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Cheers, my wrists are ruined so i'll have to skip a couple of weekends. I thought it would be my knees that cried for mercy first...wrong again.Quote:
Originally Posted by (notsomuchofa)Fellrunner
Also the seat is killing my arse, i think i need one with the middle bit missing and a nice comfy one at that- anyone got any suggestions?
Lovely looking bike you've got there! As for the seat, that's hugely personal but I love my fizik arione (I think you spell it like that). If you're just starting on a road bike, you'll probably find you need a firmer seat after a few months
Finally got my mtb fixed after months of sitting around looking at it! Enjoyed a steady ride out around Totley/Burbage yesterday and can't wait to get out a bit more. I find it relaxing just taking a steady ride out and appreciating my favourite views. The weather was pretty hairy late afternoon, a sign of things to come!
10 miles cross training....
http://sphotos-f.ak.fbcdn.net/hphoto...44051271_n.jpg
Oh, oh. That looks like prime puncture conditions.Quote:
Originally Posted by dominion
Mucky day, so MTB it was. Absolutely shot when I got home and looked like I'd been riding behind a muckspreader!
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/392700529
What have you treated yourself to now Brian, looks a new addition to the stable with those disc brakes.Quote:
Originally Posted by dominion
Obviously re-stocking after the clear out?
Ian.
The clearout is still ongoing! It's a Trek Crokett 5, and based on the first outing it's brill! PX Uncle John frame currently on eBay and a Pompino still to get rid of, but might have a buyer for it at work (£275ish) if anyone here is interested??)Quote:
Originally Posted by wheezing donkey
Cyclo-cross racing in West Mids League potentially awaits...
Well done; Get stuck in!
I still enjoy "recreational" 'cross riding on the old 531 IslaBike, great for mixing on & off road rides; but discs must be nice, after the drama of cantis?
All kitted up and ready to go, and alas it appears your observation was correct! First puncture I've had in years! :(Quote:
Originally Posted by (notsomuchofa)Fellrunner
10 very windy and wet miles on the road, on my mtb..
Why, I don't know but it was fairly fun.
Question for you roadies.
After talking to Dom at xotf i've decided to change the stem on my Raleigh from 130mm down to about 80/90mm. It's a quill stem, an ITM Eclypse. Can you open the bar clamp up enough to change stems without stripping the handlebars down? The ITM is steel so might be ok, but if i get an ally replacement i wouldn't be too confident.
Not much in the way of short steel stems on fleabay, nice 80mm ally Tange for 30 quid.
It drives me up the wall seeing sellers ludicrously overpricing retro Dura Ace kit...http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/3211852485...84.m1423.l2649...back in the real world how much is this actually worth? about £60? If i'm stripping the bars down it may as well be made worth it.
I was locked in an offer-off with a Polish seller recently, trying to get him down on a Dura Ace HG 8spd cassette, he wouldn't go lower than $200!
Bit QAH...
Got a nice NOS Shimano 600 Aero stem from USA seller, not cheap! Bars will be coming off as it's a single bolt hidden clamp affair.
I'm developing a serious condition whereby i can't stop buying parts for my road bike...is this normal? I'm draining my savings and justifying it to myself like a smackhead justifies another bag! :cool:
How about these...nice...shiny...period...http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2612270656...84.m1423.l2649
Got the old Claud Butler mountain bike out and did an hour and half around the lanes and bridleways of Calderdale.
Enjoyed it but cold on head, helmet, no buff under it, (mistake)
Fitted the new Aero stem, it looks really cool. Winding bar tape on is a real hit and miss affair; one side is rubbish and the other side is mediocre. It's getting the spacing right on the bends that is the problem, and if you space it to closely you end up having to wind it all back off again because there isn't enough to cover all the bar!
Question- does anyone know if an 8spd cassette will go on a Hope RS Mono hub? The blurb says 9spd is ok but 8spd is a wider chain so may be the same width.
According to the LBS they give you an 8spd spacer, so it fits.
Reading through some reviews of Hope hubs it looks like there is a problem with the aluminium freehub body. Many people have reported Shimano cassettes digging into the grooves after around 500-1000 miles; which, if you are using Hyperglide, will disrupt gear changes. There is more than one report of pawl springs going too. Never heard of either of these problems with Shimano. I could keep my current Ultegra hubs, but i don't know how many miles are on them and i'm rebuilding with new rims.
