Bowman Palace plan

fat bloke · 15-01-2020 1:56pm

Trekker09 wrote: »

Even my wife loves the look of the BMC!! 1st time using DA9100 and am well impressed. Rim brakes FTW

Pm sent, presuming we're still on for the bars deal this weekend?

Trekker09 · 15-01-2020 2:16pm

fat bloke wrote: »

Pm sent, presuming we're still on for the bars deal this weekend?

Cheers, just replied

fat bloke · 24-01-2020 9:51am

Cheers to Trekker for the bars. They're spot on.

I cobbled together a bike shaped object yesterday and when my meagre bag of bike-assembling talent ran out I dropped it and the rest of the bits into Bee Cycles to complete

A few bits to go on yet but pleasingly light as is!

eeeee · 24-01-2020 10:07am

Looks gorgeous.

That pic is causing Ecsher like problems in my brain. How is the bike upright?! What is the front wheel balancing on?!

Trekker09 · 24-01-2020 10:08am

fat bloke wrote: »

Cheers to Trekker for the bars. They're spot on.

I cobbled together a bike shaped object yesterday and when my meagre bag of bike-assembling talent ran out I dropped it and the rest of the bits into Bee Cycles to complete

A few bits to go on yet but pleasingly light as is!

Niiice!! Is that a childs potty holding up the bike?

Plastik · 24-01-2020 10:29am

Jaysus Fat Boy. If that's the extent of your bike building talent it's no wonder you couldn't change an aul tyre on the side of the road!!!

fat bloke · 24-01-2020 10:41am

eeeee wrote: »

Looks gorgeous.

That pic is causing Ecsher like problems in my brain. How is the bike upright?! What is the front wheel balancing on?!

Trekker09 wrote: »

Niiice!! Is that a childs potty holding up the bike?

Cycloc. - Cool AND expensive.

https://cycloc.com/ps/

Plastik wrote: »

Jaysus Fat Boy. If that's the extent of your bike building talent it's no wonder you couldn't change an aul tyre on the side of the road!!!

Well, when I saw myself taking the hacksaw to the wrong end of the fork I figured it was time to call in the experts.:pac:

fat bloke · 12-02-2020 9:48pm

pics of x

Here is she is! Fresh outta the back of the car. Had a quick little spin on the rollers for sizing. Might need a shorter stem. But dying to see what her road manners will be like.

eeeee · 12-02-2020 9:53pm

Oh lovely. So pretty.
Most importantly what's her name?

magicbastarder · 12-02-2020 10:01pm

edith?

bsb1971 · 12-02-2020 10:07pm

Deadly. Looking like a cracking bike! SRAM Red looks deadly as well.

fat bloke · 12-02-2020 10:48pm

Gosh. I've never named a bike. Wouldn't even know where to start!

Yeah such a great groupset. That dates back to 2012 and has been in constant use racing and training since and still cleans up and shifts a treat.

It's not a super-light build but it's nice. Hard to get it much lighter with any ease. That's a light wheelset, the groupset is very light, most everything that can normally be carbon, is. Except bars.

eeeee · 12-02-2020 11:20pm

fat bloke wrote: »

Gosh. I've never named a bike. Wouldn't even know where to start!

:eek::eek::eek::eek::eek::eek: - How do you people live

You need to right that wrong, immediately!

Juliette deserves it

12-02-2020 11:55pm

Looks more like a Bianca to me

magicbastarder · 13-02-2020 9:00am

eeeee wrote: »

:eek::eek::eek::eek::eek::eek: - How do you people live

'the yellow one'
'the bronze one'
'the merckx', aka 'the black one'

etc.

fat bloke · 28-02-2020 11:25am

Well, there's nothing like the crushing disappointment of the first spin on a new bike.

