MTG – Thats big boys toys! A couple from me,

My labour of love (sorry rubbish pic)

Work, didn’t build it myself obviously just supplied parts (5 metre long t-sections welded from 25mm thick plate) which wasn’t as simple as it sounds. We were the only engineering company in the area who’s standards were high enough. When the work was being done it looked like nothing was going on but there were nearly 100 blokes working in those two green tombs sorry steel boxes. I went in there once, not nice.

Self building is an expensive and time consuming job. There are a lot of hidden costs. Whatever you think it’s going to cost treble it and however long you think it’s going to take treble it.

The quality companies that convert vans into motorhomes start from around £14k without the cost of the van and it takes 3 months plus. Before I started doing my own I couldn’t understand the cost or time scale involved, funnily enough I do now!

I am happy to convert but I still think they can get something for £3K I will see if they can stretch but the 2 Bullheart posted was the kind of thing that I thought they could get.

First one doesn’t seem to bad but you’d have to fit a leisure battery system to it and as above not 4 berth but could use a pup tent. The second one you can tell from the pictures is a complete dog.

Coil, tuned for you and the bike be that pushed or mojo/loco shim stacked or what ever magic they weave.

I was for 20 years or so an agricultural/plant mechanic / fitter. Great job never dull but on £7.50 p/hour at the end. Now a solicitor and can afford a roof over my head but no where near as satisfying(still have my snap on tool chest and tools etc in the shed). I am very envious MTG!

Thats what you call a career change! Can I ask what spurred you on to change and choose that profession?

You can buy a van for £3k but at that price your not going to get anything which lasts. Use it for a season hope it doesn’t go wrong and sell it on again to another mug. Anything anywhere near that price which is any good the owner won’t sell.

Your looking at £8-9k starting price for a good reliable motorhome and then it will still be about 15 years old.

Call me suspicious but I think the reason everybody wants to be called an engineer rather than a mechanic etc is because engineers are better paid, or should.

Edit: Your dad’s a mechanical engineer 😉

Nuts to the haters, threads like this are interesting, well to me anyway, better than the usual arguing about politics.

Just to throw another one into the mix, mechanics work on cars, fitters work on hgv’s and psv’s. Well thats what I always thought, my dad was a hgv fitter for 20 years. I was about to say how can you have an IT engineer then i looked it up on wiki

An engineer is a professional practitioner of engineering, concerned with applying scientific knowledge, mathematics and ingenuity to develop solutions for technical and practical problems. Engineers design materials, structures, machines and systems while considering the limitations imposed by practicality, safety and cost.[1][2] The word engineer is derived from the Latin root ingenium, meaning “cleverness”.[3]

Engineers are grounded in applied sciences, and their work in research and development is distinct from the basic research focus of scientists.[2] The work of engineers forms the link between scientific discoveries and their subsequent applications to human needs.[1]

Oh, and you shouldn’t really use a weave that big when mig welding otherwise you risk a lack of side wall fusion (3g coded welder, well I was) 😉

Some Altura stuff comes in xxl and is on the large size, not sure of the stock though but worth a look.

I’ve always thought the best descent off Hellvellyn was via Birk Side as I can do all of that. Agree that Dollywaggen would be better if I could ride it, would like to see it done, perhaps one day when i’m good enough 🙁

Haven’t used one, I looked at them for my motorhome but decided against it. Have you thought about a Ctek charger. Maintains the charge of your battery in a much better way than a solar charger, can be used in the garage and it obviously has another use. Or was the idea to not have it plugged into the electrics?

Diet doesn’t look to bad, could swap the roll for rice and tuna/meat. For breakfast you could try quinoa, good receipe here, other than that don’t eat to late in the evening and drink plenty of water.

I’d ask about your tablets as your a big chap and should be losing weight with what you’ve listed.

Edit: Have you heard of the ‘Eat right for your blood type’ diet, really worked for me. It also made me a lot healthier, helped with my asthma and cleared up my eczema (which was very mild).

Nicolai, pricey but nice bikes and spesh do some xxl 29er’s. Also some giant models are listed in the us but not on the uk site a uk dealer might be able to bring one in for you? The 29er anthem seems to be highly rated and i’ve read thats it’s capable of a lot more than it’s 4″ of travel would lead you to believe

29er wheels don’t fold up anymore than 26ers. They are designed for big blokes Just choose the right rim for the job.

Agree with that but the only trouble is if your heavy and you want a bike for the rougher stuff gordo’s or kris holm rims with suitable tyres are a lot of weight to push. Great for xc/trail but anything more and thats the limiting factor imo.

