Myth and Reality: I read it on the Internet - Peugeot bikes have "gas-pipe tubing"

We probably have all heard some folks dismissing Peugeots as "gas-pipe" bikes, sold on the reputation of their racing team (who used very different bikes themselves)
Well ... it depends on which Peugeot you get.

Buying a Bike - Part IV. Practical considerations

Having had a think about what bike to get next, and doing some investigations into size, it is perhaps time to look at some practical considerations.

Perhaps the first thing to look at is the risk of theft

Buying a Bike - Part III. Measuring up the folders!

As mentioned in Part II, there is a space about 750mm x 750mm next to my desk at work where a folding bike could be stored, safe and sound.

So how small do folding bikes fold?
And will they fit in the space next to my desk?

Also, how much do they weigh?
My little Cinzia is pretty heavy, and I don't want an even heavier folding bike than that!
My Cinzia is very similar to the Peugeot P20, which has a quoted weight of 32 lbs (14.5 kg) so I will set that as the top weight limit for a folding bike. I might go a bit over to allow for lights, dynamo (hub or "bottle"), racks and other "useful" features, but in general, I think the weight of a P20 is about all I want to lift!

Buying a Bike - Part II. Other Opinions

Much as we all like to think we know best, it never does any harm to ask other people what they think.
Some new ideas can come up, and lead you into an avenue of thought that you might not have ventured down.

If you remember, I had a list of ideas from Part I (links in Part I!)

• a traditional Gazele
• a Surly Pugsley
• a Montague Paratrooper
• a stainless steel Di Blasi
• something from the local independent bike shop
• something from the big chainstore in the town

My contacts suggested several other folding bike makes I should think about

• a Japanese Sugimura
• several models of Dahon
• a Graziella
• a Citizenbike Miami

Other options include

• something a bit oddball, like a used Peugeot NS
• the "Best of British" - a Brompton
• a Tern folding bike (a breakaway from Dahon)
• a cheap, used, ebay replacement for Cinzia
• another new Cinzia - after all, I had the first one for 20 years!

So the list is starting to fill out.
If you have a new idea, don't be afraid to work that into your considerations.

I have 12 or more ideas already, and most of them are for folding bikes!
It is just that after having a folder for so long, I just found it so handy.

I would put it in the boot (trunk) of the car (automobile) when I drove to the garage for a service or an annual safety check. then I would cycle home while the garage did their work. Then I would cycle back to the garage later to pick the car (automobile) up again, folding the bike up and putting it in the back, then driving home. It always seemed to me to be a very civilised way of doing things.

I measured the space up next to my desk at work - there is a space about 750mm (L) x 750mm (W) x about 1200mm (H) available, and a well placed steel desk leg nearby for locking things to.

I have not definitely decided on getting a foding bike yet, but if I am getting one, it would be handy if it goes into that space!

Buying a Bike - Part I. Blue Sky Thinking

Following the demise of my beloved Cinzia, I'm looking at getting another bike.
Think of this series of articles as a "case study" in the processes involved in rationally buying a bike.

First, think of some bikes you like the look of.
Perhaps a friend has one, or you saw it in a bike shop, or you read about it in a magazine.

For me, several bikes come to mind fairly quickly.

Time for a change?

 I'm looking for another folding bike.

My beloved Cinzia (really just a cheap U-frame 3-speed folder) has suffered a serious structural failure after about 20 years of ownership :-(

I could weld it, but I'm not a welder, so the time and cost of all that could be put towards a replacement.
I have a great affection for my Cinzia, but it is not a cost-effective repair (!)

Cycling with an injury

I've hurt my leg.
Knee, to be more exact.

More about me (not as interesting as bikes!)

This is us, from a few years ago.
I'm the one of the right :-)

After chatting to another blogger, and seeing what other folks post on their blogs, I have decided to share a bit more about myself with you.
It is not that I am particularly shy, or reclusive (I write a blog after all!), it is just that I don't think I am as interesting as the bikes I write about :-)

So on to the folks behind the words.

