Bicyclettes

[jo3 b]

if anyone in NY is interested in a team track ( the rebranded fuji track pro) i'm selling everything but the crankset and bb for 450.

thats frame fork wheelset stem seatpost (no more deda bars, just black risers)

its a 52 and fun as heck to ride.

[the Repeater]

Very, very rare that a shop will let you do that. Once it's been mounted, can't really be resold.

Competitive Cyclist used to offer a saddle fit kit of their most popular ones... I'd suggest one of the three Fi'zik's, a Flite if you're small, or if you have a Specialized dealer nearby try their free fit for one of their anatomic saddles.

It's probably not going to be a single shot deal, but you can hone in quickly if you're in tune with the real specifics of what areas of the saddle are working and not working for you. Make sure you play with tilt and setback before you swap too, and never more than a degree or two off level.

Good luck, and make sure you get quality.

[ktothe]

or go to a store and ask if you can try out a bunch of saddles. cop one, then come back a couple o days later and exchange it for a different one if you're dissatisfied

People actually do this? How awkward...

Or is this one of those "theres a pool on the roof" things?

Very, very rare that a shop will let you do that. Once it's been mounted, can't really be resold.

Competitive Cyclist used to offer a saddle fit kit of their most popular ones... I'd suggest one of the three Fi'zik's, a Flite if you're small, or if you have a Specialized dealer nearby try their free fit for one of their anatomic saddles.

It's probably not going to be a single shot deal, but you can hone in quickly if you're in tune with the real specifics of what areas of the saddle are working and not working for you. Make sure you play with tilt and setback before you swap too, and never more than a degree or two off level.

Good luck, and make sure you get quality.

Good info. I think that I like the Fi'zik's saddles but nobody around me has their products so I would be ordering blind, which I'll pretty much be doing anyway...we'll see.

Thanks for the help.

[tylortakahisa]

People actually do this? How awkward...

Or is this one of those "theres a pool on the roof" things?

i had a friend that tried out a fizik test saddle from a a shop and he never returned it. came up on a free saddle

[TPR950H]

Or is this one of those "theres a pool on the roof" things?

basement of the alamo.

[readytoignite]

Very, very rare that a shop will let you do that. Once it's been mounted, can't really be resold.

REI will let you do that if you're a member...

[stuntastic]

There's that one online site, that will send you saddles to try out.

It cost something like $50 or something to do it, but it goes towards your final purchase of X saddle.

[the Repeater]

The Fizik Antares is their 'neutral' saddle. It's got the most seating surface of their saddles. The Arione is forever long and flat which is great if you're a lighter roadie type and have narrower sit bones, and the Aliante is comfortable if you have a good position already and can just plant it without fidgeting much. It's pretty shapely though, and short, so probably not the place to start off with.

I think they're really unattractive, but the Specialized line of saddles generally make people really comfortable. I think exchanges are allowed, due to dealership arrangements with the brand, and multiple widths are pretty progressive of the brand in general.

Really depends on your riding and whether or not you're just going to be riding around normally or an enthusiast. If you just need something to put your butt on as you get around, those Soma (Velo) saddles are decent, if not a little cheesy!

[frankie_four]

The Fizik Aliante Saddle is crap. It's to soft and it will just take two weeks till the padding is destroyed by sitting on it. The "leather" or whatever they use will crack shortly if you are driving at rainy days. I had one light crash with this saddle and the seat shell cracked near the middle. Additional their saddles are expensive.

I wouldn't cop if I had a lot more alternatives. (Selle Italia - Flite or the original TT -, Tune, Selle San Marco, ...)

[ktothe]

So I found a dude on craiglist with an Italia C2 for like 30 bucks, and another dude with a velo for 15. I'm just going to buy both and see what goes on.

[blm14]

buy a bunch of used saddles until you find what you like. nothing worse than dropping $100+ on something your ass hates.

