# New Langster Build (sort of a light weight build if possible)



## bdc88 (Apr 14, 2006)

So here is the build list for the Langster at the moment with the final version listed below.The bike will only be a fixed gear bike from this point on.

Fixed Gear Version: 

Specialized Langster Frame with brushed finish 54cm 
Aerus C4FK Carbon Fork 
American Classic Hurrican Track wheelset. A bit heavier than I wanted but not much. 
Syntace F99 Stem 
Easton EC90 SLX (26.0 version) 
Tektro Carbon Cross lever front only. 
Fizik Bartape 
FSA Carbon Compact with Fibr-Lyte 42t Carbon Spiderless Chainring 
Speedplay X2's 
Token BB 
KCNC Ti Pro Lite 27.2 
OmniRacer Seat post clamp. 
KMC X10SL 
Fizik Arione saddle 
Tektro RX 40S - Front only and drilled to allow standard road brake cable.
Dura-Ace 16t Cog and lockring 

So that is the build. The only thing that I think is missing is the tires and tubes right now. For that I have to sort out if I am going to use a pair of my older GP3000 or GP4000 with light weight tubes.

Either way this will be my first fixed gear build and I am looking forward to the build over the winter. :thumbsup:


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## RetroS (Jan 16, 2007)

Sounds like either version should be light. I bet in either form it will be ligther than my Langster.


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## bdc88 (Apr 14, 2006)

I like the Langster that you have. Who knows what I Langster will be in the distant future but for now, I want it light but it does not have to stay that way.

If I lived a bit closer to work then my Langster would look very similar to yours. Right now I live 34km from work so I will only ride in the summer and it has to be a light ride :thumbsup:


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## asterisk (Oct 21, 2003)

Remember the frame itself isn't especially light weight, if you wanted you could find lighter like a Pista Concept.


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## ProsperityRed (Aug 21, 2007)

sounds like a decent build; i honestly wouldnt go overboard on the brakes though... going super super light on just one caliper (front) wont make a huge dent in the feel of lightness overall. I picked up some zero g's for mine and wound up sticking on a generic cannondale dual pivot because it worked fine and was less hassle to setup even if the front caliper was about 100 grams heavier

as long as those tektro's work to stop the bike they are probably adequate; in my opinion its the pads that will make the most difference

good choice on the wheels; I have a pair and like them although my ac hurricane wheelset only has one side threaded (for cog and lockring only), they dont have threading for a freewheel... perhaps yours will be/are different

are you using a dummy lever for the other side? a lot of people with drop bars like to ride on the hoods


Edit: oh yeah, and what Asterisk said... if you are going all out on light parts why not consider a lighter frame too? the basic langster frame is not the lightest when you are shaving off grams on things like the seatpost clamp... you could also be losing valuable grams on the brake cable runs along the top tube


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## bdc88 (Apr 14, 2006)

@ asterisk and ProsperityRed

I do know that the Langster is not the lightest frame at 1375g but it is not that bad for a starting point and to be honest, sometimes it is not about building the lightest SS or Fixed gear bike but about maybe building the lightest Langster around. I like all of the new theme builds that Specialized are doing with the Langsters and thought that maybe I would do a lightweight version. 

This is however just a winter project bike and might take many forms while I am building it up.

I did screw up in my first post about the wheels for the Single Speed build as I was cutting and pasting the parts back and forth as I was typing and I was not thinking as the American Classic Hurricane wheelset is only threaded on the one side which is for a track cog only. I will have the original wheelset which I will have to use if I want to ride it single speed.

I will play around with the build in the next few months to see where it will go but most likely it will be headed towards a fixed gear build.

I am very lucky in that I have 2 TCR aluminum frames (1st build is Dura-Ace and tuned to 13.7 lbs. and the second is Ultegra and tuned to 15.3 lbs) with the frames weighing in at 1076g and 1086g. If the Langster build does go fixed in the end then I will most likely take heavier TCR and make it into a single speed build just for the fun of it and put the unused parts into building up a light weight cross bike with the goal of 17.5 lbs.

I am leaning more towards the fixed gear side of the build as switching back and forth all the time is a pain in the butt and I would most likely use two brake levers and brakes which I would not need on the fixed gear build. 

One question about the single brake set up. I know that everyone goes with the front brake and with the lever on the left side and maybe a dummy lever on the right side. I really do like riding on the hoods but would it just make sense to run a single Cross lever on the left side or should I get a proper lever?


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## asterisk (Oct 21, 2003)

bdc88 said:


> ... maybe building the lightest Langster around.


It's just you're throwing a lot of money into lightweight parts when you could probably build a lighter bike using a lighter frame and not-entirely light parts but as you said that isn't necessarily your goal.



