Disqus - Latest Comments for Mike42

Re: New Garmin inReach Messenger Communication Device

Mike42 — Thu, 29 Sep 2022 03:15:42 -0000

I agree battery is king - but I’ve never had an issue keeping the teensy 950mAh InReach battery charged. 4 days life at the highest tracking activity, 24 days with 30-minute tracking. If you turn it off while sleeping, or leave it off and only turn it on to send messages, it’ll last ages.

Re: New Garmin inReach Messenger Communication Device

Mike42 — Thu, 29 Sep 2022 02:48:37 -0000

If you own an InReach Mini 1, you can ask for the new Communicator app to get supported here: http://www8.garmin.com/cont...

Re: Even Vikings Wore Helmets (Video)

Mike42 — Thu, 10 Jun 2021 06:36:58 -0000

Let's be clear here: what looks like a 'funny' video is actually telling the story the motoring industry wants you to believe: that cycling is SO DANGEROUS, you need body armour.

...and by sharing the story, bikepacking.com and anyone else is helping to spread that message: bikes and cycling are dangerous. You need to wear armour. If you aren't wearing armour, don't ride. The video even mocks people who don't want to wear helmets because hair. FFS, could you be more patronising?

...oh, and ever wonder why no cycling helmet manufacturer claims any sort of safety benefit for their product? Surely if they actually made individuals safer, we'd know about it by now?

Wherever you look around the world, every time one of these campaigns comes out - online, on TV, on bus stops, wherever - cycling rates fall.

...and y'all are helping that along nicely. Slow clap.

(before you come at me: I own three helmets, and I choose to wear them or not depending on whether I'm flying off a mountain, bombing a fire road or nipping to the shops for bread. Don't tell me they would work in any or all of those cases, becuase science ain't on your side. You got nothing but anecdata and supposition, whereas I got an entire country of stats over many years, that shows helmet promotion-enforcement (which this is by shaming non-wearers) halves the number of cyclists and doubles the population injury rate)

Don't do the motor industry's work guys. Just don't.

Re: A Guide to Low-Waste Bikepacking

Mike42 — Sat, 14 Nov 2020 02:40:13 -0000

Great read. For UK folks, there’s an awesome alternative to the Outdoor Provisions bars - Stoats Oat bars. They are 1/4 the price and pack more energy per gram. Wrappers are compostible. The only real difference is they aren’t vegan as they contain butter. I buy them in the four packs for £1.50 and eat one per hour - ~220kCal of yum. They do a vegan version as well - their ‘thins’ range - that is slightly more expensive, come in half-sized 22g bars with compostable wrapping but still pack 92 kcal.

Re: How to check for chain wear: The easy way, the best way, and why

Mike42 — Wed, 28 Oct 2020 06:41:16 -0000

Hi Dave, when you say "In Kerin’s chain lube testing, he discovered huge differences in cog wear as the direct result of chain lube choice. Some of the poorer-performing chain lubes, such as White Lightning Epic Ride, would see the cogs abraded beyond re-use by the time a chain measured .5% wear. Meanwhile, good wax-based lubes would cause almost no measurable wear to the cogs with the same chain elongation"

...how is chain wear to a set point for a poor-performing lube going to affect cog wear more than that of a high-performing lube? 0.5 is 0.5 - the poor lube will get the chain there faster is all. Remembering, the lube is inside the chain, not between the chain and cog. If anything, I'd expect a poor-lube chain at 0.5 to have inflicted less wear on a cog, because it's arrived at 0.5 sooner.

Re: Trek and Bontrager unveil WaveCel brain-saving helmet technology

Mike42 — Thu, 21 Mar 2019 16:05:18 -0000

Don’t worry, the test conditions were so prescriptive that anyone attempting to sue would be laughed out of court.

For example, crashing whilst their head was still attached to their body. Helmet tests are done with headforms that weight as much as a human head. Therefore, if you choose to crash with your body still attached, you’ve clearly, and willingly, vastly exceeded the helmet’s ability to absorb impact.

