Yes I sold it on eBay in the end as I was unable to sell it on here. I sold the whole complete bike for not much more than I bought the frame for, despite it having Hope wheels, brakes, XT stuff, Magura forks and nice finishing kit. Thinking about it – it would have probably been better to sell all the bits separately and I’d have got the sale price just selling the parts off and not the frame

The guy I sold it to I delivered it to him myself (IIRC it was a nice house in Leeds) and warned him to keep an eye out on the chainstay and make sure he checked it regularly. So my conscience is clear. Hopefully it serves him well

As far as I am concerned the matter is now closed and I won’t be mentioning it again.

Brant and I have exchanged lots of words over the years about this so it’s nice to sort it out eventually.  It’s a nice gesture he’s made which he really didn’t have to do at all and I wasn’t going to accept it at first but I do need to fix my current bike (actually the one I bought after the inbred in 2009, I still have it as my only off road bike) as the suspension seals have gone and the cranks are bent so at the moment no off road for me.

I wish Brant success in any new ventures, and while I’ll never fit into his special trousers maybe one day I’ll ride one of his bikes again.

This isn’t a new thing. Brant knows I’ve going on about this for many years. So it’s not jumping on the bandwagon at all.

you did not HAVE to get a CC. You chose to to do this, grow up.

Yes i I do know this. I’m not an idiot. Glad you are enjoying your internet hard man role.

I sold it before it failed so I could try and get some money back and wasn’t expecting to have to do so so I got a 0% CC to make up the shortfall for a new bike – Specialized Pitch 2009 which is still my main bike.

Brant – message incoming. That is a very kind gesture. I think I need to forget about this now. Hopefully any new projects you get into are successful.

It’s quite a long time to hold a grudge about the failure of a very cheap frame too.

Wasnt cheap to me. Took me months to save up for it. Was nearly a months mortgage payment at the time.

Personally I wouldn’t go for the very long pads as they might be trickier to set up and are more likely to be a harder V brake compound.

Softest compound you can find in a block which isn’t massive I’d say.

My best ever Cantis.

XT low profiles with Scott Matthauser Superbrake pads. As good as discs in the dry, errr not brilliant in the wet but better than you expect…

Unfortunately the apology you have found didn’t give me back the large amount of money I lost on that frame when I sold it. I saved up for months to buy that frame from my wages so it hurt a lot (had to get my first CC to buy a replacement). And it had nothing to do with the drivetrain as you well know, you didn’t build any clearance into the RH chainstay so if the chain did make its way between the chainset and the frame (quite easy even on a new drivetrain) the chain jammed solid, which over time gouged out the metal leading to frame failure. I’ve ridden and spannered enough bikes (I actually met you at the Malverns when you were Zak Tempest I’ve been around that long) to know what isn’t right.

My brother Peterpoddy proved it was the design of the frame as he got Argos Cycles to make/fit a brand new chainstay which was properly designed AND THE PROBLEM WAS NEVER REPEATED.

And also you forget the time you admitted you knew it was an issue before the frames were made and said “I should have really fixed that”. I’ll try and find a link for that one.

What about the original Inbred frame I had with the crap paint? Thankfully that was the only thing that failed, but the headtube was waay too short because (not 100% sure this is true as it was a long time ago when I read this so apologies if the details aren’t right) you forgot to change the length of the head tubes when you ordered the different sized frames? And the brake mounts so so out of whack they had to be filed back quite a bit so you could fit a brake properly.

And what about the PX Kaffenback frame I had which after I ordered it was told that due to the chainstay/seatstay design I couldn’t fit a cassette with a smallest cog larger than 11t as the chain would jam between the cassette and frame – yet they were still being sent out.

Not everyone has access to lots of bikes and frames and even an On-One/PX frame is a large amount of money for some people, including me. People have a right to buy something which is designed and manufactured correctly. Now I may have been unlucky but I know a few people who won’t touch OO/PX stuff again due to crap manufacturing/quality control or customer service, so I’m not alone. Yes a lot of people have good experiences but there are too many who haven’t.

Yes its been a long time since I personally have had problems (friends have more recent crappy experience) but such was the crappy experience I have had I won’t forget it. I did once order some stuff from PX about 5 years ago and they couldn’t get half the order right and never sorted it it, something which seems to be a motif of theirs.

