30 Years in Review...

It is literally 30 years to the day since an Austrian AuPair presented me with THAT book and my father relented to months of not so subtle hinting and THAT Holdsworthy built Claud Butler marked my thirteenth birthday.  Both Butler and Buxom woman have long since moved on...

These days Semi/compact geometry frames mean oddly proportioned riders, such as yours truly needn’t go the custom route and in real terms, prices have also fallen quite considerably.

Having Lee Cooper cold set the Teenage Dream’s rear triangle and replacing its pretty patchwork parts for a more contemporary groupset has often crossed my mind. Something along the lines of Shimano’s Tiagra, maybe Microshift...I have a Sun Race equivalent tucked away somewhere. A new rear hub and wheel build would complete the transformation. Calling in a favour or two, the cost implication is a very tempting £150...  

These thoughts call particularly loud when I’m out of the saddle. Powering along the climbs and dancing on the pedals, there’s some definite whip felt around the bottom bracket shell. Outclassed is sporting terms, these thin walled tubes still deliver a lively ride that has my soul singing and a massive grin engulfing my face.  

Ride quality is also determined by builder skill. The Holdsworth was built to a standard, rather than a price, which is very telling when hammering along at 35mph plus. By contrast and though technically made from a “better” tubing, the Teenage Dream’s build quality was decidedly “British Leyland” in places.

This was common to a lot of small manufacturers who were trying to compete with both the established masters and higher end volume producers during this era. That said; I recall a big French marque being plagued by similar woes. They too were offering complete machines for little more than the groupset, so even with their purchasing power; corners had to be cut somewhere.

Runny brazing, poorly reamed seat tubes and faced head tubes were commonplace. I even recall several customers getting the wrong paint job! Runny brazing, reasonable reaming and treat-like eggshells enamel demons were exorcised from my frameset in 2009.  

With this and the ill fated British motoring conglomerate in mind, it should come as little surprise to learn I also remain fascinated with the Kirk magnesium frames from this period.

Though these were flawed in many ways, I’d like one hanging on my wall. Frank Kirk came from an automotive background and sought to apply the same mass production techniques to lightweight bicycle frames. Seems they were also finished in house-powder coating, of course.

Simon Haydn http://www.kirk-bicycles.co.uk/Kirk.htm is particularly passionate about them. 

Under the metaphorical tutelage of Richard Ballantine, I love most genres of machine and also have a soft spot for rigid cross country mountain bikes. I spent many years thundering along the forest trails and getting seriously filthy on steel-tubed, fat-tired Kona and later Univega based builds.

Lights from this era fell into three basic types and in my view, grossly inferior to that available to us now. It basically boiled down to dynamos, home brewed Lead Acid masters blasters, or truly cheap and extremely nasty “Halogen” units, which were of the glimmer variety. These days, even a very basic LED blinkey is light years ahead, in every sense.

Some, such as this See Sense unit can even collect data about that potholed lane you would’ve only known about, having trashed a rim with those glimmer types. Once the preserve of suburban commuters, there are plenty of compact torch types packing 600 lumens plus.

Sure, there are still some minor limitations, usually in terms of run times in the highest settings. Here’s a few we’ve recently tested at Seven Day Cyclist www.sevendaycyclist.com     http://www.sevendaycyclist.com/moon-lx760-front-light  http://www.sevendaycyclist.com/moon-meteor-storm-pro-front-light

http://www.sevendaycyclist.com/sigma-buster-600-front-light

Elsewhere, having heard of my recent puncture plague, the good people at the inner tube shop www.innertubeshop.com sent me a batch of five. I have since discovered my not so friendly farm feline has, for reasons known only to himself, been biting the tyre sidewalls! 

He’s not been able to reach the Univega, or Teenage Dream, hence no flatting there.  

If recent commentators are to be believed, we’re due for a serious cold snap, involving a healthy carpeting of snow. Perhaps I should be dusting down these 700x42 42mm Continental and my Univega's Schwalbe winter spiked rubber...

Bubbling Beneath The Surface...

The past ten days have been a roller-coaster ride of highs n’ lows; my illustrator, Michael J Murphy has brought the main characters in my series of children’s stories alive as Jpegs. 

Given digital media dominates and portable devices have become the viewing tools of choice; we’re considering releasing a narrated version for younger children.

