Eddy Merckx MX-Leader

[sheberin]

Hi
Would like to show you my latest project. This will probably not impress the real weightweenies, as it wasn‘t my goal to end up with a super light bike. I wished to find more inspirations on similar builds during that project, thats why I‘m posting it anyway.

Got a really good deal on the frame some years ago – the pre-owner crashed the bike and damaged the fork, thats why the original fork is missing, but the frame is still impeccable. So I had the frame but didn´t know what to do with it, as I didn‘t wanted to have two almost similar bikes (Tommasini Tecno 1997 with 1997 Campa Chorus).

I dated the frame as a 1992 model. The serial nr. says "D 0200 D", according to cadre.org “D” was used for the years 92/93. The seat stays are different to almost any other mx-leaders found on the www, except the one armstrong rode in the motorola team (around ‘93). Somewhere someone wrote that this might be one of the earlier produced mx-leaders with columbus max seatstays and later on Merckx used different tubes. I got the frame refreshed by a local painter and sticked some replica-decals on it. Cant tell what colorway it was before, some people would lynch me.

Took a Ritchey Comp Fork to replace the original one. I think that fork fits the classic look more than any other 1" option (columbus minimal, kinesis,..). Got 400km on it so far (with some +75kmh descents / 93kg system weight), can‘t tell anything bad about it yet, but also I think a modern 1 1/8 or 1 1/2 fork will perform better. A custom columbus max fork is in the making, will give my definitive verdict after the comparison.

Same for the Dt swiss Pr1400 Dicut Oxic wheels – everything is just fine so far, riding and breaking is great (no wet conditions so far) and I really like the look. I wonder how the breaking surface and the breakpads will manage long mountain descents and what the overall durability will be.

The rest is pretty common, Sram red 22 group with Rotor 3D+ crankset and some Ritchey parts.

Total weight including pedals and bottlecage is 8,02kg, which isn‘t that bad, considering the frameset is 2,65kg (2179+472g).

[michel2]

that is exquisite !! really nice well done indeed !

[hlvd]

Hi, could you give your opinion on the Oxic wheels, I'm thinking of buying a set.
Beautiful bike!!

[brianwchan]

I love it - from one Merckx fan to another.

[sheberin]

Hi, could you give your opinion on the Oxic wheels, I'm thinking of buying a set.
Beautiful bike!!

I rode them for 550km with 7000 altitude meters by now, this is what i can say about it so far: Riding is great, altough i don´t have that much experience with other wheels, i just rode some sets of Zondas before which i really liked. Compared to the Zondas, they feel a little bit stiffer (never had break rub on both sets, Zonda an Oxic). When it comes to riding quality you can go with the reviews of the RR 21 Dicut, as they are built same, except for the oxic coating.
The Oxic coating really looks great to my opinion. Breaking is good, probably little better than on the Zondas, but never rode in wet conditions so far. Had some breaking noise once at a steep descent with long breaking sequences with high pressure, but that noise never returned. Probably the noise came from the heat, but cant tell for sure as i didn‘t rode any longer mountain descents so far. They break pads are like 40% down by now, i think in wet conditions and long downhills, the oxic coating will eat them very quickly, so i‘m gonna carry a spare set with me when cycling in the alps. The coating still looks like new, but thats not surprising and doesn‘t say much about its quality, considered the low mileage so far.

I would recommend them so far. In performance, they are a little up on the Zondas, but not significant. They main reason to me to buy this set was the promised reduction of wear on the breaking surface (and the look and the low weight), and on that point its too early to judge the wheels. I expect them to live as double as long as Zondas, as the price is doubled too.

[hlvd]

Thanks for the detailed review, very kind of you.
They sound like good wheels, my lbs getting some in in the coming weeks so I'll have a look.

[sheberin]

Got the fork updated.
Previous (Ritchey comp, 472g) was ok, but due to the size of the steerer tube and my weight (85kg) I felt some flex from time to time. Pretty sure that the Ritchey fork will do it for lighter riders / smaller bikes, as they really look good on classic frames!
I got a custom steel fork made by Rychtarski: Columbus max, just the same heavy metal the frame is made out of. Well crafted, looks good and weights a ton:



Shortened the steerer about 12mm, which let the weight just fall below the 800g mark. 796g, its ridiculous I know
Well, I like the new look, and the riding is great. The increased stiffness is noticable, both in steering/breaking as also in the lower vertical flex in the handlebar. The bike gained about 320g of extra weight, the scale now stops at 8.43kg...

[Christono]

Rychtarski fork looks perfect. Very stealthy with the oxic wheels and the gp4000 sidewall is a nice touch as well.

[brahl]

This bike has a great overall look.

[bencolem]

That fork looks so much better. Lovely build.

[9734344]

Stealth Steel.. Nice.

I think your front derailleur need moving down a bit, apparently it should clear big ring by about 2-3mm.
I think it's a good weight for a 25yr old bike. Vive le tour, Steel is real... Long live the king.

[Fixie82]

I'm guessing they are oval rings so the clearance will close as the crank is rotated.

Loving the look of this, especially the wheelset. Classic, yet modern.

[kgt]

This new fork is exactly what it should be.
Can you remove the logos from stem, seatpost and bars? It would look better IMO.

[wheelbuilder]

Agree that the fork looks perfect. Good choice.

[sheberin]

thanks guys!

Stealth Steel.. Nice.

I think your front derailleur need moving down a bit, apparently it should clear big ring by about 2-3mm.
I think it's a good weight for a 25yr old bike. Vive le tour, Steel is real... Long live the king.

Fixie82 spotted it, clearing looks too big because of the q-rings. But you‘re right too, actually the front derailleur could probably be like 1-2mm lower... but shifting is great, don‘t think it would be better otherwise. I‘m losing the chain like once in 500km of riding, and then just shift back to the smaller ring which gets the chain in again. Losing like 2-3 seconds, i rather deal with that instead of struggling with the setting.