My custom ride: Vilano Wave 3 speed internal hub with manual shifter.

I’ve always ridden bicycles.  Living in a smaller city it was a great means of transportation as well as being a good workout.  When I used to live in the western Canadian provinces I owned a mountain bike and would often go riding down the Canadian Rockies.  We’d use one vehicle to shuttle all the bicycles to the top of the mountain.   We’d leave all the other vehicles at the bottom. You would then ride down the mountain to your waiting vehicles.

For the past few years I had been using an old mountain bike I had modified to ride on the street.  It had served me well but was showing it’s age.  It was with this in mind that I decided I would purchase/build myself a new bicycle this summer.

Over the winter months I had done some research/shopping for the frame I wanted to purchase.  At the beginning of April I made the decision and I ordered a Vilano Wave off of amazon.  My intent was to tear it down, customize almost everything and get it repainted:

I purchased this frame because it was on sale at the time and I liked the design.  However I wasn’t a big fan of the color, wheels, or the seat.  First thing I did was give away the wheels.  Placed them on the side of the street with a sign that said “free” and they were gone in 10 minutes.  The next thing I did was tear the bicycle down.  I was able to remove most of the parts but a few required specialized equipment.  I brought it down to my local bike shop and they removed the parts for free.  While there I asked the mechanic if he had any experience or thoughts regarding the Shimano 3 speed internal hub.  He quickly answered that depending on the type of ridding they’re great for the city.  This was the last confirmation I needed in order to purchase the 3 speed internal hub.

With the visit to the bicycle shop done the sanding process began:

My initial idea was to attempt and paint it myself.  I enjoy these type of DIY projects.  However after some research I decided to get it professionally powder coated.  My biggest concern in terms of painting it myself was that I had no idea how long the paint would last.  I didn’t want to have to worry about having to tear the bicycle down next summer to repaint it.  Here it is just before I decided to bring it to the professional painter:

While the bike was at the paint shop I went ahead and ordered a new set of wheels and a Shimano 3 speed internal hub.   Shimano recommends their own 3 speed grip shifter to be paired with their internal hub.  I personally do not like grip shifters so I wanted to find an alternative solution.  With a little research I was able to find various sources which confirmed that the Sturmey-Archer 3spd SLS30 R3T Thumb Shifter would be compatible with my Shimano Hub.  I didn’t know it at the time but I would also later need to order the Shimano 3 speed grip shifter for the bell crank which comes included with it.

The comedy of errors began. 

The first attempt at the paint job failed.  The painter had warned me when we first met that because of my previous bicycle’s color (neon orange) and my new choice (white) it was possible the colours would bleed out during the curing process.   Although the first attempt had failed, the paint color and coating was great.  The painter said he would redo the whole process again for free.  What should have taken two weeks turned into 4.  It’s now the middle of May.

Having received the bike from the painters, I dropped it off at my nearest bike shop along with the parts I had ordered.  I knew it was the start of their busy season so I expected it would take a few weeks before I heard back from them.

We’re now in June, not exactly sure when.  I get a call a to confirm we would need to order a shifter.  When I first dropped off the bike I hadn’t included a grip shifter.  They were only able to order the 3 speed grip shifter.  I explained I would order the manual shifter I preferred online and would drop it off at the shop.  This took another week, week and a half.

Another week goes by and I get another call from the local bicycle shop to explain that I’m still missing a piece, the bell crank.  I’m a little frustrated at them for not telling me we would need a bell crank to begin with.  I suppose they expected the shifter would come with a bell crank.  At this point with my frustration mounting I tell  them to put it together the best they could and I would stop in to pick it up.  A co worker of mine works part time in a bicycle shop and my plan was to bring it to him to finish the build.  Part of the frustration was that another mechanic at the shop had told me the bike would be ready “in a few days” prior to being told there was another missing part.  It’s at this point I order the Shimano 3 speed grip shifter because it comes with the missing bell crank that I need.