In keeping with our everyday focus at Seven Day Cyclist (www.sevendaycyclist.com    https://www.facebook.com/Sevendaycyclistmagazine/?ref=aymt_homepage_panel ), we’re awaiting delivery of an interesting trailer or two.

Some of the team are leaving their wives behind and heading off for a quick gander at the Czech Republic...

My strange and some would say; irrational love of crumbling Soviet military/industrial sites, coupled with an uncanny ability to get arrested, detained and interrogated by the authorities means I’ll be testing kit on domestic soil through June…

A recent dry spell enabled me to slather some of my home brewed waxy preserve over the KA’s chassis and underside. 

Build quality seems an improvement over its predecessors, suggesting there’s some truth in the long held belief that last-of-the line cars were the ones to go for, since all the faults had been ironed out. That said; rust behind the filler cap remains as problematic as ever.

Moisture gets trapped between the rubberised seal and bodywork. A distinct lack of galvanising means the elements nibble away unsupervised until the bubbling becomes apparent. Thankfully, remedial action wasn’t too intensive. 

Having removed any flaking paint, I sanded the affected area; then added two light coats of Krust; a water-based neutralising agent before turning my attentions to my two-wheeled fleet while it cured.

Some minor play had crept back into the Holdsworth’s headset bearings, swiftly cured by a quick bit of spacer shuffling and introducing a 2mm “carbon” unit beneath the stem cap. 

Forty miles hence, suggests this unexpected flash of inspiration has solved the problem. 

WD40 water displacer is one of those truly iconic products; look in any household cupboard, garage, bike shop and chances are, you’ll find the blue aerosol (or 5 litre solution) sitting on a shelf/workbench.It’s not particularly kind to seals and other rubberised parts but inhibits corrosion, prevents squeaks, lubricates cables, pivot points, mechanisms etc. 

GT85 is another justly popular, Teflon fortified maintenance spray, which keeps these areas slicker for longer. It’s also owned by WD40 and they’ve also launched a bike specific GT85 range including bike wash, dry lube, degreaser and silicone polish.

While my preference (and that of many bicycle/motorcycle dealerships) errs towards high quality beeswax furniture polishes; dirt cheap, they achieve high quality, lasting sheens on painted, plated and polished surfaces with minimal effort. Silicone products also nourish plastics and rubberised components-suspension elastomers, seals being obvious candidates.

Traditionally, silicone based polishes-bike specific, or otherwise have tended to quickly cultivate grimy patinas. Credit where it’s due, while this formula still seduces some filmy grime, it is easily dismissed (almost as quickly as these U-locks) given a quick, soft-cloth onceover, though the lion’s share of protectant remains. Looking forward to putting the rest of their range through its paces...

John Moss is another perpetual fettler, perhaps unsurprising given his engineering career. In common with coach-builders and other engineering grade trades I’ve encountered in the past, he’s been trained to discover weaknesses and improve designs accordingly. His Mango being a prime example; Alfine 11sped hub, much bigger ring instated, gearing now permits 35mph at modest cadences and theoretically in excess of 80mph on a long descent!

Richard Ballantine once suggested that having motorcycle experience can be very beneficial when pushing recumbents hard-I was somewhat smitten with his “Speedy” during this period and would certainly indulge today...Along with some kind of 850cc trike project if other priorities and space permitted.

John affirmed that his ten years spent riding large capacity motorcycles develops an intuitive understanding of exactly when to push and of course, to back off.  He’s also learning to work with glass fibre and appears to have commandeered the couple’s trailer for solo shopping runs and other errands. The hitch is presently undergoing refinement so it tracks more accurately behind the Mango...   

Back to the KA

Next came three light coats of red oxide primer. Ideally a colour coat would’ve been applied but in my experience, these will keep the region solid and grot free. Before reinstating the filler cap assembly, introduce some decent quality, rubber friendly grease to the seal. It won’t cure the problem but greatly inhibits further bouts of grot and therefore, more intensive exorcism.

If you’ve bought a late model MK1 with no signs of corrosion in this region, I’d recommend a similar strip-out before filler and more serious intervention’s needed...

Entitlement

People’s sense of entitlement, the automatic right to things by default never ceases to amaze me- none more so, than on the public highway. For many years now there’s been an overwhelming notion that driving a car is a right as distinct from privilege and moreover one that substitutes skill and empathy with elephantine ignorance. 

