Before the Leaves Fall

 August is but a memory now, the mornings have been progressively cooler, and indeed, the sun struggles to wake before 5.30. Perfect opportunities for testing lights, base layers, and other, seasonally appropriate stuff but a reminder that the Holdsworth and Teenage Dream will soon be entering seasonal hibernation.  

Talking of which, for the time being, I’ve mounted the Hutchinson Challenger up front on the Holdsworth and Fixed Gear Winter/Trainer. Thinking behind this was to see how well they roll, handle, etc., and given 1,000 miles (about 1609.34 km) or so, I’d switch them to the rear. Mounting to both rims was very straightforward, requiring a single (admittedly long) composite lever.  

I’ve fitted ours to the Halo White Line Classic HALO CLASSIC RIM & SHUTTER PRECISION DYNOHUB DISC WHEEL BUILD (sevendaycyclist.com), leaving the Halo White Line Evaura/ SL9 HALO EVURA & SHUTTER PRECISION SL9 DYNOHUB BUILD (sevendaycyclist.com) shod with the Maxxis. I also opted to switch the Evaura/PD8 to a quick-release Tiagra skewer for added convenience.  

Aside from the obvious reasons, I’m keen to see whether they retain their reliability/puncture resistance as the miles rack up. I also took this opportunity to switch the gold anodised Halo Hex skewer for a Shimano Tiagra quick release, for added convenience. A quick bead of grease on the Cro-moly skewer and trough they went. I digress... Tyres. While switching tyres is arguably perfectly acceptable practice, it should only be front to rear, not the other way round.  

All things being equal, a rear tyre is under much greater loading, this will wear faster. Pop it up front after any mileage and you may pay an undignified and potentially painful price. For 67tpi casings, I’ve been pleasantly surprised by how well the Challenger accelerate and their relative compliance.  

They’ve also corned very reliably following some episodic heavy rains-even at 100psi, which is quite a bit higher than the Maxxis Refuse, which run at a very modest 50-75psi. However, I wasn’t completely surprised to find the Challenger succumbed to a flint induced flat- it had lodged in some gloop and worked into the casing and put a pinprick in the tube. Just shy of the seam, so easy to patch.   

I’d also spotted some self-extracting crank bolts going for the proverbial song, so bought two sets. One for the fixed Gear winter/Trainer’s Genetic Tibia GENETIC TIBIA TRACK CRANKS & RING | cycling-not-racing (sevendaycyclist.com) and the Teenage Dream’s new carbon cranks.  

Not that I’m whipping square taper cranks off that frequently these days, but the convenience is welcome. Rude not to at £2 apiece, too. These are a European marque, not a Chinese pattern. The latter are something of a lottery. Too much for my tastes-I’ve had some beautifully made bargains and absolute bin fodder.  My pin spanner also appears to have gone AWOL, so I’ve chosen to regrease and refit the existing crank bolts, while I hunt it down.   

On this occasion, I’m using up the Muc-Off Bio Grease TESTED : MUC-OFF BIO GREASE (sevendaycyclist.com) which is a surprisingly stoical blend that performs well across the board. Headsets, hubs, and pedals are its best customers. No issues with metal contact points and fasteners, although Peaty’s Bicycle Assembly Grease PEATY'S BICYCLE ASSEMBLY GREASE | cycling-not-racing (sevendaycyclist.com) has the edge here.  Not so long ago I bought a couple of spare 28.6 collars, since these are the sort of thing that fail infrequently (especially if you’re setting stuff up with a torque wrench).  

However, should they fail, it's always at the least convenient time. Aside from doing the important job of holding your saddle up and post rock steady, they’re dead space. Some brands obviously recognised this and began offering models with integrated carrier mounts.  

Now aside from being a point to attach carrier arms, this could include saddle bag supports, lighting, and other nickknacks. I’ve decided to go this route with Ursula, being my four seasons’ beast of burden.  I also spotted some pre-cut 106 link 10 spd KMC chains at a similarly keen price, so snapped them up while the opportunity presented. 106 links...Well, I may have pruned Ursula’s just a fraction too precisely.