Except that modern bike seats only come in three comfort varieties:

1) reproductive capacity destructor

2) Ass feeling killer

3) Just plain old uncomfortable

[po_boy_fuuma_hatesbargerz]

Just my two cents, I did a 120 mile ride on my Selle An-atomica and my boys were great. I was wearing standard bike shorts w/ a hair of padding, and I really felt okay overall.

[stuntastic]

Selle FLITES... All day.

I enjoyed a Fizik Arione for the short time I had it. You REALLLLLY have to have your shit dialed, in order to enjoy that seat.

Concor was a fun saddle. Since it was so big, it was pretty comfortable.

[tsxser]

Welp, just bought a Peugeot Carbolite 103 in red a few days back. working on converting it to a singlespeed tomorrow. Hopefully it will go well.

Im only considering a few things to buy for it now, Brooks tan seat and Brooks straps. Eventually Ill look into a new wheelset.

[Japaslavian]

After having the bike I spent a year building up stolen out of my house, I replaced it with this:

It's pretty much 90% stock, but it gets me from point A to B, and I like it.

Though brake + no braking surface wasn't my best idea...

[lestat]

There's that one online site, that will send you saddles to try out.

It cost something like $50 or something to do it, but it goes towards your final purchase of X saddle.

Benscycle.net did it with the Fizik Saddles...

[mlproject]

i would just get on your local forum and buy one for cheap, even if its beat up, ride it, find out if you like it then continue to swap out, sell, upgrade as needed.

[Dijonnaise]

I got a little problem regarding bike tubes, hope one of you guys can help me..

So I've been running on the same tube the whole summer with no problems. About 2 weeks ago, the front wheel's tube got a slow leak and started getting flat in roughly 24 hours. I decided to change the tube, left the bike there and next day it was still inflated. I then went for a ~15miles ride, and the next morning the tire was flat again.

Today I decided to inspect both tubes, and found the leak to be coming from the exact same spot; right under where the valve is. The thing tho is I know for sure it doesn't have to do with something stuck in the tire cause I only aligned the tire's tag with the valve on the second tube.

Here's a pic to show where both tubes are leaking. It really is at the seam of that sort of "patch" right under the valve.

So is there something I'm doing wrong? I don't want to go out and buy a third tube only to have it flat on me the next day.

Also, the big tube is the one I used all summer long, a 20-28 Specialized while the small one (the more serious leak) is a 20-23 Kenda.

thanks

[zissou]

Did you actually check the inside of the tire? I've never seen problems like that, but if you patch it, I bet it will stop leaking.

[rockon99]

Do these bags come with the armpit strap to keep it from wobbling around when you ride?

and, are they worth buying in general?

[Dijonnaise]

Did you actually check the inside of the tire? I've never seen problems like that, but if you patch it, I bet it will stop leaking.

Yes I did check it, and it's clean. But it makes no sense that even though the tubes were aligned differently with the tire, the punctures are located at exactly the same spot...

Also, I don't think it's a pressure problem as there is a gauge on my pump, and I never had a problem with the rear tire.

Anyway, I guess a patch kit would be the cheapest and most logical way to fix this. I feel bad whenever I throw a tube, let alone 2

[mlproject]

bend your tire backward and really look in there.. could have glass that's hiding. also if you don't have rim tape in there (velox or whtaever else), your rim could cause it.

[zissou]

Make sure you feel around inside the rim, too. There could be a thorn that's hard to see.

That is weird, though. No point in tossing the tubes when you can just do a quick patch...

[frankie_four]

Do these bags come with the armpit strap to keep it from wobbling around when you ride?

and, are they worth buying in general?

They are all made in China but the fabric and finish is great. Got the Kalavinka messenger and it was my favourite bag. Definately worth buying.

It also had an armpit strap but I just need it on bigger bags

@ Dijonnaise:

do what zissou posted. Check the rim where your tube is located. What kind of wheelset are you running? If you use no rim tape it's possible a sharp edge is slicing your tube. Even loose or to long spokes are able tab the tube.

