Be Excellent To Each Other

The answer is always "less than you think".

Do these devices usually tell you just the calories burned while exercising, not taking into account the energy you use up in the following day or so after exercise?

Dammit! I have no bottle cages in the garage!

I dunno,never used one. I've always stuck with the tables & formulas I got off my P.E. teacher. I had them out the other night to help a friend & now I can't find them

I imagine they must be wildly stab-in-the-dark over all. Mine must base it on speed and distance and nothing more, as it doesn't know anything else. It can't tell if I'm cycling up a crazy slope with a load of bricks or freewheeling down a nice gentle descent.

Racist.

I do the "ride for about three and a half hours" bit, and not worry about calories burnt. I would have thought that if you were to get technical about it it, a heart rate monitor might be more useful.

http://www.provelosupportuk.co.uk/pdfs/ ... ryform.pdf

Hustle up bitches, I need at least 3 more.

We're doing this.

Consider it a BeeX meet with 6 hours of riding in between. Other BeeXers can turn up and supply food and stuff like that.

Interested parties sign up below.

Someone might have stuck a bid on a GT RTS 3 and an Orange Elite tonight.....

After three hours of trying to take things apart, buying the tools I needed to actually take them apart, and then losing nuts and screws, I've come to the conclusion that the cheapo rockshox forks on my cheapo bike that I got 2nd hand for free are well and truly screwed. I'm guessing the boots have come off at some point, as the inner forks seem to have rusted on to the outers and they won't move at all. Even my standard fall-back tactic of dousing everything in WD40 and smacking it with a mallet ain't shifting anything. By the time I've replaced everything knackered or nearly knackered on this bike, I may as well just get a new one, I think.

If the frame is decent it's worth sticking with it. However, if you're of average size get onto Loot or the back of MBR and buy a whole bike 2nd hand.

You're right, if there's corrosion on the stanchions then the forks are fucked as they're usually coated with very exotic materials to make them smooth. Any corrosion means fucked forks I'm afraid.

I suspected as much. Darn you previous bike owner who allowed the little rubber protectors to slip off, darn you!

The frame's a fairly old low range GT so it's certainly nothing special. I think I'm going to get a new one ( or, at least, a new second hand one ).

Reading up on techniques is suggesting my cadence is way too low. Next trip out I'm going to try dropping a gear or two and pedalling quicker.

Nowadays it's only the really dirt cheap bottom of the range forks that come with gaiters on them. Even moderately priced ones coat the stanchions with some weird arse shit exotic metals nowadays making gaiters unnecessary

Titanium nitride, IIRC.

Several-year-old Rock Shox Jett SL's for the win! I don't think they even make them any more, and they were only about 50 quid new as far as I can make out. I guess I should be thankful they've lasted this long, to be honest.

I had a pair of Manitous which lasted for years until I had to keep my bike outside and they froze and never unseized.

Would I regret a GT RTS?

Too late:

And £63.50 later, I'm now the apparent owner of a GT RTS-3 frame.

The frame I stared at in the window of Truro cycles 17 years ago (the owner of which now lives over the road from my parents, and his son is the Marine I hold in high esteem).

In my heart of hearts I KNOW it's going to be shit and a disappointment. And none of my bits will fit on it. And the shock will be fucked beyond belief.

But...

ACHIEVEMENT UNLOCKED!

GT were notorious for their custom made and highly complex swing arm rear suspension mechs, but then it was early days in rear suspension on bikes and all the manufacturers were playing with various designs. It's only been in the last few years that there's been some stabilisation in designs.

Now, having said that and looked at the design of that rear linkage on that bike it does indeed look unnecessarily complex and may well have known issues, however, the bearings look off the shelf standard and provided the shock isn't some one-off custom built size no longer in production you may well be able to get that thing road worthy quite cheaply. If it needs anything doing at all.

Most rear shocks are harder wearing than suspension forks, I think this is because they're insulated from too much lateral force if the design is good. You'll be able to tell if the shock is seriously fucked and corrosion is the main problem. I'd still recommend whipping it out if it feels like crap and try sending it to the manufacturer for a service as that will be cheaper than replacing it outright, I would guess. Obviously if the coating is corroded on the main stanchion it's fucked and you'll have to shop around for a replacement.

Replacing bearings is pretty straight forward provided they haven't seized in place and assuming they're not some ridiculous custom size. If there's any unnecessary lateral play in the rear end this will be the bearings. This will be quite tricky to ascertain if it's just the frame you have - the easiest way is to ride the bike - it will feel quite unnerving banked over into a corner if there's lateral play in the rear end and the pedal arms will probably come into contact with the chainstays under heavy load.

Basically I'd try and get it on the road ASAP with what you have to see if it rides OK before doing any of the above.

Bearings can be bought from a company for about a fiver I read somewhere, and the ahock may have damping problems, but there we go. If it's shit after I've transferred the bits, I'll hang it on the wall, or something. Trying to find a friend with a bottom bracket tool, and the size of the bracket needed.

http://www.simplybearings.co.uk - I think that's the right url, if not google simply bearings.

I replaced six on mine a month or so ago, the small ones were about £2 @ and the larger ones about £10 @

of the six bike shops I approached about getting it done before I bit the bullet and dismantled the rear end myself, only two quoted for the job and both of them estimated >£120. Cost me £28 for the bearings.

I have all the tools if you feel like a trip to London ;-) In fact I think I have four different crank pulling tools from various jobs I've done as the bloody manufacturers (Shimano I'm looking at you) keep changing their designs.

