Road Cycling

Soldato
Joined
24 Oct 2002
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14,179
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Bucks and Edinburgh
I'm starting to think I could do with having power out on the bike, I never knew I needed it till I rode on the smart trainer - it's a revelation having a power readout.

Alas though, I don't have a big budget.

Are 2nd hand power pedals a recipe for disaster? Do any of the manufacturers do refurb stuff?

What is the budget? You can get a Quarq for under £500 and they are rock solid.
 
Soldato
Joined
25 Sep 2006
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14,358
What is the budget? You can get a Quarq for under £500 and they are rock solid.

Yup, the P1S is available nearer to £400 than £500 currently too.

Looks like the weekend is going to be pretty windy with 20+mph winds with up to 40mph gusts. Bit dangerous or not?

Deep sections, yay or nay? :p think I'll probably be on the turbo as I'm having a bit of a recovery week, nicely timed with gale force winds :cool:
 
Soldato
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5,386
Wiggle platinum 17% discount ending today.

Can't think of anything in particular I needed/wanted where the 17% discount is useful.

Learned a tip this morning: Don't let the guy 10+ kg less than you go first down a wet bendy descent. :D
Some careful braking to avoid touching wheels this morning.
 
Soldato
Joined
18 Oct 2002
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Hereford
Anyway, how could I buy a bike that wasn't canyon!?
Lul, beat us to it! ;)

I'm tempted by a Power2Max NG Eco. More for the curiosity factor of seeing the data than anything else as I don't really train for anything. Still haven't seen any UK pricing though!
The NG Eco sounds superb - all the hardware and then you pay additional 'add-ons' to unlock the features you need. GIEF! :D

Looks like the weekend is going to be pretty windy with 20+mph winds with up to 40mph gusts. Bit dangerous or not?
Play it safe! Winds this week where interesting, thankfully directly south/west so didn't cause me real problems on my short fairly sheltered commute but could've been horrific if going further and more exposed.

Not £500 :p

4iii or Stages used I think.
Your options are very limited at that low budget! Stages second hand or Vectors would be my suggestion. Still both supported (recalibration/spares/repairs etc) with lots of information around.

Best place to buy socks? I had a ton but seem to have worn holes in a load of them. Just thrown out 4 pairs, so need some more....
Depends what socks you need, brands etc. I've generally found Wiggle expensive and have tended to pick my Castelli/Sportful up from the bay. Day to day commuting/winter I've used PlanetX own brand 'Thicky' Merino and they're superb, I have them black with WC stripes and wear them as an everyday sock at work & home not just for cycling. Lion of Flanders for home use, of course! Own about 20 pairs! Could buy a 3 pair multipack previously for £10-12 but it looks like they're stopping doing them :( :cool:
 
Soldato
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Would be on the 404s. Will probably be on the trainer just to be on the safe side as a 40mph side wind gust could be quite dangerous Im thinking :eek::o

I've ridden my 808/404 in 25mph winds before on the Emonda, certainly interesting. Wouldn't dream of going out on the Speedmax with them, on main roads at least, in anything high-teens. Just too twitchy. My Bontrager Aeolus 5's handle wind pretty well by comparison.

Not £500 :p

4iii or Stages used I think.

If you can be patient the Avio Powersense is about to hit the market. Another slight delay due to an unreliable strain gauge supplier and some re-testing being required but believe mine might actually arrive soon :p

Plenty of used Quark's and P2M's on the UKTTF Classifieds at good prices.
 
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Soldato
Joined
7 Nov 2003
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Scotland
Just ordered this, along with some mudguards and a rear rack, as my 'winter bike'. The frame splits on the rear seat stay, so I might even upgrade it to a belt drive at some point. Never even tried a bike with hub gears so should be interesting. The only hill I need to go up on my commute is about 4% at it's steepest point so think I'll be ok?
 
