Road Cycling Essentials

One More Solo · 10 Jan 2013 at 22:06

VeNT said:
anyone get a planet X bike before?
was thinking of getting one on cyclescheme next time?

The missus has a Pro Carbon, and I've been to their showroom more times than I care to count.

I'd recommend popping in if you have a chance, their staff are very friendly.

My USB ANT+ stick and cadence sensor have arrived, will be setting up TrainerRoad this weekend.

I think I'll start a training log in the subforum to keep track of my progress.

VeNT · 10 Jan 2013 at 22:09

One More Solo said:
The missus has a Pro Carbon, and I've been to their showroom more times than I care to count. I'd recommend popping in if you have a chance, their staff are very friendly.

bit far from Cornwall tbh.

was thinking either the kaffenback or team ali

#Chri5# · 10 Jan 2013 at 22:10

VeNT said:
anyone get a planet X bike before?
was thinking of getting one on cyclescheme next time?

Yup, I've got an SL Pro Carbon on bike to work, must be 3 years old now.

VeNT · 10 Jan 2013 at 22:11

that with rival or force?

One More Solo · 10 Jan 2013 at 22:15

VeNT said:
bit far from Cornwall tbh.

was thinking either the kaffenback or team ali

Ah, just saw your location. They're quite different bikes, what do you have in mind?

burtie · 10 Jan 2013 at 22:16

One More Solo said:
The missus has a Pro Carbon, and I've been to their showroom more times than I care to count. I'd recommend popping in if you have a chance, their staff are very friendly.

My USB ANT+ stick and cadence sensor have arrived, will be setting up TrainerRoad this weekend. I think I'll start a training log in the subforum to keep track of my progress.

Have fun with TrainerRoad and go for it on the 20 min test, I was a little green after that.

weta · 10 Jan 2013 at 22:19

Saytan said:
there are several 9 speed athena ergos on ebay right now!

They're pretty well used, I'm was hoping to get some in better (near mint) condition.

Vonhelmet · 10 Jan 2013 at 23:35

Damn, damn and thrice damn. I had intended to get a couple of fixes done this evening - new brake blocks and new mudguards. Brake blocks went on OK, with the help of a teeny tiny allen key, but the mudguards cocked everything up. I needed to get the front brake off, in order to get the guards fitted on that bolt, as I have a recessed mounting on my bike, as I'm sure we all do, unlike the diagrams in the instructions... I managed to get the brake off, just about, and then realised I still didn't have a damn clue how to get the mudguard on, as with the bolt being buried inside the brake caliper I couldn't figure out how to get the bolt through the mudguard's slot and then tighten it back onto the frame. By the time I get the brake back on, I'd clearly tightened or loosened something that should not be tightened or loosened as now the brake isn't working correctly. I have to pull the lever all the way to get the brakes to close and then they don't spring open properly again so the brakes are left stuck on.

Clearly I've bitten off more than I can chew.

I think I'll have to take it down to Halfords at the weekend and they can fix the brake and get the mudguards on for me. It'll probably cost an arm and a leg

[Damien] · 11 Jan 2013 at 00:14

lol, you daft sod. I went in Halfords today, picked up a smaller pump while I was there. One that mounts sideways so I can fit a second bottle cage.

I'm going to stick my studded tyres on tomorrow and go wear them in (they need 25 miles on tarmac to bed in the spikes) because it's supposed to be getting cold and icy as of late next week.

Hamster · 11 Jan 2013 at 03:18

One More Solo said:
My USB ANT+ stick and cadence sensor have arrived, will be setting up TrainerRoad this weekend. I think I'll start a training log in the subforum to keep track of my progress.

Ooh I like the sound of this!! Which USB stick and cadence sensor did you go for? Garmin or are there good alternatives?

Also did you come across any good guides on getting TrainerRoad up and running with the equipment?

oli collett · 11 Jan 2013 at 07:53

One More Solo said:
The missus has a Pro Carbon, and I've been to their showroom more times than I care to count. I'd recommend popping in if you have a chance, their staff are very friendly.

My USB ANT+ stick and cadence sensor have arrived, will be setting up TrainerRoad this weekend. I think I'll start a training log in the subforum to keep track of my progress.

Good work

are you signing up for the tour of sufferlandia? Looks brutal!

Shadowness · 11 Jan 2013 at 08:16

Been abroad this week, and I think I've got mild food poisoning too, so that's me not on the bike all week

My new rear light got delivered whilst I was a way though, a Fibre Flare. Really neat bit of kit, not the cheapest light out there but seems great so far. And I wanted something that I can attach to my backpack too.

