bicycles | Entries tagged with equipment

Hello!

I'm seriously considering buying a foldable bicycle for getting to and from work (8 km or so each way), and I was wondering if you guys have any recommendations for the type I should get? I'm not sure what else I should put here, since I've never bought a bike before. I do think that I would like a bike that can change gears and basically one I could also ride recreationally.

Any help would be appreciated, and thanks in advance!

sara

Had great fun yesterday at the Eugene Disaster Relief Trials, a cargo bike event which is half bike race, half obstacle course: competitors have to haul a five-gallon bucket of water, a five-gallon bucket of dirt, and an orange cone around an urban course, cross obstacles (often with bystanders pitching in!), deflate and inflate tires, and generally do silly things.

I was not competing (I'm only just getting back in the saddle after a lengthy recovery from concussion -- from driving a car, not a bike accident, and yes, I DO wish I'd been wearing my helmet while driving -- and will not be fit enough for something like this for at least a few more months) but we did go down on the tandem, hang out with friends, and watch all the different ways people configured their equipment to meet the challenge! It's also neat that about half the bikes competing were locally-built (everything marked "Bike Friday" is local, as are many of the cargo bikes that look like nothing you've seen before, which mostly come from the Center for Alternative Transportation).

Big photoset on Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/ethanjewett/sets/72157636484496484/

p.s., because I know it may be of interest to some of you: organizers very actively tried to recruit more women competitors; sadly several were, like me, on the injured list, while others had other commitments on a Saturday afternoon. The associated "Fiets of Parenthood" competition was a shorter distance and more evenly gender-balanced (you had to cover an obstacle course with children on your wheeled-and-geared device, and obstacles included "picking up dropped toys" and "hauling groceries.")

giglet

I have a cheap bike that is only half-functional at the moment. Should I kick it to the curb? Salvage reusable bits from it, and then kick the carcass to the curb? Or save it and try to fix it with found bits from other cheap bikes?

Provisos:
Time and money are both in limited supply, but knowledge is the big barrier for me.
I like fiddling with bikes, know almost nothing about how bikes are put together, have almost no spare cash to spend on a bike and only limited time. I also have too many half-finished projects to lightly engage in a new one.

( Another darn learning experience )
Should I even think about replacing gears? I suspect that that is crazy talk, but I don't know.

[Edited to add: Thank you for the help and encouragement! In the end I didn't trash the bike. I now have another thin-tired bike, with rotten tires, but good gears. There will be swapping of bits and attempts to build a single bike that I like in my future.]

untonuggan

"It has always been an idea of mine that the right saddle is to be found. I said, 'You give up that idea. This is an imperfect world, a world of joy and sorrow mingled. There may be a Better Land where bicycle saddles are made out of rainbow, stuffed with cloud. In this world, the simplest thing is to get used to something hard.'"

- Jerome K. Jerome, Three Men on Wheels, 1900

quoted in The Complete Book of Long-Distance Cycling by Edmund R. Burke and Ed. Pavelka, 2000

I've been having some pain in my, um, lady bits...the really important ones with all the nerve endings. My sit bones are fine with the saddle I have so far, but I think I either need to angle it down or get something different if I want to go on longer rides. (It's a stock Trek/Bontrager WSD saddle.)

FYI, I know for sure I don't want to get a wide, heavy saddle, for a variety of reasons.

So, this may be a fruitless question, but does anyone have any experience with Terry women's saddles? Thoughts?

n6vfp

A few days ago I was riding my bike, and also doing some maintenance on another bike. I had a wheelset that was older but a goodie. Well, I put the bikes away and thought the wheels would be safe under the patio cover... the storm had other ideas...

n6vfp

I saw something like this over on LJ and thought I might try the same thing here...so goes the question... what are you riding nowadays?

My latest bike is a repurposed mountain bike, 27 speeds (3X9) with Shimano components. The wheel set is for disk brakes, sealed bearing Formula hubs, with 26X1.25 slicks. I use the same bike as I have an extra pair of wheels when I want to ride dirt. Brakes are Hayes hydraulic. This bike was made from parts found on sale or on Craigslist.

My other favorite bike is my Kona Ute.. my venture into the realm of cargo bikes.

Those are my primary bikes right now, but I have a few more...

A Scattante R330 road bike, 27 speed, (3X9) light and fast, with upgraded wheels and 700cX23 tires.

A K2 Zed 3.0 mountain bike, 24 speed, Manitou Minute fork, light and quick. Vintage 2001. Presently have a set on later wheels with Continental Town and Country tires on it.

A Schwinn Cruiser, vintage 1959, with a Sturmey Archer 3 speed rear hub. It is very much original, springer front fork, original 'Schwinn Approved' 3 speed shifter, brake lever, seat and handlebar grips. It is all there, rust and all. I need to give it some much needed attention someday.

I have a few more bikes, that right now I'm preparing to sell. Those include a Scattante Roma 7 speed, small frame (15") and an old Specialized HardRock Sport in an extra small frame (13.5").

