Thanks for all your replies, I will try and get down to MTB monster and blag a demo.

In answer to the question of why a lightweight bike not a bigger Ebike, i’ve had a “Full fat” enduro spec 160/160 ebike, and once the battery dies it is a misserable experience trying to get the thing back to the van (It very nearly got thrown in a bush at Gisburn, when it decided to die at the top of Hully Gully and I had to manhandle it all the way back to the car park)

I know a guy who has a Gen-1 rise and he says he can happily ride it with the motor turned off. And I think that is what I am looking for, something I can peddal about with no or minimal assistance, then turn it up for the steep bits (Unfortunately he rides a small and I am very much in the XL size bracket, so I cant try his)

I’m in the South Lakes, And my usual Bike shop is Wheelbase in Staveley, but last time I asked about trying a bike they could only let me ride it round the car park.

Annoyingly I just missed a demo day at Whinlatter that included Orbea

Sorry to hijack the thread, but I’ve just been asked to sell my boss’s Ribble CGR, it’s in the classifieds now.

I would have had it myself, but it’s a bit too small for me (Medium frame)

Call transco out (Number on the meter) they will come and do a proper job of finding the leak.

When I was doing my gas safe training, my tutor said the small leaks were the most deadly, A big leak and you smell, or even hear the gas leaking, turn everything off and get out…. small leaks you dont notice until it builds up to the LEL (lower explosive limit) and then your house, and your neighbours house disapear, in a fireball.

Turn the gas off at the meter isolation, and get them out to sort it

Ok,

so my weakness to resist for these PSA’s has struck again, and i’ve got a 26″ cub scout frame on the way for my oldest boy.

Pretty sure 90% of his existing hardtail will transfer over, but i need to find a 26″ 12×142 axle rear wheel, as im not sure his existing Mavic 223 wheel set can be converted

anybody know of a cheap rear wheel that would suit this frame

Many thanks in advance

Just for reference, whatever bike I choose will not be used anywhere near its capabilities, it will be used for bimbling about, very very slowly.

If the offer is still running this weekend, I am going to give it a go.
Half tempted to order one online now, but I’m not sure I want to take the risk on the deal failing.

Thank you for the suggestions, I will give them a try

Going to have a mooch in Decathalon this afternoon, see what’s suitable

Vitus 20+

Its just ace, we have bought one for our little girl, 20 x 2.6 tyres are great for soaking up bumps, rigid forks to save weight (Kids suspension forks are crap), proper 7 speed with thumb shifters (Grip shift is also crap for kids)
Cable disk brakes, looks and feels like a proper mountain bike, just smaller

https://www.chainreactioncycles.com/vitus-20-kids-bike/rp-prod194920

My 6 year old lad loves his Vitus 20+

20 x 2.6 tan wall tyres. Seven speed with proper thumb trigger, and cable disk brakes
The large volume tyres soak up most of the bumps, rather than a massively heavy suspension fork that doesnt work well for little kids.

Vitus 20+ Kids Bike

Its on offer at CRC at the moment, £250 down from £360

Just checked my status, and I’m also down as a free member

I will have a look at the assistance settings, Maybe dial them back a bit.

I am definitely still riding it like my “Normal” bike, stick it in lowest gear and spin away, I may swap the wheels and drive train off my Hardtail and see if it helps ( Not sure how long 12 speed eagle will last on a e-bike though)

Hopefully the weight issue will improve over time, that was the whole point of buying the bike

I hadn’t thought the battery may need some charging cycles to work properly, I assumed it would just work straight out of the box.
I will give it a few more runs out before I panic.

I admit I am not exactly a light weight XC racer, at 130Kg and 6ft3″ but I’m still within the maximum weight limit for the bike

Its just a little ride out from my office, we used to do it on Thursday nights after work before Covid messed everything up

We had an older Miele induction that at the time was horrendously expensive, that died after 10+ years of abuse, when a pan caught the edge of the glass funny and it shattered.
We looked at getting the newer equivalent Miele to replace it, but it was in no way as well made as the old one.

We went for the Zanussi one the same as Catdras,

It works better than the Miele one did, uses less power yet seams to heat faster..?
Also its actually a AEG hob underneath, AEG and Zannusi are all part of Electrolux group.

For reference I am a commercial catering equipment engineer, so deal with these sort of things everyday, and I would recommend the Zanussi to anyone

Thanks for the info,
That military smock one looks like a winner for me,
Almost all my rides are horrid muddy affairs

Thanks for all your replies.
I think I’m getting somewhere with this now.

The frame is a XL size, 480mm reach.
And I am 6ft2″ with a build like a badly shaved gorilla.

I’ve ordered several different stems and handlebars from CRC, (what did we ever do before free delivery and free returns?)

I’ve been using Ergon GE1 grips previously, but have ordered a set of the GA3 grips with the little wings on to try.

