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Aluminium doesn't rust! If the hub flanges have been bent (due to a crash or something) then re-straightened, this could have caused the failure, as (most types of) aluminium is significantly weakened by cold-forming. Of course if you had the hub from new, you'd know if the flange had been bent/straightened.

I doubt there's any problem with the spoke pattern or anything like that. Hubs can break if they're laced radially but aren't designed for it, but 3x should be fine on any hub. As far as I know, anyway.

It could also just have been a materials failure, in which case you were just unlucky. If you had 'em from new, I'd return them. A heavy impact will usually break the spokes rather than the hub, which means your hub must've been significantly weaker than it should have been.

Aha. I thought you meant it was an old cup-and-cone loose-axle bottom bracket.

If it's a cartridge one then it's almost certainly aluminium. AFAIK nobody makes steel cartridge cups (although I could be wrong). Very ulikely to be titanium. Aluminium is a light-coloured and quite soft metal (compared to steel and titanium) so scratching it with an awl or something should give you an indication of what it's made of.

Caustic soda will dissolve aluminium but won't harm steel (although it will harm your paint) so if it's a steel frame, then that's probably the best way of doing it. Then clean it out with a fine brass brush, grease it up and carefully thread in a new cup (by hand) to check how clear the threads are.

Apart from being too big, too expensive and not having even mudguard eyelets, I am tempted by that... n+1

Have agreed to buy a 61x57 gorgeous Gazelle f+f, thanks for the replies guize.

Drilling out the BB cup would be the very last resort - not only would it take ages (BB cups are very hard steel), you could quite easily ruin the BB shell requiring the BB to be sleeved by a framebuilder or replaced entirely, both of which would be expensive.

Have you tried taking the frame to your local bike shop to get it removed? That way it would save the thread too, meaning you can get a normal threaded BB.

If you do need to go for a threadless BB, I've had both a YST one and the Velo Orange Grand Cru one. The YST kept coming loose and also required me to remove the cranks to tighten it. The Grand Cru never came loose and even if it had done, you can tighten it with a lockring spanner so no need to remove the cranks. The Velo Orange one is a little more expensive (£35ish from freshtripe) but it was so much better than the YST.

Anyway, like I said, getting a shop to remove the BB is massively favourable to drilling it out so try that first.

Perhaps self-threading i.e. threadless?

New 138mm cotterless spindle and keep the french cups? Or am I missing something?

Or if you really really can't find another way of doing it, fit the Velo Orange Grand Cru threadless BB. I had one and they're great quality (much better than the YST Threadless I had fitted previously). The VO one fits 71mm shells definitely, it might fit your 73mm shell perhaps, or you could get the shell faced down to 71mm.

It's an absolutely gorgeous frame so worth getting it going.

Hi all,

I've UTFSd but haven't really found anything for a suitable price (my budget depends on the frame, obviously, but I want to keep it under 150). I'm after a frame for some very light touring (so rack mounts not absolutely necessary, so long as it has mudguard eyelets). Frame sizes are approximate but I don't wanna go much under 62cm ctt seat tube and would prefer a proportionately slightly smaller top tube.

Thanks

^ they don't make new BBs in 26tpi threading (IIRC) except the mega expensive Phil Woods. And even then you'd still need to turn down the shell from 71mm to 68mm (unless the Phil ones come in 71mm... I don't think they do).

Government does nothing to increase taxation for the super-wealthy or for big corporations, does nothing to redistribute wealth more evenly, massively cuts public services which affects the poor far more than it does the rich, then asks us to give to charity?

Fucking......................

Velo Orange Grand Cru Threadless will fit a Raleigh 71mm shell. If they don't have the right width axle then perhaps try Velo Orange direct (although shipping from the US might be expensive)

http://www.freshtripe.co.uk/Freshtripe/Drivetrain.html

You can get cheaper threadless ones (like YST) but mine kept coming loose, meaning I had to remove the cranks to tighten which eventually buggered up the taper holes. Replaced with a VO one and it never came loose, and if it did, you can tighten without removing the cranks because you can do it with a lockring spanner.

