What water bottle cages do guys recommend for attaching to the down tube without screws?

https://imgur.com/a/IJU3Jd2

As shown from the picture the brake cable runs on the down tube so they should be a design that wont interfere with brake cable.

Hi guys!

As the title says I’ve found my bike on gumtree after it was stolen last week - the seller has a number of bikes for sale all with a missing plastic cover for the gear shifter?

Does anyone know why this would be the case?

Does anyone have any advice on what I should do? The police are completely disinterested

As show in the pics, https://imgur.com/a/8CrFiei , on this "ladies" bike the cable for the rear brakes goes down the down tube and up the seat tube before entering the noodle and I wonder if that is why the brakes arms don't spring back well enough when I release the brake handle.

Even with the brake handle relaxed the it seems the angle made by the noodle is too high and keeps the brakes pulled tighter than it is.

Would it make a difference if the noodle entered the brakes at a lower angle?

Is the combination of the nature of the cable run and the angle of the noodle why the brake arms don't spring up they way they should?

I am looking to buy a cheap folding bike for occasions such as brining it for an outing trip by car, or as a back up for days when my main commuting bike to be repaired ( less than 10 miles single way). I have been looking at the following three models in the price range of £200~400.

Dawes Diamond at Costco, £360 (I like it has mudguard and pannier included, which are essential for me if using for commute) https://www.costco.co.uk/Sports-Spas-Leisure/Bikes-Scooters-Accessories/Dawes-Diamond-Folding-Bike-20-Wheel-11-Frame/p/454395

BTwin tilt 120 at Decathlon, £280 https://www.decathlon.co.uk/p/tilt-120-folding-bike-grey/_/R-p-120068?mc=8500543&c=blue%20grey

Wizard Skyline M500D at Merlin Cycles, £200 https://www.merlincycles.com/wizard-skyline-m500d-20-folding-bike-270188.html

Of the three above, I like Dawes Diamond having both mudguards and pannier installed, which are essential if I use the bike for commuting. I also like Dawes has double walled rims. But Dawes use a Shimano 3-speed hub, which I am not sure if it is adequate because I never used a hub wheel bike before. Comparing to the other two, it is about £100 more expensive, I am not sure it is really worth of it. May I have your advice please?

Hi All.

I am looking to buy a bike to do some bike packing and potentially a multi day tour at some point in future. On a day to day basis the bike will be mainly used on country lanes, farm tracks and lots of canal towpaths.

I would prefer something reliable that would be easy to repair/service. Must haves are hydraulic brakes, loads of mounting points (unless someone can persuade me otherwise) and a groupset that is as bomb proof as possible. Edit: Would prefer to buy something already capable of running tubeless.

So far I have been looking at new bikes in the £1000-£1400 range from the usual brands and obviously several fit the bill. However, I would be just as happy with something second hand for half the price or less, and I think the second hand, older bike market is the area where I need advice.

Thanks in advance.

I 've had about a 5 year break from cycling, mostly because of my dicky ticker, but with that all sorted out I've got back on my bike and hit the local lanes again. It's been fab, but there's one thing that I've noticed that has seems to have changed since I last did a lot of riding in 2019: Almost nobody waves any more!

I'm talking cyclist to cyclist, passing head on here, I don't expect anything from cars or pedestrians or whatever, but back in my day 80%-90% of cyclists would give a little wave as you went past each other, and only the odd one or two was a miserable loner.

Now it seems to have reversed and a recipricated wave is a rarity indeed!

• Is it a post-covid thing?
• Is it the next thing that millenials and gen Z are ruining? (oh god I'm kidding)
• Is it a Hampshire thing and you're going to tell em that up north it's all the rage still?

I am looking to buy new bike, gravel bike . As for now I have two models that I am considering , is any of you had a chance ride both or at least have one of the bikes and could share opinion ?

1. First one Canyon Grizl 7 1by

https://www.canyon.com/en-gb/gravel-bikes/adventure/grizl/al/grizl-7-1by/3468.html?dwvar_3468_pv_rahmenfarbe=R075_P05

Option no.2 - On one Free Ranger https://www.planetx.co.uk/products/on-one-free-ranger-sram-force-1-carbon-gravel-bike

Any thoughts and other suggestions more than welcome!

My sons Apollo bike (bought from Halfords) is about 3 years old. He now got an adult bike. I was going to sell the old bike in Market place when I heard from a friend that Halfords take bikes bought from them and give a credit as a gift card?. Have anyone used this service? Do they pay decent or I shouldn’t bother and just sell in Facebook? Advice please.

Let me preface this by saying that I'm relatively new to road cycling and to the UK in general (9 months and 2 years respectively). I live in Baldock, which is in North Hertfordshire, right next to Cambridgeshire. I mostly go for rides of up to 60 km around where I live, and I find that the drivers here are quite good at dealing with cyclists. I do get occasional close pass or someone emerging from a side road right into my face, but it's mostly fine. A lot of the time if drivers really do want to go past me where there's not enough space they at least have the decency to slow down to a resonable speed before doing so.

