Cycling UK Forum

niggle wrote:Been wondering whether to get this rear light: http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/s ... ull%20view (about £37 posted) to go with the Magicshine front light. It uses the same battery and can be run from one battery shared with the front light if I also buy a splitter cable, which is available cheap. This would give me a spare battery so I can have one charging whilst the other is in use, which would be a bonus, as I would run it in continuous mode so battery swaps would probably be fairly frequent. OTOH it might be too bright and the mounting set-up would need some work/fettling for optimum angle and so I can move it between bikes.

My DIY 3 watt rear lamp is too bright for unlit off-road paths. I need to get soldering myself a dimmer ...

In amongst the motorised public, anything goes, I reckon.



3 watts is at least as bright as a rear brake or fog light.!

Cunobelin wrote:Part of the problem for me was highlighted by one of the Cubs on Monday....

He was wearing a helmet

No front brake (the cable is detached)
No rear brake (lever is in contact with bars before the brakes contact rim)
One bald tyre
No Lights!

This is where we are missing something.

TAke Cycling England's Smart Measures Portfolio – Cycling to School which mentions both HiViz and helmets (Encouragement) but nothing at all about roadworthy bicycles!

NOw compare to the Sustrans Cycling to School advice which does mention maintenance and points out the limitations of badly fitting helmets.



If only some of the money, time, effort and energy was used to promote safe cycling as a whole rather than the misleading "If you wear a helmet you will be safe" mantra from Headway et al

Sustrans probably need to update this bit :-

A conventional lamp (not LED) at the
front and a non-flashing red lamp at
the rear are needed to be both legal
and visible. An additional flashing red
light worn by the cyclist, not fixed to the
bike, is helpful and legal.

mbailey wrote:

gentlegreen wrote:I'll definitely try to grab one - but Monday's a bit of a challenge to get there in time ...

They're advertising a £30 workstand too - the only snag is the security guards are wont to pounce if you open the box.

In my local store everyone opens all the boxes, tries things on, checks everything out and no problem?

To be fair, the one where I got accosted checking the cycling glasses was in a somewhat down-market part of town ...

I've had permanently fitted 12 volt lighting on my bike for the past 15 years, so inevitably I have sometimes had an Italian car horn for comedy effect. I found it useful a few times to herd straying teenagers on the local shared-use railway path - it was so over the top, no one took offence.

There was this time when I was overtaking a long queue of static cars and the thing jammed on, and while I stopped and frantically yanked at the wire to stop the thing, a driver actually got out of his car to remonstrate with the one behind - totally ignored me

I have rather agricultural SRAM grip-shifters on my bike which usually do the trick. The bell is usually reserved for pedestrians about to step into the road in front of me.

It's a toughie this interaction with pedestrians. I'm perfectly happy to assert myself in traffic , but I've had mothers yank their children out of the way in an exaggerated fashion in a park where pretty well everyone arrives by car.
I've taken to leaving off my helmet recently - I reckon grey hair helps with pedestrians.

Sadly I see very selfish behaviour by other cyclists on a daily basis on shared paths, so often find myself deliberately getting in the way of the wannabe Cavendishes. Being hairy and built like a rugby player helps in this regard.

Nutsey wrote:Cycling forum in barmy liberal pro-cannabis shocker

Ever wonder why people think cyclists are eccentrics that shouldnt be listened to?

No doubt many of us are concerned about climate change too ... that should seal it with middle England...

I'll definitely try to grab one - but Monday's a bit of a challenge to get there in time ...

They're advertising a £30 workstand too - the only snag is the security guards are wont to pounce if you open the box.

kwackers wrote:I think it's important people realise there is a choice and not everyone gets on with SPD's. There does seem to be a lot of peer pressure to use them so for people who try them and are not seeing the so called benefits - you're not alone.

I've been on at least one ride with a youngster clipped-in on a fancy road-bike who couldn't keep up with this fat old git on a mountain bike with tonnes of luggage...

Meanwhile, my new indoor soccer shoes turned up and were white.

