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Spiders don't like damp places, swallowing spiders is an urban myth

I know an old lady that swallowed a spider. It wriggled and tiggled and tickled inside her. She swallowed the spider to catch the fly.

I don't know why she swallowed the fly.

Oh really? Oh well, I'll need to go there anyway to find one so maybe I won't be picking up Tuesday ...

I'm not very good at this.

Don't worry mate. Nobody is when they first get into anything. Both 14BC and BLB are OK to talk to as long as they don't think you're a tyre kicker. They answer any questions and give you plenty of advice. Half the fun is looking at all the gorgeous bikes. Enjoy yourself.

Okay cheers guys, I'll prob be at BLB/14 Bikes at around 9am as I have other stuff to do in the middle of the day, so I would think the deal should be sealed by 11 at the latest if anyone wants to come and mock/sherpa me.

I thought you were collecting a pre-ordered bike. You'll be lucky to find exactly what you want in the right size out of stock. Usually you'd need to do the deal, then come back to collect when the bike's been built and set up.

Southist motherfucker, I live South of the river, that by default makes it cool, don't go dissin ma ends blud.

Sorry mate, no offence meant. Here's a map I made to help people get around this great city of ours...

This thread is the best laugh I've had in ages.

@PHer - just walk the bike round the corner to a quiet side street and ride up and down a few times until you feel reasonably confident then go for it.

+1

Brick Lane itself and the streets around it are quiet (BLB is actually round the corner from Brick Lane) so you can go up and down there a few times.

It's not an unreasonable question. It took me a few minutes of getting used to riding fixed and I'm pleased I did it round the quiet streets where I live rather than through the city.

When you're ready to head to Waterloo go straight down Bishopsgate and cross the river at London Bridge then ride along the south bank to the station.

Be careful going south of the river. There be dragons.

OK, I'll have one please. PM'd you.

How do I know if it will fit my head tube / bars?

OK, so it's creases near the tube junctions that I need to be wary of. You cant see it on the pics but that dink is about a third of the way along the tube.

It's going to be a hack bike so I'm not going to spend money on getting it repaired if it's not a safety issue.

Thanks

Before I send my frame off to Armourtex (still disolving the stem but it is going) I have just noticed a dink in the top tube. I don't suppose it can be that serious because I'd not noticed it until today but it's a definite dent.

Is there a way to tell if it's a safety risk? Would that be just a question of taking it to a frame repairer?

This may be naive, but I have this thing in my head that frames should be totally straight all the time or else they're dangerous.

Isn't it worth alerting ebay / police about these people? Will anything happen?

definitely looks bent as a nine bob note that one.

First time I went in there was just after my bike was stolen. I was asking if they had any ideas about where I might find it. they were helpful and sympathetic and took my details down in case it turned up.

Second time I went in there was to talk about the possibility of getting the insurance replacement through them. At this point it was a long shot because I was sure the insurers would make me get it through Wheelies, but the same guy, who remembered me immediately, was again helpful without being pushy.

Been in there a couple of times since and it always seems friendly and relaxed. Not snotty or ubercool. Just a nice bunch of people into bikes.

That's the sort of place I want to spend my bike money and, to be frank, I wouldn't mind paying a bit over the odds if I had to. I'm not into searching around to save a couple of quid on something and it's worth paying extra to do business with decent people.

Cheers, and thanks for the PM. It was me and yes, I was gutted, although I'm getting over it now, especially as it looks like the insurance may stump up a fair amount towards something new and lovely from 14BikeCo.

chapeau!

Had the exact same issue with my frame this week.

Cut the stem right above the headset and then stuck the inverted fork inside a vase filled with a mixture of caustic soda and water.

Thanks - What to put it in was vexing me. A vase is perfect. I'm now 48 hours into dissolving (maybe my mixture is not as rich as yours). I've changed the solution twice and will do it again in the morning.

It's definitely eating away at the aluminium. I'm wondering if I need to wait until it's completely disolved it or does there come a point when the aly becomes fragile and it can be either broken or knocked away from the inside of the tube?

Been busy with other stuff but my plan is to try Cillit Bang - long shot I reckon given other failed attempts so far, then Armourtex who don't promise, but tell me they have been successful in the past. i'll let you know the outcome.

Thanks all. I will now go away and consider the responses carefully.

OK, I've thought about it. I'll get proofide and stop being a twat about it.

