Rushed Dragon build

[mini-thumper]

It just down to which one comes good first.

With good being a euphemism for least crap!

Bodger Boyd

[guest7]

My modified sidecar mounts have come back from the welder, but it's looking likely that I will be on the CB, not the XBR sidecar outfit.

GC

[guest18]

So many bikes I'm losing track! (  )
So is that a CB solo or with a chair attached, and which chair?!? 

All I've managed mechanically this weekend is to put proper mudguards and a fresh front light on my commuting bicycle and finish off the re-build on my very, very nice mountain bike  (photos and specification available for any spotters who're interested  )

[guest7]

CB500 sans chair (unfortunately). I sold the chair from this bike to a bloke in Yate who intended using it (attached to a Honda Superdream) to carry stuff home from car boot sales... 

GC

[Steve H]

and finish off the re-build on my very, very nice mountain bike 

Is that the Duster you mentioned before ?

[guest18]

It is, well remembered! Now all together and working properly, deore hollowtech chainset and megarange gearset, Avid juicy hydraulic discs, Marzzochi bomber forks, proper mud tyres etcetc 

Had a very quick spin on it last night just to test and it's luverly  a far better bike than the rider!! 

[Steve H]

Charge do a frame with a Shimano Alfine hub (8 speed) which looked quite interesting, but not cheap. That said the same article had a hub with 27 speed hub (cant remember the name) but it was £1000 just for the hub !. Mind you cant be easy getting 27 speed into a hub only slightly bigger than one that Sturmey Archer put three speeds into.

[guest18]

tbh I don't think any of their stuff is desperately cheap, I got my frame during a sale at Edinburgh Bike Co-op and it was still over £300...  (whatever you do don't mention the price to swmbo lol)
That said, the general feel of the bike reflects the quality of the frame and components fitted  I'm looking forward to riding it more, although if the forecast snow arrives it may be pressed into service a little earlier than planned in place of the skinny tyred commuter! You are of course more than welcome to have a look/play in the event you're ever up this end of the world.

[Steve H]

Its interesting, when I first started mountain biking I struggled to see how people justified the high prices they pay for parts, but having bought tidy bike (at a discount price) I can sort of see why. A decent set of forks makes a huge difference to confidence and allows you to attack stuff I wouldnt have considered or been posible on my old bike. That said when buying parts the conversation with my wife goes along the lines of
- I'm thinking of buying X
- Thats nice for you dear, how much is it (in a suitably sarcastic voice)
- Its good quality and will last for ages
- How much ?
- Its actually 25% off at the moment
- How much ?
- Ok its £XXX
- HOW MUCH !, I can buy three complete bikes for that !
- Yes but its worth paying for quality ....... (said in an unconvincing voice)

And she probably has a point.

[guest27]

My Father in Law was a mad keen canoeist and Mother In Law could not see why he needed more than one boat - he did have rather a lot, but he got into the habit of buying them all in the same colour so she would not notice - it worked now and again.  He had also given up smoking some 40 years before hand, but every year h would buy himself something with the money he saved by not smoking...

So if you smoke - give it up and use that money, if you dont use the money you save by not smoking...

R

[guest18]

It is worth paying for quality because a good bike is nice to use and therefore I want to ride it, a crap bike is often a pretty unpleasant experience to ride and therefore I'll not bother.
Working on the principle that a bike sat rusting unused in the shed is a waste of money, and by using the good bike lots I am getting my moneysworth out of it, a good bike must be better value despite the greater initial expense... further, by using it I'm making myself fitter and easier on the eyes for swmbo, also it's money I'm not wasting on drink or other vices(!) the defence (momentarily) rests m'lady 

It was a 50/50 call which bike to take this morning as the sleet fell outside and the forecaster promised rain... I elected for the commuter with skinny tyres and full mudguards, I regretted this and called the forecaster nasty names as I slithered along the canal towpath in an inch of snow with the snow starting to clog the mudguards and work like putting the front brake on (  ).

Off now to cook some tea and bolt a set of crudcatchers to my mountain bike ready for tomorrow!!

[guest7]

When it comes to bicycles, spend as much as you can. There is absolutely no comparison between a steel framed, friction shift clunker and an alloy framed bike with a decent groupset.

Having said that you can prioritise your spending. A good pair of lightweight wheels are a joy, whereas the benefits of titanium chainring bolts are less easy to detect.

[Mark]

Where are you going with this thread? Thinking of cycling up to the Dragon? Gonna fit a sidecar to it?

[Steve H]

For me there is a threshold, above which (in my opinion) the value from money rapidly diminishes. The MTB magazines tend to be full of the latest trendy lightweight parts, but I struggle to see how a £1000 pair of wheels is £700 better than a £300 pair, and would they significantly improve my riding experience ?. I ride to get fit and enjoy being in the mountains, not so I can show off my bling.
It also has to be said my 'value for money' threshold has risen quite a lot over the years, 5 years ago I would never consider spending £300 on a pair of wheels, today if I needed a pair I probabaly would. That said in the back of my mind would always be the comment from my wife "I can buy three bikes for that !!!"

[guest7]

That said in the back of my mind would always be the comment from my wife "I can buy three bikes for that !!!"

Next time you're out shopping buy three jars of 'Happy Shopper' value coffee for the price of a decent instant* coffee . After her first taste of the muck ask her if she still thinks cheapest is best.

GC


* an oxymoron, surely?