The past ten days could've been plucked straight from a George A Romero zombie flick as endless precession of automatic SUVs converged on out of town supermarkets, stocking up for the seasonal famine. Reasoning retail giants were closing indefinitely, armies of the undead lined the aisles, oft sporting iPods and shunting wire baskets along the floor with the Instep of their UGG boots. Flailing arms scattered goods from the shelves to monotonous, piped seasonal in-store music as generations of these poor creatures converged upon the checkouts . Undeterred, I nimbly dodged the malaise, snatching vital supplies of instant coffee to stimulate body and soul. Three precious jars scanned at the automatic teller, I shovelled coins into the slot before fleeing through the automatic doors.
Having made good my escape in the little Ka, this Alpinestars Cro-Mega complete with elevated chainstays and curved seat-tube awaited me at Maldon Shotblasting & Powder Coating. An interesting concept now consigned to the archives, it was thought to overcome the ruinous spectres of chain-slap/suck while a curved seat-tube shortened the wheelbase for gazelle-like climbing prowess. 
Underneath its weary lick-and-a-promise grey enamel, the Tange tubeset was remarkably well preserved. A small dent in the top-tube was filled using a combination of weld and Thermabond3 to ensure a really flattering effect but obviously demanded a second trip through the blast cabinet to remove any subsequent imperrfections capable of tainting the fetching orange top coat. 
Its straight blade Cro-Moly forks were finished in satin black for a classy, timeless contrast. I recall lusting after these and similar concepts of this era while a callow A-level student but as with the Kirk magnesium framesets, wouldn’t pay anything approaching classic or collector prices now.
The song remains the same when it comes to several other marques. I’d like a Barry Hoban road frameset from the mid to late 1980s. For the uninitiated Hoban was a Welsh star from the 1960s who later married Tom Simpson’s widow and launched a series of frames bearing his name. To my knowledge these were built from 531Cs tubing at the Falcon factory, who by then had assimilated many top brands including Coventry Eagle, Holdsworth and Claud Butler. British Eagle’s Touristique-a rival to Dawes’ seminal mile munching Galaxy from the same era would be another welcome addition to my fleet. Sadly, the brand is now little more than a decal on sub £100 gas-pipe rubbish.
I managed a decent twenty-five mile daily circuit up until December 25th when contamination struck…Not the retail plague but a severe case of sabre tooth man-flu while tweaking the Univega’s cockpit! The eagle-eyed amongst you will notice the rather striking (and frankly fantastic) two-tone Lizard Skins DSP wrap has been replaced in favour of this Arundel Gecko grip.
With a super sticky polymer base and EVA foam backing, this works to the same principle but lacked the DSP's outright refinement, making achieving those graceful, flowing overlaps that little bit more time consuming (forty-five minutes) but the final effect was worth the wait… Time will tell as to their performance, not least since I’ve been refraining from further outings until this particularly serious lurgi has been banished with a regime of red bush tea. The gecko is also available in blue, red, white and yellow if black offends your sensibilities. 
Knog is something of a not-so guilty secret of mine. From a personal and design perspective, I really love the brand and am sufficiently assured of my own masculinity to parade my fuchsia test samples pride of place on those WTB drops! However, objectively and as a journalist, I accept said charm sometimes exceeds their technical merit and function. This, fine coffee and steadily alternating between test/copy deadlines has thus far fended off the seasonal slump.
Those other projects touched upon in my earlier entry have also shown some early signs of fruition so while the somewhat raucous, rowdy interlopers to this here domicile recount strange (albeit highly amusing) drunken tales from the lounge, I’ve been making pressure-free progress from the study, nipping out for periodic socialising, soaps, coffee, mince pies, trifle and more nutritious fuel for body n’ soul to suit. Such is my love of coffee and decay that I’ve even been gifted some of this body wash as part of my Christmas bundle!
Its straight blade Cro-Moly forks were finished in satin black for a classy, timeless contrast. I recall lusting after these and similar concepts of this era while a callow A-level student but as with the Kirk magnesium framesets, wouldn’t pay anything approaching classic or collector prices now. The song remains the same when it comes to several other marques. I’d like a Barry Hoban road frameset from the mid to late 1980s. For the uninitiated Hoban was a Welsh star from the 1960s who later married Tom Simpson’s widow and launched a series of frames bearing his name. To my knowledge these were built from 531Cs tubing at the Falcon factory, who by then had assimilated many top brands including Coventry Eagle, Holdsworth and Claud Butler. British Eagle’s Touristique-a rival to Dawes’ seminal mile munching Galaxy from the same era would be another welcome addition to my fleet. Sadly, the brand is now little more than a decal on sub £100 gas-pipe rubbish.I managed a decent twenty-five mile daily circuit up until December 25th when contamination struck…Not the retail plague but a severe case of sabre tooth man-flu while tweaking the Univega’s cockpit! The eagle-eyed amongst you will notice the rather striking (and frankly fantastic) two-tone Lizard Skins DSP wrap has been replaced in favour of this Arundel Gecko grip.