In the retail business you reap what you sow and consumers have long memories. PX/OO decided to go down the knock-em out cheap and hope it’ll be ok route (seem to be still on it) and I think the time is coming when it’s going to come back and bite them, hard.

There’s nothing wrong with “old” geometry. No matter which age of bike I ride I don’t have any issues keeping up downhill or on singletrack.

My 1994 Kilauea is still the best bike I’ve ever ridden for twisty single track, ok when it gets a bit rocky I could do with suspension but it’s perfect otherwise. My more modern bike is slow and ponderous in comparison. And a lot heavier!!

No wonder it’s dull, it’s a diesel.

What do people actually pay Virgin/Sky/etc for?  There’s a few channels which I guess I’d like but generally good shows end up on Amazon or Netflix eventually.  I guess its the football or something?

To be honest ive been asking myself the same question. Virgin broadband is easily the fastest there is and a whole package isn’t that much extra when you consider how much the internet service would cost on its own.

However ive been finding my virgin internet isn’t as good as it used to be. The speeds aren’t as good and the WiFi signal was a bit naff but it keeps cutting out now too.

Internet service is going to cost £25-30 a month if I leave and I’d have to get an aerial fitted for freeview and get some way of recording it too. So a sky service at £40 a month isn’t too bad and I’ll get more channels and a better WiFi and a nicer interface too.

<div class=”bbp-reply-author”>theboatman</div>
<div class=”bbp-reply-content”>

I think the treatment of Froome is poor by the fans, and think Brailsford is a man without worth or morals.

</div>

I think judging someone you don’t know at all, apart from what you’ve seen on TV or read on the internet, in such disgusting tones tells us all we need to know about your “worth” and how much we should all care about your opinion.

A lot of people criticised Brailsford for what he said about the abuse the riders were getting but I reckon he was spot on. No issues in Spain or Italy but in France it’s constant booing, and very regular spitting, pushing, taunting, throwing liquids over the Sky team. It does not reflect well on the TDF at all. I wish some other teams would back him up on that stance as surely they wouldn’t want it to happen to their team?

French riders seem to be great this year and have shown great riding skills and sportsmanship as well as being quite nice blokes too, pity their countrymen seem to be the complete opposite on the sides of the roads.

Froome v gendarme? I bet the policeman is being heralded as a hero in France today and I’m not buying the “mistaken identity” excuse one little bit. He’s policing the biggest cycling event in the world and he doesn’t recognise the most recognisable rider in the whole race. Sorry no, I’m not believing that for a second.

Did anyone else’s blood run cold when they saw the drop Phil Gil had fallen down? I can see why there had been a death in previous years (yes I know it wasn’t exactly the same sort of accident), I wouldn’t like to fall down there in full MTB downhill body armour, never mind a single layer of Lycra.

It’ll really suck having the injury but he will probably realise he was fairly lucky not to come off much worse – I bet it was terrifying heading towards that wall just after the Fabio Casartelli’s monument.

Rode the remaining 50k out with a broken knee cap!

Hard

As

Nails

Alaphilippe

Me too, lovely to see such an exciting rider and One who is so happy to boot!

Did you hear the post race interview with him where he said he waited for Yates a bit? He appeared to feel that he didn’t think it was fair to take the advantage over a crashed rider but as soon as he saw that Yates wasn’t really up to the descent any more he carries on. That’s some really fine sportsmanship.

No Dave? Really? Well that’s another nail in the coffin for me with Virgin.

I’ve been in my public sector job now for 9.5 years. The first year I got 2% and I’ve got 1% each year since then. Anyone know how to work out how much less I get paid in real terms since I started?

I can cope with it and I like my job but there have been a lot of good people leave as jobs have been cut and wages frozen. It’s been difficult but the last year or two have been especially challenging.

But im not a “headline grabbing” civil servant so I won’t be getting the 3.5%.

But all the other drivers <em class=”bbcode-em”>did lose out, he should have gone through the pit lane therefore lost time relative to them.

Thats being a bit obtuse – like saying other people lost out because he was driving faster. Drivers only get in race penalties when they directly affect another drivers race eg crashing/blocking/forcing off track.

