I’ve owned two over the years – one developed the common sag into its travel not long after I got it – it didn’t really have enough drop in the first place so rather than fix I just sold and got a OneUp one instead

The second one was working when I got it on a second hand bike so I removed and sold it before it could go wrong – replaced with Brand X

I don’t really see the point of going for anything other than OneUp (if you need a short stack height) or Brand X

Both have nailed performance, reliability and cost

The Reverb was the only dropper I’ve ever seen which stopped working when it got too cold

This year I’ve bought the most from CRC, then Merlin and Biketart in that order

SJS are great for their range of stock you can get, I occasionally use Tweeks

For bearings I pretty much only use Kinetic

Not bought much from Tredz for a while – they seem to have become quite expensive

CRC customer services have just been very helpful locating & sending the keys which were missing from my recent ebike purchase

Just ordered some pedals to go with it, hopefully they arrive as they’re half the price of anywhere else

Mine has arrived missing the keys to remove the battery

I’ve been in touch the their customer support who asked me to provide photos of the various boxes which were included which I’ve done, but since then I’ve heard nothing further

At least two of the boxes were poorly sealed and as the box has carry holes it’s possible they dropped out in transit

Assuming they don’t resolve it does anyone know how best to get some replacement keys done – the lock has a four digit number stamped on it

If your 650b bike has a Rockshox fork which is 2019 or newer then most can be converted to mullet just by changing the lowers. The only difference between the 650b ones and 29 is the position of the dropouts

I’ve just done this myself successfully on my 2020 DH bike

I’ve literally just come back yesterday – we were told temperatures were abnormally high for the time of year (high 20’s/low 30’s as opposed to mid 20’s)

There were plenty of tourists about, but not so many that it spoiled the visit – agree on being vigilant about pick pockets/theft – I had an attempt on my backpack and one of the others in my party caught a pick pocket in the act

Fit is the most important thing IMHO, I have Scarpa shaped feet, so I can pretty much buy any pair of these and they will be fine

I typically get 6-9 months out of a pair, climbing as often as you are

I’ve tried Sportiva, Tenaya and Boreal too, of these I only liked Tenaya but they are known for being softer and wear more quickly, the Sportivas in particular just felt incredibly uncomfortable

I got one – they had similar discounts on the e sommet Autumn/Winter last year and sold out quickly every time stock came in – they’ll probably be back in stock and on offer again soon

Milton Keynes

Ours has just changed (start of September)

4 bins
Green bin for garden waste – collected every week
Black bin for rubbish – collected every week
Red bin for paper – collected fortnightly
Blue bin for plastic/cans/glass – collected fortnightly

It’s much better than the old system which was mostly bags, so now the foxes/birds/rats can’t get into the bags

Personally I’m still very much a Shimano fan, I was SRAM up until about 7 or 8 years ago, then switched because it just kept getting more and more expensive & I haven’t seen anything which makes me want to go back

The exploding mechs issue from SRAM was a pretty poor piece of design and I had a couple of mates have it happen to them, one had it two weekends in a row, second time was a brand new mech

I’ll agree that the arrangement for disengaging the clutch for wheel removal is better, but that’s it. I had 6 days on a rental ebike earlier this year which had a SRAM drivetrain and at the end of it my verdict was I prefer Shimano

I’ve also noticed that Dogtag have become particularly expensive even with the regular 20% discounts they send out every so often

Last couple of times I’ve gone with Snowcard – I like the way you can tweek your policy to only cover what you actually need

Here’s my advice…

The best running trails will differ from year to year – some seem to get more maintenance than others. When I was there last year the Chavannes run in Les Gets was in an awful state, worst I’ve ever seen it. Chatel seemed to be getting a fair amount of work, one of the runs was completely shut when we arrived and opened part way through having been completely re-done.

If you’re only doing the bike park trails then a DH rig is the best choice – I went once on an enduro bike – never again

Personally I’m not a big fan of Morgins – always seems to be covered in braking bumps when I’ve been there, the trails are noticably narrower than everywhere else so you’re forced to ride the braking bumps – also feels like there is less margin for error as the trails are so narrow. It’s not the easiest to get to or from – set out early and you’ll get there for about 11am, then to make the lift back from Chatel you’ll need to be on the way back by 3pm at the latest (if you’re staying in Morzine). The trip back is a bit of a push up on tarmac, then a roll to Chatel, onto a bus to get back to the (Chatel) bike park

I’d echo Champery being worth a trip over – check the lift times as depending on the time of year the one at the bottom either runs once and hour or every half hour

There is a Harley Davidson festival which takes place once every two years, usually mid July – we didn’t know about it, but luckily we had a chalet slightly away from the centre of Morzine, so the noise wasn’t that bad – no way I would have wanted to be in the centre