Waiting for returns confirmation before sending them back. One handy thing is that the new ones seem to have an easily removable sole liner so I may be able to have the stiffener in underneath...

Mick F wrote:

gaz wrote:I finally bought some hard-soled touring shoes. Laces, black leather, cheap and cheerful.

Any particular type ?

I once paid silly money for some bespoke shoes, but they were a disaster.

I've just ordered a new pair of Nike indoor shoes - very limited choice with size 13 feet.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Nike-Tiempo-Nat ... 966&sr=1-5

I've been wearing this sort of shoe for a very long time now.
I can't ride in anything with thick soles - plan to try walking trainers though ... (once again, the size of my feet prevent experimenting with cheap ones)

The soles are a bit thin though, so I'm using stiffeners I ripped out of the one pair of Shimano shoes that ever fitted me - a bit uncomfortable sometimes because there's no room for soft liners on top ...

Without the stiffeners, I could feel every prong on the pedals - as well as not being very efficient.
The wind whistled through the stitching at first - another reason I hope to find some suitable proofing wax.

Mick F wrote:I spent a few hours yesterday cutting down some dead Elm trees. I logged it all up and wheelbarrowed it into the living room onto the hearth next to the woodburner. The wood has been dead a couple of years so is nice and seasoned.

What is it that Ray Mears says about wood warming you three times ?

For myself, last winter- the coldest for several decades, and following my discovery of the joys of camping - was when I looked rationally at the way I was wasting heat in my house. I used to have a roaring 6kw gas fire, fall asleep and wake up much too warm and have to let some heat out.

....so I bought myself a new duvet...

I lit my gas fire for the first time during the two weeks I was stuck at home over the festivities. I used 31 cubic feet, 1040 KWh - £63 - average - 3KW.
I don't recall how often I lit it when the weather really set in .

Cycling home from work really comes into its own when the temperature drops - this time of year it still takes me an hour to cool down sufficiently to warrant putting on a fresh tee shirt ... I'm hoping to try a few rides up and down the local railway path this Xmas with a view to building stamina and saving gas.

Maybe it has something to do with having been a toddler in 1963/4 in an uninsulated house and just one open fire ...

Steve Kish wrote:Smart Superflash FTW!

I have over 2000 lumens on the front but my single Smart on the back is more than enough.

Only if you think flashing lights are acceptable. I never have - I hate them with a vengeance.

niggle wrote:I don't suppose you could suggest a source for a suitable weather resistant on/off switch for my Magicshine?

I bought mine from here :-

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/REPLICA-LUCAS-CHR ... 5636301db4

Not cheap at £18, but I'm hoping it will see me off this mortal coil.
It's lasted 12 months so far ...

It's a replica of the switch they used to fit to British motorcycles.

niggle wrote:What exactly does the dip switch do?

It switches in a third 5 watt Cree with a 15 degree optic that's aimed fairly high. My dip beam is two others of these - one with a 40 degree, and the other with a 25 degree optic - which together do a reasonable job of lighting the road.

The horn push button currently flashes my "be seen" 48 LED lamp - for replying to those strange riders who transmit very repetitive morse code with their front lights - or have no lights when they should.

I'm annoyed that I have to use cable ties to the seat stem to firm up my rear wire basket - I've considered plumbing fittings, and was looking at a downtube-mounted rear child seat the other week ... somewhere I have the mount from a mountain bike mudguard ...

Having a suspension seatpost doesn't help - though I'm starting to wonder what benefit I'm getting from that.

niggle wrote:If you stretch your budget to £50 you can get a pretty good LED light with Li ion battery which I find bright enough to ride a country road at 25mph+ in the dark:
http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.30864 Its a major improvement on my previous 'Smart' brand lead acid set with 2.5W and 10W halogens.

Conical beam though - so would need careful aiming. I would certainly be fitting a hood on that - and also wouldn't want it as my only light.

Dip switches are super-cool.



I'm slightly tempted, but I would need to cough up £25 for a regulator board to power it efficiently from my 12 volt battery - a shame it doesn't do that anyway - the domestic Cree spots I use work down to 8 volts ...