Oh, I have a few more bikes in various states of repair, including a Specialized RockHopper comp (1989) and a Gary Fisher Montare (1990).

cpolk

I bought my first bike last year.

Well, let me try that again, as it wasn't my first bike. it was the first bike I bought. before that I had a heavy green stepthrough with no gears and a coaster brake that was a hand me down, and then I had a late 70's Raleigh Grand Prix that I overhauled down to the ball bearings in 1985 and rode passionately for a few years until it was stolen. I was a cyclist in those days, a creature of lycra and sinew and mashing through traffic because I could get there first, even though my bike was steel.

But last year i went to a bike shop and I bought a Kona Dew Deluxe. I probably shouldn't have, on reflection, as it wasn't the bike that I wanted but I didn't *see* the bike I wanted so I thought that bike wasn't available here. I love Bruce, I do, he's light and zippy and really much more nimble than I need a bike to be and those disc brakes are amazing and i'm glad i have studded tires so I can keep riding all winter even if I didn't actually need them this year, but Bruce isn't the best bike in the world for a woman who wants to be able to ride places and not need to change clothes.

In short, I wanted a bike that was just like my first bike: heavy, simple, with a step through frame and a rack on the back, a basket in front, a kickstand, a seat with springs. A bike that no one would ever use while wearing lycra. A bike that says "okay" to 20 kmh speed limits on recreational paths. A bike I could wear a skirt with and never catch said skirt on the nose of my saddle while trying to dismount, so I land on my ass. (I'm still choked about that.)

Kona has a bike a lot like that, actually. It's called the africabike three and I'd buy it in a hot minute, but the bike shop that sold me Bruce doesn't keep that style of bike in stock, and they don't want to order one if i'm not going to buy it. (If I decide I don't like how it rides, I'm not going to buy it, so I want them to order one so i can test ride it before buying it or not buying it.)

so okay, not buying a bike there. (Sad. I think kona makes a great bike, and i definitely would have stuck to the brand if it rode well.) There's another bike shop in town that caters to that heavy city bike style, and in my price range they have Linus Dutchi 3 and Bobbin Birdies coming in this spring.

My old Raleigh was a damn heavy bike but it was a tank. So I'm thinking a fully lugged steel bike like the Bobbin is going to be nice and strong, and the built in rack on the back is a major selling point for me. The drawback is the colour range is - well. Red is right out. completely unacceptable. I have an aversion to the colour. The blue is really nice but I wonder if a powdery turquoise isn't too-too, and yellow? Well it's bright and happy? I guess? Is my reluctance clear? Linus has more sedate colours but from what I've read, people complain more about the Linus dutchi than they do about the bobbin birdie. So do I suck it up and learn to love yellow? Or is the Linus more of a gem than I've been led to believe?

sara

Brooks has a blog, now, where they're covering subjects like how to set up your saddle properly and vintage copywriting methods (from the 1937 catalog, no less.)

giglet

Today is a rare January thaw in Boston, and I'd rreally love to be riding. But I need to do more work on my bike before I can. So I come to you all:

My brother gifted me with a set of used aluminum? fenders for my bike.

Alas, the supports are designed for thinner tires, and my bike doesn't have obvious places to attach the support struts.

The fenders do cover the tires with clearance, and I can attach them to the frame and kickstand thingie (in back) and the fork (in front) without interfering with the tires or brakes. (or at least, I will once I figure out what size bolts to use.)

But that doesn't look secure enough to support the entire fenders while riding. It looks like I'm going to need to build new supports. Also, I'll need to figure out how to attach them to the fork/frame near the wheel hubs.

Is this a problem someone else has solved?
Are there standard sizes for bolts for fenders?

In your collective wisdom, are there other difficulties waiting for me in the process?

pinesandmaples

This post is intentionally open-ended: Tell me about your bike(s).

darkemeralds

I just spotted a fantastic project on Ravelry: Skirt Guards! (log-in required) and on Etsy: similar skirt guards! (no log-in required).

Colorful and charming, and one of most effective uses of crochet's peculiar strengths (radial openwork, multiple colors) I've seen in a long time.

I thought some of the community might enjoy them. I did.

aedifica

I did get some goggles for winter biking, and I've been liking them a lot! I got a pair of Smith Monashee OTG (over the glasses) goggles. They fit nicely with or without my glasses, they don't fog up (though my glasses do fog up inside them sometimes), and my eyes have been comfortably NOT watering when I wear them. I've even started wearing them on days when I'm taking the bus instead of biking.

I hadn't realized what a versatile accessory goggles can be, though! When I wear them with my rounded, white bike helmet and my black facemask, I look somewhat like a stormtrooper (albeit a stormtrooper who's missing their breathmask). Without the helmet, but with the thin black hat I use as a helmet liner, I look more like a scuba diver (though again without the breathing gear). And with the knit cap I wear sometimes when I'm not biking, I look vaguely like I ought to be going out driving in an open car. :-)

(edited to fix the date)

untonuggan

I just learned how to knit (woo) and bicycle (woo) this year. I'm thinking about doing some winter riding and have been looking into knitting merino gear to keep me warm.

