Just when you thought the threaded fork and quill stem was a thing of the past.
Some of the new crosstown bikes are using threaded 1-1/8" forks and quill stems. I like this for the city/hybrid bikes. It gives easy adjustability of the stem without committing to cutting a fork steerer down and messing with stem spacers.
Speaking of commitments, I see Mr. Goodcents has dropped the Mr. to become known as gender ambiguous Goodcents. Not that I care. What's interesting to me is their commitment to being neutral (...don't want to offend....), and making their distinction as just being...."Deli Fresh". I suspect if I ask them, "How is your deli different from others", they would just say, "we taste "Deli Fresh"". I'm not sure this would get byDon Draper.
I wonder if they still offer 6", 12", or 18". I mean if you are using the English standard system means you are against the metric system....right? It's not possible both measuring systems would work, one must be right, and the other must be wrong. Maybe they offer subs in "Health Maintenance Length" for 12", and "Active Lifestyle Length" for 18". Then this leaves the 6"....who can eat a 6" sub and come away still not hungry anyway? How about "Abbreviated Health Maintenance Length?
Remember when I was going to make a swing Bike? Well for some reason it seems like a good time to piece one together. Even though I'm in the middle of another project. I found this old Roadmaster in the basement and decided it might be a good frame to hack apart and use for a swing bike project. Holy Smokes Batman check these welds! They almost seem to defy logic. I know I'm ignorant about some things, maybe even more things than I know, but something is just not right here. It's obvious the bike was though some abuse, and yet has not come apart. Maybe the logic here is, it can't come apart, if it was never together to begin with.
Yes, that's a Wear your helmut safety sticker . . . Gee Why? Is it because the welds are below the surface of the tube? Does the tube even touch the head tube? Did a team of hampsters wel this thing together from the inside out?
What? . . . Why waste time mitering tubes together? This is what was revealed to me when I hacked the downtube off. That hole is the bottom of the seat tube.
Now time for a picture of some quality at Benetti's.
Well here it is so far. That's a fork steerer sweated into a piece of 1-1/8" 4130, brazed to the seat tube. Nothing fancy. Brazing together old tubing is not fun. It's hard enough to clean new tubing, let alone painted, rusted tubing.
How about Civia Cycles, Loring? This bicycle is really nice. Brooks saddle, Avid DISC brakes, Mavic Rims, Truvative Stem, Post, & cranks, bamboo fenders. It's an internal 3 speed. As you all know, I'm no stranger to the 3 speed. For a Cargo/Commuter I'd have liked it to have a 5+ speed, but a 3 speed will work just fine.
How about this? Combined with the double kickstand, this spring will keep the wheel straight while it's parked, so your bike doesn't tip over and you loose your cargo. Now that's thinking outside the box, before long we are going to see these types of add-ons everywhere. as Banksy says, "Think outside the box, collapse the box, and take a f'ing sharp knife to it." — Banksy
A Banksy picturethat pretty much seems up the currect global conciousness.
I saw this rotor when I came in today. At first I thought it was some kind of saw blade. What normally looks something like this. Wasn't there first hand. I'd have to Talk to Brother Zekefor more details, but no mater what, this item will have to go into the gallery of Epic WTF.
Talking about epic. How about Kin Lindown at 51st & Brookside. Mighty Tasty as always and yes those are krinkle cut french fries. Lunch was $5 even. They charge something like $4.63 so there isn't any change.
If your old enough you might remember the The Arsenio Hall Show, he would do this thing called, "Think that make you go Hmmmmm". Ever wonder why when we see lance Armstrong lately, he's running and/or drinking beer?
How about the new location of HoldFast BMX Bike shop. Holdfast was located just off 350 highway in Raytown across from Ace Hardware. Now they are located in the Raytown industrial park. They specialize in just BMX.
The new location is 6525 Hadley Raytown, Mo. 64133
I like the guys at Holdfast, curious location. If they have Friday night jam sessionsin the industrial park this summer, that would be cool.