> One question about the single brake set up. I know that everyone goes with the front brake and with the lever on the left side and maybe a dummy lever on the right side. I really do like riding on the hoods but would it just make sense to run a single Cross lever on the left side or should I get a proper lever?


Two dummy hoods and a cross lever on drop bars? 
Bullhorns and a cross lever?
One functioning brake lever with a cross lever on same side, dummy hood opposite?

Just depends on where you hands will be when you think you'll need a brake. If you ride through traffic with hands on the tops go for the cross lever, otherwise if you ride with hands on hoods go with traditional lever.


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## dansjustchillin (Apr 28, 2005)

everyone should have a langster:thumbsup:


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## lwkwafi (Jan 21, 2006)

I really like the London Langster. Real class; many of the others are quite nice too. So much nicer than their maroonish one IMHO.


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## bdc88 (Apr 14, 2006)

Just a quick note on my Langster build. Right now with the cost of the bike, the new forks, wheels and record brakes I am about $150 over the cost of one of the themed Langsters that you can currently buy new. All of the other parts, I had in stock from previous builds so I could have bought a themed Langster but know that I would have changed something so I just decided to build my WW themed Langster. 

Some people will get the project and some will not and yes I could have used a lighter frame but then it would not be a WW themed Langster right? The best part is that I can keep all of the stock parts and just sell it next year if I want as a stock build and transfer over the parts to another frame. 

Cheers.


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## Normbilt (Jan 26, 2005)

Under 16lbs as you see it.


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## Normbilt (Jan 26, 2005)

18.40lbs as you see it


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## bdc88 (Apr 14, 2006)

@ Normbilt - 18.40 lbs. never looked so good. I really like the build and the look of the build. Very well done. I did not look too close at what you have added or changed but a quick list of changes/add-ons would be great.


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## bdc88 (Apr 14, 2006)

I was able to get some of the parts this week and have almost built up the entire bike at this time. I am currently missing tires, tubes, chain, 16t cog bar tape. On the scale this afternoon, the bike weighs in at 11.32 lbs. So I figure that it should be around 13 lbs when it is finished. 

While looking through my parts boxes I lucked out and found enough Nokon parts and liner to do the front brake so a little bling for the build.

The tires should be 205g each, tubes should be 140g total, chain should be under 200g and I am not sure what the 16t cog will be. Bar tape is 50g so maybe a bit over 13 lbs.

Either way, it will be a fun bike to have in my stable.

I will be picking up a new Pedal Force RS2 on the group buy so I have decided to make my current TCR frame and fork into a single speed build. This will be a very fun build and will be lighter than the fixed gear build for sure. The starting weight of the bike fully geared is 13.72 lbs so with no derailleurs, front derailleur hanger, STI shifters, shifter cables and a carbon spiderless chainring and carbon spacers for the cog, I am really hoping to get this under 12 lbs.

The RS2 should be right around 6000g (13.2 lbs) with the new frame, forks and seat post.

Lots of fun over the winter and into spring.


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## Touch0Gray (May 29, 2003)

bdc88 said:


> So here is the build list for the Langster at the moment with the final version listed below.The bike will only be a fixed gear bike from this point on.
> 
> Fixed Gear Version:
> 
> ...


just a quick question, what year Langster?


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## bdc88 (Apr 14, 2006)

I believe it is a 2007 with it being the Brushed Aluminum Finish. I am not 100% sure.


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## Touch0Gray (May 29, 2003)

bdc88 said:


> I believe it is a 2007 with it being the Brushed Aluminum Finish. I am not 100% sure.


carbon fork? (stock)


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## bdc88 (Apr 14, 2006)

Yes it did come with a Specialized carbon fork. Aluminum steerer. All of the parts match up to the 2007 specs by the looks of it.


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## tedgrant (Jun 13, 2006)

refereshing to see a WW fixed, had a 15 lb cannondale fixed for a minute, LOVED going uphill on it, especially past blinged out geared carbon riders


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## threesportsinone (Mar 27, 2007)

Yup, light fixies are pretty fun. I had my kestrel built up as a ghetto fixie (drilled notches into the hub and used a coaster hub cog w/bb lockring), it was ~13lbs, then I deemed it unsafe and made it a SS, then I crashed it.


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## bdc88 (Apr 14, 2006)

*Langster is built finally but not with the final parts.*

So today I thought that I would go into the garage to work on the bikes and decided that I would finish building the Langster with older heavier parts just to see what I thought of the bike. 

WOW THIS BIKE IS FUN TO RIDE! :thumbsup: 

I decided to just put it together using some heavier tubes (100g instead of 50g), a heavy chain (Shimano with SRAM link instead of the KMC X10SL chain), no name bar tape instead of the Fizik bartape and since I am using carbon compact cranks, I decided to just put a 34t on there for now until my 42t carbon spiderless chainring arrives. Other than that, the bike is exactly built the way that I want.

