Cycling UK Forum

Vorpal wrote:I agree with the advice about bikes above. I would rather spend the money on a decent secondhand bike, than either of those linked. But if you *have* to buy one of those two bikes, and only one of those two bikes, take the one without suspension.

If new is important, are you anywhere near a Decathlon? They have some bikes at similar prices that I would deem somewhat more reliable.

This one, for example https://www.decathlon.co.uk/riverside-1 ... 05304.html

I can vouch for the Decathlon Riverside 120, having owned one for year. Terrific bike for the money which didn't mind dirt.

I use one of these mini flashlight holders for the Brompton front light. Add a flashing/steady mini-LED torch. Upside is the torch is really bright in steady mode for dark paths, flashes for town riding.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/360%C2%A1%C3%A ... ght+holder

On the rear I have a saddle-bag with a Decathlon V100 Clip mini light. The Clip lights are both red/white in the same unit and will flash/steady. They also fit on the Brompton h/bars or seat post with a 'rubber' O-ring, and don't affect the fold. Rechargeable from a phone charger.

https://www.decathlon.co.uk/vioo-clip-5 ... 02870.html

It used to be an SRAM Rival 11 speed long cage on the Montpellier.

This one?

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/sram ... prod136599

Try before you buy.

The current trend for 29-er hybrids (700c wheels with 29" diameter at the fat tyres) raises the stand-over height unless there's a lot of slope in the top tube.

With 42mm tyres on mine there's still 2" clearance at the top of the front forks. Mines a 19" - medium - frame and my 6 ft friends seem to fit it better than I do.

I usually find a tad too small is better than a tad too large (seatpost excepted) due to the reach problem mentioned.

Those RaceFace Aeffect cranksets use a standard B/B tool to get the chainring off. Generally the trend is to go smaller rather than larger.

The largest RFace size is 36T which is probably already on the bike. A 36T on the front is typical top gear for many of the 8 speed hybrids, mine included. Next up would be 44T or so.

Replacement RFace chainrings are about £45. Previous notes about the front derailléur apply.

Bike is a carbon-frame fast trail/downhill/endurance style with MTB gearing to match.

Usually, but not always: flat bars and fatter tyres for towpaths. AKA 'Hybrid': (28" wheels and 8 gears) or older mountain bike style (26" wheels, 21+ gears).

Also you don't need to pay a lot. Commuter bikes take a hammering, get stolen. Starting point is about £250 for alloy framed hybrids, with decent double-wall rims.

Best to shop around at the bigger dealers like Decathlon and Evans. Their stores are big enough to have a lot of stock in different sizes, and they let you test ride a bike around the store.

New bike models are released in September so there are often big discounts towards the end of the year on 2017/18 models.

Sample: https://www.decathlon.co.uk/riverside-5 ... 05210.html

"Mick F wrote:
Invest in a removable quick link for the chain.
Take the chain off and drop it into a jar with a tight-fitting lid. Tupperware sort of tub is good.
Pour in a degreaser. Gunk, white spirit or whatever. Then shake..."

This. I used an old water bottle off the bike and white spirit. White spirit/kerosene good for several dunks. Have a place to hang up the chain so it can drip back into the bottle. Old style pump oil can good for chains.

Cycling ten miles each way a day on damp forest tracks filled up the drive train with mud and grit. The 8 speed MTB chains and rear cassette seem to last OK, lubed up with fresh 5W30 motor oil. Mostly it was rear derailléurs which died, clobbered by sticks thrown up by the front wheel. I get through a couple a season, and one chain.

Looking at the Scott web-site pic, there does not appear to be any frame lugs for same.

There are P-clip add-ons for mudguards, and a variety of clip-ons.

https://road.cc/content/buyers-guide/21 ... race-bikes

Sounds great. A hybrid will be ideal. (Spare tubes?) Toilet paper.

" I can just buy like baguettes or cheese"

I usually carry protein: hard boiled eggs, little processed cheeses, blocks of Jarlsberg/Edam, crackers, apples. The route isn't entirely un-inhabited by shopkeepers though.

Space blanket at least is a good idea. That coast is notoriously windy.

I also take a backpacker's stove and an enamel mug. Great for roadside hot drinks, soup sachets, corn flakes, noodles (not at the same time) . Stealing little packets of salt and brown sugar from cafés along the way.

The army type hexamine stoves are tiny and very light.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Kombat-UK-Port ... =hex+stove

The current Etrex units are quite good, and you buy a handlebar clip for a bike.

The basic Etrex 10 logs trip points, can accept routes and waypoints and be used with route planning software like Garmin BaseCamp to load routes and waypoints. BaseCamp will also back up stored routes and waypoints.

The Etrex 10 actually has mapping and routing capabilities but the inbuilt memory is small so you can only add a tiny tile at a time. The Etrex 20/30 takes a micro SD card and whole country routable maps. The 30 adds an altimeter.

The Etrex units let you configure a 'trip' page so they make for a useful bike computer.

You can add free OpenStreetmaps to the 20/30. These are routable and often have cycle tracks. Ordnance Survey, when I last looked were aiming to produce UK mapping. Garmin have CityMaps, at a price.

All the Etrex units really need a PC to get the best out of them

Free maps:
http://garmin.openstreetmap.nl/

If you hike, UK contour maps can also be added, along with the Openstreetmaps.

Generally, without a routable map in the unit, the Etrex will try point-to-point waypoint routing; directly across lakes, motorways, back gardens and so on. With a routable map installed, you get 'smart' routing, around lakes, over bridges, on-roads - most of the time.

So for flying or sailing, basic point-to-point routing is fine. Cyclists may require other options.

"BTW anyone know if this trek will be all modern cartridge bearings? "

A lot of them had OctaLink V1 b/b's.

If you look at scratched alloy car wheels, the corrosion tends to creep along under the clear coat and eventually form 'white worms'. It takes a while though.

I use clear nail polish or clear car touch-up paint on scratched alloy frames. A cocktail stick makes a better 'brush' than an er, brush.

You can also get a reasonable paint match for most silver colours from the racks of touch-up sticks in Halfords etc.

There are a lot of people riding Seventies/Eighties bikes around and enjoying them. 18 years is still 'young.'

Anything 'rubber' may have started to degrade, so new tyres, tubes and brake pads at the least.

New cables as mentioned, is a good idea, especially if there is any corrosion. You won't be able to see inside the cable outers so changing both inners and outers might be useful. This might not be needed if the bike has been stored indoors. Shed bikes tend to get condensation everywhere you can't see.

Any competent mechanic will be able to check over bearings at the bottom bracket and wheels, while the bike is in the shop for the other work.

All of this stuff is an easy DIY if you want to learn how to do it your self. Everything you need is on YouTube.

As to prices: there's one on GumTree for £200.

Pins and needles:

Too much weight on wrists and hands. Try a short adjustable stem which will lift the bars up and move your weight backwards slightly: (Double check bar and bar-post diameters first.)

https://www.amazon.co.uk/ZHIQIU-Increas ... table+stem

Witterings wrote:
Are the shop being overly cautious and can I go narrower without changing the rims on a 29er with I would have though pretty standard width rims???

That said they’ve all been earmarked anyway for when I get a gravel bike

You can go way narrower. My rims are 622-19 - which is 700c - 19mm internal width. The bike ( a hybrid) came with 42 mm tractor tyres, and I've just fitted 28mm Schwalbe road tyres with no problems. You might need slimmer tubes but mine didn't. 30-35mm wide tyres will give a bit more comfort, the 28mm tyres are a bit lighter.