The bicycle thread

[Blue4130]

3 hours ago, RollyShed said:

 

But you did mention OLD. Not quite the things old blokes do. By old I presume you mean 60+.

Haha Not that old, over 40 though, and I may not go as high or as hard as the young lads, but I still get out there.

[RollyShed]

7 hours ago, Blue4130 said:

Haha Not that old, over 40 though, and I may not go as high or as hard as the young lads, but I still get out there.

40! That's young. That's when I started doing the big rides. Go off on holiday and there would be 500 km before doing a week or so of sea kayaking. Another 500 km to get back home with rides in between. Those rides with tent and camping gear also carried. Some of the stories on the web but moderators of this site don't allow mentioning them.

[YellowJersey]

4 hours ago, RollyShed said:

40! That's young. That's when I started doing the big rides. Go off on holiday and there would be 500 km before doing a week or so of sea kayaking. Another 500 km to get back home with rides in between. Those rides with tent and camping gear also carried. Some of the stories on the web but moderators of this site don't allow mentioning them.

One of our guys on the cross-Canada trip turned 80 on the road. Dude fell asleep at his handle bars in Northern Ontario and became a great-granddad, too.

[YellowJersey]

First ride this year to crack 100km! 101km to be precise. Managed it in just a tick over five hours. The wind was pretty bad; didn't seem to matter which direction I headed as it seemed to come from the east, west, and south seemingly all at the same time. The only time I had a tail wind was when I headed north, which was, thankfully, most of the last leg of the trip on the way home. I think it's time for some new bike shoes, though. After 22 years of faithful service, I think it's time to retire my faithful bike shoes. There's a weird pressure spot that bothers my left foot and, today, my Achilles tendon down towards my ankle wasn't feeling great. So I think it's time to shell out for a new pair... is what I would say, if I hadn't bought a new pair 7 years ago thinking my current pair were on their last legs; they've been sitting in storage ever since. I think I'll give them a try on my next ride. I was also fortunate that I didn't get rained on today, as the clouds for the second half of the ride were looking pretty dark. Welp, I'm off to go get myself a Mr. Sub sandwich (it's a Canadian thing, totally superior to Subway). Footlong assorted, as always.

 

Total this year: 246km.

[YellowJersey]

103km today. A rather eventful ride today. My bike computer's battery started to die and it kept resetting itself. The first sign was that the altimeter was all over the place. I plugged my route into maps when I got home and it turns out I did 103km. I'm not sure how long it took me as the bike computer was giving me random numbers, but it was somewhere around 5-6 hours. I also saw a pair of American Badgers (dear god they are ugly) hiding under a truck near the Stampede grounds. It started to rain about 3km away from home, so I managed to get home without getting too wet. Today was also somewhat memorable as it was my first ride with my "new" bike shoes. I actually bought them back in 2015 as my old bike shoes were looking pretty ragged, but I kept thinking to myself, "I can get one more season out of these." 7 years later... But, today I finally decided to retire my 22-year-old pair of bike shoes I've had since I was a teenager and use my "new" shoes from 2015 for the first time. They're pretty nice! I need to adjust the cleats a bit as they're not quite right. Thankfully, my Achilles tendon was okay; not great, just okay. It seemed to complain every so often and then settle down; feels heaps better than it did last week, though.

 

 Came home and had three pork chops for dinner. Need... protein...

Total this year: 349km

[AlienALX]

I've just finished a major overhaul and upgrade of mine. I have had it since 2017, when I bought it NOS in the box. It is a 2009 model SE PK Ripper fixed.

 

It was really cheap. So when one of the wheels was damaged I just replaced them. I also replaced the bars with Jr BMX race bars as I don't do leant over. My back won't have it.

 

 

I'd done a few things to it since buying it. Carbon seat post, forged carbon cranks, carbon bodied seat and the alloy wheels. I'm an ex BMX rider (I have a collection of those) and I am not easy on bikes. So going light worried me. However, I recently realised I have been riding it for 5 years (it's babied, trust me) and it was time.

 

I bought a used HED 3 Tour De France carbon rear wheel. Refinished it in matt (it was tatty but structurally very sound) and it had no axle. Bought a NOS Shimano hub and stripped it for parts.

 

 

I also fitted a single speed conversion. Then I bought some carbon Bontrager forks.

 

 

And restored those.

 

 

In flat black.

