What have you bought for the bike today ?

[Sittingduck]

I‘m off to Brittany later this summer so fancied taking the bike for a few days out. I don’t carry the bike around much and if I do it’s usually inside the vehicle, but Bolletta is coming with us so the bike will have to go outside.

I’ve always found full roof bars a faff and have quite a few bits and adapters from previous vehicles, so I’ve taken a punt this time on a Seasucker Talon. It’ll take me a while to feel comfortable having the best bike sucked on to the roof though!

https://www.seasucker.com/collections/racks/products/talon

I like the look of this Bollo. Not theft proof but the average bandit would likely assume the bike was on a regular rack / bars anyway. You can purchase cable anchors directly from seasucker, per their FAQ page when this came up. I don't really love the idea of expensive bars and a rack, especially with the challenges this raises in terms of car compatibility - so this might work for me. Let us know how you get on with it!

 

[DCLane]

@Bollo - the Seasucker seems good and many of my club rate it.

I've got roof bars on the Honda CR-V so there's Thule racks on there currently. However, on my Saab convertible I had a Saris Bones 2 which was excellent.

 

[Bollo]

I like the look of this Bollo. Not theft proof but the average bandit would likely assume the bike was on a regular rack / bars anyway. You can purchase cable anchors directly from seasucker, per their FAQ page when this came up. I don't really love the idea of expensive bars and a rack, especially with the challenges this raises in terms of car compatibility - so this might work for me. Let us know how you get on with it!

@Bollo - the Seasucker seems good and many of my club rate it.

I've got roof bars on the Honda CR-V so there's Thule racks on there currently. However, on my Saab convertible I had a Saris Bones 2 which was excellent.

Thanks for the input both and the reassurance @DCLane. I'll try and knock out a quick review when it's arrived and I've had a play.

This will sit on top of a Qashqai that's lived a life so the bike is certainly worth more than what'll be underneath it. @Sittingduck security is the next thing on my list but I've not done any research yet. I'll see what Seasucker have to say for themselves but also have a few potential solutions with existing locks and wires. It's got to be secure enough to survive a service station stop out of sight and I'm not underestimating the risks there.

 

[Andy in Germany]

Mwahahaaa...

Okay, not for "my" bike specifically. On the plus side, it wasn't my money either.

Item 1 was a Rose own brand chain whip, to replace a cheapo version that broke as soon as you waved it at a cassette. I'd ordered one from our regular supplier but they're moving with all the urgency of a bored glacier.

I put this into service in a few minutes: the magnet on the end certainly saves a lot of swearing, the extra length is handy and the nice padded handle doesn't cut into your hand, pretty good overall.

I also ordered two of these...

We have half a dozen donated pumps and they're all pretty rubbish. I'd used a compressor that was in the workshop but I don't like them, and it turned out it belongs to the previous mechanic, so I wanted it in storage so it couldn't go wrong/get damaged.

I've used JoeBlow pumps for over a decade and haven't managed to break one yet, I've made at least two pumps from other companies explode so I'm pretty confident these will work well for us.

 

[Reynard]

Money spent on good tools is money never wasted.

+1 on the Joe Blow track pumps. Not cheap, but damn good.

 

[Andy in Germany]

Money spent on good tools is money never wasted.

+1 on the Joe Blow track pumps. Not cheap, but damn good.

Indeed, it's remarkable how much quicker a bike gets fixed when you can find the tools and they aren't broken...

 

[Reynard]

Indeed, it's remarkable how much quicker a bike gets fixed when you can find the tools and they aren't broken...

Or aren't made of cheese...

Same is true for any job that requires tools.

 

[Alex321]

Two specialized armadillo all-condition tyres in 700x28, from the Tredz shop in Cardiff.

Fitted this evening, will get a proper ride on them on Friday.

 

[Andy in Germany]

Or aren't made of cheese...

That describes the previous chain whip pretty well.

 

[Bollo]

Or aren't made of cheese...

Same is true for any job that requires tools.

Nothing should be made of cheese. Not even cheese. Horrible stuff.

I miss being able to order stuff from Rose

 

[Reynard]

Nothing should be made of cheese. Not even cheese. Horrible stuff.

I miss being able to order stuff from Rose

In that case can I please have your share of the cheese.

 

[Alex321]

In that case can I please have your share of the cheese.

Not if I get there first 😄

 

[youngoldbloke]

Pre Brexit I bought a lot of useful kit from Rose, including a complete bike. No longer possible of course 😠

 

[Nibor]

Rose were awesome for DT Swiss Spokes at a reasonable price

 

[Andy in Germany]

We'd been warned by the Bike Workshop supplier that there would be "long delays" so when our order didn't appear for several weeks we left it but today I decided to chase it up so I at least knew when things would arrive.

It turned out they'd lost the email.

Unfortunately this meant I had to repeat last month's order and add this month to it; so much for my plan to spread the cost.

On the other hand I'll soon have a lot of spare parts, cables, and tools to replace a few of the badly worn cheap tools we're currently using, and also my tools which I currently have to carry into work every day...