Any question answered...

Anyone know what this is?! I found it while helping my grandmother clear out her house, she doesn't know anything about it.

Leather case with 2 internal pockets. In the back pocket is the silver case. The engraving inside reads

D
James Dixon & Sons
Sheffield
946S

6 Attachments

Some expert in militaria might be helpful.

It is a huntsman's canteen, missing the flask. The silver case is for a sandwich.

http://www.sportingcollection.com/attire/sandwich/sandwich078/sandwich078.html

Interesting, thanks! Beats my tupperware...

I don't follow the public lynchings that go one here generally, but I am aware that people seem to have a particular distaste for Foffa. A colleague is looking at a used one for what seems to be a decent price (sub £200). If he's happy with it, is there a real reason he shouldn't buy it? Other suggestions?

How ridiculously stupid would it be to go and buy a pair of Rapha bibshorts tomorrow and wear them for a 600km audax on Saturday.

Obviously I know the answer to this, its just that I am stupid.

Not ridiculous at all, as long it fit you nicely.

(did the same before a 1400k).

How ridiculously stupid would it be to go and buy a pair of Rapha bibshorts tomorrow and wear them for a 600km audax on Saturday.

If you can wear them on a few rides (even commutes) between now and then then you should get away with it. That should flag up any major problems.

I did a 1200km ride on a (Brooks) saddle I'd ridden a whole 50km on and, in fact, the entire bike was that brand new too. Luckily it fit.

The issue with Foffa is, I think, that he sells bikes worth £200 for £800 and that most of them look shit. I'm sure @dancing james can correct me if I'm wrong.

If he's happy with it then he should go for it.

Thanks, Andy. I'll let him know that.

Other suggestions?

He can buy it and get a basic service done on it to ensure it's roadworthy.

What else are you going to do... if wearing for a few commutes highlights problems then you'll have to deal with the pain or bow out of the audax. Either way you'll have worn the bibs and so can't return them.

I am of course assuming you don't already have some bibs you can wear, in which case wear those...

The early one's were pretty poorly put together, in some cases dangerously so. This is probably because Mr foffa didn't know enough about bikes when he started his business and is basically putting his name on a bike for no reason other than he has the money to buy the parts, pay someone else to put them together and then sell them at an inflated price.
Recent one's are fine. (If maybe a bit expensive)
As Andy says if your friend likes the look of it and it rolls, it should be fine.

I have some shorts, that have done sterling service, but are a bit knackered and I could do with something a bit less tired. I think I might go and get a pair and see how they go. I can take my old ones along as spares...

Thank you all

Fair enough! If you fancy an alternative to the Raphas, I've enjoyed my Santini Edge bibs from Prendas.

Good luck with the ride.

Cool... I suspect I will be guided by what I can get quickly... Trip to Condor maybe at lunchtime

Ha, I bought my first roadbike a day before a 1600KM cycling trip. Finetuned it on the way.

Ugh, ridiculously tight fitting tyres, how does one deal with them? I've never had a tight tyre situation before, but put my Vittoria Open Pave onto my new wheels with H+Son TB14's last night and while the front one went on OK, the rear was a complete bugger to get on.

I eventually managed to get it on using my hands after slightly damaging several tyre levers, but I now have no idea how I'm going to get the rear tyre off again. It's too tight to get a tyre lever in there, on either side, and I now have no confidence in doing any proper riding on it as I don't think I'll be able to get the tyre off in the event of a puncture.

Help?!

Do you have the same rim tape on both wheel?

Secondly, did you push the tyre bead onto the middle of the rims first?

The latter may be why the rear tyres got on easily.

It'll stretch and come off easier next time. I've always found Vittorias tough to get on the first time but the cotton casing definitely gets looser over time.

Push the bead of the tyre out from the clinching surface of the rim and into the bottom of the valley. This should create some slack for you to now get a tyre lever in.

BTW, pump it up really high as you can (140-150psi), leave it overnight, then deflate to your idea pressure, this help stretch the tyres nicely.

Once you've got more than half of the final side on the rim, really make sure you're pushing the tyre over in a rolling motion as you move towards the last bit. You've got to pull it over the rim as tight as possible before you get the very last bit, then have a strong tyre lever like a Pedro's.

Pro tip: avoid punctures.

I find a bit of talk powder helps a tight tyre slide over the last bit of the rim.

I'm sure this will be proven bollocks in the next post though.