Worst piece of kit you ever bought

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Cowsham
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Re: Worst piece of kit you ever bought

Post by Cowsham »

Maybe not the absolute worst but not what I was expecting it to be. A few years ago I'd bought a Retekess PR12 pocket radio which is a fantastic thing for taking on cycle tours, holidays etc.
Rechargeable which plays all day on one charge and the reception is clear as crystal with am fm bands and even an mp3 player ( micro sd which is handy ) sound output is phenomenal you'd think it was a much bigger radio playing ( my son came in one day and couldn't find the radio until I pointed it out -- he couldn't believe the sound was coming from something so small )

Anyway I had the idea of buying another one because I began using the first one a when doing DIY around the house in case it got busted but had much trouble finding another one but I came across this thing
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/203590506568 ... media=COPY

Thinking it was the same radio with a different badge on.

No!

It was crap in every respect. Reception poor sound poor -- I immediately sent it back.
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fastpedaller
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Joined: 10 Jul 2014, 1:12pm
Location: Norfolk

Re: Worst piece of kit you ever bought

Post by fastpedaller »

A pair of cycling shoes from Aldi - Aldi had just started to supply by mail order, and if these were the equivalent quality of ones I'd bought a few years before from lidl they'd be good. I took these Aldi ones out of the packaging and my heart sank as soon as I examined the flexible soles! Returned immediately for a refund, I didn't even bother to try them on!
David9694
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Re: Worst piece of kit you ever bought

Post by David9694 »

Proviz gilet. Breathable: my left foot.

Spent a fair bit on this, but they soon stopped supporting the app
https://ottodesignworks.com/sites/defau ... ug2016.pdf
Spa Audax Ti Ultegra; Genesis Equilibrium 853; Raleigh Record Ace 1983; “Raleigh Competition”, “Raleigh Gran Sport 1982”; “Allegro Special”, Bob Jackson tourer, Ridley alu step-through with Swytch front wheel; gravel bike from an MB Dronfield 531 frame.
Debs
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Re: Worst piece of kit you ever bought

Post by Debs »

A pair of 3t tri bars in the early 90s.

Set up correctly, went out on the very first training ride with them, the lightweight aluminium riser tubes that held the arm cups weren't anywhere near strong enough, one suddenly snapped (with a rather loud bang) which caused a momentary loss of control, very nearly crashed.
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Cowsham
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Re: Worst piece of kit you ever bought

Post by Cowsham »

David9694 wrote: 11 May 2022, 11:16pm Proviz gilet. Breathable: my left foot.

Spent a fair bit on this, but they soon stopped supporting the app
https://ottodesignworks.com/sites/defau ... ug2016.pdf
That reminds me on a bit of tech my wife bought to track the cat as she wondered where he'd disappear to for days at a time. Think the tracker was made by kudos ( not sure it's a while ago now ).

£70 quid she spent on it then £5 / month thereafter ! Came with an app for your phone to see the path of the pussy overlaid on a map.

The batteries ran out after a day away so we only saw the direction he went but after that nothing. Then shortly after we put the collar on he went for good £70 tracker an all. :lol:
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PedallingSquares
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Re: Worst piece of kit you ever bought

Post by PedallingSquares »

Castelli Perfetto jacket.
Neither warm nor waterproof worst £150 I've spent.
pwa
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Re: Worst piece of kit you ever bought

Post by pwa »

Cowsham wrote: 11 May 2022, 11:49pm
David9694 wrote: 11 May 2022, 11:16pm Proviz gilet. Breathable: my left foot.

Spent a fair bit on this, but they soon stopped supporting the app
https://ottodesignworks.com/sites/defau ... ug2016.pdf
That reminds me on a bit of tech my wife bought to track the cat as she wondered where he'd disappear to for days at a time. Think the tracker was made by kudos ( not sure it's a while ago now ).

£70 quid she spent on it then £5 / month thereafter ! Came with an app for your phone to see the path of the pussy overlaid on a map.