Mine arrived today – I placed the order on the 18th – I had also chased the order up yesterday, which presumably made a difference to getting it out the door

Roll up roll up

Come take a walk up the orange carpet to meet Chipps*

*Please abide by the metal barrier so you don’t get too close

What was the item? Everyone seems keen to lynch the seller without establishing this

I’ve noticed damage on an item that I’ve been packing for posting that I didn’t see when listing, refunding the buyer as a result

I go to most of the main supermarkets at some point during any given fortnight

I’m steadily getting more and more from Aldi/Lidl

Aldi

Good: –
Tinned toms (not the cheap ones)
Pasatta
Peanut Butter
English Mustard
Brown Sauce

Bad: –
Ketchup (reduced sugar one)
Grain Mustard

Sainsburys

Good: –
Vegan Mayo (this is the closest to Hellmans at half the price)
Baked Beans (reduced sugar)

Lidl

Good: –
Tinned toms (not the cheap ones)
Grain Mustard
Bagged Salad

Tesco

Good: –
Vegan Soups (Tomato, Red Pepper and Lentil)

Asda

Good: –
Korean BBQ big bag crisps

No point ever in buying weetabix, no difference to own brand ones

Having been to most Morrisons is definitely the one which has seen the biggest price rises and shrinkflation (only supermarket to have their own brand big bag crisps drop from 150g to 125g and go up in price)

Yet to try an own brand Oat Milk which is as good as Alpro or Linda Mccartney

For the waymarked trails you’re best off parking at the Sandy Lane Car Park (MK17 8TR is the nearest postcode). As mentioned approach from the North – if you’re coming from Centre Parcs you will come in this way.

Both routes are very well signposted and start from the Sandy Lane Car Park. I’d echo the comments about there being no real difference in how technical the trails are. The blue is definitely more boggy than the red, there has been work to improve the boggiest section, but it still has some parts which will be a real slog at the moment.

On the red there are several options to shorten the route if needed – there is one point you come back to three times roughly two thirds of the way round (after a short steep climb) – it should be obvious how to do this if needed.

I own both the Brand X and One Up

One Up 170mm v1 with the One Up remote – just under 3.5 years old – no issues in that time & it hasn’t been serviced. Needs a top up of air via a shock pump about every 6-9 months, which is pretty straightforward

Brand X 170mm with the Brand X remote – bought April this year – bought as a “used” one from Wiggles ebay store (it had seen no use) – no issues in that time & it hasn’t been serviced.

If I was buying again tomorrow it would be another one of those.

I’ve just taken delivery of a new Commencal Meta SX (mullet) – yet to ride it, but I decided I didn’t want a 29er or another 650b bike

I sell a fair bit on EBay, mostly shipped via RM – delivery times have been all over the place recently.

The worst was two parcels which were collected from my house on the 28th November and delivered 19th December – luckily the buyers were both patient, the best was collected from me on the 16th December and delivered on the 19th.

It will probably arrive sometime after Christmas, just a case of being patient.

I had a chat with my local postie and he said management were giving different priorities on a daily basis.

Mine arrived today – one item missing – I’ve sent them a message to try and get it sorted – awaiting a reply

Ordered Sunday, despatched Tuesday, delivered today

Tracking didn’t show anything until it reached the UK – no customs changes (just over £100 order)

I’m in for the 6th year in a row – filling out the participants details after purchase is much better than the old way where you regularly ended up being timed out

We had 6 people all online trying to get tickets and four of us got slots, one person ended up buying tickets on behalf of all of us

I can’t comment on the V2’s, but I have had a set of V1’s for just over two years

The build has proved to be excellent – I am yet to brake a spoke or need to do any truing

I’d agreed the rims are a bit soft – I’ve put one dent into the rear, which did bend back into shape and does still work tubeless

The bearings have been pretty good too – the front hub bearings are still original and smooth – I’ve just replaced the two bearings in the rear freehub – the freehub was one of the most straightforward I’ve ever worked on

Bump for this – they have updated the offer this week to a new selection of items

I’ve picked up my grips now and ordered a set of the Giant Pedals

Not sure how long the offer is going to continue for, but perhaps another set next week

Wherever has stock at the best price I can find

Wiggle/CRC, Merlin, Biketart, Tweeks, Tredz or SJ Cycles

No changes for me so far from Octopus and they have sent me an email to say they aren’t planning to adjust

I’m currently £160 in credit

Heating not on here yet – it’s felt a bit cool and the thermostat in the hall has dropped as low as 17.5 so far this Autumn

I’d normally have a small electric heater out for a small bit of heat in individual rooms, but I’ve held off for now

If I’m on the couch watching TV I have a small blanket to put round my legs – works nicely

I have both a OneUp and Brand X one

The OneUp one is about 3 years old (v1 170mm) – still working well and never serviced – it occasionally needs a bit more air adding via shock pump, but that’s the only very minor issue

The Brand X (170mm) is about 6 months old – works very well – no issues as yet

Both were easy to fit and setup myself

Main reason to go for the OneUp is the short stack height – if you have a kinked seat tube that may well be the best choice

If I were buying one tomorrow it would be one of the above again

I’ve just fixed for five – the rate for a 2 year fix was only marginally better than the 3 and 5 year fixes which were identical. I took the opportunity to reduce the term at the same time.