#same'ol-legs
#reality-check

:(:rolleyes:

Bike is built up nearly 3 bloody weeks but I really didn't want the first spin to be a sh1tty wet 'n dirty one. Finally took her out and up the hill yesterday. Feels great. Different to the TCR and the R5, which is good. They all feel different to each other, which is what you want - a bit of variety. Anyway, now that I've exposed her to the elements, broken the precious-seal, and got the first few specs of road grime on her, I can using her away as my main bike ...(literally) going forward.

fat bloke · 03-03-2020 12:02pm

Well if the first 10k shakedown spin was a disappointment in the legs department, the first proper spin, 90k on Saturday, was a kick in the teeth. Bike was lovely, rode the rough stuff really comfortably, I was delighted with it. Out of the saddle I was hearing a little chafing noise but I put it down to dirty drive train, bikes always make such complaints. But when I got home and gave the bike a thorough wash I saw to my dismay that the wheel had been rubbing off the chainstay on one side

.
Brought it immediately back to Bee Cycles who had built it up and we could see alright on closer inspection that the wheel when installed is skewed to one side. It's fine in the saddle but the natural wheel flex out of the saddle under power causes the rub. Its a lot of wear for one spin, and they're not 28's, just GP4000 25's. Bee Cycles thought there seemed to a lot more free play in the dropout on the right hand side than the left, and of course a mm of movement at the wheel centre translates to a much larger movement at the wheel edge.

I've checked several wheels now and they all install the same way. So... all I can do is send it back and we'll see what Bowman's customer service chops are like.
Either way it's a complete, fuppin, pain in the chamois.

.

MojoMaker · 03-03-2020 12:29pm

Ah ****e, that's bad luck. Anything around bike forums about this you might be able to leverage?

fat bloke · 03-03-2020 12:39pm

MojoMaker wrote: »

Ah ****e, that's bad luck. Anything around bike forums about this you might be able to leverage?

I dunno. They do seem to be a little tight clearance wise, but that doesn't excuse my issue.

Look. I've been in touch and they've said "send it back for assessment". So.... gotta do that first. It's the kind of thing that can put a fella off a bike though isn't it. For me it is anyway. I had my other bikes cleaned and salted (not literally) away with the intention of riding the Bowman full time but now. There's no easy seamless sorting of it out in the short term so ... 'tis all up in the air until.

bsb1971 · 04-03-2020 1:29am

Ah shhite indeed!!!! Have been following this thread with great interest while debating on next frame, will watch with interest to see how it all pans out! Best of luck with it.

hans aus dtschl · 04-03-2020 10:59am

Not intending to rub it in, but I did not have similar problems with my Bowman, built a few weeks ago.
Happy with it 1,000 km in.

fat bloke · 04-03-2020 12:35pm

hans aus dtschl wrote: »

Not intending to rub it in, but I did not have similar problems with my Bowman, built a few weeks ago.
Happy with it 1,000 km in.

Good to hear you sorted it, would you mind telling me how it worked out?

hans aus dtschl · 04-03-2020 12:52pm

fat bloke wrote: »

Good to hear you sorted it, would you mind telling me how it worked out?

Not sure if you mis-read my post: I did NOT have similar problems.
If you're wondering what I have, it's Centaur, rim, 11-speed.

fat bloke · 04-03-2020 1:30pm

hans aus dtschl wrote: »

Not sure if you mis-read my post: I did NOT have similar problems.
If you're wondering what I have, it's Centaur, rim, 11-speed.

Sorry! Completely mis-read, yes.

What wheels and tyres have you on it? Bowman said that gp4000's in a 25 on a narrow profile wheel can actually be quite tall.

hans aus dtschl · 04-03-2020 2:02pm

fat bloke wrote: »

Sorry! Completely mis-read, yes.

What wheels and tyres have you on it? Bowman said that gp4000's in a 25 on a narrow profile wheel can actually be quite tall.

23's I'm afraid. I've had GP4000 and GP5000 23's on it.
Not sure of the rims I have on it right now, I'll come back to you on that. Nowhere near rubbing anyway, from what I can see.

Crocked · 10-03-2020 10:20am

Ah thats a pile of poo. Before I got mine I had read that tolerance was a bit tight on 25mm tyres but I haven't had an issue on mine. I have similiar Mavis wheels on mine and also have GP4000 25mm on it. The mavic wheels can be a bit flexy on climbs but I seem to be lucky in the stars aligned on the frame and nothing is rubbing.

Hopefully Bowman sort you out

fat bloke · 10-03-2020 10:28am

Well I shipped her off on Friday, so I imagine I'll hear back soon enough. I think I'll source some 23's of some description to be on the safe side. That's if it's even possible to get 23's anymore!