He broke the rules, the team admitted it and he got a punishment. He didn’t get away with it. You could argue that the punishment didn’t fit the crime but it wouldn’t be an argument you’d win as when you compare it with someone getting a 5s penalty (that they take during a pit stop) for hitting someone else what LH did hardly deserves more punishment than he got.

To further show the total ineptitude of OO/PX I just had a quick glance at their website and the advert at the bottom was trying to sell me a sledge. Yes for use on snow. On the hottest day of the year.

Maybe if they concentrated on keeping the paint on their frames or making seat tubes the right size to instead of buying in sledges (for a cycling company to sell) they might get a better reputation.

I wonder if people will be making excuses for OO’s horrific quality control with these helmets the same way they did for the frames?

Bottas – no-one has mentioned what a great driver he is. I don’t think he would have got past LH but he up for showing he has some fighting spirit which was nice to see from him.

A lot of drivers would be whinging about having to obey orders but he’s got his head screwed on right – he probably expected some sort of instruction yesterday and Merc did let him have a go but he was grown up about it and just accepted it, said ok and left it at that.

Vettel – I’ve never enjoyed someone crashing out quite so much, and the fact that he had a little cry and a tantrum about it was the icing on the cake for me. And a bit of potty-mouth too.

Hamilton was in a league of his own yesterday. Watch the full highlights on C4 and his pace combined with how he looked after his tyres in the first stint, while being in the dirty air of other cars was nothing short of insane! No other driver got even close to how many laps Lewis did on the Soft tyre (i’m probably wrong but I recall the driver who got closest was Alonso on 31 laps) and certainly not at the pace he managed to keep up. When the rain came he made up more than 10 seconds on Vettel in 6 laps, dare say even had he not binned it he would be have been a good bet for the win anyway.

Even you are a Hamilton hater you have to respect this, he really is far far better than anyone in recent years when it comes to driving in the wet. While everyone else was slip-sliding around LH was casually lapping faster than everyone else and making huge gains which no-one else around him was doing.

The one thing LH does is trust the team in the pits. He was told over the radio that the rain wouldn’t last long so he stayed out and coped with it – I know Merc haven’t made some great calls recently but the detail they gave to LH was very accurate and gave him the info he needed exactly at the right time. He doesn’t moan when things go wrong, but he does question why things have happended, which he would have every right to.

As much as I enjoyed the win (esp. after Vettels ‘beat them in their own territory’ comment from silverstone), I can’t understand how Lewis didn’t receive a penalty.

Just seems to be random whether they punish people for breaking the rule, or the outcome.

Most punishments come in the race when there has been an incident where someone has done something so someone else loses out, this is either hitting someone, causing someone to crash, blocking an overtake illegally. They are normally dealt with during the race, which is quite right, as the offender should not benefit from breaking the rules.

Lewis did not gain an advantage, he didn’t hinder anyone else’s race. However there was an infringement and he was punished after the race.

There was no consideration of the effects of the infringement as has been demanded recently, the only things that were considered were the circumstances which led up to it happening and the risk it posed to other drivers. If the effects had been considered he would maybe have had no penalty as he surely lost out by driving over the grass!

I think it was a fair penalty to what was a minor issue.

Keeping my current car is an option and I may do this I suppose a slight concern that something will go wrong which costs a lot.

Whatever that cost will be will be a fraction of the cost of a new car! Why not treat it a bit (suspension and ARB bushings and new springs/shocks can transform an older car – why not a full pro valet and machine polish to make it feel like new again?) and try to find common things that fails and head them off at the pass

It has a full service history and drives superbly and is worth almost nothing in terms of part ex.

It’ll still be worth a decent amount but mainly you know you’ve looked after it and you know what might be to come. I have seen more modern luxury vehicles fail a fair bit nowadays – but as they have warranty it doesn’t matter so much.

I’ve been to Cycle Heaven a couple of times and it’s the biggest and probably best shop I’ve ever been in – got a nice cafe too! The guys that worked there seemed really good too.

All of the paints you buy from the big DIY sheds are rubbish. They have less pigment/solids in them but they add thickeners in to make you think they are quality paints, but how runny paint is has nothing to do with it.

If you go to a proper decorators merchants they will sell Dulux Trade (my favourite) and Crown trade paint. My local one does McPhersons trade stuff – their white Eclipse paint is amazing for new plaster and their whites gloss and satin is wonderful. F&B and Little Green paints are also fantastic quality too but expensive – they do lovely colours. The local merchants will also sell quality brushes and rollers for waaaaay cheaper than the big places.

