Road Cycling

[AndyCr15]

Ahh, I have an Asda a few miles from me, so I used that and got free. I'm fine with that I guess.

 

[Lethal`]

I'll use Asda but I don't enjoy it. The machine never works, so it calls the staff member, who casually takes 5 mins to arrive. Then they never have the foggiest idea what they're doing and you don't get a receipt, so it feels like pot luck as to whether your potentially £hundreds makes it to Wiggle or not.

 

[Drollic]

Anybody have any input on this please?

A number of people recommend to not use swiss yellows even though they spec for carbon. They marked my old giant rims. I personally wouldn't use them again on carbon rims. Some manufacturers void warranty if the wrong pads are used that they don't approve. There's nothing wrong with the performance of them however. It's not like they'll expose the weave or anything, but I think the general consensus is they're a bit aggressive if you want to keep the brake track in really good shape long term.

 

[Bear]

A number of people recommend to not use swiss yellows even though they spec for carbon. They marked my old giant rims. I personally wouldn't use them again on carbon rims. Some manufacturers void warranty if the wrong pads are used that they don't approve. There's nothing wrong with the performance of them however. It's not like they'll expose the weave or anything, but I think the general consensus is they're a bit aggressive if you want to keep the brake track in really good shape long term.

Yeah I think a lot of people complain they mark their brake tracks making them yellow and as you say some manufacturers void the warranty because of it as they usually aren't an approved brake block (they are for Zipp wheels). I'm about to replace my Zipp Tangente blocks for some Swissstop Flash Pro Black Prince (what a crap name!)

 

[jpaul]

After some opinions on tyre wear pattern - is this normal ? ... maybe 2k miles
- finally retired my rear pro 4 last night, have not had any punctures and central rolling rim still has life , but sidewall looking like a wet liability.
I don't knowingly cycle in ruts, but - I don't know - maybe the few times bike falls into one it does disproportionate damage. ?
[interesting site on rolling resistances https://www.bicyclerollingresistance.com/road-bike-reviews/michelin-pro-4-endurance-v2-2015]

 

[NoNameNoNumber]

Yeah I think a lot of people complain they mark their brake tracks making them yellow and as you say some manufacturers void the warranty because of it as they usually aren't an approved brake block (they are for Zipp wheels). I'm about to replace my Zipp Tangente blocks for some Swissstop Flash Pro Black Prince (what a crap name!)

A number of people recommend to not use swiss yellows even though they spec for carbon. They marked my old giant rims. I personally wouldn't use them again on carbon rims. Some manufacturers void warranty if the wrong pads are used that they don't approve. There's nothing wrong with the performance of them however. It's not like they'll expose the weave or anything, but I think the general consensus is they're a bit aggressive if you want to keep the brake track in really good shape long term.

Ok cheers guys. The wheels aren't anything fancy so not too worried if they're just going to leave some marks, I was a little worried I'd fried the pads or something and was meant to bed them in... The performance is good though, is it normal for them to squeal as they warm up?
Odd how different the rear brakes look compared to the fronts too...

 

[SoliD]

Hi,

I got a pair of Fulcrum Racing Quattro Carbon Clincher Center Lock AFS 700c recently and trying to change them from QR to Thru Axle, front was easy, just pulled off the caps and put in the replacements, but can't for the life of me figure out what to do with the rear. The instructions are nigh on hopeless, has anyone done any fulcrum wheels before?

Thanks

 

[Jonny ///M]

The rear ones thread on to the axle in the drive(possibly left hand threaded) side and push on the non drive I think? Instructions are crap and I'm off this week so can't check with wheels in the shop.

There's the knurled collar
They usually come set up for thru axle and have to convert to QR though?