Just received my first Brooks, a honey B17. I've searched threads here about treatment alternatives to Proofide, only because I'm suspicious when companies tell me I must use their proprietary products.

Some talk about dubbin, chelsea cream and I think I saw one or two other preparations mentioned, so what's the view here?

Is Proofide the best stuff or will I do just as well with something from the local hardware store / supermarket?

I want to look after the saddle properly, but if Proofide is just another name for a generic product I'd sooner save my money and buy a new bike with the difference ;-)

That Soma looks great, and so does the totally black bike behind it. What frame is that?

Not an expert on employment law but, if you 'contracted' exclusively to the same outfit for that long I bet they should have employed you. You've probably got more rights than you realise.

the inland revenue would potentially be interested (IR35) as they've been done out of employers national insurance and some tax probably, however, they'll go after the contractor before the "employer" almost every time as far as I'm aware. Best not to make a fuss on this basis.

Sorry to hear about the sacking, Will. I don't know much about cycle couriering except that i think you guys get a pretty crappy deal for the work you do. the only compensation is that you get to spend all day on your bikes, but I guess that loses its excitement after a while.

I've often wondered if there were any cycle courier collectives / co-operatives. I would imagine that a business run by people who actually know what it's like to be out there would be a much more pleasant organisation to work for, plus, sharing the profits would mean you earn a hell of a lot more than you probably do at the moment.

Are there any such collectives?

Oh, and good luck in the new job.

I had a frame powdercoated at Armourtex a few weeks ago and had a similar, though from what it sounds, less severe problem. Although I could get the adjuster bolt out the stem wouldn't budge, I didn't try and force it so I don't know how badly it was actually stuck in but I took it to Armourtex and they removed the stem, headset and bottom bracket (which was also completely stuck) for £10 extra which seems pretty reasonable.

Thanks, that does seem reasonable. I was thinking about cut and crush but maybe for a tenner this would be safer.

Hi A1astair

I'm not surprised the recruiters are not helping - they're being devastated at the moment because they're not getting the assignments. Instead people are sending their CV's straight to the employers so the employers don't need to use recruiters, especially at 20 - 30% commission.

Posting here is a good idea - but the best way to do it is through your professional network - I'm sure you're asking around people you know in the industry as well as doing this but maybe the best approach would be rather than asking directly if a company has any jobs going, to get some informal face to face meetings with other firms to find out a bit about what they are doing, what their plans are, and to tell them a bit about yourself. If they think you just want a job then the door will often never be opened for you, but if you are there to explore and get to know each other, you may well get 30 minutes of someone's time and you may then be remembered when a vacancy does turn up, especially if you keep in touch. The point is that you need to build you contacts over time rather than do a Yosser Hughes "gizza job" approach.

Personally I'd recommend sitting tight for as long as you can given the current situation. If you think that redundancy is on the cards you'll get a bit of money and you'll have time to search properly. If you absolutely have to leave now because you hate it make sure that you can demonstrate how you make money for your employer (it's amazing how many people don't do this - they need to know that you're going to earn them, or save them, more than you'll cost them), and better still, if you can take clients with you then make sure potential employers know that.

If it helps there's some more stuff about this on my blog.

www.workjoy.blogspot.com

if the stem is stuck, sound like the metal bit that grip the inside wedged stuck, screw the bolt back, while leaving a handful of space and then gently try and hit it with a mallet, see if that help.

Tried doing that, WD40, freezing. The adjuster bolt came out as soon as I unscrewed it no problem. The stem is actually fused to the stearer tube through corrosion. I promise, it's a bigger job than knocking it with a mallet!

Could you not ask them? Or are you asking as to whether they are any good at it?

The latter.

I don't want to ask them in case they say "yes" when someone else here has had a bad experience, after all, it's not what they do and I don't know how technical a job it is. I guess I'm looking for a recommendation about them. I know I could get the job done elsewhere but the frame has already cost me enough and I don't want to spend any more on it than I absolutely have to.

Does anyone have any experience of how they work? I understadn they are not specialists when it comes to dealing with bikes although they do paint a lot of them.

I have a frame almost ready for powder coating but the stem is sized into the forks. I was going to have it heat treated but realised that Armourtex may well be able to do this for me as part of the service.

Can anyone tell me if this is the case, or should I get the stem removal done separately by a specialist like Mend-a-Bike?

Thanks for any advice.