Any question answered...

a belt and braces approach makes sense

but helmets optional

If I send a bottle of spirits to my friend in Sweden will he get hit by import tax? Google tells me conflicting things.

If I send a bottle of spirits to my friend in Sweden will he get hit by import tax?

In general, personal postal imports of alcohol are taxed. So much for the "Single Market" :)

If it's a gift worth less than SEK500 (~£45) it should not attract any duty. It's not clear whether they value gifts at Swedish (high) prices or the sender's local price, but as our tax on spirits is nearly as bad as theirs that's not likely to make much difference.

I think the mystery click on the bakfiets may be the rear hub (nexus 8) - there's a mm or so of side-to-side play of the hub shell at the axle (the rollerbrake doesn't move along with the hub shell). Is this likely to suggest the innards are on their way out?

mobile phone repair - new phone on wednesday, broken on friday. fucksake. its a Huawei P10 lite. cracked glass around the front at the bottom. never had to replace glass before - what should I do?

The innards are pretty complicated but the bearing bits are straightforward, one set of balls & a race on each side. I'd suggest removing the roller brake to see whether the play really is in the bearings. If so they can be adjusted like any cup & cone hub. Check youtube & Sheldon if you want to do a full service. I've done it and it's not all that bad.

U-brakes on old mtb frames: are they shit? Can you fit v-brakes on the studs instead somehow?

Yes, and no, respectively.

Ah brilliant, ta; somehow I'd got it in my head that they weren't adjustable. Still a massive pain having to get the back off, mind - I had to fit a new gear inner the other day and that was cause for many, many, Bad Swears...

Looks to be a green flake over a metallic base.

Is this derailleur bent?

1 Attachment

Probably hanger.

Cage looks deformed. You can probably take it off and bend it back straight.

Thanks, thought so.

Can anyone recommend single trip travel insurance? Is for 5 days in Cairo. Looking for decent emergency travel, healthcare including repatriation cover.

who can machine me a few washers? dead simple, just need something that won't bend under lots of torque.

same as these, but without the $60 shipping charge for a 90 cents part.

Also, 1 1/8th Chris King O-rings - are they all the same? I've borked the cap o-ring on my inset headset and it seems to be creaking without it so it's probably an essential part i should replace.

That looks pretty simple to make with handtools, a drill, hacksaw and file. Do you have any dimensions i.e. desired material and thickness, centre to centre distance of the two holes and their size?

I think I've fucked up. I've had mudguards (SKS longboard 45mm) on my kinesis since I built it (2500ish miles). I put helicopter tape on the inside of the fork legs but it doesn't appear to have helped much.

I took the mudguards off for the first time the other day and had a good look at the inside of the legs last night when I removed the old tape.

There's a pretty deep groove taken out of one of the fork legs, the other side is ok. It's definitely gone right through the paint. Does it look rideable or is it deadly?

thanks.

I would take it to a reputable LBS and ask their opinion.

If you can feel a deep gorge when running your finger through, I would advised new fork.

Cannondales did fine with just one fork leg

New fork because a mudguard wore through the paint?? That looks totally ok to me @TurtleRecall .

Did think about doing it myself, but given my history with such projects it'll probably be cheaper to pay someone to do it, in the long run.

It's 15mm x 40mm (I'm making it a bit longer than the one above to increase surface area). Stainless steel 3mm thick should be strong enough. Holes are for M8 bolts, so 9mm diameter, and centre to centre between bolts is 16mm.

I've used insure and go (silver, with excess waiver). Have claimed for low key medical expenses before: was fairly painless (the claim process, that is!)

Claim value was equal to standard excess so the waiver more than paid for itself.

Annual cover was cheaper than a fortnight, for my needs - just FYI.

Have fun in Cairo!