Thanks Craig – can give you plenty of pointers if it’d help?

Thanks Andy – I guess that’s probably going to be my best route in. Just feel like it’d be good to do something other than sell but ultimately that’s what I know best…

In an ideal world I would do it for smaller, more interesting brands but guessing they’ve not got the budget for sales and marketing…

Thanks guys – maybe just better off hunting in the sales for good deals on the components. The guys who I want to build the bike do complete builds but for the extra 1700 you don’t get quite the quality I want. E.g. There are quite a few compromises on things like wheelset and drive train. I’m not after the latest 2018 components – my only challenge will be that I’m after boost compatibility…and that doesn’t seem to be as heavily discounted

Yeah, £12 is a bit of a shocker. Still,it’s rammo most weekends so people obviously prepared to pay. If you join as a member for about £80 a year it’s good value as long as you’re regular. They’ve got showers and stuff and as a member you get free bike washing etc. I’m not a member these days as I have a new kid but I used to be

Good question. It’s a custom frame that’ll be for 27.5+ and 29er so maybe I should just got something that’ll be optimal for 3 inch but not too bulky…

Just about the right amount of time for a relaxed Tour Divide no? Bit spenny though…

Funnily enough my initial thinking was actually around indy mechanics but then I started to think this may negatively impact on the local bike shop model which I was hoping could be protected. Maybe there’s a happy balance to be struck

trying not to make any assumptions at the moment (apologies, realise it may have come across that way!) just trying to see if there’s something in the idea of helping create a marketplace for servicing. Sounds like there isn’t so far 😉

Yes, that’s exactly it. That’s typically how most businesses make money. Do what they already do but more effectively. Not meant to be a new idea. Just an idea at this stage. But if all the local bike shops are all nailing it and not closing down due to increasing prevalence of people shopping online then I’ll just crack on with something else. Just asking the question.

Yeah, fair enough. I used it a couple of times in Brighton and it worked out OK. But always nice to leave with a fellow biker – especillat if it means a nice cup of tea and bike geek out 😉

https://www.justpark.com/uk/parking/winchester/?ac_country=GB&coords=51.059771%2C-1.3101420000000417&end_date=2017-08-26&end_time=18%3A00%3A00&filter=1&location_name=Winchester&place_id=ChIJY3T5jVIFdEgRoe2oZl2GpGc&q=Winchester%2C%20United%20Kingdom&source=autocomplete&start_date=2017-08-26&start_time=08%3A00%3A00&user_coords=

Have you tried ‘JustPark’ – it’s a website that has a load of driveways etc

gonna nap this route for sure 😉 be even better if it went to Tonbridge mind…

I use babyliss beard trimmers too. Tried the wahl head trimmers but weirdly the smaller ‘blade’ makes it much easier to use beard trimmer

Last time I travelled with my bike it was such a faff ( ended up taking an old bike bag and donating it to a bike shop) and then wrapping in cardboard on way back) that I spent a lot of time thinking about a biz to solve it. Basically a bike bag hire with a few key airlines. Thing is, don’t reckon that many of us actually fly with our bikes do we? I think I’d pay £30 each way if I knew bike was safely packed and meant I could do trips in to one place and out of another.

What do you reckon would be an acceptable amount? Maybe I could make this work 😉

There’s a new app called Yoti you can use to check people are who they claim to be. Needs him to use it too though. So if he is a fraudster he’ll probably say no…I work for Yoti so if you’ve any questions about th security etc be happy to answer them!

Not a big fan of the bike but wish them well. And re: marketing needing pass their GCSEs – feels like a weird and unfair comment. Again, personally I hate the brand name etc but I think the writing is on point for what I assume to be their target market. I’d say well done to the marketing guy 🙂

Skin so soft works where all others have failed imho. May not be a repellant but presumably you want to avoid being bitten as number one priority. Has added advantage of making your skin silky soft and not smelling like a toilet.

