mack_turtle

I contacted Velorangutan and their tech, Adam, sent me a super detailed response. I have not actually worked with them, yet, but I appreciate the professionalism. I will take suspension to them if and when the time comes. I think my fork is still working. the damper is probably WAY past when it should have seen some attention, but I am going to ride it and monitor it to see if I've blown a seal in the damper. rebuilding it is going to cost about $200. I've read opinions about this that range from "you should tear down the fork every six months and replace everything" to "just bleed it" to "just ride it until it stops working." for now, I put the fork back together with fresh bath oil so I can ride. thinking long-term, I don't like the idea of a part on my bike that costs that much to maintain. for $520, I could replace this fork with a Marzocchi Bomber Z2, which is made by Fox with a lot of the same parts. the main difference is that the Z2 uses an open-bath damper. that means that, like my previous Rockshox forks, servicing the damper doesn't require so much drama. open the damper, dump out the oil (and dispose of it properly), maybe replace some seals, refill, and button it back up. I'll ask Santa for that Bomber, or get a Tandell rigid fork and say goodby to fork maintenance drama forever!

Ironically, SRAM brakes are objectively garbage, but Rockshox forks are easy to deal with.

That's quite a rabbit hole, but if I can source one that fits my fork, I might.

Thread ressurection time. Pulled the lowers off my Fox 34 and noticed a lot of dark oil on the damper side. I'm pretty sure that's damper fluid leaking into the lowers because the damper asploded. I'd rather not wait for weeks while I mail it out of state. Anywhere local that can rebuild a Fit4 damper? I take pride in being a decent mechanic, but I looked at all the proprietary tools needed to do that job and said "nope!"

The answer is always: yes. Buy new cranks. In a few years, Yellow Bike Project will have bins and bins full of 170mm+ cranks, right next to all the 120mm+ stems and 580mm handlebars.

I've been living vicariously through Elina Osborne's walk across New Zealand lately. https://youtube.com/c/ElinaOsborne

How To with John Wilson is on for another season on HBO. nearly pussed myself laughing multiple times during the first one. Curb Your Enthusiasm continues to slay. Nora From Queens is bizarre and awkward and I love it. That Beatles doc on Disney is amazing. Peter Jackson is indeed a wizard.

I keep reading reports about this, but no one who has witnessed it will confirm of they reported it.

SOLD to some guy who is going to use if for bike polo. medium frame fits me (5'9") with with a flat bar. it's a bit heavy but practical. will accept a rear rack and fenders. comes with a 42/17 fixed gear combo, but the other side of the hub will accept a singlespeed freewheel. has a front brake, but I will include a rear brake and left brake lever in case you want it. I recommend putting straps on the pedals if you want to ride it fixed. $150 for one of you goobers.

yeah, I was waiting for Black Friday week sales to start. I read somewhere that they were going to honor the price change if you ordered within a certain timeframe of the sale starting.

Just bought a Hangover and a Magicshine MJ-902s. Helmet/ bar combo. Hopefully i have at least one of them to ride next week, but the Outbound products seem to be behind due to parts shortages.

I put my Lumina on the stroller we use to push our short-legged dog around the neighborhood in.

I bought it in 2012 or 2013. it still goes for at least an hour on medium, but that's about half what Niterider says the capacity should be. I think I got my money's worth out of it, but it's not worth what Niterider wants for a new battery. I'm tempted to buy my next light based on what has serviceable batteries or something that takes whatever battery you plug into it with a standard cable of some sort. other companies sell spare batteries a lot cheaper or offer to fix batteries for free. I know these batteries aren't cheap, but the cost is excessive.

I've tried some similar lights on the helmet and I can't tolerate the extra weight on my head. literally a massive pain in the neck. Niterider says it's 172 grams, which is only a little heavier than the Lumina 550 I've tried and that's a hard "no." that's a heckuva deal though. might make a good handlebar light for me, although 1000 lumens for 1 hour is not enough juice. good for such a small package, but I'll run it on high and get stuck in the woods in the dark with that.

What's your opinion on the actual runtime? I'm also thinking of just experiments with placing the light higher on my helmet so it does not push down unevenly.

I wish I could ride with just one light, but the secondary angle of light has proven to be a necessity for me. with just a handlebar light, the beam casts a shadow in grassy areas. I can only see what is directly in front of me, never "around a corner" or looking down into a hole. maybe part of the problem is that the light I had is to focused and spot-y and something with a wider beam would be better.

I might skip the Outbound Hangover in that case, although it seems like a great product. it might just not be for me. there are a lot of great options for under $200 and I have learned the hard way — way too many times — that saving a few bucks is not worth just getting the best tool for the job the first time.

back to this. I think my Night Rider battery is finally staring to poop the bed. started CnD last night with a full change and rode with low- medium mode for about 90 minutes before it died. that left the Sofirn dive light on my handlebar which is bright AF, but it's kind of a "spot" light. the handlebar mount I am using is very rubbery and bounces all over the place, so it's like trying to read the terrain with strobe light. fortunately, I was following two other riders who helped tow me to the end so I would not get lost in the dark. it forced me a slow down a lot. I got out of the woods OK but it sucked. the worry that I might lose the handlebar light also left me feeling uneasy. YGWYPF. Niterider wants $130 for a new battery and that would be me well on my way to a superior light, so that's a waste of time. so I'm back in the market for something new, watching for Black Friday type deals. before I go on, I have one question: how do you deal with the weight of a self-contained helmet light? I weighed some of my lights —that flashlight I have is close to 200g, my old Niterider 550 baby light is 137g, and the Minewt light unit (without battery) is 122g with the plastic mount. I'm surprised by how much the Minewt weighs because that's the one with a battery pack on a cord that sits in my pocket. I've tried the two self-contained lights and each one results in a headache within a few minutes or wearing it because the weight of the light pulls my helmet down over my face if I don't cinch the helmet down so tight that it crushes my skull. (maybe because of MIPS?) then my neck hurts the next day from the helmet yanking my head around. I don't have a bull neck like some of you. Am I doing something wrong? how do you deal with the extra weight on the helmet? lights to consider: Outbound Hangover — killer light for the price. my only concern is, being a self-contained light and battery, it's going to be uncomfortable enough that I won't want to ride it. it's actually pretty darn lightweight though. Glowworm Alpha Plus — very light, dual beam, handlebar remote, external battery. Gemini Duo 2200 —very similar to the Gloworm but brighter. Lezyne Multi-drive 1000 — another similar light that allows for USB charging Magic Shine MJ902S — ridiculously bright in theory, cheaper than the others. MS had a poor reputation for a bit there but they might have gotten better.

Cranks should be no longer than what is practical for the proportions of your legs, as determined by a measurement of the angles at your knees while your pedal. no longer than that. Shorter can be better.

I was a dick in that thread and I apologize.

intrigued. pleas share, unless you have not already.

I bought a big bottle from Oreilly's a while ago. still working well, but it seems to dry up fast. then again, everything dries up fast. I think i'm not mixing it with enough water, so I'll keep experimenting. a little experimenting is worth it to me because the price of the alternatives is OUTRAGEOUS.

what constitutes a lap? What trails are on the route?

and people who want you to know that they ride clipped in and are therefore superior to "newbs" with flat pedals because they are "not serious about riding."

The irony of being both a vegan and a singlespeeder who tries to avoid self-identifying is that, when someone makes a joke about how quickly they self-identify, you risk falling into the stereotype by revealing yourself. It's a struggle! I promise I'm not a crossfitter. You'd also know if I was an "engineer" because I would have made that clear.