Honestly though, for other people who have never had a dog before – who are thinking about getting a puppy – just get a poodle as your starter dog or the offspring of a slow dopey lab.

Sound advice. Our last dog was a Border Collie, and as you might expect from a working dog he was full of energy and hard work. We now have a Miniature Poodle, who is a bit dull in comparison and requires much more of a commitment for grooming, but she is a great dog, and much more suited to being a pet.

When we were attending dog training with the Collie we had to constantly work to keep him focused, and wondered what we were doing wrong when other dog owners were having no trouble. We now realise that we weren’t doing anything wrong, some breeds are harder work than others.

It sounds like you have your hands full. As has been mentioned above, you need to keep training him, dogs don’t learn something and remember it for ever, they need constant reinforcement.

I don’t think anyone has suggested it so far, but have you tried using a long line to work on the recall? A 30ft long line so that you can give him some freedom, but keep him within sight, then recall him. Make sure he chooses to come back to you though, don’t just yank him to you when you want him back.

Other things to try are preventing him going into the kids bedrooms so he doesn’t have the opportunity to steal their toys. Giving him a Kong as has been suggested is worth trying.

Are there any doggy daycare places near you? My friend used to run one and it was very popular with people that wanted to tire their dogs out while they went to work.

Ultimately you have a working dog with the energy to work all day. If you don’t provide an outlet for that energy the dog will be crazy as it will be too worked up to focus. Get back in contact with your trainer and ask for some one to one sessions.

As above, Indorex for the house. It will kill pretty much any insect too. That said I am asthmatic and although it isn’t a pleasant product to use I don’t feel the need to leave the house after applying it like I did when my parents used to spray their house with whatever was available 25 years ago. The older stuff was really nasty.

Regular hoovering and a second application if necessary should see you right.

I’ve got no experience of this bike, or what you are after, but what about the
Charge Plug Grinduro[/url]

It’s weight isn’t stated, but I think the rest of the boxes are checked.

Congratulations! Have a great day

Yeah, that’s my concern with them. I’ll arrange to return them then.

Cheers.

Hmm, not great then. I suppose I should return them.

Thanks arogers, much appreciated.

I was bought up to eat just about anything, however my wife is vegetarian by choice and gluten free for medical reasons. There are some great suggestions already, here are a few more.

Roasted peppers stuffed with rice
Risotto
Spaghetti Bolognese using Quorn mince and gluten free spaghetti(actually tastes ok).
Vegetable stir fry with rice/sweet potato noodles
Onion Bhajis/Vegetable Pakoras (use gram flour)

Obviously stuff like roasted veg, baked potatoes, sweet potatoes, quiches made from gluten free flour or pastry etc. There are loads of free from ranges in supermarkets that might be an easy way to fill out a meal too.

We used it on our old Collie. We thought it made a difference but were not sure if it was a placebo so took him off it. He started limping worse than ever so we put him back on it.

Based on our own experience I recommend giving it a go.

I am not sure if your rear mech can cope but you can get 11-34 or 12-36 9 speed cassettes.

https://www.merlincycles.com/shimano-hg400-9-speed-mtb-cassette-48272.html

As said a 9 speed mtb rear mech will work with your shifter.

We have also been licence free for 2 years. We just removed the aerial from the TV. The TV licensing company wrote to us twice when we cancelled, and again this year to confirm we still aren’t watching live TV or iPlayer. We also had an inspector visit last year, he simply confirmed who we are, that we don’t watch live TV, then left. He didn’t even ask to come in. We’ve not experienced the threats that others report when being licence free.

You can buy box sets direct from the BBC if there is anything you want to buy. The wife did with the current Dr Who series, they air on Saturday and she gets an email link on Sunday. Generally Netflix and Amazon cover what we want to watch.

The TV is only used for playing Rock Smith or Gran Turismo now.

Ribble and Merlin for me, as I used to work around the corner from Ribble, and now work a couple of miles from Merlin. My parents live in Rutland, so I sometimes check Rutland Cycles too if I am planning to visit them.

Although most use the above for mail order I have only ever bought stuff from them in their bricks and mortar stores. Are there any similar places with an online presence and actual stores near you?

Seems ridiculous to think that you could get the same/more for hubs alone than wheels.

Surely if they were sold as wheels complete for the same you’d sell the hubs alone for (assuming the spokes to be cut and rims given/thrown away) then why not just price them as that and stick in the advert what they can be built up to.

