Search found 254 matches

by m-gineering
27 Feb 2024, 4:56pm
Forum: Touring & Expedition
Topic: Rotterdam to Dunkirk
Replies: 42
Views: 1772

Re: Rotterdam to Dunkirk

mjr wrote: 27 Feb 2024, 12:11pm Windmills? Kinderdijk.
Of the 1250 odd windmills in NL 19 are in Kinderdijk, Most are powered by wind, the ones in Kinderdijk are powered by tourists ;)
by m-gineering
27 Feb 2024, 11:53am
Forum: Touring & Expedition
Topic: Rotterdam to Dunkirk
Replies: 42
Views: 1772

Re: Rotterdam to Dunkirk

Dupont wrote: 27 Feb 2024, 11:29am
m-gineering wrote: 27 Feb 2024, 7:22am
LeBrignall wrote: 26 Feb 2024, 5:27pm Or a loop of the Netherlands, Den Hague, Gouda, Utrecht, Amersfort, Zwolle, Amsterdam, Leiden and back to the ferry at the Hook.
Yuk. if the requirement is " My good lady wants scenery like wine fields etc" I'd head for Amersfoort first thing, and head east
She definitely wants scenery, windmills, tulips and wine fields. 😁
we've got wineyards al over the place: https://www.nederlandsestreekwijnen.nl/ ... rovincies/

Many probably won't pass the standards of the committte though ;)
by m-gineering
27 Feb 2024, 7:22am
Forum: Touring & Expedition
Topic: Rotterdam to Dunkirk
Replies: 42
Views: 1772

Re: Rotterdam to Dunkirk

LeBrignall wrote: 26 Feb 2024, 5:27pm Or a loop of the Netherlands, Den Hague, Gouda, Utrecht, Amersfort, Zwolle, Amsterdam, Leiden and back to the ferry at the Hook.
Yuk. if the requirement is " My good lady wants scenery like wine fields etc" I'd head for Amersfoort first thing, and head east
by m-gineering
24 Feb 2024, 1:34pm
Forum: Touring & Expedition
Topic: Rotterdam to Dunkirk
Replies: 42
Views: 1772

Re: Rotterdam to Dunkirk

Dupont wrote: 24 Feb 2024, 10:52am



Definitely going to Holland, but still haven't fully decided on a route once there.
my take on cycletouring in NL

https://www.m-gineering.nl/touringg.htm
by m-gineering
22 Feb 2024, 7:29am
Forum: Touring & Expedition
Topic: Rotterdam to Dunkirk
Replies: 42
Views: 1772

Re: Rotterdam to Dunkirk

Dupont wrote: 21 Feb 2024, 6:33pm
LeBrignall wrote: 21 Feb 2024, 5:51pm I can't help feeling there are more interesting rides to do. A ferry to the Hook gets you direct into cycling all round the Netherlands for as many days as you like. It's a great place to tour, albeit quite urban.
Or go to Dieppe or Caen and cycle into Normandy and beyond, which offers lovely countryside. The Dunkirk area is pretty drab IMO...
LB
What would you suggest? My good lady wants scenery like wine fields etc, but it must be flattish. We plan a week to ten days away.
Hoek van Holland -> Utrechtse Heuvelrug, -> Hoge Veluwe-> Achterhoek and back (Amersfoort-Apeldoorn-Winterwijk)
by m-gineering
22 Feb 2024, 7:18am
Forum: Touring & Expedition
Topic: Rotterdam to Dunkirk
Replies: 42
Views: 1772

Re: Rotterdam to Dunkirk

Dupont wrote: 21 Feb 2024, 8:42pm
mjr wrote: 21 Feb 2024, 8:39pm
Dupont wrote: 21 Feb 2024, 6:33pm

What would you suggest? My good lady wants scenery like wine fields etc, but it must be flattish. We plan a week to ten days away.
I rode the Alsace wine route last summer. It was far from flat. I think vineyards are often on hillsides.

