Just booked mine in – next free service day that they had was 20th July (!)…. and the cost is predicted to be “at least” £30 + 3/4 hour labour, which seemed a bit steep for 50 ml of oil and one small bolt…..

Shines Mister P light into the air – how much is the oil change kit, retail?

Be warned tho, that is a fierce ride with them boys.

+1 – not for the feint-hearted, and you may well be fending for yourself in the event of a mechanical/not keeping up!

Various people on the internet with bad spelling would disagree

You’re experiments would suggest they’re wrong…..

Good bike shop in or around Bristol anyone?

Just about to phone Bike UK as I need the first oil change on my Alfine 11 doing v soon. They’re a Shimano service centre so hopefully will oblige…..

Having done a general engineering degree I’d have a good go. The question is, could you design a transmission line, a computer chip or an antenna? Or do you consider electrical, electronic and communication engineering also “not engineering”? Maybe you’re just a bit of a specialist in the same way a software engineer is.

Two questions there – have been part of teams engineering RF and microwave antennas and, large very high voltage electrical equipment (think electric ship projects etc). The electrical theory is beyond me, but all I need is the input to do the electrical/mechanical interaction calcs. Electrical/electronic engineering is still part of most engineering degrees, so – at the interface – we still had the common language.

The other part – for the unis that I have input on – applications for electrical/electrionic/comms engineering arerapidly dwindling, so beyonds course units in either comp science or the other engineering subjects it could, unfortunately, be a nul-question soon 🙁

You sell the customer what they want regardless of whether it’s possible or even exists

Jebus, that’s so true….. 😆

My last job title was Sales Engineer. How does that work then?

When you sell your soul to “sales”, Satan can call you what he likes!! 😉

The concepts are very similar

The METHODOLOGY is broadly similar, as it is for most applied sciences (medicine/dentistry/vets – applied biology etc), but the concepts required for implimentation are NOT similar. See my example above, where we both agree we couldn’t do each others job – I would expect a Aero or Civil engineer to be able to rock up at my desk and we’d be, conceptually, talking the same language.

In the same way that I can change a cambelt..

Non-comparision – you didn’t engineer the cambelt, you followed the instructions on how to do it. Likewise, I blindly follow the help manual like any fool when knocking up bits of code.

Of course not, but if I asked you to design a thread-safe connection pool, would you be able to do that?

No, but as an engineer, I wouldn’t be expected to – I’m not belittling the skills set, all I’m saying is I don’t see ‘software engineering’ being connected to the skillset taught to professional engineers beyond the scope/optimise/impliment “umbrella”

Last time I checked, certainly at my old Uni, software engineering was being taught as a course unit as part of a computer science degree in the context of bringing design rigour to software development – there was no ‘software engineering’ degree in it’s own right.

EDIT: Spot the much needed ‘NOT’ 😉

It’s different, but then building bridges is different to making engines and they are both done by engineers

Exactly – the skill-set for engineering engines and bridges is broadly similar. Designing, optimising and implimenting software is a broadly different skillset – as, perhaps, a crass example, if I asked you to predict the fatigue life of an engine component, would your technical qualifications allow you to do that? By comparision, as engineer myself I have only a passing interest in coding, beyond the bits I can cobble together to automate routine tasks.

Engineer – has the ability to think creatively when the above doesn’t work

Is that not being too general – you could be describing a doctor diagnosing and treating a patient in a similar way? But they aren’t some form of ‘human engineering technician’?

Well I spend my days working on a PC as an engineer designing things. Whether that’s sizing the orifice in a relief valve or writing some code to make my life easier they’re both engineering

Yeah, but you are applying the principals of strucural analysis/solid mechanics/materials science/thermodynamics/fluid dynamics/etc that are the key features of any engineering degree, using software as a means to an end – software engineering is something different, and of it’s own right, that has (unfortunately, IMO) adopted ‘engineering’ as part of the description.

Steve Jobs and Bill Gates were engineers – Software Engineers

Lets all play nice – that can of worms has been kicked to death on here before 🙂

If your a proffessional engineer (i.e. Chartered Engineer) then you really do need to be more rounded. And that is the main problem with engineering as a profession. There is no clear divide between the ‘Engineer’ and the ‘Technician’.

…I agree see above (and don’t get me started on chartered status again!)….

And this bloke made a few quid out of engineering!….

Technically brilliant, but as a business man he was severely lacking!

Anywho, the only thing about Lard Sugar worth a damn is his collection of expensive Italian road bikes 🙂

Not used for a while TBH, but have always been fine when I have.

I do on one bike – it is a bit of a faff first time as it’s adjustable in every possible direction, but other than that (and being a bit heavier than a band-on mech), no real issues either way. I just did it as I had the mech and buying the clamp was cheaper than buying an equivalent band-on mech.

