Women have interests, Men have obsessions

 

A common remark and anecdotally, quite accurate. There are varying degrees of this, but I will confess to having an obsessive streak, although in day-to-day life, am very adept at keeping these in check. The ability to obsessively tweak, refine and adjust stuff (with episodic euphoria and despair) can prove all encompassing.   

The wait for a new headset brought with it time to reflect and some switching round of the fleet. I’ve decided to take the fixed gear winter/trainer a more minimalist route, switching the Topeak Super Tourist DX over to Ursula and porting the Kinekt Waterproof Saddlebag KINEKT WATERPROOF SADDLE BAG | cycling-not-racing (sevendaycyclist.com) back over. This has meant the front end is now heavier than the rear, primarily down to the Shutter Precision PD8 HALO CLASSIC RIM & SHUTTER PRECISION DYNOHUB DISC WHEEL BUILD (sevendaycyclist.com) dyno hub front wheel.  

A week of torrential showers led to some very muddy lanes and hedge clippings flushed from the verges, spelled punctures. Mercifully, these were pedestrian and only made themselves known several hours post ride when I was home. Tiny holes, so easily patched and no obvious damage to the tyres. I have switched Denise’s front from the WTB Nano WTB Nano TCS Tyre | cycling-not-racing (sevendaycyclist.com) to the Maxxis Ravager TR Maxxis Ravager TR Tyres | cycling-not-racing (sevendaycyclist.com) which are slightly friskier and more resistant to thorns and hedge clippings.  The perpetually wet conditions are brilliant for evaluating waterproof kit, including these Shimano MW7 booties, which have stiffer soles and Boa fasteners for a precise fit.  

As I’ve said before, water will creep in via the cleat drillings, but this is easily subverted with waterproof socks. Will also be interesting to see how well the Oxford Mint Bicycle Assembly grease copes with the darker, colder and wetter conditions. Yes, I assembled the cleat hardware with it.     

With the Topeak Super Tourist DX switched, the Ravemen TR100 now clings limpet like from the fixed’s mono stay. 

Headset issues resolved courtesy of this FSA and another spacer, I bolted the front end back together, applying lashings of the Juice Lubes Bearing Juice. The lower race bearings are cartridge, the upper balls, but if you’re going the hybrid route, this is the way things should go. While both upper and lower races feature seals, I’m a believer in liberal amounts of grease to keep things buttery smooth and pitting free.  

 

 

I’ve also gone belt n’ braces, fitting a butyl tube boot to the lower race to lock winter right royally out.  Front end reinstated and behaving perfectly, I turned my attentions to the drivetrain, wiring up the STX front mech, fitting a chain. I left the front mech cable stretching for twenty minutes, on the big ring and then pulled it through before turning my attentions to the rear.  

 

To my horror, nothing would sync. Closer inspection revealed I’d been seduced by the lure of a bargain shifter, only to discover it’s an MTB version. Inconvenient, but I’m to blame and it’s hardly the world’s end. I had a quick wander round the web, bought another, double checking it was the road version. Not such a bargain, but still favourable and moreover, the right model.   

  

The pull ratio for road and mtb are different, hence the issue. Trying to get it to mesh would be an exercise in futility and wasted time. I’d also noted the inner wire had also frayed annoyingly, but not altogether surprising, since it was a workshop basic, rather than premium quality unit. Sometimes we get bargains but in keeping with life generally, we get what we pay for. Often, there’s not a massive jump in price between staple and mid-range.  The left-hand side was fine, given front mechs aren’t indexed.  

 

Some more enforced leave but crucially progress is being made and the headset issue, sorted. Just a question of wiring in the new bar con, dialling the rear mech in, wrapping the bars and maybe tweaking the rear brake. During this episode, I managed to break the pin of a rather nice chain tool- weird since everything was correctly aligned, and I wasn’t applying undue force…My first attempt to wash the bar wrap didn’t remove as much of the oily patina as I’d first hoped, so I gave that a degreaser pre-wash, agitated that with my Oxford Tyre scrub and then tossed it in the machine at 30 degrees, along with some equally funky riding kit.  So near, yet so far…

 

Lasting Impressions

 Temptation was to set up another blog and call it “The saddle diaries” but in practice, it boils down to sit, ride and ultimately, rejoice when the traditional leather saddle finally conforms to your own shape. With every twenty miles, or so now, I can feel the hide doing just that. A friendly acquaintance and former editor commented that he successfully “broke in” a Brooks B17, on a very wet 400km endurance ride.  