It's also NOT super bright, which is what I wanted. My main rear light is mega bright, so I didn't want another bright light to blind drivers, just something that gives me more visibility from more directions.
Meant to have 72 hrs battery life in flashing mode too!

burtie · 11 Jan 2013 at 08:25

Hamster said:
Ooh I like the sound of this!! Which USB stick and cadence sensor did you go for? Garmin or are there good alternatives?

Also did you come across any good guides on getting TrainerRoad up and running with the equipment?

It's easy to set up just d/l TrainerRoad to your pc pop in your ant stick and select your turbo trainer from a list.

You then have to pair your heart rate monitor and speed and cadence sensor to TrainerRoad. Have a look on bikeradar there is a massive thread with loads of info on the programme.

One More Solo · 11 Jan 2013 at 09:11

Hamster said:
Ooh I like the sound of this!! Which USB stick and cadence sensor did you go for? Garmin or are there good alternatives?

Also did you come across any good guides on getting TrainerRoad up and running with the equipment?

There are others out there but the Garmin USB stick and sensor seemed to be cheapest and best supported so I went for those.

oli collett said:
Good work are you signing up for the tour of sufferlandia? Looks brutal!

I would, it looks awesome, but I'm away with work for the next 3 weeks. I'll be trying to fit things in on the weekend.

Hamster · 11 Jan 2013 at 09:15

burtie said:
It's easy to set up just d/l TrainerRoad to your pc pop in your ant stick and select your turbo trainer from a list.

You then have to pair your heart rate monitor and speed and cadence sensor to TrainerRoad. Have a look on bikeradar there is a massive thread with loads of info on the programme.

One More Solo said:
There are others out there but the Garmin USB stick and sensor seemed to be cheapest and best supported so I went for those.

Thanks guys

Will look into it a bit more once I get my hands on the trainer!!

touch · 11 Jan 2013 at 10:15

Vonhelmet said:
I have to pull the lever all the way to get the brakes to close and then they don't spring open properly again so the brakes are left stuck on.

Can you get some pictures of it?
Do both sides of the brake stick on?
Both sides sticking is most likely to be the spring has popped out of its seat.
One side sticking could just be the caliper is on squint.

Electroshadow · 11 Jan 2013 at 11:21

Hi
Just wondering if anyone uses the following lights or Knows which one would suit riding on country lanes and the wild more?

Cateye Nano Shot + (approx 650 lumens)

Or

Lenyze Super drive (500 lumens)

Interested in the beam patterns and general overall user experiences....

I think im leaning towards the Cateye but have since found out that the lenyze uses 18650 batteries which i have loads of 4000+mah batteries thus i would be able to make the run times longer as lenyze only supply 2400mah batteries.
I know that ebay torches are the cheapest route but i have managed to melt 3 xml t6 led torches this last year, so im hoping that buying something from the uk may last longer plus i can take it back if there is a problem. (although im losing around 800 lumens )

Other sub £100 light recommendations also welcome, although i don’t really want a head light with separate battery pack.

uniQ · 11 Jan 2013 at 11:59

What do people think about the Look 675? Not keen on the white/red colourway but do like the black option:

chanjy · 11 Jan 2013 at 12:07

Errr... personally I think that stem/headtube junction looks terrible, but I accept it's a 'modern' look so isn't designed to appeal to all

Also not a massive fan of the top tube looking almost as beefy as the pretty skinny downtube, although that may be the camera rather than the actual bike.

Vonhelmet · 11 Jan 2013 at 12:17

touch said:
Can you get some pictures of it?
Do both sides of the brake stick on?
Both sides sticking is most likely to be the spring has popped out of its seat.
One side sticking could just be the caliper is on squint.

I'll post some pictures this evening.

It's more the left side than the right. As far as I can see the spring is in the right place. The caliper is quite loose on there - could it be I've not tightened it on to the fork enough? The rear brake is rock solid and doesn't move side to side, but the front one moves left and right. I wasn't overly sure how to tighten it back on... It has a bolt coming out of the caliper, then some kind of round nut with the sides squared off, then a couple of loose nuts with teeth on each side, which I assume are to grip everything in place once things are tight.

Does the bolt spin in the brake caliper? Is that how it's supposed to work? If so, then I can imagine that if I were to hold it in place I could turn the roundy-squarey nut with something and that would bind it in to the recessed nut in the fork. Is that right?