I was born in the '60s, in typical lower middle-class home.
I have been told that I watched the Moon Landings on TV, live (-ish) - I believe there was a time delay on the signal, but I watched on first transmission anyway :-) Don't remember it, but I have seen it so many times since, it would be hard to separate the original memory from the later viewing anyway :-)

I miss my Cinzia

I really miss riding my little Cinzia folding bike.

Following it's sad demise, I've been riding my wife's old bike - a modern 6-speed ladies-frame hybrid bike.

I miss the simplicity and ease of the Sturmey Archer 3-speed hub, which I've loved ever since I first used one more than 35 years ago.

How many bollards does a bridge need?

The Bourg Walk cycle, and pedestrian, bridge
that is the centrepiece of the town's pro-cycling program.
Five bollards at one end.
Just how many bollards is TOO many?

Reading a post on another blog got me thinking about bollards on cyclepaths.

Five bollards protecting the "Bourg Walk" bridge in Aylesbury from errant motorists (and I suspect teenaged scooterists as well).
By the way, if you look up the Bourg Walk bridge on Google Maps, it isn't shown on the satellite view yet, and neither are the changes to the local roads that came with it, although someone has helpfully marked it on the map where it is (the namer is shown in a carpark, which the bridge crosses the edge of).
I guess it will be at some point in the future.

Just how many bollards are too many?

Why cycling on the pavement (sidewalk) is a good thing

Let me say, first of all, that this only applies to the UK.
Other legal jurisdictions are available :-)

iirc, a government minister said a while back that if cyclists were cycling on the pavement (in areas where cycling is not expressly forbidden by "no cycling" signage) primarily for safety reasons, and were polite and considerate of pedestrians using the pavement, then they should not be prosecuted, not withstanding the existing legislation to the contrary, and that all police forces were being instructed to that effect.

Summary of our views on Bike Bins rigid-sided panniers after three-and-a-half years of regular use

For us the four biggest advantages are (based on nearly three-and-a-half-years of use!):

1. The "plastic box with a close fitting lid" design keeps stuff dry from rain and road spray even on the wettest days (and we are occasionally caught out in very heavy rain when returning fromma shopping trip) 
2. The lockable nature keeps things "out of sight and out of mind", be it cycle helmets on a trip to the cinema, or the items bought in one shop when we visit a second shop - we feel reasonably safe about leaving stuff on the bike while we go elsewhere 
3. The size is just about right. A pannier will take a regular adult cycle helmet, and the assorted paraphernalia of cycling, or it will take 2 standard plastic milk bottles (jugs) - see the vaious pictures above to get an idea of what will fit in them.
4.  Fragile stuff, like standard loaves of soft bread, grapes, blueberries, bananas, etc. etc., as long as it is carefully packed, doesn't get crushed, because the rigid structure of the pannier protects them.

An unexpected hazard of cycle routes

This story was brought to my attention by the estwhile folks at Sky News.

It appears that a cyclist, while carrying out a lawful manoeuvre (maneuver, for those on the other side of the Pond), upset a policeman, who was carrying out an unlawful manoeuvre (maneuver), on the same, clearly marked "cycle box" at a junction

Cheap bikes - another view.

Regular readers will know I have a bit of a soft spot for cheap bikes.
I don't bother with cheap bikes with suspension - front or rear, as they are just a waste of money.
They weigh even more than a "no-suspension" cheap bike, and make moving loads a lot more complicated - the racks available for "suspension" bikes either have a lower weight rating, or are MUCH more expensive, or both.
Suspension has a place for "off-road" bikes, but for regular, daily, use in urban environments it is a fashion statement, not an upgrade! (the same goes for higher-priced bies as well).

