One ride, a years worth of mechanical problems

David Nutter <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:<[email hidden]>...

Quoted message said:

Then the p*nct*r* fairy struck. Cue cursing of such inventiveness that the
cows in a nearby field looked quite shocked and ran away. Wheel off, tube
out, then a fruitless 10 minutes spent trying to find the little thing that
caused the damage in the first place, a task I decided was impossible with
hands that were wet and covered in [censored]. Luckily, the new tube held up all
the way home. However, the fun wasn't over yet as the gears start to
mis-shift. Initially I thought this was just another artefact of my
maintenance the previous day, however even after switching the lever to
friction they still weren't shifting properly. I limp onwards, avoiding the
problem gears until, barely 50m from home, the chain snapped with an
enormous CRACK that echoed for several minutes, ejecting the sad fragments
onto the road. The cheap powerlink knockoff that came with the chain had
given up the ghost in spectacular style.

I think Sunday must just have been "one of those days" all round. I
went out for an off-road spin on the Trek and developed *four*
punctures, none of which manifested themselves until off the soft
stuff and on to tarmac (having got lost and ending up on the local
golf course in the process!) for the last mile-and-a-bit home (result,
lots of hissing and having to get off and push). Just to cap it all,
my rear wheel acquired a broken spoke and a resultant buckle :-(

David E. Belcher

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Then the p*nct*r* fairy struck. Cue cursing of such inventiveness that the

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

caused the damage in the first place, a task I decided was impossible with
hands that were wet and covered in [censored]. Luckily, the new tube held up all

I try not to fiddle with my bikes.

At 2300 Fri night I got a puncture down a dark lane in the rain
12miles from home and discovered the main disadvantage of a dynamo
light setup.

note to self:always carry spare lights

TerryJ

[email hidden] (Terry)typed

Quoted message said:

note to self:always carry spare lights

This is where a head torch is handy. There are other times...

--
Helen D. Vecht: [email hidden]
Edgware.

Terry said:

At 2300 Fri night I got a puncture down a dark lane in the rain
12miles from home and discovered the main disadvantage of a dynamo
light setup.

note to self:always carry spare lights

There's a small Petzl LED 2xAAA head-torch that just has a
spring-loaded string thing for teh head-band. It's called the Zipka,
and I commend it as a useful tool-kit addition for any night-time
riding (even if you do have battery lights, fixing something is
easier when you don't need to hold the torch as well as whatever
you're fixing).

regards, Ian SMith
--
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Ian Smith <[email hidden]>typed

Quoted message said:

There's a small Petzl LED 2xAAA head-torch that just has a
spring-loaded string thing for teh head-band. It's called the Zipka,
and I commend it as a useful tool-kit addition for any night-time
riding (even if you do have battery lights, fixing something is
easier when you don't need to hold the torch as well as whatever
you're fixing).

Mine is a 3xAAA Petzl Tikka...

--
Helen D. Vecht: [email hidden]
Edgware.

On 19/10/04 8:58 pm, in article [email hidden],

Helen Deborah Vecht said:

Ian Smith <[email hidden]>typed

Quoted message said:

There's a small Petzl LED 2xAAA head-torch that just has a
spring-loaded string thing for teh head-band. It's called the Zipka,
and I commend it as a useful tool-kit addition for any night-time
riding (even if you do have battery lights, fixing something is
easier when you don't need to hold the torch as well as whatever
you're fixing).

Mine is a 3xAAA Petzl Tikka...

I suppose if they do one with lumeon LEDs it'll be the vindaloo..

...d

David E. Belcher said:

I think Sunday must just have been "one of those days" all round. I
went out for an off-road spin on the Trek and developed *four*
punctures, none of which manifested themselves until off the soft
stuff and on to tarmac (having got lost and ending up on the local
golf course in the process!) for the last mile-and-a-bit home (result,
lots of hissing and having to get off and push). Just to cap it all,
my rear wheel acquired a broken spoke and a resultant buckle :-(

Oh dear! I guess you picked up the thorns or whatever that caused the
puncture off road then the extra firmness of tarmac forced them through the
tyre. Was the buckling and busted spoke a consequence of riding on a flat
tyre, or some off-road related damage?

Regards,

-david

Helen Deborah Vecht said:

This is where a head torch is handy. There are other times...

e.g. when ferreting around the insides of dark cubboards full of
computers :-)

Guy
--
May contain traces of irony. Contents liable to settle after posting.
http://www.chapmancentral.co.uk

88% of helmet statistics are made up, 65% of them at Washington University

Helen Deborah Vecht said:

Ian Smith <[email hidden]>typed

Quoted message said:

There's a small Petzl LED 2xAAA head-torch that just has a
spring-loaded string thing for teh head-band. It's called the Zipka,
and I commend it as a useful tool-kit addition for any night-time
riding (even if you do have battery lights, fixing something is
easier when you don't need to hold the torch as well as whatever
you're fixing).

Mine is a 3xAAA Petzl Tikka...

The Zipka and the Tikka are the same bar the strap---both take three AAAs.
The newer Tikka and Zipka pluses have four LEDs, instead of the three on
the originals, a better, IMHO, button, three brightness levels, a flashing
mode and, in the case of the Tikka Plus, and adjustable angle. Every home
should have one or two.

Colin

"Just zis Guy, you know?" <[email hidden]>typed

Quoted message said:

On Tue, 19 Oct 2004 19:10:04 +0100, Helen Deborah Vecht
<[email hidden]> wrote:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

This is where a head torch is handy. There are other times...

Quoted message said:

e.g. when ferreting around the insides of dark cubboards full of
computers :-)

When looking at sore throats, painful teeth, the cupboard with the
circuit breakers and mains fuses, dark because a bulb has blown and
taken out all the lighting for the house, when checking how effective
your night-time reflective gear is...

.... I agree with Colin; every home should have at least one[1] but don't
think Petzl do Madras, Jalfrezi, or Vindaloo versions, David ;-)

[1] Maybe, every adult should have one...

--
Helen D. Vecht: [email hidden]
Edgware.

Helen Deborah Vecht said:

Ian Smith <[email hidden]>typed

Quoted message said:

There's a small Petzl LED 2xAAA head-torch that just has a
spring-loaded string thing for teh head-band. It's called the Zipka,
and I commend it as a useful tool-kit addition for any night-time
riding (even if you do have battery lights, fixing something is
easier when you don't need to hold the torch as well as whatever
you're fixing).

Mine is a 3xAAA Petzl Tikka...

Actually, I've found out the Tikka and the Zipka is the same light
unit on different bands, and Helen is right, it's 3xAAA, not 2x as I
said. The Tikka is on a conventional elastic head-band, the Zipka has
magic self-dispensing sprung-loaded string thing. I'd expect the
Zipka to be somewhat more flexible in what you attach it to, but less
secure and less comfortable when you fix it to your head. Also, the
zipka packs down to a smaller neater unit.

regards, Ian SMith
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