I worked in the DIY retail trade for a long time and I’d never buy from anywhere other than a local merchants.

It does seem poor that On One can’t supply a replacement hanger for a frame they’re still selling

I’m amazed that shower of cretins even managed to get a frame made in the first place.

I can do fast on smooth stuff that my road bike doesn’t like and my xc bike is overkill for. But keep trolling

Hes not trolling, you’re just too sensitive to the true accusation that you, amongst other people, have fallen for yet another niche bike type just to get you to spend more money. Something else had to come along after everyone had fallen for the 27.5 nonsense.

Last time I rang I said I wanted to leave and they said ok, why? I said it was because I was paying a lot of money more than new customers and getting a worse deal. They just said “well that’s how it is” and wouldn’t offer me anything.

I phone Virgin every few years to negotiate a better deal.  Never really been tempted by anyone else when I see how cr@p their internet service is.

Ive been with virgin for a while and have done this repeatedly but it doesn’t appear to be working now even when I said I was leaving.

Internet isn’t as good as it used to be either which isn’t pursuading me to stay.

If you look on ebay you can pick up chain guides for £5ish that’ll do the job. I suspect it’ll be fine without, though.

Any links to a decent one?

Cheap top guides don’t seem that much cheaper than a budget 10 speed shifter or mech though…. ?

Yes thats what I’ve found so far.

I got a used Zee shifter and mech for £33 … and although I had a fairly new chain and cassette hanging about I reckon its worth doing ??? (Or I did).

Thats the issue, budget is mega low but I had a newish 8sp cassette, shifter and rear mech, all in lovely condition – shifters seem to be the expensive thing to get.

What’s wrong with the Salsa one?

I set up an Outlook rule which moves all Cc email into another folder which if I can be bothered I’ll read once in a while. If it’s not directed to me individually then I assume it’s not too important that I know about it.

I have since set the same rule up on other people’s computers and they think I’m sent from heaven it’s saved them so much time.

I get about 30 a day but I make sure I’ve never got more than 15-20 in my inbox at the end of the day.

Cheers-drive – do you think the poor fitting has anything to do with the “not supposed to fit” issue? It looks like the roof bars are slightly curved on your car which might be why the clamp cover has opened out a little.

It does seem very odd to lose so little time when her had to stop so many times. But he was hardly on camera from what I watched – this may or may not have been deliberate – so could have gotten away with it.

I was also told when I bought them that the extended ones could fit a wider range of cars cos you can adjust the width of the feet.

That’s a very good point.

But the same can happen on any stage, nerves over an upcoming sprint or sharp climb have exactly the same effect.

Flat stages  are fine but they need to be spaced out more.

This is for sure. I love the types of stages they’ve got this year but mixing them up across the weeks may have been better.

I think the variety of stages this year is excellent. If it’s meant to be the ultimate test of a road cyclist I can’t see why any type of stage should be ruled out.

Complaints about the pave seem to come from the people who aren’t any good at it or who have countrymen who have to drop out.

Richie Porte dropping out isn’t great but to blame that on the pave (which someone on the ITV coverage did) is a bit of a stretch.

I think Chris Boardman said that a mix of types of stages really shows who the best all round cyclist is. Otherwise you just get the time trialists/climbers guaranteed to win. This year it’s been blown wide open, whoever wins will be a very worthy winner indeed.

Oh, and if you are picky/discerning (delete as appropriate) think twice about the Whispbars anyway.  The niggly faults nearly every owner on this thread has mentioned will make you wish you went for Thule pretty quickly (in my experience).

Theres someone at my work with the same car as me with Whispbars so I think I’ll ask them how they have found them and it’ll give me the chance to inspect what the quality is like on their car.

I had the Thule system on an older car and I really didn’t like how far they sat away from the roof, it really put me off them. The Whispbar seem to be much closer. Not sure if I prefer the closed end type or the traditional style which extends past the mounts. I’ll probably have 2 bike on the top and I don’t think I’ll ever need a roof box so it should be ok.

Pics of colleagues car when I saw it in the car park. Looks quite a neat install

Don’t use eBay.  Your head might explode :-).

I use it very often. Head not exploded yet. 🙄