You can see here the threaded one and the push fit.

https://www.bike-discount.de/en/buy/fulcrum-adapter-red-power-12x142-to-12x135-602243

These are behind those caps

https://www.bike-discount.de/en/buy/fulcrum-adapter-for-red-power-hr-from-x12-to-qr-602222

 

[Bear]

Ok cheers guys. The wheels aren't anything fancy so not too worried if they're just going to leave some marks, I was a little worried I'd fried the pads or something and was meant to bed them in... The performance is good though, is it normal for them to squeal as they warm up?

Yeah, when the pads get hot they squeal quite loudly on carbon rims. Its quite normal

 

[NoNameNoNumber]

Yeah, when the pads get hot they squeal quite loudly on carbon rims. Its quite normal

Ok thanks.
Can I get them too hot?
I don't drag them, and on longer descents I alternate between front and back to let them cool a bit.

 

[Bear]

Ok thanks.
Can I get them too hot?
I don't drag them, and on longer descents I alternate between front and back to let them cool a bit.

Im sure you can in the Alps on some long decents but not on anything in the UK

 

[Roady]

Filmed from my YI 4k. Chase is about 20-30mph. I've not got power. I didn't realise we were gonna chase the second time but I can't sprint for toffee anyway hence the gap opening up but my mate did 580w for 30s from the corner there, peaking around 900w. He's probably capable of a fair bit more. I caught up though at least

Oh cool, I assumed it was GoPro! How do you find the battery of the YI? My VIRB is still going strong but rubber door is about as bad as yours got. Also on my 4th battery now and struggling to get hold of replacements. Still, for a £94 camera bought in December 2014 it's served me VERY well!

I did a local Sportive on Sunday, 75 miles but the organisers had to make a couple of changes so said it was 77 - I did 82... It was very windy and at times not much fun but with a mate we pressed on and he hit his longest ride thus far so was well worth it.<snip>

Good to hear and glad to hear about the ROAM's rerouting seemingly working well. I need to get out with my ELEMNT following a route and test it as it's a long time since I did (or a long time since I went wrong and got 'told off')

Im sure you can in the Alps on some long decents but not on anything in the UK

I know of 2 guys who've cooked and blown carbon rims on descents around here. One was a Prime/some other Wiggle brand which could equally have just been a fault in the rim as it wasn't a long descent, just a sharp one (descending this). The other was a Mavic (I think) which got cooked on Gospel Pass north side (probably one of the few places long enough with steep pitches to do it). And that's just the two I know of from my local area (Hereford). I know of/have spotted 2 others cooked on european descents. One was even the guy who trashed his Prime wheel, so quite possible his descending technique isn't that great!

After some opinions on tyre wear pattern - is this normal ? ... maybe 2k miles
- finally retired my rear pro 4 last night, have not had any punctures and central rolling rim still has life , but sidewall looking like a wet liability.
I don't knowingly cycle in ruts, but - I don't know - maybe the few times bike falls into one it does disproportionate damage. ?
[interesting site on rolling resistances https://www.bicyclerollingresistance.com/road-bike-reviews/michelin-pro-4-endurance-v2-2015]

Which picture, or both? Not 'normal' for 2k miles. The top one showing threads off the side of the middle tread looks like it's been scrubbed. Similar to how a tread looks if it's been worn through after being locked up. The lower one could be the same, it just hasn't worn through as much/far and appears to be both sides of the main tread.

Are they isolated areas on the tyres, ie only those 2 patches? Is the lower the front and the top the rear? Have you 'washed out' or done anything like powerslides with them? can't quite think how the off-centre treads would be so scrubbed without the middle tread showing similar.

Can earn avios with them though. Have you tried CRC?

Hadn't heard of avios. Worth it?

Already do TCB, Quidco, Checkoutsmart and Kidsmart. Generally buy using Paypal (Nectar AMEX through there). Do love cashback/bargains but have noticed fewer and fewer cycling websites appearing on TCB than previous.

Shame Wiggle seem to be changing so much, but equally I spend so little through their website these days. Buy quite a bit through their 'bay page, although fewer and fewer bargains on there. Some items sell for above retail, I really think people don't see the £3 postage on everything there. They also don't combine it, unless you moan.

