i had 36:18, 2:1 which was (and is) perfect for most stuff and ideal for glentress etc, but i recently put heavier tyres on and got less fit and was struggling a bit on some hills in the pentlands, so went for 36:20 the other night. definitely better, though it’s going to be an arse changing chain length depending where i’m going – not sure i can arrange it to just shift in the dropouts..

is a 69er, so 26 at the back

but anyway, unless it’s technical or crazy steep i would always prefer to get it over with as quick as possible and the 2:1 gearing seems about right

how is it riding with the counterweight?

i’d quite like to see a side angle one – maybe with a drop

you’d see a stick coming out the top of you’re head and would have to be careful with the width of the trail you picked.. but could be quite cool! a gopro is probably wide angle enough that it wouldn’t have to be that far away..

you can do it if you’re shite

ok, thanks!

go for breathable, because rain will get in and down and up through most things, and you can be a lot more comfortable when it’s just cold

oh – thanks!

newxt week, hopefully.. http://www.mwis.org.uk/eh.php

“By the middle of next week, cold conditions will be prevalent. Snow will increasingly build up on the Scottish Highlands, particularly the north and west, with snow occasionally to a low level, and penetrating to summits in England and Wales.”

quite possibly is, i’ve captured a few making star trail photos

it doesn’t have to be moving for the whole 60s portlyone, any light emitted will be captured however short (and obviously they burn out quickly, hence being a relatively short line)

just hoor it down the middle. usually works well.

i tried mine (again as above) properly last night, bar mounted alongside the ay-ups i normally use, so i turned it on for descents only – it lasted fine for that and made quite a difference! my ay-ups are great but for fast descents it’s good to have something with a longer range (though it is pretty tight). i “tested” it at home and got 40 minutes before i noticed it dimming with the shitey batteries it comes with.

i made a simple mount with a blob of that polymorph microwave-melting plastic and a ziptie, worked nicely!

so yeah, as a welcome but not relied on boost, it’s perfect! also think it would be very easy to separate the head and battery to make a nice helmet torch, might well buy another to do that with seeing as they are so cheap.

one thing though – i’ve heard that those batteries are a little volatile – how should i carry them? (guessing loose in damp pocket not ideal..)

i think the bike is rigid so the rider has better control over what it does, rather than being better at dropping from a large height – having said that, their landing technique suggests that they don’t really need help!

you use your brake(s)..

it’s much better than freewheel for winding in and out of stationary stuff and no need to keep feathering the brakes.

ah that http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2x-SenyBor-2800mAh-18650-3-7v-batteries-case-/300611519557?pt=UK_ConsumerElectronics_Batteries_SM&hash=item45fdd7c445 seller, big_f_d_d is “torchy the battery boy” whereas the previous is called “torchythetorchman”.. initially assumed it was the same guy – will go with the second! (er big_f_d_d – that one)

that’ll do – thanks!

so.. recommendation for a decent battery and charger? i got a torch off ebay which is very impressive for light but the batteries are awful and i’m scared to use the charger!

i got canon (lp-e6) batteries from this chinese ebay seller ( elifebuy ), pretty much indistinguishable other than price from what i can tell.. seem pretty similar to the proper ones for life, so i imagine their nikon ones would be worth a risk too..
http://myworld.ebay.co.uk/elifebuy/

don’t know about chargers, might be a little more wary of those

if i could get a bike that would still allow me to enjoy cycling, i would pretty much pay whatever i could.. though it might require a bit of saving up

it’s steerer in headset

Save the old guys bike, he does not want any modern nonsense, in his mind nothing in the world can better than his bike, because it was the best in his world when he stopped buying cycling weakly or whatever….

sounds good but he just started using it after a summer on the spesh tarmac so.. ;)

i’m guessing it would be very corroded in there, given the state of the rest of the frame, that’s why i was thinking it would be tricky to replace..

go ss, ignore brake drag. sorted!

it’s usually fine at the time, but **** the morning after.

nice, good idea!

as in, you have to fall over backwards a lot?

there’s a reason helmets are light, and you’re doubling the weight

i dunno, the helmet only weighs 300!

^ weighs 185g btw

i just got this one http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=160636012012&ssPageName=ADME:L:OU:GB:1123 which is a little different, i can’t remember why i picked it, i seem to remember it was a late night “why not” purchase..

anyway, it’s significantly brighter than my ay-ups, looks to have a reasonable halo around the hotspot (similar to ay-ups) weighs a fair bit (too much for helmet imo) and the bike mount would drop it going off a kerb..

but i’m pretty impressed with the brightness, will be interesting to see it on a bike, and if not – it’s pretty good as a torch!

do the treadmill/wheels have to accelerate infinitely? as the plane WILL move forward and take off, the wheels must always go faster than the treadmill, so it must speed up to compensate.

you _can_ try for a “magic gear ratio” (and i even think there are things online that work it out for you) but it’s a bit of an arse and any “stretch” will make itself quickly known

that red one isn’t a vertical dropout.. though it still doesn’t exactly give much room to move! you might get away with that.

if it’s got vertical dropouts, you will be lucky to get the chain length right so you have decent tension (so it doesn’t come off) – i.e. you will probably need a tensioner.

if the dropouts slope, you’re fine

you don’t necessarily need a new chain

so where do you choose to draw the line? how much friction is required?

you would be better assuming that the fuselage is levitating magnetically, i.e. there’s no friction between it and the conveyor belt rather than imagining it just sitting on top.. (in which case it would not react as you describe anyway..)

If you then start the treadmill, surely the plane would move backwards?

You could then counter act that by throttling up the planes engines and bring the plane back to a stationary state.

it wouldn’t bring it back to a stationary state – it would continue forward from that point.

normally i stop first

people do get funding from windfarms, there’s one i know about near duns (blackhill), but it’s not huge amounts/for massive projects as far as i understand – up to £15k, and for non-profit

there are other ways of funding, but there’s no way they would not have investigated these thoroughly..

and cheap! ;)

that looks class!

i want to know why he attached a “loose steel bar”

oh, trakke based in glasgow too, i’ve seen them in the flesh, very impressed http://www.trakke.co.uk/