650b rim brake bikes just hit differently. Jose sent in his Brother Cycles Mr. Wooden build, and our jaws dropped. It’s perfection! Let’s check it out in more detail below for this week’s Readers’ Rides…
This is my Mr. Wooden by Brother Cycles. This is a bike that I had been building for months on end in my head. I fell in love with riding 650b wheels and had wanted something that ran that size and had a classic feel. The bicycle needed to have a rim brakes, “Save the rim brake!” As my other 650b bikes all run disc.
This frame fit the bill perfectly.
I tried to build this thing on as much of a budget as I could. This is the least expensive of my bike builds, but probably the most beautiful. The cockpit is the most striking part of this bike, as it has Dia Compe brake levers paired with some Silver shifters, thanks to Gevenalle. The levers sit on Daija flared bars from Velo-Orange and are attached to the bike with a VO stem. I like the Gevenalle shifters a lot and run them on a few bikes. I tried to eliminate all black components from this build, so I sourced some bintage Shimano derailleurs and refreshed them. They came out looking amazing, and they shift just as good as they look.
The bike is 2 x 10, but I’ve had it shift 11-speed cassettes with no issues. The Crankset is a Silver double with a guard, and this part took the longest to source as they sell out pretty quickly. The wheel set was built up in my garage, and it has Ene Ciclo hubs laced to some Simworks/Velocity standalones, and wrapped in Ultradynamico Roses. Brakes are Dia Comp cantilevers, and they have Shovel Research WRT-hangers pulling the cables. Shovel Research parts are exquisite. I run a Brooks B17 saddle on this bike, as it’s my favorite saddle. That attaches to the bike with the Daija seat post. There’s probably stuff I missed, but that should be the gist.
Now that the build is out of the way, let’s talk about the ride. I ride this thing to the park mostly, tailing my 6-year-old son on his MTB.
When I do get this thing on dirt, it absolutely rips. It’s no CF race bike, but for what it is, I couldn’t be more fun. It’s a little heavy, around 25lbs, but maneuvers very well. The position it puts me in is much racier than my “gravel” bike, so I feel that much faster hahaha.
It’s a complete joy to rip on and shifting it puts a huge smile on my face.
Something about the analog feel that is so satisfying, almost like driving my pops’ 79 F-150 in my teens. The brakes are good enough; they sport Cool Stop salmon pads. When I hit a descent, I often wonder if I’ll actually be able to stop, as it’s a big difference from my hydro discs. I’m sure I could find better pads for it, as they are “street” pads, but they look so good! This bike gets people stopping me on trails to discuss it all the time.
They often think it’s extremely old, and they are always surprised when they find out it’s brand new. I ride this bike more than any other bike I own, because it doesn’t have any prerequisites. I can grab this in any attire, with any footwear, and just go rip up some dirt with my son. He already tells me that it’s going to be his when he gets tall enough.
Build Spec:
- Mr. Wooden 4130 frame
- 650b w/ canti brakes
- I built the Wheelset: it’s SimWorks/Velocity standalone laced to Dia Compe Ene Ciclo hubs with DT Swiss spokes and SimWorks brass nipples.
- All wrapped in some Ultradynamico Rose tires
- Cockpit is Diacompe/ Gevenalle, with silver friction shifters
- Velocity Daija bars wrapped in BTP tape
- Silver 2x crank
- Brooks B17 Special
- Drivetrain is some Bintage Ultegra/ Dura-ace bits
- And has some cool Shovel Research bits.
Photos by @b3rky
We’d like to thank all of you who submitted Readers Rides builds to be shared here at The Radavist. The response has been incredible and we have so many to share over the next few months. Feel free to submit your bike, listing details, components, and other information. You can also include a portrait of yourself with your bike and your Instagram account! Please, shoot landscape-orientation photos, not portrait. Thanks!