Re: Restrap’s Mag Bottle is Powered by Magnets

Mike42 — Tue, 30 May 2017 15:17:01 -0000

Ryan, what's your experience with the front pouch been? I'm interested. Do you own one?

Re: iPhone SE vs. iPhone 6S – which phone is best for you?

Mike42 — Thu, 14 Apr 2016 07:51:28 -0000

The SE is ***30g*** lighter. That's a lot.
The batteries are basically identical
Same processor

...so I'm assuming that use-for-use, the SE battery will last longer, as the screen is smaller?

And I don't want a big phone. The SE size is fine. FINE. Size is the *only* reason I didn't get a 6. I did not want a bigger phone.

I have probably £200 worth of open and water/shockproof cases/mounts for the 5. This makes me very happy, that when I get an SE they will all just work.

Well done Apple.

Re: What's holding back e-bikes? | Bicycle Business | BikeBiz

Mike42 — Wed, 23 Mar 2016 07:04:27 -0000

That car then costs you £3k a year in fuel, maintenance, insurance, tax, parking. So the bike saves you all that.

Re: Second Hand Bike Online Buying Guide

Mike42 — Mon, 21 Mar 2016 06:40:01 -0000

"Note frame size: Get yourself sized up for a bike at a store "

How about you make damn sure you buy something pricey while you're there, or pay for a bikefit. Bike stores aren't charities for you to waste the time of a salesperson.

Re: Beginner's guide to riding in traffic

Mike42 — Sun, 17 Jan 2016 15:42:51 -0000

As I was obvs too sweary for Bikeradar previously, I'll tone it down. Ahem:

"Oh please do join the far queue, John Franklin. And bikeradar, shame on you".

There, that better chaps?

Re: How to bleed Shimano hydraulic road disc brakes

Mike42 — Sun, 17 Jan 2016 15:38:54 -0000

So Shimano are wrong, for want of a £5 syringe? Granted they don't actually list it in the Tools section, but they do reference the back/forth flow. If bubbles naturally rise, how certain can you be relying on gravity to drain down through the caliper?

If you're sending air *into* the hose on the first pass using the syringe, then you need to step away from the bike and use a proper mechanic :-) - how hard is it to connect a syringe with no air in it, and tap to ensure all air is gone as you push?

Re: How to bleed Shimano hydraulic road disc brakes

Mike42 — Fri, 15 Jan 2016 13:01:42 -0000

Q: was there a reason you didn't follow Shimano's dealer manual method (DM-BR0008-02-ENG.pdf, from P.24), where fluid is first injected from the bottom using a syringe, then when all bubbles are gone, it's drained back the other way?

Re: The Cyclist guide to inner tube repair

Mike42 — Tue, 15 Dec 2015 11:35:09 -0000

WOAH THERE - what happened to

STEP 2: FIND IT - once you've found the hole, go back to the tyre and check in the same spot, to find the cause of the puncture (if it's not a snakebite). You should at least find a hole where whatever punctured the tube entered. If you're lucky you'll find the offending sharp object. Remove it carefully.

Re: This study claims that tyre pressure makes no real difference to rolling resistance

Mike42 — Sun, 08 Nov 2015 15:35:54 -0000

Guys, if you're going to cite a study, at least link to it please?

Re: Brands must be tough on e-bike modifications, says supplier | Bicycle Business | BikeBiz

Mike42 — Wed, 28 Oct 2015 06:50:42 -0000

Let's see Mr Williams refuse to stock e-MTB's full stop, as they pose a serious threat to all land access.

"as the positive impact it has on people's lives is something that can't be measured."

So it can't be measured, eh? An unmeasurable thing, vs. 30 years of hard-fought land access that supports the current and future MTB community. He and his ilk are willing to risk that - the tangible benefits now, for profit later. Talk about sh*tting in your own nest.

