I tend to see what equvalents are selling for on the forums and ebay.

If you know the bike has been used infrequently or looked after etc… it will be worth a bit more.

For example if you need a tyre, chain, cassette, re-greased headset then it is going to be -£50 off the £400ish recommendation.
If the front and rear shocks havent seen much attention in that time then having them serviced professionally will be £150ish.

So that makes it a £200 bike to buy. Or £600 if you buy it for £400 and then have to do the work within a short period.

Obviously there is going to be some wear and tear but if it hits you in the pocket almost immediately then look elsewhere.

My small minded view is:

The south east is clogged up, depends where you have been living as to whether you mind it.

Biking is average down there and everything is expensive.
I would never move there myself.

If you need a city and can get work there Bristol is my southern choice.

Above sounds good.

I have used Tartybikes to get the odd Hope part before.

I was 165/95 for quite a while. Stopped me getting into the Army which was when I first found out it was high at 18.

Now 32 and exercise, reasonable eating and drinking mean its down to 125/65 ish.

I have had to have 2 repaired (although they reckon there is no problem with the second one) and they have always been efficient. The guys on the email have also been fairly good in an IT support kind of way.

I still think they might be the best and that plus the quick fix on the first one meant buying the second as an upgrade.

Might go Garmin next time though, if I ever buy another satnav.

I did this a few weeks ago.

Bought a set of Flow wheels and while waiting for a set of Schwalbe Tubeless tyres to turn up tried to fit my old Kenda none tubeless tyres because it 'can be done' according to some of the posts forums.

Maybe it can but it would take a fair bit of time/luck/sweating to get them inflated.

I fitted the tubless tyres onto the tubeless rims when they turned up and just pumped them up, no drama, no problems. I am using Stans sealant to make sure they stay up.

I am now convinced I could remove the tyre on the trails, fix a big hole if needed and them reinflate with my mini pump. Exactly what I wanted.

I should have read this first.
Was thinking it was time for a 700c commuter/hybrid jobbie. The only one in the offer is a Fuji and I dont know enough about this type of bike to know if it was a reasonable deal.

I have been with them for ages now as they had a cracking 6month contract deal a while ago. Which ended up being 10months and then I took an 18monther out with them to get a free Nokia E71.

One of my main reasons for renewing was that they treated Italy (where I spend alot of time) like a home network. They dont anymore but I do get a £10 refund every month to make up for my £70+ bills.
They still work out fairly cheap for the abroad calls.

Not had any other bother with them really, occasional busy network etc… but likely to be no worse than any other. I dont venture into the 'wild wilds' often but havent had too much trouble finding a signal, it flips onto a 2G network if it cant get 3g. (Orange I think)
The customer services are now very switched on and helpful, one of the old complaints that they must have spent alot of time sorting out.

I personally think Vodafone may be the best overall network but you do have to pay more for it.

I will definately consider renewing with them, there is a limited range of phones but again they are decent enough.

Most important thing as my brother has just found out is to buy a network that you can use in your house. He is on Vodafone and their guarantee that anyone can get signal in their own house means the customer spending £50 on a booster box.

My favourite is the north end of Garda. Riva and Torbole. Big support up there for any outdoor activties and good food+nice lake when you get back in the evening.

If you pinch puncture you will need bigger tyres. There are a million different points of view on tyres especially with different conditions and use.

Try the small ones first, I used to use the 2.1 Fire XC for everything and they are pretty good, in relation to the weight/drag they have.

Foci Estates are definately a good car, but do fetch good money because everyone knows it. Quite a few are thrashed ex co cars though, but not as higher proportion as Astras.

The C-Max is actually cheaper now, like for like.

The Multipla is ace. Unique but other than frivilous parts falling off they are solid.

not very long though so 1 bike built will probably go diagonal in the back. In my old one we could easily get 3 people, 3 bikesv with wheels off and assorted gear. Not bad for a 4m long car.

Pondering another at moment.

The oddest decent bike carrier a mate had was a Calibra, with the seats folded down the back was huge.

Most people do it because they think thats what a wedding should be like.

It part of the amusing spend £20k to have a your own unique big day, where you spend more time meeting relatives you didnt know, cringing when you mates assault older relatives on the dance floor and generally worry about everyone else.
After all that hassle, planning and finding the local church; to the average onlooker its a carbon copy of the last wedding they went to.

btw I haven't got married yet!

I am 6'1 and had a 2006 18" for a 3 years, finally I have admitted to myself it was too small and just got a 2010 20". Not ridden the 20 yet but I am hoping for:

– improved high speed stability
– not a big loss in manovrebility (why cant i spell that word), if you are over 6foot you should be able to heave a bike about in the slow bits.
– be able to run a short stem for steering precision but still get half stretched out for longer rides.

If you want to ride some big XC style rides then it has to be 20. If you go playing with your mates in the woods then 18 is better for throwing around. My bike has to do everything so went for 20 this time.

There is a nice looking green one in the classifieds.

I know loads of people still stuck, I am also still 'stuck' in Italy although I am actually working so its not too bad, company is paying for it all and if I want to go home the drive is 16-19hours.