The bike comes in at *13.51 lbs.*

First ride was only 20 minutes and it was so easy to brake using the cranks but I did not go to far overall. The front brake sure is handy and I am very glad that I had it a few times.

The one thing that I forgot and then said **** was that I could not stop pedaling in the corners. First corner in the rain was not good but I did not go down and after the first corner I just took it a bit easier.

The 34/16 is great for the steeper hills around my area but on the flats, it was way too small of a gear so I look very forward to my 42t to arrive then we can get these lightweight experiment completed and get out for some rides.


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## bdc88 (Apr 14, 2006)

A couple of pictures.


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## ProsperityRed (Aug 21, 2007)

bike looks good, I have the same hurricane wheels with conti tires too!


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## Touch0Gray (May 29, 2003)

The Langster does handle nicely doesn't it?.....very responsive and spirited....without being "twitchy"


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## bdc88 (Apr 14, 2006)

I really like the first ride on it today even though it was just a short ride. It will be nice to get the rest of the parts in the new few weeks to finish the build. I really like the old style SLX Easton bars. Since I do not have hoods on the bike, the angled forward bend in the bars puts my hands in the perfect position.

The only thing that I really have to change is the stem. I was thinking of going a bit higher on this bike but after the first ride, I am going to reverse the stem so that it is flat and not raised which should inprove the looks as well.


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## Chainslap (Jun 2, 2004)

I like the way the straight blade fork looks compared to the fork that came on my '08 Langster NY. 
Cool bike! it came out good, and very light!
:thumbsup: 
in a way its a bad thing b/c it is tempting to trick out my langster to be lightweight...

How much does that wheelset usually cost (msrp)
(my next upgrade for my langster will be a new wheelset)


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## bdc88 (Apr 14, 2006)

I think the Wheels that I have run $630.00 MSRP.

The bike is a lot of fun as I went out for another 30 minutes after dinner. I have a feeling that I will be using this bike a lot for early season training this year.


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## triguy123 (Feb 7, 2008)

very nice looking bike..what made you choose the langster over some other singlespeed/fixed gear bikes out there?


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## ProsperityRed (Aug 21, 2007)

*hurricane*



Chainslap said:


> I like the way the straight blade fork looks compared to the fork that came on my '08 Langster NY.
> Cool bike! it came out good, and very light!
> :thumbsup:
> in a way its a bad thing b/c it is tempting to trick out my langster to be lightweight...
> ...



I got my hurricanes on ebay, new from some shop selling them out of chicago. They were 299$ for the pair and are fantastic... my only complaint is that the rims are so wide its not really feasable to ride with tires smaller than 25's. The 23's I tried to put on wouldnt seat properly. This is the contact info of the ebay seller/bike shop I bought them from (they might have more):
Cycle Smithy, 2468 1/2 N. Clark St., Chicago IL 60614.
(773 )281-0444

Also very narrow brakes like the zero gravity's are almost too narrow to use with the wide rims but normal brakes work fine.

I also wanted to add that these wheels are LIGHT:
Individually, the front weighs in at 830g and the rear at 889g with lockring. The set is 1719g.


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## bdc88 (Apr 14, 2006)

triguy123 said:


> very nice looking bike..what made you choose the langster over some other singlespeed/fixed gear bikes out there?


Well I just wanted a bike that was inexpensive and had a flip/flop hub. I was able to get an amazing deal on this bike complete. So after I got the bike, I started looking through my boxes of bike parts and decided that I would lighten the bike up. Well as usual, I got a bit carried away and the bike became just a fixed gear which I am very happy about. 

It is actually not a bad platform to start with. The frame weight is not bad at around 1350g / 3 lbs. Could be better but could be worse. 

The wheels were a very good deal as well. Once you factor in the fact that I will most likely sell off the old wheels to offset the cost of the new wheels, they are a very good deal. 

I still have some light parts on the way that are custom build items that will look super cool on the bike and lighten it up more but I will not get super carried away like I am doing with my new road build that will be lighter than this bike when I am finished.


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## doughboy_88 (Aug 22, 2006)

.....


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## bdc88 (Apr 14, 2006)

The 34t ring is only a temp ring till I get my spiderless 42t ring that is being built for me this weekend I think. The crank length is 172.5 and I have not had any problems with that yet but yes the very first corner I took I forgot that I could not stop pedaling and it was not pretty but I did not strike the pedal but it was more of a little hop and from that point on I took the corners a bit slower.

As for the cost of the project including the bike itself, I think I am at about $725 so far. The only thing that I did not have at the beginning of the project was the bike, fork, wheels, cog and lockring. Everything else was in stock so to speak.


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