Not done it but wouldn't either. 9spd has narrower gap between the plates of the chain. I assume it would probably snap under load or cause horribble chainsuck, etc.

+1 for Milngavie/Mugdock but what Moffitt said about the Stirling area shouldn't be discounted either, I grew up round there :D .

+1 for the Troy Lees. Watch the sizing though, they come up a bit smaller than what I'm used to.

TJ- I didn't see anthing about that. The one I saw was based on government data that was about 5yrs apart and didn't mention anything other than the helmet law and the figures (posted by those evil velocimaniacs).

west kipper – Member

Warpcow, you seem to think that biased 'cycling groups' have some sort of agenda againt cycling helmets out of sheer evilness.
Could it not , just perhaps, be because these militant velocimaniacs would like to see some ACTUAL benefit to a law that would reduce cycling, despite your made-up statement about 'no studies showing a reduction

Ok, I should've qualified my made-up statement (it was to some extent :wink: ): there are no studies that can show a direct link between helmet legislation and reduction in number of cyclists, though I cannot deny that there will always be some who will be put off by the thought of messing up their hair (I personally don't wear a helmet when commuting 8O )

There is absolutely no consideration of outside factors in what is an enviably long timescale for such studies. Has the number of cars on the road increased in the same time? Yes. Have there been major changes to the infrastructure and social conditions of major cities/modern countries? Yes. You could go so far as to suggest that the growth of TV and video-games, junkfood, etc could all be equally valid factors for study.

I thought it meant Bell helmets for a second. Bells are law here in Sweden for any bike riding on the road. I don't use one on my mountain bike though (technically I just haven't found one that doesn't shake itself to pieces yet). The police actually enforce stuff like this occasionally too, if they're not up to something 'important' and catch you in the act. No lights/reflectors/bell = big fine (about £50-100 per missing bit).

I'm sure you could wrap the belt around your head if you wanted :wink:

Slogo – Member

statistics are bollocks especial the ones that come out of the mouths of politicians!

+1 any reports I know of that show drop offs in number of cyclists are produced by cycling groups by fairly questionable methods. Many 'proper', peer-reviewed, medical reports show no such drop and no increases in liklihood to have an accident just because you wear a helmet.

There are equally interesting studies showing that the main reason for unwillingness to use helmets is because people in a position to vocally support their usage (that'd probably include us then) don't, thus making it all a bit uncool.

I run Avid BB7s: Reliable, powerful, cheap and the sheer weight of them probably helps slow you down too :wink:

On a seperate note. There doesn't seem to be any consistency in magazines' view of brakes. The WMTB test you mention was pretty unimpressed with most of the most common brakes but look at any of their bike reviews and they mention the "awesomely powerful elixir/hope/xt brakes".

Definitely run a chainguide.

Buy a Park chain-checker. Only a couple of quid and it'll tell you whether you need to change the chain or everything.

But… in my experience if you change the chain on an SS you might as well change cogs as well, or else it'll keep skipping until the new chain is worn into them. Depending on the type of cogs you have you could just try flipping them round and running a new chain on them.

Take quick look at the hanger where the tensioner is just to make sure it's not been bent.

Gears'll be an experience :wink: I just went to 1×9 after about 6 years of singlespeed and it's incredible the amount of lactic acid that spinning in gears builds. I can't ride more than two hours without getting cramp in my thighs when 6hrs was no problem on the same trails 6 months ago.

Surely with your added bits (if you're willing to part with them) a cheap frame and gears and you're sorted apart from the 20mm fork?

What Cooper and jonathon (I did exactly the same when I singlespeeded) said. Proper stretches and other exercises to strengthen the quads are the best defense.

I'd forget the Trek personally. If it's the 2007 model then it was the last run of an already dated suspension design. Post-2008 is the good one: full-floater, abp, etc. It might be all nice and 'Made in the US' but it's just can't compare to more modern designs.

Chances that your bike has anything but a 1 1/8 steerer are pretty small. What make and model bike is it?

I agree that lower weight will, more often than not, be beneficial. I can't help being confused though by all the super weight-weenie stuff. Companies like Ax-Lightnes, etc always have a huge blurb about how rigorously tested their stuff is while still being feather-light. If their stuff really is the shiznit why do you never see any elite riders using it?

I know a lot of the really elite stuff is custom made for each rider but I saw an interview with some rider during the Beijing Olympics where he said he spent hours considering whether or not to remove his bottle cage bolts. He claimed that over a 24hr continuous race at constant speed the 2g bolts would equate to 6km less distance. At the same time all his finishing kit was FSA branded and his saddle looked like a sofa, not a wince-inducing sheet of carbon-fibre.

Have a Hex. Fit is good for me but, as has been said, take what fits you best. Personally, most Specialized helmets look/fit rubbish on me.

Might it be the source of a certain ebay trader's seemingly endless supply of refurbished frames? It would certainly explain the neeed for him to (shoddily) respray them.

