Rivendell Research -Swapping the Charlie to a Charlie-

Tani from Blue Lug Kamiuma here,

I’ve got another Riv report for you. I’m going to write about something I have been thinking every night after work.

Everyone has an image of Tom Ritchey, Ultraromance, Champion of Tour De France, or even a Japanese idol with a Redbull helmet as their home screen wallpaper, but for me it’s this picture.

Everything I love is on this one photograph.

However, there are some mysteries in this shot. Was it taken for the purpose of shooting the bike, or did the cameraman ask Grant to sit beside the bike?

The bike that Grant is sitting beside is the Clem Smith Jr. with a “Maxed Out Sizing”, that I wrote about. A build with a bigger frame size than usual.

“Well, you can ride it comfortably, so it is technically a correct size” Grant-san may say with a smile and I absolutely agree. However, it is not a usual way of choosing the frame size for customers who visit us at Blue Lug.

Anyhow, this is my Charlie H.Gallop.

I wanted to use the Albastache Bar, my favorite bar on this bike so bad, I chose size 49 frame, which is the smallest size that I can ride within my PBH range.

My doing so…

I am able to build the bike with short (50-70mm) stems and a drop bar. If I were to build the bike with the Albatross Bar, I would probably pick a 110mm stem.

I think this bike from the weekly newsletter was built with a similar sizing.

If you look at the saddle height, we can assume that a taller person wanted a smaller build for installing a drop bar.

Scooping  the R14 rear rack like this was something that I only did, but I was apparently wrong. Could this be an Antonio build? Either way, I love the wavy rack stay. Not only this is stylish, but it can also acquire more capacity for saddle bags. A BaggaBond bag would look nice.

…Shoot, I got side tracked.

Now, I loved my Charlie with the small frame, but as I was writing about the maxed out sizing, I became curious of Maxed Out Sizing. It’s a magical thing I learned from Grant-san, where I can choose a larger frame size than usual. I have to try the big Charlie.

Again, I absolutely adored this comfy step-over country bike, so it’s a bit of a shame to say goodbye.

For me, I cannot ride 53 or 54 frame size for diamond shaped frames of Rivendell, such as the Atlantis, Sam or Appaloosa, but I can ride a 57 or 58 for a step-thru frame…

“You can ride a bike with a longer wheel base, it feels great!” I can almost hear Grant-san’s advice.

Alright, time to get to work.

There I was, trying not to tear up while I take the Charlie apart after work. Thank you 49 Charlie.

You may think I’m insane by swapping a Charlie frame for another Charlie…yes, and I do not care.

I’ve already done the same thing before. In the past, I’ve done :

Clem→Clem

Frank Jones→Frank Jones

Homer→Homer

See? I am a serial frame swapper.

It is impossible for me to ride and review all the bikes we carry at Blue Lug, but I at least would want to try and review all of the bikes that are from my favorite company, Rivendell and share my thoughts to the world.

Height : 173cm, PBH : 83cm, Saddle height : 70cm, with size 49 Charlie

and this is the 57 Charlie.

Take a look at the standover height. The PBH is higher than the standover height, despite going up to a 57 frame size. The most important thing for sizing up is to make sure your PBH is higher than the standover height.

This is my big Charlie.

It’s the largest bike that I have ever owned. It feels so much different than the 49 Charlie. In fact, the view from the saddle is different. The front and rear wheels are way further out. I could feel the frame flexing with my feet. It was like I was on a hammock, smooth and comfy.

The 49 felt zoomy, but the 57 feels more relaxed, but you keep moving forward. I kind of felt a similar vibe when using Bowser after using Toad in Mario Cart.

The long chain stay becomes even longer for a larger frame size, which gives the Bowser feel. I haven’t surfed before, but I imagine surfing on a long board feels like this bike. (correct me if I’m wrong)

The weight of the frame is still pretty light, compared to models like Atlantis and Appaloosa. It still has the benefits of the nimble frame.

Charlie is a great bike for riding daily in the city. I finally understand the purpose of this bike.

The top tube became 6cm longer than the previous build, so I can no longer have the Albastche or drop bars. I can’t reach the bars even with the shortest stem.

I chose the Choco Bar, a bar with a big back sweep and minimal rise.

The stack height automatically becomes higher for a larger frame, so the key was to choose a bar with low rise.

I gotta say, I miss the Albastache, but I’ll install it to the Homer or Roadini. I’m currently in the mood for wool felt grips, that Grant told me about

Indeed, this is not a “bicycle product”, so DIY stuff is required, but we have them on our website.

It’s not about being neat, it’s about originality. I would love to see how you guys apply these grips.

So far, I love these grips. The 100% wool grips won’t get stinky after rain and sweat. Silicone grips feel way dirtier when they are used up.

Another interesting thing about this build is the difference of seat post exposure.

Both are same 70cm saddle height.

It doesn’t look like they belong to the same owner does it?

In order to do a Maxed Out Sizing build, you would need to be able to set up the bike with your usual saddle height with the seat post slammed.

It’s funny that I cared so much about how much the seat post is out, when I was riding fixies, 20 years ago.

Now, for those of you who ride 47.5-48 frame sizes, I never thought the bikes in those sizes are less beautiful, but so many customers are worried about how their bike would look with small frame sizes. Many people tend to try picking up a frame size bigger than what they are suited for.

Charlie is one of the frames that makes sense to get a larger frame size. Slammed seat post looks and you won’t feel the sketchiness of hopping off the bike, due to the step over top tube.

So if you are a shorter rider, I would like to recommend sizing up for the Charlie.

If you are one of those people who are worried about a small frame, you can ride a 53 frame size if you pick the Charlie. This is what I wanted to try myself and show people that this is an option for those of you who are thinking of getting their first Rivendell.

I feel so good riding a size 57, when normally I would ride a 51 Sam. I highly recommend sizing up the Charlie.

Again, I’m not saying that either is better. I’m just trying to show an option.

Choosing your usual frame size for a Charlie to feel the quick and zippy feel,

and choosing a Maxed Out Size and feeling the laid-back, but runs very well are both excellent.

Thank you for reading this report.