Any question answered...

How long have you been saving that?

It returns at 50690 pm on Sundays ?

I hope these London clients are worth £3000 of tickets plus all that wasted time on the train.

Yours,
Sceptical of Manchester

random question: anyone know of unmetered (free) parking in or near stoke newington?

residents only on my road, i've run out of vouchers, and I want to go watch the cycling without moving my car from pay and display every 2 hours!

It returns at 50690 pm on Sundays ?

5∙0 & 9∙0, i.e. 1700h and 2100h for you modernists.

I hope these London clients are worth £3000 of tickets plus all that wasted time on the train.

The 12/- fare in 1908 was 60% of an average weekly wage, so £3k looks like a bargain
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brighton_Belle#History]

It's not an offence unless it is "likely to cause harassment, alarm or distress".

Arguably, a small sticker on a bike is unlikely to do so.

Small children have a habit of reading out words they see when out and about, especially if they are at eye level in a bold and attractive font.

Whilst on a day out in London's famous 'London' with his grandparents, 6 year old Jonny running along shouting "CUNT" would probably cause alarm and distress.

For what reason would you put an offensive word on your bike to be seen in public if not to offend?

Anyone commute from Pisti's favourite town, Brighton?

Answers on a postcard. Or here. Gracias.

Hiya, I live in Hove and commuted for three, maybe four years, every day, week in week out some years ago.

It's OK but it can be a real pain in the arse! I used to leave the house just before 7am to walk to the station and get to my desk just before 9am. Coming back I'd get a train about 5.45 and be home just after 7pm.

When the trains were running properly it wasn't so bad, when there were problems it was horrible - on more than a few occasions I got home after midnight due to some crap - cows on the line, landslides etc. Bear in mind that there is only one line from about Gatwick to Brighton so if there is a problem you can't go around it - you are delayed, end of story!

In the summer it can get hot and crowded, in the winter the early walk in the dark to the station was awful, snow, rain, cold. Getting home in the dark wasn't great either. Coming home in the summer and knowing my family were down at the beach having a BBQ made me resent the fact I was on the train - by the time I'd get to the beach the night was drawing in and I'd missed most of the fun!

I don't recall ever having real problems getting a seat but the train was always crowded.

Going out in London after work for a few beers means you have to leave the party early to get a train home - although there are trains that run later than midnight they take much longer to reach your destination - check out the timetables, I think the 1am train takes two hours to get to Brighton.

A taxi from Brighton Station to Hove will cost about £7 - £10 so make sure that you get on the Hove train! There is a train and bus service between the two stations.

I spent three hours of my day, five days a week commuting with total strangers and grew to hate it.

Others love it!

The time to yourself, with no distractions allows you to read, sleep, listen to music, play games, learn a new skill and I occasionally miss that "me" time.

Cost is an issue, don't know what a monthly pass costs these days but it was around £300.00 a month when I did it.

Hove is a great place to live, its clean, has some good pubs and restaurants and is obviously near the sea! Its a fairly white, middle class area if that bothers you! Lots of ex Londoners who having had kids wanted houses with gardens etc. Its near enough to Brighton but far enough away from the stag night craziness!

I still go to London for meetings but tend to arrange them for mid morning so that I can buy a cheaper ticket - morning rush hour tickets are around £45.00 return whilst its about £23.00 if you leave after 8.30 (not 100% on these timings, you need to check)

There are bike racks at both stations and you can take a bike on the train - maybe not during rush hour, you'd need to check.

Hope this helps!

Rent the house in Hove and try for six months.

All the best

Anyone commute from Pisti's favourite town, Brighton?

Just been offered a room with two good friends in a ridiculously beautiful house in a nice part of Hove. My concern is costs/times of getting either to clients in Putney or to Soho when I need to.

Currently live in Clapton, so an hour and a half door to door to Putney if I catch the train with equipment or a 45 min sweaty cycle. And to Soho 60 minute bus journey with gear or 25 minute cycle. Train ticket from Hackney Central to Putney £45.00 p/month. Plus PAYG Oyster averaging about £20.00 p/week.

Weekly train ticket from Brighton to Putney: £86.70
Monthly: £333.00

But wouldn't need to come in every week. Probably every second week for main client (Putney) and then occasional days in Soho.

Rent is marginally more expensive than what I pay at the moment, but still very good (I pay dirt at the moment which is why I've lived in the same shit-hole for three years).

Think I've answered my own question re. costs. But what about hassle - i.e. are trains often delayed on the line between Brighton/Clapham? Easy to get a seat? Frequent? Earliest train leaving Brighton? Latest train leaving Clapham?

Answers on a postcard. Or here. Gracias.

Whereabouts in Hove?

Depends how modern. If it has a threaded BB shell, you can just drop one straight in. If it's properly modern and has one of the pressed in BBs (BB30, BBRight etc), you'd need some kind of adaptor. Either way, it's hard to see why you'd want to.

It has a threaded BB shell so I guess it would fit yes. The reason I ask is I have an ultralight square taper crankset, much lighter than any modern crankset I could afford.

Why wouldn't I want to use it then? What the disadvantage of square taper, I am interest.

Why wouldn't I want to use it then?

