What old cycling technology don't you ever want to see again?

[Ming the Merciless]

I dunno what I was dpoing wrong then: we'd pump like crazy, then try to unscrew the hose from the wheel and half the air would come back out. Put me off cycling for ages. After a while I just used a car footpump.

Probably dodgy instructions or something. But anyway they should be ok as long as valve cores don’t unscrew in some fashion. Not usually a feature of Schaeder

 

[Milkfloat]

To so answer the OPs question - pretty much everything listed in the other thread that the old farts wanted to bring back - all nostalgic nonsense

 

[Hover Fly]

Screw-on free wheels. Alright until you want to remove it.

Just put removal tool in vice and turn wheel. Plenty of leverage and good rubber grip if tyre left on.

The place, the sub dock fitters’ workshop, VSEL Barrow,1984 , the cast, Fred Whitton, my father, me, various onlookers, that little lot were capable of fitting a nuclear submarine out:: in the red corner a bicycle wheel, Campagnolo large flange hub, connected to a Mavic sprint rim by 35 Berg stainless double butted spokes, and fitted with a Regina freewheel, 13-21 sprockets.
First we tried the regulation method, fit remover so the dogs engage with the slots, tighten down, put the flats of the remover in a bench vice, heave! on the rim, nothing doing, tried more muscle, 5 fitters on the rim, result, chewed up dogs on the remover, also the rim is now connected by 33 spokes.
Try a hammer and chisel on the feewheel slots, that makes a god job of removing the edge of the slots but not the freewheel.
The freewheel is now unusable, so remove the cover and outer body with sprockets, put the inner body in the vice, and again heave! Success! The freewheel is off! Also off is the top of the thread on the hub, so a Pyrric victory to the fitters, who can now replace the original broken spoke, but in a useless hub.

 

[DCBassman]

The place, the sub dock fitters’ workshop, VSEL Barrow,1984 , the cast, Fred Whitton, my father, me, various onlookers, that little lot were capable of fitting a nuclear submarine out:: in the red corner a bicycle wheel, Campagnolo large flange hub, connected to a Mavic sprint rim by 35 Berg stainless double butted spokes, and fitted with a Regina freewheel, 13-21 sprockets.
First we tried the regulation method, fit remover so the dogs engage with the slots, tighten down, put the flats of the remover in a bench vice, heave! on the rim, nothing doing, tried more muscle, 5 fitters on the rim, result, chewed up dogs on the remover, also the rim is now connected by 33 spokes.
Try a hammer and chisel on the feewheel slots, that makes a god job of removing the edge of the slots but not the freewheel.
The freewheel is now unusable, so remove the cover and outer body with sprockets, put the inner body in the vice, and again heave! Success! The freewheel is off! Also off is the top of the thread on the hub, so a Pyrric victory to the fitters, who can now replace the original broken spoke, but in a useless hub.

A perfect description of why freewheels should all be toast by now. They've been properly superceded! When I upgraded my Trek 800, I simply heaved the entire wheel gratefully into the bin, freewhell and all. Good riddance!

 

[Andy in Germany]

I was going to mention this but you have now. One roadside episode with a screw on pump removing Presta valve cores was enough to put me off them. Yes, it may well have been operator error, but I prefer foolproof things that don't require me to learn a new skill. Or try and fail to learn.

That is oddly a problem I've never experienced, despite using Presta valves pretty much exclusively for over 20 years. I'd never even heard of it until I saw it in a video a year or so ago.

 

[Andy in Germany]

Probably dodgy instructions or something. But anyway they should be ok as long as valve cores don’t unscrew in some fashion. Not usually a feature of Schaeder

On more modern pumps that's true: my touring pump is a screw fitting. But they have the crucial technological difference that the screw that secures pump to valve can rotate around the air hose.

The pumps of my youth (we had several examples bought at different times and for different valves) did not have this useful feature, so there were several seconds where the rotating tube was pressing the valve while you undid the pump, This meant that for a couple of seconds, no matter how quickly you undid the pump, air was escaping from the tyre.

 

[Blue Hills]

That is oddly a problem I've never experienced, despite using Presta valves pretty much exclusively for over 20 years. I'd never even heard of it until I saw it in a video a year or so ago.

depends which tubes you are using I think.
I think only a minority of tube makers use screw-in valves these days - one is I think those mad crazy singing fools Continental. I've had one come out - I now carry a small tool to tighten them if needed.

 

[Andy in Germany]

depends which tubes you are using I think.
I think only a minority of tube makers use screw-in valves these days - one is I think those mad crazy singing fools Continental. I've had one come out - I now carry a small tool to tighten them if needed.

I did tighten all mine with a pair of pliers when I became aware it could happen.

Maybe the other aspect of this is that I've used Marathon plus tyres for at least a decade. I get one puncture every few years, resulting in minimal tyre pumping...

Also, I worked for a shop selling Schwalbe tyres so I don't think I've got any Conti inner tubes.

 

[Blue Hills]

I did tighten all mine with a pair of pliers when I became aware it could happen.

Maybe the other aspect of this is that I've used Marathon plus tyres for at least a decade. I get one puncture every few years, resulting in minimal tyre pumping...

Also, I worked for a shop selling Schwalbe tyres so I don't think I've got any Conti inner tubes.

This is the tool I bought from these folk, before the brexit door clanged shut.
https://www.bike24.com/p2195861.html
They also sell a cheaper thing which is probably just as good.

https://www.bike24.com/p234852.html

 

[Hover Fly]

Over the years I have realised that the best (most secure, not quickest) way to attach a track pump hose to a valve (Presta I haven’t tried other types) is a jubilee clip.

 

[rrarider]

Dual action brake levers (a.k.a. suicide levers) - particularly useless on a wet chromed rim.

 

[GuyBoden]

Dual action brake levers (a.k.a. suicide levers) - particularly useless on a wet chromed rim.

I've been using the suicide levers on my old Galaxy a lot, they encourage you to ride on the tops a lot, which it a bad thing IMO.

 

[gmw492]

Giant Conduct Hydraulic brakes if it’s not been mentioned already , the most ugliest thing I’ve seen on a bike, apart from the time I noticed myself in a reflection pedalling past a shop window

 

[jay clock]

Can't see anything particularly wrong with cotter pins though.

my left ankle bone would disagree with you. Helped by the Sturmey Archer 3 speed slipping as I stood up on the pedals aged about 13

 

[Profpointy]

my left ankle bone would disagree with you. Helped by the Sturmey Archer 3 speed slipping as I stood up on the pedals aged about 13

I knew those SA 3 speeds were shyte as I mentioned similar experiences in my own post. Thankfully I only lost some skin and was grateful for lack of crossbar on my otherwise crap Raleigh folder. Seems slightly unfair to blame the cotter pins rather than the three speed hub though