no such thing as "'less wanking"

What RPM said plus: wear proper gloves, drop your tyre pressure 5psi and most importantly, harden the fsck up.

the-smiling-buddha [quote]pj "it's a lot more forgiving on the wrists and when you crash"

what does this mean?

I don't crash so this don't apply to me[/quote]

but i still don't get it.

if you crash, you crash. steel frame or aluminium, your wrist is going to hurt when it snaps on the road.

It's just poorly written. I'm sure the intention was something like: "It's a lot more forgiving on your wrists and it's a lot easier to repair when you crash." They are two separate statements jammed into one sentence as is the case with speedy web replies :)

what are proper gloves hippy only now that I have taken up distances I need some

Oops.

Hippy has it spot on - I was indeed referring to two separate things. To clarify:

1) Steel is a lot more forgiving on the wrists. Due to it's slightly more flexible nature, I find that a steel frame/fork soaks up road vibrations a lot better than aluminium - although, as rightly pointed out above, a carbon fork will redress the balance considerably, should you choose an aluminium frame.

2) Steel is a lot more repairable, should you crash - aluminium, whilst stiffer and stronger, cannot very easily (if at all) be repaired if the worst happens. I know quite a few folks that have had decent steel track frames repaired following minor to moderate collisions - everyone I know that's had similar damage to an aluminium frame has had to buy a new frame.

I dont see how its poorly written...

"it's a lot more forgiving on the wrists and when you crash"

it's a lot more forgiving on the wrists, and a lot more forgiving when you crash.

Both true statements. Steel has flexibility and dampens some shock, obviously benefiting the wrists... Crashes that would kill an Alu frame might just result in a non critical dint on a steel frame.

No???

Lol, im clearly not up to speedy web replies....

the-smiling-buddha what are proper gloves hippy only now that I have taken up distances I need some

I've got a pair of the cheapest gloves I could find in Cycle Surgery (Altura or Endura, not sure) as well as a pair of Gore gloves. They both work and they both have the little loops at the fingers that make them easy to rip off after a ride. This is my only requirement for cycle gloves (I get angry when I can't get my gloves off asap post-ride) which basically limits me to these two options (and TUFF gloves that I used in Oz). If you're not that fussy about the loops then there's certainly a hell of a lot more to choose from. After loops I go for fit, which again hinders my choice because I have big hands. If there's anything left to choose from I get the black ones.

"harden the fsck up"

No gloves.

It's not the material alone that decides a frame's stiffness and shock-absorbing properties.
It's the tube selection and design as much as the material. Steel is actually stiffer than alu BUT larger diameter tubes are stiffer than smaller diameter tubes.

JP "harden the fsck up" = No gloves.

Until you crash, put your hands out to break your fall, tear all the skin off your hands and then have to ask your girlfriend to wipe your arse for you. That's not hard, that's lame.
Anyway, I wear gloves to wipe away sweat and snot more than absorb shock. That's why God invented pneumatic tyres..

normally I wear these, cowboy gloves from wal-mart for about $5.00

I was thinking of some'proper' cycling gloves made from the hair of african black sheeps

like what them rapha boys wear

"Until you crash, put your hands out to break your fall, tear all the skin off your hands "

Dont wear gloves for long enough and your hands will harden up...
If gloves are for falling off, why do they expose your fingers?
Maybe you should try a tissue?

120 all the way!

Have you ever crashed and put your hands out to stop your fall? Plainly not. It's your palms that take the impact.
They expose your fingers because you get better braking control and it's easier to pick your nose. I hate full fingered gloves.
Snot wiping is much easier with gloves than with sweaty hands. Tissues dissolve in jersey pockets.

120 what?

big al, bianchi pista was my first fixed wheel bike - its a reliable piece of kit, and pretty hard-wearing and resilient. It's fine for road use - I rode mine all the way to cambridge without any major complaints.

It's not the best specced, but the frame is nice. It would serve as a good base of you plan on upgrading parts (here's a bad picture of mine in current set up):

However if you're not fussed about upgrading it and just want a solid bike, I'd probably go with the genesis flyer.

"Have you ever crashed and put your hands out to stop your fall?"

Yeah, with and without gloves, it still hurts.

Gloves are for the cold, tissues are for your nose...

120psi

I don't carry tissues. I don't feel the cold. 8bar for me.

Less skin loss when you wear gloves. Losing skin on your hands is an absolute fucker for about 2 weeks.

Hippy

God

8 bars of what?

... ...

Those mars bars do not look real. I swear they look different to that....

I've actually moved on to Bounty nowadays..

8 bar

It's about 115psi

asm Those mars bars do not look real. I swear they look different to that....

They are old ones.