What have you bought for the bike today ?

[PedallingNowhereSlowly]

And second hand Islabike Cnoc 16 for the wife's best friend's smol hooman who has outgrown the Cnoc 14 Large I bought and rennovated for her just before Christmas.

Should pick it up on Sunday and give it an assessment shortly after.

The Cnoc 14 will be for sale at some point soon, to fund a Cnoc 18/20.

 

[HLaB]

A new chain and 11sp 11-28 cassette ordered. I got 3 chains (5,000mile, 8,000miles and 4,000miles) out of the last cassette but I figured I'd order one this time and if the new chain skips use it.

 

[Dan Lotus]

A little crazy perhaps, and won't be able to lay my hands on them for a couple of months, but have just placed my second order with Ekoi, to be delivered to my folks in Spain.

Due to riding in somewhat hot conditions in Italy recently, and likely to do so in Spain next summer, thought a pair of these ventilated shoes wouldn't go amiss, especially in white:

To gain 'free' postage, I have added in some Spanish coloured white socks, and a pair of white mitts.

I will try and remember to feedback on these, and the helmet and jerseys I ordered earlier this year, once I get my hands on them!
The grand total of the mitts, shoes and socks is a very reasonable (to my mind) £115.

 

[ColinJ]

I had yet another pair of cheapo Aldi/Lidl cycling glasses snap. They have frames allowing different lenses to be clicked in but the frames are not strong enough. I will stick to simple single colour designs in future.

So, I just bought 2 pairs of industrial safety glasses, one pair with a yellow tint, the other 'smoke' (grey, suitable for sunny conditions but shouldn't be too dark when riding through woods).

The yellow glasses turn out to be identical (apart from the tint) to the clear safety glasses that I have been using for years so they should be very reliable. I paid £3.38 on Amazon but if you shop around on eBay you can sometimes get them for about £2.

Advantages:

• Inexpensive
• Good eye protection (they are safety glasses!)
• Comfortable
• Reliable (strong material and no frame to break)
• No frame to obscure vision

Disadvantages:

• They do pick up scratches so don't store in a pocket along with keys or coins. I use a draw-string pouch to protect them.
• They look like industrial safety glasses! (That is fine by me, but if looks are your thing, ultra-expensive Oakleys that way ->!)

(The smoke ones look a bit flimsy so they might end up being replaced by some dark ones with the same design as the clear and yellow ones.)

 

[HLaB]

I had yet another pair of cheapo Aldi/Lidl cycling glasses snap. They have frames allowing different lenses to be clicked in but the frames are not strong enough. I will stick to simple single colour designs in future.

So, I just bought 2 pairs of industrial safety glasses, one pair with a yellow tint, the other 'smoke' (grey, suitable for sunny conditions but shouldn't be too dark when riding through woods).

The yellow glasses turn out to be identical (apart from the tint) to the clear safety glasses that I have been using for years so they should be very reliable. I paid £3.38 on Amazon but if you shop around on eBay you can sometimes get them for about £2.

View attachment 783297
Advantages:

• Inexpensive
• Good eye protection (they are safety glasses!)
• Comfortable
• Reliable (strong material and no frame to break)
• No frame to obscure vision

Disadvantages:

• They do pick up scratches so don't store in a pocket along with keys or coins. I use a draw-string pouch to protect them.
• They look like industrial safety glasses! (That is fine by me, but if looks are your thing, ultra-expensive Oakleys that way ->!)

(The smoke ones look a bit flimsy so they might end up being replaced by some dark ones with the same design as the clear and yellow ones.)

I've found that these sorts of glasses steam up on me.

As to what I've bought today:

I might need a power bank so I've ordered one of these https://rockbrossport.co.uk/product...for-bikepacking?_pos=1&_psq=powe&_ss=e&_v=1.0 Its only a 150lumens light though, so if the ride happens I'll need another light anyway.

 

[ColinJ]

I've found that these sorts of glasses steam up on me.

I came back to mention that they are a close fit so my eyebrows sometimes leave marks at the top of the lenses (sunblock and/or sweat).

They can also get misted up but I find that pushing them down my nose a few mm and tilting my head down slightly gets enough airflow inside to clear them in seconds.

 

[Pduk]

Ordered a new helmet yesterday, due for delivery today. Colour scheme matches my new (2 months old now) road bike.

Also bought some new bib shorts last month in a bid to help improve time spent in the saddle.

Still on the fence whether to invest in some clipless pedals, currently using flats and trainers.

 

[PedallingNowhereSlowly]

Picked up a 2009 Specialized Sirrus Comp.

I should have rejected it really, but the young person involved with selling it was very keen to tell me what he thought was wrong with it, and very inquisitive about the things I was checking. It is a bit battered but the carbon bits look okay (fork / rear stays). Will subject them to closer inspection. Wheels are kippered. Could potentially make a nice beater bike.