If you already have it, use it. I just wouldn't buy a new one.

Fair enough, thanks. Out of interest though what are the advantages/ disadvantages of a square taper system?

Pro: common as muck
Con: underevolved.

Anyone commute from Pisti's favourite town, Brighton?

Just been offered a room with two good friends in a ridiculously beautiful house in a nice part of Hove. My concern is costs/times of getting either to clients in Putney or to Soho when I need to.

Currently live in Clapton, so an hour and a half door to door to Putney if I catch the train with equipment or a 45 min sweaty cycle. And to Soho 60 minute bus journey with gear or 25 minute cycle. Train ticket from Hackney Central to Putney £45.00 p/month. Plus PAYG Oyster averaging about £20.00 p/week.

Weekly train ticket from Brighton to Putney: £86.70
Monthly: £333.00

But wouldn't need to come in every week. Probably every second week for main client (Putney) and then occasional days in Soho.

Rent is marginally more expensive than what I pay at the moment, but still very good (I pay dirt at the moment which is why I've lived in the same shit-hole for three years).

Think I've answered my own question re. costs. But what about hassle - i.e. are trains often delayed on the line between Brighton/Clapham? Easy to get a seat? Frequent? Earliest train leaving Brighton? Latest train leaving Clapham?

Answers on a postcard. Or here. Gracias.

If you're only having to head into London every so often, then I think living with friends, in a really nice house in Hove would be ideal in comparison to your current locale.
Brighton changes on the weekend - and not for the better, but Hove tends to miss out on all the gobshites that come down.

I don't think it's a particularly terrible train journey and I loved my 3 years down in Brighton. I thought you had aspirations to buy the place in Clapton though?

Also much further from top notch food and Nuno's sarnies...

Anyone know where I can get micosoft word, or similar, cheaply for a mac? thanks

what are the advantages/ disadvantages of a square taper system?

Advantages:
1: Cheap
2: Big bearings are strong. ISIS/Octalink have to fit small balls between the big axle and the same ID shell, which can wear fast. External BBs (UT, HT2, GXPetc.) fit more balls due to the big shells, but they still have to be small to keep the bearings thin, otherwise Q-factor goes up. BB30 eventually solves the problem by fitting big diameter bearings inside the 68mm shell width
3: Did I mention cheap?

Disadvantages:
1: Thin axle noticeably lacks stiffness¹, not helped by the long overhang caused by placing the bearing close together².
2: Crank/axle interface is weak and prone to wear.
3: Poor disposition of materials makes it hard to build a set which is both light and stiff

¹Compared with a typical ⅝" solid steel square taper axle, a hollow 24mm axle of the same weight/length is 3.6x stiffer, and an aluminium BB30 axle can be twice as stiff at half the weight.

²CQP solved at least half this problem in the late 1980s with a square taper BB using cartridge bearings 65mm apart centre to centre without going outside the profile of a normal 68mm x 1.370" BB, but it was time consuming to assemble as end float control relied on shimming the gap between crank axle bosses and bearing inner races.

OpenOffice

Or Google Drive.

I hope these London clients are worth £3000 of tickets plus all that wasted time on the train.

Yours,
Sceptical of Manchester

Pretty much are : )

In fairness I spend nearly four hours a day traveling if I have to go into their place in Putney (I rarely cycle as it's a tiny place with no shower - bit grim).

long very helpful answer
Thanks a bunch - genuinely very helpful.

Whereabouts in Hove?
Ventor Villas - so ten minutes walk to Brighton Station.

If you're only having to head into London every so often, then I think living with friends, in a really nice house in Hove would be ideal in comparison to your current locale.
Brighton changes on the weekend - and not for the better, but Hove tends to miss out on all the gobshites that come down.

I don't think it's a particularly terrible train journey and I loved my 3 years down in Brighton. I thought you had aspirations to buy the place in Clapton though?

Also much further from top notch food and Nuno's sarnies...

Long way from the sarnies I know :/

Dammit, hurry up and sort your bicycle cafe out down there..

I used to live there too (albeit up Elm Grove) and you're right, can't abide the place at the weekends but as you say, Hove ain't West St.

In theory, given that the price of rent at the Hove place is pretty much the same (fractionally more) than what I pay at the moment, I could still make an offer to Mike (current landlord in a couple of years or so when he moves + rent the place out..) Even if I don't, I'll at least be living in an awesome house and can look for somewhere else when the time comes.

Thanks all. Think i might give it a whirl...

@brighton_guzzi if I could rep you twice, I would. Really helpful.

^^ That place looks ace, I think you're making the right choice.

I'd get out. London (the bits where us mere mortals live) is shit.

Leader 725 as a polo bike:

38cm stays
Track ends
74 degree head angle

Perfect OTP frame?

@ CYOA - blushes - I don't think I've ever been repped!!

Ventnor Villas is a nice street, couple of very good pubs nearby - check out The Foragers.

If its nice sandwiches you're after then check out the Real Patisserie for proper french baguettes and pastries!

Good luck!!

Its great down here and being by the sea is just the best.

Too light Em, you'll just break it again.

Leader 722 instead? Steel and probably similar geo. I really liked mine - sturdy frame.