 

 

And then bought even more upgrades. Hope head set, spacers and head doctor. The brakes are Campagnolo. Front is a TT and rear a Potenza. Used TI shanks with those.

 

Finally after a few weeks....

 

 

 

New pedals too.

 

 

It now weighs less than nothing.

[YellowJersey]

@AlienALX Nice! Your post inspired me to take a look at my bike (a 2011 Giant TCX-1 cyclocross) to try and address a problem I've had since I first bought the bike. You see, my bike uses cantilever brakes and I've always had problems with my rear brakes (even after replacing the brakes themselves!) with the left one leaving the brakepad way too close to the rim or often rubbing against the rim while the right one was always too far away and either wouldn't contact the rim with enough force or it wouldn't even touch the rim at all. Even after disengaging the brake, the left pad would barely move, if at all, and continue being right up against the rim. Nothing like simultaneously riding with your brakes on while also having difficulty stopping.

 

 So I finally decided to take the whole thing apart and tinker with it myself, rather than paying the guys at the bike shop more money to not fix the problem. I think I've finally hit upon a solution. When you install the brake, you need to line a pin up with one of three holes (upper, lower, middle) with each hole giving you more or less tension. You're supposed to make sure that both brakes use the same hole, but I discovered that I could fix the problem by mounting the left brake's pin into a hole that would provide more tension and the right brake's pin into a hole that would provide less. This seems to have worked since there's always been a massive difference between the two. Even the tightness of the screws mounting the brakes to the frame itself were a factor. It took a lot of fine adjustments afterwards with cable tension and little screws that adjust the brakepad's distance from the rim, but after about three hours and a few test runs, I think I've finally got them pretty evenly spaced when not engaged now and the left one finally moves away from the rim.

 

 Huzzah!

[RockSolid1106]

I started to bike to school everyday about a month ago, so that's about 4km each day. On alternate days I also bike for an hour in the evening.

 

PS: A 10km ride today morning, mix of uphill and downhill. Took me about an hour and 15 minutes. It had rained just a few hours ago during the early morning, so the roads were a little wet.

[AlienALX]

11 hours ago, YellowJersey said:

@AlienALX Nice! Your post inspired me to take a look at my bike (a 2011 Giant TCX-1 cyclocross) to try and address a problem I've had since I first bought the bike. You see, my bike uses cantilever brakes and I've always had problems with my rear brakes (even after replacing the brakes themselves!) with the left one leaving the brakepad way too close to the rim or often rubbing against the rim while the right one was always too far away and either wouldn't contact the rim with enough force or it wouldn't even touch the rim at all. Even after disengaging the brake, the left pad would barely move, if at all, and continue being right up against the rim. Nothing like simultaneously riding with your brakes on while also having difficulty stopping.

 

 So I finally decided to take the whole thing apart and tinker with it myself, rather than paying the guys at the bike shop more money to not fix the problem. I think I've finally hit upon a solution. When you install the brake, you need to line a pin up with one of three holes (upper, lower, middle) with each hole giving you more or less tension. You're supposed to make sure that both brakes use the same hole, but I discovered that I could fix the problem by mounting the left brake's pin into a hole that would provide more tension and the right brake's pin into a hole that would provide less. This seems to have worked since there's always been a massive difference between the two. Even the tightness of the screws mounting the brakes to the frame itself were a factor. It took a lot of fine adjustments afterwards with cable tension and little screws that adjust the brakepad's distance from the rim, but after about three hours and a few test runs, I think I've finally got them pretty evenly spaced when not engaged now and the left one finally moves away from the rim.

 

 Huzzah!

 

Yeah the holes are for tension on the spring. However, good brakes will also have a screw you can adjust for more tension if it needs balancing out.

[YellowJersey]

I was trying to find the circumference for my tyres since I had to put a new battery in my bike computer, but I'm getting mixed numbers. Most websites say my 700x28C tyres have a circ of 2136mm but I've seen numbers as low as 2127 and as high as 2147. Any idea why the discrepancies? Do differences this small really amount to anything?

8 hours ago, AlienALX said:

 

Yeah the holes are for tension on the spring. However, good brakes will also have a screw you can adjust for more tension if it needs balancing out.

Yep. Took a lot of fiddling with those screws to get everything just right. It's raining today and I don't get home from work early enough in the day tomorrow, but Tuesday is looking alright for my next ride. Fingers crossed!

