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Can't think of a specific problem with that. What's your setup for rear gears? Surely neater to integrate it with that.

It will need unscrewing from the hub, but a standard single-speed removal tool should fit it. Just hope that the thread was greased when it was fitted.

Thanks for the feedback. The setup is pretty optimal as it's a steel steerer, a light framebag (probably not much more than 1kg) and it will be used for road riding with occasional gravelish/towpath sections. I'm not so concerned about the fork, rather I'm worried that turning or repeatedly loading/flexing the spacers themselves (or inadvertently ovalising them by clamping a seatpost collar on them) might wear them and/or impair their ability to do their main job of transferring enough load axially onto the conical spacer in the top race of the headset to keep it properly adjusted.

Here's a photo of the current lash-up made from various reflector brackets. The joint between the two pieces might not last, in which case I'll probably replace the longer strut with a metal piece.

I've been thinking about DIYing a decaleur to prevent my handlebar bag resting on my cables as they loop from underneath my bar tape down to the frame. This won't be supporting the bag as such, just acting as a standoff. There are a few products that already do this, including the Restrap Bumper Bar and this from Tim Tas Rek, which actually is a rack/bag support.

I've been wondering about using a seat clamp with rack eyelets with the lip ground off as a mounting point. Specifically this model, which is flat. The 28.6mm version could replace a headset spacer or the 34.9mm version could be fixed around existing spacers. Are there any potential issues with this?

From a quick trial with a 34.9mm plastic light bracket clamped around a spacer it looks like the spacer can be turned quite easily (not surprising since the stem doesn't apply much force in pushing it down onto the headset), which feels a bit disconcerting. Also I worry that there might be a slight fretting action as a bag bumps against a standoff attached to it.

Alternatively, a 28.6mm seatclamp wouldn't be able to turn as it would be tightened onto the steerer tube (after the headset preload has been set and the stem bolts tightened) but, again, I worry about a fretting action of it being bumped by a bag. Is this something to worry about, or are the loads negligible compared to the loads impose by normal riding?

Anyone have one of these in the spares box that they'd be happy to pop in the post?

EDIT: It needs to be specifically this model which is flat, not one where the eyelets are on a lug that drops below the level of the collar.

@HarryK I've got a 44T 1/8" steel one for sale here:

https://www.lfgss.com/conversations/380771/

Soft handlebar bags that just hang are quite tricky as far as I can work out as they'll sit differently on every bike depending on the cable layout. It does feel like there should be a simple solution to get them to stand off the headtube slightly.

There's nothing wrong with Tektro brakes. What model are you using?

Panaracer Ribmos? I've got a pair of 700x32 up for sale.

Couple of price drops.

Yup, drop me a PM.

No, wire bead.

Panaracer Ribmos and etc mudguards added.

I'll answer my own question on Panaracer Paselas just for the record: the all-black versions don't feel any different, as far as I can tell, from the tanwall ones. They're still a supple tyre as the sidewall is quite thin. They are just as comfortable, grippy and fast too and I really wish I'd discovered them earlier. Also for the record, they come up slightly small, the 32s measure 30mm wide when mounted on a wide rim.

Some of them have interior secondary glazing which is handy, but it's not feasible everywhere. On some of them the cast stone exterior sill has blown due to the reinforcing bar in it rusting, so the whole area needs dismantling anyway.

We're not getting exterior insulation done (if you mean cladding the outside of the building), Interior insulation on external walls has been proposed, but that may be something to jettison partly because of the cost of it in and of itself, but also because all those walls would then require replastering.

It's hard to overstate just how thermally awful the current (Crittall) windows are. We were finding ice on the inside of the bedroom windows over the winter. It's such an obvious win in terms of modernising the house that it seems perverse not to do it, especially since the scaffolding to get to the first-floor ones will already be in place.

Always worth taking a step back to consider all the options, but this isn't going to happen as the location of our current place is pretty key.

What do you mean by that? Apologies, I understand the build reasonably well but I'm only learning about how contractors handle these things.

In how much detail have they split out the potential costs?

Pretty reasonable detail. There's 60+ items individually costed, albeit not split for labour vs. materials. Electrical work, plastering and plumbing/heating only have one line each, but major areas of work are broken down so, for example, in the extension: blockwork, steels, floor joists, stud walls, creating a doorway from the main house, roofing etc. are all shown as separate lines.

If you’re getting quotes from contractors start with the large prime costs

What's your suggestion with these? Negotiate them down or look into cutting the relevant work completely?

Phasing the work is definitely an option, but part of the frustration is potentially having to reinstate or install things that will just be ripped out for phase 2. For example it looks like we'll have to put a new roof on the garage area whether we extend upwards from there or just knock through into it on the ground floor level. There's a whole heap of interlocking parts to the project, which makes doing half of it a bit of a nightmare.

Alternative headline: Man going to work on bike overtakes people who have created the traffic jam that they themselves are stuck in. Car-addicted idiots predictably lose their shit.

Yes, we're already thinking about decorating, and doing carpentry (skirting, doors etc) ourselves. Might even be able to fit the kitchen as we're pretty handy.

I was wondering if there were clever ways of managing the project/contract as a whole that someone might be able to advise on.

Well we started off with 2 parallel plans (broadly as outlined above: one with the extension and one without). Initial costings made it seem worthwhile to put the bigger plan through planning, which we now have, on the basis that (if we did have to rein things in) plans as approved don't have to be completed, just started within 3 years. As such the smaller plan could be completed within the purview of the larger plan.

We knew we might have to compromise on finishes and go for some more basic systems e.g. combi boiler instead of ASHP, to get the larger work done but, as it currently stands, that won't cut it.

I don't hold it against our architect particularly given the volatility of prices over the last couple of years.

What are some ways of trimming a quote from a contractor down to something feasible?

We're planning a fairly major improvement and extension to our place, which has barely been touched since it was built in the 50's. It needs completely rewiring, replumbing, reproofing, plus new windows and insulating all round. We'll also need a new kitchen and bathroom. The extension involves knocking through into the garage and putting a timber-framed box on top of it, so there's a bit of steelwork and new blockwork to support it but relatively minimal groundwork (thanks to some clever thinking by the architect and engineer we've been using).

Despite promising early indications, quotes from contractors who could deliver this are coming in way above our budget. Our first instinct is to forego the upstairs extension and just knock through into the garage for a bit more living room but (in addition to the annoyance of not getting an extra bedroom and bathroom), this would be really frustrating as we'd end up putting things in place that we might rip out again in a few years if we end up being able to afford the remainder of the work at a later date. Essentially it just feels horribly inefficient to not get the big structural work all done in one go.

We've been thinking about how to minimise costs to allow this by, for example, getting second hand/ex display fittings, doing some work ourselves or even just leaving a bathroom unfitted for a while. Does anyone have any other ideas of how to make this work?

Hiya, I might be keen on these if postable.

Do you know if the cages can be mounted on bottle cage bosses to essentially turn them into a carrying system for inside the main triangle?