This week’s Readers’ Rides comes from Chris P, who shares his Indy Fab Club Racer with us…

I was visiting family back east in the fall of 2022, and after a long weekend of epic rides — including the “short” route at D2R2 — Covid got me. Planted firmly on my brother’s couch, I was passing time watching La Vuelta and browsing used bikes online when I spotted a beautiful Independent Fabrication Club Racer. I had some parts in the bin that I was itching to put back into service, including an 11-speed era Campagnolo Record group. Also, this frame was built for medium reach brakes, allowing for decently wide tires to smooth out rough pavement and unpaved detours back home in San Francisco and beyond. Also, my brother’s place was just across the train tracks from IF’s old Somerville location. It was meant to be!

While I loved the ergonomics and style of the Record shifters, I wanted an 11-34t cassette for the steep hills we have out here in the Bay Area, well beyond the stated capacity for this old road group. I experimented with a few combinations to make this work, starting with an Athena triple cage grafted to the original Record short cage derailleur and a Wolf Tooth Roadlink, then a brief trial with a JTek Shiftmate and an old XTR derailleur. Finally, I arrived at a solution, which I am very happy with:

Unmodified, a Tiagra 4700 rear derailleur was just barely under-shifting with the Campy shifter. Using a Dremel and a hammer, I made a stainless steel bracket into a custom cable clamp that shortened the effective lever arm, increasing the cable pull ratio. With a little fine-tuning, I got the cable pull just right and am now able to shift up and down the 11-speed cassette perfectly. This method of tweaking the length of the lever arm is similar to old tricks to make unmatched components work together (notably documented by Sheldon Brown), as well as modern tricks to adapt SRAM shifters for 12-speed drivetrains by Ratio Technology — a tried and true solution for mixing drivetrain components.

Rounding out the build is a pair of Paul Racer-M brakes, which provide a bit of bling and excellent stopping power. An old XT M737 triple crankset with 46/30t TA Specialties chainrings provides practical gearing. And finally, a Nitto M18 front rack supporting a Velo Orange/Roadrunner bag allows me to carry anything from extra layers for every Bay Area microclimate, leftover pizza from Fieldwork, or Cheddar and Sour Cream Ruffles for Joey.

Build Spec:

• Independent Fabrication Club Racer frame and fork, built in Somerville in 2005, chainstay dimples added by Bernie Mikkelsen
• Cane Creek C2 Headset
• Velo Orange Tall-Stack Stem
• Shimano XT M737 Crankset with Spécialités TA 94 BCD Chainrings, 46/30t
• Campagnolo Chorus 102mm Cartridge Bottom Bracket
• Paul Racer-M Brakes with Tektro (front) and Surly Cable (rear) Cable Hangers
• Salsa Cowbell Handlebars, 42cm
• Fizik Handlebar Tape w/Natural Cork Handlebar Plugs
• Soma Wakizashi Seatpost
• Brooks Cambium C17 Saddle
• Campagnolo Record 11-speed Shifters
• Suntour XC Expert Front Derailleur
• Shimano Tiagra 4700 Rear Derailleur w/Modified Clamp
• Shimano HG700 11-34t Cassette
• Shimano M540 Pedals
• White Industry T11 Hubs with Velocity Quill Rims
• Panaracer Gravelking Slick R Tires, 35mm
• Nitto M18 Front Rack
• Velo Orange/Roadrunner Randonneur Handlebar Bag
• King Iris Stainless Steel Bottle Cages
• Spurcycle Bell
• Safety Pizza

We’d like to thank all of you who submitted Readers Rides builds to be shared here at The Radavist. The response has been incredible and we have so many to share over the next few months. Feel free to submit your bike, listing details, components, and other information. You can also include a portrait of yourself with your bike and your Instagram account! Please, shoot landscape-orientation photos, not portrait. Thanks!