Hate it with a passion.

Just catching up on things…just the 2 slashes, Nico – my typo above.

Anyway, the position has improved after I “reset winsock protocol” whatever that means. I followed the instruction on MS help, and it seems to have worked without upsetting Bullguard.

No idea why winsock went beserk, but then again I have no idea why this PC seems so tempramental.

Thanks for the help.

Position so far.

Done the ping thing again, and the same response.

Happily downloaded iTunes & Quicktime updates (80mb) with no problem, during which the ping thing still still said “Ping request could not find host http:///www.bbc.co.uk. Please check the name and try again”.

Managed to get to this forum once and post the last 3 posts above, but as soon as I pressed “Send Post” that was it – it ceased to cooperate again.

Most of the time it’ll open the homepage (BBC) and go no further.

When the ADSL is hooked up to my work laptop (where I am now) there are no problems, so the router seems fine & the issue must be on the PC.

Anyone care to suggest what investigations I need to do next? It worked fine yesterday (and has done for months, well as fine as any Vista PC works), and I can’t recall doing / changing anything that could have provoked it.

Cheers.

…and now it’s random. Mostly won’t work but occasionally it does. God I hate computers.

No idea why but it’s suddenly started working again on the home PC. GRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

No idea why but it’s suddenly started working again on the home PC. GRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

Bizarre…

Did what you said, trying STW and BBC. Response both times was “Ping request could not find host http:///www.bbc.co.uk. Please check the name and try again”/.

So I opened Safari, and there was the BBC homepage. It even sent to the STW homepage too, but then nothing else.

What does this tell me?!

Oh, no idea what the Google thing is about, chakaping…you’ve lost me (I’m easily lost, it seems).

OK, logging off here to try on the home PC. I may be some time.

I’m sure that’s useful advice, footlaps, but you lost me right at the start! Kind of assume I have basic connectivity as I can get to the first few sites / pages (can be 1 – 3 so far before it goes no further), plus the PC seems to say I have internet available. Or is all this irrelevant?

No, but that never stopped me guessing wildly.

Highest is a 7, so the 8 is irrelevant. So, how many ways to pick 4 cards from 7 = 7!/4!3! = 35.

For 3 to be the lowest only 5 cards possible (3 – 7), so 5!/4!1! = 5 ways to select 4 cards from these. But one selection is 4,5,6,7 so 3 isn’t the lowest in that group. And 3,4,5,6 isn’t eligible either (as 7 is the highest). Hence 3 combinations of cards with 3 as the lowest and 7 the highest.

hence, my answer would be 3/35.

Let the flaming begin…

Why would the weight of 08 air Pikes jump much from 09 Revs? They’re pretty much the same fork, aren’t they? I’m running 08 Pike air u-turns and they’re ace.

…and another ex-Rohloff user here. Partly the heavy feel of the rear of the bike, partly the soul-destroying draggy sound in gears 1 – 7. But I sometimes wish I still had it for those muddy rides when the ss is too much hard work.

Blip.

Very distorted market at present as there are few willing sellers (not wanting to recognise the fall in value) & few willing buyers (most people are waiting to see how far prices fall), plus limited finance for first time buyers.

Prices are probably ~20% off the peak with 10%+ more to go. We’ll only find out when the market gets more active, but limits on salary multiples and far more caution about both lending and borrowing will prevent property being the get rich quick scam that it was, at least for the next few years before we all forget.

Good for the economy if that happens, plus we might get rid of some of those dreadful programmes on TV.

In which case, wouldn’t the sensible protestor remain peaceful and not start saying it with bricks? Faced with opponents armed to the teeth and full of menace I’d be more inclined to curl up, not antagonise them.

Well, it might be protecting the greed-mongers (whoever they are), but I assume they have civil liberties to be protected? Or do you think they should be thrown to the baying crowd? And how do you identify one?

And by banks do you mean their employees, their buildings or the oppressive capitalist system they rely upon?

Well, what do you expect from the BBC? Stokes up the story a bit, doesn’t it?

That’s good, pk-ripper. When my offices were in the City I joined the 2000 protest – well, it was the only way to get across Cornhill to the Mont Blanc shop 😀 Wierd experience – naked people, some up lampposts, ambled along in a carnival atmosphere (OK, those up the lampposts sort of hung around, but you get the picture). Very nice – hardest thimng I had to do was to talk my way back into work past the over-zealous security people.

Anyway, all quiet on the Eastern Front still.

Nothing I can see, Rudeboy. They couldn’t cope with the wall of indifference, I suspect.

No point coming to Canary Wharf. It’s as dull as usual round here, much to the disgust of the security people. A couple of rolling road blocks aside it’s a normal, beige day here.

I had exactly the same experience as el_creedo. Completely fubarred first time of using it – that’s what happens when you use Wensleydale for bike parts.

Went back to UK Bike Store who replaced it with a Salsa – no brass washer but at least it works and looks lovely.

My old CK with steel freehub would have been great too but that got swapped in one of the periodic “let’s change everything for no good reason” moments. To be fair, XTR runs a lot smoother with less drag and hasn’t needed any more fettling than CK. I’ll not be changing unless I can get a WI eccentric hub, in which case I won’t need a cog.