How about a picture of Lemmy in a pair of shorts . . . I guess.
Here's a picture of the jig setup and the seat tube angle set. I picture is a bit off. Hmmmmm, if you read the scale it looks more like 73.1 or 73.2, but it's set to 73.0.
Oh Yea. . . KC Sprintstomorrow after Critical Mess at Buzzard Beach. . . . better late than never . . . hmmmmmmmm
The Punks Are Alright . . . Thinking back about my younger years, I can’t help but think about Punk Rock. I’ve often called a person’s younger years their “Days of Discovery”. Ideas that were once covered, have now become discovered to fuel our imaginations to build our identities.
It used to be every generation had it’s own genre of music that would identify them. If you say 60’s, a person might think of Chuck Berry, Beach Boys. 70’s Led Zeppelin (Rock-n-Roll), Parliament (Funk), Disco. 80’s (Punk, Heavy Metal, New Wave), 90’s (Grunge), then 2000’s ? I’m not sure Hip-Hop? Rap?, but isn't that just a modified version of what was already invented in the 70’s, for example Sugar Hill Gang with "Rapper’s Delight" for example . . . Grand Master Flash anybody? looking at the last generation, I can’t say they developed a musical sound that identifies them.
That’s not to say there is not great music being made today (. . . and there is, you're just going to have to dig for it . . . ) it’s just not distinctive enough to give this generation an identity.
However I don't want to argue what this music genrations identy is. I want to point out a pattern, and make the case that it got hijacked a long time ago.
My days of discovery came during the days of punk rock. What’s a “Punk” anyway? It’s hard to find a clear definition of "Punk". However we can agree that it’s a word that possesses a negative connotation. When people think “Punk Rock” they often have an image of a person with a mohawk, wearing a black leather biker jacket, going around breaking things; or perhaps the word “Anarchy". A word also perverted, but I'm going to argue that now.
So today I find myself in the position to be a iconoclast of sorts for “Punk”, and you just might find out you’re more “Punk” than you thought, and have to redefine what it means to be “Punk”. The 70’s/80’s punk movement was about making people aware of what was going on around them. It was about instigating critical thought. Let’s look at the lyrics of Minor Threat’s, Out of Step or the more popular Straight Edge. It’s a song about how not doing drug gives you the edge . . .The Straight Edge. “I'm a person just like you But I've got better things to do Than sit around and smoke dope 'Cause I know I can cope Laugh at the thought of eating ludes Laugh at the thought of sniffing glue Always gonna keep in touch Never want to use a crutch I'VE GOT STRAIGHT EDGE I'VE GOT STRAIGHT EDGE”
Straight Edgewas born from Punk Rock, who knew? Who would know with the way Punk Rock is portrayed in the media. How about other Minor threat songs that foster a no excuses attitude like “I don’t want to hear it”, or “In my Eyes”. - Speaking no excuses What about Black Flag’s “Rise Above”?
“Society's arms of control Rise above, we're gonna rise above Think they're smart, can't think for themselves Rise above, we're gonna rise above Laugh at us behind our backs Rise above, we're gonna rise above I find satisfaction in what they lack Rise above, we're gonna rise above We are tired of your abuse Try to stop us, but it's no use”
Henry Rollins went on to form Rollin’s band
One of my favorite songs of his “Shine”.
“If I'd listened everything that they said to me, I wouldn't be here! And if I took the time to bleed from all the tiny little arrows shot my way, I wouldn't be here! The ones who don't do anything are always the ones who try to put you down and you could spend your entire life walking around in the nowhere land of self doubt
'coz when you start to doubt yourself the real world will eat you alive! it's time, it's time to align your body with your mind, it's hero time it's time, it's time to align your body with your mind, it's hero time 'coz when you start to doubt yourself the real world will eat you alive! and you know it's true! I'm talking to you: hero time starts right now! Yeah, hero time, yeah, time to shine, hey, hero time!
