Worst piece of kit you ever bought

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foxyrider
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Location: Sheffield, South Yorkshire

Re: Worst piece of kit you ever bought

Post by foxyrider »

mattsccm wrote: 14 May 2022, 7:23am But I must condemn every strip of bar tape finishing tape I have ever come across. It is always way to stiff to cope nicely with the two different levels you have to cover.
and too short!
Convention? what's that then?
Airnimal Chameleon touring, Orbit Pro hack, Orbit Photon audax, Focus Mares AX tour, Peugeot Carbon sportive, Owen Blower vintage race - all running Tulio's finest!
wirral_cyclist
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Joined: 17 May 2010, 9:25pm
Location: Wirral Merseyside

Re: Worst piece of kit you ever bought

Post by wirral_cyclist »

thirdcrank wrote: 13 May 2022, 7:49pm Assuming a Goretex jacket hasn't been damaged I'd suggest that any apparent water penetration is condensation, which will usually form on the inside part of the garment exactly where it's wet outside ie usually the front on a cycling jacket.
I've had two very good (obv. expensive) goretex jackets that 'leaked' except they didn't ! I can just sweat more than they can clear - the new owners of said jackets really rate them :cry: I might as well wear bin bags as the outside of those never stop beading :wink:
thirdcrank
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Re: Worst piece of kit you ever bought

Post by thirdcrank »

Worst bike equipment - competing with a lot of dodgy lamps - must be those short "racing" mudguards. My dear old dad used to insist on mudguards and I bought some of them thinking they would work because they were sold as mudguards. My Only excuse is that I would have been a naïve 14 year old.

In terms of weatherproof togs, by far and away my worst purchase was a Gamex (nylon jersey fabric) jacket. I was mooching about in Ellis Briggs probably thirty years ago and they were in the waterproofs section. I incredulously asked if they were indeed waterproof and the reply was "100%" I subsequently "enjoyed" what was surely the most miserable day's cycling bar none relearning the mudguard lesson.

OTOH, as a devotee of hi-viz, there's nothing to compete with a Gamex jacket for fluorescence so much more use than the mudguards
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Cowsham
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Re: Worst piece of kit you ever bought

Post by Cowsham »

thirdcrank wrote: 17 May 2022, 10:26am Worst bike equipment - competing with a lot of dodgy lamps - must be those short "racing" mudguards. My dear old dad used to insist on mudguards and I bought some of them thinking they would work because they were sold as mudguards. My Only excuse is that I would have been a naïve 14 year old.

In terms of weatherproof togs, by far and away my worst purchase was a Gamex (nylon jersey fabric) jacket. I was mooching about in Ellis Briggs probably thirty years ago and they were in the waterproofs section. I incredulously asked if they were indeed waterproof and the reply was "100%" I subsequently "enjoyed" what was surely the most miserable day's cycling bar none relearning the mudguard lesson.

OTOH, as a devotee of hi-viz, there's nothing to compete with a Gamex jacket for fluorescence so much more use than the mudguards
I tried those short mudguards at about that age ( they were a fad for a few years ) for the same reasons as you and of course having no money but found as you did they were a complete waste of the little money I had.
I am here. Where are you?
rfryer
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Joined: 7 Feb 2013, 3:58pm

Re: Worst piece of kit you ever bought

Post by rfryer »

Cowsham wrote: 17 May 2022, 11:06am
thirdcrank wrote: 17 May 2022, 10:26am Worst bike equipment - competing with a lot of dodgy lamps - must be those short "racing" mudguards. My dear old dad used to insist on mudguards and I bought some of them thinking they would work because they were sold as mudguards. My Only excuse is that I would have been a naïve 14 year old.

In terms of weatherproof togs, by far and away my worst purchase was a Gamex (nylon jersey fabric) jacket. I was mooching about in Ellis Briggs probably thirty years ago and they were in the waterproofs section. I incredulously asked if they were indeed waterproof and the reply was "100%" I subsequently "enjoyed" what was surely the most miserable day's cycling bar none relearning the mudguard lesson.

OTOH, as a devotee of hi-viz, there's nothing to compete with a Gamex jacket for fluorescence so much more use than the mudguards
I tried those short mudguards at about that age ( they were a fad for a few years ) for the same reasons as you and of course having no money but found as you did they were a complete waste of the little money I had.
On the other hand, they're cheap, light, rattle -free, aero(!), and keep the mud off your brake caliper bolts and headset bearings. What's not to like?
zenitb
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Cannondale Force 40 cam brakes!!