I'd try flipping the axle first. It might work fine and you've got nothing to lose. Or an ebay axle. Old-school bike shops often sell, or can get hold of, the right kind of axle, too.

^ yeah it's alright. Any hardware place will sell you a stainless or zinc plated something like that for about 50p though. Saves you enough money for the bus fare to get there in the first place (assuming you can't ride your bike there because of lack of brakes).

If anyone's interested in Reelights, I can vouch for the 520SLs (flashing with power backup) being great little backup lights. Good side visibility and a bright flash so they're excellent for being seen. They continue flashing for 4 or 5 minutes after stopping which is more than enough. They're quite easy to set up, too. Don't notice any extra weight or resistance when pedalling (although you can feel it when you spin the wheel by hand)

Downsides are that they're fucking ugly. The little lights themselves aren't great but at least they're small. The coil and the wheel magnets and the cabling are disgusting and don't look right on my bike at all. But then again, it's a cheap winter hack so I guess I can't get too concerned with what it looks like. I won't be putting them on my pretty summer touring bike though.

No word on long-term reliability yet, but I've been using them since October and they're still working.

I should probably also mention that I got them for half price. I don't think I'd pay full price for them, I'd just get rechargeable battery LEDs.

^ Edinburgh Cycles are doing some bloody good discounts at the moment.

Also Kona Smoke for only £199. My mum surprised me at christmas by saying that she wanted to get into leisure/leisurely cycling so this is what I recommended. It's the most suitable bike I could find for £200 anyway.

.

Dibs on the massive Raleigh

My girlfriend's Raleigh Caprice

Completely conventional minus the Dia Compe BMX brakes and levers, singlespeed conversion and plastic mudguards. I had it powdercoated as after a few years of daily abuse my rattlecan paint job was starting to show its age. Might upgrade to hub brakes if I can get some on the cheap. It's the most comfortable thing I've ridden.

Eventually I'll build her a nice touring/daytripping bike when I find a suitable frame, as the Caprice isn't up to long journeys or hills.

Much better!

Warhammer eh, you've gotta be a tool to buy it at those prices!

*secretly wishes he still played Warhammer

Those were the levers that Halfords fitted to my friend's bike with caliper brakes. Then they said that they replaced the brake cables but hadn't, they just cleaned the outers (they were the old ribbed type that aren't even in production any more). Then the misaligned the pads so that they scrubbed the tyre. Then they charged her £80 for the privilege of having worse brakes than when she went in. The worst thing was that it was the same Halfords where I used to be the bike mechanic. Sorry to threadjack.

It's a slightly ugly brake lever. If that bothers you it probably wouldn't be too hard to modify a nicer looking lever to fit onto a little alloy hinged clamp (like the kind people use for putting water bottle cages on their handlebars).

I was lucky enough to inherit a Snap On toolchest with tools from my great uncle, as well as loads of tools for working on vintage motorbikes. Must be worth thousands, I'm not gonna sell 'em because they're the best tools. They all have a lifetime guarantee too, which is nice.

When I worked as a mechanic I found that Halfords Pro tools were my favourite - they don't have any specialist stuff but for spanners, sockets, ratchets etc it was all good quality at a reasonable price, and they all have a lifetime guarantee. Not porn worthy though.

Oh dear!

Some people do not understand. The equivalent to "how do improve a mug of instant coffee" on the coffee appreciation thread.

Er fuck off. They're not plain brown brogues but that doesn't mean that they're automatically shit quality, neither does it mean that I shouldn't bother looking after them. I was just after advice on how to keep coloured leather in good condition; if you don't know or don't care then why don't you just keep your trap shut?

Can anyone recommend a good clear polish or cream for my jam shoes

I've been using Proofide as I had some lying around, but it's £10 for a little tin that doesn't go very far

That's a bloody gorgeous frame. Where'd you find it and how much did you pay?

Yep, the Impossible Projects film. I'll post my ones up once I get to a scanner.