I agree, buses should be withdrawn altogether. As someone who once drove for a living in London, it was fantastic when they all went on strike. The roads were clear!

TFL should give warning when services are going to be suspended and ensure passengers aren’t left stranded. They should have an action plan for snowy condidtions. If Councils and TFL had a joined up plan this would not be necessary. (the councils didn’t grit key areas which is why TFL withdrwe the service). Like they didn’t have days of warning that this bad weather was on the way!

Councils come from the same mould as TFL. Commercially unfocused! Did you hear that Camden council shut their parks “due to health and safety reasons”. WTF!?

I did my DAS test so next time I get work in London, I won’t be dependent on TFL.

TFL workers are a bunch of work shy wxxxxxxs 😆

Any excuse to wag off huh!

Always wear a helmet!

I have worn one since a mate went to Chamonix 10 yrs ago whereupon he was advised to get one. The next day he came off splitting the helmet in two. Saved his life – no question.

All scenarios warrant the use of a hat.

Sudden change in weather in Hyde Park:

I have 3 bikes; 2 mtbs and 1 road bike. A bit excessive I know, but they all evolved from previous buying mistakes. I do have lame justification however: Mine are gradually being adapted to be handed down to my two growing kids. The good bits get moved to my latest frame, they’ll get the older bits. Buying and selling on eBay makes it all possible.

Hoping to splash mega bucks on an all new bike and “out” one of the cheap kids bikes which they have outgrown later in the year, or perhaps I shall build a top end XC ride if the bits appear. Ultimately I would settle for the MTB if I could only keep one. I’d possibly get a spare set of wheels with slicks on for road rides when offroad is too quagged out.

Too much money = too much choice!

Nah, go for it. Two inches of snow overnight won’t make a lot of difference.

Yeah, also check that the rotor is running true

If the pads don’t come back and bite the disc, or they feel spongy, you have air in the system. Bleeding will then be necessary.

Bleeding isn’t a that trickier a task, but you have to be careful not to get fluid on the pads or rotor.

Each brake should have a set amount of fluid. If there is too much, it may work fine for a while, but depending on whether it is an open or closed system, will present binding issues – especially when the brake gets hot. If it does, put a length of bleed hose on the bleed nipple and loosen to allow about a quarter of a lever pull’s worth to flow out. Re-tigthen without letting go of the lever, put a rag round the pipe and make sure no fluid spills when you remove the pipe. If you want to go belts and braces, after locking off the bleed nipple,drop the wheel out, remove the pads before removing the bleed hose. Test ride and see how it behaves. I have done this in the Alps several times. It’s when you get fluid heating up that you get trouble. Long decents cause pump up (heating of the brake fluid), hence why I have had to fix several of my mate’s bikes as well as my own. Use DOT 5.1 fluid if you intend doing any Alpine Downhill runs.

The other issue is that you might have a loose wheel cone. This will allow lateral movement of the hub and can cause light rubbing and “chinging” noises of the rotor when cornering.

The journalists will be more excited about this than the kids at the local primary school.

1st clean off with dry rag. Then isopropry alcohol if they look contaminated. Then apply a small amount of houshold detergent, then wash with copious amounts of hot water. Rinse thoroughly with more clean water. Then take a short spin, followed by drying with more clean rag. If you put the bike away with wet pads in cold weather, it is very likely that rust will form on the rotor by the time you come to next use the bike. The way to avoid this rusting is to remove the wheels prior to cleaning and refit them when dry.

Pads should be removed periodically, washed and lightly deglazed on a piece of emery cloth on a flat surface. Clean out any crud with cotton buds that has got onto the pistons or hard to get to parts of the caliper. Re-fit the pads with a very light smear of copper slip on the back of the pad.

This service is one of several things you can do to stop or reduce squealing.

If only these were fit and forget!

LOL!

I see where you are coming from re. your riding position. I do wonder if this is contributing to your problem. I find technical stuff often jarrs your back, so that prone roadie position is not ideal. It was similar ride position on my MTB before rebuild and I used to use bar ends too. Siunce changing the ride position i find i have a lot more control.

I have a mere 20 years MTB experince compared to your 30 on road. I’m not much of a road man these days due to all to frequent scary motorist behaviour. Maybe I have been unlucky on the road, but i feel safer away from the public highway. I do have a road bike I converted to a hybrid (after a load of hassle with sti gear/brake levers). It better suits my needs in this configuration and is a whole lot more comfortable.