I quite like the Dunkirk area. Lots to see: nothing to block your view. Then all the WW2 history. Then the coast slowly changes as you ride north: the brutal resorts of Belgium, the Dutch Delta, the barrages, the gentler little towns, then the bizarre industrial art and follies.
I have never been to Belgium. What is brutal about the resorts?
And no housing estates, all houses line the roads so there often isn't much of a view in the country.
by m-gineering
27 Jan 2024, 8:04am
Forum: Touring & Expedition
Topic: Rack for bikepacking on MTB
Replies: 25
Views: 1089

Re: Rack for bikepacking on MTB

Bice wrote: 27 Jan 2024, 1:00am I am doing a week's MTB in Snowdonia in April on my Scott carbon MTB, and thinking about racks.

I have several alloy and steel road bike racks, and Ortlieb panniers, for commuting and touring on 700mmm frames that also work fine with my 26 inch steel MTB.

But there are no mounts on the 27.5 inch Scott, apart from using the through axle. I prefer a proper rack and I have the panniers. Is there a solution to repurpose an existing rack or buy another rack? I am staying in B&Bs so I could strap stuff to the seat post and handlebar, but a rack would be neater.

("Bikepacking" seems to involve less good but far more expensive luggage systems that those I have grown up with.)
Robert Axle/Old Man Mountain do racks which use a thru-axle. You'll whine about the cost though.

A bike packing setup is more suited to technical trails, eg jumping trees, falling off, carying the bike over obstacles etc. If you're only pottering through the lanes panniers make more sense
by m-gineering
17 Jan 2024, 8:34pm
Forum: Touring & Expedition
Topic: Route to Türkiye from UK
Replies: 14
Views: 919

Re: Route to Türkiye from UK

Bmblbzzz wrote: 17 Jan 2024, 11:25am
nirakaro wrote: 17 Jan 2024, 12:31am Up the Rhine then down the Danube?
Were going to be my very words.
What I've seen of the Danube wasn't very attractive. Another possibilty with a distinct different flavour would be to ride down Italy and take a ferry to Greece
by m-gineering
12 Dec 2023, 2:29pm
Forum: Touring & Expedition
Topic: Belt Drive for touring
Replies: 14
Views: 2040

Re: Belt Drive for touring

PT1029 wrote: 12 Dec 2023, 7:01am Having to get the belt "tight" - what does this do to hub/BB bearing life?
nothing good, and modern bb bearing life isn't what it used to be for starters

Some belts have a roller just under/abutting to the rear sprocket, I assume this allows the belt to be not tight whilst preventing slipping. Down side is of course a bit of extra faff when removing the wheel.
It's called a snubber, and should prevent the belt from riding up the teeth of the cog. It shouldn't touch.. Problem is they are a bugger to slide aside after a bit of road grime, so you have to remove them for a wheelchange
With the tight bearing issue, I went for a chain on my new tourer - and saved the frame builder "from having to talk you out of a belt drive"(!).
Betls are made to prove the superiory of Ferrodrive ;)
by m-gineering
11 Dec 2023, 7:19am
Forum: Touring & Expedition
Topic: Belt Drive for touring
Replies: 14
Views: 2040

Re: Belt Drive for touring

plancashire wrote: 10 Dec 2023, 4:50pm
Jdsk wrote: 10 Dec 2023, 3:55pm
Galactic wrote: 10 Dec 2023, 3:43pm
Mmm ... now you mention it, I remember those too. I wonder if there's a similar thing I could use on modern horizontal dropouts? Pulling the wheel tight against the backstops would still be a pain, but it would make the process a lot less trial and error.
Chain tugs:
https://www.sjscycles.co.uk/search/?term=chain%20tug

Jonathan
Thanks Confucius. There are two types here, so far as I can see from the pictures.
  • MKS CA-NJS Chain Tug looks like something adjustable that slides in the dropout and comes out with the wheel: not a tug at all. If the dropouts fit the spec. it might be useful for a belt drive or chain and hub gear.
You either have a frame suitable for a beltdrive (stiff, opening in the rear triangle, tensioner) or not. With a beltdrive the frame should have vertical dropouts and some sort of tensioning mechanism. No need to adjust when you put the wheel back in, but to get it in it's final place it helps to sit down on the luggage rack, and un-redo the skewer or bolts to make sure the axle is seated.
by m-gineering
9 Nov 2023, 12:19pm
Forum: Touring & Expedition
Topic: Holland cycle touring for newbies
Replies: 17
Views: 3934

