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I'm a master of the graceful dismount and stroll along with the green man phase on the side road (i.e crossing as a pedestrian with my 'legitimate accompaniment', or whatever the ruling was in that famous case in 1981 ) before a classic scoot and remount on the other side.

I'd never RLJ but there are occasions at lights on quiet roads where you've just missed the green to go straight on and you know the phase of the lights off by heart where I think it's perfectly acceptable.

If I walk my bike onto the pavement, walk it across the green man phase, walk it onto the road the other side, mount and ride off, what possible law am i breaking (apart from in some peoples' eyes being a bit of a twit)?

Looks great. I wondered how they'd be able to fit in proper segregated cycle routes without having to widen the bridge over the flood relief channel, but then looking on streetview you can see the carriageway is actually unnecessarily wide here. Excellent.

https://www.google.co.uk/maps/@51.565182,-0.038504,3a,75y,243.67h,82.03t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sLovE5Kg9skjbHSgSnOfKQA!2e0!7i13312!8i6656

Traffic jam. No room to pass on either side, so I'm waiting patiently behind a bus.

Cue 4 cyclists undertake me and bunnyhop onto the pavement and peds have to take avoiding action.

"Get off the pavement! Dickheads" I rant.

Girl next to me with her helmet hanging off her rack stops. Considers my words, then hops onto the pavement herself.

They probably all thought I was much more of a dick than them. And I wonder why I have no friends?

I'm pretty sure I read somewhere that the sleepers have room for a load of Scottish shellfish for the London restaurant market (apparently one of the last remaining freight runs on normal passenger rail services), so there should be a large luggage space somewhere...

(NB don't rely on this).

Some would say that all Clauds after 1959 (when Holdsworth took them over) were junk ;)

It's worth bearing in mind that road bikes designed for racing will have geometry more suited to the slimmer belly. The larger gentleman may find it uncomfortable to be leaning over so much. To mitigate this, perhaps a (gasp!) adjustable stem might be an idea on whatever bike you end up getting, at least to begin with.

Still wanted - preferably with skewer. Thanks

Sounds good! Will PM

Of reasonable quality, in good condition, fair price, and ideally from the 60s/70s era.

Thanks!

Plus if you buy a helmet-mounted one you'll need to buy a helmet to go with it

(helmet thread >>>>>>>>>)

I get this paranoia about the shoulder check too! And then I worry that they think I'm a massive twat for being so racey because I cycle really slow and they soon shoot past. I need to stop worrying, of course, but that's another story.

As for helping out other inexperienced cyclists putting themselves in danger, would handing them a polite flyer with "top ten hints" help? With tips on safe maneuvering through traffic and advice on how to find cycle training, etc.

Probably a bit too passive aggressive/cutesy mind you.

I've decided to just let the shop get on with replacing the column, to save me faffing around when the frame comes back to me with the risk that the headset won't tighten. With a tight deadline of 22nd May I don't want to scupper everything.

This is an extra £60 I need to save on the build though, so I need to make some cost savings.

I was planning on a sprung Brooks saddle - are there any cheaper alternatives that are similarly comfy and smart? It doesn't have to be leather. I have a cheaper Spa leather saddle on my commuter, but it's still not properly broken in after several hundred miles and I don't want to put dad through that..!

Instead of buying new calipers I've found some 2nd hand centre pulls - which is a nod to the period of the frame too I guess, so two birds and all that.

I might have to stick with the existing front wheel, which is a generic 27" alloy rim and a no-name hub that was bought some time in the late 90s. It might scrub up ok though and I'll regrease it obvs. If I do this then I'll have to have the rear wheel built up as 27" too because it would be a bit weird having mismatched wheels. Was planning on 700c for the quality of rims and variety of tyres available. So if anyone has a nice usable pair of 36h (or 36h/32h) rims for a reasonable price then do pipe up.

The old rubber pedals are a bit grotty but will also save me £40 on a new pair. And are another nod to the bike's past.