I did a lot of road riding in my youth and built a couple of offroad bikes (10 years before the mountain bike genre was invented).

Perhaps I should reregister with a name containing the word old too! 😉

A product fit for the purpose should not be so temperamental. Over engineering is ok at competiton level, where money is no object and tecnicians ensure everything is perfect for each event. Air suspension in forks is clearly not robust enough for general use. We are picking up the tab and suffering the consequences!

It is evident that the absence of gaiters to protect seals from the ingress of dirt and moaiture is a massive oversight by the manufacturers! If it wasn’t we would all be arguing about something else, such the ever changing standards E.G. The multitude of types of headset, bb designs, handlebar and seat tube thicknesses, ISO disc mounts/post mounts, ISO disc rotor mountings/Diatech mounting/Shimano splined disc mountings. 8spd, 9 spd, 10 spd. STI shifters with integral brake assys. Maxle/20mm axle/QR skewer. Lots of limitations for no good reason, but sold to us as standards.

“What is my point?” you ask. My point is that manufacturer’s are constantly re-inventing and un-inventing the wheel. Much of it is about the advancement of technology in specific applications, but a lot more is to do with keeping the factory lines moving and getting us to buy new bikes and new compnents more often.

My old forks (discredited in this forum as being no better than rigid forks) have cost me nothing in 10 years and have been trouble free. Conversely, my new forks are under a warranty claim after 9 months and even if they hadn’t failed, recommendations from top people in the fork service business, as well as the UK distributor, are that service intervals will be due at 9 to 18 month intervals. It depends on usage, but each time will cost me £75 plus a courier fee to get them to the service centre. Assuming I ride frequently, over the same period, I will spend between £550 and £1100 keeping them servicable. This assumes no failures. How likely is that judging by the content of this thread???

I was told that a service would cost £35 before I bought these so I feel a tad miffed about my predicament. I also have air shocks from Fox and O2. The O2 just cost £70 to have a seal replacement and nitrogen recharge. The shock was in mint condition, but the failure was due to seal break down after 2 years. So I should expect to get no more than 18 months out of this before the next service assuming i treat it well etc. I have spoken to a lot of people about shock and fork service lately and this is an issue that many customers will have no idea about until their units pack up. I am looking at annual servicing costs of £300 for two bikes. Make car servicing look cheap!

The current crop of forks are too complicated, too temperamental. Good engineering is making a product that consistently works in it’s intended application, that is suited to the purpose. That doesn’t cost a fortune to keep servicable. The manufacturer’s know what they are doing and we are being mugged!

David Attenborough is a legend and has openly declared that he is not affected by or a believer in any form of superstition.

A scientist with a great depth of thinking.

The world needs more rational thinkers like him!

Hey this info on exercises is all good.

A tens machine is a gadget that is supplied with two sets of probes. You have self-adhesive pads that the you stick to your body in the affected area and hook the probes up to. A small pulsed current is applied and this causes the loacalised muscles to respond. The feeling is one of tingling/numbness and you have a gain control to up the output to a bearable level that overcomes the pain you were feeling. It worked for me when I had a back injury. I can’t remember, but i think this machine has the effect of stimulating recovery of damaged tissue in the affected area too. I would speak to a qualified physiotherapist about the matter as they know what they are talking about.

Exercises to free up your spine and building in strength to your abdominal wall to support your spine are key to preventing further injury, but see a physiotherapist for advice if you haven’t done so already. They charge £30-40 per session. You will probably need a letter of referral from your GP though. Tell him you are going to pay for it so you don’t have to wait months etc.

What about your bike? How is it set up? Have your tried a different stem or bars, or changing your saddle position. Have you tried a different bike?

I have two MTBs. One has a very high bottom bracket resulting in a more prone riding position. It used to give me a bad back. I now have longer forks and a shorter riser and wider bars. The ride is now a lot more comfortable and no back problems since. My other bike is better still.

I tried out a Specialized Stumpjumper FSR last year which has a much more upright geometry. It was this that prompted me to spend a lot on my bike to resolve my problem.

I also have an article on matching frames to rider physiology if you are interested. It is aimed at roadies and a bit involved, but there are a few tips on resolving aches and pains, numbness etc. Enlightening stuff.