My boy is now massively confused by webcam communication!! although he would have had to get used to it pretty soon anyway.

I now have a pile of parcels at home to complete my Orange build aswell so pressure is mounting to get back.

On the bad side, I am stuck in Italy and my bikes are in the UK. I knew I should have left one over here for emergencies.

I think the dust which is the original problem will cause the temperature to drop.
Krakatoa, Vesuvius and plenty of other big ones caused the global temperature to drop.

Mine dont rub but do ruck the skin up a bit behind the knees when pedalling with the seat down.

Only cure would be to buy a dropper seat post….

Not sure if you want to buy a bike for 1 trip but if you priotise the downs the 160 is the way to go, seat angle is fairly steep and weight isnt far off what we were pedalling up hills a few years ago so it will still climb ok.

I have used my 2006 5 for 2 years here in the Alps/Appenines and felt a bit too XC especially up against my mates Ransom. Have now gone for a 2010 5 with the slacker geometry to even things up.
I dont mind riding up the hills and want a bike I can use anywhere when I get back to the UK so the 5 was a naturally choice.

Both are brilliant bikes and I dont think you will feel like you have made the wrong choice with either.

It doesnt say this on the Orange website but I have some inside information:

Alpines are for fat-boys that like Soreen and 5s are too cool.

Anyone running Kenda DTC tubeless?

I like the panda but a bit tight if you are trying to put a bike in the back.

Ours does everything, Euro touring, bike carrier, family trips etc…. . Its a diesel so has a bit more go than the petrols.

Had a Kia Picanto hire car last week, was surprisingly ok but felt like an older car.

I went through this and ended up with:

£40 for a brand new set of X9s off ebay
£16 for a set of matchmakers off here

not ridden the bike yet but I have a good feeling about it.

Not had one but could be talked into a K5 one day.

This just shows what a mess the current cars are.

Will still be watching it tomorrow though, maybe just early season keen-ness, will have to wait and see.

Ahh, my head says this is the most likely 'next bike' for me.
Although the rest of me reckons a 1050 Speed Triple is the way to go.

Ace bike, good at everything.

Most the managers, all who seem to have a culture of waste.

Anyone who wears a cardigan.

Cut the cushy holiday/time in lieu deal and get them back in the real world.

Sack the bin-man who drove over my fence.

I also think most the job cuts will be natural wastage over the next couple of years and it will be business as usual.

I have just built a 456 and been on it a couple of times.

Sure it rides fine but after 6 years riding full sus it is a bit shock.
It is good fun and I want to make it a road/xc/local loop bike which it will be fine for once I toughen up my hide.

Also suffering from the chainsuck issue which is dissappointing as the whole drivetrain is brand new. Not had to deal with this for a few years after Cannondale and Orange full sus.

With a set of 2.3 Kenda Nevegal DTCs on I lose about 4-5mph average speed on the road over a set of 1.5 road tyres.

Over 3 hrs, 15-18mph average is good. If you are doing it twice a week even better.
Big frustration of grinding against the tyres all the time (and wearing them out) but it does help with training.

Congratulations,

These are sportsmen at the top of their game fighting for the 'ultimate' title. It will be dangerous.

Basically (maybe a bad turn of phrase) this whole event is staged to sort the men from the boys. Condolences where they are due, no-one wanted this to happen and lets hope there are no more major incidents at the games.

At 90mph with virtually no protection how much run-off would be needed? I came off my m-bike at 40 and went far enough.

Votchy i think he meant the 12G295 Cooper head.

I've got a 72 1000 in the garage, needs some attention as it has been stood for a while since i got into mbikes and working abroad.

Did all the normal mods and is now a RSP replica, 80000miles of abuse through my teens and early twenties.

It will fly again……..along with all the other projects i have……

I'm doing it and wondered what everyone used.

Was expecting the 'use your LBS' answer.

My fiat is going to catch fire too.

How stiff must the toyota pedal get before it sticks? do people really not notice that the pedal isnt returning very well and they have 1 thigh twice the size of the other?

My Mustang had a chod of a Farmer Johns Cousin on the back and a set of what felt like cast iron bar ends on it.

Somewhat out classed after a year or two by a mates Yukon (the orange one with 21 gears!) fitted with some bars with built in bar ends. maybe tioga ones?

Ah, I remember getting my dream bike: Raleigh Mustang SIS with my passing the 11+ money.

Without a doubt the start of a slippery slope. We all had Raleighs apart from one odd guy with a fluoro green/yellow MBK.

(My Rover still runs fine thanks)

depends how you ride and where you are going.

I wouldnt for some of the longer ones and just take it a little easier on the tough bits.

Just fitted it, actually left the original Raceface BB in, with 1 spacer on the RH side.

Chain seems to be miles away from the swingarm at the moment.

no probs.

Not sure why the chainline would affect the shock as the ring will still be the same size. Its got the latest boost valve Fox so should be the best at everything if you believe the hype.

The gist of this is that with a bit of fiddling it should work reasonably well.

my 20in 5 had a 70mm stem std.

I am 6'1 and hoping to run mine with an inline post and 50-60mm stem.
A 6'5 you must struggle with finding bikes.

Get onto Orange, see if they can make a bigger one.