My beloved (and recently broken!) Cinzia folding bike, that I have had owned for about 20 years was just a cheap, heavy, bike, with variable build quality and some wierd-ly sized parts (like the 25mm seatpost and the 36mm bottom bracket).
My wife rides a cheap flat-pack bike, and is very happy with it.
I've just fixed her the "spare" bike - my wife's previous cheap flat-pack bike.

A cheap, flat-pack, bike, with aftermarket side stand and front basket and rack.
It beats a "no-racks" "fancy" bike every time as a load-hauler
Suspension is best avoided on a "working" bike, as it complicates
fitting racks, and either lowers the overall load rating or
dramatically increases the cost, or both.

Yes, cheap bikes can have some issues:

All good things come to an end

Bad news.

Structural failure of my folding bike.
the bottom bracket has broken away from
the U-tube frame

My little Cinzia folding bike, that I have owned for about 20 years, suffered a serious structural failure on the evening of the 8th October 2013.

How to get a bike for free ... (in the UK, at least)

The UK Government has recently decided to sell off the national postal service, Royal Mail.
It is the view of the (opposition) Labour Party that the shares about to be floated have been priced too cheaply, to the tune of about 1 billion pounds overall (that's about 1.2 billion Euros, or about 1.6 billion dollars).

UPCOMING: bike pump mega test.

I will shortly (in a week or two) be posting multiple test results on my growing collection of bicycle pumps.

I have another "track" pump on the way - the courier should deliver it tomorrow.
It is from the Edinburgh Biccycle Co-operative.
I already have a cheap Lidl (a German supermarket chain) track pump, and a track pump from Argos.

"Track" pumps from Revolution (own brand of Edingburgh Cycle Cooperative),
Muddy Fox (a mass-produced brand owned by Universal Cycles),
and Crivit (own brand of Lidl GmbH, a European supermarket chain).
Also shown is a Crivit mini-pump.

I also have a mini-pump from Lidl, and a regular 2-chamber car (automobile) foot pump.

All our bikes have Schraeder valves on the tyres (tires) - that's a "car-" ("auto-") type valve, and recommended pressures of, variously, 45 to 70 psi (about 3 bar to 5 bar), so the tests and reports will be aimed at that, rather than their performance on high pressure valves (such as "Woods") or skinny high pressure tyres.
As with all my test reports, it is real equipment I have bought with my own, real, money, and it is tested to reflect the way we use stuff, not some theoretical manufacturer's testing program on a borrowed piece of equipment.

The test is here

Still Here!

After suffering some tech. problems, we are full functional again.
Our internet was down from its usual 10Mb/s to about 50Kb/s to 1Mb/s - depending on the day - and sometimes it didn't work at all :-(
The ISP company sent out an engineer, and he fitted a new combined modem/router.
So we are back, with 20Mb/s !

Cargo Bikes in the Boston Area !

Want a cargo bike in Massachusetts?

I quote Bicycle Belle (yep, it's a great name!)
"We're getting 12 bakfietsen. 10 long and 2 short. We have 5 FR8's coming, and 9 GR8's and a special order Opafiets. It was hard for us to predict what the market is/ will be, so we perhaps were a little cautious on the FR8's and GR8's. Unlike the Bakfietsen, those can actually be shipped on pallets, so if all else fails, we can get more mid-year."

Ffor those not familiar with Dutch bicycle names:

The Very Hungry Caterpillar Bike!

This has to be the best bike I have ever seen.
It is featured on the "Biking In Heels" blog.
It is a "cargo bike" with a front compartment for a child to sit.

Slow Boat from China

A San Eagle bike, spotted in town

I was out and about when I saw this bike.
It's a San Eagle bike.
What interested me was the front dynamo, a feature commonly seen on Dutch bikes, but certainly not on the mass-market mountain bikes, city bikes, and hybrids sold in Sweet Albion (that's England, for those that didn't get the reference).

