According to the last tax man I spoke to, cycle expenses can be claimed at 20p / mile, motorbike at 24p and car at 40p / mile.

At £4.40 for your journeys, you'd at least have earned yourself a pint.

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Like any cable brakes, the cables will stretch a bit after they're first used.

When well set up, my old BB7s were great. I eventually got rid of them because, unlike hydraulic discs, they weren't auto-adjusting so I had to keep winding the pads in as they wore down, sometimes a couple of times in one ride. But at least with BB7s you can wind in both pads, you don't have to keep resetting the mounting.

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The Old Fart in me says go for something old because if it has no power steering or ABS then you'll learn to drive properly, plus it will be easy and cheap to maintain and a good introduction to mechanical stuff in general (Haynes manual plus socket set will go a LONG way!).

However, a battered old car is Not Cool. Especially an unreliable one. Do some research on classic cars (buy a few magazines) if you're interested.

My first car was a Citroen ZX. Really really plain ordinary car but had a diesel engine that would live forever and was incredibly cheap to insure. You can pick them up for a couple of hundred on eBay or car auctions (and insure for about the same amount, probably).

I'd also recommend a 2CV. Stupidly cheap to insure, incredibly easy to fix, lots of character, but not very much bling value.

HTH.

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Fit the biggest tube you can. I'd go for the 2.1-2.6. It may be (very) slightly heavier but when you inflate it inside the tyre it won't have to stretch to fit, so it should be thicker, which means more puncture resistance. If you're careful and inflate the tube very slightly before fitting it, you should be able to avoid pinching it and it should fit neatly.

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2.25 maxxis advantage 60a pair

I'd like these if they're going – I do a nice stodgy banana cake, how does that sound? I'll be the one getting thrown around as I badly ride my rigid Solitude…

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Was out today in and around Leith and Holmbury Hill. It was lovely! Only a couple of boggy spots but generally dry and riding well.

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AFAIK, design, office, warehouse and manufacture of the higher-end stuff is all in the UK (can't remember the name of the place – Livingston? – half way between Glasgow and Edinburgh), the more mass-produced stuff is done overseas, but they still try and keep things UK-based where possible, and they're a fairtrade-sort of affair. I remember an Endura rep saying something like their marketing could focus on being as farty as Rapha or as hippy as Howies but they preferred to keep it simple and make stuff that just works well.

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Unlike pretty much every other major manufacturer I can think of, Endura have an excellent customer service team. They have had quality issues (although I'm still using a pair of MT500 longs from about ten years ago) from time to time but they're a lovely bunch of people who actually care about quality. They're all cyclists and they make their stuff for cyclists – if you've got a problem give them a call and have a chat.

I don't work with or for Endura but IMO they're the best cycle clothing company out there – they aim for their top-end stuff to be as good, if not better than, any other top-end stuff, yet their entry-level stuff is often better value than, well, Altura. If you guys are breaking their stuff, don't just stop buying their stuff, let them know! By doing so you'll help their R&D, improve future clothing, and chances are they'll replace or repair your kit for you…

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It's the sort of write-up I'd be happy to spend time writing if I'd had a good experience – Tony's just started his own small business, he's a long-time contributor to the forum and a fantastic rider (and a nice bloke, by all accounts – I haven't met him). I wish him and his business well.

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Sounds interesting Matt – could you email me at inigopete at hotmail dot com please?

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My point is not whether my groupset is outdated or not, it's that the solidity and durability of a spinning bike permanently set up in the corner of my cellar seems to make much more sense to me than wearing (however gradually) through my kit which I've paid more for so that it's nicer to use outside on roads and hills.

And yes, I could go outside. But I live here. See all those criss-crossy lines? They're junctions. Most of them have traffic lights, crossings or at least speed bumps. Outside where I live is not much fun. So I'd rather stay inside, get fitter and take the bikes to nicer places to enjoy them.

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Oh yes, forgot Royce – superb quality, and they're British…

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– chain, because it wears out at the same rate (in fact faster) than the cassette, so if I'm swapping wheels I also need to swap chains so the chain and cassette are matched. Maybe less of a problem indoors but can certainly lead to awful shifting problems out on/off the road.

– chainring(s) because if I start getting to the end of a chain (and cassette)'s life, they start eating chainrings and making the teeth hooked. Not as fast as chains and cassettes wear, but I reckon a new chainring for every three or four new cassettes, or else you get chainsuck.

It's usage that wears out parts, friction on each moving joint will eventually make it looser; I've got an expensive lightweight drivetrain that works really well, it seems pointless to wear through most of its lifespan just sitting inside. Granted, it will probably last longer being used in a clean dry environment rather than a dusty dirty wet one. Rollers are a nice idea but still use the road bike and its bits…

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Cheers uplink, that's what I was thinking of.

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Holy cow, scaredypants, I was thinking of a couple of hundred, not a couple of thousand!

The spare wheel / cassette / chain / chainrings thing is a possible option, but a real faff.

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Heavy isn't a problem, it will live in the corner of the cellar. Expensive is relative – it will probably work out cheaper than a turbo and a new groupset every few months.

Bikes like the ones on the Spinner site seem to be very adjustable, and from the few I've used at the gym I've been able to tweak them pretty well to my riding position in a minute or two…

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Phil Wood hubs are utterly excellent. I've abused one horribly on the commuter for the last few years and it's still buttery smooth without any play after 20,000 miles. And, when I occasionally clean it, it comes up shiny and gorgeous as new.

The one on the back of my singlespeed is still lovely as ever too. Can't rate them highly enough. Not the lightest out there, but really indestructibly good value for money.

