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Well spotted. I knew the bolt was off, told myself to be sure I put the bolt on before I rode it the night before and completely forgot. The bolt is on the other side.

First time riding 650b so felt strange and squishy to start with but was loving it by the end. Just begs to be unleashed on gravel. Love the surety a disc brake brings. Started to notice a rythmic bump going from the front wheel. The tyre beads in one part had bedded in the depression of the rims. Took a lot of washing liquid and overinflating the tyre to solve.

First puncture I get I am going tubeless the tyres were an arse to get on.

This has been a while in the oven. First ride today.

And oh my.

It's a proper brawler.

Looks like fettling will be required. Bike is built up, first spin today.

And had to mock it up with the wheels and tyres. Suffice to say am excite

Will kick that problem down the road for now, as I think the front brake may become an issue as it is ancient and has far too much cable which Evans said they can't trim. Will see if other shops can. Stripped it and took it to the shop for its new headset.

Weirdly the stock frame has mudguard eyelets on the track ends but not the fork. Think it's going to be a stab in the dark on buying the right ones.

I have no idea and I have asked advice. I picked the tyre and now we will see if I can get a mudguard to fit

Yes all the mounts are there. Stock Steamroller forks don't have mounts for forks, my custom ones do

Oh the tyres are fat 47mm Byways. Look very fast rolling

Yarp. Although only that cheap because Planet X. Probably bought a load of dead stock dirt cheap. My mate rolls on a pair with no issues as well so good to know.

I am a bit stumped as I have no experience of fitting proper mudguards. There is an inch plus of clearance in the front fork now. A friend mentioned fitting 700cc mudguards. I know I want silver ones and that is about it.

Can I get away with narrow rim tape on my 650s?

If anyone was wondering what a custom Steamroller fork from Orlowski looks like...

Slam 69 built the wheels, they are a seriously cool shop in Brockworth, Glos. Well worth a visit if you are in the area, they stock Surlys and Restrap.

https://slam69.co.uk/

Deciding on tyres, either Gravelkings or Byways. I have an old Deore disc brake although wondering whether the build deserves a new brake. After getting thoroughly soaked the last couple if weeks very keen on full mudguards as well. Also fitting the Chris King headset and an S65 seatpost for the final build.

And the front too

Love the rear hub

Also wheels are built

Just brilliant work

Lovely crown

I thought it was coming raw but it's painted black with a lil sparkle

Well the fork has finally got here to to say I am happy is a massive understatement.

Erm is it worth mentioning I am a senior account manager for a wine merchants with 15+ years in the trade?

If anyone needs advice and indeed wants to buy some vino I can get it sent anywhere in the country.

Had a quick squiz: for around £100 I have some 2015 Pontet-Canet, fifth-growth Pauillac, 96+ points
A blend of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot, 50% of the 2015 Pontet-Canet was aged in new French oak, while 15% was matured in second fill barrels and 35% in cement amphorae. Deep garnet-purple in color, the nose opens with exuberant black currants, red currants and black raspberries scents plus an evocative undercurrent of cedar chest, dusty earth, cloves, chocolate box and Provence herbs with a fragrant waft of lavender. Medium to full-bodied and built like a brick house with very firm, wonderfully grainy tannins and black and red fruits charged with the most singular energy, it finishes with incredible persistence and depth.

Also Luciano Sandrone Barolo Aleste 2014, 93 points
This is the second year Aleste is produced instead of Cannubi Boschis, however the grapes are exactly the same. The 2014 Barolo Aleste is named after Luciano Sandrone's grandchildren Alessia and Stefano. The 2014 is still wound up and will require extra time to find its footing. The Sandrone family lost 25% of their fruit production in this challenging harvest. The wine offers fragrant notes of wild cherry and cassis with smoke, crushed stone and candied orange peel. The tannins are firm and textured. It is the palate (more than the nose) that requires more time to soften.

Just a couple. You will also get things like Valbuena from Vega Sicilia, Super-Tuscans like Sassacaia, top Brunellos and Barberescos, top wines from the new world etc. If you want them to drink it shortly then maturity becomes a key factor.

If you want white then 1er/Grand Cru white Burgundies, top white Ermitage or Chateauneuf-du-Pape from the Rhone, or white Bordeaux from Graves like Domaine de Chevalier. Champagne will be like shooting fish in a barrel, NV Krug and most of the Grand Marque's vintage or Prestige Cuvees. Dessert wines like sauternes, Trockenbeerenuslese, Tokaij and eiswein will be up there.

The irony of this is that the state of the market was the Tory's fault. They have weakened the pound and economic growth in the wake of the referendum they called, then further weakened confidence with their handling of it.

This is just a surge because a lot of people were speculating on the pound.

It would be nice if the Tories were actually held to account. A lot of their campaign promises were in essence to repair the damage they had done since 2010 but somehow they are not to blame. Somehow their Islamophobia was not nearly as serious as Labour anti-Semitism. Somehow their unprincipled leader wasn't as bad as Labour's principled one.

I say somehow but I know how. Because of Rupert Murdoch and a biased media. Because the money wanted them to win. Because the status quo in the country is geared towards making sure the Tories win. Because of a expensive and dubious propaganda machine which normalised the whopping lies they repeatedly told. Because of Farage backing off and not running against Tory incumbents.

But then Labour failed, Corbyn failed, it was an interesting experiment for a while and they was just a glimmer of hope he had pulled it off in 2017, then that unholy pact with the DUP scuppered their chance. And for me mostly because we never really knew what Labour's position was on Brexit.