if ya think you've got 100 years to mess around: you're wrong! this time it's real, y o u r t i m e i s n o w . . . it's hero time! Yeah, hero time,hey, time to shine, yeah, hero time, yeah!
hard times are gettin' harder, the liars are acting strong you better get a grip on yourself or you won't be around too long it's hero time, hey, time to shine, yeah, hero time, yeah, hero time, yeah! it's hero time, it's hero time, time to shine, shine, shine, shine, shine! oh yeah! (3x)
no such thing as spare time, no such thing as free time no such thing as down time all you got is life time... go! 'coz it's hero time, 'coz it's time to shine 'coz it's time to go, go, go! yeah, hou!
when you're gone, you're so gone (2x) you've got it now, it's time to go hero time starts right now! yeah, aha..! ...change it!
I got grace in times of friction, I got truth in times of fiction I've got no time for the hype... suicide!? I'm not that type... I got no time for drug addiction, no time for smoke and booze too strong for a shortened life span, I've got no time to lose! It's time to shine, yeah, it's hero time, yeah, it's hero time, yeah, yeah!
when you start to doubt yourself the real world will eat you alive! yeah! you could spend your entire walking around, coward: or you can get up! get up, get up, get up, get up! it's time to shine! yeah...”
Sounds like a song that inspires me to go out and do something rather than sit in my parents basement and play video games.
There were/are a lot more bands with songs that posses this attitude and a message. In fact I'll go as far to say these bands make up the majority and are the foundation of "Punk".
Contrast this to the way “Punk” is portrayed. It's that same old tired mechanism in action. Critisize the messenger, not the message.
From example lets look at the Sex Pistols. Instead of focusing on the message of the lyrics, lets focus on the life of Sid Vicious. In fact let’s make a movie called Sid & Nancy that paints the whole punk scene as criminals and drug abusers. . . . Which I just pointed out that this is clearly not the case . . . . This is the stigma that has to be lifted in order for “Punk” to be discovered. What is covered must be discovered. - So what is “Punk” today? What have the corporations packaged for you as “Punk”? . . . actually they took some of Punk and fractured it, then packaged the fractures and sold it to this generation as new. Including such genres as EMO . . . (Ohhhh I’m so emotional) . . . and Goth. - Another thing I don't like is how "Punk" has become fashion. When people go out they may decide to look a little . . . "Punky" . . . For example the other day I walked by a corporate coffee shop on my way to an independent coffee shop two store fronts down. Inside was a kid working on his laptop, and was wearing awearing a Rage Against The Machine (RATM) T-Shirt. RATM sings songs about corporate exploitation. This store is owned by one of the biggest corporations on the planet. Guess he didn't hear thier song, "No Shelter here".
"The main attraction, distraction got ya number than number than numb Empty ya pockets son, they got you thinkin that What ya need is what they sellin Make you think that buyin is rebellin' From the theaters to malls on every shore The thin line between entertainment and war The frontline is everywhere, there be no shelter here Spielberg the nightmare works so push it far Amistad was a whip, the truth feather to tar Memories erased and burned to scar Trade in ya history for a VCR"
Well if nothing else I hope you understand the distinctions between "Punk", and what the corporate exploited, sensationalized, Punk looks like.
. . . and now Bill Hicks with a message I consider "Punk".
Let the games begin . . . Crusty made a good itinerary for the up coming bike ride, we'll keep it at that. Come one, Come All, if you seek fun, and posses a love for Bikes, Coffee, Beers, and Tubas.
2:30- ? Street Cred
6:00ish Benetti's
6:30-? Rhineland
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Some changes to the Gravel/Cyclocross/Do-All-To-All were made. I guess this is the 5th revision according to the last post I made about this construction.
After riding the first Cyclocross frame I built I decided to make a couple changes. I'm lowering the bars 5mm and moving them out 10mm/1cm. I also increased the seat tube angle 1 degree, this will give the rear tire a little more room to preserve the short chainstays.
