Search found 141 matches

by OldLimey
23 Mar 2021, 9:42pm
Forum: Does anyone know … ?
Topic: Left Hooked but My Fault say Police
Replies: 68
Views: 3655

Re: Left Hooked but My Fault say Police

mjr wrote:
OldLimey wrote:Edit: I just took another look at the O.P. I see that the bike was in a bike lane. It's possible that the bike was in the driver's blind spot.

Opening Post also says it was a car. Cars do not have blind spots and I think the UK driving standard requires the driver turns their head before changing lane, sometimes called a shoulder check.


I disagree with you about blind spots in cars. I just did a search on this subject. One website lists "10 affordable cars with blind spot detection." Why would car makers install such equipment if it wasn't needed?

Wikipedia says: "Blind spots exist in a wide range of vehicles: aircraft, cars, motorboats, sailboats, and trucks. Other types of transport have no blind spots at all, such as bicycles, horses, and motorcycles....
by OldLimey
23 Mar 2021, 5:55pm
Forum: Does anyone know … ?
Topic: Left Hooked but My Fault say Police
Replies: 68
Views: 3655

Re: Left Hooked but My Fault say Police

mjr wrote:
OldLimey wrote:The driver was indicating he was about to make a left turn, and you saw him indicating, but you tried to pass him on the inside, anyway. I fail to see how he might have been at fault.

The driver is at fault for failing to give way to traffic in an adjacent lane before pulling across it, probably breaking highway code rules 133, 146, 151, 170, 182, 183, 204, 206 and especially 211. Indicating does not give priority or exempt one from taking care.

The cyclist was also probably at fault but I fail to see how anyone can think the driver was not!


I may have misunderstood the situation. I thought the car and the bike were in the same lane. If the car was in the next lane over, then I do believe he was at fault for being in the wrong lane. Even so, if the car's turn signal was flashing, then caution is needed on the part of the cyclist. It's dangerous to assume anything about people in other modes of transport.

Edit: I just took another look at the O.P. I see that the bike was in a bike lane. It's possible that the bike was in the driver's blind spot. I hate bike lanes, as I had a very close call with a guy in a pickup truck who was probably looking at his phone as he passed me. His wide, sticky-out side mirror missed my head by inches as he continued on into the bike lane. Had I been a just a few feet further ahead, he would have run me down. At least here in the U.S. I can ride on the sidewalks which are for the most part pedestrian-free.
by OldLimey
23 Mar 2021, 5:49pm
Forum: The Tea Shop
Topic: Who's had the vaccine?
Replies: 1420
Views: 57046

Re: Who's had the vaccine?

kylecycler wrote:Had my first jag on Sunday afternoon. Couldn't believe how quick or painless it was - there hardly seemed to have been time for the nurse to press the plunger in the syringe and I'd to ask her if that was it? I'd been worrying about it - I'm a bit of a fainter but she went round my back so I couldn't see it anyway.

I had my second shot last Friday and, like you, I couldn't believe how quick and painless they are. In fact, for about four hours I began to suspect I hadn't been jabbed at all because I felt no needle go in. Then the slight pain in the muscle where the needle went in, left no doubt that I got it. The second shot is known to cause side effects such as nausea, headache, tiredness and a few other things. The day after my second shot, I felt cold and tired, so I spent much of the day in bed. My wife had no effects at all.

It's certainly nothing to be afraid of. And I recommend that people ignore the scary stories that pervade the internet about how they know someone's friend whose uncle had it and he turned green and died in agony.
by OldLimey
23 Mar 2021, 2:54pm
Forum: The Tea Shop
Topic: Who's had the vaccine?
Replies: 1420
Views: 57046

Re: Who's had the vaccine?

My wife and I have had both vaccine shots. Apart from the feeling of having been punched in the upper arm a few hours later, I felt tired, the next day, and slept most of the day. My wife had the feeling of a bruised upper arm, but no other effects. We had the Moderna vaccine. It takes two weeks following the second shot to become immune to the virus. I thought about not getting the vaccine because it's been a year and haven't gotten sick with it, despite the fact we go out to eat, but it's so uncertain that we won't get the virus. We are both in our 70s, and it could kill us, so the slight inconvenience of getting the shots is well worth it. Besides, if I died, I wouldn't be able to ride my bike anymore. Then what would I do?
by OldLimey
23 Mar 2021, 2:40pm
Forum: The Tea Shop
Topic: SCAM DVLA E MAIL
Replies: 18
Views: 930

Re: SCAM DVLA E MAIL

I've had about a dozen official-looking UPS emails, telling me I haven't visited the website lately, and that I must do so or my account will be closed. Rather than click on their link, I went to the UPS website. There was nothing like that where they'd close my account. Never click on links in any email that you wasn't expecting because that can download a virus into your phone or computer. I treat every email with suspicion especially if I don't know the sender. And if they're asking for personal details of any kind, it's a safe bet it's a scam.