Hope you get well soon and get a comfortable sustainable ride sorted out.

Glazing packers may well have caused this, but all the ones I have ever come across are as wide as the thickness of the whole double glazed pane. Maybe the installers have used something else.

I too was mugged by the promise of 10 year double glazing warranty on my conservatory. I have numerous units that have blown and have let in moisture. I might just knock the conservatory down and build a proper brick and tiled roof extension as it is over 10 years old now. Probably not much more expensive in materials than replacing my 25 toughened units. Some have Georgian bar inserts and there is also the risk of the hassle that some won’t fit.

I have wondered how feasible it might be to remove a glazing pane and split the two glass panes. If this can be done, the glass cleaned up with a suitable spirit and a flat blade scraper, then you have at least recovered the glass. A reputable local glazier could then re-assemble them with new spacing beads and the correct gas.

I don’t understand why some units last 20 years in the same position as others that only last 2 or three. I can only assume these cowboy outfits cut corners with the quality of materials and don’t have people properly trained to do the job.

It’s a mad that MP’s haven’t legislated against these companies electing to go bust and immediately restarting under a new name, same building, same staff, when they are clearly not insolvent! These guys are running rings round the system and it is not fair to allow them to rip off trusting punters and leave them with all this hassle and expense. It also tars the rest of the industry with the same brush.

I rode a CG125 when I did my DAS. The instructor must have got bored because he asked us to go up to maximum speed on a dual carriageway. Being bored with the stupid thing and enduring the most extraodinary pain in the backside from it’s spindly little seat, I ragged the backside off it. I managed 70mph no problem (and i’m 6ft 3″ and not a slight build). The instructor was amazed that I managed to get so much out of it on the flat and with no tail wind – it was really funny looking at his expression of dismay. I just wanted to get back to the centre so i could have a sit down!

Yeah, use pedal power, no road tax, etc etc. Will keep you fit too. The problem with push biking to work is that so many firms don’t have secure storage and/or showering facilities.

Quote “nickc – Member – RST Mozo Pros may have lasted a while, but they are shite as a form of suspension. May as well use a rigid fork for all the suspension and damping quality you get from them. And, believe it or not, hydro brakes are indeed fit and forget items for most people. Maybe you’re just unlucky?

Obviously never ridden these forks. They are far from what he describes as “shite”. Not as tunable as modern forks, but very plush. My only criticism is that they could do with being stiffer.

I only know two people with disc brakes that have had a fit an forget experience. They are infrequent riders. For a casual ride round the woods, you may have no significant problems other than incessant squealing, but when you use them on any significant descent, that is the time that they flake on you.

Dirt in seals, abrasion – subsequent corrosion, add heat from long periods of braking and you are leaking fluid onto and ruining your expensive pads. Just what you need on a weekend away in the Welsh mountains!

Or overheating rotors, pump up on closed systems – was later informed that these were the wrong system for big decents. So bought open type: total loss of brake action when you let the lever out on a long alpine decent. No brakes when you are on a steep down hill section is very scary!

As I started using hydraulic brakes 10 years ago (Hope C2), i guess was the guinea pig. Disc brakes were very scarce then. The claim that they are fit and forget is so far from the truth.

Regards the other comment I read claiming that gaiters trapped mud is odd. If you make sure you haven’t knowcked them off the crown or the lowers they maintain a perfect seal. Sheesh, some people really have no engineerin g brain!

CBT is very difficult to fail. Think of it as a filter for no hopers for whom it is kinder to be protected from the incredibly high risks of motorcycling on a small bike on the public highway (or any bike for that matter).

CG125’s may be cheap, but they are very uncomfortable, even for a few miles and are underpowered. The Honda Varradero 125cc is significantly more powerful and looks more like a 250cc (or bigger). It’s design fits into a category that is described as “adventure tourer”. It isn’t big enough or powerful enough for touring, but essentially this category of machine is a cross betweeen a tourer and a trials bike. I therefore expect it would fair well on rough tracks, but the user may need to adapt the tyres when due for replacement.
These bikes aren’t cheap compared to the CG125, but when you see them both you will understand why. One has a fairing, cast wheels – a modern design. The other looks like a “sit up and beg”, “cheap as chips” training school machine – which is what it is. Varradero’s are great value and hold their money well because they are cheap to tax, insure and maintain, but have adequate power for short commutes and you won’t look like a numpty riding one!