 

[Lethal`]

Oh cool, I assumed it was GoPro! How do you find the battery of the YI? My VIRB is still going strong but rubber door is about as bad as yours got. Also on my 4th battery now and struggling to get hold of replacements. Still, for a £94 camera bought in December 2014 it's served me VERY well!

It's not great, to the point I miss the odd incident as I can't be bothered to stop and change the battery. 1h40m generally at 1080p 48fps. Not horrific but not great. Virb was near enough 2.5 hours which covered near enough most of my riding, it's rare I do a ride below 1h40m so generally have to stop and change the battery. 30s job but I often can't be bothered. Quality is good though when the camera is kept stable (i've filled the case with a sponge recently to take out a lot of the road buzz and vibration). Ideally a GoPro session that lasts 3 hours would be perfect but not aware of one...

I've also considered, can I waterproof a power bank and stick in in the stem. For the YI I wouldn't be able to access the charging port with the waterproof case but I could explore one of the cases which does allow charging port access and try to make it water resistant... Other option could just be a Drift Stealth 2 with some sort of aftermarket mount (their standard bike mount looks awfully big and bulky).

 

[mrthingyx]

New (second hand) bike time! After my Merida Warp 4 was nicked, a Cervelo P2 will be joining me in a couple of days!

Woohoo!

 

[Shamrock]

Err, so I need to buy a new one of these (don't ask why) but I'm not sure what I need exactly?



It's an FSA headset, although I'm not sure if that matters. Is it this thing?!

https://www.wiggle.co.uk/fsa-compressor-adjuster/

 

[Saytan]

looking at the manual for that thing from here: https://shop.fullspeedahead.com/en/compression-device it seems so.

 

[Roady]

Good Zwift session last night resulted in an 'FTP increase' message to 254W. Not totally unexpected with my conservative FTP of 249W set in there from the spring. Had a couple of good rides this week commuting/extending where my legs have felt good at power levels over that FTP figure (back up towards previous levels). An effort on Tuesday to see how much 30mph required/hurt (after 'conversation' with @Lethal` on here), along with sustained threshold on monday. Really happy with how I'm feeling at the moment, body seems to have balanced the lack of sleep/riding/recovery and luckily have avoided many bugs from Nursery for a little while. Fairly sure that's going to change with this bit of change in weather/seasons so kinda making the most of it now and building form. Weight yesterday up to 78kg which isn't what I expected, but hopefully just water retention from interrupted sleep, or muscle building. Need more extended riding to burn off some fat I think!

Mixed bag of weather this weekend means club ride on saturday is off as someone wants to go to the safari park... Have been given the green light to go out on sunday instead (weather still ok, just not as good as saturday). Part of me wants to change BB/cranks so I've got lower gearing to attempt Gospel Pass north side again, just to cross it off after the failure/abandon there during the really hot weather. I'm utterly convinced I now have the fitness and power to get up there, especially with lower gearing. Although in a bit of a mindset - to cross it off without changing crankset. Either way good training, providing I keep things up/ticking over then actually committing to/being confident enough to attempt & finish the Autumn Epic seems viable. A month/6 weeks ago, it wasn't.

It's not great, to the point I miss the odd incident as I can't be bothered to stop and change the battery. 1h40m generally at 1080p 48fps. Not horrific but not great. Virb was near enough 2.5 hours which covered near enough most of my riding, it's rare I do a ride below 1h40m so generally have to stop and change the battery. 30s job but I often can't be bothered. Quality is good though when the camera is kept stable (i've filled the case with a sponge recently to take out a lot of the road buzz and vibration). Ideally a GoPro session that lasts 3 hours would be perfect but not aware of one...

I've also considered, can I waterproof a power bank and stick in in the stem. For the YI I wouldn't be able to access the charging port with the waterproof case but I could explore one of the cases which does allow charging port access and try to make it water resistant... Other option could just be a Drift Stealth 2 with some sort of aftermarket mount (their standard bike mount looks awfully big and bulky).

