The Crown Jewel

So I have had the Independent Fabrications Crown Jewel SE for a little over a month now and thought I would share a few pics and thoughts about the build and the ride for my reader.
Hmmm, where to begin?

I was all gung-ho at first, tempted by the beautiful paint job and thought of a "new" bike. But then the doubt and concern crept into my head. What about the Kestrel? You love that bike. Will the Indy ride as well as the trusty carbon steed? These questions and many others were tempered by my impatience and desire to get a new bike though. I am happy to report that after 200 miles in the saddle, I am a happy rider of a trusty steel steed.

I recently completed some freelance design work for a bike industry friend and had a sweet new set of 31.8 Carbon bars and stem to try out. They only fit 1-1/8 bikes so I HAD to get a new bike (right)? Of course. I swapped out all the other parts from the Kestrel and set about building her up one weekend. It should be noted that although I do not have photographic evidence, the ONLY way the bike would be set up correctly (ie shifters working right and adjusted-as well as patient guidance dispensed with no qualms)-was if my much more adept wife was there. Yes, I am proud to say Cari is a MUCH better mechanic than yours truly. She has patience by the handful and a true ability to set up and adjust the shifters on my bikes. Thank you very much Cari!

The parts on the ride? Pretty straight forward.

The frame is a 2005 Indy Fab Crown Jewel, 54cm with Custom paint. Uses 853 main tubes and Foco rear end
Fork is Reynolds Ouzo Pro w/Carbon Steerer-learned to like this one- Has a bit more deflection than the Kestrel, but is very confident in handling
Cranks are FSA Superlight Carbon-non compact with a Shimano Ultegra Octalink BB
Brakes, Shifters and Derailleurs are Dura Ace 9speed
Headset is a King Patriot, got it with the frame
Thomson Elite Seatpost, also came with the frame
Stem is Syntace F119 with Ti Bolt kit
Handlebars are Syntace 31.8 Carbon 44cm
Saddle is the awesome Fizik Arionne-very comfy for long days in the saddle
Wheels are my Gucci set of 4 year old Ksyrium SL's (remember Steve-I sold you my original Ksyriums to finance these!) Still totally true, no adjustment needed and flawless
Tires-Michelin Pro Race Service Course
Pedals are Speedplay (watch out for the slightest hint of dirt)

Here are some pics of it the other day. Sorry about the quality, but with a dog and 3-1/2 year old running the joint, you gotta take what you can and get out!











The Daring Duo-Jake and Kona

My mechanic muggin' for the camera!

Sell! Sell! Sell!!!

I love Craigslist.
Sure you have some degree of flakiness to deal with, but the ol' list has served me so well in the past month I have to sing it's praises...
On the other hand there is ePay, I mean eBay. Ah yes, I ran afoul with the ol' battleship recently. Being the impatient seller, when things didn't move immediately off Craigslist, I put them on eBay. Well eBay owns Paypal and in the case of things like my Kona and some easton Bars I was selling, the fees were getting ridiculous-especially Paypal fees. I thought it had to do with sellers using credit cards as it looked like I was being charged upto 4-5% on transactions in Paypal. Well, to combat it, I put a disclaimer in my eBay text that said "Paypal with your checking account ONLY. If you pay with a credit card, I will add 5% to the total price to cover the fees and hassle". No problem right? Wrong.
I was one day away from selling my Easton carbon bars, they had met reserve and all looked well. Then I got the emails from eBay. My auction was cancelled (eliminated). The reason? Sellers are unable/not allowed to add fees to the Paypal fees. A PC email outlining this led me to a page on eBay further explaining. Real Nice. Good ol' eBay did refund my listing fees, but now I was still holding handle bars I was required to sell by my sweet wife!
Hello Craigslist!
Posted the bars and sold them the next day, cash on the barrel head, not eBay fees and met another cool cyclist.

That leads me to the point of this ramble. I have sold a ton of shit to do 2 things:
1. Satisfy my patient wife's request that I sell bikes to cover the new Indy Fab Crown Jewel
2. Keep my trusty Kestrel at ALL costs

Oo as you can see below, I sold some sheet man! AND I have my Kestrel (Yee HA!). It will rise like a Phoenix as my new daily commuter-complete with flat bars and a new life. That is right Kirby-the Black Stallion rides on!

Check it-here's what has sold to date:

1-2004 Specialized Allez Frame, carbon fork, headset and seatpost (Not pictured); sold to a guy on Craigslist who expected a mint condition bike for $100! The thing has Foco tubing a Columbus Muscle all carbon fork and guess what? Scratches and nicks and some rust spots from being a daily commuter (if you know me-these were minimal, as I clean my bikes religiuously and take really good care of them). I had to wonder when he complained about the scratches AFTER he had the bike for a week. Guess I should have sold it for $10-what was I thinking!!

2-Kona A'Ha SS
3-Hawthorne Cruiser
4-Schwinn Cruiser
5-Nitto Moustache Bars
6-Shimano 600 levers
7-Easton Carbon Road Bars


My 1960's Hawthorne now lives in Emeryville

Kona went onto the great white north of Canada


Cari's 24" Vintage Schwinn is moving to SF


My Nitto moustache bars and Shimano 600 levers went to SF and New Hampshire


The Easton Carbon bars are toolin' around SF

I'll post pics of teh Indy Fab soon. Heading out this weekend with my wife and our friends to do a Valley ride. I have to say, I have about 100 miles on it so far and love it! Steel is nice.