Like any engineering nerd, I love building and repairing bikes.
Supersix.zipp
11 Sep 2025
My current road bike, and the first bike I ever rode regularly on, is a 2013 Di2-only carbon Supersix Evo frame with 2013-ish Zipp 404s. It was my weekend project from late September to early November of 2024, when I was just getting started with my year at Starpath. My housemate Matt, a college triathlete, had an old frame that he was going to sell in the garage, and had been trying to get me into cycling. I jokingly suggested that I could build a bike with his frame, and he actually graciously let me have it. He also gave me his old Zipp 404s, from a time trial bike that he had crashed and since thrown away.
It was a long project, with roughly the following steps:
- Replace the Zipp 404 freehub with a Zipp 188 12spd freehub, since the old freehub is too short for a modern 12 speed Shimano cassette
- Replace the PF30 bottom bracket on the frame with a BB30 for compatibility with Shimano 105 cranks
- Buy old C2 handlebars + C3 100mm stem off of Ebay, and a 105 di2 rim brake groupset off of aliexpress
- Forget to put the zip tie things on the di2 cables and do that later to fix the rattle :)
- Put it all together over the course of several weekends, running to local shops as I find out the parts that I need, so as not to need to wait for online orders to arrive
Infinity Boss Three
17 Apr 2023
I never thought to start biking to go places until 2023, when my friend Nicolas invited me to bike to Gravelly Point with him. I did own a bicycle, a cheap Infinity Boss Three from Costco, but it had been sitting out on the porch unused for three years. I got the dry rotted tires replaced at a store, and decided to do the rest of the repairs myself.
As I rode, I ran into issues that I gradually fixed. First, I adjusted my rear derailleur, then I tightened the seat post clamp, then I adjusted the brake tension… multiple times. I eventually replaced the chain and realized that the chain that came installed on the bike was 10 whole links too long, which is why the chain would sometimes skip under a lot of torque in 7th gear.
In March, I decided to try modifying the bike, which is a 7 speed with only a rear derailleur, to upgrade it to 21 speed by adding a 3 speed front sprocket, derailleur, and shifter. I already had a Nishiki 24” Pueblo 21 speed MTB that I had outgrown, so I took it apart and took the shifter, front derailleur, and crankset and sprocket off of it.
I ended up having to buy a Shimano front derailleur anyways because the MTB derailleur was set up for top pull and my Infinity has cable runs for a bottom pull. I was able to reuse the friction shifter and sprocket (though I did break the chain guard off the front sprocket).
After installing a new chain and adjusting the front derailleur tension, it shifted surprisingly smoothly.
Eventually, I decided to spray paint the frame, using Spray.Bike paints, which involved taking the whole bike apart, spraying a couple coats and a gloss top coat, and waiting a week for it to cure. I did a Fluro Light Blue gradient on Whitechapel, and the end result was well worth it. I think it’s safe to say I now have the coolest looking Infinity Boss Three out there.