However, I decided to go for a longer ride yesterday and went west into Bedfordshire. Part of my route went through Dunstable, after which it climbed towards Dunstable Downs. Now, I understand that as a driver you'd probably want to pass me as soon as possible given that I was barely doing 10 kph up that climb, but I genuinely think that I haven't ever been as terrified while cycling as I was on that short stretch of road. I've probably seen at least a dozen drivers passing me in blind corners or right before the top of the hill. The ride through the town was quite bad as well, but the speed limit was 30 mph instead of 60, which made it feel at least somewhat safer.

Was I just unlucky with the date and time of my ride (Saturday at ~7pm) or is the attitude towards cyclists generally worse in this part of the country? I'm surprised as it only took me about 30 km of distance to start noticing a difference. Also, if the latter is the case, are there any other places around me with a similar problem that I should be aware of?

P.S.: another thing that was super weird to me is that some cars for some unknown reason do not use the whole road for overtaking even on perfectly straight road with no oncoming traffic. They already drive over the centre line, meaning they or an oncoming car would need to brake if they can't overtake me quickly enough, but instead of using the whole road to make it safer for both of us they drive right in the centre of the road and don't give me as much space as I would have liked.

Can anyone advise me how I seat the bead into the rim before I add sealent?

Hello all. My GT Zaskar is having some issues after I recently replaced the chain where I am getting chain slippage on the heaviest gear. I am somewhat certain that is it the cassette that needs replacing (2000km so far).

Looking online I can get a new cassette (same brand) and tools for about £90. The repair doesn’t look to be to complicated but I wanted to ask. Is it worth while me trying to fix this myself or should I leave to a repair shop?

Hi there, wondering if anyone knows of any resources that could map wild swim spots against one of the LEJOG routes?

LE>Truro>Launceston>Tiverton>Cheddar>Clearwell>Worcester>Ironbridge>Hartford>Mellor>Kirkby Lonsdale>Talkin>Cardona>Kinross>Bridge of Cally>Tomintoul>Inverness>Lairg>Bettyhill>JOG

My bike's handlebar does not support bells, which actually hasn't been much of a problem until today. The seafront that I live near was absolutely packed with people waddling in-and-out of our supposed "cycle lane", which isn't walled or shielded so a lot of pedestriants simply mistake it for more pavement, between the actual pavement and the roadside.

Now, I could wail out an "oi!" to get people's attention. But I find shouting to be quite a hostile way of catching somebody's attention. But I do posess the power to whistle quite loudly. It felt like a superpower, and with every whistle turned all the heads in the direction I was going in.

I was feeling quite unsafe, to be honest, and I needed to whistle quite frequently. Too many people weren't looking for bikes crossing over to the road, and the cars that were parked up alongside the cycle lane were swinging open doors. Complete with excited kids darting out straight from the car to the beach — across the cycle lane.

But I got 5 very negative remarks for this. The usual stuff, but it's a record for me on this 10km stretch of seafront.

Thoughts? Solutions? Is there a bell that fits a more aero handlebar? Just feels like I can't win.

It’s my first carbon bike so I’m not sure how paint damage affects it. I know with steel or aluminium it might be a concern for corrosion.

Should I take the £150 store credit and call it a day, or should I refuse the bike?

I’m buying it remotely through cycle to work so I only have this picture of it.

I bought my mtb a couple of weeks ago, but know I seem to be getting a clicking noise from the pedal area and a squealing noise from the front wheel, does anyone have any idea how to stop the problem please ?

Anyone know a flat ish route around Kent (I live near the edge of Kent, dartford area and just looking for a chill route not too hilly as I rode towards Tunbridge Wells last weekend and couldn’t feel my legs for days lol!

Any help would be appreciated

Hi all,

Does anyone know of any long sleeve jerseys that are suitable for warmer weather? My boyfriend has a Rapha Pro training jersey and it's lovely and thin and lightweight- I want something too. Is there anything else out there except for the Rapha one? (🤑🤑 and some...interesting colours) All the long sleeve ones I find tend to be thermal and fleecy backed. Seems to be a nightmare to find thin sleeves too, again, all thermal! I'm after stuff I can wear when it's warm but maybe there's a bit of windchill or it's not quite warm enough for short sleeves. I'm a lady but I'll wear men's kit so whatever you've got :)

Thanks!

GOD! It's non-stop expense! (Decathlon Rockrider E100 Women Sport)

Just put this together using the least worn out parts of three 90s mountain bikes.

It’s got 1.95 x 26 semi slick tyres from a previous bikes commuter life which are probably too wide to be very efficient. Should I run them at their max 60 psi?

Would there be any cheap way (less than £100) to put drop bars on it or at least some kind of bar extension that would let me go aero for long flat bits even if I can’t reach brakes or gears?