Soldato
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Hampshire
I've ridden my 808/404 in 25mph winds before on the Emonda, certainly interesting. Wouldn't dream of going out on the Speedmax with them, on main roads at least, in anything high-teens. Just too twitchy. My Bontrager Aeolus 5's handle wind pretty well by comparison.



If you can be patient the Avio Powersense is about to hit the market. Another slight delay due to an unreliable strain gauge supplier and some re-testing being required but believe mine might actually arrive soon :p

Meh 808 is fine in 30mph winds!
 
Caporegime
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On the hoods
Looks like the weekend is going to be pretty windy with 20+mph winds with up to 40mph gusts. Bit dangerous or not?
I think my only weekend ride will be an offroad jaunt. I'd rather get blown into a hedge than under a car. Obviously I'd prefer getting blown in a hedge to either, but I don't think that's on the cards no matter how windy it gets.
 
Soldato
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I think my only weekend ride will be an offroad jaunt. I'd rather get blown into a hedge than under a car. Obviously I'd prefer getting blown in a hedge to either, but I don't think that's on the cards no matter how windy it gets.

I was riding down here a month or so back with 30mph+ gusting crosswinds and 50mph traffic overtaking. I really thought I was going to end up in the barb wire fence!

It's quite an exposed ridge so always windy but I hadn't expected to be fighting for possession of my front wheel at 30mph!
 
Soldato
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Hereford
If you can be patient the Avio Powersense is about to hit the market. Another slight delay due to an unreliable strain gauge supplier and some re-testing being required but believe mine might actually arrive soon :p
I remember it on road.cc but not really heard much since the early part of the year? DCR mentioned it back in April and hinted that he'd have a unit before the end of the month but I don't recall hearing him say anything about it since (unless I missed it somewhere?)

WattTeam Powerbeat could be another dark horse, not heard much about it recently. Dual leg/crank power for under $500.

Just ordered this, along with some mudguards and a rear rack, as my 'winter bike'. The frame splits on the rear seat stay, so I might even upgrade it to a belt drive at some point. Never even tried a bike with hub gears so should be interesting. The only hill I need to go up on my commute is about 4% at it's steepest point so think I'll be ok?
It'll be fine, chainring is 38T so not large in the slightest. With the hub gears there's no mention of the gear ratios/splits but as it's aimed towards easy town commuting I imagine perfectly capable of inclines. Although you may find you spin it out going much over 20mph! :)

Obviously I'd prefer getting blown in a hedge to either, but I don't think that's on the cards no matter how windy it gets.
*snigger*

I was riding down here a month or so back with 30mph+ gusting crosswinds and 50mph traffic overtaking. I really thought I was going to end up in the barb wire fence!
Looks an interesting stretch of road, typical wide open coastal road with coastal winds so not even any hedges to hide behind!
 
Soldato
Joined
18 Oct 2002
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4,619
It'll be fine, chainring is 38T so not large in the slightest. With the hub gears there's no mention of the gear ratios/splits but as it's aimed towards easy town commuting I imagine perfectly capable of inclines. Although you may find you spin it out going much over 20mph! :)

range is about 300% on alfine 8

a 38/18 on an 8 speed alfine gives a range broadly comparable to a 34t chainring on an 11-32 cassette, just a fraction lower at each end.
 
Soldato
Joined
25 Sep 2006
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14,358
I remember it on road.cc but not really heard much since the early part of the year? DCR mentioned it back in April and hinted that he'd have a unit before the end of the month but I don't recall hearing him say anything about it since (unless I missed it somewhere?)

WattTeam Powerbeat could be another dark horse, not heard much about it recently. Dual leg/crank power for under $500.

The powerbeat is a bit unsightly though... but granted if that doesn't bother you.

I secured one of the first batch from Avio and have been in touch with them since, latest update was today. They had hoped to ship mid September but had to source a new strain gauge supplier and have just finished some final testing. I've paid (£249), albeit on CC, but don't want to be kept waiting forever out of principle, rather than need. I have my P1's so this is purely a cheap back-up option for me.

(If I recall subsequent units are granted a 10% or 20% discount)
 
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