Anyone riding Hope?
Exactly the same thing happened with my Planet-X own brand wheels that came with the good road bike - looked as if someone had attacked the ( steel / cheese?) freehub body with a cold chisel and a lump hammer - spotted when I had to replace the pawl spring/circlip! Very careful use of a very fine jeweller's file removed the burrs and they didn't look too bad. Rebuilt ok and worked ok. Eventually, a club mate (ex pro team mechanic) hand built a pair of Rigida Chrina rims on to a pair of Ultegra 6700 hubs.Quote:
Originally Posted by mr brightside
Don't worry about the mileage on your old Ultegra hubs - it's the condition that counts. Strip them down and check that bearing surfaces in the hub are not worn or pitted then rebuild with new ball bearings (and new cones if necessary) using a generous (but not too much) application of waterproof grease. Do a similar rebuild every couple of years and they will last almost indefinitely.
The 6700 hubs are nominally 10 speed, but will take a 9 speed cassette. One uses a shim / spacer, the other doesn't; can't remember which cassette it is that requires the spacer.
Just had a look at my folder of techie papers. The info that came with the 6700 hubs shows a spacer shim when fitting a 6700 (10 spd) cassette. There's no spacer shim when fitting a 6600 (9 spd) cassette. So 10 (individually) narrower sprockets are narrower than 9 (individually) wider sprockets.
Cheers WD, ally is such a garbage material for rough service applications, but companies almost see steel as a swearword because of it's comparative weight. Hope have a steel freehub listed in their spares so i'm going to ask if i can order with that fitted, if not i'm keeping the Ultegras. It seems odd that they should use swiss bearings but then deliberately build in an achilles heel. I've been on the lookout for some new old stock 600ax or Dura ace 8spd hubs on ebay, but if you need Hyperglide they are rare.
My Ultegra hubs are 6500s, they seem to spin pretty quietly. I'm often reluctant to strip hubs that seem ok because you are disturbing a factory assembly.
For new old stock, try RGH Cycles, 1, School Road, Wales, Sheffield S26 5QG - 01909 770397. They used to be good for old Mavic, Campag & Shimano parts.
Better to disturb a factory assembly & re-build carefully than to wait until things go wrong and you find that the bearing surfaces are goosed - it's called preventive maintenance. From experience, the secret to rebuilding ball bearing hubs is to have pukka cone spanners - I'm currently using ParkTool - and don't overtighten at the first pass, go incrementally. Treat yourself to the Haynes "The Bike Book" Complete Bicycle Maintenance.
I've yet to do the Ultegra 6700 hubs - only 10 months old. I have stripped and rebuilt the stx-rc hubs on the crosser countless times ( Finish Line, Ceramically Enhanced Grease ) and it will out-freewheel all the other bikes on our group rides.
The weight weeny thing can get a bit stupid. Lightweight/disposable is ok if you are a serious competition cyclist chasing titles; even more so if you are "sponsored" with a support car in attendance and get your kit replaced for free. Most on here are runners using the bike for cross-training; reliability is the watchword, rather than being a poseur and trying to look like a TdF wannabe. Last thing I would want is to have some (overly) lightweight component fail whilst over in Wensleydale (say) and have to get myself home to Lancaster.
If you need anything from rgh, let me know bymessage as I work round the corner and can call in to check stock on ny my lunch break...
Are Ultegra bearings caged or loose?Quote:
Originally Posted by wheezing donkey
Cheers PaulE, LBS are calling be back tommorrow re. whether Hope will do an RS Mono with a steel freehub body.Quote:
Originally Posted by PaulE
All Shimano items are supposed to use "loose" ball bearings - hence adjusting with cones. I read somewhere that the company has an inherent distrust of caged races?Quote:
Originally Posted by mr brightside
here comes the feb winds 1 metre forward 2 back great fun cant wait for the snow knobbly,s at the ready 30 mile second half of this was into head wind i thought the only time you stayed in same position on a bike was in the gym 100 mile so far this will be climbing to 140 in 2 days will be looking 300 mile for the week after talking with a few people last year about training for ultras i took a few pointers from there training
300 mile in 5 days just scared the cr-p out of the PT in gym did the turbo for an hour but it was down to speed that got to them
No phonecall, my LBS are officially in the dickhead lounge.Quote:
Originally Posted by mr brightside
I've been googling, but can't find an answer.