If I fit a longer stem, with higher rise bars, even though the stack height will be lower, the bars will essentially be a similar height off the ground but further forward?

It feels at the moment like the bars are tucked under me, when in reality they are way out in front???

If you just want to try a “Hip-Pack” without a large cash outlay, Regatta do a nice sized one with a small water bottle, for under £18

Ive managed to get my packable coat, massive stupid phone, Van keys, energy gells and bars, and other assorted detritus in mine, Sits nicely in the small of your back and you dont notice it after a few minutes

https://www.regatta.com/blackfell-iii-hip-pack-with-bottle-surfspray-blaze-orange/

I’m about your weight, and an inch shorter, and am quite happily bombing about on a XL Ragley Mmmbop, up and down the Lakes passes.

I built it myself, with 160mm Pikes, Hope tech enduro wheelset, and Sram GX 12 speed drivetrain.
With a bit of bargain hunting on Ebay and in the classifieds I think it came up well under a grand.

My advice is to get something like the Ragley, a hardcore hardtail,
Full suspension bikes just dont work for us big lads, by the time you’ve pumped the shock with enough air to get near correct sag, you may as well just lock it out completely.

12 speed is definitely a must for winching up hills,

Dont cheap out on the brakes, remember what goes up must come down

Vittoria barzo/mezcal are great tyres in 2.6 wide, they roll nice and fast, but soak up most of the big knocks.

Avoid anything made of Carbon like the plague, I’ve snapped cranks, seat rails, and a frame 🤨

Most of all just get out and ride something, the weight will fall off, and you will feel fantastic.

Was up there over the weekend, but not on the bikes unfortunately.

There was signs up saying one of the easier green trails was closed completely (Trail No3 I think), and the red and black trails have diversions making them slightly shorter than usual.

As I said I wasn’t on the bike, so cant vouch for what the diversions are like, but the people coming back to the car park didn’t look massively disappointed.

Did I really just watch 17 minutes of some randoms, riding ye-olde adult size balance bikes?
I really need to sort my life out, and go outside

I do think however, an updated version with high volume 29er tyres would be a right laugh.

Just to reiterate.

I am not getting pissy with the bike shop, they are getting screwed over just as badly as everyone else, or more so.

I am annoyed at Ragley/Hotlines/CRC-Wiggle at the way they have exasperated the already shitty situation bike shops are in.

And yes I know they are going to prioritize their own direct sales customers over other people,

I wasnt really expecting anybody to have an epiphany and come up with the solution to the current bike shortage, or cure world hunger.

I just wanted to shout into the void and clear my head a bit.

Thank you for all your replies, and yes I am a whiny self important git, and should just crack on and ride the bike I’ve got.

Peace and love
Al

I absolutely will not be shouting at a poor bike shop employee.

I was just ranting/venting my frustration at the situation we are all forced to live in.
(I dont have anyone else to rant to, sorry)

And I’m slightly disappointed in myself, as I set off trying to “buy local” and not use a big online shop. And all it took was one email, and I scurried back like a junkie needing a fix.

These ones, for reference
https://www.tartybikes.co.uk/20_inch_tyres/kenda_small_block_8_20_inch/c42p11353.html

Iv’e got a brand new pair of Kenda Smallblock 8 tyres in the shed you can have.
they are 20×1.75.

They were for my lads bike, but got a pair of Schwalbe black jacks from one of my mates, so they are just taking up space.
I’m happy to donate them to the cause of getting kids out on bikes,

If you message me your address, I will post them out to you, Unless you are near to Lancaster and want to collect them?

I also live on the rainy Lancashire Cumbria border, and have successfully re roofed my shed with this

https://www.pondkeeper.co.uk/pond-liner-4m-x-4m-40-year-guarantee-plus-underlay/p2658

It’s easy to throw on top of the roof, pull it taught and screw/nail the edges down.

It’s not really designed for roofing, but is waterproof (being for ponds obviously)
Goes on in 30 mins. And lasts for a few years before it needs replacing.

I started using it in the same scenario as you are in, original roof was full of holes and needed it to be watertight a.s.a.p.

Thanks for the options,
I think i’m going to have to go the apocalyptic route, as they will be going on a Hardtail, in the Lakes (Yes i know, I’m going to die horribly)

Off I go to google the hell out of your suggestions, to see if any are in stock at a sensible price.

Indeed there is a vast, vast difference between commercial regs and domestic, and yes we test for CO and CO2, and I apologize if i did not get my point across very well.

Having read the attached “Article” it does come across as the rantings of a swivel eyed lunatic, in a similar vein as anti 5G or anti-vaxers.