Re: Holland cycle touring for newbies

Grldtnr wrote: 9 Nov 2023, 9:40am

You must use the cycle routes, cycling on the roads is frowned on,
Nope.(non motorway) roads are fine, unless there is a service road, a cyclepath with a round blue white sign or a sign prohibiting cycling
The cycle paths have a route numbering system, every junction has a number, some with an A or B suffix to denote which direction , to or from.
There is route numbering system which covers some roads/tracks/cyclepaths
Which makes navigation fairly simple ,if you have the proper map, just study it before you ride, note down the numbers, and tick them off as you go,
For instance it might be. 6,13,77,89....every major junction has a board displaying a map of the area and the route numbering, but unfortunately these are subject to vandalism and graffiti, but it's delightfully simple and obviates the need for maps & GPS
you still need a map to get back on track after you've missed a sign
by m-gineering
2 Nov 2023, 1:53pm
Forum: Touring & Expedition
Topic: Where to go in Holland?
Replies: 47
Views: 9932

Re: Where to go in Holland?

zenitb wrote: 29 Oct 2023, 5:13pm
MrsHJ wrote: 21 Oct 2023, 2:20pm Be prepared for some wind and rain. I’d recommend the Kroller Muller museum in Arnhem if you are into art. It’s Van Gogh etc rather than Brueghel. One fo the most special features is that it’s in the middle of a national park and of course it’s all super cycling friendly.

https://krollermuller.nl/en
https://www.hogeveluwe.nl/en
Ah .. sorry missed all the new comments. That's a great suggestion MrsHJ and very timely since I am tapping in routes on cycle.travel right now !!! We have a couple of military history buffs so visiting Arnhem would keep them happy as well !!!!
At the other (west) end of the Veluwe: National Military History Museum in Soesterberg (and you can cycle over the runway ;) )
by m-gineering
2 Nov 2023, 8:17am
Forum: Touring & Expedition
Topic: Cassette Lock-ring Tool For Touring
Replies: 19
Views: 4167

Re: Cassette Lock-ring Tool For Touring

To replace a spoke with a standard one you have to have fair access to both sides of the hole to push it all the way through. You can bend the spoke a bit to get past the spokes in the opposite flange, but a brakedisk, or cogset doesn't leave enough room. Enter a spoke with a Z-bend on the end, It has the elbow like a regular spoke and the 2nd bend keeps it in the hole when the spoke is inserted and turned 90 degrees.
Pray that your broken spoke broke in the elbow (common) and unscrew the remains from the nipple.
Now you find out if your rim is made with double ferrules so that the nipple can't fall into the rim (in that case the tyre and rimtape has to come off)
Feed your emergency spoke in the spokehole and cross/weave it like the others towards the nipple. It's okay to cheat and put the spoke in from the wrong end of the flange is that is the only working solution
Thread the nipple on the spoke (bend the spoke a bit so not to push the nipple in the rimT and tighten up the nipple with your spoke key.. Pluck the spoke and tune it so it sounds like it's neighbours on that side of the rim
go ride ;)
by m-gineering
1 Nov 2023, 8:28pm
Forum: Touring & Expedition
Topic: Cassette Lock-ring Tool For Touring
Replies: 19
Views: 4167

Re: Cassette Lock-ring Tool For Touring

ANTONISH wrote: 1 Nov 2023, 9:40am The old trick was to carry a spoke with the head cut off and put a rh bend in it (you have to work out the length of course) which is useful if you are touring.
Takes about 5mm extra. The trick is to use the same gauge spoke as in the wheel, then you can just tighten the spoke untill it sounds ( when plucked) like it's neighbours on the same side. That will be good enough and fast, no wheel truing skills needed.
by m-gineering
31 Oct 2023, 8:03pm
Forum: Touring & Expedition
Topic: Cassette Lock-ring Tool For Touring
Replies: 19
Views: 4167

Re: Cassette Lock-ring Tool For Touring

andrew_s wrote: 31 Oct 2023, 6:13pm The Stein, Hypercracker and Unior tools all work the same way as the NBT2 (a splined ring attached to a thin plate that fits between axle locknut and dropout, which is prevented from rotating with the cassette by being braced against some part of the frame), and that whatever prevents the NBT2 from working will also prevent the alternative tools from working.
Nope. The NBT2 and others use the slot in the dropout to get purchase. Thru-axle frames do not have the slot so you'll need something else