Interest rates are only going one way at the moment

I’ve now received a deposit for my Astra mentioned above, so it’s sold pending payment/collection

I’m about to put my 2006 Astra Estate 1.9 CDTI up for sale – it’s done 165,000 miles and has MOT until the end of January 2023

It recently had an issue with the throttle position sensor and went into limp mode as a result. It’s been ‘fixed’ by a local car electrics specialist, but I’ve been advised the problem will return eventually (cost for a proper fix will be well north of £1k) which is why I’m selling. I’ve done a couple of hundred miles in it since.

I’ve had it 7 years, it’s been serviced pretty much every year, tyres are all good and it’s got just under half a tank of diesel in it. It’s pretty clean inside and it only gets driven longer distances as I rarely drive locally. I’m looking for £900 for it, based in Milton Keynes.

I’m not aware that any of the ones in MK have suffered theft or vandalism

I think only certain parts of MK are covered by them, so they may not go to the less desirable areas

I’ve had a 170mm v1 Oneup post for about 2 years now – aside from needing to top up the air pressure every so often it has been flawless – would happily buy the same again – easy to fit too – the short stack height is great if you have a kinked seat tube

I’ve just bought a 170mm Brand X for my hardtail and so far that seems to be decent – opted for this as I managed to get a good deal via the wiggle ebay store (tri-sport-resort) and having heard so many good things about them

It depends on the bike, but on my last two bikes both have come with a SRAM drivetrain, which has been swapped for Shimano before the first ride. Both had the grips swapped too. Sometimes the saddle. If it had a dropper with 150mm or less drop then that would be changed too.

If it comes with a slightly odd tyre combination then those too (my most recent purchase came with a fairly narrow Minion DHR on the front which was swapped for a wider Assegai)

I had one of the B’Twin Tilt 120’s which I used for about a year, then sold on. I seem to remember paying about £150 for it, price went up to £170 while I owned it and I sold it for £140

I was very impressed for the money – getting a set of mudguards and even some basic lights included was really useful. 6 speed gripshift worked well and it folded down easily with a few nice design touches when folded

Only negatives were needing a spanner to remove the wheels to change punctures and the seatpost would have been too short if I was much taller (I’m 5’10”)

I’d happily buy another one if I needed a folding bike

I’ve been with Octopus for at least 3 years now

A couple of months ago I was paying £38 a month total (which probably was a bit low), they upped it to £63 then soon after to £92

My guess is £92 will probably be a bit high, I’ll just keep supplying regular meter readings

Back in the day when internally routed dropper posts didn’t exist I had both a KS and X-Fusion one with an under saddle lever. Both were decent, overall the KS one was better – the only real downside is when you’re heading down a fast steep section straight into a steepish climb. Managing to change gear while using your other hand to raise the saddle certainly took some getting used to. Nowerdays I just run an internally routed one, can’t see myself going back to a lever.

Yep – I definitely have more spares in stock – two complete spare drivetrains, one for each bike – I usually have quite a few tyres kicking around, but do have one or two more now

I’ve had several different posties this year, so it’d be difficult to tip any particular one. The Hermes chap has pretty much driven off by the time I’ve opened my front door. I’ve not actually seen him face to face ever.

When I was a child I remember my Mum sending my Dad out chasing the bin men down the road in order to give them a tip. I also had a Sunday paper round when I was a teenager and Christmas tips were the best – I’d normally make about £6ish a week, but at Christmas I’d get between £100 – £150.

Exposure Axis Mk7 (just over a year old) – run on the helmet for MTB
Exposure Toro Mk12 (a couple of months old) – run on the bars for MTB
Exposure Link+ Mk2 (a couple of months old) – this replaced an older version of the same light – run on the helmet for the road

No complaints – if I was shopping for lights now I’d be looking at buying an Axis or Joystick for the helmet (or a Diablo if I could find a good deal) and a Toro or Maxx-D for the bars

With the higher power models just be careful when putting them on charge – I accidentally put the Toro on charge once face down on my carpet – I hadn’t realised the light came on and it melted the carpet fibres (I’m pretty sure the instructions do cover the charging process to avoid this happening)