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Don't go for a toupee – they aren't strong enough. I've seen so many broken toupees, they're pretty much the same as an SLR.

I have SLR XC gel flows on my three favourite bikes and they've lasted ages under all sorts of abuse. That, for me, is more important than a couple fewer grams…

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Internal cable routing.
Proprietary parts like Headshok, even 3-bolt disc rotors etc.
Bloody stupid geometry – Gary Fisher G2 for example where you need a specific fork to make it work and nothing else will do.
29er/96er/any odd wheel combination.
Anything overly complicated for the sake of it – those electronic lockout Leftys that Cannondale did for a while.

If something breaks I want to be able to go into a shop and either get it repaired or buy a replacement. Not wait 4 months while the supplier works out if they can find the totally unique and completely unobtainable part that fits into their one-off only-made-for-a-year now-out-of-date widget.

I almost completely agree with you, however I have to say Cannondale Headshoks when properly maintained are the smoothest and best-performing suspension system out there. But most people don't keep them properly maintained…

Stupid geometry and internal cable routing are just a PITA, as are bad disc brakes (almost all cable discs fall into this category) and under-top-tube cables.

That said, I haven't bought a complete bike for a _lot_ of years. I've built them up from scratch.

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I realised last week that I haven't ridden a mountain bike since July. I could really do with finding that love again… :(

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I don't know about new ones, but last years weren't. The clicky things were in different places and I think they were different shapes. HTH.

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No damage, no injuries, just a daft accident. Jeez, unwind yer knickers.

Yes, but "nudged at low speed with no significant effect" doesn't sound so sensational. ;)

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Not sure what happenede to my original post, it seems to have been oddly edited by the forum software…

Thanks for the info – I'm torn whether to build it up or sell it. I've probably got too many bikes already, and I've already got a DMR Sidekick and a pair of Pikes waiting to be played with, the result of some summer bargain-buying that I haven't had time to build up yet!

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Trout, I want to chat with you at some point about dynamo-powered (or at least semi-dynamo-powered battery-supported lighting)…

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They’re OEM forks (2007s?). Mostly fine but you won’t get a warranty. Well, nothing beyond the statutory 28 days you get with more or less any Internet purchase, anyway.

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Pretty much what RudeBoy said.

Macs don’t get viruses; their OS structure is much more innately secure (although Vista is starting to get there). More or less all the basic multimedia stuff you need comes with OS X anyway, most of the high-end stuff started life on Macs in the first place.

Macs hold their value much better and Apple’s “Applecare” 3-year no-quibble warranty really is excellent (however, never buy a Rev.A product) – have a look at three-year-old Macs on eBay vs 3-year-old PCs. The obsolescence rate on Macs is much lower.

It’s a cheesy cliché, but a Mac “just works”, and it keeps on working. Willy-waving PC users will always find extremes where their Vista boxes outgun Macs, but generally if you buy a new Mac you’ll have a computer that will work well for at least three or four years with minimal updating or system faffing and will stay secure for that time. You’ll never get that from a Windows PC.

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The WTB dual compound (slid on with hairspray, natch) grips, preferably in grey / black, have been my favourite for about ten years. They’re ace.

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Like mamadirt, I liked it before. I like it now, it’s changed without following everyone else.

I hate a lot of other forums. Avatars, signatures, animated smileys, post counts, joining dates, locations, all that stuff is just ****.

I like the way 2 forums can be viewed as one, or separately. I like the fact there’s no PMing, it would take up lots of server thinking space and besides, there’s email for that.

In short – nice one STW. :)

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Honestly people, tell me what is the point of F1?

It’s a bit like the space race – there’s a lot of public interest, a fair bit of willy-waving, a ridiculous amount of money poured into R&D and at the end of it we get a few more useful inventions…

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oh, and for a grand, try and go for something that has at least Shimano 105 on it, ideally also with wheel with the “normal” number of spokes. Most manufacturers will try and sell you wheels with a low spoke count but unless you’re racing, you’re better off trying to get wheels with more spokes instead as they will almost always be more durable.

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That’s brilliant. Just brilliant.

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Nothing says “I pay far too much attention to what forumites tell me” more than a Focus.

Go to your LBS. Go to a few of them. Tell them you’re looking at spending a grand on a road bike (it’s a _very_ popular price point) and try out as many bikes as you like. A good LBS will not only set up the bike properly for you (this makes a MASSIVE difference) but will also give you a discount on any accessories and probably a couple of free services too. Be nice to them (beer and Jaffa Cakes) and they’ll probably look after you for a very long time.

I hate Bianchi, but that’s mainly because I’ve had to deal with their warranty department (or rather their 2-person UK office “we’ll have to send that back to Italy, it’ll take 3 months for a response (4 if August is involved)” department). Shop around, ride lots, make up your own mind. And try to steer clear of anything that arrives on your doorstep in a box.

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Get something from a good manufacturer

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Thanks for all the info everyone! Sorry, hadn’t checked this thread for a while…

I was planning on playing with a couple of ideas for shifters and levers so I don’t think I was after anything “beautifully surfaced” or, in fact, any particularly fancy visualisations. I’d like to mock up a few components and see how they fit together, but I can always do that with actual models rather than on screen if necessary. (or, because I’m fairly used to the old school way of computing, I’ll play with wireframes!)

I think an iMac is probably the way forward for everything else I need to do, and VMware or Parallels for the PC-dependent stuff.

Thanks for the advice.

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I’ve got an excellent pair of the Endura ones, can’t remember what they’re called, but they’re cheap as chips and good quality.

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interesting… I suspected that the industry standards might be more PC-based than Mac. I’m only slightly influence by the thought that an iMac will look much nicer on my desk than the PC clutter that’s currently there!

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