[Blue4130]

1 hour ago, YellowJersey said:

I was trying to find the circumference for my tyres since I had to put a new battery in my bike computer, but I'm getting mixed numbers. Most websites say my 700x28C tyres have a circ of 2136mm but I've seen numbers as low as 2127 and as high as 2147. Any idea why the discrepancies? Do differences this small really amount to anything?

Yep. Took a lot of fiddling with those screws to get everything just right. It's raining today and I don't get home from work early enough in the day tomorrow, but Tuesday is looking alright for my next ride. Fingers crossed!

Different sidewall height would be my guess. It would be pretty easy to measure yourself to get an accurate number, just grab some string and wrap around the outside of the tire and then measure the string.

[YellowJersey]

4 hours ago, Blue4130 said:

Different sidewall height would be my guess. It would be pretty easy to measure yourself to get an accurate number, just grab some string and wrap around the outside of the tire and then measure the string.

I did the math. Over a 100km ride, the difference is negligible.

 

[AlienALX]

12 hours ago, YellowJersey said:

I was trying to find the circumference for my tyres since I had to put a new battery in my bike computer, but I'm getting mixed numbers. Most websites say my 700x28C tyres have a circ of 2136mm but I've seen numbers as low as 2127 and as high as 2147. Any idea why the discrepancies? Do differences this small really amount to anything?

Yep. Took a lot of fiddling with those screws to get everything just right. It's raining today and I don't get home from work early enough in the day tomorrow, but Tuesday is looking alright for my next ride. Fingers crossed!

Nice one dude.

 

I had lots of nightmares with mine tbh. Firstly the rear brake didn't reach. The wheel is slammed as it is, but no dice. I bought C pad extensions -

 

 

But it still didn't reach far enough. So I had to drill a new hole in the frame and drop it more. Problem was the hole in the back needs to be bigger, and you can't put a drill in there. So I went at it with the Dremel.

 

 

And made the hole too big FFS. So I bought some stainless washers and a Ti shank bolt, and....

 

 

It's funny because bikes can be real dicks sometimes. Like, you would think all parts and frames etc are universal but nope. God knows what those Campagnolo brakes are made to reach tbh. This is a pic of the front setup. I bought new levers (CNC, made by Brick Lane Bikes in London) and they are on my Box One 6i carbon bars that weigh 220 grams LMAO

 

 

My brother came over here yesterday. I says "Here, pick up my bike". You could see him brace himself and that serious look on his face. He nearly threw it in the air  I think people expect it to be heavier so set themselves up, but man yeah it's so light

[YellowJersey]

@AlienALX Any experience with disc brakes? All the new road bikes come with them. I was wondering what their issues were.

[AlienALX]

17 hours ago, YellowJersey said:

@AlienALX Any experience with disc brakes? All the new road bikes come with them. I was wondering what their issues were.

 

Yes !. TBH the best part about them is you don't make your rim edges look crap. When I set mine up initially with those nasty alloy mags (for strength because I was concerned, being a fatass and all) I realised that the "fixie" side of the rim had a set of torx bolts on it that were the same as a disc. Given the pads from the rim brake were wearing into the white powdercoat I decided to buy a conversion kit for the frame.

 

 

You can make it out there, or from last summer's rides. God I love this pic, want to replicate it now I have the new parts on.

 

 

TBH the bike was still quite light at the time, even with those heffer wheels on. So what do I think? well, I think that on a road bike they are downright dangerous. Total overkill.

 

On that day I rode 7 miles up the cycle path that runs along the beach. Bear in mind I was 47 years old at the time. I still ride very, very fast though. Well I was riding past the sailing club and there were a load of 20 odd year old people having a BBQ and beach party. One of which was a girl with an incredible bottom. She had on this tiny thong, and as I rode past she leaned forward to pick something up and gave me the full view. I then realised I wasn't looking where I was going and out of sheer panic hoyed on the brakes.

 

A big mistake. It damn near threw me over the bars.

 

In summary? they are not worth it unless you are into the serious muddy and wet stuff, like downhill and trails. They get around the issue of "wet rim" and still work brilliantly with no fade. On a road bike however? the setup is much larger and heavier than rim brakes like the Campagnolo I have on there now, and thus IMO not worth it. They are also fiddly to adjust and tune, and replacing the pads is quite the ball ache.

 

There are other issues that you will need to plan for too. Like disc warp. This can be really fiddly to "tune out" and requires a lot of patience.

