New Ogre, in the house. well almost, still at the LBS, but first test ride today. so for the Ogre nerds/fans out there here's the saga so far. waited about 8 months after ordering the frame for the 24 to come into Canada. so what else is new. sat on it until the rainy season began and my favourite LBS had time to put up with my puttering questioning ways. the purpose of the bike is to replace my classic touring bike of about 15 years (it will be sad to part with it, one too many bikes though) with a bike that is a great commuter with big fenders (and no toe overlap), as well as a bike that can be used for back country road touring, and maybe full back country mtn bike touring, what the hip kids call bikepacking. so the build priorities were frugal, but quality and durability to the multiple tasks. i trust my LBS with advice and cost issues, but as ardent mtn bikers like myself, they definitely steered me to the higher end components. one thing i was keen on was a cool aesthetic (otherwise, the Ogre is really a hybrid right?) and i saw a picture of an early Ogre build with red Velocity Blunt wheels, and it was stunning. so i had a pair of anodized red Blunt's built up with double butted spokes on Hope hubs. the rationale of the hubs (spendier than i wanted) was that they could adapt to any axle style, including the 20mm and 12mm on my mtn bike. ultimately, they fit my 37mm road tires well, but will readily accept the biggest mtn bike tires and can convert to a high end wheelset for my mtn bike. an expensive but nifty proposition.
the drivetrain is mostly Shimano SLX as well as the brakes, very nice stuff. i'll try the triple as is, and if it requires a couple of bigger rings, i'll cross that bridge later. i got a good price on these bits as they came off of a stock mtn bike that was stripped for a higher spec that the client already had. originally i was going to go with cable brakes like everyone else, but again my 'bike advisor' convinced me that i would much prefer the power and modulation of the hydraulics i'm accustomed to, especially loaded in the mountains. again, a price jump. and that's a 7 inch rotor in front.
topped off with a Thompson post, and a flat bar off my old mtn bike (i'd like to try bar ends) i'll play with stem length as per usual. in the end this will have been a pretty spendy bike, more than i wished, but it will also be a material step up from the stock offering, and hopefully a high performance, durable and slick riding rig for all terrain.
i know, i know, all a pack of lies without photos right? stay tuned.....