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My aunt has a Dutchie. It's monstrously large, and weighs 20kg (I weighed it as I was curious). You definitely need the geared one to get up any sort of incline. It's fun to ride though, and feels like it'll last forever.

No problems with my S2C hub. It made loud pinging noises on heavy braking for the first dozen miles, and a ticking noise in high gear for the first 30 or 40 miles - now it's silent on braking and only makes a soft quiet ticking noise when pedalling in high gear (that's the pawls). Low gear is silent.

Undibs but thanks anyway

If they are painted then it'll remove the paint and won't harm the rims, but it won't have any effect on anodised rims.

If you want to remove anodising you need to do it mechanically (i.e. coarse wire wool) or use caustic soda. Anodising is essentially an extremely thin layer of coloured aluminium on top of the plain aluminium rims - caustic soda works because it dissolves aluminium... so be extremely careful when using caustic soda because if you use a strong solution/leave it to soak for too long/don't wash it off properly, it will also start dissolving your rims.

maybe you would be interested in this..

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Models.aspx?ModelID=65844

i think its pretty snazzy, i want one my self for those hot sweaty long rides

I used to have exactly that SKS one (no yellow on it though) but I couldn't get the strap tight enough to stop it rattling with a full bottle, then when I tightened it up more it broke.

The one I made is steel so it'll last longer, and as it bolts through the seatpost bolt it's more secure than just strapping to the seatpost. Plus it matches the aesthetics of the bike.

I could make a double-cage one quite easily actually. Maybe I'll do that when I make a new one.

If you do the bath/strip thing it'll need repainting.

For removing the rust on the chrome, rub it gently with very very fine wire wool (or scrunched-up tinfoil) and apply a car wax to help prevent it rusting again (like Turtle Wax). For the paint chips, I would avoid using Jenolite or another rust remover as it tends to drip and this will damage the paint. I would very carefully sand off as much rust as you can, apply an anti-rust primer (like red oxide - spray a little into the lid and apply with a little brush), then normal primer, then topcoat - car shops sell paint touch-up bottles with tiny little brushes that are perfect for doing this, but it might be hard to find a good match.

If the paint is metallic it'll need a clear lacquer over the touch-up, too.

I got it at LBS, it was only a couple of quid for the clamp and you can fit a standard bottle cage to it. I also made one for holding a bottle under the saddle out of a piece of sheet steel bent into a trough shape, with the sides of the trough sitting through the seatpost bolt, and the bottom of the trough having two holes in it through which a standard bottle cage was bolted. Unfortunately I lost it so I'll have to make another one - it only took about 15 minutes though.

Yeah the 25cs are a bit narrow for my liking. I'm not spending money until they wear out though.

S2C hub so it's 70" and 50" (ish) - because there are lots of hills in Bournemouth and I prefer not to be sweaty when I get to work.

I used coarse sandpaper wrapped around an inner tube wrapped around a piece of wooden dowel, so it was only just narrower than the ID of the bars. A novelty giant pencil would also work.

^ second pic is great; shame it doesn't have a little motion blur or it would've been perfect!

I had the same problem. If it really is just 0.1mm then I'd sand it - I doubt the manufacturing tolerances are that high anyway. Extruded aluminium tends to have poor notch sensitivity (i.e. if an alu bar has a notch, scratch/gouge or sudden change in thickness, it can be particularly weak compared to steel) so I would sand it by hand to get a smooth gradient.

^ Nowhere Fast, is that guy famous?

You'd only have to polish it every couple of weeks to keep it looking like that. It's not like you'd have a mirror finish stem on a daily anyway.

Here's what the boiled linseed oil looks like:

I applied one coat about a month ago and haven't had to do any more since then. It looks a bit glossier in real life - bad photos.

^ I put a shopping basket on my girlfriends bike. I removed the handles and used a load of cable ties to attach it though, so perhaps it's not as functional as the 'quick release' version above.

Anyway. Carlton's finished - SA S2C Kickback hub, dynamo (aka whine-amo) lights, mudguards, rack... it's like riding a freighter ship compared to my last bike. The only new parts are the wheels and bar tape, everything else I got secondhand or out of my parts bin - kept the total spend down to about £220ish (£150 of which was the wheels).

I've sorted the saddle and rack angles now. Can't wait for the chainring to wear out so I can get some better cranks... I bought these about three years ago for my girlfriend's cheap bike but never fitted them.

I've tested out the linseed oil and I think it's great. I soaked a rag in it and scrubbed it over the frame about a month ago and there are no signs of new corrosion. Within a couple of days it dries on to a reasonably hard satin (well, somewhere in between satin and gloss) finish - you can just about scrape it off with a fingernail, but obviously if you scratch it, you can just wipe a bit more on. It doesn't rub off on clothing. It does have a slightly amber finish which some people might not like - I'll get a photo up later.

Very old.

That's precisely my point.

Yes, I was reinforcing it.

Axle looks hollow. If the tool is also hollow, you can use an axle skewer to clamp the tool down onto the BB.

Also as people have said, Plus Gas works better than WD40.

Wassat rear tyre? I can see 'All Condition' and found Specialized All Condition tyres but they didn't have the red sidewalls.

edit I'm an idiot. They only come in 23c though. Bit narrow for me.

Ugliest bike on ebay at the moment.

I'm 6' and need a 53-54cm frame.

I'm 6' and ride a 64 frame with a shorter top tube (57 on tourer, 60 on town bike). Sizing is very personal.

Just got all the parts for my budget touring bike, bar the brakes and the rear rack. No components are new:

Frame - Raleigh might-be-a-Randonneur-but-probably-not 531st frame with canti mounts, resprayed
Gearset - Shimano Deore triple c/set, 7-speed Hyperglide rear, Deore mechs, indexed friction shifters (which are actually bloody lovely). UN54 bb. Might need to buy a new middle ring as it's the only one that has any wear.
Wheels - Mavic MA2 rims on Deore hubs, 32h (only 32h I know, but I'm not carrying much more than myself)
Bars - Cinelli shallow-drop road bars, Dia Compe aero levers, Tektro cross-tops
Saddle - Brooks Professional S (it's a ladies' saddle but I find it very comfortable)
Shimano M520 pedals with plastic platforms on one side. I need to buy some SPD shoes to go with them though

Total spend so far: less than £100 exc. the Brooks which I've had for years and years. Can anyone see any massive glaring errors in my setup? It's going to be a weird looking machine... all black parts on a green frame with white decals.

I just need to find some cheap canti brakes and a rear rack and panniers, and it's finished. I might even get to tour this summer!

The Legend Cafe chairs are lovely.

You could try the Kalin stem from:
http://www.velosolo.co.uk/shopbar.html