Just the other day I was piloting the Ka along a heavily trafficked section of provincial town and behind an elderly man on his bicycle. Unable to pass safely without endangering he, I or indeed oncoming traffic, this slightly serene procession was rudely interrupted by the high pitched, impatient sounding of the horn emanating from a middle aged woman sporting ridiculously oversized sunglasses, clearly too beautiful to be inconvenienced.

 It’s the sort of myopia oft lamented by journalist, campaigner and author of several best selling cycling books. I am of course referring to Richard Ballantine; a tremendously   influential figure who sadly lost his battle with cancer on May 29^th aged 72. Aside from an authoritative, captivating written style, he also supported me in my formative, teenage steps towards a career in journalism proper, so news of his death proved particularly sad.

He could polarise opinion, some regarding his stance toward rogue drivers as being a little over the top but while at an academic level there might’ve been some pop psychology at play now and then, his observations proved frighteningly accurate nonetheless.

I988 saw the arrival of Richard’s New Bicycle Book, in which he remarks (p240)  “ Often when cyclists signal a turn at night, their arm is lifted above the range of dipped car headlights and absorbed by the general ink of night. The signal is literally invisible” a sentiment clearly shared by Scute design who have sent me these mitts with inbuilt LEDs, switch gear and rechargeable li-on cell.

“Safety” tagging aside, their quality of construction and padding density seem remarkably good for long, steadily three seasons miles, ruling out the dreaded tingling, the extensive terry thumb wipe located for intuitive, split second taming of runny noses.

However, I’ve ideological reservations concerning this sort of technology since it implies, to me at least, that cyclists are somehow problems who need singling out. Mass rides aimed at capturing Jo and Joanna public always depict participants wearing hi-viz jackets. Again, I’m often seen wearing day-glow on overcast winter days but suggestion that we are somehow “asking for it” sans said attire seems to absolve bad, or woefully incompetent drivers from a duty of care in the same fashion “biological urges” are often cited by defence barristers in cases of rape/sexual assault.

Focusing upon my test bench, there’s been another wealth of interesting kit arriving for my attention. First up come these beautiful leather goodies courtesy of Spa cycles in Harrogate www.spacycles.co.uk. Constructed from ultra supple, high quality cowhide and half the price of established marques, their handlebar wrap comes in three classic colours-black brown or this luxurious honey.

Seamless construction won’t detract from the aesthetic, is stronger and moreover more comfortable than stitched varieties-especially in liner type gloves. Sources suggested rolls weren’t overly generous but in practice this only seems applicable when dressing oversized flared varieties. Coverage wasn’t an issue with these 25.4 midge, enabling double ups for additional cushioning in selected areas.

Talking of which, while very tenacious, the adhesive has proven very forgiving of perfectionist un/windings, so cable replacement/ introduction of cyclo cross style interrupter levers is unlikely to present any problems-especially if sealed in situ with quality electrical tape.  Early impressions suggest six weekly rub overs with a lint free cloth dipped in proofide/similar preserve will, all things being equal, retain its youthful lustre.

As for the clips, well these are fashioned from mirror polished stainless steel dressed in cowhide toe boxes protecting smart street shoes on short commutes and affording additional refinement on longer outings. Dual layer straps are refreshingly maulable, snaking effortlessly through Campagnolo record pattern cages, although the chromium plated buckles benefited from a quick shot of PTFE based spray sparing blushes when track standing isn’t practical.  Joshua remains inquisitive about racing, so we’ve been planning a new build and explored genres in more detail.

Seemingly mean and rueful of derailleur gears, we reckon the next built will be based around a small 4130 or 6061 mountain bike frameset with sliding dropouts, rigid fork and 135mm spacing, thus enabling relatively easy transition from single speed to variable gearing, whether hub or indeed derailleur as appropriate. Talking of which, harsh winter and lots of miles sees the Univega cruising another chain/cassette into retirement.

Still plenty of mid range options out there, so it’ll be a while before I contemplate adding another sprocket. Temptation travels back and forth between Titanium and similarly exotic fork options but I’m not overly fussed and moreover, there’s nothing wrong with the triple butted Cro-moly offering, especially since while pretty, said beast remains a working bike with emphasis upon reliability.