Search found 120 matches

by Littgull
10 Jul 2023, 2:59pm
Forum: Health and fitness
Topic: I've been very poorly
Replies: 43
Views: 7985

Re: I've been very poorly

:lol:
by Littgull
10 Jul 2023, 11:40am
Forum: Health and fitness
Topic: I've been very poorly
Replies: 43
Views: 7985

Re: I've been very poorly

Enjoying the humourous slant on this and totally agree with you about teeth. There are times when I e considered having all the rest of my teeth removed and replaced with top and bottom dentures.
by Littgull
12 Feb 2023, 7:39pm
Forum: Bikes & Bits – Technical section
Topic: Puncture resistant tyre for commute
Replies: 22
Views: 2013

Re: Puncture resistant tyre for commute

I'm very impressed with Tannus Tyre Armour for puncture protection - https://www.tannus.co.uk/collections/armour.

This morning a 4cm nail got imbedded into my tyre at an angle of 45 degrees as I was on my Sunday morning ride. It embedded to at least a depth of 3.5 cm but absolutely no penetration of the innertube with no deflation at all after I removed the nail. The Tannus tyre armour certainly did its' job.
by Littgull
15 Jan 2023, 9:44am
Forum: The Tea Shop
Topic: Not giving my money to the fossel fuel industry
Replies: 254
Views: 9980

Re: Not giving my money to the fossel fuel industry

Nearholmer wrote: 15 Jan 2023, 9:00am Jonathon will doubtless answer for himself, but I would expect that in areas of suburban population density a “car” in the medium term will be a battery-powered thing you summon, as you summon a lift in a tall building, get into, get taken where you want to go, alight from, and say goodbye to.

I can already summon a small autonomous vehicle and have it bring me a small amount of shopping from the co-op or Tesco, then wave it cheerio, so the idea of a bigger autonomous vehicle that I get into is far from totally alien.

Doubtless there will still be some “car owners”, even in areas well provided with CarBots, just as there are a few car owners now in central London, where there is absolutely no need to own a car, but I would wager there will be a great deal fewer than now, because it will be unnecessary and unfeasibly expensive for most people. Snob-factor/status-display will be served by there being two or three CarBot services, one that is cheap and cheerful, for students and pensioners, a mid-range one that appeals to families, and one that has leather sofas, wood flooring, an espresso machine etc, for conspicuous consumers.

Longer trips, outings to the country etc? Book a few days in advance, and probably have to manually drive on sections that the CarBot hive-mind hasn’t fully mapped yet, although they will quickly get fewer and fewer as trips are made. Or, use the train or bus.

In very dense urban areas? Electric micro-mobility things plus bus, tram and metro.

In very rural areas? Trip lengths a bit longer, so probably personally owned hybrids are quite common, but t they are ruddy expensive to buy and run, so the pressure for people to clump together in small towns, and for services like shops in villages to reopen will be greater.

Also, lots of electric and hybrid “white vans” delivering small consignments. Some autonomous, like the tiny ones we have locally already, some attended (person along for the ride and to carry stuff to the door), some manually driven.

Total number of “car sized” vehicles on the road significantly fewer than now, but each one spending a far greater proportion of its time active. Vehicles highly modular and periodic replacement of bits that wear out (batteries; seat cushions; door mechanisms; software; espresso machines; etc).

Maybe, if things go really well, motorways will have overhead power conductors of some sort for use by vehicles (especially heavy trucks) on long trips, obviating the need for heavy batteries, this being something that has already been tested extensively by Siemens, or maybe the distinction between road and rail will gradually blur, and heavy vehicles will put themselves onto railway routes, or climb onto ferry trains, for long hauls.

How far in the future? Maybe fifty years to make a complete transformation, just as it took roughly fifty years (1950-2000) for the complete transformation from “old transport and logistics” to “current model” to happen, but in some places things will transform a lot sooner than that.

PS: caravans ….. most of them seem to spend most of their lives parked-up, either while people camp, or while the van gently decays, so how about hiring a tractor unit only when you want to actually move the thing? For the more romantically inclined, the tractor could be a horse, for the technocratically inclined a horse-shaped hybrid IC/E tug, controlled by an app, rather than reins.
Incredibly interesting thought provoking post. Thanks for the read Nearholmer.
by Littgull
18 Dec 2022, 8:54am
Forum: Electrically assisted pedal cycles
Topic: Battery pack obsolescence.
Replies: 64
Views: 6584

Re: Battery pack obsolescence.

@peterb
See link below for battery advice re Mahle system.

https://www.ribblecycles.co.uk/blog/car ... les-guide/
by Littgull
8 Oct 2022, 10:49pm
Forum: Health and fitness
Topic: Having a break from riding in winter
Replies: 91
Views: 7531

Re: Having a break from riding in winter

I agree about not worth the risk of serious injury by cycling on icy surfaces. But tbh since climate change has ramped up it's unlikely to get icy conditions in the UK for any more than 10 days a year for anywhere in the UK south of Cumbria.
by Littgull
6 Apr 2022, 8:22am
Forum: The Tea Shop
Topic: Heat in the home
Replies: 2297
Views: 134416

Re: Heat in the home

Wood burners are not good for personal health and the environment, apparently.

https://www.independent.co.uk/independe ... 76405.html
by Littgull
6 Apr 2022, 8:13am
Forum: The Tea Shop
Topic: Heat in the home
Replies: 2297
Views: 134416

Re: Heat in the home

Mick F wrote: 5 Apr 2022, 4:25pm We have a key meter for the lecky and I've been topping it up regularly through March in readiness for this cost increase.
Over £200 on it now, but at least we can afford it.