Happy hunting!

With Sterling at such a low, it is far from ridiculous that imported goods are rising in price! No thanks to Gordon and Alistair!

There used to be fit and forget forks! I have a pair of RST Mozo Pro’s with protective gaiters sealing out all the abrasive rubbish one picks up on any off road ride. The alloy stanchions are mint and these forks have never let me down since I bought them in 1999! I fitted them to an old frame last year and bought Rocksox Revelation 426 Dual Air U-Turns as an upgrade to a really solid frame – an old friend. Well, you guessed it, the new high tech, gaiterless forks have developed a fault with light use in dryish conditions and with meticulous care. Meanwhile the Mozo Pro’s endured their eighth Chamonix Alpine downhill holiday without even the slightest glitch. I did meet a guy cursing in a cable car because his £1000 fork’s air seals had gone!

I swear I never touched these forks for any maintenance up until last year and that was only because I wanted to spray the lowers black to match the old frame which I had acquired. The only thing I have done was to run a drop of oil on the stanchions now and again.

I was assured that the Rockshox were much more reliable than other makes including FOX’s, but this was just bike journalist’s tosh! Just like the articles I read about disc brakes. They quoted in big letters “fit and forget”. Just tosh! I have spent a fortune on three sets of hydraulic brake systems and had issues with upteen rotors. Pads don’t last long either and cost £30 a time. Not cheap and certainly not fit and forget!

High tech. bike gear usually equals high tech. headaches. If you are at the leading edge of the sport with sponsors, any weight saving advantage is worth the extra money. Money is no object.

When I first saw forks without gaiters I wondered how long the seals would survive. I think gaiters disappeared for three reasons, 1) cost 2) they don’t look good 3) to increase the volume of sales.

Do we really need air springs when the bullet proof and cheaper alternative of a suitably stiff spring and elastomer will suffice?

Grrr! :lol:lol. Message to the industry: Remember the old acronym: KISS (Keep it simple stupid!)

Time to deploy the “NOKIAN HAKKA WXC300’s” !

I highly recommend the Sience museum. It’s free, as is the Natural History Museum. Harrods is not far from there and you can get lunch in one of their less formal restaurants. Not cheap, but not exorbitant either. Harrods itself is worth a look, especially the food halls. Not much fun for kids, but the toy section isn’t bad.

Check and see if the funfair is still operating in Leicester square. Very well lit up at night and so is Picadilly Circus – an easy walk from Covent Garden. There is also the London Transport Museum in Covent Garden. Covent garden is buzzing at night with no shortage of eateries. You will also find street performers drawing big crouds around the Piazza.

See a show! I recommend Joseph for the kids with (a short walk away from where you are staying on the Strand). Booking at short notice might be difficult, but there are kiosks around that sell last minute tickets.

The Hard Rock Cafe on the corner of Hyde Park is an experience, but you often have a long wait. To get round this they give out pagers so you can go off. Green Park is opposite and Buckinham Palace is a five minute walk across this park.

Right near the London Eye, you have the London Aquarium (under the old GLC building)

The London Dungeon used to be a great attraction, on the South side of London Bridge. Also near here is HMS Belfast which you can go on.

There are loads of things to do, but I would check everything out online and have a good look at Google Earth before you travel to get your bearings and avoid dissapointment.

Have a great break!

“I am just stepping outside, I might be gone for a little while”

Rudeboy,
Don’t forget your shovel, torch, whistle, 4 season sleeping bag and kendal mint cake!

It’s perilous out there!

Good luck old fellow!

Wow that’s old! I had the FSIE and mine had a front disc brake (circa 1977) -whoopee do! 😀

I see that yours has footpegs, not fixed pedals as per mine – all due to legalities of what constitutes a moped I understand. I see you have the add on chromed frame bars too.

Happy days them!

Sorry, not wishing to sound overtly negative or disrespectful. Merely highlighting the fact that there are different bikes for different activities and that there is a very good reason for this. I did think you were joking, but I apologise for being flippant.

