Isatis tinctoria

Posted on 10th Jun 2012 by essiep

English: Isatis tinctoria, Brassicaceae, Woad,

18°C, CR 64 miles, Sunny & sunburnt

Woad: an interesting plant to try out. A friend dropped off a packet of seeds knowing it was the sort of thing that would appeal to me. She was right. they can’t be planted until the end of summer though. I shalln’t make any dye from it but am just more interested in its history and form.

Per-doiing: fixed the gear cables in the racing bike- now the gear shift is very light. then, on a roll, I decided to fix the freehub. Campag freehubs are not as neat as Shimano. There are three pawls that spring out unrestrained when you take the freehub off the hub. Not a great design – Shimano beat Campag to the patents I am told. One spring is broken in this hub but I did get it back together and ride 64 miles today.

Soon there will be sun

Posted on 21st May 2012 by essiep

14°C, light gry skies, no wind. CK:53 miles

Weekend up North. Saturday was I tired or was I harbouring some latent poorliness? After Sunday’s ride, it was obvious that all those debilitating feelings the day before were exhaustion. The ride went well- it felt so natural to be back in the fixed-gear. Muscles ached towards the end but nothing that would have been mended by a cafe stop.

Rocester

Posted on 13th May 2012 by essiep

15°C, SW winds, sunny

Rode to Rocester (pronounced Roaster) & wound through windy lanes between grassy fields. The grass picked up waves of wind that gave the surface an oceanic quality. A lovely day then. Just to dampen it a bit was my uncharacteristic lack of energy. It all felt like such an effort, and that wasn’t because the bike’s gears were still jumping about a bit. After some adjustment they were much better anyway. the last thing I will say about them is that the levers felt heavier than ideal- so perhaps a change of cable sheaths will finally fix the issue.

I have come home with that sticky throat (the bit in the back of my mouth anyway) that I get when hay-fever is bad and I react to dust on a dry day. However, that and the empty feeling in my legs is also characteristic of on-coming cold feeling. Time will tell.

Sun & weekend in step

Posted on 12th May 2012 by essiep

11°C, sun

How often does a run of good weather break at the weekend? Okay, so we’ve had the wettest April on record. That only makes days like this seem more refreshing. The sun is out, fresh verdant emerald growth is illuminated in its semi-translucency.

See any weird silhouette hound in the picture?

I have a new sofa. Erm, no it’s only new to me via eBay for £30. It’s an Ikea design from a few years ago with a leather cover. It’s smaller than usual for a two seater but that’s a bonus.

My bike wheel is repaired and to celebrate I bought some pressies for the house (fleece throw, a duvet cover & stuff).

Back-ache is nearly over and work stress is a little diminished.
This day is going well. I’m going to snooze in the attic bedroom.

New wheels and the Hereafter

Posted on 28th Apr 2012 by essiep

8°C, drier but still chilly.

Film: Hereafter; Clint Eastwood directed with Matt Damon in the lead role.
It’s a Hollywood story which runs along nicely. The lead character has psychic powers which are “a curse not a gift”. That theme is the most interesting part. Lie most American films, there is love interest. This time, there are three character’s threads which eventually and inevitable come together in unlikely circumstances. The ending is, however, a cheap throwaway. It was as if they ran out of money and had to finish it in a hurry.

Bike repairs saga: Burton-upon-Trent has a decent bike shop. I took the wheel there with the STX hub from my spares box. For the interim, I decided to buy a pair of cheap R500 wheels. They only have 20 spokes front (& 24 rear)- I hope they can take my weight (14¾ stones).

Fitted: A tight fit on the tyres but otherwise not much to do. The wheel rim is true but spokes were not evenly tensioned. I like to adjust spokes by sound- I pluck the spokes and listen, some sounded flat, others sharp. To get the wheel well tuned, you need to make adjustments to spokes so they all make the same note, and the wheel is true. Only when you have both, can you be sure of a wheel that is true and will stay so.