Post by zenitb »

Nightmare to adjust. After one lap of a muddy xc course the pad wear put them out of adjustment again.
Force 40 brake
Force 40 brake
Replaced at the time with V-brakes. And now we all have disk brakes for mtbs.
Manc33
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Joined: 25 Apr 2015, 9:37pm

Re: Worst piece of kit you ever bought

Post by Manc33 »

Where do I start lol.

I'll just copy the worst stuff from my Excel file that lists every bike part I have ever bought - it currently lists over 500 items. :lol:

Shimano Claris R243 Flat Bar Brake & 8sp Gear Shifter Set
These were bad, just because they felt cheap and I guess since they were, I shouldn't complain (but will anyway). The shifters were hard to push. These weren't on my bike long, before I swapped them off and went to 9-speed, with an R780 left shifter and probably XTR on the right - which had non-matching shifters but, were like a Rolls Royce in comparison.

Dimension Quilted Cruiser Saddle Black
Was on the bike for all of 10 minutes. For some reason I thought an enormous saddle would be comfy but it wasn't. Had to buy this from the US and it was about £50 as well. :roll:

SunDing Bike Computer (Wireless)
Cheap Chinese bike computer. Worked OK for a while then started telling me my max speed was 99.99 MPH. I wish. Ended up not working at all at some point. Fantastically cheap, like something out of a Christmas cracker, with really loud, horrible buttons. Cost? About £4 shipped from China. :lol:

Fake FSA K-Force Carbon Seatpost
Wafer thin, broke immediately, the moment I tightened the clamp up - albeit perhaps too much. Glad it did break since it was such thin carbon, I'm sure it would have caused an accident while out riding on it at some point. Cost about £25.

SYUN-LP Thin Pedals
These were OK for a while but they had tiny little bearings, that went bad pretty quick. They weren't all that cheap either (£25). China again.

BoGeer YT-833 Bike Computer (Wired)
Another Chinese bike computer that was about £4 and stopped working, although I think this lasted the longest of all of them. Had about 22 functions on it as well.

Selle SMP TRK saddle
Far too wide.

Front & Back MTB Mudguards
£3.65. Absolute junk.

SRAM PressFit 30 to BSA Adaptor Kit (Plastic Tube)
Stupid design that's never going to work. Didn't even use it.

FSA PF30 Frame To 68mm English (Metal Tube)
Stupid design that's never going to work. Also went unused. My bike already had a Praxis Works bottom bracket on so I have no idea why I was even buying these things. :lol:

YS Bike Computer (Wireless)
Another Chinese bike computer. Junk (£8.27).

Handlebar Grips (Built in Bar Ends)
More Chinese junk. Was riding around for ages with these on, not knowing the right one had split at the clamp. What do you expect for £6.47. :)

Axiom Propelair 160 Floor/Track Pump
Wasn't impressed. Ended up getting a Birzman to replace this.

Meilan X6 Rear Light
Batteries drained fast and it only had USB charging on it. Actually this was a really nice rear light, but I ended up getting a Cateye TL-LD610, that takes 2x AAA and lasts for months on end.

Sunrace MS8 11-Speed MTB Cassette (11-36t)
Didn't shift that well, compared to Shimano/SRAM.

All the gear and no idea. :mrgreen:

What's the overall conclusion? Don't buy stuff from AliExpress (although far more items I have bought from there have been fine, most of them are the exact same thing on sale here at double the price).

The best thing I have ever bought... it's a toss up between the Mirrycle mirror and the Suntour NCX suspension seatpost, both are an absolute godsend.
We'll always be together, together on electric bikes.
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PedallingSquares
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Joined: 13 Mar 2022, 11:01am

Re: Worst piece of kit you ever bought

Post by PedallingSquares »

thirdcrank wrote: 17 May 2022, 10:26am Worst bike equipment - competing with a lot of dodgy lamps - must be those short "racing" mudguards.
Manc33 wrote: 17 May 2022, 4:26pm Front & Back MTB Mudguards
£3.65. Absolute junk.
All mudguards are absolute junk :roll:
gxaustin
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Joined: 23 Sep 2015, 12:07pm

Re: Worst piece of kit you ever bought

Post by gxaustin »