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I've also decided to route the derailleur cables under the bottom bracket. I see some frame builder route them on the top tube, but this just adds another piece a cable housing for the rear derailleur . . . Guess I could be tricky and route that internal to. However I also see a lot of builders route them under the bottom bracket. I've heard the pro and Cons and it's 50/50.
Then route the rear brake cable through the top tube. I figure it would be a fun thing to try, and for mounts and dismounts why not eliminate knocking around the brake cable?
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Parts List: - Brake bosses
So without Brass, Flux, Acetone, Sandpaper, Paint, and . . . ? . . . bandaids I'm looking at $175. I see Surly Cross Checks selling for $400. I suspect other froms made from double butted 4130 are around the same price range.
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If your trying to build a frame to save money, believe me the grief you will save yourself will be well worth the $225. I suspect it might take me around 40 hours to build this frame which works out to roughly $5.65/hr . . . minus Brass, Flux, Acetone, Sandpaper, Paint, and . . . ? . . . bandaids; and that's if those price are still good, seen the prices of things lately? . . . now that's another rant for another day.
Couldn't Make it to Street Cred Stage 2 yesterday, But I did manage to get out for a while this morning.
Changed the tires on the 3 Speed. Dig the reflective hoops. My Continental 28c Sport Contact tiresare noticably faster than my Nokian Hakkapeliitta studded tires. The Nokians are so much slower I was thinking about changing to a lower gear with the Nokians.
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Riding just past the Thuman LibraryI saw Poppy Donuts. I thought it might be fun to have a Tour de Donuts. It been a while since I've been in a donut shop and the smell did disapoint. Also it was good to see a lot of "Experienced"people. People who know what donuts should taste like. I ordered a glazed and a chocolate. The glazed was outstanding, and the chocolate was good . . . both much better than those corporate donuts. Also if you get the idea to ride to 52 donut shops in 52 weeks and review donuts . . . That idea has already been taken.
52 Donuts BlogSpot http://52donuts.blogspot.com/ And a review of Poppy's http://52donuts.blogspot.com/2009/01/week-2-poppy-famous-donuts.html
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Aaaaah The Rheinland Restaraunt. Want some good food, this is the place. Also if you check their event's calenderin two weeks (02/26) is the Fasching or german carnival. This sounds like a good destination for a bike ride. Actually it was the destination of a ride two years ago. We all had a good time and vowed to return. However I was informed we could come up, but seriously doubted we could get a table, because they are booked for that day 6 months ago. Just when I thought I was on top of the ball getting there two weeks in advance. I say lets go there anyway, what's the worst that can happen? . . . Will we get thrown out by Techno Viking?
The penciled in plan is to Ride Street Cred Stage four, then ride to Benettis, then ride to Rheinlands. If people don't want to ride Street cred they can ride
meet us at Benetti's about 6pm.
Then past the good Ol RLDS church.
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Then pastPace Bike Haven. Here a bike shop that been around for a long time. Mark is a good guy, and if you get a chance, go inside and check it out.
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Ever wonder why if you go inside a super market, they have a section called "Health Food", or in this case "Health Market"? I mean if the healthy stuff is there, what is the rest? Frankenfood?
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This is why one place I like is "The Store" . . . It 's a little grocery Store in Raytown called "The Store" http://www.thestoremeatmarket.com/
The smell of there Barbeque is almost criminal. As you can see they have won contests, and I can tell you they are most deserved.
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How About "Rat Shack"? Don't they sponsor some guy that got sick, then only to come back and win the worlds hardest bicycle race 7 times against the other worlds best racers who were all doping except him? . . . anyway "They" got the nickname "RatShack" during the days of the "Blue Box". I don't know if this is the case or not now, but some "Suspected" they would keep a list of what customers bought, and if you bought a combination of items that could build something . . . unsavory . . . you just might get a visit.
