My current commuter is an old (24sp) Dawes Giro 300, converted to
lower ratios to allow for the steep hills and my arthritic knees.

I'm thinking of adding a winter commuter with flat bars. I want
something with conventional gears (not hub gears) and non caliper
brakes (too much maintenance). I like to do most of my own
maintenance. I won't be going off-road and I value lighteness.

Please suggest models I should consider. TIA

On 22 Sep, 11:35, "michaelrmgr...@yahoo.co.uk"
 wrote:
> My current commuter is an old (24sp) Dawes Giro 300, converted to
> lower ratios to allow for the steep hills and my arthritic knees.
>
> I'm thinking of adding a winter commuter with flat bars. I want
> something with conventional gears (not hub gears) and non caliper
> brakes (too much maintenance). I like to do most of my own
> maintenance. I won't be going off-road and I value lighteness.
>
> Please suggest models I should consider. TIA

Can we have some more information?  What's your budget?  Have you got
somewhere safe and dry to store it at both ends?  How much luggage do
you need to take and how far is your commute?  Will you be taking it
with you on public transport?  When you say non-caliper brakes do you
mean you want discs?

michaelrmgreen@yahoo.co.uk wrote:
> My current commuter is an old (24sp) Dawes Giro 300, converted to
> lower ratios to allow for the steep hills and my arthritic knees.
> 
> I'm thinking of adding a winter commuter with flat bars. I want
> something with conventional gears (not hub gears) and non caliper
> brakes (too much maintenance). I like to do most of my own
> maintenance. I won't be going off-road and I value lighteness.
> 
> Please suggest models I should consider. TIA

'S'obvious, innit? Hummer H3

> Can we have some more information?  What's your budget?  Have you got
> somewhere safe and dry to store it at both ends?  How much luggage do
> you need to take and how far is your commute?  Will you be taking it
> with you on public transport?  When you say non-caliper brakes do you
> mean you want discs?


Budget? Well I did some rough calculations as to how much cycle
commuting was saving me and I can honestly say I could easily spend a
thousand pounds without exhausting the saving from the past five or
six years. Do I want to spend 1000UKP? Well that's another matter, I
am a cyclist after all! Say 650UKP as a rule-of thumb.

Safe and dry at both ends? Yes, definitely, but up two flights of
stairs at one end!

Luggage? Just my smallish ruck-sack.

Length? Around 20 miles a day or about 5000 per year.

Public transport? No, door-to-door commute.

Discs? No. Mountain bike style brakes (cantilever?) look resistant to
seizing with grit and so on.

Thanks for the reply. Hope the above helps.

michaelrmgreen@yahoo.co.uk wrote:
>> Can we have some more information?  What's your budget?  Have you got
>> somewhere safe and dry to store it at both ends?  How much luggage do
>> you need to take and how far is your commute?  Will you be taking it
>> with you on public transport?  When you say non-caliper brakes do you
>> mean you want discs?
> 
> 
> Budget? Well I did some rough calculations as to how much cycle
> commuting was saving me and I can honestly say I could easily spend a
> thousand pounds without exhausting the saving from the past five or
> six years. Do I want to spend 1000UKP? Well that's another matter, I
> am a cyclist after all! Say 650UKP as a rule-of thumb.
> 
> Safe and dry at both ends? Yes, definitely, but up two flights of
> stairs at one end!
> 
> Luggage? Just my smallish ruck-sack.
> 
> Length? Around 20 miles a day or about 5000 per year.
> 
> Public transport? No, door-to-door commute.
> 
> Discs? No. Mountain bike style brakes (cantilever?) look resistant to
> seizing with grit and so on.
> 
> Thanks for the reply. Hope the above helps.


I recommend you take a look at this one for a start.

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/specialized/sirrus-2008-hybrid-bike-ec001400


-- 
Brian G
www.wetwo.co.uk

wrote in message 
news:df23cbac-bc6f-44d2-a803-72cf70d6521b@z72g2000hsb.googlegroups.com...

