can anyone confirm if these will work with late 90s/early 2000s Ultegra derailleurs in a 7 or 8 speed configuration? I know I've read that some D/A stuff has different SiS spacing than non-D/A but I'm not up on all the nuances.
They will work. I used them with both cassettes and thread on freewheels on my time trial bikes (all non-durace, usually Ultegra or 105). If you adjust the cable correctly so that 1st is locked out, they Should work on 7 speed also. If not you'll have an extra click when you shift into 7-8 because 8 won't be there. You guys can let me know if I missed anything or am wrong. Sending you a pm....
Sorry to hear that Gummee. You have to be really careful in today's society with what you say or do. We have this old dude that gets off trying to peak down shirts and stuff. One guy used to call his desk and tell him so and so has her shirt unbuttoned and you can see straight down it. Next thing you knew he was scorching the linoleum getting down there just to ask her a dumb question and get his peek. One day he was asked to take office pictures for an annual report. Same said secretary was asked to turn so he could get a better shot from beside the counter instead of over it. So that she could cross her legs, she unbuttoned the bottom button on her pencil skirt. The Fktard file a sexual harassment grievance against her for doing so!! The girl was smoking hot and super sweet but, I think they were already trying to get rid of her and he finished the poor girl off. Now our secretary is a short little butterball that has the fashion sense of a 13yo and the personality of a 3 toed sloth. She wore black spandex nickers under a ratty camo mini and a T-shirt to the office Christmas party at a country club!! We went from Fashionista to Fashion disaster!
So far, I've organized last year's receipts so I can do my taxes, thought about going for a ride (then realizing that its Thurs and UW Hockey nite), and futzed about online. I haven't seen any bike shop mgt jobs open in the area. I may head over to our biggest competitor tomorrow and say howdy M
I'm getting pretty good at it. Have any of you used tire liner tube protector? I was looking at the various puncture resistant tires and came across at least one brand (Stop Flats). How well do they work?
I tried some tire liners, and they added a ton of weight to the wheels, which was annoying even on my fat tire cruiser. for fatter tires like cruiser, mtn bike, check out the Specialized Armadillo versions, these have a kevlar liner built right into the tire. for skinny road bike tires, Continental GatorSkins or the new Gator Hard Shells. Same idea, better execution for where you want thin-and-light.
I figured they would add a bit of weight. I looked at the Schwalbe Marathon Plus line and thought the same thing. I have the Conti gator skins on my road bike and like them. The problem child is the bike with the 26" Conti Town & Country tires. I'll check out the Specialized Armidillos. The Conti Travel Contact cross-hybrid claim to be puncture resistant, too... I'm looking for a sub-2" tire for one of my Safaris. Thanks.
for my 26" fat tire cruiser, I ran Specialized Hemisphere Armadillos for several years, never had a single flat, and that includes a fair amount of off-pavement riding. they were 26x1.9" I think, a semi slick design, rolled really nicely. When they wore out (mostly the gumwalls started to fray from age), I couldn't find them again and ended up putting something else on that bike. Since I cracked the frame on that cruiser (its been welded since but I no longer trust it), I've been on a 700c hybrid running some 38C ritchey 'tom slicks' which I love the ride, but I know they aren't puncture-resistant... so far no flats, but I'm pretty good at watching the road surface for hazards and dodging glass and such. edit: ah, last time I was shopping for a 700c, I saw Vittoria Radonneurs, and was fairly impressed with their construction, tread, look and feel... the Raddoneur Cross at least comes in 26x1.75" and looks to be a excellent balance of toughness and ride. now, I haven't actually ridden on them, so I can't say how good they actually are. bonus, they weren't that expensive, $30 each. I've sworn off gumwalls, tired of them failing before the rest of the tire.
If they offer a latex tube for a 26, I would recommend those as well. A bit more $$, but they offer reduced rolling resistance and help a ton against pinch flats. Only downside is their porosity. They lose 5-10psi day to day. It's worth it for my clinchers though. Much improved ride over the butyl rubber tubes. Have you looked into a tubeless conversion via Stan's or Calfee?
I used them in mtb tires and while a little heavy, much better than changing flats, never used them on the road. A cause of flats besides the obvious is over inflating your tires. I weigh 200 and 100psi in a 23c tires is more than enough. Over inflated tires have a harder time deforming over debris and cut more easily.
Note, Armadillo isn't a specific tire, its their branding for puncture resistant versions. hmm, let me look them up online... oh great, they diddled with the website, now nothing is where I was used to... yeah, crossroads and hemisphere each come in several 26x1.95 versions. some are reflective, I like that. the crossroads have a little more tread but are still basically street rollers.
Do any of you bike shop employees try and write off your bikes on your taxes? I buy several new bikes every year just so I have the current bikes and can relate to the customers about what they are looking at. I also do R and D testing on the new stuff so we know what issues are going to arise with the new stuff. My accountant said this is a legitimate job expense but said that it might raise a big red flag that I spend 15% of my yearly income on bikes. They recommended not writing the bikes off.
I work with a guy who rides his bike to work every day on Crossroads Armadillos, they are the Elite version with the 120TPI casing. He has them setup tube-less. He has never gotten a flat tire in about 15,000 miles of commuting. He rips that bike through the local single track on those tires on an almost daily basis. He runs about 30 Psi front and 35 Psi back (on road and off road) and hardly anyone can keep up with him. He will argue up and down that those tires are not just street rollers.
I like semislicks like that, smooth rollers, they do great on hard pack dirt, really anything short of mud and sand. thats this tire for the uniniated, I haven't tried these, but your friend's experience meets my expectations :) they come 700x38 and 26x1.95, and ouch, are a $60 tire. onyl this one is 120tpi, the rest of the versions are 60tpi and, mmm, was just looking at the nimbus armadillo elite 700x38, also 120tpi, for my hybrid, as my current tom slicks are getting old and sketchy looking.
Good Luck on Tour De Moore. I did that twice eons ago it's good to hear it's still around. Good bike races seem to come and go. What race you doing? I'm figuring not the 100mi Pro 1,2,. When I did it it was a fast start the first 5-6 miles were downhill. Good Luck.
They are heavy, mostly because they're stupid thick. I have a pair in 700x28 mounted on a 2nd pair of wheels for commuting on the CX bike. They roll well enough and have good grip in the wet. I honestly don't know what I would have to run over to puncture them. Roofing nails, maybe.