Those ones from Holland look good too, but 89 Euros is quite a price! That or the Endless seem like the fattest and least likely to damage the freehub though.

Right, what’s going to happen to exchange rates?! Should I wait or buy now?

Cheers all. Those Endless ones seem like the things I need (Ti is what I want, mind). Just need to find where from…

XTR = Ti freehub I think. Won’t be steel (sadly).

Cheers Stu. I can while away hours just looking at that site.

Was referring to the Endless ones…but , mmmm, Ti. Where from, Stu?

Now they look just the ticket, they do. Where can you get them in the UK?

I’ve trashed 3 x NN UST 2.25 at Dalby in 7 rides – all sidewall issues. If you’re a proper, manly weight or a skill-free biffer or both then they’re best avoided.

I keep trying other tyres, but my trusty Albert UST 2.25 have yet to let me down. Much tougher than NN.

Let’s assume ~30mm difference in tyre radius. That means I’d want ~30mm less fork length (post sag). Pikes are ~520mm (full lenght, so need to measure mine when I get chance), so Rebas at 80mm would be about the same length pre-sag. Post sag (40mm on Pikes @140mm, 20 – 25mm on Rebas @ 80mm) probably leaves the Rebas 15 – 20mm taller than the Pikes.

Doesn’t sound too promising now. Maybe Minutes at 80mm are a bit shorter?

Thanks for that, Stoner. Interesting.

So, it seems that running my Pace RC31s (440mm) with a 29er front wheel should work.

What I don’t understand is all the geometry stuff that says it wouldn’t work with a shorter travel 29er suspension fork. Being a simple soul, let’s say I measure the ground to fork race height & axle – race length using my Pikes at 125mm, and assume 30mm sag. If I can sort things out such that a 29er set up has the same (sagged) ground-to-race height why won’t that work?

I’ve tried MTBR but you have to know the answer to your question to work out who’s talking sense & who isn’t. Clearly Brant knows something & has given me the answer, but now I want to understand why it won’t work.

I think they’re the same thing – big at front, small at back.

Thanks Brant – this is about making it my winter bike, so rigids it is. Best with 26er rigids or 29er rigids?

Thanks for that, Simon – might just work! I can try it out with the RC31s I’ve got anyway – just need a wheel now.

BB7s.

I prefer these to Hope Minis, Magura Louise FR & 08 Shimano XT (All of which I have/had). Simple to set up, don’t need much adjusting and dead easy to fettle.

Clink – no, but I do have an automatic analogue watch. Sometimes progress isn’t.

What scienceofficer says.

My record was 12 punctures in one ride. The norm was at least one puncture a week. Where I ride has lots of hedges & tracks alongside them – unavaoidable unless I want to ride on the roads.

Tubeless [UST with sealant]has been great for eliminating thorn punctures. I do still get punctures, but they’re now bigger problems caused by rocks when using rubbish tyres (Schwalbe NNs). And I have had the joy of pulling lots of thorns out of my tyres, so I know it works – I haven’t developed the magical ability to avoid thorns just because I’ve pumped my tyres up.

Yes, ridden. Fine initially, then started to rub. Rebled & checked no stickiness, but thereafter they were very hard to set up with no rubbing, as if the pads were closer to the rotor than initially.

Then got a leaky piston which trashed a set of pads so got a replacement caliper. Now about to re-install them.

Having found them lovely when first set up I bought a second set for another bike. They’re now behaving the same – sticky pistons, rubbing etc. Thanksfully I’ve kept my BB7s which have been troublefree for years.

Rotors are totally true (fairly new RT97s) – I’ve checked using a zip tie attached to the fork leg and there’s as close to zero warping as makes no difference.

I set them up as you say, imp999, but still get either constant or partial rotor/pad rubbing – which one I get is one of the delightful surprises involved. Zero rubbing doesn’t seem to be an option.

Sticky pistons I’ve also had to have a go at & a leaking one too (including returning one caliper & getting a replacement).

I can see this needs a few hours put aside, and lots of sweet tea to calm the nerves / relieve stress.

Cheers all.

I bled them originally from caliper up to lever using the pukka Shimano kit. I have had a sticky piston problem, so maybe I need to sort them out & re-do them from scratch.

The more I have to do, the better BB7s seem to be.

Anyone got these set up properly? HEEEELLLLLLLLLLLPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPP!!

Same as the 04 Explosif which I have. First off, see if you upgrade the sliders to the 05 & later parts which have a (feeble) built in chain tug – that works on those dropouts too as I have retrofitted them. They mean you don’t have to rely totally on a sheer grip to keep your chain tension.

Next, drop the serrated washers – they kill the dropouts. Find some bigger headed bolts & bigger washers, then file down the slots where they have deformed.

Warning – all this worked on my steel frame – anything you do on an aluminium frame is up to you!

[Heresy]

BB7s – simple to set up, simple to fettle, plenty of power & good modulation. I’m trying XTs but can’t get them to work properly (& no advantages over BB7s).

[/Heresy]