[YellowJersey]

9 hours ago, AlienALX said:

 

On that day I rode 7 miles up the cycle path that runs along the beach. Bear in mind I was 47 years old at the time. I still ride very, very fast though. Well I was riding past the sailing club and there were a load of 20 odd year old people having a BBQ and beach party. One of which was a girl with an incredible bottom. She had on this tiny thong, and as I rode past she leaned forward to pick something up and gave me the full view. I then realised I wasn't looking where I was going and out of sheer panic hoyed on the brakes.

 

A big mistake. It damn near threw me over the bars.

 

 

 I once saw a guy staring at a woman's ass for so long he nearly went full speed into the back of a car.

[YellowJersey]

Got out again today. 130km in a little less than six hours. Felt pretty good. I did about 650m of climbing throughout the day. Saw some pelicans in the river. I retraced my route from my previous ride and found that my previous ride was 12km longer than I thought it was. Based on my calculations (which could be wrong for all I know), the difference between the lower and upper limits for my tyre circumference should only mean that it's off by about 10m every 100km, so that's a pretty acceptable margin of error imho. Came home, showered, had some choky milk, sat with my cat out on the balcony while she tried desperately to get at the catnip growing in the garden, and then ordered a big bowl of chicken curry for dinner (with extra chicken).

 

Total this year so far: 491km 

[AlienALX]

9 hours ago, YellowJersey said:

 I once saw a guy staring at a woman's ass for so long he nearly went full speed into the back of a car.

 

I'm not usually that guy. I normally mind my own business and just continue my day. This though? blimey, things have changed since I was a lad !

[Supreme Calamitas]

I Always loved to walk and run marathons but never cycle, It allows me to think about stuff and relax. Stopped listening to music as well, now I actually like listening to nature's sounds.

 

Anyways, I can walk about 15-20 Kilometers and run 40-50km marathons, ill try to do 100km/miles marathon in Asia hopefully China or Japan one day.

 

I could probably cycle 100km right now, but again it's not my medium so I don't enjoy it as much 

[YellowJersey]

11 hours ago, AlienALX said:

 

I'm not usually that guy. I normally mind my own business and just continue my day. This though? blimey, things have changed since I was a lad !

 

Blessed be the yoga pants

[YellowJersey]

104km today! I hit the wall around 90km and decided to call it a day shortly thereafter. I was trying to repeat my 130km ride from last week, but I just didn't have it in me. Saw some pelicans by the river and had a lovely view of the Eastern slopes of the Rockies for a 4km section.

Total this year: 595km

[YellowJersey]

So my saddle broke... again. Since 2008, I've been using a noseless saddle, "Ergo The Seat," which I absolutely love, but it's incredibly poorly made. 

The rails keep breaking, so I only get a couple of years out of it. I'd be alright with that since they weren't terribly expensive, but I'm pretty sure they're not making them anymore, so naturally it's getting more and more expensive to keep buying new ones. I've thought about trying to find a metal worker who could make custom replacement rails out of something more sturdy.

 

 But, in the meantime, I've been searching for alternatives. I just ordered myself a "Spongy Wonder," which is one of the few noseless saddles that seems to be well made with quality materials; at least, it'd better be for the price! It's made in Canada, to boot.

 I've also considered the Hobson Easyseat II, but I think I'll wait and try out the Spongy Wonder.

\

[RollyShed]

Have you thought of a Brooks leather saddle? Some say only 6 months of riding to "break" one in. I find it takes less time than that.... usually.  Of my two bikes, one has a genuine Brooks (on the Claude Butler) and the other a Japanese copy on my Avanti. I used to have a lamb skin cover on one which was very good until it wore out after about 3+ decades.

[YellowJersey]

1 minute ago, RollyShed said:

Have you thought of a Brooks leather saddle? Some say only 6 months of riding to "break" one in. I find it takes less time than that.... usually.  Of my two bikes, one has a genuine Brooks (on the Claude Butler) and the other a Japanese copy on my Avanti. I used to have a lamb skin cover on one which was very good until it wore out after about 3+ decades.

I did look at a Brooks. But I really like the noseless saddles, so I'm trying out the Spongy Wonder first.

[YellowJersey]

65km today, just a short ride. Did it in 2 hours and 54 minutes. I wasn't planning on going today, but the thunderstorms that were forecasted never materialised, so I left late in the afternoon so that the day wasn't a total waste. I also bought some rechargeable AA and AAA batteries; time to get off the disposables.

 

Total this year: 660km