‘kin-ell – ‘enjoy the montage’ was hardly warning for pic 5 after the ‘arty shadows’ of pics 1 to 3…. 😳

Indeed – TBH, if the other ~70% couldn’t get off their ar$ses and send back a ballot form, whatever their view, then they deserve all they get (whatever that is/turns out to be) for their apathy.

and some great walks to be had through the gardens feeling like you are an explorer or something

‘Zackly! 🙂

The PCS said 61.1% of those balloted voted in favour of strike action, while 83.6% backed action short of a strike. The turnout was 32.4%

So, about 20% actually voted for a strike – is that democratic/representaive of the members? ….does it show complete apathy on the part of the union members as a whole? Discuss.

Eden is good – been a few times and there and it always feels different, depending on the weather/time of year/what’s growing….

…. if you’re in the area, Lost Gardens of Heligan was also vast, impressive and not as busy feeling (and cheaper) – though it’s obviously at its best int he sunshine/summer when everything is flowering, not being availed of two giant biomes as it isn’t 😉

What Elfin said.

Either get the stripping and repainting done in one go by your refinisher of choice, or find a friendly acid dipping place – company round the corner from the office stripped my frame for a fiver, dropped off in the morning picked up on the way home, money well spent.

Are you a BC member? Click through from the BC site and get 10% (NB – there are limitations IIRC, if you are already getting a ‘gold’ discount then it doesn’t go on top, but the vouchers would still apply)

TBH – even if gmail are a shower of sh!te, it will still be a glowing beacon of reliability compared to our existing ‘IT support’! 😉

We (as a company) are migrating from email in-house (MS Exchange) to Google Mail

Just done this as well – I can’t actually see any downside at the moment….

It was probably the Ch Supt who made that announcement.

Knowing the locality well (parents live there), I can fully imagine it was one of my mates who is a (very special) ‘special’ there who went a bit ‘Hot Fuzz’ in the white heat of something actually happening! 😆

But this means that there are certain health/ethical implications if you buy mass produced anything

FTFY

…..with fairly minimal effort from the hoods (i then fall off)

Yeah, I didn’t forgot to add that bit….. 😆

OP – what bike/brakes/rims is it?

As they seem ok, but not great (I can’t lock the wheels even if I wanted to)

If you can’t lock (at least) the rear wheel for fun when stopping hard, then I’d suggest the problem will not be resolved with an extra pair of levers…..

Someone’s just spiked my coffee with acid – WTF?!?!?! 😯 😆

when the person holding your life in their hands is using a non-failsafe device that is very easy to mis-use.

Not a climber Mol?? 😆

Or am I just out of touch ?

Yes 😳

For comparison, bought two pairs last year – cheap rimless frame with very good/thin/light lens for work and a robust pair of Oakleys with medium quality lens for my daughter to try and pull apart for home. Didn’t have much change from £800 – and after shopping around this represented ‘good value’. I agree – 😯

Do not plaster it (assume your talking straight finishing plaster) – it will crack.

Another Hamax user here – didn’t get BBJnr into it until a little later, but having a bracket on each bike makes switching between bikes a doddle. Lets me drop her off at nursery, leave the seat there and my wife picks her up on her bike later on.

I’m out of pocket through no fault of my own and it’s annoying.

That may be true, but I can’t see you getting a Euro out of them – I am standing to be corrected! 😀

I agree it’s complex, but surely, the fact that you’ve been provided with a hire car to replace your’s is the limit of what their insurance company would be expected to do (i.e. – you have not been put in a position where you do not have a car)? For the insurace company to insure your ‘van as well, which has nowt to do with the claim would be generous of them. I can see that you have, perhaps, been inconvenienced, but surely the insurance co have done all you could reasonably expect them to do?

EDIT: or put it another way, do they know you have a van and want to use it/have you told them/what did they say, and why?

Was it part of the T+C’s when you bought the insurance? If so, I can’t see how you get compensation (you did read the full T+C’s?)… or am I misunderstanding your misunderstanding?

Give it a go – why not – but the conductivity of the metal and the heatsink provided by the rest of the frame is likely to mean the metal local to the post is only going to get warm, not hot, with either hair dryer or hot water – unless you go at it with a naked flame (with obvious consequences). The only thing in your favour is that the conductivity of the post is likely to be low, so the relative expasion fot he frame will be higher than if they were both, say, aluminium.

Can’t see it coming out without a combination of plus-gas/brute force or the deft application of a hacksaw blade.

I was planning to cut it off at the top of the seat-tube and firstly see if I can fit a skinny seat post inside the now thinner seat tube.

This isn’t going to work for a whole hill of reasons…… I foresee a hacksaw blade in you’re future…..

Test firing of 21 designs of Tennants‘super gun’, aimed at Westminster?

BB7’s here – had to choose between BB7’s and Lyra’s when speccing the bike and the consensus on here at the time was BB7’s over Lyra’s for all the reasons above. The initial set-up of the BB7’s and trimming each pad individually as it wears means they are as close to zero maintenance as you can get.

Al – yes, I am sure it used to be free, but I’ve just checked as I have been meaning to sign up and, for the van hire at least, it’s £50 a year to join. Darn. I guess if Streetcar are doing it then CCC can do it as well……