DQ: Say you had a fender (aluminum honjo in this case) that was cracking and you wanted to fix it before it breaks in half. I am thinking, a piece of aluminum something or other plus some pop rivets and JB Weld should do the trick. The repair will sit under my fork crown and hbar bag and generally be invisible and besides this bike is a true DGAF machine.
The dq is: Where does one find such thin pieces of aluminum? What do people use for a normal reach-around job?
3"-5" snow forecast by morning. Hours of rain tonight beforehand then instantly rising above freezing tomorrow sucks.
Good news is the weekly gravel ride should be a muddy mess and warm enough not to be icy.
Getting ready to take the fendered bike out and see how it handles this slushy crap or rain even. New experiences both.
Any larger home maintenance store should be able to sell you a piece of malleable aluminum thick enough to be of use.
Something like this you can cut to size with a pair of shears.
[quote=mander]DQ: Say you had a fender (aluminum honjo in this case) that was cracking and you wanted to fix it before it breaks in half. I am thinking, a piece of aluminum something or other plus some pop rivets and JB Weld should do the trick. The repair will sit under my fork crown and hbar bag and generally be invisible and besides this bike is a true DGAF machine.
The dq is: Where does one find such thin pieces of aluminum? What do people use for a normal reach-around job?[/quote]
Stress relieve the cracks and weld it or just get a composite fender that won’t fall apart at the worst possible moment, if that’s not an option drill the cracks to stress relieve them and repair it with a composite not metal.
A composite eh? What would you recommend?? (sorry if this Q is extremely D)
The fender is cracking right where the daruma hole is, if this information helps. Maybe i will just buy another set…
Looking for pants/tights/?? for rainy commutes. In my new situation my commute is long enough that just toughing it out in the usual commuter pants with pockets is not really much of an option. Don’t want to just go into roadie costume mode, as I’d rather keep it simple.
Any good lower body ‘shells’ or similar out there?
Softshell or hardshell? There are balleur and less so options in both. These are pretty standard commuter wear in the Midwest if you want and easy answer. Hambiek cru digs em too.
If you get a new fender, try pjw’ing it; I’ve seen photos where he takes a strip of spring steel (hacksaw blade with the teeth stripped off?) and bolting through it at, fore, and aft of the stupid daruma. If you patch the existing one, try taking a couple of sheets of tyvek, epoxy them to the cracked area in a tyvek-aluminum-tyvek sandwich, and then use a couple of carriage washers to spread the load out when you rebolt it to the daruma (I’ve never tried this, but it seems like it would do the trick to flexibly attach everything together to it won’t vibrate itself to death.)
Good advice I’m sure, but what a fascinatingly un-detailed website.
Check out Jeff from All City’s personal blog or this cycleboredom link that was easier to grab.
I has the black labels. They’re water “resistant”. Also, good for me to about 20 *f, after that I have to add tights.
So from one tall skinny dude to another how well do those actually fit. For comparison a 32x34 Levi’s 511 is as close to I’ve found as an off the rack best fit.
[quote=b-roll]Looking for pants/tights/?? for rainy commutes. In my new situation my commute is long enough that just toughing it out in the usual commuter pants with pockets is not really much of an option. Don’t want to just go into roadie costume mode, as I’d rather keep it simple.
Any good lower body ‘shells’ or similar out there?[/quote]
yo, just grab the 65 dollar showers pass hardshell pants. I wore rain pants over jeans erry day and they were great. Other option is those over some long undies or tights if you dont want a lil bit of sweaty crotch.
Fuck the do all softshell pant imo, those things are going to roast you all day inside. You really gotta layer, no pant can swing a 60+ degree temp change and be cozy.
also just did about 25 mins in 13deg in jeans so w/e.
I change at work, but I’ve been commuting in these for 2 years now, and they’re perfect. REI Mistral http://www.rei.com/product/815993/rei-mistral-pants-mens-30-inseam
@Sean
Legs are nicely tapered, articulated crotch is awesome. You’ll need a belt. Softshell material’s just too stretchy to make for a secure waistband. Also, they’re pretty wooshy wooshy like corduroy.
[quote=b-roll]
Good advice I’m sure, but what a fascinatingly un-detailed website.[/quote]
Tell me about it, I have this responsive employee, Erin, at swrve on speed dial email to ask her questions about all their products.
I once wrote her an obnoxiously detailed 4 page email about how unsatisfying their website is from a consumer point of view. It is nearly impossible to compare products, I begged her to ask the web development guys for a simple comparison table to see the differences.
Swrve website protip: at the bottom of each product page is an obscure expandable “details & specifications” tab.
I really like all the Swrve clothing I have but they really need to stop putting rear pocket on their pants IMO. Most of their pants have these loose, deep bag style back pockets (jetted pocket) that have a seam that falls where the saddle touches my ass. On one pair I just cut the pocket out and the other I asked my supgirl to reshape the pocket away from the saddle contact area.
Currently looking over their rainy winter pants since my knickers have been quite chilly on some of the cooler mornings in Seattle. I’m loving the quick drying ability of the knickers, even when soaking wet they seem to dry within the hour without a change of clothes. I really want to try to fully commit to winter commuting this year.
Thanks for the info–checking it out.
Today’s AM ride was a case in point. 35 minutes in 38 degrees and moderate/heavy rain. I was soaked and unhappy but really quite biologically stable on arrival.
Had Sugoi tights on (model? year?) which did not repel water but kept me reasonably warm. Another layer underneath and I think I would have been happy as a clam. Was REALLY wishing they had a drawstring or were bibs as they kept slipping down in the back. Will need a more robust version of something like this as the weather gets worse. Swrve is interesting, but it’s hard to go for anything I can’t lay my hands on first. Will be checking out REI and the Gore stuff.
Huh. Now that I’ve actually looked at this stuff and realized I’ve got two Swrve dealers within 15 minutes, guess I’ve got some trying on to do…
This thing is tits. All around tits. It even looks kind of like a tit.
Of the rain/hardshells, my favorite durability wise is the Endura http://www.endurasport.com/Product.aspx?dept_id=133&prod_id=30
Reinforced butt/crotch area.
The hem snaps up, so each pair has a short and long length built into it.
I have shower’s pass club II rain pants but the cut leaves something to be desires. i bought a men’s small because i hoped it would be longer than the women’s, but it is still kind of short, and very baggy in the legs. they’re a convertible, so even when i tighten down the bottom around my leg, the upper leg is still huge with a big loop around my knee from the zipper of the zip off person. I got them for free in a sales promotion though, so I can’t complain too hard.
I just bought a waterproof shoe/boot thing cuz tired of putting on shoe covers on top of my sneakers to ride the basket bike. Just seems ridiculous. And I really need a front mud flap. In light rain my shoes are getting way too wet from fender spray.