It does look odd with only 20 spokes on the front and straight-lace pattern. That makes the rim more sensitive to spoke adjustments (I assume the spoke nipple thread is the same pitch though).

12-21 teeth

Posted on 27th Apr 2012 by essiep

9°C, rain

Drive to work in heavy rain. An opportunity to drop in the bike shop on the way home. Their stock wasn’t complete so I came away with a 12-21 teeth cassette instead of my preferred 13-23. Oh well, it works smoothly even though it’s the lowest few gears that will be used the most. I can change to a more suitable gear range in time for the autumn when the pace fall back a little and the hills feel steeper.

Next fail

Posted on 26th Apr 2012 by essiep

9°C, rain clearing.

Climbed on the bike to ride home, there is a short ramp to the gate. then, a loud crunch and the rear wheel locks tight. First though- a bungee cord has wrapped round the spokes. Get off and reverse the wheel only to find something more serious. the rim is severely pringled. the hub has failed on the gear-side flange. The flange itself has broken to release the spoke head.

I always carry spoke key and managed to adjust the other spokes enough to pull the rim into shape. I cautiously rode home. If another nearby spoke, stressed by the extra tension, breaks, then the bike could be unridable. the bike needs a new wheel. Perhaps I can re-use the rim and have it built onto an old hub I have in storage.

Oh grawlix!

Posted on 25th Apr 2012 by essiep

Alignment spline on freehub (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

10°C, rain threatened.

Rain didn’t spoil the ride home, something else did. Yesterday’s ride was crunchy, the new chain didn’t agree with the old sprockets. they’re too worn for the chain’s links to mate well on the lower gears (17 & 19). Interestingly, the last time this problem arose, it was the 16 & 17 tooth cogs that had worn out. The change, I suggest, came from my tendonitis. Over the last year, I have deliberately ridden a lower gear, especially in the winter when soreness in that ankle is worse. So, this year, the gear cluster has worn out differently.

Anyway, after all that work fitting a new freehub and bearing cones, the hub itself has failed. the spoke-hole flange has broken away releasing one spoke on the chainside. the annoying bike maintainance saga continues.

I will tell you (excited readers) what I have decided to do about it after a night’s sleep.

April showers and gear-change

Posted on 22nd Apr 2012 by essiep

8 spd record cassette (Photo credit: djneight)

9°C, heavy showers. CR:54 miles

Fizzy legs: I really could have ridden more, my legs want to but I have pressing work to do. the energy was there before dawn, or is it work thoughts that fill my head and jangle my legs at three in the morning.

The bloody gears still aren’t ideal. After all those hours working on the gear-shift, you hope that it’s going to be better. The first ten miles were, the bike whizzed along, barely a sound and gear shifts were similarly unnoticeable. The day wore on and the bike changed gears all by itself, or it would skip without warning.

Film: Melancholia, Lars Von Trier. Was it a disaster film, or a study into the mental health of the lead characters. Somehow I could relate to the lead woman’s discomfort in her own wedding reception. Not that I’ve ever been married, but I have certainly grown to detest those social obligations. I could see myself in the same sort of event, desperately longing for escape. In fact, I did just that a few years ago, when the reception seemed to be quietening down, I sneaked away in the car when no-one was looking. that was an evening of dread, I remember it well having just watched the film.

Svenska: Tjolöholms slott. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Anyway, I have work to do.

It wasn’t supposed to take this long

Posted on 21st Apr 2012 by essiep

A Shimano freehub hub (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

10°C, heavy showers & sun

Nearly four hours fixing the bike. Changed the rear wheel bearing cones (and balls); new chain and new freehub. The rear axle still runs with a sticky spot- perhaps the axle itself is bent slightly. It’s not visible, but it doesn’t have to be. I have ordered a new one, but for now it’s better than it was.

I’m waiting for a dark shower to pass so the dogs can have their day’s long walk.
Meanwhile, read this, it has no relevance to bikes: earthangel and TES.

Micycle

Mike thinks b/hikes

Category Archives: Cycling