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Here's a site Jazzy Pet Spa. Every pet needs a good bath and massage
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I also got a Zum Bar while I was out, and as you might have guessed, Indigo Wildwho makes these soaps are local to Kansas City. However today I noticed something different. The Betsy Bar. It smells pretty good, and the price of the soap won't put me out as much as cancer would so I say lets give a little to the cause. Plus the rides over . . . Shower Time
A vintage (Vintage: Characterized by excellence, maturity, and enduring appeal; classic.) Western Flyer bicycle came into the shop this week. From the definition I'd say more than anything it has enduring appeal. Who wouldn't want to get on this bike and go from a ride around the neigborhood?
The frame features a step through design. Today most people would identify this frame as a "Lady's" frame. However "Step-through" is a better description. Ladys who would wear skirts found the diamond frame cumbersome to get on and off of, so they lowered the top tube so then ladys could "Step-Through" the frame to get on the bicycle.
A distinguishing feature of this bicycle is the Inch-Pitch chain and skip tooth gears. As you can see the chain's pins alternate 1/2", 1", 1/2" . . .
. . . and the cog skips every other tooth to permit the 1" chain plates to ride between the teeth. I don't know why they used this protocol for bicycle chains and gears. I can only suspect it was because they borrowed it from machinery from the 2nd industrial revolution. -
Speaking of simple, Ben at Benetti's does it again. I found a new favorite . . . Sulawesi Kalossi . . . and I can simple call this coffee . . . "Dangerous" . . .
. . . I call it dangerous because you can drink this coffee all day. As they say it's very clean. Could this coffee be the Golden Ratio?
I'm sure most of us are familiar with the phrase, "If it's not broke, don't fix it". However there is this thing called preventative maintanance, or Winter Cleaning!
I own a Blackburn Trak Stand Ultra. http://www.trakstandultra.com/ I've owned it since 07, and I have to say this is the best I've owned or ridden. The majority of reviews on this train were nagative, that might explain why it's not made anymore. Maybe I'm just lucky, or I just know how to service and maintain it.
By simply turning this knob . . .
. . . You can set he trainer up for road bikes, or mountain bikes. Also you set it so the tire just misses the floor by 1/4" -3/8"and avoid having to set your front wheel up on something.
Ahhhh . . . The Mechanisim.
The resistance unit works like this. What you see are 3 plates. A roller, a flywheel, and a stationary plate that does not spin with a gasket material on the inside.
When the roller spins, it forces these ball bearings out against the flywheel . . .
. . . then forces the flywheel to rub against the gasket material of the stationary plate. The faster the roller spins, the more resistance you create.
This resistance unit provides more than enough resistance. The stand resistance requires you to output 330 watts to ride at 25mph, you can increase the resistance by moving the 3 ball bearings to the outer ball bearing ramps requiring you to output 351 watts to maintain 25mph, or use all 6 requiring 745 watts to ride 25mph . . . Yep that ought to do it.
and it allows "Spindown". Spindown means when you quit pedaling, it takes some time for the rear wheel to stop spinning. It gives you a little bit of that road feel. I mean when you stop pedaling on the road, your bike doesn't come to a stop.
These are all the parts to it. It's so simple.
If you know me, you know I like to keep it local. If I can't keep it local, I like to keep it independent, or non-corporate. . . . More Mainstreet, and less Wall Street.
"I'm tired of looking (It's not in my vision) I'm tired of seeing (Don't wanna see this) I'm tired of hearing (Don't tell me your sht) I'm tired of being (So why am I here?) I'm tired of life (And all of its jokes) Imaginary lines (To fool the fools) Imaginary rules (To live your life by) And all the worlds' fools
Life is so easy when you're told what to do Where to work and how to be you, But the jokes wears off and you're still laughing Caught in your own trap and you're all happy
Too stupid to know it (Just try use your head) Too stupid to care (You've all been fooled) Just one voice screaming (Is there really a point) Just one in a million (A little speck of flesh) Who's gonna hear it (Scream till you die) Who's gonna know it (Your conscience your mind) Who even cares (No one but yourself) It's hopeless (You're hopeless)
Because of the process, Because of the system, Because you're still laughing, Because you don't listen, Because of the process, Because of the system, Because you're still laughing, Because you don't listen"