Or I might even lash a different wheelset on, though I really like the mavics and they contribute significantly to the overall lightness of the build. - Anyway, tis in the lap of the Gods yet for the mo'.

hans aus dtschl · 10-03-2020 10:35am

AFAIK mine's a Cycleops Powertap R3 alloy rim.
No other markings unfortunately.
Have used with Campag Eurus also without issue.

Again, all GP4000/GP5000 23's.

Interested to hear what Bowman say.

bsb1971 · 10-03-2020 11:25pm

@Fat Bloke - I have a bunch of 23's tubes and tyres all unused and gathering dust, you're welcome to them if you want them. Hope Bowman sort your frame out though, be fairly bad form if they don't and very bad PR too.

fat bloke · 10-03-2020 11:42pm

bsb1971 wrote: »

@Fat Bloke - I have a bunch of 23's tubes and tyres all unused and gathering dust, you're welcome to them if you want them. Hope Bowman sort your frame out though, be fairly bad form if they don't and very bad PR too.

Can't very well say no to that if you're sure you've no use for em! Thanks man

bsb1971 · 11-03-2020 12:03am

Drop me a PM and we'll see if we can sort getting them too you. I'll take look and see exactly what I have tomorrow.

fat bloke · 18-03-2020 5:38pm

Latest update then.

Credit where it's due. Bowman have come back to me with customer service response that is above reproach.

They acknowledge the manufacturing defect but they're out of stock of the frame I purchased in my size. So they have offered me:
- a refund
- or I can take my choice of another frame from their range (Palace 3 or a Weald) but as far as I am aware they are both disc frames which I don't want.
- or if I can wait until May I can have what appears to be a new model Palace R (rim braked option available) for no extra cost.

Not sure what I'll do tbh. It's really only option 1 or 3 for me. Call it quits, take the money and run, but what else would I buy for the money? - I got the frame on their 25% off deal so I'd be getting of the order of 700 quid back and I can't see another frame around for that money that would have the cachet / performance / desirability / uniquity etc etc. I'm tempted by the offer of their brand new updated frame for no additional cost, but I know nothing about it and there's no info on the web about it either so I don't know what it's like or how it looks or rides or... nuffink. Don't even know the colour scheme, and tbh the celeste/black was one of the main things that drew me to the company and frameset to begin with. Also May is quite a while away and with the the world in such a state of chassis, who's to know that May wouldn't turn into June/July/August.... and onward.

Anyway, choices are always good. I've asked for a bit of info on the new frame and we'll see what they come back with.

bsb1971 · 19-03-2020 12:34am

Keep us informed, intrigued they have a new frame coming out shortly, especially after they changing the colour scheme on the frame. Love to know what they are doing in the new frameset!

Trekker09 · 19-03-2020 7:44am

I'm sure they can do the new frame in Celeste/Black if you ask nicely :-) Hope it works out

Crocked · 19-03-2020 11:30am

I'd be amazed if they didn't do the new one in black/celeste. Fair play to them for not messing you about. tricky call though given leadtimes at the moment cant really be garanteed. I think if it was me I'd risk waiting for the new one

rcklap · 21-03-2020 10:23am

With the current x-rate I’m thinking of jumping and buying one. List price £449 am I mad?

fat bloke · 21-03-2020 6:23pm

Very limited stock in the Palace R it seems, but if you can get one in your size then it's a great deal certainly. Or are you talking about the the other frames, the Palace 3 or the Weald?

Both lovely but disc only.

iwillhtfu · 21-03-2020 7:35pm

fat bloke wrote: »

Very limited stock in the Palace R it seems, but if you can get one in your size then it's a great deal certainly. Or are you talking about the the other frames, the Palace 3 or the Weald?

Both lovely but disc only.

£465 + shipping in short or shorter sizes only from what I can see.