We're on a key meter because that was what was installed when we bought this place. We actually like it as we don't get a bill and we don't use much lecky

Wood is free (except for my hard work) and anthracite in the kitchen are our main power sources, and anthracite is PAYG like the lecky.
by Littgull
25 Feb 2022, 11:38pm
Forum: Health and fitness
Topic: Exercise bikes, recumbent or upright?
Replies: 11
Views: 1336

Re: Exercise bikes, recumbent or upright?

Thanks for the link @slowtwitch, looks a good bargain.
by Littgull
25 Feb 2022, 2:28pm
Forum: Health and fitness
Topic: Exercise bikes, recumbent or upright?
Replies: 11
Views: 1336

Re: Exercise bikes, recumbent or upright?

Littgull wrote: 25 Feb 2022, 2:27pm
Slowtwitch wrote: 21 Feb 2022, 12:47am The exercise bikes that are popular in 'spinning' classes offer quite high a good trade off in comfort and exercise. You can buy a good second hand one for about 150 quid.
That's excellent for £50. Where from?
Typo, meant £150.
by Littgull
25 Feb 2022, 2:27pm
Forum: Health and fitness
Topic: Exercise bikes, recumbent or upright?
Replies: 11
Views: 1336

Re: Exercise bikes, recumbent or upright?

Slowtwitch wrote: 21 Feb 2022, 12:47am The exercise bikes that are popular in 'spinning' classes offer quite high a good trade off in comfort and exercise. You can buy a good second hand one for about 150 quid.
That's excellent for £50. Where from?
by Littgull
7 Dec 2021, 9:38am
Forum: The Tea Shop
Topic: What Has Made You Laugh Today ?
Replies: 1471
Views: 96691

Re: What Has Made You Laugh Today ?

As Jed Mecurio the instigator of the TV drama 'Line of Duty' tweets for Johnson's benefit:

"Thank you for submitting your audition for the next series of #LineofDuty but we’re looking for a character with at least one redeeming moral principle and a performance that places even just a scintilla of doubt in the audience’s mind that he might not be totally bent."
by Littgull
3 Dec 2021, 8:06am
Forum: Electrically assisted pedal cycles
Topic: Range extender
Replies: 30
Views: 4285

Re: Range extender

peterb wrote: 2 Dec 2021, 11:32am I only use my Gain for day rides. It is kept in a garage attached to the house, so no problem with charging. I am happy to accept the limitations of the enclosed battery as it improves the aesthetics of the bike.
Ah yes, I can see how the Gain with it's hard to remove in frame battery plus range extender (if needed) completely suits your needs. But unfortunately, it wouldn't suit mine.
by Littgull
2 Dec 2021, 8:37am
Forum: Electrically assisted pedal cycles
Topic: Range extender
Replies: 30
Views: 4285

Re: Range extender

ChrisF wrote: 1 Dec 2021, 3:58pm
Littgull wrote: 29 Nov 2021, 2:31pm I think the fact that swapping the battery quickly on the Gain or the Ribble equivalent is impractical is a huge drawback and would dissuade me from buying such a bike. The Fazua Evation set up seems far more versatile and has been thought through much better. Imagine needing to charge the battery on a Gain during an overnight stay and the hotel or guest house owner only had provision for bike storage in an outhouse without an electricity socket? A huge drawback in my opinion.
Not such a drawback if you use the range extender, which is what this thread is about. The extender can be charged in a B&B if a socket near the bike isn't available. OK, that won't get you the full potential mileage, but it should help a lot. Cost aside, it's an extra kg of weight to carry but that's less than the difference between Fazua-type machines and the Orbea type.
Understood. But as you say, charging and using the range extender won't get you the 'full potential mileage' - a big drawback in my opinion.
Outside of that situation, I would not be happy in having to regularly bring the whole bike into the house or property to charge the bike battery (if no electric available in outhouse etc). The range extender doesn't resolve that requirement.
by Littgull
29 Nov 2021, 2:31pm
Forum: Electrically assisted pedal cycles
Topic: Range extender
Replies: 30
Views: 4285

Re: Range extender

peterb wrote: 28 Nov 2021, 1:45pm [quote
switch batteries at a convenient cafe stop?
If you mean from bike to bike that could be a little bit tricky as the batteries are well enclosed inside the Gain's downtube. Maybe if you have an hour or two and a serious set of bike tools. More a question of swapping bikes, maybe?
[/quote]

I think the fact that swapping the battery quickly on the Gain or the Ribble equivalent is impractical is a huge drawback and would dissuade me from buying such a bike. The Fazua Evation set up seems far more versatile and has been thought through much better. Imagine needing to charge the battery on a Gain during an overnight stay and the hotel or guest house owner only had provision for bike storage in an outhouse without an electricity socket? A huge drawback in my opinion.