It does seem ridiculous, but not many people are in the market for 26″ wheels compared to 27.5 or 29 etc. Also the older rims tend to be narrower than the current ones, and possibly not tubeless ready. If buyers only want the hubs then paying postage on parts you don’t need puts people off. Plus it is far easier to package and post a pair of hubs rather than complete wheels.

That said, I still currently roll on 26″ rims, as do many on here. So there is still a market for them.

For those that use car shampoo, do you just use wash and wax? If so does it leave a film on brake discs?

It’s what I use, and my rear brake squeals a lot unless I clean it after with alcohol. Just wondered if others experience this too?

I’ve got a 2014 Charge Plug 3, the steel one. There were a load of Plug 5 frame only listings on eBay a while back, if they are of interest to you? There was a thread on here about them. I like mine, but it is a bit heavy.

Alternatively what about the Merlin Axe? http://bikes.merlincycles.com/search#?w=axe

Like a London Road, but without potential seat post issues?

Toyota discount is 10% off for complete bikes, 15% off for everything else. I signed up last year as I own a Toyota, the Halfords discount is the only real perk IMO.

Just a spin around Preston Guild Wheel on the drop bar bike today, it was a cracking day for it.

I might go for a quick ride on the hardtail tomorrow if I get the chance.

A tragic loss. RIP Mike.

n0b0dy0ftheg0at – Member

drewd – Member
16 for 15% discount http://www.toyotaownersclub.com/membership/
The Toyota discount is only 10% for complete bikes.

Oops, it does help if you read the smallprint, doesn’t it?

10% Toyota discount on complete bikes at Halfords.

Bit vague as to whether all bike bits are 10% off too, or whether non-complete bikes get the 15% off.

It’s a bit vague, but I think it’s 15% off everything except full bikes. I signed up to it when they had the Black Friday deal as I also drive a Toyota, so thought it might come in useful.

Back on topic, as mentioned above 26ers are very cheap, but some 29ers on eBay are cheap too. There was a 2015 Genesis High Latitude the other week that was sub £300. I was tempted by it but it was too big for me. I’m reluctant to get rid of my Charge Duster as it’s worth so little!

Oh and nice bike OP.

They’re actually 37mm! I use them with 45mm sks guards and I wouldn’t want to go any smaller.

I noticed the box said 37 when they arrived. They catch on the guard bolts in my frame so I have removed them. I wish I bought the 32s now.

16 for 15% discount http://www.toyotaownersclub.com/membership/

The Toyota discount is only 10% for complete bikes.

^This is what I was about to suggest too!

Another vote for Gliga. My wife has had a Gliga Gama 2 for around 12 years and although she doesn’t play often it seems nice. The owner of Blackpool violin shop thought it was nice enough too.

My size small Humvees are also out for delivery with Royal Mail today. Thanks OP.

Our current one has been pretty good, but she was supervised pretty much constantly as a puppy. We take toys and treats off her when she has killed them though as she gets them stuck in her mouth or chokes on them when they’re too small.

She did chew through some headphone cables. She also ate a baby wipe she found in the park on a walk though. A quick trip to the vets later and she fine.

My parents dogs have eaten curtains, sofas, beds, remotes, CDs, power leads etc.

I also run 28mm tyres with the 42mm guards.

I recently bought some 35mm Vittoria Hyper Voyagers and they only just fit under the guards! Clearance is so tight on my frame with 35’s and guards that I am not sure I will keep them yet, I’ve put the 28mm’s back on for now.

I’ve got some Tortec chromoplastics, and just received some of these SKS Bluemels from Decathlon from a PSA on here last week.

They’re very similar, a pain to fit, but once mounted correctly just work. At the current price the Bluemels are great value.

I also grew up around there. I am also going to be in the area next weekend for my sister in law’s birthday. My brother and I did Rutland water back in September, I was on a hardtail and he was on a CX, both coped fine.

You could hire a bike if Rutland Cycles have anything you fancy trying? Or as has been said there are loads of B roads and villages to explore by bike.

I bought a set of aluminum rollers off of eBay about 18 months ago for indoor use but didn’t get on with them as well as I had hoped. My bike doesn’t have much stand over clearance and the increased height of the rollers made getting on the bike and starting tricky. I made a bit of progress with them, but put them away for safety reasons when we got a puppy, and bought a fluid turbo last year.

The rollers are louder than the turbo, but I am not sure if the bearings need attention on my set as they were used. I do agree that rollers require a better pedaling technique, but a turbo suits my needs better. I live in a mid terrace so noise is a consideration for me. Every now and then I think about giving the rollers another go, but I should move them on really.