My point was that all cooking appliances will create airborne contaminants, whether it be gas, electric, or fairy dust powered, Its just Gas has the added complication of Products of Combustion,

Is Gas the worst thing in the world, being pushed on us by a shady secret cabal trying to poison us in our own homes for some nefarious reason… NO don’t be daft, that would be wood burning stoves obviously 😉

I’m going to have to agree with Metalheart on this one.
I’m a commercial catering engineer by trade, and have to test the air quality in kitchens as part of their annual gas saftey testing.

The amount of regulations for ventilation in commercial kitchens is staggering.

In an ideal situation, with a brand new appliance, with the correct fluing, and make up air to achieve perfect combustion, then you shouldn’t have any problems.

I have never found this situation in the 15+ years I have done this job, and have had to shut down a fair few kitchens because the staff felt a bit woozy when using the kit, and once the air quality was tested, the kitchen was basically a fancy stainless steel gas chamber.

The minute you start actually cooking on your fancy new hob or oven, contaminants start being released, being sucked into the ventilation system, or back into the burner venturi’s causing the perfect stoichiometric ratio to fail.

I’m a gas engineer, and the first thing I did when I moved into my new house was bin the gas hob and fit an induction version.

Ordered New Frame

Thank you for all your replies,
They confirmed what I already sort of knew in the back of my mind.

I have now ordered a set of Hutchinson Griffus tan walls.
(Alcohol may have had a factor in the decision process)

Should have no issues with torn sidewalls or knobs, they look like proper tanks of tyres.
Pedaling uphill may be interesting though?

Yes there is a Rimpact insert on the rear wheel. And yes that wouldn’t help the tyre from grenading

Didn’t necessarily need a super gravity front tyre, thats just what was available and affordable.

I am struggling slightly to find a suitable rear tyre to mach the MM up front.

it needs to conform to a very strict set of parameters

1. Must be Schwalbe, I cannot fit unmatched tyres, It would drive me daft (Or dafter than I already am)
2. Must be Tanwall.
3. Be fast rolling (I have had a Hans Dampf Addix soft on the rear before, For exactly one ride, and the bike very nearly got thrown down a mountain)

Currently running WTB tyres with a Trail boss Fast/light on the rear, Have had it for well over a year without issue. and they are very thin and light casings?

I too am a member of the weirdly sized, and shaped head club, (Very tall cranium and long back to front)

And I have found the POC Tectral the most comfortable helmet I have owned, Closely followed by the Bluegrass goldeneyes,

Have tried many, many helmets from cheap ones from Planet X to the most expensive ones in Wheelbase Staveley. None of which have fitted just right.

Go for the Tectral, POC are great and very helpful if you have any problems.
They sent me out all new peak mounting hardware for free, from Sweden, after I lost mine somehow?

Magura MT trail sports
A MT5 4-pot calliper up front, and a 2-pot on the rear.

Having tried several other brakes These are the ones i will now fit to all my bikes in the future.

Common sense is surprisingly un-common,
Especially recently.

And to be fair, I avoided Ambleside like the plague before lockdown, so cant see any reason to go now everything is shut😁

That’s the point I was trying to make.
It’s not that the locals are wanting to keep the lakes all for themselves, its genuinely because people are dying.

Maybe I’m just a soft git, but I was keeping to the spirit of the law rather than to the letter.

And I agree doing a few quiet laps of grizedale without passing another soul cant be a bad thing, but what happens when everyone does it?

The hills and forests have been round for long enough, they are still going to be there when it all calms down

While there is a lot of “Gatekeeping” mentality in the lakes. (People who move to the lakes, and immediately try and stop anybody else doing the same)

The main problem is we have the second highest infection rate per head outside of London, and a NHS system that struggles to cope at the best of times.

There was a massive influx of people the weekend before the lockdown started, and the infections APPEARED to spike just after, and people are genuinely terrified of it happening again.

I could drive up to Ambleside or any other of the “Honeypot” places and enjoy the quiet hills, (I am classed as an essential worker) or could cycle to Grizedale and bang in a few quiet laps without any interruptions. But that would violate rule no 1.
So I am staying at home, as is everybody else I know.

My least favourite thing to get in a cut is commercial dishwasher detergent.

It’s a fairly strong mix of Sodium or Potassium Hydroxide and it stings like a proper B@#$%rd.

Given that the insides of most commercial dishwashers seem to be made of old razor blades, I get to experience it quite often😡

Yes, My 6 year old has one.
Its one of the Enduro type ones that is on sale for a tenner at the moment.
https://www.planetx.co.uk/deals/q/deal-HEOOEND

He was in a Medium – 54-58cm XC style one
https://www.planetx.co.uk/i/q/HEOOXC/on-one-xc-mtb-helmet

He then wanted one of the Enduro ones and while it is the same size, and fits perfectly, its a lot chunkier helmet, and looks massive on him.
Luckily he is quite big for his age so it doesnt look too daft, but if your 6 year old isnt destined for the rugby team maybe go for the XC one.