The Fretboard Cycling Club

axisus

Well, after a couple of years of rarely touching a bike, thanks to ULEZ I am now doing approx 21km a day, and loving it! Weight is down, fitness is up. It's all good. I wouldn't go back to the car if I could!

However, we will see how things pan out when it gets cold/wet/frosty/snowy ...

drofluf

axisus said:

Well, after a couple of years of rarely touching a bike, thanks to ULEZ I am now doing approx 21km a day, and loving it! Weight is down, fitness is up. It's all good. I wouldn't go back to the car if I could!

However, we will see how things pan out when it gets cold/wet/frosty/snowy ...

A few tips from a former year round commuter:

• It’ll also be dark so a decent set of lights, I liked two on the back in case the battery failed in one of them
• Wear a hat under your helmet (if you wear one )
• Get some good gloves
• Wear long socks, I read somewhere that you lose a lot of heat from your calves
• Dress to be cold on your the first quarter of the ride, you’ll soon warm up
• Get a decent set of winter boots
• Don’t be tempted to ride if you think it’s too icy

Pjon

drofluf said:

axisus said:

Well, after a couple of years of rarely touching a bike, thanks to ULEZ I am now doing approx 21km a day, and loving it! Weight is down, fitness is up. It's all good. I wouldn't go back to the car if I could!

However, we will see how things pan out when it gets cold/wet/frosty/snowy ...

A few tips from a former year round commuter:

• It’ll also be dark so a decent set of lights, I liked two on the back in case the battery failed in one of them
• Wear a hat under your helmet (if you wear one )
• Get some good gloves
• Wear long socks, I read somewhere that you lose a lot of heat from your calves
• Dress to be cold on your the first quarter of the ride, you’ll soon warm up
• Get a decent set of winter boots
• Don’t be tempted to ride if you think it’s too icy

Also, find the best route you can, even if it adds a few miles. I do all that you've said, but I use merino socks for most of the year with winter boots, which often get waterlogged. Don't expect to stay dry even in so-called waterproof boots. The trick is to stay warm.
I love commuting year round, even if it does feel like a chore occasionally. I get to work feeling energised, see things that I wouldn't in a car, and often make my ride home much longer. (It's 10 miles, but I'll often do anything up to 20-25 miles.)

axisus

drofluf said:

axisus said:

Well, after a couple of years of rarely touching a bike, thanks to ULEZ I am now doing approx 21km a day, and loving it! Weight is down, fitness is up. It's all good. I wouldn't go back to the car if I could!

However, we will see how things pan out when it gets cold/wet/frosty/snowy ...

A few tips from a former year round commuter:

• It’ll also be dark so a decent set of lights, I liked two on the back in case the battery failed in one of them
• Wear a hat under your helmet (if you wear one )
• Get some good gloves
• Wear long socks, I read somewhere that you lose a lot of heat from your calves
• Dress to be cold on your the first quarter of the ride, you’ll soon warm up
• Get a decent set of winter boots
• Don’t be tempted to ride if you think it’s too icy

I have to get up at 5.30am to fit in my usual gym and swim as well, usually on the bike by 6.15am so well used to the dark already!
Of course I wear a helmet!
Long socks - hadn't thought of that, good suggestion
Winter boots unlikely, I wear my running shoes to cycle, they double up as I go running two of the mornings as well.

axisus

Pjon said:

Also, find the best route you can, even if it adds a few miles. I do all that you've said, but I use merino socks for most of the year with winter boots, which often get waterlogged. Don't expect to stay dry even in so-called waterproof boots. The trick is to stay warm.
I love commuting year round, even if it does feel like a chore occasionally. I get to work feeling energised, see things that I wouldn't in a car, and often make my ride home much longer. (It's 10 miles, but I'll often do anything up to 20-25 miles.)

Yes, I have worked a lot on finding the safest route, it's amazingly good seeing as I am going through NW London, I hardly travel on roads with anything other than the odd car. I also detour to take in an extra tough hill cos I'm a masochist! I often feel like cycling further once I get back to the car!

drofluf

axisus said:

Of course I wear a helmet!