Spending a lot of money on adapting a design that is already highly compromised for use on road is, in my opinion, a waste of time and money. If you have space, spend what you would have spent on the Brompton and get a mountain bike. I have a freeride MTB, XC MTB and a hybrid for commuting. I used to think one bike for all uses was sufficient and ended up with extra bikes because I kept getting it wrong. I now have three rebuilt machines that are very good bikes (not the latest and greatest). Each is suited to their respective areas of use. I have thought about a quirky bike project just to be different, but this would be an excess beyond excess.

Getting a bike with geometry to suit your physique and intended use will make a massive difference to your ride! Brompton’s, by comparison to a large wheeled bike are about as far away from a tailored experience as one can get. Please try out some other bikes to see what I am getting at (if you haven’t already).

It doesn’t have to cost the earth to acquire a new machine if you are able to pick up an old bike/frame online. All the bits you could need are available online (www.ebay.co.uk, http://www.wiggle.co.uk, http://www.chainreactioncycles.com). Frames can be bead blasted and powder coated for as little as £35 if repainting is required. There are also cheap bikes in most stores, which would be the simplest and easiest route. I try and support my local independant bike shop, but I find they mostly cater for entry level stuff. The ones that don’t are great. If you have one such shop locally, give them a shout. They should help you whatever your needs and wants.

Good luck in whatever route you take!

What about the best sounding bikes ever?

I haven’t heard better sounding bikes than the Laverda Jota and the Triumph Trident (both of the 1970’s). Those who have heard these will know what I mean. That three cylinder sound without too much silencing. At moderate revs, they would be flying without the high pitched howling.

Sad that a lot of modern bikes have so much silencing that they sound like hairdryers, or when revved up, sound like an angry hornet in a jam jar!

You said the hospital told you there was nothing they could do except wait and see?

When my boy was about 3, he pulled one of the handles off an antique balnket chest that had been nailed on with carpet tacks. There were three holes and only two tacks and he had managed to pop one in his mouth in the few seconds he had been out of our sight.

We took him without delay to A and E and they took an X-Ray. We were sent home feeling relieved when nothing was found.

My son had bumped his head on a previous occasion and as a result of this second visit, we recieved a warning letter that if he was taken in for anything else, we would get a visit from social services as they suspected we were being negligent parents! I guess they are protecting their backside’s, but there was actually evidence that we were doing the complete opposite of what they were inferring – namely we took him to hospital for treatment without delay. If we were trying to harm him, a letter like the one we received would have discouraged us from seeking help.

Sad world we live in!

I hope your “littlun” is ok, mine reached his teens not long ago (poor little abused blighter!)

Why Softee, why?

Tiny wheels will sink in the mud and stop dead at the slightest obstruction. It will be an uncomfortable, ustable ride.

Your bike is engineered to go on flat surfaces and fold up for easy transportation/storage. I doubt if it would stay in one piece if you took it offroading on a regualr basis.

If it was a good idea to use bike like yours for offroading, mountain bikes would have all been made like a Brompton, but it just isn’t!

Even a really cheap and nasty fixed frame would surpass the performance of your folder.

A good windup matey!

Becton Alp dry ski slope 5 minutes ago! (just off the A13)

Brings back a nasty memory I have of a really fat bird walking through central Chelmsoford in a mini skirt and with no knickers on. Eww!!

The northerner effect is moving south!

I know a head teacher and by all accounts her stress is dealing with the parents and other external matters like political meddling. The kids are relatively easy to manage and are the only reason for continuing her effort!

Teaching IS a real job, done by highly qualified people, to exacting goverment standards, but with insufficient support from county councils.

There are a lot of people who have precious little academic qualifacations who salaries dwarf that of a teacher. I personally can’t work out why they do it for such little reward, but they do have good pensions (at the moment). Without this, i’m sure our schools would have to close due to lack of staff.

The good or excellent teachers command my respect!

I still think drinking more and having more sex is the remedy. 😉

Epping Forest 10 minutes ago:
http://www.talisman-activities.co.uk/downloads/newsletters/newsletter5/newsletter5_files/deep%20snow%20La%20Grave%202006.jpg

Drink more and have more sex.

Please let us have a good dump of snow for a change. Eight inches or so to kick off with, then a top up every few days for a couple of weeks. “Why?” I hear you ask? So all the people who have no experience of going about their daily routine in these condidtions can get used to it. Learn how to drive in snow for starters.

I anticipate BBC news whining on endlessly about the so called chaos to the exclusion of all else and hearing about all the schools that have closed becaus e there are two inches of slush at the kerbside.