Edit: Ha! Funny we should be talking about scams. I just now got an email about my BBC account and that it will be deleted if I don't log in. I hovered my mouse over the link and it's obviously not from the BBC. I don't have a BBC account, anyway.
by OldLimey
23 Mar 2021, 2:31pm
Forum: Does anyone know … ?
Topic: Left Hooked but My Fault say Police
Replies: 68
Views: 3655

Re: Left Hooked but My Fault say Police

The driver was indicating he was about to make a left turn, and you saw him indicating, but you tried to pass him on the inside, anyway. I fail to see how he might have been at fault. I always anticipate what might happen in any given situation, and I would not have attempted the pass the car. And never assume that you have a right to do what you did; assumptions about any situation can get a cyclist killed.
by OldLimey
11 Mar 2021, 3:08am
Forum: Bikes & Bits – Technical section
Topic: Headset Detent
Replies: 29
Views: 2300

Re: Headset Detent; using "Luke's trick"

Brucey wrote:
OldLimey wrote:
That sounds like what I did. I snugged the adjusting race down and then tightened the locknut. That made the steering very slightly stiff. So I slackened the adjusting race just a hair without loosening the lock ring.....


not quite. If you don't back the lockring off, whatever load you apply to the locknut ends up being the preload on the bearings. Anything which involved a spanner is probably too much. Using "Luke's trick" only definitely doesn't overly preload the bearings if you tighten the locknut and adjusting race hand tight, i.e. without using a spanner at that point.

cheers


The adjusting race and locknut both turned together so that it wasn't too tight on the bearing.
by OldLimey
10 Mar 2021, 4:13pm
Forum: Bikes & Bits – Technical section
Topic: Headset Detent
Replies: 29
Views: 2300

Re: Headset Detent

rogerzilla wrote:I'm with Jobst Brandt on this subject.

https://yarchive.net/bike/head_bearing.html

I have never had any such issues with cartridge bearing headsets, where there are plain bearing surfaces to take the rocking motion. Some of mine (Cane Creek S2 and S6) have a decade and 10,000 miles on them with zero attention. They are still perfect.


I replaced the cartridge bearing headsets on my Specialized Fatboy a short while ago. It went very well. I only took the steering apart so I could learn how it all goes together. I found the lower bearing was worn. I could move the inner ring part side to side, probably about .5 mm. I didn't think that was good although it wasn't giving me any problems. The outer ring of that bearing had rust on it, which was another reason I changed it. At the time I put the new bearings in, I had about 7,000 miles on it from new. I looked at Cane Creek bearings but wasn't sure about them because of the angles mentioned, so I ordered them from the LBS which was a Specialized dealer. What does 36x45 mean? I think the 45 is the seating angle, but the 36 confuses me.
by OldLimey
10 Mar 2021, 3:57pm
Forum: Bikes & Bits – Technical section
Topic: Headset Detent
Replies: 29
Views: 2300

Re: Headset Detent; using "Luke's trick"

Brucey wrote:However if you have good access to both adjusting race and locknut with spanners, and no serrated locking, you can normally use Luke's trick. This involves hand-tightening the adjusting race onto the bearing (i.e. with a modest preload) and then hand tightening the locknut on top of that, again with modest preload. The rookie mistake that some people then make is to tighten the locknut down (which crushes the life out of the bearings) but using Luke's trick, you hold the locknut steady (and the forks/handlebars too, eg. with the front wheel between your legs), then back the adjusting race into the locknut by turning the adjusting race ACW. This allows the headset adjuster to be set tight against the locknut, but without rotating the locknut. With a following wind, the preserves whatever preload was applied to the bearings when the locknut was hand-tightened. In just a few seconds it often gives an adjustment which is as good or better than you might achieve in a few minutes otherwise; clever stuff!