All good info, thanks. Battery life and reliability is what's kept me on the VIRB just quite gutted the V2 changed so much as the orientation and shape of this original V1 is really preferable for cycling. I realise it's an 'Action Camera' so they went the same orientation route as GoPro for helmet and chest mounting, but still damn annoying! I came close to going the Session route, really for the size but 1080p would be nice (as I'm only running 720p on my VIRB for increased performance/battery life). But when they got Discontinued that really ruled them out of having a V2+ with increased battery life. Real shame as think that size and format is superb - able to fit between some helmet vents & between saddle rails! Ideal for cycling!

New (second hand) bike time! After my Merida Warp 4 was nicked, a Cervelo P2 will be joining me in a couple of days!

Woohoo!

Awesome! Goodluck, P2 is kinda a benchmark within TT bikes through the years but the setup will really determine if its an upgrade over the Warp.

Err, so I need to buy a new one of these (don't ask why)

I want to know why because it's Friday & lols are always required!

Mine for the week is going to hop up a raised kerb outside work (I do this every day as it's around 3" high so always consider a hop to cause less issue), but while saying good morning to a colleague. Distracted & got it totally wrong and ended up burping sealant! Tyre didn't come off the rim and not much came out so think it reseated fine. Sealant thankfully only on the rim/tyre/floor and not all over me & bike! One benefit to running low pressure I guess - didn't blow off!

Replacement Wheelsmfg BB30 came yesterday. Have confirmed sizing is different to the PF30 (peace of mind!) and will be fitting it this weekend. Probably going to also buy new pedals (opportunity to replace ~3 year old keo's & I know I've not removed existing from my Praxis cranks for far too long) and going to a new Ultegra R8000 cassette too (along with chain change) as I'm changing chainrings (new R8000 crankset). Don't have the cassette/pedals ready so will just use existing for now but need to change before causing too much wear on new chainrings. As I'm going from 53/39 to 50/34 considering going for a 28t as opposed to my usual 32t. Really don't think I'll need the 32t like I have done on the current 53/39 and previous 52/36.

 

[Shamrock]

I want to know why because it's Friday & lols are always required! .

Maybe this image will help explain things...



I managed to drop part of the compressor into my steerer and it got stuck near my fork. I spent a long time trying to fish it out with a coat-hanger. Eventually I rescued it but I had damaged it with all the poking and now it won't thread onto the other end.

 

[jpaul]

Which picture, or both? Not 'normal' for 2k miles. The top one showing threads off the side of the middle tread looks like it's been scrubbed. Similar to how a tread looks if it's been worn through after being locked up. The lower one could be the same, it just hasn't worn through as much/far and appears to be both sides of the main tread.

Are they isolated areas on the tyres, ie only those 2 patches? Is the lower the front and the top the rear? Have you 'washed out' or done anything like powerslides with them? can't quite think how the off-centre treads would be so scrubbed without the middle tread showing similar.

picture was a single rear tyre, and the thread bare patches extend for ~25% discontinuous sections of sidewall ... treated kindly and no sliding or significant lock-ups.
(I wouldn't be skilled enough to slide on a sidewall )
I did wonder about over-inflation since sidewall being thinner might be stressed more, or, not having used the bike for maybe 2 months over winter.
... maybe I'll ring the michelin help line

edit: its like centre band is de-laminating / untsticking

Spoiler: closer-up

edit : closer up

edit2: looks like it maybe a known failure mode, I have the pink speckles too.
michelin pro4 endurance failure

 

[One More Solo]

Maybe this image will help explain things...



I managed to drop part of the compressor into my steerer and it got stuck near my fork. I spent a long time trying to fish it out with a coat-hanger. Eventually I rescued it but I had damaged it with all the poking and now it won't thread onto the other end.

If you've not already bought one, I've got a spare I'll post you in exchange for £5 to a charity of your choice.