Ready for BST in 3 weeks time, I've started to assemble the good road bike and I've treated it to a new Hope A-headset (FSA Orbit had become "gritty"). The Hope comes with 3x 0.4mm spacer shims; but they do not say how to determine how many of these shims are actually needed?
The only advice on their bumph is "....use up to 3 of the spacer shims....."
Anyone had experience of doing this job, please?
Ian Roberts.
Decided to go mental and have a steady 20mls on the little ring yesterday, it was a nice day after all. My knee is killing me.
The Wharfe View was a simply riotous cacophony of carbon and black matt paint when i got there, i felt like an outsider as i pulled up with my 853 and my quietly ticking freehub.
Steel is real
52 miles on the CX bike today, forests, singletrack, mud, off road cycle paths, more singletrack, coffee, cake, more forests.
Good ride out.
Out of interest, Shaunaneto, what CX bike do you ride, please?
Quote:
Originally Posted by shaunaneto
It's a heavy lump of pig iron, but it's very comfortable.
Genesis Day One Alfine. Don't fancy racing it, don't fancy big climbing days either. Not really a proper cross bike either I suppose. I'm not 100% sure what it is tbh.
What I do know is its enjoyable cruising around on. It's a bit like a stem roller at times, all that inertia I guess.
It would probably come under the modern genre of "adventure bike" ..... good as an on or off road exploration machine?
Steel is ok..... just a pity that bikes of this ilk are not built with heat treated CroMo, a lot stronger hence they could get away with thinner tube walls
I guess that will be the 8 speed Alfine?
Do you find bottom gear low enough?
How do you find the reliability .... certainly no exposed mechs to take a bashing?
I don't race my old 531 IslaBike, just use it for exploring on & off road. It's great for day rides, but it can't cope with loads for bikepacking / camping .... on steep downhills you can see the top tube shimmying in "S" shapes.
I'm looking to build up a Soma ( www.somafabs.com ) Juice (29er) as a "monster cross" adventure bike. With the right kit it should be quite a bit lighter than a Salsa Fargo.
Soma use heat treated Tange Prestige for all their main/front triangles.
Quote:
Originally Posted by shaunaneto
Yep, 8 speed. Surprisingly good traction, what with all that weight over the back wheel. The gearing does involve the odd bit of gurning on slow off road climbs. But on road it's ok, generally. But I've bought it for local rides and that involves a lot of flat, spent a lot of yesterday in an area that's probably 70sq miles that's formed from sea depositing soil/sand and full of forest tracks and twisty singletrack.
The only real gripe I have (bearing in mind I knew the limitations before I got it) is the bottom bracket height is quite low and had sent me over the bars a few times.
Seems reliable, I adjusted the gearing once. And have reset (piece of card technique) the brakes twice. Pretty much it. The hub should in theory be serviced soon iirc.
That Soma looks lovely.
Don't start talking to me about adventure bikes..... 'Heads off to Surly to gawp at the ECR.....again' I think I NEED bigger wheels on my mountain bike :D
A mate of mine rides a Surly Disc Trucker on local RSF rides. I was half tempted; but ( and I'm no weight weenie ) they are so ridiculously heavy. It's as if they are determined to use a sledge hammer to crack a nut. Admittedly their frames are cheap enough but I'd happily pay 40 - 50 % extra for a bit of sophistication if they were to use heat treated Cro-Mo and shed a bit of weight.
I thought you were on a quest for size zero Donkers and almost at the alter of lightness given the svelte look last time I saw you :cool::DQuote:
Originally Posted by wheezing donkey
Awww, Em. You've just made an old man smile.
Quote:
Originally Posted by emmilou
25mls in the Dales on the MTB today. Started at Storiths, quick visit to the Fountaine Inn en route for a pint of Wharfedale Blonde which saw me all the way up to Grassington mines. Fast, tricky miner's track down into Hebden with 3 river crossings; big climb up from Dibbles Bridge to Fancarl Top then dropped into Appletreewick.
Third week of this now, knees feeling fragile every time, if i can make it to 6wks i might have a chance at getting back this year. Starting to love the climbs more and more as my aerobic system realises it's still alive.
Clouds starting to turn up, windproof or waterproof...