The batteries ran out after a day away so we only saw the direction he went but after that nothing. Then shortly after we put the collar on he went for good £70 tracker an all. :lol:
We have one for our whippet and it performs as good as can be expected. It is intended to raise the chances of us finding our dog if she is separated from us while in a forest or dune system (we have both nearby). She is good at staying with us but could theoretically be chased away by other dogs and have difficulty finding us thereafter. The battery life is good enough to cover our walk plus hours of trying to track her down should the need arise. Phone signal coverage is the weakness. Around our village it is poor, so transmission to our phones is patchy. In the local dune system it is actually better, apart from a dead spot here and there. In upland forestry nearby it is it is better. So on the whole it is worth having. It cost about £45 plus about £4 a month. And for that we have a service that greatly reduces the chances of our dog becoming one of those lost dog pics you see stuck to phone poles and bus shelters.

For our purposes it is good, but I can see how it would be less reassuring for a cat who wants to go wandering for days on end. Our dog would be trying to get back to us as soon as the panic that made her flee dissipated. One or two hours of remaining battery life should be sufficient.

This piece of kit could easily be misused. For example, a controlling partner could leave it in a car to watch where it went.
freeflow
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Joined: 29 Aug 2011, 1:54pm

Re: Worst piece of kit you ever bought

Post by freeflow »

Not cycling kit but a Karcher FC5 hard floor cleaner. The basic premise is quite sound and it did a good job when I first got it, but the design of critical parts is not upto snuff leading to it breaking down (non rotating rollers) on two occasions. The first was (badly) repaired under warranty. I'm not inclined to try and get it repaired again.
hufty
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Re: Worst piece of kit you ever bought

Post by hufty »

David9694 wrote: 11 May 2022, 11:16pm Proviz gilet. Breathable: my left foot.
Now steady on there David9694! I bought a Proviz "Classic" gilet very recently and quite rate it for its flattering cut (ahem) and bright but not fluoro colour. Agreed it can get a bit clammy sometimes in which case I undo the zip a bit, but I can't believe it's the worst piece of kit you've ever bought?

My suggestions would be those bicycle footpumps where you put a foot on the unit and pulled repeatedly on a webbing strap to turn a compressor until either the tyre was half inflated or the unit broke. And V brakes.
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cycle tramp
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Re: Worst piece of kit you ever bought

Post by cycle tramp »

Shimano (rear) roller brake - shimano front roller brakes worked fine. The rear, absolutely nothing (and I'm saying this as a user of SA drum brakes). You could literally pull the brake lever back and nothing would happen as you sailed closer to the t junction.....
..I ended up giving it away on this forum.. perhaps the only way it would work as a brake is like an anchor.
It's time to go :-)
oldtimer99
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Joined: 19 Mar 2013, 8:26pm

Re: Worst piece of kit you ever bought

Post by oldtimer99 »

Well if we're not talking just cycling stuff, how about toasters that don't fit bread (or vice versa).
Superglue that doesn't stick owt.
Any of the loads if other single function devices that ...don't
toontra
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Location: London

Re: Worst piece of kit you ever bought

Post by toontra »

PedallingSquares wrote: 11 May 2022, 11:49pm Castelli Perfetto jacket.
Neither warm nor waterproof worst £150 I've spent.
Hah - they would be in my "best ever bought" list. They're not marketed as being waterproof or for very low temps.
David9694
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Joined: 10 Feb 2018, 8:42am

Re: Worst piece of kit you ever bought

Post by David9694 »

Dingdong wrote: 9 May 2022, 8:31pm I bought a Lidl track pump. As a former proper track rider, I've been spoiled by all metal Italian track pumps that can put 100psi in your tyres in 4 strokes of the barrel! These plastic Lidl jobs though, absolutely useless piece of old toot. Not even worth the tenner I paid for it :lol:
I’ve got a Lidl/ Crivit pump. - the chuck was was over-complex, flimsy and it soon broke. Rescued it with the chuck from the Joe Blow it replaced. Works well and is less inclined to give your thumb a nasty whack when the chuck lever clicks down like the Park one does.
Spa Audax Ti Ultegra; Genesis Equilibrium 853; Raleigh Record Ace 1983; “Raleigh Competition”, “Raleigh Gran Sport 1982”; “Allegro Special”, Bob Jackson tourer, Ridley alu step-through with Swytch front wheel; gravel bike from an MB Dronfield 531 frame.
Dingdong
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Re: Worst piece of kit you ever bought

Post by Dingdong »

Benotto bar tape. Plastic neon coloured rubbish. Frayed at one end then unravelled all at once.

And it was absolutely gripless :lol:
Dingdong
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Re: Worst piece of kit you ever bought

Post by Dingdong »

Like this
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