So more than one way of skinning a cat and all that....

cheers


That sounds like what I did. I snugged the adjusting race down and then tightened the locknut. That made the steering very slightly stiff. So I slackened the adjusting race just a hair without loosening the lock ring. There was no serrated lockring. It was perfect. Rode it six miles and it's good. And, right or wrong, I do the same thing with wheel bearing cone nuts; get it as close as possible, then if the cone nut is a bit too tight after the locknut is tightened, I use a cone wrench on each end to slacken it just enough so it doesn't bind.
by OldLimey
9 Mar 2021, 10:03pm
Forum: Bikes & Bits – Technical section
Topic: Headset Detent
Replies: 29
Views: 2300

Re: Headset Detent

Brucey wrote:probably the preload was set too high on both your motorcycle head bearings and now your bicycle headset. It is easily done.
cheers


You mean too tight? I believe that was the case. After removing the top locknut, the large nut that snugs down on the bearing was quite tight.

It seems to be good now that it's greased and back together. It was definitely tighter than hand tight before the top locknut was tightened, yet the steering was acceptable. I didn't notice any tightness in it but then I wasn't thinking about it when the bike was new. It's just taken some time for this issue to show up.

So, "bike shop quality" as the bike shop called it, doesn't mean that it's all in good order, only that it was sold in a bike shop. Still, I know not to expect too much for $500 (£360). It's a nice bike, otherwise.
by OldLimey
9 Mar 2021, 9:50pm
Forum: Bikes & Bits – Technical section
Topic: Headset Detent
Replies: 29
Views: 2300

Re: Headset Detent

Jdsk wrote:Does it look like this?

Screenshot 2021-03-09 at 17.45.54.png
Jonathan

Yes, exactly like that! And that quill stem design leaves a lot to be desired, the way the clamp works. I swapped the bars soon after I got the bike and had to use a slim pry bar to open it up enough to get the old bars out and the new ones in.
by OldLimey
9 Mar 2021, 9:45pm
Forum: Bikes & Bits – Technical section
Topic: Headset Detent
Replies: 29
Views: 2300

Re: Headset Detent

hamster wrote:In addition to Brucey's typically comprehensive answer, make sure that there is plenty of grease.

I should have checked them before I whined. I took it apart. They are caged bearings and had some dirty-looking grease on them. After cleaning them and inspecting the seats, it all looked good, like new. I put it back together with White Lightning crystal grease, and it's fine, now; no detent. It's possible that it had a bit of dirt in it, although I don't know how it got in there. And it's odd how the detent showed when the wheel was aligned with the frame, as though it formed from straight ahead riding. Another mystery, one of which I'd never heard of before.

I appreciate the answers. Thanks.
by OldLimey
9 Mar 2021, 5:43pm
Forum: Bikes & Bits – Technical section
Topic: Headset Detent
Replies: 29
Views: 2300

Headset Detent

In January 2000 I bought a new Electra 7D Lux cruiser from a bike shop. At 600 miles both wheels were literally crunching around, necessitating new ball bearings. Now at 1600 miles, I noticed a detent in the steering when the front wheel is in line with the frame. It's a soft detent, barely noticeable but it's there.

Some years ago I traded a motorcycle for a different one, and the dealer reduced the trade-in price because his mechanic said there was a detent in the steering. (I never noticed it.) Apparently, it's a bad thing to have in the steering of a motorcycle so it seems to follow that it's also a bad thing on a bicycle.

I was wondering if this is a feature of bicycles, or if I need to install a new headset. Because of the lousy quality of the wheel bearings, it wouldn't surprise me that the headset is lousy quality, too.
by OldLimey
2 Feb 2021, 11:38pm
Forum: Does anyone know … ?
Topic: Too many patches
Replies: 50
Views: 2806

Re: Too many patches

Has anyone tried glueless patches and, if so, were they any good? And how about Skabs?
by OldLimey
27 Dec 2020, 9:52pm
Forum: Does anyone know … ?
Topic: Trivial brake law question.
Replies: 56
Views: 4264

Re: Trivial brake law question.

Bmblbzzz wrote:As it's been explained to me, the requirement for a chain guard is to stop the chain coming off and gashing the rider's leg. The cage of a correctly adjusted FD should do the same. That's the theory.


That sounds reasonable. Being the awkward type that likes to dig deep and know the reasons for everything, I'd like to know how a chain could come off and gash the rider's leg. I'm not saying it can't happen. I rode bikes a lot when I was young, and have gotten back into it in the last five years, and the only time I had a chain come off was soon after I got my fat bike, four years ago. The LBS hadn't adjusted the RD and the chain wrapped around the axle when I changed to the lowest gear. But coming off a chain ring is a new one to me.

Perhaps these rules are added each time someone gets hurt. That's how the electrical code is; it's updated every three years to take into consideration the dumbest things that people do, among other things.