I’ve always run maxxis tyres (kevlar/wire/lust) and never had a problem but they do say that you should only use wire bead tyres (or lust/ust).

+1 on the saddle. I’ve found they all creak in time but the worse by far was the fizik gobi, drove me nuts.

Can you weld? If not would be worth learning the basics, try asking the same question on this site. Quite a few of the guys on there are doing what you want to do. They seem to mainly get one off structual/architecture type jobs, good site if your in to that type of thing with plenty of examples of jobs and a friendly bunch.

Could use 3 steel bolts instead of 6 in each disc. Loctite them in with a high grade and check regularly, sure a lot of the pro’s do it.

Yes, but when they shatter – they really go

+1

Turned an electric oven ring on by accident with one on top, they sort of explode. Scared me half to death!

Poor show if they don’t at least offer an at cost replacement a crack like that doesn’t just happen (unless you crash).

I like it, think i’ve found my new bik. No seriously I do 😆

Regardless of who’s right or wrong anybody who sends a letter like that rather than having a quiet, polite word is a k**b. I’d go round and have a strong, firm but polite word and put them in their place, your going to have to accept that you’ll never see eye to eye on this. You can’t reason with the unreasonable.

Ruffians here, do wear quickly tho.

Common bearing linky

The option of a 36 hole build. It might have change now but I asked merlin and they said it wasn’t an option they offered.

Edit: Xiphon +1

‘Bloody foreigners comin over ere’, seriously though for me it’s the running down of the royal family.

atlas +1, great photo.

Iron Keld/Loughrigg/Elterwater etc. Staveley/Longsleddale/Kentmere is 99% rideable too. And there’s loads of different routes in Grizedale/Claife with no hike a bike.

Don’t want to get into an argument, i’ll give you the first three IF you pick your routes but come on, the last three! You name me any route in kentmere which doesn’t involve hike a bike, unless i’m talking to a riding god! Anyway as I said each to their own, we will have to agree to disagree.

There’s plenty of great riding in the Lakes that involves very little if any hike a bike.

Other than Grizedale and Lingmoor, name any other classic route which doesn’t include a hike a bike?

Trouble with the lakes is every ride turns into an epic which becomes very boring

Eh?

Don’t take it the wrong way there is some fantastic riding in the lakes but it’s always about the downhills (imo) and hike a biking for an hour and a half for 20 mins downhill gets boring after a while, sometimes you just want to get out and ride, all of it. The q’s scenery is fantastic as well, such a variety and type of riding as well. Each to there own and you might not agree with me but there is something about the q’s.

Q’s, lived in the lakes but missed them. Trouble with the lakes is every ride turns into an epic which becomes very boring, okay for a week or two but anymore, yawn. Q’s you can just ride, anywhere and you can ride it all, up or down. Can’t speak for the alps or scotland but would imagine it’s the same.

Sorry to hear your relationship is that bad but you have to protect yourself as harsh as that sounds.

According to a survey (if you belive these things) 75% of all women in a long term relationship have a ‘running away’ account. I know my mum did when she left my dad, well money hidden in shares.

I haven’t bought northwave for a few years but iirc they were an eu size larger than shimano. Maybe 2 at a push but I am boat size (48/49).

How can you possibly think eating the same thing everyday is doing you any good?

Don’t have a company van and not in your situation but from an outsiders point of view your taking the p**s.

but it’s easy to forget one spoke when tensioning the wheel

Is it hell

Roger Musson, one of the most highly recommended wheel builders in the uk recommends in his book to always keep masking tape to hand while building wheels, ‘Have a piece of tape handy ready to mark the next spoke to tighten if you are interrupted midway or drop the spoke wrench (and also remember how many turns you were giving it). If you lose your position you are in big trouble.’ If it’s good enough for him…..

If the wheel was badly built and the spoke tensions are all over the place you’ll keep on getting loose spokes but it’s easy to forget one spoke when tensioning the wheel up so could be that. Trouble is if it’s badly built returning it to them to sort it out is imo a waste of time.

I’m no expert but I would guess it could be the builder just forgot one spoke or might be uneven spoke tension. Can’t really say for sure at this stage, other than keep your eye on the tension of the wheel.

Learn to build your own, once you get into it and learn the basics it’s not the ‘black art’ you think it is.

That thing above is very simple, it’s basically saying

a = b + (a – b)

As for the oil I’ve got no idea, unless you have a way of measuring it and just use trial and error.

Smart ass 😉

Maybe she’s gone off blokes completely and is looking for some tongue & groove action?

😀