0. Toddler.

I never use more than Propedal 1. Even then, I often make a conscious decision not to, as I always forget to turn it off until the bottom of a horribly clattery and harsh downhill!

Mine’s from here: pfjones[/url]

Molgrips +1: They do look like some king of terrifying dildo when detached!

Would 100% recommend the detachable option. It is a joy to use, but not to fit. I bought a Westfalia (makers of the OEM Audi towbars as supplied by a dealer) detachable one for my A4 in the end after a lot of research and fitted it myself. The bumper cut out is right underneath where the bumper turns back under towards the front of the car, so from the back you can’t see it at all, unless you’re lying on the floor. However, whether this will be the same for the Passat all depends on the shape/design of your bumper. The cut out was easy enough with a very sharpSstanley knife and a steady hand, using a £2 coin as a template to get nicely radiused corners to it.

My advice – the fitting is easy enough if you are used to working on cars, but very very very time consuming and involves pretty much dismantling the entire back end of your car, inside and out, wheels off, wheelarch liners out, exhaust dropped down for access etc etc. Took me three days and I haven’t even done the electrics yet!

25.4mm

1985, so obviously I wanted him to buy one of these:

..but he bought one of these:

Pretty good match I thought. God I loved that car.

So…back to the technical questions then… and a slight thread hijack…

As per MRanger156, If I just ditch the 44t ring on my SLX triple with the aid of some shorter chainring bolts and shorten the chain accordingly, adjust the stop on the front mech etc.etc; why would one then need a chain guide? I never lose the chain off the 44t ring at the moment, so why would I lose it off the 32t if everything is adjusted accordingly?

Great. You may also like Midlake – ‘The Trials of Van Occupanther’ has those same late 60’s early/70’s style harmonies that I am a real sucker for.

The whole ‘Can I get…?’ drives me mad enough before we even get to the expresso/laaartey part.

You are not in an episode of Friends circa 1997!

Are you actually asking if you can climb over the counter and make yourself a coffee? No!

Len Hankie is an obscure character from a Monty Python sketch:

At 2 minutes in: ‘Len Hankie: Chiropodist, Voyeur, Hen Teaser.’

I laughed so much the first time I saw it, that it’s stuck in my head ever since.

Had a Santa Cruz Rob Roskopp deck back in about 89/90. Whatever happened to them/him , eh?

The one that Edinburgh Bicycle have on offer at the moment is great – bought one last year. About £60 if I recall. I can’t compare it to the Park though, but for the money it’s exceptional value.

&f_SortOrderID=-1&f_bct=]Revolution work stand

Anyone mentioned Midlake yet? – ‘The Trials of Van Occupanther’

My favourite album for years.

I laid both our kitchen floor and bathroom floor without any previous experience, though I did a lot of research befroehand and am fairly practical on the DIY front.

The kitchen floor was a piece of cake, using 300 x 300 ceramic tiles. The bathroom, using 600 x 600 porcelain tiles, was an absolute nightmare, and hand me cursing for weeks, though the final finish on both jobs is pretty much perfect.

The difference is that porcelain tiles (especially the 10mm thick floor ones) require a dedicated wet disc cutter, you can’t just score and snap them like ceramics as they are hard as nails. Also, bear in mind that using black or dark grout (which I presume you’d want to with black tiles) gets absolutely everywhere, though at least will be easier to clean/polish off high gloss tiles (which mine weren’t…)

I think any gloss black tiles eventually dull as they are slowly covered in a fine network of scratches from everyday use, just like the cobweb style swirl marks on a never-polished black car.

I own a Five which I love and bought after testing quite a few competitors and have ridden a mates Heckler quite regularly. They're both great bikes and i love the singe pivot simplicity. Personally I prefer the longer top tube on the Five, I'd probably have to go up a size on the Heckler if I was getting one as it feels very short. Probably just what one's used to though.

That said, if you've ridden a Heckler and like it, then the cost would definitely point to the Heckler – its's just much better value now.

Had exactly the same problem on our Smeg oven, a new element from espares (as per the link above) sorted it, despite me suspecting the thermostat as well. It was a very simple 5-10 min DIY job: remove the door (two catches) then just a couple of screws to undo and two spade connectors to switch over.

Well worth a go before junking the whole thing, and really no need to get anyone else out to fix it unless this doesn't work.

One of the Race Face bar/stem/post bundle deals on Merlin? Great value for all three.

I run the 2.1" Nevegal folding dual compound (DTC) all year round – a great jack of all trades. You could go to a stick-E on the front for extra grip but faster wear/slower rolling.

Beware, they do seem to come up very big compared to most other brands – the 2.35" are huge.

tootallpaul – Member

Addis Ababa is rammed with old beetles- most of which are in really good condition…

I would guess Addis Ababa is slightly drier than Basingstoke though…

Reiss.

Look no further. Definitely the best tailoring on the High St.

+1 for black shoes
+1 for a slim Half Windsor or four in hand knot on your tie, never do the fat Windsor knot unless you are a footballer of spivvy 21 yr old Estate gent.
+1 for never tucking the tie into your shirt or the belt band of your trousers
+1 for only ever doing up the top jacket button.

…and if we're being really anal, always leave the last button of your suit cuffs undone (if they will undo) – it's the sign of a good suit, so one should show it off.

It's all in the details.