I don't have a headset tool though as they cost about £200, but I'm sure it could be done with care and a decent sized g-clamp

I'd be totally up for that, if that's OK with you. I'll have to (nghh!) check my diary, though, as I've got an exam a week tomorrow and an assignment due in a week Friday, in laws the weekend after and things. I've bashed head races in with a sawn down seat post as a tool before, so getting heavy on the metal doesn't really worry me. I just got a message telling me that the frame is on its way, and at risk of sounding all Coffey, I'm actually rather excited by this. I'd happily exchange beer tokens and my company for your invaluable assistance.

I realised this morning that my canles are probably going to be the wrong length, so I have so totally not investigated Magura hydraulic brakes at all. Or SPIN wheels. Not me, oh no. Still need to find out bottom bracket size, though.

It has arrived. not as heavy as I'd thought it would be. Bottom bracket threads are intact, as is the der. hole. Frame has a few scratches but, crucially, no cracks or dents. Now I need to build it up to see if the shock works....

Note to self: Should have asked if the rear brake rocker was present. it isn't. I can't run cantilevered brakes, but might be able to run V brakes. Or just get a set of hydraulic rim brakes....

Why would you want cantilevered brakes anyway!

An old set of Maguras for the win.

I've got some cantis on the rear of my current bike, V's at the front.

Also (LOL), the bottom bracket and seatposts are different sizes to my Kona.

Shopping list now reads:

Magura F+R hydraulic rim brakes
Bottom Bracket
Seatpost

Erk.

Did you have those in 1995?

V-brakes came in about 95 or 96 didn't they?

Think so, not sure. I deffo had them prior to leaving for Uni, so pre 1998.

Think I got my Cannondale in 98 and that had Maguras on it, they mount on to the original cantilever posts though.

Those are the ones I am after. I could run a V brake on the rear, and the STX canti on the front, but I barely ever use the rear brake, so want the better brake on the front. Given this, the weird cable routing, Maguras are appearing to be a quick, easy and satisfying solution to this problem.

They are awesome... Perhaps heavier than V's but less hassle. I honestly don't think I've ever touched mine other than to change the pads.

Something like these would suit me. Weight doesn't bother me too much, as once I get fitter I can et around that problem, and if I wanted lightness, I wouldn't have bought a 15 year old FS frame...

That looks identical. Get them!

They are tempting, but I'm going to have a think.

How long do the pads last?

There's different grades, I think they tend to last better than V-brakes but can't really remember. They are a wee bit expensive though.

If brake life is a factor you're either using them too much or you're too heavy

I didn't eat breakfast this morning as my suit trousers were a little tight...

I seem to recall the absolute shock at just how quickly Shimano's M system blocks went. I used to use Aztecs instead, but currently, can't recall what blocks i've got currently.

I don't think it's a huge issue with the Mags.

A friend at uni managed to wear right through an alloy rim one on (he claimed) one set of pads.
The edge of the rim suddenly unwound from the rest of the wheel in a big jagged spike stopping just short of the back of his thigh..

That was a carry it home job.

Got back on my bike properly last week, but think I've over-done it slightly. My right knee is quite sore, so I may give it a bit of a rest. Still, it's lovely to be in the great outdoors again, especially having discovered a very long country park path leading up the Wirral.

Pics or it simply hasn't happened...

That happened to me every time I changed BMX frames. When I built my quad angle I was having nightmares finding a seat post. In the end I carried the frame to a bike shop and they had a micro adjust MTB post that went straight in. It was over 28mm, big fat fucker

That bike had V brakes. I found out very quickly that V brakes are not meant for the front of a BMX. I ended up removing the V brake plate off of the landin gears (forks) and fitted an AD990 plate. That was less brutal. But seriously before that one tap on the lever and you were picking grit from your face. Way too nasty for a 20" wheel.

Let me know when you have all your bits assembled and we'll organise it. I'm easy most weekends.



It's a pain in the arse on older FS frames fitting brakes as the had a horrible habit of using non IS mounts. I've got two VX400LT frames one of which I was going to build up for Carys from her existing bike but I'd need a proper workshop and a CNC machine to make an adaptor to fit her Hope calipers to the bloody frame. I think I might actually have the caliper for the original Hayes brakes that were on this frame but I don't have any pads...

Oh, I've got brake bleeding kits as well. Like you, what I don't have is a decent stand though :

Decided to get my Mountain bike out of the shed on Saturday, cleaned it up, adjusted the handle bars and saddle and went out for a short ride to the shops and back via the park.

It's a heavy piece of shit (nealy gave myself a hernia lifting it past the car on the driveway ) thrown together by Universal in a Steel works. But I figure on maybe getting something a little better as a treat if I manage to keep using it. It's fine for me for now although I might be better off just bench pressing it in the garden.

Need a new saddle though as this seems to be designed for Mr Daves Ethiopian cousin.

Get a Flite Titanium. They are the most comfy saddles, ever.

Right, I need a 73mm Bottom Bracket with a 113mm spindle, a 26.8mm Seatpost, a seatpost clamp and a rear brake.

Unless some cheap hydraulics come up, then I don't think I'll be using them.

*googles*

They cost almost as much as the bike!

I've seen a Specialized saddle for £25 that looks built for my buns though.

There's very little padding in my saddle, so it's not the most comfortable of things to sit on. That said, you get used to it pretty quickly. This may not be a healthy attitude.

My flite is the same. It's the shape that is important, not the padding.

Can you all send me free bits like a new frame, wheels, gears and ting to make my MTB* ZOMFG1337 Plz?




*Yeeeeeeeeeeeah, I'm down wit u.

How tall are you?