dobo the olymps ones I looked were these:
http://www.jessops.com/online.store/categories/products/olympus/pen-e-pl3-14-42mm-kit-in-black-82294/show.html

This looks a good price
http://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/olympus-e-pm1-compact-system-camera-with-14-42mm-zoom-lens-black-11875767-pdt.html?srcid=198&cmpid=ppc~gg~UFC-Compact_System_Cameras~11875767~LT&mctag=gg_goog_7904_&searchType=AdWordsSearch&externalAdId=17281163724&placement=&gclid=CIu1yor0x7MCFSHHtAodSHgAjw

Re the canons I looked at those, really liked things like the pull out screen and view finder and generally felt well made, but this was the downside a bit as well as they are quite bulky and heavy from what I could tell

Oh and any particular differences, things to look out for amongst the canon g9-11?

Will take a look at the canons thanks.

Had a look at a fuji xf1 today, probably out of price range even second hand but was very nice indeed. Also on the CSC front I was really impressed by how compact the olympus pen cameras were compact to others and a lot lighter as well for lugging around from what I could tell

Anybody spotted any bargains out there at the moment?

molgrips thanks for the thoughts. Looks as though the one in that link is a compact camera though not a bridge, looked at a few in jessops today and the bridge ones were certainly a lot bigger? The benefits I was told from the CSC is that you get a much better quality picture than the bridges which I was told are essentially compact cameras with more zoom options?

seadog are you talking about an olympis CSC or a compact?

Are there CSC cameras that come with do it all lenses as standard as such?

Thanks, not quite sure what I’m looking for though if anyone can give a steer?

Having done both sides its great that cheap lights are around to get people in to night riding (like me in first place) but once you’ve had the quality of say exposure then I wouldn’t go back. Certainly wouldn’t want to rely on dx lights for a 24 for example but why not for a quick blast around the woods once a week which is most people’s bag anyhow

These diy jobs look mint but for anyone wanting something a bit more luxury I recently splashed out (well not that much, about £70 in total ) on a second hand compressor on ebay and one of these http://www.prestaflator.com/ got to say although a complete extravagance its bloody brilliant :)

You said if I finished you’d buy me a pint on the night, in fairness I didn’t come to claim but it was like 1am or something

haha yes sorry newcastleton, a stop off in the toon for a pint would be a good mid way but a bit out of the route though!

Drac don’t you owe me a pint btw :)

Think I read that some other dude who had the exact same break setup as me used half a set of pads (as did I)…new style xtr (or I guess any of the newer models due to the good disc clearance unlike avids I believe)and aztec sintered pads. If you are heavier on the braking might be worth bedding in a couple of pairs to put in stash bags?

Although a bit overkill I put spare gloves in my drop bags, co2, inner tubes. You risk not being able to get them back at the end so dont put anything valuable in.

If you have someone who loves you enough or you bribe with beer get them to go to Newcastle with kit/spares etc

And if the 100 isn’t enough for you, carry on in to the night… :) http://killerkielder.posterous.com/

one of these is in the post, looks pretty decent offer, lightweight well vented pack for the price sold it for me

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/osprey/syncro-20-backpack-ec032115?utm_source=froogle&utm_medium=froogle&utm_campaign=froogle#select

Results?

Thread revival, would this work?

http://www.screwfix.com/p/stanley-dn-8-5-4-5ltr-portable-compressor-240v/22374

I had an entry but am injured, anyone want to take it off my hands? Offers taken?

Jonba any pics?

I just got my on ebay search for magnetic tool holder

Recently bought some magnetic strips but was also looking at a pegboard. Pound shops seem to stock loads of assorted hooks and things you could use on a board.

Went with green insurance company (axa) in the end they insure bikes up to £2500 when you specify them and doesnt seem to make too much difference to price when you change the value. They also insure unspecified bikes up to £750 a piece which should cover the commuter and the mrs bike. All in about £30/month with contents away from home. Sure the service wont be as good as M&S however they wanted nearly £1k for my requote!

Re NFU, left my details for a call back, didnt anything from them.

Yes money supermarket came up with some decent quotes although I do fear about the quality of service you might get with some of them, green insure came up cheapest for me but need to check about bikes as put all the details in but want piece of mind before accepting. Co-op was cheapest outside of comparison sites although price jumps with bike value directly

Also interested in replies to this, M & S quoted double our existing premium for a house move!!! Co-op have just quoted same as last years price but not as good cover on bikes that you specify so waiting for call backs from john lewis and NFU but on paper JL looks to be a good option as they seem to offer the same cover as M&S without specifying bikes, is this right?

Yes thats a good deal on the halfords stuff thanks.

Re snap-on I just think that might be a bit to far in terms of the volume of use I will get through to justify even the second hand prices.