With a super sticky polymer base and EVA foam backing, this works to the same principle but lacked the DSP's outright refinement, making achieving those graceful, flowing overlaps that little bit more time consuming (forty-five minutes) but the final effect was worth the wait… Time will tell as to their performance, not least since I’ve been refraining from further outings until this particularly serious lurgi has been banished with a regime of red bush tea. The gecko is also available in blue, red, white and yellow if black offends your sensibilities. Knog is something of a not-so guilty secret of mine. From a personal and design perspective, I really love the brand and am sufficiently assured of my own masculinity to parade my fuchsia test samples pride of place on those WTB drops! However, objectively and as a journalist, I accept said charm sometimes exceeds their technical merit and function. This, fine coffee and steadily alternating between test/copy deadlines has thus far fended off the seasonal slump. Those other projects touched upon in my earlier entry have also shown some early signs of fruition so while the somewhat raucous, rowdy interlopers to this here domicile recount strange (albeit highly amusing) drunken tales from the lounge, I’ve been making pressure-free progress from the study, nipping out for periodic socialising, soaps, coffee, mince pies, trifle and more nutritious fuel for body n’ soul to suit. Such is my love of coffee and decay that I’ve even been gifted some of this body wash as part of my Christmas bundle! 
Even allowing for the technological trickle-down, £135 for a system this powerful is remarkable. More surprising are the diminutive dimensions of both head unit and seat-post mounted battery (although if you were feeling flush and yearned for eight-hour 
Winter also brings wet, smelly feet. Not everyone likes overshoes or indeed the 
The other avenue I’m (cautiously) keen to pursue in an artistic/semi commercial context is fine art/model photography…Traditionally this has proved a minefield thanks to the falling prices of high quality camera equipment attracting the unfavourable “Guy With Camera” who has no other objective than to letch at women for his own personal and deeply sordid gratification. Stories concerning this particularly unsavoury genre of male are legend-the most poignant example being of a model looking to expand her fashion portfolio. Having answered an advert, she arrived at the address (A dingy back street flat) to discover she was expected to assume a wealth of “Glamour” poses (Despite expressing in no uncertain terms she was only prepared to do fully clothed catalogue assignments). When she refused to pose on all fours wearing nothing but a G-string, 
Unfortunately, semi/professionals with proper credentials, location and a female 
Speaking of which, they’ll resist heavy rain to the tune of thirty, maybe forty minutes-depending on how we’re defining cloudburst but mercifully, things stay toasty inside and there’s no danger of extracting a limp, soggy liner come the ed of an inclement training run. For the feet, Altura have taken their night vision concept to the logical, if slightly quirky conclusion. Available in warm orange (my preference) or the acid trip neon yellow, they’re made of common or garden Coolmax and do most things very well, albeit not on the same terms as Merino wool. However, the safety aspect works best with 3/4lengths which might not be everyone’s first choice in the depths of winter-although again, this is highly dependant on where you are in the world…
Those two frames have emerged from the curing ovens with new red and blue liveries. I’m still none the wiser as to their heritage but the suspected Holdsworth was badly nibbled, especially along the chain and seat stays, disguised by a thicker coat of powder since the customer was reluctant to foot the bill for more extensive filler-based preparation. Graham noticed some imperfections in the final colour coat induced by the seepage of residual oils languishing within the tubes. 
Fearing another trip through the blast cabinet would induce structural damage (even left softening in the stripping tank overnight) he addressed this by rubbing flat and introducing further, light coats, passing through the oven once more.
John Doe’s chrome plate rear triangle and forks were of the lick and promise variety, vanishing with the introduction of gentle aluminium oxide particles. This was a moot point since the customer wasn’t looking to replicate the original effect and the parent metal gives a much better key for the colour coats.