I picked up my bike, paid for the services and brought it home.  At that time it was still looking pretty bare bones.  There were no tires or chain and the wheels weren’t attached.  Not to mention we were now in June and I still wasn’t riding my bike!

Maybe A week later I’m looking at the bicycle and realize that a small part for the 3 speed internal hub is missing.  I was still waiting to hear from my coworker and figured since I had to go to the shop to see if they could look for the missing pin  I would also purchase some tires, tubes and inner rim tape while there.   I was not looking forward to bringing up the missing part at the shop.

I get to the shop and head over to the mechanic’s area with my rim and hub.  I explain to him that I hadn’t noticed at first when I picked up the bicycle but the pin wasn’t present.  I then asked if they could look around and if in a worse case scenario we could simply order a new one.

It was the same mechanic which had helped in first disassembling my bicycle and validating the merits of a 3 speed internal hub.   He told me they would have a look for the part and would follow up with me in a day or two at the latest.  He confirmed that it wouldn’t be an issue to order the part if necessary.

I purchased some nice Kevlar tires and was discussing the tubes when the mechanic made the suggestion I get my rims drilled so that they could accommodate Schrader valves.  I was concerned that this might damage the rims but he assured me that it wouldn’t be an issue.  I personally find Schrader valves easier to work with so I decided to get it done.

We talked a bit more about the build for my bike and how I now had the missing bell crank at home.  Not only did he convince me to bring my rims to get valve hole size  increased, he also convinced me to bring the bike back into their shop for the to complete the build.

The comedy continues…

The following day the parts are all dropped off and I’m told it wouldn’t be very long before the bike is up and running.  A week goes by.  I give them a call and I’m told they just need to go pick up the part, once they have it it’ll be ready to go in an hour.  Another week goes by.  It’s now approaching the end of July.  I call the shop in the morning during business hours and it goes to voice mail.  I leave an exasperated message asking to know when the bike would be ready.

They call me back a few days later and to tell me to come pick it up.  I asked if they’ve taken it out for a test drive and I’m told they haven’t.  Worried, I go pick up the bike and take it for it’s first spin.  I go slow as this was my first time riding it.  There’s a problem!  It’s not shifting properly.  I feel dejected.  I’m only getting two out of the three gears.  I turn around and head over to back to the bicycle shop.  The manager greets me by name when I walk in.  I smile and I explain that it appears to not be shifting gears properly.  I ask them if perhaps there’s any adjusting that can be done because if felt like it was very close to getting that 3rd gear.  The mechanic answer is an impatient no.  We discuss this with the mechanics and the conclusion is that it must be because I’m using a non standard manual shifter rather than the recommended Shimano product.

It’s now August, summer is almost over and at this point all I want to do is to be able to ride my bicycle.  I tell them it’s fine if we need to switch to a grip shift in order to get it working properly.  I ask them to install it and give me a call call once it’s ready.

I had ridden the bicycle for a whole 5 minutes.

Two days later the mechanic calls me and says the bike is ready.  I’m excited!  I head over to the bike shop the very next day and am surprised to see upon my arrival that the 3 speed manual shifter is still on the bike.  I ask the mechanic what’s up:   “We realized after the fact that there are two pin lengths for the Shimano 3 speed internal hubs.  We had used the wrong one with yours.  We took it out for a ride and it’s now shifting through all 3 gears just fine with your manual shifter”.

I take out the bike for it’s first real ride.  The chain jumps off the rails about a half dozen times but other than that it rides like the wind.    The 3 speed coaster hub is perfect for the type of ridding I do around Montreal.  I threw on my old seat and handlebars.  Added a rain/splash guard on the rear wheel.  I’ve since corrected the chain issue with a little elbow grease.  I’m still not 100% sold on the handlebars and pedals which may yet still be changed.

It was a hell of a journey but I have to admit in the end it was worth it.  I’m extremely happy with how the bike looks but most importantly how it rides.