Think if you accept that there is a possibility that the halfords stuff might have to go back at some point for an exchange then its probably a good balance of price vs quality.

haha yes comedy typo in there, give me a break though I was high on morphine at the time…

Good to hear some of the same names coming up here as what I’ve read on places like garagejournal (take a look its a good source of info/opinion although they do bang on a bit much about how good american brand tools are).

My plan is to have my old/new cheaper tools in a portable box that I can just leave to take on trips then have nicer new stuff in the garage. Thats why I was looking at cocraft from clas ohlson as for the money and gaurantee I thought they would be good for the portable box stuff to replace that tat that I currently use without costing the earth?

Seems that people are rating park tools reasonably well, seems to be a fair mix of opinion out there on their stuff?

Anybody had much experience with cocraft tools sold by clas ohlson? They seem excellent value considering they come with a 10 year guarantee in many cases. Was looking in particular at their spanners.

I’m after upgrading all the usual tools from spanners through to air compressor but obviously I’ll need some bike specific tools as well like external bb tool so as creamegg says interested in general opinions on brands. Think britool t allen keys and a Wera Bit ratchet are now on the list. Looking to buy second hand in places as well to keep costs down so eBay is my friend!

Reading around not heard great things about park generally, pedros seem to be more highly regarded if looking for bike specific stuff

Yes heard good things about halfords pro, was a bit surprised as I had an impression of them bad due to crap bike stuff they sell

Anybody used the new nukeproof pads which combines the flexy knee bit with a harder plastic shin saver? Look like the best of both worlds to me

I had a bit of a problem with some old candys that had a metal bush and wouldnt knock out very easily, eventually a mate sorted me out with one of those drill bits that extract rounded screws, did the job. For the others mine were all so worn out that they bushing just fell out. I did notice that the bearing looked different to the CB ones, maybe less sealed so shorter life?

Slight thread hijack but interested in opinions on knee pads that also give shin protection like:

troy lee lopes
Nukeproof critical knee/shin
Fox Launch Pro Knee/shin
Poc bone leg (probably out of the question as too expensive)

Would really like something that gives a bit of calf protection as well (like the poc does) as tend to have a habit of catching my pedals on them.

Views?

Well (most of) the locals might be harmless but we certainly didnt feel particularly safe when wandering around the town. We jumped in a taxi at the hotel and asked to be taken to the main street, on the way in the guy was on his phone and then when we got dropped off outside a pharmacy and were told the main street started right there (clearly didnt). At that point we thought it wouldnt be much of a walk so just got out and then as if by magic some random guy appeared saying hello and trying to be friendly saying he recognised us from our hotel as he worked there etc. Obviously not believing him we set off walking (at this point we discovered that it was more than the very short walk we anticipated). We were polite enough to the guy who was trying then to convince us to come to his brothers house where we could be gifts etc. After this wore thin we just said no thanks and please can you leave us alone. He followed us from a close distance in to the main shopping area where we basically grabbed a couple of postcards and then jumped straight in the nearest taxi to get back. The guy then appeared next to the taxi trying to get us to wind down the window and then half started chasing the taxi as it drove away.

Probably just one crap experience so wouldnt expect this to be the norm.

I did do a cave dive (an ex marine guy took me in despite me not being PADI qualified…another story) which was amazing and apparently one of the best places in the word for kite surfing so don’t be put off too much!

bump for evening crowd

We went to the island of Sal (thomson all inclusive job). Great for diving and kite surfing, not great for much else other than sunbathing imo. Had a bad experience of going in to the main town where we got mobbed and harrased quite badly which was a real shame as apparently it isnt the locals that do that but people coming in from the mainland. There really isnt much to see on that island apart from a massive rubbish dump. Can’t say anything re the other islands though.

Cool hitachi it is I think. Anyone else got a voucher code?

http://www.tooled-up.com/Product.asp?PID=146394 seems pretty good deal all in, not sure I need a jigsaw but why not!

No smoke on the voucher code unfortunately, thanks though

Yeh saw that one, looks good spec for the money? Any views vs this one: http://www.screwfix.com/p/dewalt-dc100ka-gb-18v-1-3ah-ni-cd-cordless-combi-drill/73596 ?

bump for the daytime crew

Sorry for slight thread hijack. Also currently in the market for a decent drill, can anyone tell me if the suggested ones above have a spirit level built in? Quite like the idea of that as a feature given that most stuff I drill seems to go in at an angle probably a good idea!! Like the look of the makita ones could just stick a small level on the side though as they don’t come with that inbuilt. Looks like there are a few good deals on eBay if you buy the base unit battery and charger separately, any other deals around people know of?

Yes I can confirm that even geting a vp set up with a 1×9 chain device setup takes a bit of fettling. Although I pedalled mine all the way up inners fireroad once way back when it was 40lb plus in weight even at its current svelt 38lb I wouldnt want to pedal it up many hills! Reconsider my friend.