MojoMaker · 22-03-2020 8:01pm

That's an ex-VAT price though, still £560 + shipping. Sizes 50 and 52 left.....hmmm, must close the window.

rcklap · 22-03-2020 8:44pm

EX vat... ahhh.... a 52 would be perfect too... tempted.

fat bloke · 20-07-2020 12:47pm

Cripes. March 2020 eh? Seems like a lifetime ago. Well, here we are now in July and finally a glimpse of the Palace! Bowman, like everyone else were affected by manufacturing difficulties, so I heard nothing in May, nothing in June and I just put it to the back of my mind,
and rode the beajysus outta my TCR advanced (bloody great bike).
But over the weekend I got the latest news bulletin that the new Palace R was on the way - complete with promo shots, specs and colour schemes.

palace_3c_bk_copper_main_product-1_1024x1024@2x.jpg?v=1594989852

palace_3c_bk_copper_main_product-1_1024x1024@2x.jpg?v=1594989852

palace_3c_bk_copper_main_product-2_1024x1024@2x.jpg?v=1594989852

palace_3c_lemon_sherbet_main_product-1_1024x1024@2x.jpg?v=1594989900

palace_3c_lemon_sherbet_main_product-2_1024x1024@2x.jpg?v=1594989900

JimmiesRustled · 20-07-2020 12:51pm

fat bloke wrote: »

Cripes. March 2020 eh? Seems like a lifetime ago. Well, here we are now in July and finally a glimpse of the Palace! Bowman, like everyone else were affected by manufacturing difficulties, so I heard nothing in May, nothing in June and I just put it to the back of my mind,
and rode the beajysus outta my TCR advanced (bloody great bike).
But over the weekend I got the latest news bulletin that the new Palace R was on the way - complete with promo shots, specs and colour schemes.

I like them but the left sided routing seems strange. All cables are now routed on the left side of bike.

fat bloke · 20-07-2020 12:54pm

What say y'all?

What really attracted me day one to the Palace was the Bianchi-alike celeste colour scheme. I'm torn between these two offerings. But which one? Is the black too black, or is the yellow too yellow?

I think in isolation I really like the black and copper, it looks fab, but in terms of my own garage I already have two black/grey bikes. The yellow therefore is a complete departure, and a bit of craic maybe... until I come to wash it. Dark colours are aesthetically very forgiving in terms of hiding dirt and marks or lesions.

I've officially requested the yellow one, but I'm sure I've a window to change it yet. Thing is I don't think I have a preferred side of the fence. Whichever one I get I think I'll be happy with but simultaneously wish I had the other!

fat bloke · 20-07-2020 12:57pm

JimmiesRustled wrote: »

I like them but the left sided routing seems strange. All cables are now routed on the left side of bike.

Wouldn't be a consideration at all for me I have to say. Unless there's a functionality trade off I'm unaware of?

iwillhtfu · 20-07-2020 1:47pm

I like the look of the first one the yellow is nice but it's yellow

Is the first one black or Navy?

I'm not sure about the chainstay protector on the yellow one the old inner tube trick on a promo model is a bit odd and it's not even a gravel bike

eeeee · 20-07-2020 2:31pm

I vote yellow, you can't have enough colour! The black one is really lovely too, the copper is gorgeous, but seeing a yellow bike is just so cheering. Seeing it in your stable, looking down when on it, yellow is going to make you smile IMO.
Plus there are a lot of black bikes out there, why chose another one when you have some already?
Team Yellow!

Plastik · 20-07-2020 2:36pm

Wouldn't do it for me I'd have to say. Cabling for a mechanical frame looks like a dogs dinner, and they're no longer the "Palace:R colours". Increased tyre clearance is good but why have they gone internal with the gear cables and left the rear brake external? And why have they routed them both through the left downtube like that.

magicbastarder · 20-07-2020 2:37pm

a vote for yellow too here.
the bike i have i prefer the look of the most is the banana yellow one.

Crocked · 20-07-2020 3:00pm

Colours aren't bad, not a huge fan to the typeface and graphics.

The big question for you seems to be it was the Celeste/Black colour scheme that attracted you to the frame. So if you get one of these will it always get to you a bit that its not really the bike you wanted? Respray is an option but you could do that with any frame.

MojoMaker · 20-07-2020 3:06pm

Black and copper is lovely but yellow all the way - especially with the dark tones from the finishing kit and the contrast with the tan wall tyres.

Bowman Palace plan

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