#81
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If your calculating your average speed a strava or something it's wildly innacurate. You'll notice sometimes the top speed is 40 mph which is absurd. If you don't have a Garmin it's not really anything more than a rough estimate be average speed, top speed, etc
#82
take a shit on the floor
Post rating: ~

roseweird posted:

my scooter that got stolen had couple parts of the fairing duct taped together to prevent scraping and whistling, had a big scrape along the side, and a chunk of one handle sheared away from when it skidded during my crash. it was eventually found but i think only because of a traffic stop due to the thief having killed the lights when he hotwired it, and because he pried off the gas cap and put tape over it which you would never have a reason to do unless you stole it. i put up an ad about it on craigslist asking if anyone had seen it and got a response from someone who saw a scooter ditched on its side in some bushes, and i went and checked it out and it was someone else's scooter of the same model. anyway i guess i'm just saying people who steal bikes on a whim probably aren't thinking about resale value but just looking for something they can fuck around on, treat like shit, and then ditch somewhere. so uhhh get a real heavy lock & chain like i did



bicycle thieves that can get past the cheapest supermarket combination locks are stealing to resell it through a distribution network so they want good condition factory models. my bike being a dented 70s 26tpi raleigh frame with dropouts glued together with jb weld, a rattlecan paintjob that's falling off and a schitzoid assortment of old/new but garbage/new but mismatched parts is the least stealable bike ever

even kids wouldn't take it because it has no appeal vs the unlocked mtb leaning up against the wall of the supermarket while the owner pops in for a loaf

#83
Dont Mess With Sucess
Post rating: ~
I lived in nyc seven years, I bike everywhere, and i've never had my bike stolen. Once the cops took my bike and lost it but I got it back. Anyway, I never carry a lock anywhere with me unless I'm going somewhere I absolutely know I can't bring it inside. You'd be surprised how much accommodation you get by telling someone "I don't have a lock and I don't want it stolen."
#84
Occupied Aztlan
Post rating: +
im glad the thread has decided that sometimes bikes get stolen and sometimes they dont
#85
Post rating: ~
Do you play music as you ride swamp man?

We sometimes have critical mass rides with about twenty thirty people and speakers in a trailer and it's a good laugh.
#86
Dont Mess With Sucess
Post rating: +
Yeah I play music. My speaker is loud as hell. I play a lot of funk bc people seem to like it. I like this one

Except when I'm in the upper part of manhattan then I only play DJ scratch tapes

Some yuppie was trying to aggressively pass me on the left and on the right while I was pulling a trailer behind my bike with a giant orange flag on and a corgi in. I made them stay behind me for like a mile before I turned and left them at a red light. Their parting shot was that I am "destroying the neighborhood" (true)

Edited by swampman ()

#87
Post rating: +
Is playing music from a bike a normal amerikan pastime?, because over here there seems to be an unwritten rule about making noise in public and if you break it people will look at you funny and the police come over

at one point when i was in amerika I started talking to a woman sat outside a bart station in a little plaza thing and it turned out she'd just broken up with her girlfriend and was homeless so i gave her a cigarette and then we went and bought some weed and got pretty high and she had a speaker on some wheels and we played really loud music while we sat in the square and people didn't look at us funny, after about an hour i started getting really paranoid so left but not before giving her some more cigarettes. well thats my speaker on wheels story hope you enjoyed
#88
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7-11 parking lot a toothless woman turned and stopped gave her a dime and a chesterfield she leaned down and kissed my cheek i was scared but it was sweet (felt so sweet) asked me if i had a name, told her i was "screwed up on some chick" sat and smoked against the wall drank a beer felt the chill of fall
#89
Online
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can you talk on your cell phone while riding your bicyycle, or (the alternative) are you a noob
#90
Post rating: ~

hey posted:

TG posted:

Since the last time I posted it I've bought a used specialized hybrid as my new day to day bike, but it's really damned hot so I don't ride it that much in the summer months. There are also a lot of thorny bushes around d my town so I need to get thorn resistant tires but I still get like a flat a week which is a pain in the ass. I also wish I could do basic maintenance because the one bike shop in town charges a bunch for tuneups and they still do a crappy job.

I flipped over my handlebars a few weeks ago but managed to make it out basically unscathed which I guess makes me a badass

I'm thinking of taking up mountain biking because thats What You Do in Colorado but it seems expensive

czech out bikeshares in your city. They'll likely offer service for a donation



apparently we had one but the guy who ran it was super sketchy and ended up screwing over a bunch of folks for work and parts

#91
[account deactivated]
#92
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google 'boombotix' lol
#93
Dont Mess With Sucess
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EmanuelaBrolandi posted:

google 'boombotix' lol

I use these http://www.amazon.com/Kenwood-KFC-1653MRW-2-way-Marine-Speakers/dp/B00U7RW0B8/
One reason it's acceptable to blast music in NYC is that the ambient noise in traffic is often louder than whatever you can blast

#94
Online
Post rating: +++++
swampman is peddling 26 miles around new york city tugging a wagon filled with dogs and blasting funk, and i think, i think thats righteous
#95
Post rating: +
It's what this goddamn website is all about
#96
take a shit on the floor
Post rating: ~

swampman posted:

EmanuelaBrolandi posted:
google 'boombotix' lol
I use these http://www.amazon.com/Kenwood-KFC-1653MRW-2-way-Marine-Speakers/dp/B00U7RW0B8/
One reason it's acceptable to blast music in NYC is that the ambient noise in traffic is often louder than whatever you can blast



what's driving these

#97
Post rating: +
Nuclear fission cuz fuck liberalz
#98
Dont Mess With Sucess
Post rating: ~
Google cathode corner, they have plans for the system and sell the little board with the d class amplifier
#99
ive gender
Post rating: +
I've got a Raleigh FT cadent, it's a pretty middle of the line road bike but treats me well. Took it from Manhattan to Montreal once, camping along the way. Bikes are good
#100
Post rating: +
I've been a bike person since I was like 16 but i've never toured tho I would consider doing a kickstarter wherein me and Swampman try to tour as long as we can in any direction while playing the Hate Amerikkka Beat on repeat off his speakers and flying a communist flag before we get hit by a car in middle amerika for probably unrelated reasons mostly because the road had no shoulder.

edit: we could pick up roseweird in pennsylvania or new york state or whatever and have a scooter/licensed motorbike support team / we meet taryn in flint, MI and she and RW womyncanoe it back and we almost make it home to NYC before a drone destroys us all beyond recognition.

Edited by EmanuelaBrolandi ()

#101
Post rating: ~
#102
Dont Mess With Sucess
Post rating: ~
bikes
http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=393_1472159620
#103
Post rating: ~
yesterday i went to go for a ride after work and i got about 2 blocks away and my tube popped. not a thorn puncture, which happen all the time around here because god has forsaken this hellhole of a town. it split along a seam on the inside. weird. the previous tube had split the exact same way in the same spot. super weird. figuring it might be an uncovered spoke end on the inside of the wheel, i switched the entire wheel, tube, tire and everything from my old bike, which happens to be the same size, and went back out. i got about a mile away from home and this tube popped as well. today i managed to figure out that it was a different issue (obviously, the only common thread was the frame at that point) and it was just dumb luck

anyway, that's my bike story for 8/25/16. i hope you enjoyed it
#104
Post rating: ~
that's a pinch flat bc you don't have your tire pressure high enough or the bead of the tire and the tube aren't correctly mounted on the rim
#105
Post rating: ~
it turns out that the rubber of the tire was torn/frayed so the metal strip/wire on the inside was exposed and yeah, pinched the tube. luckily the shop replaced the tube for free (they're like 12 bucks cause theyre "thorn resistant")

i wish there was a bike maintenance class i could take in my town cause that probably wouldve solved a lot of frustration
#106
take a shit on the floor
Post rating: +
you don't need a class, you just need sheldonbrown.com
#107
Dont Mess With Sucess
Post rating: ~
.

Edited by swampman ()

#108
Post rating: ~
papa bear, put out an apb for a male suspect, riding a.....bike of some sort, heading in the direction of...uh...that place with dogs
#109
[account deactivated]
#110
Post rating: +
that's dope. I can tell you that you're already miles ahead of people in the industry. I worked at a motorcycle shop and interacted with lots motorcycle mechanic students + faculty. People straight up don't know what they're doing. There's the rare few that take the time and actually learn about mechanics/fabrication/machining, but most just float by and hope for the best.(this is true for both cars and bikes).
It's not really their fault though. Most mechanic programs are no longer than two years. And typically there isn't entrance requirements. cars and motorbikes are very complicated, but they're lumped with other trades. Welding, framing, carpentry, pipe fitting, sheet metal, machining, etc have the same expectations as mechanics which is silly.

anyways. working on bikes is dope. mechanics is dope. metal is dope. If you commit to it, it will be incredibly rewarding. The skills you pick up from doing this sort of thing can be applied to so many other things.

I'm sure you're mechanic friend will have a lot of advice but here's my 2 cents. Learn all the basics first:
  • Fasteners (Torquing, types, cleaning, inspecting threads, when to use loctite and anti-seize).

  • metals. You can get pretty deep with metals, but a good start would be the chapters out of a machinist or welders general knowledge book.

  • bearings

  • fundamentals of electrical circuits.

  • Be aware of all the ALL the tools available in the shop, from the small stuff like files and screwdrivers to lathes and mills. Even if you won't have any of that stuff, it's really helpful to know what's available and how certain procedures are done.

  • Learn to weld

  • Learn how PROPERLY drill and tap

  • uhhhh that should be pretty good.

With the bike itself. Get a nice overview of how things work. And then focus on different components. Brake systems, carb, electrical, controls, fairings. I wouldn't get deep with the engine until you're familiar with all that other stuff (at the very least carburetor and electrical). Maybe take an engine apart, but don't expect to be able to put it back together correctly.

So yeah. have fun. it's a lot of fun. try not to get mad. if you do get mad, take the day off.
#111
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oh and learn how to grind. that's a big one. so many dummies misuse grinders. poor results and super unsafe.
#112
[account deactivated]
#113
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glomper_stomper posted:

i didn't rid e my bike today


I rode my bicycle today. it was raining and dumb though

#114
[account deactivated]
#115
[account deactivated]
#116
Post rating: +
That kind of thing is an extremely bad idea if you're hoping to turn a profit, even if you consider the value of your labor time to be zero. The motorcycle market in the US is completely irrational and fucked and a very high risk even to people with all the necessary knowledge and capital, which it sounds like you don't have.

If want to turn around A project bike as a hobby or learning experience so you can upgrade to a bike, then that's cool, and definitely something worth trying, but you will lose money on this venture if you're trying to flip bikes for cash.

I'm really not trying to shit on you here but I don't want you getting burned and this sounds like you're being set up.
#117
[account deactivated]
#118
[account deactivated]
#119
Dont Mess With Sucess
Post rating: ~
I have a friend who buys beater motorcycles and fixes them up for resale in their spare time, idk what the hourly comes out to but they do it when they're low on cash between their high paying art related gigs so it seems like a worthwhile pursuit. I think they are good at finding bikes they know they can fix easily.

#120
[account deactivated]