Thank you!

Thanks - my cousin runs a manufacturing business in Peckham, I'll take the forks down there and see if the brass option is a goer.

The shop's framebuilder reckons the fork's thread is stripped and the only solution is a new fork column at £60.

Are there any other less pricey solutions out there - e.g. can the column not be rethreaded, or the threads made good with melted brass (sure I read that somewhere once)?

Junction of Hackney Road and Queensbridge Road this morning, an undertaking cycle hirer had to slam on the brakes at the very last second to avoid being squished by a left turning cement lorry.

I acted like a bit of a sanctimonious twat when I caught him at the next set of lights, but I think he needed to be told because I was scared witless witnessing it.

Less than one hour after the tragedy this morning and they had already created an event to exploit it.

https://www.facebook.com/events/456266237863486/

Sir, you are a gentleman and a scholar! Thank you.

Yes I've been in email contact with Planet X but they won't tell me what their Mistral decals look like, and they can't get a photo for me because the factory's in a different location to the customer service centre!

I suspect however that the only Mistral set they sell will be the one for the current model...

That one is proving to be the trickiest one to source, so if you did have it I would be extremely grateful!

This time from the late 60s, frame number 30524. 531 butted, of course.

The frame was my grandpa's retirement present to himself, and he built it up with a Sturmey AW hub (having come of age as a cyclist in the 1930s he was never sold on derailleurs). My dad inherited it in 1981 and it had much abuse as a utility machine until about 10 years ago when it was retired and has hung rusting on the garage wall ever since. It's dad's 70th birthday this summer so me and my siblings (or rather my labour, their cash) are restoring it as a surprise for him. My step brother 'stole' it the other day and I picked it up this weekend. We left a note in its place, but he hardly ever goes in the garage so hopefully won't notice it's missing before he receives it at the end of May.

It's not going to be period correct because we want it to be as versatile and simple to use/maintain as possible for dad. It was never a proper Mistral because it was built up with grandpa's existing components anyway - mostly from the 50s. The only things I'm planning on keeping are the GB stem and bars. The headset disintegrated when I took it out, and one cotter pin was stuck solid in one of the cranks so I just removed the BB with one crank still there because I didn't want to do any damage with the hammer! The 50s Williams cranks might scrub up ok for use on another machine, once I've got that pin out, though the chainring's very worn.

The rear dropouts are 119mm and a 5 speed Sturmey will drop right in without having to worry about respacing. With a front ring of 42 and rear sprocket of 21 teeth, this will give an 'on the flat' 72 gear inches in 4th gear and 1st gear of 33.8 for the hills, which seems reasonable for dad.

I took it to Ellis Briggs yesterday to be resprayed - the rust on the chainstays will leave some pitting visible but it isn't terminal - and am currently on the hunt for decals. So far I can't find exactly the right ones. PlanetX don't have the same typeface on theirs, though some on ebay are a slightly better match.

bolt croppers, car jacks, hacksaws, angle grinders, skeleton keys, the cover of darkness, cycle helmets (so as to 'blend in'), the list goes on.

You'll never stop a determined thief, but the less attractive / more cumbersome to steal that you can make your bike, the better.

I think this is a useful, if somewhat wordy, briefing to use in dialogue with the school, if not done already: http://www.ctc.org.uk/sites/default/files/file_public/helmets-policy4srv.pdf

Sadly because of all those impatient cyclists, when peds on towpaths hear bells now they assume you're some dick trying to force your way through, even if you're just trying to say 'I'm here, and I don't want to scare you, I will ease past when it's safe and polite to do so'.

I've yet to work out how to sound my bell in order to get that longwinded message across, so I tend to just ring way way in advance and look meek.

Indeed you're correct: that wasn't me, since you asked. My minor altercation took place on Old St, and we were all on the same road, going in the same direction.

I'd be perturbed in your shoes as well.