Education We Like to Ride Bicycles

[Mister_Tad]

Thanks! I'm loving the finish, though on the flip side of that, such a pristine matte black anodized finish will likely show up the marks nicely once it gets used in anger. We'll see after tomorrow!

Though, if I'm honest at this point I'm more concerned about breaking myself than the bike... it's been a while. But as they say, it's just like riding a bike

[Lance]

I'd say it'll last longer than gloss, no? Time will tell.

Keep safe, you've got your helmet so keep it on, and you'll be fine.

Also if you're really worried about breaking yourself I'd get some of these. Theres nothing like knowing that you CAN throw a knee down if you really start to go. But thats more from my experience of snowboarding and skating than cycling.

[Da_Rude_Baboon]

Originally Posted by Krikkit

Wow. The price of some of these bike racks it'd be cheaper to buy a shed estate!

Yeah racks are bloody expensive but if I put the wife and I's bikes on the Golf they are worth more than the car. Thule roof bars, feet, mounting points and two bike carriers for the Golf came to over £400 which is why I went with the boot mount.

Originally Posted by Mister_Tad

Hooray!

Are those shoes SPD's or flats? I would change pedals soon and before you go anywhere get some gloves! If you fall you will put out your hands so gloves should be your first priority.

[dullonien]

Originally Posted by Lance

Bikes these days are SO much better looking than they used to be, its crazy.

I disagree, hence why I own two mid nineties Kona's . I just much prefer the look of thin straight tubing.

[Mister_Tad]

Originally Posted by Da_Rude_Baboon

Are those shoes SPD's or flats? I would change pedals soon and before you go anywhere get some gloves! If you fall you will put out your hands so gloves should be your first priority.

They're SPDs - like so http://www.wiggle.co.uk/spiuk-zs11-mtb-shoe/

The bike itself came pedal-less and I shant be replacing the pedals as I only just got them! They're these - http://www.bikeradar.com/gear/catego...ss-pedal-14726

I'll probably pick up some gloves at some point, just not something I've gotten around to yet. I was thinking of them more from the point of view of grip in the wet though.

[mars-bar-man]

Get both winter and summer gloves, I've got some lightweight fingerless gloves for the summer and far thicker full fingered ones in winter. Like Baboon said, if you come off the bike, hands are going out first.

[Krikkit]

Originally Posted by Da_Rude_Baboon

Yeah racks are bloody expensive but if I put the wife and I's bikes on the Golf they are worth more than the car. Thule roof bars, feet, mounting points and two bike carriers for the Golf came to over £400 which is why I went with the boot mount.

Blimey. If we're talking that much I wouldn't trust them to a rack at all, they're going inside.

[Mister_Tad]

Perhaps in one of these

[RevDarny]

Originally Posted by Mister_Tad

One problem with that bike. It's too clean.

I love the DX spuds they give a nice platform for the really tricky stuff

[Margon]

Originally Posted by Mister_Tad

Thanks! I'm loving the finish, though on the flip side of that, such a pristine matte black anodized finish will likely show up the marks nicely once it gets used in anger. We'll see after tomorrow!

Though, if I'm honest at this point I'm more concerned about breaking myself than the bike... it's been a while. But as they say, it's just like riding a bike

I can't remember a day where my bike didn't have muck marks on it :P Even my cross country that is currently mostly in bits has a bit of a mucky frame.

[Krikkit]

Love the bike btw _tad (I got distracted with the shocking value of Baboon's bikes) - the colour suits the frame really nicely.

[Margon]

Originally Posted by Krikkit

Love the bike btw _tad (I got distracted with the shocking value of Baboon's bikes) - the colour suits the frame really nicely.

there are alot of shockingly expensive bikes in this thread! It's no good for when you are wanting to have a cheap month. I am going to get a bike rack off M_D_K begining of june - when I have that full of my bikes - that's about 8 - 9 times my cars value hanging off the back hehe.

And yeah, seconded - lovely new bike!

And i'll go with what everyone else is saying, get some gloves your your hands. I don't like fingerless gloves really, I have myriad of trail gloves and one pair of windproof/waterproof big gloves for the winter.

[Porkins' Wingman]

Need some help finding parts to fix a carrier to my bike.

Partner bought a child seat for my bike, which also needed a carrier to be mounted on. Unfortunately my bike frame has no threaded holes to fix the carrier to.

So I wanna get some clamps to use as shown in these pics I found on t'web:







i.e. a metal clamp with rubber exterior to grip/protect the frame. Seems in the US they're referred to as loop clamps and I can find some on Ebay, but only for import from US at ridiculous price.

Anyone know what they're known as in UK and a cheap place to source them?

Thanks.

[unicorn13ocp]

Hi Try this as a starting point

http://www.petracycles.co.uk/cycra-c...e-p-91549.html

If you want metal then these

http://www.petracycles.co.uk/tortec-...m-p-33157.html

usually called P-clips.

[Malvolio]

Typical paranoid mechanic's warning: if you're bolting a child to the back of your bike, ensure you only use metal hardware that has been installed properly. I'm all for sticking a child on the back of a bike, but I'm certainly not in favour of them falling off!

Those little clamps will do the job provided they're the correct size and secured properly using good quality hardware. Some common names for them include: P-clamps/clips, band-clamps/clips, straps.

Keep in mind that many local bike shops do carry them, and quite often will have a range of sizes (a company by the name of Jandd do a rather quality selection). So be sure to check there, otherwise head into your local hardware store and see what they have in their conduit and pipe sections.

[Mister_Tad]

Originally Posted by RevDarny

One problem with that bike. It's too clean.

Fixt!

Originally Posted by Margon

And i'll go with what everyone else is saying, get some gloves your your hands

Never mind falling off, turns out whipping past bushes at speed can be quite hard on gloveless knuckles... lesson learned, gloves ordered

I managed to only die once on my mountain biking debut yesterday, and only down to my own incompetence. I adjusted the clips to my liking on each pedal, neglecting to consider that there were indeed two sides to each pedal. Long story short, left foot didn't unclip, and my left hip, knee and shoulder are somewhat sore today.

Apparently it was hilarious for onlookers though. I like to keep people entertained...

[Porkins' Wingman]

Originally Posted by Malvolio

Typical paranoid mechanic's warning: if you're bolting a child to the back of your bike, ensure you only use metal hardware that has been installed properly. I'm all for sticking a child on the back of a bike, but I'm certainly not in favour of them falling off!

Those little clamps will do the job provided they're the correct size and secured properly using good quality hardware. Some common names for them include: P-clamps/clips, band-clamps/clips, straps.

Keep in mind that many local bike shops do carry them, and quite often will have a range of sizes (a company by the name of Jandd do a rather quality selection). So be sure to check there, otherwise head into your local hardware store and see what they have in their conduit and pipe sections.

I'm having a job finding much support on the web for the idea of mounting a child seat using p-clips due to excessive loading on the two clips by the wheel axle. Is there a more heavy duty option?