Re: Colnago apologises for posting ‘sexist’ tweet

Mike42 — Mon, 26 Oct 2015 08:42:32 -0000

Dear men who want to appear macho by saying there's nothing wrong with this: just STFU. No-one's going to think you manly by displaying your approval/enjoyment of a borderline-child-pornography image. FFS.

Re: Colnago apologises for posting ‘sexist’ tweet

Mike42 — Mon, 26 Oct 2015 08:40:54 -0000

...because you're part of the problem.

Re: Pick 'n' Mix - 01

Mike42 — Fri, 16 Oct 2015 15:19:33 -0000

The Velocity Apogee is indeed a cracking pump - I reviewed it here back in the spring: http://road.cc/content/revi...

Re: Seeing Red (Peak)

Mike42 — Wed, 09 Sep 2015 02:29:26 -0000

We'll take that as admission that a curved fern with a bajillion fronds and about a hundred star points is indeed a hell of a lot 'busier' than four lines dividing four colours.

Re: How to adjust headset bearings

Mike42 — Wed, 19 Aug 2015 08:57:19 -0000

Where's the advice to spend £11 on a calibrated preset 6NM Torque tool like the Prestacycle TorqKey? http://nextdaytyres.co.uk/d...

That hand & multitool don't look calibrated to me...

Also, the amount required to tighten the top cap is absolutely minimal - most people go waaaaaay too tight, prematurely destroying the bearings. It should be just enough that an allen key in the top bolt, sitting on your open palm, only just starts to resist sliding across your skin. We're talking fractions of a Nm.

Re: How to adjust a rear derailleur

Mike42 — Wed, 19 Aug 2015 08:48:31 -0000

"You want the uppermost jockey wheel to sit directly below the smallest of the sprockets."

erm...Shimano doc SI6S70A-002 'Rear Drive System' states 'Turn the top adjustment screw ... so that the guide pulley is in line with the outer line of the smallest sprocket'

I appreciate this may be a nuance too far for some, but if you are trying to get it really dialed in, this is important for snappy downshifts all the way into 12 or 11T, where the spring is at its weakest.

Also, no mention of hanger alignment? IMHO the first thing you should do during drivetrain tuneups is check that, which requires a Hanger Alignment Gauge like the Park DAG-2. More than 0.4mm out of whack vertically or horizontally and you'll never get correct shifting. That's not something you can eyeball.

Re: Cyclists Are Flesh and Blood – Give Them Space When Overtaking

Mike42 — Fri, 14 Aug 2015 07:54:02 -0000

What people in cars who don't cycle need to realise is that groups of cyclists WANT them to get past safely. Cyclists are almost all drivers as well, and know how following slower road users - buses, HGV's, tractors, cyclists etc - for extended periods can be frustrating. The front riders will be looking out for hazards the driver 30-40-100m back cannot see. Some groups will pro-actively 'block' the lane, so as not to 'encourage' a pass where they can see it's dangerous to do so. Again - 90% of people who cycle (and I'd say 100% of adult 'road cyclists') also drive, and can perceive how much room motorists need to get past. The life a cyclist saves by not 'letting you past' by going single-file will probably be your own / your passengers / the oncoming motorist.

Re: Angry cyclist lifts car out of cycle lane with his bare hands

Mike42 — Tue, 28 Jul 2015 11:41:12 -0000

You say in the article 'calmly' and 'quietly'. Then you sub it with the headline 'angry'.

Was this just lazy, stupid, clickbait or a deliberate attempt to portray this cyclist / all cyclists as objects of derision. You lot really are going down the journalistic tubes fast.

Re: Shimano’s new Tiagra 4700 groupset is important and here’s why

Mike42 — Wed, 01 Apr 2015 09:08:40 -0000

Let the revolution start here: 10 *Gear Combinations*

:-)

Otherwise, bang-on observations.