Cycling UK Forum

Some absence can be good for recovery and for rekindling one's mojo.

Too long though, and it puts you so far back you feel like a new rider.

I had 3 months off the bike due to a back injury and on return last week, I thought I was going to pass out half way up the first serious hill.

Makes one realise how fit one must be normally compared to those that lead sedentary lives.

Louise,

https://lancashiresportsrepairs.co.uk/

They used to sell Karrimor bag spares and might be able to help. They specialise in outdoor equipment repairs.

As a commuter (13 miles one way) I find late autumn and winter a slog. The roads are invariably damp with mulchy leaves and some days, especially when one has a sniffle, it's draining.

Spring is great as you know the worst is behind you.

As a tourer summer is joyous. The warm sunshine, the green lanes, the tan lines, the outdoor coffee stops. It's these great memories that carry me through the winter months as well as planning for the following summer's tour.

There are plenty of Mavic A319/Deore combination wheelsets ready-made online at a reasonable price. Halfords tend to be pricey and it'll likely be a budget Taiwanese wheel they sell you.

I've got the same Mavics on two bikes (commuter and tourer) and no problems. But, these have disc brakes so no rim wear issues as alluded to upthread.

PS mine are handbuilt.

I've had it a couple of times and put it down to a lazy shift. The sort of shift where you half-heartedly change gear. A quick downshift and a proper upshift sorted it.

This happened on STI units which require a longer throw of the lever on the front vs quick flick on the back.

I've got STI on two bikes: 1) 11 years old and 9 sp Tiagra and 2) 5 years and 9 sp Sora. Both triple.

I've not noticed a reduction in the performance of the left shifters. But as said upthread, I find the front derailleurs travel more on the upshift and have a bigger thud on the downshift.

It's not occurred to me this may lead to a premature demise of the shifters.

It must be said that these are two of four bikes and so, someone riding only one bike, might experience greater wear.

One thing I do when not riding is put the derailleurs into gears that reduce cable tension. So, the front is placed into 1st gear and the rear into 4th or 5th. The thinking being that taking tension out of the cable reduces cable wear and possibly, takes the strain off the tiny cogs in the shifters.

I've got no evidence if this makes a difference in reality.

I don't think one has to worry about parts availability.

I"m running Shimano STX-RC from the mid 90s on one bike and the front shifter periodically gets sticky and non responsive. Taking it apart and applying fresh grease gets it going again for 2-3 years.

One time, I thought it was terminal and when I looked online, there were plenty of spares even though that groupset hasn't been produced for 20 odd years.

Something else I noticed was the amount of Chinese copies of old 7 / 8 speed stuff.

So, 1) Shimano stuff is pretty tough, 2) there will be plenty spares online and 3) there will be plenty aftermarket copies.

Biospace wrote:Does anyone still use old inner tubes? My dad showed me how years ago, using insulating tape inside out to provide the stick. Then it's some cotton tape over the top, it dries quickly after rain and I adjust the 'softness' to required thorough tube size and wall thickness.

I did this to a Giant road bike on 25mm tyres and it transformed the ride. No more wrist and palm numbness/tingles.

Might not be suitable for smaller hands though.

On another bike, I moved from 32 to 40mm tyres and this made the biggest difference.

Right...my curiosity got the better of me and I went to the garage to have another look.

The left side of the rack is adjustable - see circled pic. Those two struts are what the tubes slide in and out of. The two bolts on each strut are for locking the top tubes in place once required adjustment has been made.

I presume this is to accommodate the disc brake caliper I.e. where the caliper is mounted on the seat stay.

Jdsk wrote:Do you know the model as well as the make?

Jonathan

I don't know the model, but here's a couple of daylight pics.

On my recently acquired Tortec rack, there are additional struts across two of the three horizontal tubes.

The struts are made of aluminium and welded at each end. Each strut has two bolt holes. Any idea what these struts are for?

I thought they might be for affixing a child seat. Except the weight limit is 25kg. I thought child seat racks had a greater load rating.

This is not a rack from Tortec's current portfolio and the seller doesn't know their purpose.

The Schwalbe Land Cruiser might be a better all round option for mixed surface cycling.

The Marathon Plus range is indeed heavy and will be more noticeable over longer rides.

Brucey wrote:
Re spoking the strongest spoking in a dished rear wheel is to use SB 13-14G spokes on the driveside and DB spokes on the NDS. In a wheel that has little or no dish then you can use the same spokes both sides.

cheers

I've often read this and Spa also build this way, but is there any reason not to use the stronger spoke on both sides. Surely, if the aim is outright dependability, a stronger spoke on both sides can't be a bad thing?

In my case, I suffered several spoke breakages and a rim failure on OEM wheels, so a few years ago I built a wheelset with DT's Alpine 3, triple butted, all round. I should add that I have discs so there is less dish on the rear and more on the front vs rim braked bikes.

No problems on several tours, one of which was on Belgian cobbles. Wondering if I should expect problems at some point?

There are two drivers of the shortage. A halt to the supply and subsequent surge in demand.

Most bikes are made in the East and when Covid was first identified, the factories over there shut at the start of the year.

Then when lockdown appeared in the West there was a surge in demand as gyms closed.

Although manufacturing picked up by the middle of the year, it takes time to reach a normal state.

Worst driver?

That could me, or anyone of us, on any given day. All it takes is a moment of lapsed concentration/distraction.

Since I took up cycling, I think my driving has improved - particularly hazard premption. But, every so often, I will make an error that could have been costly.