Good to hear, I do as well but it's a divisive topic and I didn't want to open up that debate here

Jaycee

I wear football socks in the winter, helps with the cold

Pjon

Jaycee said:

I wear football socks in the winter, helps with the cold

Fair enough, and I may be weird but I love the feel of a good pair of merino socks, made for cycling. So do the rest of my family, who all steal my socks. They don't steal the rugby socks!  

axisus

Arse! I set off this morning and my rear wheel locked up totally after about 500m! I managed to get to work by letting most of the air out of the tyre and cycling slowly. Pulled it apart at work and the rim has split inside distorting the edge. What a bummer, it was a nice lightweight wheel. 

I think it will get me home, I'm just wondering if I can get a replacement rim and rebuild the wheel - undoubtedly a difficult job! Years ago my dad would have done that for me no problem as he is a bike expert, but at 95 I think he would struggle now.

I do have a couple of good spare wheels at home but they have deep rims and are hard to get the tyre off if you get a puncture, so not ideal for commutes in the dark.

drofluf

@axisus I've never built a wheel, but I read enough to decide it was too complicate for me  

If you can get an identical rim I understand it's relatively easy as you can place the new wheel on top of the old and transfer the spokes across - whether you want to will depend on the sate of the old spokes.

If you get a different rim then  you're into a world of spoke length calculators.

As it's a rear you'll also need to "dish" it to allow for the cassette.

Hope I haven't put you off or am teaching you to suck eggs!

And go home carefully with a dodgy rear wheel and flattish tyre.

Pjon

drofluf said:

@axisus I've never built a wheel, but I read enough to decide it was too complicate for me  

If you can get an identical rim I understand it's relatively easy as you can place the new wheel on top of the old and transfer the spokes across - whether you want to will depend on the sate of the old spokes.

If you get a different rim then  you're into a world of spoke length calculators.

As it's a rear you'll also need to "dish" it to allow for the cassette.

Hope I haven't put you off or am teaching you to suck eggs!

And go home carefully with a dodgy rear wheel and flattish tyre.

Yes, this is the easy bit, and the bit I was always happy to do to save the actual wheel builder some time. The rest of it is the art, the skill. I think I only ever built one wheel entirely from scratch, under supervision of a friend who knew what he was doing. It lasted a while and didn't fail disastrously!  

m_c

Building a wheel isn't really that hard, it's just time consuming if you've never done one before, and it's far easier if you have the proper tools and a truing stand, but I've rebuilt a wheel in a car park with some allen keys blu-tak'd to the frame as a make shift guide.

If you'd like to read up on what's involved, Sheldon Brown's website is a good resource - Wheelbuilding (sheldonbrown.com)
Or if you want a printed reference and you can manage to locate a copy, The Art of Wheelbuilding is the most popular printed book.

However, if it's a cheap wheel with a cheap hub, it's probably more cost effective to buy a complete new wheel.

thermionic

Had a few newbies on the club rides recently where I’ve had to use my vast knowledge and decades of experience to solve their mechanical problems!

First up, someone put his rear derailleur into the spokes, about five miles into the ride. I’ve never seen one this bad - the mech was rotated 90 degrees going right through the spokes and the alloy gear hanger was not just bent, it was practically torn off. He didn’t have anyone to come and pick him up so I unscrewed the bolt to remove the mech and detatched the cable. Then with the help of a friend who had a chain tool, I shortened the chain and selected the rear sprocket which was closest to being in line with the small chainring and told him to ride home gently. It was a success - it isn’t always, because if the selected sprocket isn’t in line with the chainring, the chain can “creep” to the next sprocket to correct its line. If it tries to go to the next sprocket up, there’s a couple of extra teeth to wrap around and the chain instantly snaps.

Then last week, as we were setting off, someone says that he can’t clip in to his pedals. A couple of people were already there trying to help but getting nowhere. The others had Shimano pedals but these were Looks, so I tried my own feet in them and they clipped in instantly and securely. I ask him to show the underside of his shoes and… the  cleats were for a different system. Don’t buy bike equipment from amazon, go to your local friendly bike shop!

axisus

m_c said:

Building a wheel isn't really that hard, it's just time consuming if you've never done one before, and it's far easier if you have the proper tools and a truing stand, but I've rebuilt a wheel in a car park with some allen keys blu-tak'd to the frame as a make shift guide.