[maxdesu]

my blue sag medium doesn't have an armpit strap, but the material is kinda grippy

[blm14]

Did more or less this yesterday (southbound journey at about 6:30pm and northbound at about 1am), google maps don't show the route PERFECTLY but this is about 95% correct:

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&source=s_d&saddr=W+165th+St+%26+Broadway,+New+York,+NY+10032&daddr=40.701205,-74.0138469+to:E+River+Bikeway+to:40.7112367,-73.9787387+to:40.72088,-73.98882+to:stanton+street+and+ludlow+street,+ny+ny+to:40.72268,-73.98702+to:40.7279618,-74.0018621+to:40.74102,-73.99418+to:40.74289,-73.9928+to:40.7492335,-74.0079004+to:40.7920433,-73.9656388+to:180th+street+and+fort+washington,+ny+ny&hl=en&geocode=FeknbwIdxr-X-ykFWK6inPbCiTHvNP56ybcEzg%3BFRUNbQIdaqOW-yllaasUE1rCiTFNYbqT9c3Okw%3BFcQbbQIdkseW-w%3BFUQ0bQIdjiyX-ynzV2hC1FvCiTEaQ1kD_zuTeQ%3BFfBZbQIdLAWX-yl98CZTgVnCiTGV7k1OX06anw%3BFVRbbQIdRQmX-ynvRvbhg1nCiTEkysUXg7gfXQ%3BFfhgbQIdNAyX-yn1fAG3g1nCiTGhXzXacQ2gng%3BFZl1bQIdOtKW-ylV7Q_0jVnCiTEytpABIPhokg%3BFZyobQIdPPCW-ym_x4pJo1nCiTH_uJLU5RbnFA%3BFeqvbQIdoPWW-ympV5KWpFnCiTGiE197FYwcOw%3BFbHIbQIdpLqW-ykpToMFyFnCiTG6Fykdi0XAZw%3BFetvbgIdul-X-ynx2_dXJ_bCiTFJrDMODUJSeA%3BFUBSbwIdHMmX-yk_GmH_oPbCiTFzRXBna878Fw&mra=dpe&mrcr=2&mrsp=10&sz=14&via=1,3,4,6,7,8,9,10,11&dirflg=b&sll=40.771832,-73.958931&sspn=0.055966,0.132093&ie=UTF8&ll=40.776122,-73.950691&spn=0.223848,0.528374&z=12&lci=bike

I don't like to take the west side bike path north past 96th street at night because there are several sections that are EXTREMELY ill lit, and one in particular where you're looking straight into the headlights of oncoming traffic which creates horrible glare. Also taking saint nicholas means that you have a constant-angle upward slope as opposed to a flat surface until almost the very end and then a brutal uphill climb at 181st

[herpsky]

SAG is dope

you should cop

i have a dqm x sag AF1

kinda heavy but cool

[jl3969]

man i bought a bike to lower my travel expenses, now im buyin tools and parts left and right. love the new hobby but not what i signed up for.

[Appleseed]

@ Dijonnaise:

do what zissou posted. Check the rim where your tube is located. What kind of wheelset are you running? If you use no rim tape it's possible a sharp edge is slicing your tube. Even loose or to long spokes are able tab the tube.

Going to second this. I don't see how this could be from the tire, as it is sooo unlikely that it would line up perfectly like that. If you aren't using rim tape, (I don't know anyone who doesn't...) you should. It is very likely spoke inflicted or a sharp edge right there at the rim.

[amardeep]

how much does it cost to get a different type of gear shifter outfitted on a bike, roughly?

thinking of getting a Surly cross check soon; pretty perfect in every way except for the fact that the gear shifters are at the end of the drop downs, which i don't really dig. i have regular shifters on the brake levers of my current beater bike- would that be a significant $150-250 type of thing or is it a little cheaper?