Saris Bones 3 – Bike Rack

Picked up a Saris Bones 3 bike rack yesterday.  Bought it via eBay for £51 (they cost around £120 new).

I’ve been watching these racks on eBay for a couple of months and they usually sell for £70+ so I was lucky to get this one for such a low price.  It’s in very good condition too.

I thought I’d get one as I may want to head further afield with the Trek and without a suitable rack for the car it would have been difficult.  I’ve also been talking to a friend about cycling together and that may lead to rides in other areas – so now I can transport up to three bikes!

NiteRider MiNewt Mini-USB Tested

These long summer days have been preventing me testing my new NiteRider MiNewt Mini-USB on the bike, in the dark.  It’s still pretty light at 10pm but I ventured out last night with the NiteRider strapped to the Dahon and headed of for a ride of about 3 miles.

The light fixed easily to the Dahon’s handlebar using the smallest of the three rubber bands.  The battery pack strapped neatly to the handlebar upright.  Then I was off.

The NiteRider is significantly brighter than my Cateye HL-EL450 and gives a much brighter and clearer view of the road ahead – which will also aid visibility of me and the bike.  Once mounted, the light could be swivelled left and right to adjust the direction of the beam, however vertical adjustment was more tricky.

You have to set the vertical ‘aim’ of the light prior to fixing the band around the handlebar, once secured it will hold fast.  If you try and push the beam down after fitting, then the tension in the rubber band slowly pulls the beam back to its original position.

So, set the vertical orientation of the light and then pull the band tight and the NiteRider stays pretty much where you point it.

I cycled on roads and paths which ranged from ‘well lit’ to no lighting and the NiteRider’s beam was clear and steady throughout the test.  The beam was well defined and bright at all times and had a significantly longer  ‘range’ than the Cateye.

Don’t get me wrong, the Cateye is a good light and it will stay in my saddle bag when I’m out for the day in case I don’t get back before dark.  However, if I’m going out deliberately for an after dark ride then it’ll be the NiteRider MiNewt Mini-USB that joins me.

NiteRider MiNewt Mini-USB

So, I gave in and bought myself a NiteRider front light.  I’ve had my eye on one for a long time as they’ve always had great reviews, fit easily to the bike and produce a lot of light from a small package.

Having two bikes I was looking for a bright light which could be easily transferred between both bikes.  The NiteRider lights don’t require mounting brackets so they’re ideal for this  scenario.

NiteRider lights are not cheap, the MiNewt Mini-USB is the cheapest in their ‘LED range’ and mine set me back £72 at Wiggle.  There’s also a Mini-USB Plus model which includes a helmet-mount and extension cable.

The light itself is small, earning its ‘Mini’ title, at only 2″ long and less than 1 and a 1/4″ wide.  It has an integral mounting foot and it’s secured to the handlebar with a rubber o-ring (3 sizes included).  There’s a single cable (~10″) coming out of the bottom of the light which plugs securely into the supplied battery pack.

The Lithium Ion battery pack attaches to your bike with a velcro strap (not pictured below), there’s a rubber pad on the rear of the battery pack which ensures that the pack doesn’t move once in place.  The pack is a little over 3″ long by 1.5″ wide, and around 1 and 1/4″ deep so can fit neatly on the stem without much hassle.  There isn’t much to the battery pack, it has the socket for the light cable, the on/off switch and the mini-USB connector.  The latter is protected by a rubber flap which keeps if free from dust and water.

The MiNewt Mini-USB is supplied with a mains charger and a USB cable for charging from your computer’s USB port.  This is a great idea, especially if you’re going to use the light on your daily commute.  Keeping the USB cable in work will allow you to top up the battery’s charge  ready for the journey home.  Charge time (from empty) is 4.5 hours.

Build quality is excellent, from the lens to the cable and battery, it all looks great.  The brightness of the light is excellent and it completely washes out the beam from my Cateye HL-EL450.  The Cateye’s output has a slight bluish tint whereas the NiteRider is a brighter, cleaner, white light.  I haven’t been out cycling with the NiteRider yet, but I’ve performed the ‘in-the-house-in-the-dark‘ test and the ‘stare-into-the-light‘ (!!!) test.  It passed both tests well.  The NiteRider’s beam is wide with a centrally focused ‘hot spot’ – it’s significantly brighter than the Cateye, ensuring that you can see and be seen more.