I have ordered the Hyper Voyagers in 35mm as my frame can fit them and they were fairly cheap. I hope they’re not much slower than the Kenda 28mm ones I currently have, they should at least be better on gravel etc.

Is there a point where a tyre becomes unnecessarily wide?

For example I am a light rider (about 55 KGs), and my bike is a steel Charge Plug 3, which weighs about 12 KGs with guards etc. I am still running the fairly poor 28 mm Kenda Kwik Tendrils tyres it came with. I’m looking at changing them for something better and am torn between 28mm Duranos and either 32 m or 35 mm Hyper Voyagers.

I don’t race, just use the bike for solo leisure rides and the occasional 35 mile round trip commute on poor roads and cycle paths/gravel tracks. The 28’s have coped with this so far, but would someone with my combined bike/rider weight benefit from going as wide as 35mm? Or would 28 or 32 be a better choice? Most of the arguments seem to be for overweight non racy types, I’m just skinny and unfit!

I’ve avoided posting on here so far, but as you know and like the Cockerpoos and Cavapoos you have met you can see why they’re so popular. It’s not just that they’re designer dogs (although that’s part of it), they can make great pets.

We have a Miniature Poodle, and our neighbors have a Cavapoo, they’re similar dogs really. As already mentioned though with a cross there are no guarantees which traits will be inherited. I take it you’re aware of their grooming requirements? It’s not cheap, especially if you can’t clip and bath them yourself.Poodles don’t malt, but their fur is like human hair that constantly grows and will matt if they’re not brushed daily. Cockers and Cavaliers do malt.

Other than that ensure the parents are health checked for hereditary conditions etc. I would also look at Cockers, Cavaliers and Poodles, lots of the traits that people look for in ‘doodles are in Poodles, and Poodle’s don’t have to look like show dogs.

We have had rescue dogs, prior to the Poodle we had a Border Collie, and my parents have always had dogs since I was a child so I am used to different dog breeds and the Poodle is one of the best dogs we have had, along with a Springer Spaniel Flat Coated Retriever cross who was from farm working stock, really healthy, soft as butter but absolutely crazy.

Can you stream music from a tablet to two Chromecasts at once to create multiroom? Sonos too expensive to play with and have enough hi fi equipment to do this on the cheap, I hope…

Yes you can. You can create groups and add each individual Chromecast to the group. You can chose to cast to an individual device or a group so it’s easy to configure how you want it.

As I mentioned above I have one linked in to my seperates Hi Fi and another linked up to a cheap amp and a pair of speakers in the kitchen. It provides a much fuller and better quality sound than the JBL flip we have.

I can’t tell you what to buy as I have never used Sonos. But I can say that I have 2 chromecasts, one in the kitchen and one in the sitting room for multi room audio and I also have Amazon prime.

I use the main HiFi in the sitting room and an SMSL 36A Pro amp with a small pair of bookshelf speakers in the kitchen. The speakers are out of the way on top of the cupboards. I use a phone or tablet, and the only way I have found to use Amazon music is through casting through the chrome browser. There didn’t seem to be native support for it like there is for streaming internet radio, google music or Spotify.

I don’t bother using Amazon music much through it as it didn’t seem that convenient. If you can put up with it consider a Chromecast setup, if not go with Sonos.

but you are tied to them

Nah. You can upload your own ebooks to the unit. Yes, the only STORE you can buy from on the reader is Amazon but outside that it’s fair game. I have a lot of work related stuff on mine for example

Fair enough, I’ve not bought an ebook in a while as my wife lost a load due to DRM when the vendor she bought them from went under.

I’ve used Calibre in the past to ensure I can keep the books I have, but I am not a massive reader and buy a lot of books from charity shops now. After using my nook for a while I’ve decided I prefer physical books.

My council tip doesn’t usually let you take anything. I’ve not asked about fire extinguishers though so will ask them next time I am there. Cheers.

I’ve also got a Nook, I got it a couple of years ago for about £30 and it’s similar to a Kindle but doesn’t support Kindle format books natively, although there are workarounds for this. It misses out on the simplicity of Amazon’s ecosystem too.

I believe Nook pulled out the market in the UK, transferring the content to Sainsburys, who also pulled out last month and transferred their content to Kobo.

I think the main players in the UK now are Kobo and Amazon, Amazon are much larger and their integration is seamless, but you are tied to them. I’ve not bought anything from Kobo.

Cool, thanks. I might have a go at making one of these over winter :-)

That pinkbike guide is great. Does anyone know where you can get used extinguishers? The £12 he paid isn’t that expensive, but it does seem wasteful to buy a full extinguisher just to empty into a bin!