Road Cycling Essentials

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Jimbeam3678 said:
I'm getting the baby wipes as I use wonderwipes someone on here recommended them.

I'm assuming after you have cleaned you just spray WD40 in the general direction of jocky wheels etc?
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Just a quick 5 minute spray over each brake pad followed by some bike lube smeared over the rims. Job done.
 
Jimbeam3678 said:
Just picked up my new winter bike pleased with it so far after a quick ride on it after I picked it up.
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Lovely looking bike, looks very practical and not too 'racey'! Can I be cheeky and ask how much it was? Great service from the LBS, I'm going that route 'to be looked after' more when expensive purchases.

janp said:
I did think about tightening the trainer, which I've tried. However, more of the tyre burns off if I do that. Should I get loads of tyre on the roller? It's a magnetic one i think. It didn't seem to happen on the standard tyre last week.
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When I started on my trainer (Road Machine II) using my road tyres (pro 4 endurance) I had some rubber/dirt marks on the trainer but nothing substantial, certainly no 'shedding'. I could notice a darker 'colouring' of the tyre rubber as it wore but I was also using them on the road so it soon disappeared after each session.

After fitting my trainer tyre (Continental Hometrainer II) I've had some shedding, most of it is the middle 'ridge' the tyre came with. There is rubber on my trainer from the 'whiskers' that also came along the edges of the tyre, but nothing along the tyres 'path' like there was with the road tyre (which could have mostly been road dirt?). The trainer tyre has a silvering along the area contacting the trainer.

The only time I've noticed 'slipping' of the tyre on the trainer wheel is when it isn't tight enough - I tighten enough so the 'bulge' is similar to the road bulge and tight enough to do some standing sprints, if it slips I give it half a turn more.

Jimbeam3678 said:
How do people keep their drivetrain clean ? I've just bought one of those chain cleaning things with some degreaser.

As my old winter bike is a disgrace and I obviously don't want the same to happen to this one :o
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I recently got a juicy lubes 'dirty little scrubber' and it certainly takes the pain out of removing the chain to clean it. I'm a bad one for lubing my chain (every weekend) without cleaning the crud off it, trying to get into the habit of using the scrubber every week or two too. Prior to this I used a spray on degreaser, I would spray it on the bike, spin it on every gear, remove chain and wipe down with paper cloths, leave to dry/evaporate, remove crud from cassette with a thin brush, refit chain and lube each join on the chain on the bike then spin it in every gear.

platypus said:
Other than that I take the chain off once a month, soak it in white spirit and clean everything whilst its off with a toothbrush and hot water, and for particularly stubborn dirt I use hot water with lemon juice in it.
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Diluted Lemon juice a suitable replacement for this? Which seems overpriced for how diluted it seems to come... I can see me getting through a bottle every 2 months easily! Need a cheaper alternative! :eek:

Vonhelmet said:
@Roady

OK, not trying to sound harsh, but here goes...

He's not being dodgy about anything, he's going through his insurance and they'll have told him not to deal with you, because it's their job to deal with you, and because they don't want him to admit to anything that gives you leeway to claim for more. It would be exactly the same if you'd been in a car accident.<snip>
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FrenchTart said:
And...yeah...now I think about it I'm back to my original thoughts - agreed with Von.
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I get what you're saying guys and agree to some extent - but with the only conversation with the guy (after the accident) he refused to give me his full address, refused to confirm his registration and says that I have to speak to his insurers as he has damage to his vehicle and doesn't want to deal with me. Then I feel he's not exactly been fair about the whole thing, so why should I 'do him a favour' and get my bike repaired the cheapest way possible? If he's not 'playing game', why should I?

I've had a revised quote from my LBS after I spoke to them and explained the guy wanted to put it through his insurance so I wanted the damage fully repaired, including paintwork, with no questions left unanswered about the frame/wheels. The revised quote (£430) is higher value than the retail value of the bike so I've passed that onto the insurance company. I've taken them pictures of the damage, copies of wiggle receipts for my 'upgraded' parts (tyres, pedals, brakes), broken helmet and damaged clothing. I've asked for compensation for me now having to drive to work until my bike is replaced/repaired which is approx 50 miles per week.

A rough tally of everything comes just shy of £800 (if they calculate it from the invoices, more if done from retail prices). I'm not expecting that much, £400 would probably be the lowest figure I'd be happy with so anything around £500 for me would be a positive outcome. Any value below £200 and I'll be seeking legal advice and would also push through prosecuting him due to lack of due care and attention (which the police have suggested).

I may come across as being slightly 'mean' (materialistic?) but if I don't feel my repairs and injuries have been paid for then I'm injured and out of pocket due to some guys negligence and refusal to admit to being in the wrong. :p

I've been through a full accident report at the local police station and forwarded the incident number also onto the insurers. I'll hear back from the police once they have 'processed it' and can then seek to prosecute him after that. I don't intend to as I'm fairly sure he didn't do it intentionally - he just didn't look enough when crossing a roundabout.

Asprilla said:
Be aware that I went through them on my previous claim and I got jack shoot. It's in their interest not to pay you.

You need to have someone representing you or you'll end up with nothing.
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You were wrong to let it slip mate - the police are very much on my side as (1) I was on a bike, (2) he hit me, (3) it was my right of way and (4) he didn't report it. Even if his insurers do a U turn and I get nothing, I can prosecute him for damages.

