Blow Out Sale!!!

"Funny expression that one, especially when it’s used by bike retailers. Why would anyone want a blow-out?!!!!!" my mind raced, as pressure roared from the Univega’s Vittoria Street runner and we squirmed into the bend. Luckily I was able to tame the samba-dancing front end and drew to a dignified halt.

Flaccid tube removed from the comfort of a churchyard bench, the otherwise dependable semi-slicks’ centre strip was absolutely peppered with deeply embedded thorn cuttings. 

Exorcised with the steely determination of a teenager squeezing a puss leaden pimple, I made a note to pack tweezers, which would hopefully make any future purging a whole heap easier.

New tube in place and pressure restored with the surprisingly efficient Lezyne mini pump, I reinstated the wheel and whizzed the final mile or so home. I like the convenience of CO2 inflators, especially when its cold but always carry a decent pump as back up.

Damage sustained by the Street runner rendered it scrap, so I resurrected another Panaracer RIBMORE from the tyre rack. Spotting a sharp flint peaking out from one of the water-chanelling grooves, I purged, then plugged the hole with gel-type glue.

Tube stocks weren’t nearly so healthy, so I ordered another small batch of 26x1.75 via smartphone.

This also proved the perfect opportunity to install some Kryptonite Wheel Boltz. These are part of the security brands’ gravity range. Gravity in this instance, refers to the use of a pin mechanism, engineered only to release with the bike upside down.

Obviously, this makes tackling flats and similar roadside mechanicals, requiring wheel removal less convenient. Designed as secondary security, used in conjunction with a suitable lock, I'm curious why Kryptonite has taken the 5mm Allen, rather than Torx route. 

Both are common sights on better equipped multi-tools but turn out an opportunist tea leaf's pockets and chances are, you'll find a set of Allen keys. 

To date, Atomic 22 tribe is the only system I would risk forgoing a second lock with. Budget models were easily foiled using beefy pliers but might be fine for quick stop-offs at the bank/off licence. That said; ideally a decent security system should defeat potential crooks on looks alone. Otherwise, even if they can't foil your defences, frustration might lead them to destroy your bike out of sheer spite.

Hard core, organised criminals with vans will carry a full compliment of power tools and other brute force technology. These will generate quite a bit of noise, presenting a greater risk of them getting caught. Others  tend to have one tool for defeating a specific genre of lock. All things being equal, chances are they’ll walk on, when faced with both armored cable and U lock.

Talking of tooling, John Moss is just awaiting a final component for his lathe. Once that arrives, we're all systems go and the posts diameter can be reduced...  

Constant exposure to water logged back roads meant washing the Univega would've been pointless, so I deliberately allowed the fork legs, chainstays and rear triangle to get covered in acres of slimy crap. Fortunately, a big box of test goodies arriving on Thursday, included  M16 extreme bike clean and pro finish#2.

The former’s pale blue consistency looks like car screen wash but with a much nicer fragrance. Crucially, it shifted that accumulated grot with nominal effort. Speed freaks should note, the bike wash needs three minutes standing time, ten times longer than some popular pink brews.

This is still two minutes less than my present favourite, Pro Green MX formula https://www.sevendaycyclist.com/pro-green-mx-triple-pack . By the time I'd rounded up bucket, sponge and brushes, the witches brew of residual chain lube, impacted silty dirt and yes, waxy frame preserve pretty much slithered away on contact.

The inner chainstays still needed a soft brush tickling to tease some impacted stuff out but so far, I'm impressed. The pro finish counterpart is similarly easy to use, although unlike the Pro Green, it needs buffing with a bit of kitchen roll/ old, lint free sock/ microfiber cloth. No more demanding than beeswax furniture polishes, mind. All will be revealed in the coming weeks...