Unlike the Cateye though, there’s only one mode on the NiteRider.  It’s either on or off – no high/low mode and no flashing mode.

Another independent review of this light can be found over on the Women In Training blog – I found this review useful as I made up my mind on whether or not to buy the NiteRider.

The Box

In The Box

Contents (battery velcro not shown)

Light and Battery (£1 coin for scale)

Cateye HL-EL450 vs NiteRider MiNewt Mini-USB

MiNewt Mini-USB Fitted To Dahon D7HG

Oh Dear! I’ve Ordered A NiteRider Light

Hmm, I caved.  I’ve been trying to put it off but a dusk ride over the weekend spurred me on!  I ordered a NiteRider front light and I’m awaiting delivery.

An ‘excuse’ I used to justify the purchase: summer solstice has past so the days are getting shorter now, I’ll need the  a better light more often.  It’s a safety thing.  Honest! 

I’ll post an update after I’ve received it and had time to have a look at it (work really does get in the way at times).

Update, 7th July: Review Posted

Garmin Handlebar Mount

Spent £14 on a handlebar mount for my Garmin 60CSx GPS receiver and fitted it to my Trek over the weekend.  My 60CSx sat there securely for all of the 29 miles I cycled on Sunday morning, including whilst I ‘jumped’ off the pavements and cycle paths.

Previously, I’ve carried the receiver in my backpack or on the strap of the backpack but now I can have it in sight all the time to see the digital map or my trip stats.

The supplied rubber spacers used when fitting the mount were either too thin or too thick so I’ve had to use the thinner of the two with some additional padding (insulation tape).  But, once fitted it looks good and won’t move.

Another good purchase.

[Image from Amazon]

Dahon Bottom Bracket – Loose

I think I’ve mentioned before, either here or over on the Dahon Forum, that my D7HG makes a ‘clunking sound’ when I pedal.  This has been happening more or less since I bought the bike but I finally worked out what it was last weekend when out cycling.

I had initially thought that it was related to the internal workings of the Nexus hub and the drive mechanism ‘catching-up’ with itself as I pedalled.  I left it at that and just lived with it.  But then, as I cycled recently, I thought more about it and looked at the bike as I slowly cycled along the flat.  Then I realised that it was the bottom bracket – the piece where the pedals attach to/through the frame – it was not loose (see photo below).  Not sure if this was an original assembly issue, pre-sale check issue or it had just come loose.

Anyway, I needed to tighten it up and didn’t have the right tool for the job so I headed to my new favourite bike site Dotbike for a BB lock ring tool.  Now the lock ring and bottom bracket are correctly secured and that should stop the clunking noise as I pedal.  I now need to get out and try  it, but that won’t be today.

I also grabbed myself an Ice Tools Spoke Wrench.

(Hmm, why do my bikes always look dirtier in photos than they do in the flesh?!)

Schwalbe Big Apple Tyres – Dahon D7HG

As posted yesterday, I collected my Big Apples from the Post Office and my plan was to fit them this weekend.  The plan has been successfully completed and the Schwalbe Big Apples are now fitted to the Dahon D7HG.

I purchased the tyres from online store Dotbike and they arrived ‘next day’ – although I was out so the Post Office held on to them until the weekend when I could get over to collect them.  It was the first time I’d used Dotbike and it was a smooth and speedy transaction so I’ll be using them again in the future.

The Big Apples (BA) are known as ‘balloon tyres’ which offer a softer, smoother ride and effectively absorb more of the road imperfections.

The BAs are replacing the factory-fitted Kenda Kwest tyres on my D7HG.  Compared to the now fitted BAs, the Kwests look very narrow – the Kwests are 20 x 1.5″ and the BAs are 20 x 2.0″.  The BAs are far chunkier and really to enhance the look of the D7HG making the wheels look far more substantial.  Based on looks alone, the BAs are definitely worth the cash!

Like the Kwests, the BAs have a 3M reflective strip on the sidewall which makes you stand out at night.  The BAs also have ‘Kevlar Guard’ which is designed to provide additional puncture resistance.

