I go through phases of tweaking saddle height but before any of you have visions of me constantly fettling mid-ride, a ’la Mr Rottler (who was so renowned by his teammates for perpetually adjusting his, they named a spanner after him), mine usually coincides with a change of seat post, saddle etc.
Getting those precious late summer miles in on the Holdsworth, I was conscious of my saddle being a little low, suspiciously so.
Having concluded the ride, inspection revealed the Crank Brothers post was indeed creeping very slowly into the frame. I traced this to a fatigued seat bolt- an easy fix. Replace and snug down to the correct tolerances. Seat collars, at least, the modern types are around the 6nm mark (but do check, they can be lower). Sensible, given the popularity of carbon fibre posts.
However, it would seem more traditional binder bolts and metal posts are 9-12nms. This lower default may also explain the steady downward creep. Either way, I replaced the electroplated Cro-moly binder bolt for another, added a lick of Peaty’s Bicycle Assembly Grease PEATY'S BICYCLE ASSEMBLY GREASE | cycling-not-racing (sevendaycyclist.com) and snugged that down to 10nms. Tweaked the headset bearings by a fraction of a turn, since opportunity presented. Two little jobs off the list.
With this and roads carpeted in dung and agricultural mud, I’ve switched to racking up the miles aboard Ursula and those Schwalbe Smart Sam tyres. Farm tracks, unmade roads and bridlepath have been our 5am playgrounds. While primarily designed for dry, hardpack conditions, they’re proving less ponderous than might be expected, suggesting the raised centre strip does offer some tangible benefits on metalled roads. 560g apiece also helps in that respect.
Schwalbe suggests they’re suitable for touring. In the broad strokes, mixed terrain sense, with the emphasis upon trails, I’d agree but models like Specialized Crossroads Armadillo and indeed, Maxxis Overdrive Excel Maxxis Overdrive Excel Tyre | cycling-not-racing (sevendaycyclist.com) are better choices for longer spells on the road and gentler off-piste meandering.
I wasn’t surprised by the amount of dust clinging to the Smart Sam and Ursula’s frameset given the extended hot, dry spell, although, the falling leaves now serve as a reminder autumn is fast advancing. I’m sticking with waxy-type chain lubes for the moment, since they’re much cleaner and will flake off, taking contaminant with it.
However, I noticed a very clean chain and faint metal-on-metal tinkling sooner than expected, so strongly suspect I’ll be switching to a middleweight blend next time. Weldtite TF2 Performance All Weather TF2 PERFORMANCE ALL WEATHER LUBRICANT | cycling-not-racing (sevendaycyclist.com) is something of a default for me but (and while it may seem an odd choice, given the season, Muc Off-50 Chain lube MUC-OFF -50C CHAIN LUBE | cycling-not-racing (sevendaycyclist.com) makes a surprisingly good everyday blend-it's a little lighter than the Weldtite TF2 Performance All Weather, and doesn’t contain PTFE.
Talking of unusual choices, I’ve discovered carbon gripper paste has also proved highly effective at securing electric toothbrush heads...For context, I bought some replacement, genuine heads for mine and they’re what might be best described as a “pattern” fit. A sudden flash of inspiration saw me reaching for this Weldtite Gripper Paste and this gut feeling paid off.
Elsewhere, there’s been plenty of mist, and I’ve been pleasantly surprised by how well the Infini Sword Infini Sword Super Bright Light Set | cycling-not-racing (sevendaycyclist.com) have performed in these contexts, the rear as my sole light.
The flashing modes are ultra frugal-Infini reckons 200 hours and I’ve come within a few minutes of this. Brilliant for marathon night riding and as a dynamo companion. Peripheral prowess is better than a slimline profile would suggest, although when conditions have been in pea-soup territory, I’ve felt that bit safer with the Ravemen TR200.
As the name suggests it delivers a maximum of 200 lumens and has a sensored 100-lumen “braking” function, which really brings the 40 and 20-lumen steady modes to life along the backroads. Alternatively, in the back of beyond, disengage the “braking” function, select one of two 100 lumen flashing settings and save some juice.
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