I bought the Paratrooper last fall after seeing some members of this forum building them and I really like how versatile the bike is. I drive a Chevy Sonic and I wanted a full-size mountain bike that I could fold-up and cram in the hatchback. This bike checked all the boxes. Here it is stock.
The first thing I wanted was to make sure I was completely comfortable with this bike as a pedal-only bike. Why is that? Well, if I’m ever in a situation where the battery or motor dies, I want to be able to get to where I need to go, pedal-power if necessary. So this meant the bike was due for some upgrades. Oh, there's this thing I have about not modifying anything I can’t put back to stock (more on this later) aannnndddd I’m a bit OCD and when I get something in my head, it’s gotta happen, no deviation from the plan!
WHEELS, I WANT NEW WHEELS!
To start things off, I wanted to build a wheelset. I’d had pretty good success building my first set for my Townie last year and thought an IGH and road tires were in order for this one.
I ended up with an Alfine-8 for the rear hub and a pretty generic Shimano Deore hub for the front. Then I got it in my head that I wanted to go tubeless and never worry about flats. Of course, I went about this in all the wrong ways possible… rims were not tubeless ready, rims were schraeder drilled, gorilla tape in lieu of rim tape AND I wanted to use CushCore inserts. I was convinced that with the inserts, tire sealant etc. I could run through a pile of nails, screws and everything else and come out unscathed.
After some wrestling I was able to the inserts on, tires on, sealant in and got the tires to hold air. I then dropped the bike off at my LBS to have the rest done by people who know what they’re doing. I had them upgrade my front mechanical disc brake to hydraulic. For the rear, I went with the TRP HY/RD which is a cable actuated hydraulic disc brake, allowing me to retain the Bafang motor cutoff brake lever. They put in the shifter and all the various parts for getting the Alfine-8 up and running, along with a chain tensioner and other random items. I was all set to go pick it up and test ride it when the mechanic called me and said that over the weekend both tires lost pressure and leaked sealant all over the shop floor. I was able to pick it up, but I couldn’t test ride it at that point until I figured out what I was going to do with the damn tires. As I often like to say, “no good deed goes unpunished.”
Turns out the gorilla tape had failed. At this point, I thought I’m not going to try wrangling these things to go tubeless unless I do it the right way somewhere down the road. I also justified that deviating from the plan was part of the plan all along, so technically I have not deviated from the plan! I ended up getting some heavy duty tubes figuring maybe I’ll try filling those up with sealant later on (I think it was AZGuy that said he does that with good results). So I finally got on and rode it and it’s awesome. I am now a huge fan of the Alfine-8. It is super smooth and very quiet.
Here it is back from the shop with tubes, tires, and wheels all sorted out. You might notice the wacky seat I have on it. I’ve tried so many different seats and finally found out the cheap Schwinn “no nose” seat was the most comfortable for me. You can also see the Jones H-Bars (awesome) and stem riser.
The first thing I wanted was to make sure I was completely comfortable with this bike as a pedal-only bike. Why is that? Well, if I’m ever in a situation where the battery or motor dies, I want to be able to get to where I need to go, pedal-power if necessary. So this meant the bike was due for some upgrades. Oh, there's this thing I have about not modifying anything I can’t put back to stock (more on this later) aannnndddd I’m a bit OCD and when I get something in my head, it’s gotta happen, no deviation from the plan!
WHEELS, I WANT NEW WHEELS!
To start things off, I wanted to build a wheelset. I’d had pretty good success building my first set for my Townie last year and thought an IGH and road tires were in order for this one.
I ended up with an Alfine-8 for the rear hub and a pretty generic Shimano Deore hub for the front. Then I got it in my head that I wanted to go tubeless and never worry about flats. Of course, I went about this in all the wrong ways possible… rims were not tubeless ready, rims were schraeder drilled, gorilla tape in lieu of rim tape AND I wanted to use CushCore inserts. I was convinced that with the inserts, tire sealant etc. I could run through a pile of nails, screws and everything else and come out unscathed.
After some wrestling I was able to the inserts on, tires on, sealant in and got the tires to hold air. I then dropped the bike off at my LBS to have the rest done by people who know what they’re doing. I had them upgrade my front mechanical disc brake to hydraulic. For the rear, I went with the TRP HY/RD which is a cable actuated hydraulic disc brake, allowing me to retain the Bafang motor cutoff brake lever. They put in the shifter and all the various parts for getting the Alfine-8 up and running, along with a chain tensioner and other random items. I was all set to go pick it up and test ride it when the mechanic called me and said that over the weekend both tires lost pressure and leaked sealant all over the shop floor. I was able to pick it up, but I couldn’t test ride it at that point until I figured out what I was going to do with the damn tires. As I often like to say, “no good deed goes unpunished.”
Turns out the gorilla tape had failed. At this point, I thought I’m not going to try wrangling these things to go tubeless unless I do it the right way somewhere down the road. I also justified that deviating from the plan was part of the plan all along, so technically I have not deviated from the plan! I ended up getting some heavy duty tubes figuring maybe I’ll try filling those up with sealant later on (I think it was AZGuy that said he does that with good results). So I finally got on and rode it and it’s awesome. I am now a huge fan of the Alfine-8. It is super smooth and very quiet.
Here it is back from the shop with tubes, tires, and wheels all sorted out. You might notice the wacky seat I have on it. I’ve tried so many different seats and finally found out the cheap Schwinn “no nose” seat was the most comfortable for me. You can also see the Jones H-Bars (awesome) and stem riser.
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