PedallingSquares wrote: 13 May 2022, 7:18pm
toontra wrote: 12 May 2022, 7:59pm
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.
Castelli lists these features:
- Fully aero, fully breathable and fully protected
- Gore® Windstopper® X-Lite Plus fabric for lightweight total wind protection with water-repellent finish
- Nano Flex fabric insert under arms
- Storm-flap construction with reflective logo at back protects from wheel spray
- Silicone gripper at waist prevents ride-up
- Full-length YKK® Vislon® zipper with wind flap
- 3 rear pockets with laser-cut drain holes
- Weight: 386g (claimed; 332g actual in medium)
It's neither wind resistant nor water repellant, and below 10° even with a baselayer I find it useless.The wind cuts right through it/me!
I wear it as a baselayer with a Roubaix jacket on top in Autumn/winter.Very,very expensive baselayer!
I was recommended it as I don't wear hardshell outer layers but it is absolutely useless in anything but a very light shower. :roll: :?
I have one and rate it highly. With a merino base it works well in cool showery conditions and if the sun comes out its not too hot. I paid about £80.
toontra
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Joined: 21 Dec 2007, 11:01am
Location: London

Re: Worst piece of kit you ever bought

Post by toontra »

A merino base layer is obligatory for almost every get-up :lol: - except today! 25c and sunny meant the Aero Race got its first outing of the year.
David9694
Posts: 908
Joined: 10 Feb 2018, 8:42am

Re: Worst piece of kit you ever bought

Post by David9694 »

The adaptors that allow you to run SPD 2 hole cleats with shoes for SPD-SL 3 hole cleats. Just no.

Giro SPD-SL shoes, Shimano 105 pedals and cleats. (Maybe I need to try again with that set-up.)

I thought the cheaper of the Swisstop range of brake pads was pretty poor for the money a few years back.

Every pair of Brifters ever sold. I’ve got a 10s and 11s bike running these now - it’s like sitting on an expensive time bomb waiting for the gear shift to go wrong. Lots of down tube levers in their 50th year of service.

Every threadless headset ever sold. Of my sample of five bikes I’ve had so equipped, two have been impossible to set up right. Yes I’ve got a headset reamer and facer, yes, a star nut setter, headset press, crown race setter - the last one (a 1” set up) was impossible to remove play and have other than stiff steering.

Every non-standard b/b ever sold - press fit, managed to dodge that bullet so far, ditto disc brakes on most road bikes.
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.
bgnukem
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Joined: 20 Dec 2010, 5:21pm

Re: Worst piece of kit you ever bought

Post by bgnukem »

Shimano brake blocks - Every set I've used have ripped aluminum particles out of the rim braking surface and then scored the rims.

Token square taper bottom bracket - not cheap, around £35 - used once in the rain and the bearings were subsequently rusting and full of water.

Spa Cycles Aubisque frameset - Good value and rides well, BUT recommended 27.2mm seatpost a loose fit and would not stay up, 27.4 too big and would not fit into frame at all. Finally had a 27.4mm post machined to fit.

Bell-branded mini pump - would not produce any more pressure than blowing into the innertube! Also Bell-branded bike mirror - small and flat glass so miniscule field of view, and flapped around loosely making it impossible to position for any kind of view behind. Two pieces of kit that were blatantly useless from the word go and more or less headed straight into the bin.....
rjb
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Joined: 11 Jan 2007, 10:25am
Location: Somerset (originally 60/70's Plymouth)

Re: Worst piece of kit you ever bought

Post by rjb »

700c Training tyres from Mike Dyason (aka eyeballs out). The tread was through to the canvas within 200 miles. I suspect the tread was a black line painted on the canvas :shock:
And his Bobby Dodger lights, which were worse than the never ready they replaced. :lol:
On the plus side his packs of inner tube repair patches were good value.
At the last count:- Peugeot 531 pro, Dawes Discovery Tandem, Dawes Kingpin X3, Raleigh 20 stowaway, 1965 Moulton deluxe, Falcon K2 MTB dropped bar tourer, Rudge Bi frame folder, Longstaff trike conversion on a Giant XTC 840 :D
Tom
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Joined: 23 Jan 2007, 7:54pm

Re: Worst piece of kit you ever bought

Post by Tom »

Handle bar bell with compass on , needle pointed south
Tom
tenbikes
Posts: 462
Joined: 11 Jan 2009, 6:41pm

Re: Worst piece of kit you ever bought

Post by tenbikes »

Every threadless headset ever sold. Of my sample of five bikes I’ve had so equipped, two have been impossible to set up right. Yes I’ve got a headset reamer and facer, yes, a star nut setter, headset press, crown race setter - the last one (a 1” set up) was impossible to remove play and have other than stiff steering.

Eh? I've fitted and adjusted literally dozens and never once had an issue. Just so easy, reliable and, well, perfect !

Worst bit of kit? A very expensive Pace frame which was an engineering marvel but rode so harshly on rocky downhills that I could go faster on my 50 quid pub bike. Mid 1990's when I was racing most weekends. I was so disappointed ....
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