> Discs? No. Mountain bike style brakes (cantilever?) look resistant to
> seizing with grit and so on.

Dual-pivots are fine too (well, my Tektro ones are several winters old now 
and not seized - they're significantly better than the crappy old sidepulls 
we had as kids).

But if you're going flat bar, nowt wrong with a set of Vs.

cheers,
clive

>
> I recommend you take a look at this one for a start.
>
> http://www.evanscycles.com/products/specialized/sirrus-2008-hybrid-bike-ec001400
>
>
> --
> Brian G
> www.wetwo.co.uk

That looks very promising. Looks like a trip to Castleford is in the
near future.

I hadn't though about it before I looked at that, but 700c wheels
would be a good choice for me. Also I'm a bit of a fan of Specialized
since I discovered the Armadillo tyres. Truly puncture resistant,
unlike some others that make that claim. (Continental Gatorskins - I'm
looking at you!)

Thanks.

On 22 Sep, 16:53, "michaelrmgr...@yahoo.co.uk"
 wrote:
> > I recommend you take a look at this one for a start.
>
> >http://www.evanscycles.com/products/specialized/sirrus-2008-hybrid-bi...

'ere - that's my bike.  Or as near as dammit.  I've had my Sirrus
"sport" for a few years now and it's been great.  I do very similar
commute to you, at least in mileage.  Fitted a rack, mudguards and SPD
pedals to make it more comfy.

Had a few teething troubles with it.  The original "all conditions"
tyres were just not up to the mean streets and gave me so many
punctures I claimed they were unsuitable for purpose and got them
replaced free of charge, now I run Schwalbe Marathon Plus.  Also the
wheels turned out to have been made with a duff batch of spokes so
they were rebuilt on warranty.  Even then they only lasted about 18
months before I was thinking of changing them as the rim wear was
getting bad, and then the bearings started going too so that clinched
it.

>
> That looks very promising. Looks like a trip to Castleford is in the
> near future.

I'd always recommend a trip to a shop or two.  Try out a bunch of
bikes and get some decent test rides.  For your budget and kind of
usage there's loads to choose from and it'll mostly come down to what
feels right to you.

On Mon, 22 Sep 2008, michaelrmgreen@yahoo.co.uk wrote:

> Discs? No. Mountain bike style brakes (cantilever?) look resistant to 
> seizing with grit and so on.

Do people even still make caliper brakes? If so, why?

tom

-- 
curry in a sack

"Tom Anderson"  wrote in message 
news:Pine.LNX.4.64.0809222003530.23181@urchin.earth.li...
> On Mon, 22 Sep 2008, michaelrmgreen@yahoo.co.uk wrote:
>
>> Discs? No. Mountain bike style brakes (cantilever?) look resistant to 
>> seizing with grit and so on.
>
> Do people even still make caliper brakes? If so, why?

When you don't need the tyre clearance, they're much nicer to maintain than 
cantis and are as powerful as you want.

Don't confuse modern dual pivots (or even decent single pivots) with the 
crap ones - there is a lot of difference.

cheers,
clive

wrote in message 
news:7a93786d-65d8-4862-9db5-5899058990f0@x41g2000hsb.googlegroups.com...
>
>>
>> I recommend you take a look at this one for a start.
>>
>> http://www.evanscycles.com/products/specialized/sirrus-2008-hybrid-bike-ec001400
>>
>>
>> --
>> Brian G
>> www.wetwo.co.uk
>
> That looks very promising. Looks like a trip to Castleford is in the
> near future.
>
> I hadn't though about it before I looked at that, but 700c wheels
> would be a good choice for me. Also I'm a bit of a fan of Specialized
> since I discovered the Armadillo tyres. Truly puncture resistant,
> unlike some others that make that claim. (Continental Gatorskins - I'm
> looking at you!)
>

Are Continental Gatorskins different to Continental Ultra Gatorskins? I have 
had the latter on my road bike for nine months now and have only had one 
puncture in that time, whereas I had had several in the six months prior 
with the original tyres on.