I feel that without me reporting it, taking his details and pushing for this to be resolved I won't have got anything. The police accident report is the only thing on my side (as he hasn't reported it to them) and hadn't even given his story to the insurers by last night (even after speaking to them to get his car repaired)! Other than that I don't feel I'm being too 'unfair' - I'll let them decide on the value of my items and bike from the information I've given. Their response will decide what I do regarding repair/replacement.

I've been told (3rd party insurance broker) as the value is below £1000 and doesn't involve personal injury that the insurers will just 'pay me off to get rid of me'. They really don't worry unless someone is injured as that can obviously easily escalate the whole thing with huge costs to them involved. :eek:

Sorry for the essay, just explaining things (someone may find my story useful in future?).

My bruising is starting to come out - gratuitous bum pic (I'll remove it if anyone takes offence! Please don't right click and save :rolleyes:):
2014-12-10%2012.16.09.jpg
 
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Well, from what you've said it doesn't seem unreasonable to push it. I didn't want to jump to too many conclusions about him being unreasonable but given my and other's experiences with drivers in similar situations I don't find what you're saying hard to believe at all sadly.

edit: I have a degreaser similar to the one you've linked to and using a chain cleaning tool I've probably done about ~15ish cleans this year (across a few bikes) with over half the bottle left. I tend to use way too much of the stuff too.

Soaking chains is very much not the optimal way to clean.
 
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FrenchTart said:
edit: I have a degreaser similar to the one you've linked to and using a chain cleaning tool I've probably done about ~15ish cleans this year (across a few bikes) with over half the bottle left. I tend to use way too much of the stuff too.

Soaking chains is very much not the optimal way to clean.
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I've prob done 8 cleans (3 bikes) with the first couple being more fluid than I'd normally use to get the encrusted crud off.

Agreed about the soaking, unless you're fully drying it out and soaking it again in oil afterwards then all you may be doing is removing lubricant from the middle of the chain links (increasing wear!). :o

The chain cleaners are quick and easy, but I think a good scrub to remove some of the encrusted crud from it might be a good idea every 3/6 months/year?

I've heard back from RSA insurance, they've given me a quote for £158.49 for my equipment and helmet with £450 to cover the repair or replacement of my bike (£600). Slightly more than I was expecting (£500) so I'm happy! :D

I'm being cheeky and asking for an additional £32 (so £640 total) to cover my commuting fuel costs and cost of taking the bike to be looked at (£17.50 for half hour labour). They've also asked for my bank acc/sort code so they can send the payment across today too! A very quick outcome (I was expecting it to go through clearing/checking and taking a few days) but I guess as people who've said to me - they just want to 'pay me and get rid of me' for what is probably a quite low value claim for them.

At the moment I'm chuffed, will be impressed once the payment has cleared and I can then decide what I'm going to do! I'm half hoping to check with my LBS (who did the quote) for any 2014 models they're selling for a good price (maybe with 105 groupset and carbon forks?) they think would be a good replacement/good fit for me.
 
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Ta-da!



This morning, before WFH, I changed the tyres and crankset (175mm 44/36) to I72.5mm 53/39) and swapped the 12-32 cassette for an 11-25.

Unfortunately there just isn't enough spare cable on the front mech when I shifted it up to accommodate the new rings so I'll have to thread a new one tomorrow along with fitting the guards.

It's bloody light.

Lighter than my SS, and possibly the Soloist too.

Good result with RSA Roady, complete contrast to my experience.
 
Asprilla said:
Ta-da!



This morning, before WFH, I changed the tyres and crankset (175mm 44/36) to I72.5mm 53/39) and swapped the 12-32 cassette for an 11-25.

Unfortunately there just isn't enough spare cable on the front mech when I shifted it up to accommodate the new rings so I'll have to thread a new one tomorrow along with fitting the guards.

It's bloody light.

Lighter than my SS, and possibly the Soloist too.

Good result with RSA Roady, complete contrast to my experience.
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Looks amazing - I'm jealous :)

Good choice of tyres too ;)
 
They're happy with the £640 so I should find the payment in my account 'within 3 days', I'm impressed as it sounds like things may be sorted within 5 days of the accident taking place! :)

Asprilla, I'm sure my positive outcome has come from me providing the right information and doing everything that insurers expect (thanks to my missus pointing things out and getting me to word things in certain ways). It's ment that the insurers have answers to questions probably before they've actually asked them, speeding things along. Feel slightly sorry that your experience was totally the opposite to mine! :(

LBS has a good range of bikes at not extortionate prices. I'm going to let them spec a bike/frame to me rather than choosing what I think is 'best for the money' (I shop with my eyes too and I tend to like loud bikes!). Ideally I want a good commuter (so not too racey), ideally with mudguard mounts but other than that I'm open to their expertise (would be nice to have 105).

I'm going to ask about a basic bike fit/measurement as I feel my reach isn't that great along with me having a shortish (29") inside leg for my height (5'7").
 
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So I'm going to do my first 60min FTP on the turbo tomorrow night, any tips :)

I've done a 20min before, and threw up at the end! So fully expect to collapse after 40mins tomorrow. Should certainly be interesting :)
 
Roady said:
Lovely looking bike, looks very practical and not too 'racey'! Can I be cheeky and ask how much it was? Great service from the LBS, I'm going that route 'to be looked after' more when expensive purchases.
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Sure no problem it was £1150 with 105 on it from Yorkcycleworks. First sort of proper ride on it today , I say sort of as I didn't realise LOOK Cleats didn't fit Shimano pedals :o
 
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