Fitting the tyres was relatively easy.  The front wheel was the easiest to remove: unhook the brake cable, loosen the two axle nuts (with my new spanner) and pull the wheel off.  Then, using the Crankbrothers Speedlever, I removed the Kwest tyre.  After a quick visual check of the existing rim tape, I pushed the BA tyre onto the rim followed by the new Schwalbe inner tube.  Before pushing the tyre completely onto the rim, I pumped the tube up slightly to enable it to gain its shape – this was to minimise the risk of nipping the tube as I pushed the tyre on.  I didn’t use any tools to fit the new tyre, resorting to thumbs and fingers so as to not damage the new inner tube.  Once fitted I inflated to 60PSI and refitted the wheel to the bike.

The removal of the rear wheel was going to be a little more complex and it was to be the first time I’d removed a wheel with a hub gear system. With this in mind I checked out the Dahon forum and other sites and collated the following information:

• The Shimano Nexus system – Sheldon Brown
• Dahon Vitesse D7hg, Changing rear tire – Dahon forum
• Unhooking the Nexus – Hubstripping.com

All proved to be useful.  One thing that I noted was that I didn’t remove the chain from the pedal cog prior to trying to remove the wheel – if I had done, after loosening the axle bolts, then I’m sure that I would have removed the wheel quicker and ended up with less oil and grease on my hands.

Having refitted both wheels, minor adjustments were required to prevent the new, fatter, tyres from rubbing on the Dahon’s mudguards.  The front adjustments involved a couple of screws and the rear mudguard was adjusted with a little bending and brute force.

After all that it was time for a quick ride around outside to check that all was in order.  They definitely do make the ride more comfortable and they do change the handling of the bike, in a positive way.  I didn’t ride far so I haven’t really tested the tyres, that will be (hopefully) tomorrow’s task.

So, tyres fitted.  They look great and really do improve the look of the bike.

More photos on my Flickr account.

Knog Frog – Rear Light

Two Knog Frog rear lights arrived today in the post from Tredz.

I decided to get these to improve rear visibility when cycling at night, primarily as I could point them to the sides.  Mounting them at the back of the bike with a sideways twist to cover the rear quarter approaches.

The other benefit of these little lights is that they are simple and quick to attach and remove and they don’t require any mounting hardware.  Simply place the rubberised body of the Frog against the bike and pull the integrated rubber o-ring around the frame and hook it over the Frog’s in-built hook.  That’s it.  Simple.  To remove just pull the o-ring and it’s off.  Quick and easy to move between bikes.

The Frog has a super-bright red LED and operates via pressing the top of the light.  First press turns the LED on, second press switches to flashing mode and a third press turns it off.

The batteries are replaceable (CR2032) although they should last a very long time in flashing mode (160 hours quoted).

A great safety light to supplement your main lights, they’re only £5.76 each and come in a range of colours.  Need a front light too?  Don’t worry as there’s a front Frog too.  Need a brighter set?  There’s the Bullfrogs!

More pics over on my Flickr pages.

Knog’s website is here: Knog.com.au

Schwalbe Big Apple Tyres

Finally got around to ordering some Schwalbe Big Apple tyres for my Dahon tonight.  I’ve read a lot of great reviews of them and the ride quality is supposed to be much better relative to the standard tyres.

Mech1, a reader of ‘Dave On Dahon’ and frequent commenter, has already fitted Big Apples to his Dahon.

I’ll be checking the forums prior to making the change.  I’ll report here with progress and any findings or advice.

Tyres ordered from Dotbike.

Topeak JoeBlow Sport II

I was pumping my Dahon tyres up last weekend with the Crankbrothers Alloy pump I’d bought earlier in the year.  As I pumped away I thought that there must be an easier and quicker way to inflate these tyres.  Don’t get me wrong, the little Alloy pump is great but more suited for roadside repairs than general maintenance.

So I ventured to Halfords this afternoon to pick up a Topeak JoeBlow Sport II track pump.  Now this makes pumping quick and fun!  It’s definitely something for the shed/garage and not for taking out on a ride, but with its size and weigh comes rapid tyre inflation and minimum effort.

It’s very well made: steel tube and base, aluminium thumb-lock lever.  The hose swivels 360 degrees, it inflates to 160psi/11bar and includes ball adaptors.

Now I have no excuse not to keep my tyres inflated.