Thule aero bars here and noisy as f&@# anything over 40mph

Anyone got any tips of how to solve?

Thanks guys – a nice balance of views! Recognise they won’t be amazing but just helpful for pootling on tow paths (which is pretty much what I’ll be doing) and being able to apply the brakes when a dog, duck or dithering walker stumbles across my path.

Jonnyboi- I’d love them if poss? What size clamp are they?

Thanks s has got me thinking I should upgrade my wheels. Can you put a 10spd cassette on the 11speed hubs?

Raleigh Mustang in Pink. I still remember exactly how much I paid (£189.99) and how it died…under the wheels of boy racers at Liss station. Very sad times 🙁 but I replaced it with a lovely steel Marin Pine Mountain and suddenly the world of spending too much on bikes opened up!

Want petrol as a I have a fear diesel is not long for this world…we had an old t25 a few years back but had to get rid because of new leg on old Diesel engines. I would no be surprised if diesel gets another attack soon given health chatter at the moment

I have an old swift I put drops on with a short stem and it works a treat. As I’m thinking of treating myself to a new Travers some time in next few months it might be for sale if you want a cheap dabble in monstercross

Equally if Kent based you’re welcome to take it for a spin

Kind of know what you mean. Got a bike fund building for dream bike but can’t get too excited about what to get now! Think that mtb just has too much going on to get excited about. Would probably explain why simple rigid bikes seem to be doing so well perhaps?

Boom! Nice response Charlie, you the man. And happy birthday to you and the Repack crew. Big love.

Nice thinking monkeyboyjc – I did a similar hack with a spare exposure light mount I had. But it didn’t work quite as well as yours so I ended up spending £40 a secondhand set of SRAM bar end shifters. Wish I’d seen this post first!

Ex-demo yes (I bought an ibis mojo for £900 5 years ago and it’s still going strong) ex-hire nope. Similar experience to others here – never ridden a nicely maintained hire bike

Oh, and in terms of schools, Christs Hospital is pretty good…bit of a faff getting sponsorship etc but worth a shot

Had the same quandary a couple of years back. Ended up in Tonbridge. Love it here. Fast commute (about 40mins) and the town has improved a lot over last couple of years. Nice new cafes and there’s even the odd decent place to eat and drink. Have a mate in Horsham (and I went to school at Christs Hospital) so know the area pretty well. It’s nice enough town and maybe slightly better access to off-road routes (Tonbridge better for road, but close to Bedgebury, which is fun) but the longer commute and shitness of Southern a Rail put me off moving there

If you are ever up in Kent you are welcome to have a play with my drop barred swift. Got some bar end shifters coming this week to replace the bodged mtb shifter on an exposure light mount!

I ride a swift with drops and it’s great. It’s my go to bike at the moment. Quite heavy though…even with the American classic wheels I have on it I reckon it probably come in at the same as your current set up. Not tried to weigh it though…

Let me know if your dog’s account gets approved bruneep…

New app called Yoti that my company has just put in the App Store let’s you verify people’s details remotely if you want to give it a go?

might give you a bit more comfort…and I’d love any feedback! It’s free to download and use

Short stubby stem is all you need…my swift is now on drops and I love it

Road for me…all about maxing out miles when it’s that wet and cold in my mind…

I put 28mm on my road bike for some bike packing and haven’t taken them off. Really comfy and fast and means I can sometimes take a cheeky bridleway. Might go 30mm next…

If you go 35 can you run 3inch tyres?

I used to run 1 inch slicks on my bike when touring and it worked a dream. Until I fell down a storm drain and then changed back to fatter tyres 😉

I use a jersey with zip up pockets (a Repack Berino) and have an ortlieb saddle bag. That serves me for anything from a couple of hours blast around the woods to a full day out. The saddle bag can fit a toasty warm layer (I get cold easily and have been caught out in a nasty way so a little paranoid) and a sarnie. The jersey takes my tools, tube and gels/snacks. Bottle on the bike. Winner.