It fits in the back

My folding bike fits in the back of our car (automobile),
even with a Steco front rack and a basket fitted.

As regular readers will know, I ride a folding bike.
Today I was due to take our car (automobile) to the local dealer's service workshop for its MOT (annual safety test).
The dealer's is quite close to the centre of town, and near the shops (stores).
So I thought I would take my bike, and, while the car (automobile) was at the dealer's, cycle to the supermarket to get some milk and bread and see what else they have that takes my fancy.

Basket Case

Get a basket.
No, really,
Get a basket for your bike.
Never mind cool.
They are just SO practical.

A Dash of Yellow

Congratulations to Chris Froome, the winner of the 2013 Tour de France.

Of course, following the disgraceful cheating by Armstrong, and similar drug cheats, questions are bound to be asked, the foremost of which is: Is he "clean"?
(of drugs, that is - not how many baths has he had during the progress of the tour!)

Pucture repair time

My daughter got a puncture on her bike a few days ago.
She has a very pretty bike, and won't let me fit boring, unstylish, puncture resistant tyres to it.

THREE BROKEN SPOKES !!! - and a few other jobs.

I finally got round to replacing the two broken spokes in the back wheel on my Cinzia folding bike, and found that three spokes had broken, not two! Mind you, the longer you leave a broken spoke, the more stress there is on the rest, so the more likely further breaks are.

The root of the problem is three-fold:
a) I have fairly lightly-built wheels, with only 28 spokes. A modern "general purpose" wheel has 36 spokes in it. More spokes, generally, equals stronger wheels. Folding bikes, in attempt to shave off a few ounces (grammes) often have only 28 spokes, although in the case of folders with a heavy steel frame like mine it is as much about fashion as it is about weight;

The summer is coming ... getting the shopping

Out shopping on the bike again yesterday.

After Easter update.

Yep, still cycling along on my Cinzia.
Still gets used every day for work, rain or shine.
A few jobs need doing on it - I'm a rider first, and a mechanic second :-)
The new front light/dynamo combination is great, although as the mornings get lighter it will be used less and less.
Proper update to follow soon, hopefully with pictures

Long Term Test: Shimano hub dynamo.

Shimano DH 3N20 hub dynamo on my folding bike

I've just got a Shimano hub dynamo for my little bike, and I fitted it yesterday.
I have a 100mm front OLD on my folder, which is wider than many folders, and is the same width as the front wheel on a "normal" bike, as well being the same size as a child's 20"-wheeled bike.

For those of you with narrow wheels, try this link to a chap who has experience with Shimano DH F7 series hub dynamos with an OLD of 74mm (my Cinzia had an OLD of 100mm, same as a "normal" bike)

Moving shopping - a tip

Strap from shopping bag wrapped around bell mount to reduce strain on basket mounts

I went shopping yesterday, and the shopping bag was a bit more than the rated strength of my front basket.
I had about 7.5 kg (16.5 lbs) of shopping, and my basket is only rated for 5 kg (11 lbs).

My bicycle - an update

Just bringing you up to date on what is what here at Pedal Pusher Mansions!

I've got a package coming from Holland for our bikes with a few goodies in it.
There is

• a hub dynamo set into a front wheel for my bike
• an LED headlight for my bike

Bicycle Review: Hello Kitty 20" wheel girl's bike.

Hello Kitty 20" Bike.
The two-legged centre stand is an aftermarket accessory,
and not part of the standard equipment

This review has been written for me by my friend "CycleGirl", who is 10 years old, and lives in the South-East of England.

There are reasons I like my bike and reasons I don’t like it. Here they are…

I like the design. My bike has a Hello Kitty design and I think it looks pretty.
I like having a basket. It is good for putting my school bag in it.
I like that it has no gears because I never get the hang of them. I can never understand which one does what.

Hello Kitty 20" wheel bike,
compared to my Cinzia folding bike which also has 20" wheels

These are the things I dislike about my bike.