OK, I'll offer an entry - my wife's trike. In an effort to cut down on short car journeys, we started looking for a cheap trike - she wasn't confident two wheels and a small toddler was a good idea and didn't like the idea of a low trailer.
Spotted a few of
ebay and starting bidding on one in Cheltenham. Unfortunately it went above our budget - but we immediately spotted two others going cheap and starting bidding on those, careful not to end up with both.
Due to a slight oversight, we were too busy comparing the spec and prices and forgot to check locations. We won a trike that was in deepest darkest Suffolk and then had to think about getting back here. We looked at getting the train, driving, etc. but all options worked out practically the same price as buying a brand new trike. Finally found a cheap courier and got it delivered that way.
My wife used it for a bit to get used to a trike - but it developed a slow puncture and I didn't get round to fixing it - and she is now too pregnant to ride. I've used it for two or three commutes and it got two flats at the back. I could not work out how to get the back wheels off to fix the punctures - but set about it last weekend determined not to be put off by a lack of knowledge.
Spent ages taking practically the entire back end apart and managed to get the rear axle and wheels off - I then managed to slide one wheel off but could not get the other off.
At this point, I'd been at it for hours, my 3yr old helper had managed to trap my finger in between the chain and the drive cog and was still desperate to "help". I thought a little brute force and ignorance would help loosen the wheel and so gave the end of the axle a tap with a hammer. This failed and in a moment of madness, I hit it several times, harder and harder. I managed to damage the thread on the end of the axle - but did not notice.
As I was loosing the light, I gave up and decided to put it all back together and managed to cross-thread and strip the wheel nut and the end of the axle. So I now have to source a new axle at god knows what expense!
And to make matters worse, if I'd just removed the mudguards at the start, I could have got the job done in a hour and only needed to buy new rim tape (the probable cause of the punctures).
So, here is my picture - a Pashley Trike that has a 3spd SA hub and weighs 30kg, that was bought to help cut down on car expenses here in hilly Malvern, that has been barely used and is now up on bricks!
Edit: To see it slightly more in it's prime, see post #573 back on page 58.
, but now simply sits in a corner of the garage/shed/flat unused.
Extra points for something that you would be embarrassed to reveal without the incentive of this thread.
Snakehips Bikes
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