On your Bike

[old'uns]

first ride out on the 28t front ring.....i didn't know my legs could go that fast!
nothing too steep today but looking promising for 'easier' ascents

definitely using the lower 2 cassette gears now on the road sections

[Timmo]

Hehe! That sounds good!

[myglaren]

first ride out on the 28t front ring.....i didn't know my legs could go that fast!
nothing too steep today but looking promising for 'easier' ascents

definitely using the lower 2 cassette gears now on the road sections

Saw a rather dim looking teen riding up the road last week.
Obviously lowest gearing, moving at about 2mph and his feet doing about 1,000 rpm.

[Timmo]

Had an Interesting repair job on today, lox Al lady with a 'special trike' she needed a sprocket and chain fix on! Link for image of one in use (Italians like them apparently,) motor throttle assisted pedal rickshaw affair!
https://images.app.goo.gl/yTVg5ntHNJtqD8Kj8
The owner found out when reversing if you back pedal you unthread one of the sprockets, all be it slowly, then all of a sudden you loose all drive.... Chap she purchased it from kindly sent down a spair Pair of sprockets, he had obviously tried to remove them, discovered how hard it was and simply cut them from the chassis!
Should have been a simple job of unthread one from the spare and pop it on!.....
anyways, few images from underneath for you, - first bike job I have done that needed the trolley jack and axle stands!!

Sprocket rebuild in situ

[RichardW]

Tim

Out with my Sister today, and her full sus bike has got play in the bottom rear pivot. The bolt is on odd one, only appears to have fixings on one end (hidden behind the chain ring....!) - a torx in the centre and a hex round it. The other end just appears to have a hole in it. Have you seen one like this - and how does it come apart?

[Timmo]

Yes, quite a few will have a locking cap as such, to make sure it can't come out,6 or 8mm Allen cap with a t25 bolt, a long bolt is often used in the lower pivots, Some will have a threaded central section with a pair of bolts, what make and model is the bike? The torque settings for most pivot bolts is in the 12-19nm area, or if your mechanically minded, a standard Allen key /torx till its tight,
Is also worth checking the rear shock bushings, if you rest your foot on the rear wheel/tyre to hold it down and lift the top tube slightly with a pair of fingers on the area around the bolts will allow you to narrow down any movements if you Can't see it physically,

[RichardW]

Cheers Tim, definitely the bottom pivot, I can see it moving. Can't remember the make, something beginning with S that doesn't exist anymore! It's a few years old. Are there generic bits if it needs new bushes, or are they maker specific?

[Timmo]

The bushings on the shock are sized, depends on the make of shock and age, early ones may have plastic inserts, some of the early full suss bikes are essentially bolted through a tube, chainstays through frame, no bearings etc just 'interference fit', I keep a few odds and ends from old bikes just incase, if you need any ask and I'll see what I have!

[NewcastleFalcon]

I always like to see a tandem. No idea if this is a good bad or indifferent one but It does have Santana on the frame which gets a few points from me seeing as Carlos is one of my favourites and a regular appearer on the Pickled Egg Jukebox. Here's a link to "Song of the Wind" for free. https://www.frenchcarforum.co.uk/forum/ ... na#p608501.

nf own work

Regards Neil

[Timmo]

Is always nice to see a tandem out and about, couple in the local club, lovely pair, regular tandem tours when he hasn't injured himself on the mtb! They have just done roscoff to santander tour on their one, many vineyards visited...... Would love the idea with the good lady, but sadly, I fear she is likely to be the one with her feet up out back!

[NewcastleFalcon]

"Cycling isn't all lycra and speed,
Its also a gentle pootle and tweed"

Original poetry by NF.



Tweed run 20130413 194
Elisa.rolle [CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

REgards Neil

[Timmo]

Tweed love?

[NewcastleFalcon]

Tweed love?

Not this
https://tweedlove.com/

but this
http://www.tweedrun.com/

Regards Neil

[Timmo]

Something deep lodged in the foggy area of my noggin suggests the original tweet rides were born on bromptoms through the annual gathering, a special race where owners must be in said tweeds to take part?

[old'uns]

Suit, jacket , tie etc rings a bell with me re: the Brompton championships?

in other news, 28t is working well, the Forestry Commission however is another matter!
currently working on de-forestation in certain parts of the Chase where they very kindly chopped wide swathes through the woods and then deliberately pile the smaller trunks across the single-track trails.
the result is finding a way around IF you can and being creative - in my case it was walking a small distance to try and find a trail again....

looks innocuous right?



boggy, no trail and lots of brambles



very sore at moment!

i think the long-term plan for the Chase is to try and fence off large parts and lease to farmers for cattle grazing and 'pen' all the leisure users into certain areas and trails