Elsewhere on the carbon front comes Blackburn 
Speaking of which, rain, sleet and snow present all manner of hazards, not least greatly impaired visibility and this is true whether you wear prescription or standard, polycarbonate three-lens systems. The old lick of washing up liquid around the rims of goggles, glasses and visors is a great homely remedy that goes a long way to curing annoying and potentially dangerous fogging but this high tech Sal Clear 
Every so often a beater catches my imagination and this sorry looking John Doe with tarnished electroplate rear triangle is a prime example. There’s no obvious clue as to its heritage and the forks may/not be original…Destined to be reborn in 5012 “Ninja” Blue, I suspect the existing electroplate will be stripped to the parent steel and painted accordingly…
However, before I examine a bevy of beautiful 
Recovered from his strange delusion that stripping 
As the clocks chime the onset of winter, it is timely that I should receive a bountiful supply of lights for testing. Rest assured, I 
These here Genetic road bars boast lights for most tastes and purposes. Suffice to say I’
Time was when this sort of technology commanded several hundred pounds and required hefty bottle/frame mounted battery packs. Run times between charges are middling, although three to five or so hours is quite feasible if you were prepared to toggle to a lower setting (My preference, at least with the 
I have seen too many drunk, incompetent, careless drivers who kill with seemingly casual indifference go about their lives without prosecution or consequence. Now, I understand the legal rationale and concepts of public interest but it seems to me that a driver who ploughs into a cyclist, phones a friend to come and collect her, leaving the rider to die in agony and without reporting the accident to the police was treated with phenomenal leniency on the grounds she was pregnant. I accept the judges’ reasoning that the unborn child was an innocent in all this and therefore, 
Polaris has introduced a hi-viz collection dubbed 
While it’s true that steel is relatively easy to repair and refinish, contrary to clubroom oracles, many builders will not retrofit fixed ends to fusion-welded chassis due to the extensive prep time. Silver soldered and brazed types can simply heated until the donor metals soften and the ends removed. Fusion welded joints demands more involved and time-consuming surgery…
Speaking of tyres, these Freedom Urban thick slicks arrived on my doorstep this week and early impressions are favourable. 25mm wide, they slip aboard the rims without tools or blood oozing from the cuticles and run at a relatively modest 110psi. Don’t be rueful of the unfamiliar name, they’re made by 
With both wheels removed, it seemed the ideal opportunity to purge the hub cones and surrounding areas of congealed 
Contrary to my wet lube rule, I’
Start by running the chain through the solvent bath and drying with a clean rag. Give the squirt a brief shake before drizzling it on. Common to ceramic types, it initially requires two coats, leaving five minutes in between. Don’t panic if you’
Decided to treat the 
Now there’s a phrase that pretty much embodies the times we live in and I’m going to stick with its positive, as opposed to negative connotations. A childhood friend has recently fancied dipping his toe into the road bike pond and invested in this cheap but very cheerful shop branded model. Plain gauge 7005 series TIG welded aluminium frames with hi-tensile steel forks aren’t going to set anyone’s Lycra ablaze and don’t merit wholesale upgrading. However, dressed in a pleasant starter groupset give a taste of spirited riding, plenty of smiles per mile and can be relegated to a serviceable winter/trainer when the time comes thanks to sensible clearances (700x25 inc fenders).
Leaving dry cells dormant inside nearly destroyed this brilliant budget One23 blinky. Mercifully genocide was narrowly avoided with some contact surgery, replacement cells and cursory lick of Vaseline. The Good folk at Moore Large (
First impressions suggest peripheral illumination is among the best of this genre but some serious late night testing will give a better flavour of it’s capabilities. Curiously we’ve been promised a bitter winter here in the UK and “snow” (as distinct from that familiar to the populations of Scandinavia and North America) could be knocking at our doors come October. Heeding this warning and while opportunity presented itself, I’ve applied a liberal helping of Waxoyl to the KA chassis and inside ferrous framesets. BRRRRR!
My classic road bike has just turned twenty-one and I’m looking to complete the makeover with some good quality vinyl lettering and a set of Crud Racer II full-length fenders. Think it’s time those Magnesium bodied Genetic keo patterns made a return too…
Talking of retro, this Rossin frameset dating from the late 1980s arrived at Maldon Shot blasting &Powder coating ready for a makeover. Built from Columbus Gara, a thicker walled, lower end Cro-moly marketed at the touring and training fraternities and dripping in period chrome detailing (Ironic since the Italian tube maker forbid electroplating) it presents a wealth of potential headaches since the shiny stuff doesn’t magically end and paint commence
Enamellers typically employ acid etch primers to forge good union but the slippery electroplating eventually wins. Slight fading and inevitable chipping aside, this had been well loved and everything was basically sound. To avoid pitting, Graham mummified the chainstays and lower fork legs in electrical tape before passing the frameset inside the smaller blast cabinet. This uses less aggressive aluminium oxides to remove the enamel while providing a decent key for the chrome/paint overlap. Fifteen minutes later, it emerged clean and ready to receive zinc chromate and subsequent colour coats. Timeless gloss black, although hardly flamboyant is classy, affordable and extremely practical nonetheless. Here’s to another twenty-three years faithful service… 