Concurs with my own experiences of the B17-a classic design, and justly so, but a little too broad for me, personally. The more personalisation the better. Not only from the perspective of riding comfort/pleasure but also, the more distinctive the machine, the harder it is to sell on.  

Despite the lockdown, cycle and motorcycle theft remains prolific and the UK’s police force neither have the resources, or inclination to tackle it. My hypothesis is that people are so used to seeing white commercial vehicles making deliveries. Well-equipped thieves can scout, then target homes/garages at a later point, with impunity.  

This is nothing new, and sadly, likely to rise as the economy turns. These thieves come prepared with power tools and will often slice through any solid, immovable object bike(s) are locked to, load machines into their vans, and tackle the locks, elsewhere.  

Strip parts and sell everything on via online auction/selling sites. Sometimes on an industrial scale. Much of this is just another branch of wider, organised crime-stolen cars, drugs, fraud, extortion, people trafficking etc. Motor/cycle theft has always been “small beer” to the UK police, even when resources were plentiful.  

Four penneth delivered, on to the fixed. My fixed gear winter trainer to be precise, although in some respects (perhaps controversially) it's perhaps more accurately described as a Tracklocross bike. Afterall, its essentially a cyclo cross bike with track ends and rear spacing... However, purists will deliberate, since it’s running (and will retain!) a front brake.  

Though I miss the Bandit, I’m rekindling my rapport with the Geonaute G-Eye2 Action Camera and am likely to do some further fine-tuning of the cockpit. Experience with the out-front mounted Apeman also suggests, being visible, it influences driver behaviour for the better. https://www.facebook.com/sevenday.cyclist/videos/2292754937686957/  

Since I’m not likely to run a bar bag (although there’s ample room for the See Sense Handlebar Bag https://www.sevendaycyclist.com/see-sense-handlebar-bag I may well repatriate it beneath the bars for a sleeker aesthetic. Those who want to distribute their luggage more evenly than I, might be interested in a topo tube bag, such as this Zefal Z Adventure Ti Top Tube Bag https://www.sevendaycyclist.com/zefal-z-adventure-t1-top-tube-bag 

I’m left in no doubt that the Acros Silicone Wrap Handlebar Tape https://www.sevendaycyclist.com/acros-silicone-wrap-handlebar-tape offers superior damping, purchase and control, regardless of conditions. However, the embossed texture accumulates grime with frustrating ease-most notably, petrochemical stuff-transfer from oily hands.  

The worst will shift with a medium soft brush dipped in a mild, warm, sudsy bucket but thankfully, it also responds very well to machine washing-something I’ve now resorted to, on a quarterly basis. A year in, it’s still looking very fresh, better than the very cheerful Genetic Flare Silicone Bar Wrap https://www.sevendaycyclist.com/genetic-silicone-bar-wrap (but then I’d expect so, since the Acros is almost twice the Genetic’s ticket price)  

Elsewhere, I’ve run the double helping of Pro Gold Pro Link Chain Lube https://www.sevendaycyclist.com/pro-gold-pro-link-chain-lube to the point where the rollers are filmy and the outer plates/jockey wheels a little gungy. Reached my conclusions and have switched to Zefal Pro Dry for the meantime.https://www.sevendaycyclist.com/zefal-pro-dry-lube  

Another low-friction, super runny lube and one I rate, especially given the asking price. Being another, drizzle and go blend, its super convenient to apply, although since the weather is remaining stable, chances are, I’ll start testing a summer specific wax blend in the coming weeks.   

Cable specific lubes might seem a bit specialist. Afterall, super runny lubes, including the Zefal will perk up sticky, reticent inner wires, ditto aerosols, such as Juice Lubes JL69 https://www.sevendaycyclist.com/juice-lubes-jl GT 85 All Purpose Lubricant https://www.sevendaycyclist.com/gt-85-original-multi-purpose-lubricant etc. However though arguably better value on the versality front, Steve reckons Rock n’ Roll Cable Magic https://www.sevendaycyclist.com/rock-n-roll-cable-magic does the business and lasts a good deal longer.