I finally got tired of waiting for the correct parts for my Team Jag rider. My best bud from BITD pulled his Goose out of storage and it was time to go ride. So I slapped my bike together with parts I had. We had a blast.....But there are alot of things that bother me about the bike.

1. The brakes suck. I am running Dia Compe 890's I think with Kool Stop Continentals and a shimano lever. I could barely stop.

2. The seat is too brutal for my fat butt now.

3. I loved Redline Vbars BITD. I hate the backward sweep now. I got some slam bars coming that I picked up off of Ebay. Hopefully those are better.

So whats the hot setup now days for brake levers, brake pads, and seats.

I realized today that the stuff I ran BITD is cool and all but I want to ride and have fun. So some upgrades are in order. Any advice? I appreciate any input you guys have!

Here's the bike.........



Me and my best bud.....RT just before we took off.

I think you're going to like the slam bars alot. You can make the brakes work. Buy a higher end brake cable, $8 - $10 range. Be sure to pull the cable out of the housing and cover it with some phil wood grease. Set the brakes up so the pads are as close to the rim as possible without rubbing. I like the new S&M slim seat, but I race so I've never actually sat down on it.

Good luck!

Thanks fore the advice. Sorry about the Newbie question but what brands are the High end brake cables? I have been out of the sport for so long now and my LBS isn't actually up with the times either.

JK

I like the Odyssey Linear Cable, $8.99 online from Dan's Competition. You should also use sandpaper on the contact area of the brake pads. This will make them grip better and remove any oil, dirt or stone picked up while riding.

You might be better off getting a new school bike as they are pretty cheap and will fit you better. Slams are great bars, get a cushiony seat and caliper barakes that stop a grown man are pretty rare these days. Danscomp is a good place to look.

Thanks for the advice guys. I'll definately pick up the Odyssey linear cable. And I definately need to take sandpaper to my rims and pads! I know the logical thing to do is pick up a new school bike. But, nostalgia is playing a huge part for me fight now. But, I am sure I will later find the desire to build a new scool bike.

Thanks again....Any advice is surely appreciated!

JK

Man, there's nothing wrong with nostalgia - that's why half of us are here.

For brake pads, I highly recommend Kool Stop's with the "salmon" formulation. These are so grippy & i'm pretty sure you can still get ones for OS brakes & they look the part. Make sure your wheels are running true too..

Check out the Retro seats at the Pro Neck site to the right -> My custom colored one is on its way but I've only heard good things about them. You're probably best off ordering via his Ebay shop.

My 2 pence..

Good comfortable seats.... I ride quite long distances on 26" bmx bikes. I'd say the most comfortable seats are the ones that flex well and are not too curvy. Kashimax seats flex beautifully and do not restrict your movement. I got one on this site for $10. I find that modern seats are very stiff and rely on padding for comfort. The nearest thing to a Kashimax seat I’ve found is a fizik, gobi. These seats are expensive and have a mountain bike look rather than old school bmx. For my a*s and me they work. I've also seen people using Selle Italia seats. They look stiff but I haven't tried them out, yet. WTB make good seats, but very mountain bike looking. Fizik, Selle and WTB are all roughly over $100 bucks.

Modern 20” bikes have more space in the top tube and with a long stem you can really get a good fit on the bike. If you want to stick with your Jag and keep things old school. Try a Kashimax seat not the aero and a simple layback seatpost. You’ll get an extra 4inchs of space and some flex in the seat, nice.

I would also consider changing tires for something that rolls faster. Dans has tonnes of 20" tries. Primo makes a skinwall called, "dirt monster". You can find those on ebay for $15 each.

Enjoy!!!

Thanks again for the advice guys.

Gnuchoice,

Thanks for the tip on the Odyssey cable. Just finshed putting it on today and it actually makes a ton of difference on stopping power.

I changed to slam bars recently. I love the sweep - or lack of sweep I should say. It is a little wide for the smallish t/t of the Jag but I'll see how they workout. I also changed the front fork to a Cooks Bros since I ran a Cooks on my bike as a kid. Still need to pick up a leaned back seat post and new seat. I temporarily threw on a seat from an old Centurian road bike I have lying around. The seat helps alot for my fat a__. I have been also looking at running a different stem than the Redline double clamp. Looking for something that will push the bars farther forward but still have an old school vibe to it. I might not be able to find something that allows me to run the stem as High as the Redline though. The slam bars are alot shorter tham the Redlines were. The grips are 38" high from the floor right now.

Here's were I'm at right now thanks again!

Here's a pic of my rider from today. Trying to learn again.....It's still fun as ever.

seems to be a nice project, but if you really want to ride more often again, then you should seriously look into getting a newer bike. especially since you're already swapping out parts anyway.