On Mon, 22 Sep 2008, Clive George wrote:

> "Tom Anderson"  wrote in message
> news:Pine.LNX.4.64.0809222003530.23181@urchin.earth.li...
>> On Mon, 22 Sep 2008, michaelrmgreen@yahoo.co.uk wrote:
>>
>>> Discs? No. Mountain bike style brakes (cantilever?) look resistant to
>>> seizing with grit and so on.
>>
>> Do people even still make caliper brakes? If so, why?
>
> When you don't need the tyre clearance, they're much nicer to maintain than
> cantis and are as powerful as you want.

I've got V-brakes, and have to confess i've never done any maintenance 
beyond changing the blocks. Oh, i did have to adjust the tension once, 
because they went lopsided, but that was a matter of moments with a little 
allen key. It's been a while since i had cantis, but i don't think i did 
much maintenance on them either!

So, assuming this is because i'm a slob, what sort of maintenance should i 
have been doing, and how much less does a caliper brake need?

> Don't confuse modern dual pivots (or even decent single pivots) with the 
> crap ones - there is a lot of difference.

Will do. I have no idea what either of them are, though!

tom

-- 
curry in a sack

> Are Continental Gatorskins different to Continental Ultra Gatorskins?

Not sure, but one thing I am sure about is that Specialized Armadillos
are much, much more puncture resistant than whatever it was I had.

They don't keep them (Armadillos) in shops generally because they're a
bit more expensive than Gatorskins etc. but IF you're plagued by
punctures they do the business.

On Mon, 22 Sep 2008 23:49:00 +0100
Tom Anderson  wrote:

> I've got V-brakes, and have to confess i've never done any
> maintenance beyond changing the blocks. Oh, i did have to adjust the
> tension once, because they went lopsided, but that was a matter of
> moments with a little allen key. It's been a while since i had
> cantis, but i don't think i did much maintenance on them either!
> 
> So, assuming this is because i'm a slob, what sort of maintenance
> should i have been doing, and how much less does a caliper brake need?
> 
Remove the arms, clean and grease the bearing surfaces.  There's more
variation with caliper bearings - some use tiny balls, some use plastic
or brass bushes/washers and some are plain.

>
> That looks very promising. Looks like a trip to Castleford is in the
> near future.
>

Well, that didn't go acording to plan. I went to Evans and came back
fancying the Trek 1.2 Triple. I thik I'll have to think about this
some more. Thanks anyway for the advice.

On Wed, 24 Sep 2008, Rob Morley wrote:

> On Mon, 22 Sep 2008 23:49:00 +0100
> Tom Anderson  wrote:
>
>> I've got V-brakes, and have to confess i've never done any
>> maintenance beyond changing the blocks. Oh, i did have to adjust the
>> tension once, because they went lopsided, but that was a matter of
>> moments with a little allen key. It's been a while since i had
>> cantis, but i don't think i did much maintenance on them either!
>>
>> So, assuming this is because i'm a slob, what sort of maintenance
>> should i have been doing, and how much less does a caliper brake need?
>
> Remove the arms, clean and grease the bearing surfaces.  There's more 
> variation with caliper bearings - some use tiny balls, some use plastic 
> or brass bushes/washers and some are plain.

That doesn't immediately sound like calipers will be less work.

Indeed, comparing the Park Tool advice suggests that calipers are a hell 
of a lot more work:

http://www.parktool.com/repair/readhowto.asp?id=21
http://www.parktool.com/repair/readhowto.asp?id=20

Although that may just reflect a rather less comprehensive treatment of 
V-brakes.

tom

-- 
skin thinking

"Tom Anderson"  wrote in message 
news:Pine.LNX.4.64.0809241327390.12187@urchin.earth.li...
> That doesn't immediately sound like calipers will be less work.
>
> Indeed, comparing the Park Tool advice suggests that calipers are a hell 
> of a lot more work:
>
> http://www.parktool.com/repair/readhowto.asp?id=21
> http://www.parktool.com/repair/readhowto.asp?id=20
>
> Although that may just reflect a rather less comprehensive treatment of 
> V-brakes.

