Archive for the ‘bike stuff’ Category
Friday, May 11th, 2007
I was at the Dutch Bike festival last weekend, and I think I found the Sensible Bicycle. Curbside were showing the Batavus Personal Bike. It’s lovely. At $1400 for the 3-speed, though, I’m not just about to trade in the old Stumpjumper.
I’m not wild about the squidgy roller brakes, and the dynamo really should’ve been built into the hub, but these are very minor things. Wonder if the company would let me expense this instead of getting a transit pass?
Tags: batavus, bicycle, bike, curbside, dutch, fiets, roadster, sensible, sensible-bicycle, toronto
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Sunday, April 29th, 2007
I got the Super Galaxy back from Cogs yesterday. They’ve done a great job of fitting slightly raised bars and thumbshifters, and repacking all the ancient bearings. It rides like a dream; I was only planning to ride from Gerrard back to Broadview TTC, but I zoomed all the way along Gerrard to Main St station. And this was me having hardly been on a bike since last year.
I think the rear derailleur may be on its way out, ‘cos it still makes clonky noises in lowest gear. But it’s looking great, and running great, and best of all, Cogs did the work for a very reasonable price. I am happy.
Tags: cogs, dawes, gerrard, super-galaxy, toronto, ttc
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Thursday, April 26th, 2007
A Scooma folding bike seen on the Danforth.
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Tuesday, April 3rd, 2007
The small image doesn’t do them justice, but I saw two Raleigh Superbes locked together near Dundas on Yonge. These were the deluxe ones with the locking steering column and the front dynohub. Lovely bikes, definitely sensible.
Tags: bike, lx2, raleigh, roadster, sensible, superbe, toronto, yonge
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Tuesday, March 13th, 2007
Saw my first Strida folding bike in the wild today.
Tags: strida_folding_bike
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Wednesday, December 20th, 2006
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Wednesday, October 4th, 2006
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Sunday, September 17th, 2006
Sorry there’s no picture, but there’s a beautiful Pedersen parked outside Chester TTC. It’s the original tallbike.
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Saturday, September 9th, 2006
6 or so slightly rusty open-frame roaders; some Raleighs, a Dunelt, and maybe a couple of Eaton’s Flyers. None look rideable, but if you were a three-speed/coaster brake fiend, there are parts galore.
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Saturday, September 2nd, 2006
I found a picture of the bike I probably enyoyed most of all I’ve ever owned:
It was originally a 1996 Gary Fisher Nirvana, but by the time this picture was taken, the only original things were the frame. the stem, and the beautiful curved bars. Everything else was swapped out, mostly due to wearing it out from my daily commute.
It wasn’t that it was a very expensive bike. It was just right; a nimble climber, nippy through traffic, yet stable enough to be ridden home when tired.
I still have the saddle; it’s on my Brompton. I gave the bike to Eddie Moore before we left. I wonder if he still has it?
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Wednesday, August 2nd, 2006
I meant to add to the last posting that I got stopped in the lobby of Lansing Square and told that I couldn’t bring a bike in since it was a fire risk. Now, I’ve never had a bike catch fire, so you think the concierge was being a jobsworth?
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Wednesday, August 2nd, 2006
Biked to work today, and just got back. Maybe not the smartest choice of a day — second hottest of the year, with thunderstorms threatened — but I made it. Going there was rather slow, as I got lost a couple of times, but coming back was faster than transit.
If I felt really nerdy, I’d post my route as GPX, but it’s a bit twisty.
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Monday, July 31st, 2006
To round out the Dawes Super Galaxy, I got a pair of used Sun Tour Superbe non-aero brake levers from Bicycle Specialties. Wouldn’t you know it though, but one of them was for thicker (Cinelli?) bars than the narrow GB Randonneurs that are on my bike.
Armed with a sharp knife, a straight edge, and an empty can of Irn Bru, I cut myself some shim stock to fill out the gap. The lever has a little lateral play, but it’s not moving up or down any. I am the king ov shim!
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Tuesday, July 25th, 2006
I finished fixing up the brakes on the Super Galaxy, and put new handlebar tape on the bars. I still suck at fitting bar tape; should’ve stuck to my old standard Benotto tape, which, while almost useless for shock absorption, is cheap and easy to fit.
Once all was fitted, I took it for a spin. The new brakes are a delight; very positive and extremely powerful. I will enjoy riding again.
(And yes, you bike nerds, there is no straddle cable in that picture.)
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Monday, July 24th, 2006
There is something very pleasing about working on one’s bike of an evening, racing against the fading light. I stripped the ancient bar tape of the tourer, and started on refurbishing the brakes. I think that 1987 was the year that cantilevers got good, and since I have a 1986 Super Galaxy, the old Shimano BR-AT50s were pretty poor. New Alivios don’t quite have the finish of the old units, but they’ll work, meaning I’ll be able to stop without a full city block’s notice.
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Friday, April 14th, 2006
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Saturday, April 8th, 2006
If I see another $2500 full-sus disk-braked mountain bike, I’ll puke. There were a few tiny things of interest here; please comment if you want the details.
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Sunday, April 2nd, 2006
Ah, the Cleland Aventura — the very distinctive off-road bike. I wanted one of these something fierce when I was a young ‘un.
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Thursday, March 2nd, 2006
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Saturday, October 1st, 2005
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