---

On Edit: I've given it a bit more of a thorough assessment.

• Bottom bracket seems fine.
• Headset seems fine.
• Carbon bits seem fine (checked with a torch - will re-check when I've had chance to clean the bike up).
• Derailleurs, shifters, brakes seem fine.

So now I'm contemplating the following purchases, to fix the bike up:

• Chain - £15
• Cassette - SRAM PG950 (as per original spec) second hand / hardly used - £14
• Chainrings (all three are hooked; middle chain ring is the worst I've seen) - £64
• Wheelset (an identical set, Alex rims, Specialised hubs, stainless spokes;can't find identical NOS rims for a rim swap and freewheel is not currently freewheeling) - £80
• Brake blocks - £16
• Tyres (and possibly tubes) - £42 (£54)
• Saddle - £29
• Grips - £8

£268 - £280 to have the bike as good as new, with matchy matchy amber/tan wall tyres, saddle and grips.

I'll see how well the frame cleans up and perhaps polish the cranks whilst I thinking on it.

---

Edit edit: That's a lot considering how cheaply they sometimes sell for. But it's not always about the £££.

 

[ebikeerwidnes]

Not bought as I bought them several years ago

but I have replaced all the hi-vis stickers on my bike and added a load more

I have had red and white reflective hi-vis striped made out of rolls of sticky strips on the rear mudguard for years
but they were sun faded
and the yellow stickers on the front forks that came with the bike - had mostly come off with wear and tear
so I have replaced them with long yellow and white hi-vis stripes

so now no-one has anyexcuse for not seeing my bike from behind or from the side


just waiting for someone to say "SMIDSY"!!!!

 

[Baldy]

One of those Halfords Bike work stands. For £45 should be good enough for the amount of work I'll use it for.

 

[fwgx]

Have been fixing up my CX bike recently with new tyres: Schwalbe CX comp and new brakes: TRP Spyre's.
Rides great except the left pedal on one side of the SPD is incredibly tight and the Allen bolt is stripped - caused a fall yesterday and has me worried I could fall in traffic next time, so found a second hand set on ebay.
I have a shorter stem on the way too as I am less flexible than I used to be.
And vainly I ordered new bottles as I only have a yellow one, and on a black and white bike with flashes of green it really clashes awfully.

 

[Jenkins]

To provide a slightly larger mapping screen than on my Edge 530. It's not a getting older eyesight thing, honestly

Since it arrived this morning I've also had to order a couple of replacement out front style mounts as the current ones have too short an arm and the larger Explore snags on the stem bolts on a couple of bikes. Moving the mounts elsewhere on the bars is not an option at it just looks wrong when the GPS is not directly in line with the stem.

 

[joeegg]

Not ‘for the bike’….. but for moi:

My first pair of Bib-shorts.Getting off and back on the bike as often as I do for pictures / to stop and absorb the scenery - a couple of my pairs of shorts were beginning to irritate me; with the waist slipping / moving / folding down; or just cutting-in……

A cheapish pair with ok reviews was purchased today (Danish Endurance) with a view to then investing in a couple (?) of decent pairs if I feel comfortable with the concept.

I do get the feeling this could be a ‘turning-point” you’ll never go back from though 🤷‍♂️

I bought a pair of those a while ago.They aren't really typical of most bib shortsh as the material and pad are thin.However they will give you an idea of what bib shorts feel like but the difference in feel between them and say Altura is noticeable.
The Danish Endurance long sleeve tops,Sport Pursuit,are really good though for the money.

 

[Dadam]

View attachment 783759
To provide a slightly larger mapping screen than on my Edge 530. It's not a getting older eyesight thing, honestly

Since it arrived this morning I've also had to order a couple of replacement out front style mounts as the current ones have too short an arm and the larger Explore snags on the stem bolts on a couple of bikes. Moving the mounts elsewhere on the bars is not an option at it just looks wrong when the GPS is not directly in line with the stem.

Nice. I did the exact same upgrade earlier in the year - 530 to EE2. It's not just the bigger map screen it's the faster processor, which also helps for recalculating the routes quicker, and the touch screen is a lot more user friendly than the 530's buttons.

 

[sevenfourate]

I bought a pair of those a while ago.They aren't really typical of most bib shortsh as the material and pad are thin.However they will give you an idea of what bib shorts feel like but the difference in feel between them and say Altura is noticeable.
The Danish Endurance long sleeve tops,Sport Pursuit,are really good though for the money.

The Danish Endurance actually had an imperfection (Small hole) upon arrival - so I got a refund……after never getting to try them.

The replacement cheap set (FDX Brand) have been ace so far in 200 (?) miles total and 3 x continuous 50k rides.

I should now think about upgrading for sure. I’ll look up Altura….thanks ! 🙏