If it doesn't have the two eyes/holes like in Kimber's top picture then you need an adapter. there're 2 that I know of, one made by a2z and the other by braketherapy. Braketherapy one is supposed to be excellent but very expensive (probably more than most disc brakes themselves). a2z is cheaper and would probably work fine.

People-who-can't-afford-something-with-wheels.

That goes for ramblers too :wink: Bit unwieldy though.

Pedestrians should always be assumed to be idiots.

Had a close call today on a shared pavement/bike lane. Some woman with her 10-12yr old kid, walking towards and the kid jumps out in front of me, arms spread out deliberately blocking me. I skidded to a halt in a snow bank and said, "You wanna control your kid?" and she just stared at me blankly then walked on. She genuinely looked like she was off home to drown him in the tub and then slit her wrists.

Yeah you can (just got one in their £99 offer). Only costs £30 for shipping to your door with FedEx.

Just checked to make sure I wasn't making libelous accusations against some poor, put-upon LBS and saw he wants about £350 for a slot-dropout 8O . Good on him if he finds a buyer at that price.

1. Walk-in cupboards.
2. Poke with a stick outside and then carry (think of it as the final sprint to the finish if you live higher than the 2nd floor).
3. Balcony/shared garden/pavement/bathtub.

A picture rail and a hook turns it into an excellent 'installation' too :D

Tried that: emptied -ve, then +ve, removed topcap/valve, unscrewed 10mm bolt almost entirely from bottom, then whacked the crap out of it. Wouldn't budge, but I've heard it can be like that occasionaly and doesn't necessarily mean it's impossible. Or at least what what I keep telling myself.

That's cheap compared to here in Sweden. Only one company (haggs.nu) imports on-one and they'll take about £250 for a standard inbred + postage. A Cotic Soul goes for about £600 from the same company.

I approve of the fact that the company generally sources more niche frames from top end companies too, such as Nicolai and Evil, but sometimes you just can't see the justification for such a markup (it's not all tax).

I just got my Reba SL from Merlin. Had a go at the quick and dirty travel adjustment (unscrew and bash the rod up and out with a mallet) and it wasn't having it. It is listed as 'all travel' adjust so I'm really hoping to find a spacer in there when I open it later in the week.

Of course if you hear back from Merlin first you could save me the trouble of getting covered in 15wt :wink:

There's a lot of stuff about the Forward Components EBB over on mtbr. It seems less picky than the Excentiker (sp?), claims to fit all (external-style) cranks without issue. They're even developing one for square-taper.

It would be my choice personally, but a nice White Bros. wheel could sway me too.

Magic ratio will be fine for a while, after you've mucked around finding it, but as the chain stretches and wears it'll start to skip much quicker than any other setup.

I've got Nokons and they're great. Haven't noticed any difference compared to the shimano outers I had before, but they'll bend around anything. No experience of Gore though (if I'm honest I was looking for Gore when I bought Nokon, as nowhere seemed to have them in stock at the time).

Cassette spacers work fine too.

I know. I can do most things, but the 'hit it hard and hope it works' stuff still gets me twitchy. I've managed to dig out most of the suggested 'tools' now, so I guess I just have to go bite the bullet.

Sorry to revive a dead thread but I just need a little clarification on what the suggested screwdriver might look like. Am I correct in assuming that the drivey bit (hence the question :oops: ) should go all the way through so the handle sits up against the nut, and that the handle should not be so wide that it blocks the edges of the nut from bending? Otherwise I just managed to bolt a stack of washers to the nut, will that be fine too?

X9 shifters and medium-cage mech. Plenty tight and more versatile if I change my mind later.

I need to type faster :wink:

Go to bleepingcomputer.com and search for the name of the program/virus. They will more than likely have a full removal guide. A lot of these sorts of programs/viruses have specific functions that attempt to stop you removing them completely. It may require running several different (usually free) anti-spyware/malware/virus programs to remove it fully.

I've got a Giro Hex that fits me well. Everything else I tried on (various Specialized, Bell, etc) made me look like a mushroom. It does seem that Giro design for a narrower head though.

Amoeba do a nice alu core one called SCUD (and some numbers), that can be found for £30-40. Claimed weight is 210g. A friend's had one for a couple of years with no problems, so I just bought one for a new build.

Bear in mind that a lot of the cheaper chainsets don't have replacable rings so it'll be more expensive later. Boatman is correct though, octalink or square-taper won't be pretty in some peoples' eyes but they work fine and last longer than the newer styles.

I suspect it's a Boone ti chainring or something similar.

I've had square-taper and ISIS Middleburns (no fotos and the missus has the camera on holiday just now), but the square-taper are the ones I've kept. Would maybe consider the newer model for my next bike but that won't be a while considering my new one only arrived last week :D

American Classic wheels all have a sticker round the valve hole that says "VALVE". Considering they all have a white guide spoke too, you might think americans were a bit thick.

And I've had one of those bells on a commuter (or something very similar). That bit does b*gg*r all when you push it.