Indeed. I've spent signficantly less time faffing with my dual pivots in 3-4 
years than I have with the V brakes on my wife's bike in 1 year.

cheers,
clive

On Wed, 24 Sep 2008 13:30:24 +0100
Tom Anderson  wrote:

> That doesn't immediately sound like calipers will be less work.
> 
> Indeed, comparing the Park Tool advice suggests that calipers are a
> hell of a lot more work:
> 
> http://www.parktool.com/repair/readhowto.asp?id=21
> http://www.parktool.com/repair/readhowto.asp?id=20
> 
> Although that may just reflect a rather less comprehensive treatment
> of V-brakes.
> 
The blocks on caliper brakes are generally easier to set up (to
compensate for wear or after replacement) because often there's
at least one fewer degree of freedom available for adjustment.  Against
that the pivots are often adjustable, and you may need to keep them
finely tuned for best performance.  Also as the Park site says, you may
need to file the blocks to get toe-in, while this is usually achievable
with a slight tweak of a cantilever arm.

On Wed, 24 Sep 2008, Clive George wrote:

> "Tom Anderson"  wrote in message
> news:Pine.LNX.4.64.0809241327390.12187@urchin.earth.li...
>> That doesn't immediately sound like calipers will be less work.
>>
>> Indeed, comparing the Park Tool advice suggests that calipers are a hell
>> of a lot more work:
>>
>> http://www.parktool.com/repair/readhowto.asp?id=21
>> http://www.parktool.com/repair/readhowto.asp?id=20
>>
>> Although that may just reflect a rather less comprehensive treatment of
>> V-brakes.
>
> Indeed. I've spent signficantly less time faffing with my dual pivots in 
> 3-4 years than I have with the V brakes on my wife's bike in 1 year.

I've barely touched mine in going on two years (maybe more than two years 
- i forget when i got this bike). What made you decide that Mrs George's 
brakes needed faffing?

I'm genuinely curious - i'm wondering if i should be doing something to my 
brakes.

tom

-- 
Pizza: cheap, easy, and portable. Oh, wait, that's me. Never mind. -- edda

Rob Morley   wrote:
>The blocks on caliper brakes are generally easier to set up (to
>compensate for wear or after replacement) because often there's
>at least one fewer degree of freedom available for adjustment.

Some of the Koolstop brake pads come with funky hemispherical washers
so you can get that full-faff experience even with caliper brakes...

-- PMM

"Tom Anderson"  wrote in message 
news:Pine.LNX.4.64.0809241955540.22608@urchin.earth.li...

>> Indeed. I've spent signficantly less time faffing with my dual pivots in 
>> 3-4 years than I have with the V brakes on my wife's bike in 1 year.
>
> I've barely touched mine in going on two years (maybe more than two 
> years - i forget when i got this bike). What made you decide that Mrs 
> George's brakes needed faffing?
>
> I'm genuinely curious - i'm wondering if i should be doing something to my 
> brakes.

Just regular pad replacement and adjustment. It's easier to do that on my 
dual-pivots than her V's.

cheers,
clive

On 24 Sep 2008 20:16:45 +0100 (BST)
Peter Maydell  wrote:

> Rob Morley   wrote:
> >The blocks on caliper brakes are generally easier to set up (to
> >compensate for wear or after replacement) because often there's
> >at least one fewer degree of freedom available for adjustment.
> 
> Some of the Koolstop brake pads come with funky hemispherical washers
> so you can get that full-faff experience even with caliper brakes...
> 

I know - but at least you don't have to figure out if the arm (and in
the case of cantilevers cable) angle is better with the spacers on the
inside or the outside.  :-)