2.1 Nevegal DTC in use all year round on my Orange 5 at 25psi. I think they are just about the perfect tyre.

Used to be every weekend off road and a daily cross-London commute. Now (with 9 month old daughter) one ride every 3 weeks if I'm lucky…

Did the same, handed back the new A3 TDI company car and got a 12 yr old A6 2.8 Quattro Avant with 175k on the clock. it's thisty, but I'm £300 approx per month better off as I do minimal milage.

+1 Pedal bearings or loose cleats?

Take the pads out. Push both pistons back into the caliper body as far as they will go using a plastic tyre lever or similar. Undo the caliper mounting bolts slightly to allow it to be moved across until centred evenly over the disc. Reinstall the pads.

Operate the brake, squeezing the lever a few times until the pads have moved out to meet the disc again and the disc and the lever feels normal. The pads should move in evenly. If not then you've got a sticky piston.

This should help too!:

hope caliper centralising vid

If I'm reading the OP correctly – They put new discs all round but re-used the rear pads? That is insane. The old pads will score your lovely new discs straight away.

I would never let kwik fit do anything to my car, except fitting tyres.

Tried a 70mm, went back to 90mm. Climbs better.

[/quote]if it involves anything more serious than oil changes,brake pads or the odd CV gaitor well I'm out of my depth anyway

Oil changes would be made easier with a pit, but how would you change brake pads or CV gaiters with the car parked over a pit anyway?

What Davy said. The iphone is a lovely bit of kit, but it does seem they begin to take over their owners lives.

I think we all agree then. Lovely.

jon1973 – Member
paedo-tache
what exactly does a paedo-tache look like? I was thinking of growing a comedy tache for Christmas (I was thinking Mexican style) to amuse my 7 year old nephew. I really need to stear clear of paedo-tache territory.

I think if you are growing a moustache to amuse a 7 year old boy then I would probably think again about what you just said… :wink:

deadlydarcy – Member
Of course it was made up on the spot, it's a perfectly common turn of phrase
Hmmm, I don't know…sometimes, you hear "ninety per cent" and some times "ninety five per cent" and sometimes "ninety nine per cent" too. Would you say that 99.9% of the time, people use "99.9%" over the others? It may have been pedantic, but just chucking in a ridiculous statistic to strengthen your point actually weakens it.

Like I said, it's a turn of phrase which means 'most'…are you really arguing about this? Can I no longer say most X Factor is crap or are you worried I might offend Simon Cowell?

Is anyone on here actually a homosexual who was really offended by someone edging away from a creepy guy with a moustache who said he had a fizzing sensation behind his penis giving him a hug? If not then you really need to get a life rather than being offended and outraged on someone elses behalf. I must have missed the part when they said 'homosexuality is an assault to God and all gays should be beaten with sticks'

deadlydarcy – Member
It's quite refreshing when 99.9% of TV is either totally sterile for fear of offending anyone, or X Factor style reality drivel.
Is that a real statistic? If so, let us have a link or reference – I'm not so sure that 99.9% of TV is made up of Lark Rise To Candleford and X-Factor type stuff – but if it is, then I'm obviously watching a different country's TV.

Or was it just made up on the spot?

Of course it was made up on the spot, it's a perfectly common turn of phrase. Couldn't you find anything else to be pedantic about?

DrJ – Member
Infantile schoolboy humour. What's not to like?
Nothing really, if you're an infantile schoolboy. Gob-stoppers anyone?

I'm 33, but happy to admit my sense of humour hasn't advanced that much since school. I think it makes a nice change to prat about a bit when the rest of life is so serious.

Also, I really don't see how edging away in jest from a creepy guy in a tracksuit with a paedo-tache who puts their arm around you is tantamount to homophobia? Get real.

Would anyone rather we went back to the Top Gear of old where a range of very dull presenters test drive the latest Ford Orion or Nissan Micra and comment on how a rear wash-wipe is an optional extra on the 1.3L but not on the 1.3 LX or how disappointing the mpg is?

Best show on TV and just about the only thing worth watching these days.

Infantile schoolboy humour. What's not to like? It's quite refreshing when 99.9% of TV is either totally sterile for fear of offending anyone, or X Factor style reality drivel.

The only thing on TG I have ever found offensive was their treatment of that dead cow they once strapped to the roof of a Camaro while in the US. The same episode in which Hammond drove a pick up across Alabama with 'Man Love Rules OK' on the side of it.

Lighten up people.

If you are English and can't speak English properly then you are stupid and/or lazy. Simple.

You're / your really winds me up, but I think the something/somefink thing is down to a regional/class accent.

*takes cover*

bomberman – Member
what is the thinking behind the copper slip thing? I've never understood how it works as its the pad rubbing against the rotor that makes the noise, or so i thought..

The squeal is caused by the pad vibrating at high frequency in the caliper – the copperslip on the back of the pads fills the gap and hence dampens the squeal. Works on cars, and I've always found that it works on bikes too…

Pretty sad indication of people's skill level if they couldn't get down the existing finish without locking up and ripping it to shreds. Having said that, I think the new ending looks great and stopping damage caused by bikes and therefore alienating residents can only be a good thing.

Looks like the tape didn't last too long though… some hefty wooden barricades/logs would have more effect I hope.

55 degrees. It won't heat up any quicker, it will just reach a higher temperature. And you will use more energy maintaining that higher temperature.

Love all the current BMW designs, they just look so right, especially the Z4 and the 3 series coupe is one of the best proportioned cars currently out there. But all the models with an 'X' in front just seem pointless and hideous to me. The X5 was naff enough, but the X6 just seems the epitome of horrendousness.