# My new Tsunami...



## Wookiebiker (Sep 5, 2005)

*This is a cross post from the Bicycle/Frame section:*

Well, since I have odd body dimensions I wanted a custom frame again...this time more race oriented, however I didn't have a lot of money to spend. Looking around it appeared the best deal out there was a custom frame from Tsunami Cycles since they do custom geometry for $650.00.

The frame is heat treated aluminum...which some might not like due to aluminums reputation for a harsh ride...however, I've had several aluminum bikes and never had issues with the ride. Initial reviews of this frame are good. The bike is stiff, but dropping the tire pressure a little gives a more than acceptable ride.

The frame was built up with the parts from my Velo Vie and the frame weight is 2 pounds 13 ounces (with headset installed). Total bike weight is 18 pounds 6 ounces with cages and powertap on the bike.

Geometry:

57cm Top Tube
50cm Seat Tube
11.2cm Head Tube (14cm total stack height)
73.5 degree HTA
74 degree STA

Side Shot










Angle Shot










American Built










Front End










Seat Tube Juncture










Back of the bike










Rear Dropout


----------



## tidi (Jan 11, 2008)

*nice`looker*

looks like it will handle everything you give it, then ask for more, i like it.


----------



## Wookiebiker (Sep 5, 2005)

Well, I was able to get out for a 42 mile ride on the new frame today and overall....it's a very nice ride.

At this point I'll go out on a limb and say it may have the stiffest bottom bracket I've had on any bike I've ridden. Get out of the saddle an it's stiff, doesn't flex and gives great acceleration.

The ride of the bike is stiff....not what I would put in the "vertically compliant laterally stiff category"  It rides harsher than my previous carbon frame, but is still within acceptable parameters for overall ride quality. I won't have any issues spending 4+ hours on it in the future.

The stiffness of the frame makes climbing more enjoyable. When combined with the longer front center, I found myself out of the saddle more than I have in the past...a lot more. It just felt more comfortable to be out of the saddle and just as powerful if not more so.

Handling wise it was rock solid at speeds near 50 mph. It goes through corners well and this is the first bike in a while I feel perfectly fine riding with no hands. Other bikes I've had felt too squirrelly to ride with no hands.

The rear end also feels a little more solid than on my previous carbon fiber bike. Not sure if it's actually stiffer or just due to different geometry, but it feels like it's flexing less....which in turn instills more confidence in the turns.

Out of the saddle with the longer front end I can get out of the saddle and sprint hard at higher speeds. One of my big issues with my previous bike was that it was squirrelly when sprinting at speeds over 36 mph or so. Today on a descent when I hit a flat part I jumped out of the saddle at 43 mph and gave a hard sprint and it felt very stable...so sprinting in the future should be better since I can stay out of the saddle longer for better power transfer at high speeds.

*The downsides so far:*

I'm not sure if I'm going to keep the -10 degree stem yet. It feels good in the drops, but I feel too tall on the hoods. I might change out from the 110/-10 stem to a 100/-17 stem in the future....but I'm not sure. I'll spend a few hundred miles with this set up before deciding to change or not.

The internal rear brake cable routing...while very slick and nice looking rattles inside the top tube on rougher roads, which can get a little annoying after a while. On a group ride I probably wouldn't notice it, but riding solo it's very apparent. When I got home I shortened the cable housing by 1cm so I'll see if that makes a difference on future rides.

The harsher ride may lead to a little more fatigue on longer rides/races. I'll have to see how this goes and may start using 25c tires with 5-10 psi less for a better ride in the future.

Overall...for $650.00 I'm quite happy with the frame so far. I've got a lot of riding to do before I feel really good about the purchase and a lot will be found out if I get it out for a hard group ride this weekend (weather dependent).


----------



## Wookiebiker (Sep 5, 2005)

I just wanted to give an update now that I've had some time to dial things in fit wise and get some miles on the bike.

Last weekend I put 183 miles on the bike over the three day Memorial day weekend...and today I put in a 114 mile ride with my teammates (along with another shorter 23 mile ride yesterday). I've adjusted the seat a little lowering it a few mm's from my first few rides and adjusted the angle of the saddle. I've also lowered the tire pressure by about 10 psi in both front and back and am now running 105 front and 110 in the rear.

Overall...I'm very happy with the frame.

The welds are not the best looking welds, but they are solid. The paint is nice and the Tsunami decal, at first I thought was black until I got it into the sunlight when I noticed that it was actually paint and was a nice, dark, metallic blue (I had asked for blue but was OK if it was going to be too much of a hassle).

The only geometry measurements I was concerned about were the STA, the HT length and the TT length...the rest I left up to the builder, but we agreed upon all the measurements before the build was started....The end result is a great handling bike. 


I've had it up to 50 mph on descents and it's rock solid. 
I've gone down twisty descents at speed and it carves corners well.
I've climbed steep hills (15+ % grades) and it climbs great.
I've sprinted out of the saddle, coming off of a descent at 43+ mph and it was very confidence inspiring with no instability compared to my old frame (that was too small).
The bottom bracket stiffness is, as I've said before, probably the stiffest I've ever had on a bike.
The ride is stiff, but with the lower PSI in the tires more than acceptable (I finished 114 miles and almost 5000 feet of climbing, still feeling pretty fresh)

I have found two things about the frame that are negative in my opinion:


I found a paint run near the head tube, though I didn't notice until today with it in the sun.
The front dérailleur cable is rubbing on the rear chain stay...which could be a result of how I have the cables routed (I cross them under the down tube for better cable routing at the bars)

I'm going to play around with the cable guides to see if I can adjust it, or maybe re-route the cables to see if that helps. If not, I'll get a cable guide that extends around the BB past the chainstay so it won't be an issue.

Overall....Tsumani builds very workman oriented frames. They are not flashy like other brands, but they are solid, get the job done frames. Not only do they do this at a great price, but they are able to get them to their customers faster than many other custom builders.

At this time...chalk me up as a satisfied customer :thumbsup:


----------



## kid_dynamite (Jul 31, 2010)

Nice looking bike. You should be able to slip some rubber cable doughnuts over the internal cable to kill the rattle. It has worked for me on some older Klien frames. Enjoy!


----------



## Wookiebiker (Sep 5, 2005)

kid_dynamite said:


> Nice looking bike. You should be able to slip some rubber cable doughnuts over the internal cable to kill the rattle. It has worked for me on some older Klien frames. Enjoy!


Thanks,

I actually took a piece of foam rubber and cut it to the inner dimensions of the top tube, then put a hole in the middle and routed the cable through it. Then used a spare spoke to push it into the middle of the top tube...Rattle gone  

I also fixed the cable guide with a different guide that I picked up at a LBS for free since I purchased some other stuff, so that's fixed as well.

I'm guessing I have close to 4000 miles on it so far this summer and it's performed great to this point. No issues other than the ones I've fixed, the fit is very good and it performs just as expected.


----------



## acckids (Jan 2, 2003)

I'm not sure why I like your bike so much. Is it the simplicity of the frame? No crap about different carbon layups? High modulus blah blah blah. 

I do not mean simplicity in a demeaning way. I can tell the frame was constructed by a craftsman. It is just an efficient bike from top to bottom. 

Thanks for post and ride report.


----------

