Singular Cycles Peregrine Mk4: I'm Done! (For Now)

Can you spot the changes?

 September has been a difficult month for several reasons, but from a riding perspective, it was a bummer month on top of it all. Then on September 12th I received the Peregrine Mk4 frame set. This was a bright spot, and I've had fun so far with the build and with what little riding I could squeeze in during the past couple of weeks. 

The thing was, the arrival of the Peregrine Mk4 coincided with the start of our complete bathroom remodel. As in, tear down to the lathe boards and build back out remodel. 

I had to be available throughout to provide access to the house, get odds and ends during the process, and to consult when problems arose. This meant I could only get away for short neighborhood cruises, for the most part, during this time. And if all this wasn't enough, Mrs. Guitar Ted had a knee procedure to clean up some tears in ligaments and to remove some "foreign bodies" in her left knee. So, I also had to be available for her when she needed me as she recuperated. (She's doing fantastic and is back to work now, by the way.)  

Meanwhile through sharing images of the Peregrine, my friend Ari Andonopoulos decided I needed silver anodized spacers and a handle bar in silver, so I received a few bits to spiff up the bike and make it look great. (Thanks Ari!!) 

So, at this point I think I have everything dialed in for the time being. I doubt any other major changes are in store for the short term. Following are a listing of tweaks and changes made with explanations for each. 

Salsa Cycles Cowchipper Bar, 46cm: I really have gotten on with the Cowchipper over the years and it is probably one of three handle bars I would choose as my best ever flared drop bars. (Ritchey Designs Venturemax, Cowchipper, Luxy Bar) 

Width is appreciated by me, but the recent fad of running really wide flared drops is kind of lost on me. 46cm is plenty of width for this fella! 

I also took the opportunity to rotate everything down and forward from my initial set up. Much better for all hand positions now! The previous set up rendered reaching the levers a bit awkward. Now everything is great in this regard. 

Additionally, but unintended when I chose the Cowchipper, it is the only handlebar, besides maybe the Luxy Bar, which I can ride when I injure my shoulders, as I have recently with my right shoulder. Not sure how I did it, but it was after hauling scrap out of the basement at the Collective and often times I have to hold weight out in front of me while climbing old, narrow stairs. So, I would guess it was when I tweaked something. At any rate..... The Cowchipper helps me keep riding. That's the story there. 

Ti Regulator Post, WTB Solano Saddle: 

I know I mentioned this in my last update on the Peregrine, but here is a bit more detail on this and how it rides. 

First of all, to reiterate, I needed to not have to buy, install, and bleed a new rear brake cable because, I didn't want to do that. Period. No other reason for this decision other than I really despise having to fuss with hydraulic brakes. If Shimano made this group with cable actuated brakes I would be a much happier camper. They don't do this, so here we are. 

So, keeping everything the same from the standpoint of how it was lengthwise off the Standard Rando, I necessarily had to use a stubby stem to use the system as it was. Therefore, to regain my reach, I needed to go with an offset seat post and a saddle which would accommodate some serious setback as well. So, you see the Ti Regulator and WTB Solano saddle has fit my needs perfectly. 

Seated on the bike, this puts my weight a bit off the front wheel and to be honest, it has helped with the shoulder issue so far as a side benefit.  But perhaps less obvious and more importantly, this levers the little bit of seat post extension and causes a bit of flex which translates to more comfort in the rougher road ways and on what little gravel I've been able to tackle so far. 

This seated position also mimics closely what I have on my Honeman Flyer, and I do like this from a seated climbing and just general riding standpoint. Maybe it looks goofy and maybe it won't work for many of you, but I am really pretty happy with it so far. 

I will say if I have to switch rear brake hose out, I will likely put on an 80mm stem and slide the saddle back forward to check out what the bike rides like with a more 'normal' set up, but it is not like I am secretly disappointed now. The opposite is true, actually.  

Just A Word On The G-One Overland Tires:

I will also mention these tires as I am reviewing them now. I want to wait until I can get in some real, decently long gravel rides in before I give a full update. With all which has been going on here, it was difficult, as I mentioned, to complete any real testing.

Now with the remodel finished, Mrs.. Guitar Ted back in swing, and my shoulder getting better, this will hopefully be a time for those rides to start happening again.  

Anyway, the Schwalbes! These are fast, fast tires. A fellow on Facebook, John Karrasch, has been doing some more intense, science based studies on various tires and his findings on the G-One tires seem to corroborate what I am feeling. In my testing, both paved and gravel/dirt, the G-One Overland is quite impressive. I wouldn't say it feels great to ride, but again, a tire which had as stiff a sidewall as these did new probably will break in after a 100 or so miles. We'll see about that! 

Overall:

The Peregrine is a great bike for me. It really seems to do all the things I'll want, and it looks great doing it too! The one time I was able to get out in the country on this bike was before I made some of my most recent changes, but even then I could see the potential and I was happy. Now I just need to get into more long gravel rides. Once this has happened I'll be back with another Peregrine update and - of course - Country Views and Brown Season reports to go along with those rides. 

Stay tuned....