I’ll probably run this until I can get a decent used endurance road bike.

https://imgur.com/a/PdjS5dp

It seems the Park Tool FR 1.3 may be the one, but it is £12 on Amazon.

Is there a cheaper option?

I'm learning how to take wheels apart and learn about their innards, nothing I'm going to use for real.

Hi guys,

Completely new to cycling as an adult, haven't owned a bike since I was about 15, I am now 32, live in the UK.

Looking to get into cycling mainly as a hobby/fitness. I have figured out I would probably prefer a hybrid type bike with flat bars for now as I will be doing gravel/road/trail routes.

After some research I have narrowed it down to 2 bikes:

Specialized Sirrus 2.0

Boardman URB 8.6

The Sirrus is £480 (sale), the URB is £600, I am not technical with bikes whatsoever but I do know the URB has the Nexus Hub and some Shimano components, where as the Sirrus is Microshift components, I have heard Shimano is definitely the better of the two but getting the vibes that Specialized is the better brand of the two.

Just after some feedback/advice on the two bikes really, if anyone has any that would be great help as I am struggling to decide.

TIA

Hi all

I've decided on getting a Brompton for commuting and travelling and I need to buy new rather than off ebay etc because it will be a business expense. Does anyone know of any UK bike websites which might currently offer a lower price through discounts/vouchers etc?

Thanks

Due to some, hopefully temporary, financial difficulties we are looking ditch a car and become a one car household. This is something I've aspired to for a while, but it's been impractical due to my wife working a job that requires her to drive at awkward hours.

This financial situation is pushing the issue though, and so I'm considering taking the leap. It's either that or buy some banger of a vehicle and pray it's reliable enough to actually save some money.

The issue my son has raised is that while he's capable of riding eleven km each way, he's worried that he will arrive to school sweaty and then feel uncomfortable about it (which I totally understand, kids are cruel and he's already had some issues). On top of that, he's worried about being tired at the end of the day and having to do the return journey. Our route is quite hilly and involves reasonably steep climbs each way, but the one on the way home is worse.

If it was just occasionally, I'd push for it harder, but as the plan would be to do this at least three days per week (and doing it twice on two of the days due to afterschool clubs later in the evening) I can see this quickly becoming unsustainable. Once the weather turns it and motivation is lost, this could become very difficult.

But perhaps e-bikes are the answer to this. I think they would alleviate the issue of being sweaty on arrival to school, as well as feeling too tired to cycle home at the end of the day - it also makes the days with multiple trips much less concerning.

However, budgets are tight and some of the reason for doing this is to save money over having the second vehicle. My understanding is that there is "no such thing as a cheap e-bike", in that cheap ones are extremely unreliable and shouldn't be purchased. Is this definitely the case in 2024? Is there an affordable option?

Ideally, I'd pick up an affordable e-bike for both of us, but worst case I'd get one for him and just crack on with the regular bike myself.

Here is the body of my complaint “Every day this week, it seems there have been guests and extracts read from articles advocating stricter, more draconian laws for cyclists. There have been no guests, articles quoted or segments explaining why there has been no proposed change to the law, despite these proposed changes being around for a long time. There have been no other attempts to add context or balance, in the same segment as the parts vilifying cyclists. “

I listen up to about 7am, when I get up to cycle to work, so they may have added balance, but every day I have listened this week, they have been advocating more draconian laws for cyclists. Segments in question have all been around 40 minutes into the programme.

It started on Tuesday with a campaigner, whose wife was killed by a cyclist and a judge in another case, both advocating for strengthening the law. There was no guest to provide balance or even context. They have since been reading out articles arguing for even stricter laws, almost like a victory lap for an undeclared campaign that the Today show is running.

UK cyclists, would be great if you could also make complaints on the BBC website.

I started cycling in Japan but I’m moving back to the UK and want to continue cycling.

What are some obvious things that I might not know about cycling in the UK?

Two things that I already know are different are having roundabouts and being able to make right hand turns at intersections. (Also the abundance of rain)

Do you have any advice to meet other cyclists because currently I don’t know anyone who cycles.

So today was basically the call for open season on cyclists in the UK, thanks to a mindless and brigaded senior judge verdict on the Grey manslaughter case.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cambridgeshire-68975335

I can only urge everyone here to be extra vigilant from now on. Stay as far away from pedestrians as possible. Even when stopping at a red light, don’t put your foot down on the pavement. Stay in the middle of the lane.

Because effectively now, anyone can just push you off the bike into traffic, with zero consequences to them and all of them for you. Even if it’s literally in front of 5 cameras and a police car in daylight.

It wasn’t enough, that bike jackers on mopeds exist and that motorists can kill you for free anyway ; now it’s also pedestrians as a potential danger.

I will keep riding my bike, but I will now stay even further away from curbs or any of those god forsaken shared paths.