If you'd like to read up on what's involved, Sheldon Brown's website is a good resource - Wheelbuilding (sheldonbrown.com)
Or if you want a printed reference and you can manage to locate a copy, The Art of Wheelbuilding is the most popular printed book.

However, if it's a cheap wheel with a cheap hub, it's probably more cost effective to buy a complete new wheel.

My dad has a wheelbuilding jig, I'll ask him about it on Saturday when I drop by. It's a decent wheel actually, Shimano Deore XT hub, stainless steel spokes, feels very light, especially compared to the tank I've had to put on tonight! I'll take a look at the link ta.

m_c

XT are reasonable hubs, and Stainless spokes are standard unless you buy the cheapest possible wheels.
Cheaper wheels are more likely to use straight gauge spokes, but double butted ones are better, although you'll want to avoid the really lightweight spokes.

Provided the spoke nipples aren't corroded/seized (biggest problem with commuter wheels due to road salt), the easiest option is to swap to an identical rim.

littlegreenman

axisus said:

m_c said:

Building a wheel isn't really that hard, it's just time consuming if you've never done one before, and it's far easier if you have the proper tools and a truing stand, but I've rebuilt a wheel in a car park with some allen keys blu-tak'd to the frame as a make shift guide.

If you'd like to read up on what's involved, Sheldon Brown's website is a good resource - Wheelbuilding (sheldonbrown.com)
Or if you want a printed reference and you can manage to locate a copy, The Art of Wheelbuilding is the most popular printed book.

However, if it's a cheap wheel with a cheap hub, it's probably more cost effective to buy a complete new wheel.

My dad has a wheelbuilding jig, I'll ask him about it on Saturday when I drop by. It's a decent wheel actually, Shimano Deore XT hub, stainless steel spokes, feels very light, especially compared to the tank I've had to put on tonight! I'll take a look at the link ta.

Should be good then. Although I'm sure I remember you saying your wheels are 26"? Might have a problem finding good 26" rims these days? They are becoming harder to find. If so, look for shops who specialise in "jump bikes", they still mostly use 26's.

drofluf

m_c said:

Building a wheel isn't really that hard, it's just time consuming if you've never done one before, and it's far easier if you have the proper tools and a truing stand, but I've rebuilt a wheel in a car park with some allen keys blu-tak'd to the frame as a make shift guide.

If you'd like to read up on what's involved, Sheldon Brown's website is a good resource - Wheelbuilding (sheldonbrown.com)
Or if you want a printed reference and you can manage to locate a copy, The Art of Wheelbuilding is the most popular printed book.

However, if it's a cheap wheel with a cheap hub, it's probably more cost effective to buy a complete new wheel.

I've got a copy of The Art of Wheelbuilding surplus to requirements if anyone is interested?

m_c

When did cycling up hills become such hard work?

I've been a bit lax in riding up hills for the past couple months, as I've mostly been digging a new trail, but having finished that for now, I've been getting back to pedalling up hills.
Managed over 800m on Monday, and didn't feel too bad, but done 1100m today and the final climb was painful, and I'm now feeling rather broken

littlegreenman

Hills are always bloody hard. No matter how long you've been cycling, hiĺls will always be hard!

TTBZ

littlegreenman said:

Hills are always bloody hard. No matter how long you've been cycling, hiĺls will always be hard!

Yep, ebikes are looking more appealing every time I go for a MTB ride I've realised I really don't enjoy climbing on a MTB and it's purely all about the downhill for me, would love to get to the top quicker and easier to get more DH laps in! 

Had a great time on the MTB at Woburn today. Finally starting to get my confidence back and getting the feel for jumps again. I love the "short course" DH style of places like Woburn and Chicksands, lets you get loads of runs in and spend time on the features you're struggling with. My Vitus frame is feeling too big for me though which is annoying, I think I should have gone for the small. Even with the seat slammed it's sometimes getting in the way, and I don't like how the longer reach of modern geometry feels.