My dad is uber-randonneur-bicyclist, and has not-so-subtly hinted that he'd like a knitted balaclava if I'm up for it. He's looking for thin yarn (say, sock yarn or fingering weight) in black, and he wants it to cover his head except for his eyes/glasses. You know, the balaclava thing. I'm also thinking superwash is a necessity.

Just wondering if anyone here has experience with good bicycling balaclava patterns, pitfalls, etc. Also, if anyone has good/bad experiences with particular yarns that would be great.

Since this is a cross-community sort of thing, I'm crossposting to

knitting .

aedifica

This year I'm planning to bike farther into the winter than I've done before. One thing I'm thinking is that it might be convenient to get a different lock, one that's easier to open and close with gloved or mittened hands. (Right now I'm using a combination U-lock, one of the ones with four dials that each need to be turned to the right setting before it will open. I like not having to carry a key, but it's hard to turn individual dials with gloves on.) Do you have any suggestions for easy-to-work U-locks?

I'm also thinking of getting some goggles I can wear over my glasses--lately my eyes have been tearing up when I ride, and I don't want to have tears freezing on my face this winter. :-) Any advice you have there beyond "try some on at REI" (my current plan) is welcome.

daedala

It is coming on winter for those of us in the northern hemisphere, and I'm not too interested in biking in snow and cold. Further, my mountain bike fits me perfectly; the bike fitter said he couldn't do anything to improve it for me. So I'm thinking of getting a trainer.

Has anyone used them? Thoughts, opinions, reviews, warnings?

giglet

Hi! I've had a bike since I was a teen (which was a few decades ago), but didn't use it much and eventually gave it to a friend gathering bikes for "Bikes Not Bombs". But one day this summer, I couldn't face getting on the bus to go to work, and pulled out a bike abandoned by a former housemate, walked to the corner gas station to pump up the tires, and set off.

It felt wonderful. It felt even more wonderful once I got a helmet and a wider seat. And then lights and a safety vest and a bungee cord to hold stuff on the rack. I've been biking to work about twice a week since then, and I'm hoping to keep going into the winter (here in Boston), although I expect to stop once snow covers the bike lanes. My philosophy is to get to work (and home) alive. Neither speed nor style is particularly important to me.

Money is kinda tight, however, so while I'd love to get a lot of things for the bike, I'm either living without or making it myself. The list changes every couple days, but the things I'd like include:

a chain guard (the chain ate my last pair of jeans yesterday)
fenders
a rear bike lever that doesn't require me to stretch really awkwardly to grab it.
a better front light mount. Mine broke the day I bought it. I've wired it on, but it's ugly.
panniers
one of those bags that hangs off the back of the seat
pump
spare tube and the knowledge to use it

Some of those things seem like I should be able to make them myself. Any words of wisdom?

dragonfly

An electric bicycle hybrid, the Sanyo Eneloop

http://sanyo.com/news/2008/12/01-1.html

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5holuDwsCU0&noredirect=1

My friend has one and let me ride it the other day. *sob* Now I covet one sooooo much.

daedala

When you get panniers? Remember to wrangle some kind of secondary attachment, in case the built-in hooks fail. Carabiners are good for this.

This post brought to you by my missing pannier, which disappeared on my first ride with it! Fortunately, the only thing in there was my bike lock, which isn't has hard to replace as the stuff in the other pannier. Grr.

Current Mood: aggravated

damerell

Did I mention cargo trailers? I have a Carry Freedom Y-Frame Large (rated to 90kg) and a Y-Frame Small (rated to 45kg and "better if you like going through doors") and the frob to connect one to the other.

http://p.twimg.com/AXNp7imCMAEqNxS.jpg shows me leaving the local Milton Brewery with three full 72-pint (British pints, so just over 40 litres) firkins of beer.

aedifica

Bike mirrors: do you use one? If you do, is it handlebar mount, helmet mount, or eyeglass mount?

Suggestions for the next line in the rhyme "mirror, mirror, on the road..." also welcome in comments. :)

(This post inspired by an email from my dad, who is thinking about getting a mirror for use with his bike.)

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Dreamwidth Velo Club

Entries tagged with equipment

Advice for buying a foldable bicycle

More cargo bikes than you can shake a crank-powered radio transmitter at.

Some you win, some you lose

Bicycle saddles

not bicycling weather

What do you ride?

Three Speed Step-Throughs

The most intimate part of the bicycle.

Is there a standard for that?

Curious about other rides

Skirt guards

On goggles

Knitted bicycling balaclava?

Winter biking: locks & goggles

Trainers!

First post, and building bits

I want one.

Aaaaargh!

One more thing...

Mirror, mirror, on the road

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June 2020

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