sizes them large, and you need to be careful not to have a frame that is too large.

Also, this may be blasphemy, but I sold my Rivendell because it never seemed to fit - top tube was too long, bike felt a bit big, and seat tube angle was too shallow for my tastes. So, be careful and make sure that the dimensions work for you. It doesn't sound like you are doing custom, but if you do, make sure that you get what you want. Grant has very strong opinions, and in my case his opinions over-ruled some design decisions that would have made for a better fit. I should have known better, and now I do.

They are very pretty, head-turning bikes.

Steve

[Ray]

One more from the peanut gallery. I have three main road bikes at the moment - a 58 Rivendell (pre-custom, but relative racy compared to today's Riv designs), a 60 Rambouillet (functionally the same bike as the Romulus except less tire clearance than the canti-Roms), and a 61 Spectrum custom. The Spectrum is the raciest of the three, the Rambouillet is by far the most relaxed of the three and the Rivendell is almost perfectly in between. All three are crazy comfortable. All three can be ridden fast (by someone else - I ride 'em slow). The Rambouillet, however, FEELS the least fast of the three, if this matters to you. I probably give up a bit of speed on the hills, but nothing anywhere else, but it's longness seems to make it feel more deliberate and more relaxing and it gives you less positive feedback for hard efforts. So if speed or the sensation thereof is a primary concern, you migh go for something with a bit shorter wheelbase, quicker handling, etc. But if you want an all day bike that you can ride fast or slow (not all bikes particularly like to go slow), the Ram/Rom is an excellent choice. And versatile as all get out. Awesome for credit card touring with about 20 pounds on board. Good on dirt roads with 28-32mm tires. All sorts of stuff to be done on this bike.

-Ray

[alienator]

I had a 63cm Romulus built with Ultegra triple and DA hubs w/ 36 spoke mavic open pros. Here's the pic - [url]http://forums.thepaceline.net/attachment.php?attachmentid=1006&stc=1
Sorry, but I gotta say that is/was one ugly bike.

[dauwhe]

I had a 63cm Romulus built with Ultegra triple and DA hubs w/ 36 spoke mavic open pros. Here's the pic - http://forums.thepaceline.net/attachment.php?attachmentid=1006&stc=1


I actually like the color--my Rivendell Saluki (650b) is that color, only with white bar tape, which I think helps the look tremendously. I also have a stock Romulus, which was my first good bike in twenty years. I rode it last night, and it feels like the perfect bike to me, for something with unreasonably thin tires (27mm)!

Dave Cramer
Brattleboro, Vermont

[Ray]

Sorry, but I gotta say that is/was one ugly bike.
I don't "gotta" say anything about stuff I like or don't like - I generally choose to say when I like something and keep my yap shut when I don't - it doesn't matter enough to risk hurting someone's feelings. In any case, I now choose to opine that it's one great looking bike. All in the eye of the beholder again.

-Ray

[pale scotsman]

Ugly as in what, color, build, house color, shutters, I don't get it. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Ray is a wise man as ancient Scottish custom dictates if you have nothing nice to say, then don't say it at all. There's plenty of bikes posted that don't float my boat but I keep my mouth shut. BTW - I've yet to see a Riv that isn't pretty, but then again I'm kind of partial to the style.

[dirtdigger88]

Sorry, but I gotta say that is/was one ugly bike.

would you enlighten us on what a "pretty" bike looks like?

Jason

[Ken Robb]

my 62cm Rambo fits me fine at 6'1 with 79cm saddle height.
Leslie's 59cm Romulus fits her fine at 5.9--it's too small for my preference but would be the size recommended to me by many "racy" shops/fitters.

I would guess that a Rom/Rambo for you should be bigger than 63cm.