Shiny Happy People.

Something like 2 days after I dropped off my polished rims and hubs , I received a TXT from Alan to say my wheels are ready . He uses a top wheel builder bloke who builds for proteams . He's signed a vow of secrecy , though . 
Top service though , eh ? 

In other news , I was struggling for a Freewheel . I poured over the internet . All the usual places . Try and get a screw-on , ie old style, non-cassette, freewheel .
 Wait .
 It has to be in a decent range of gears . Shimano do a widely available 6 speed one , but it's 14t at the 'tall ' end , and 28t at the low . About a tenner . Looks about a fivers worth though . Nasty . Alan has them on the wall , and I nearly did , but I was hoping a better one would turn up . 

I'm sure we used to run 13-30 , but can I find one ? 

They also do that silly ' megarange ' one with a dead easy low gear . Apart from the shame and embarrassment , I'd be unable to use that with my rear derailleur . Too much raaaange.

Ebay sellers offer little more choice . At the other end of the price range , a NOS ( new old stock ) Suntour one , identical to the one I angle grindered off , are the best part of £100 . An odd Regina came up . Road ratios . 

Anyway , an exhaustive search brought up a ' SunRace ' brand one . 
13-28 . Says--- ' chrome plated '. 7 speed .
 Not a great pic online . 
OK , one tooth at the taller end is a bit better at least . I thought " in for a penny , in for a 14 quid . posted " 
A bit of an impulsive purchase , but if it wasn't quite right , it'd fit one of the kids bikes . 

Strictly speaking the Muddyfox is six speed ( ie 18 spd ) , but , the spacing's the same , and my shifters are 7spd . Non indexed Campy ones . They'd probably work with 10 speed !
I replied to an ' importance of originality ' type post the other day on the retrobike forum . Life's too short . And there's no way Jose is paying £100 for a six block .  

Anyway , it came this morning . Looks ace . Proper shiny shiny . Clicky clicky . More modern style profiled teeth . 

So , a blog post praising both the local retailer and the wonder of the internet . For that obscure hard to find stuff , It's tough to beat . That said , I'll be pointing them out to Alan as an option to stock over them nasty shimano ones . They look ten times better , for another 2 quid . 

And that said , it's hard to beat the local bike shop for a wheelbuild . 

Nipping into town later to collect them . I'll put some pix up . Deffo need to get some paint on that damn frame .

Right now , I'm building a mailorder wardrobe , which is the other , dark , depraved side of the internet .....

Wheels look superb . Plain gauge Stainless spokes , Silver brass nipples . Straight and true .
I'll have to order them overpriced Araya stickers now .

Shiny cassette . Just looks a ton better than one of those generic shimano ones .Rim tapes .

He falls into a carpet ....

So , as the page turns on another day .....

Here's something else that I first experienced in 1987 . I'm currently working in Manchester on a social housing project . A block o' flats , we used to call them . In the foyer there's a communal bookswap area . Well , I'm a sucker for books , me . A quick browse , and this jumped out . Next to Asimov's Foundation , which is , literally , another story . 

It's Weaveworld , by Clive Barker . One of his finest  ( if not the ) earlier works . Warped , and wefted , ha . Really good , from before he got all narcissistic and obsessed with homosexuality. 

It's a first edition paperback , not mint . Could probably tell a tale itself . 

Made the mistake of picking it up and opening the cover to read . 

I'm about seventy pages in already . Which is partly why my bike is still bereft of paint . It wouldn't be so bad , if I didn't know what was coming . There's this really good bit , yea ........



Right then , another ' handy ' finish today .
 Cock up on the catering front . First job was a bit of a garage tidy up . I just recently rebuilt / renovated the garage at my mum's . Outside looks good , but inside it's , er , eclectic .It's a work in progress . Tracey Emin , who lives next door , said it was ' rad ' .
 I clear a corner with some TNT , which will become my ' bike spraying corner ' . I was hoping to simply staplegun poly visqueen sheeting up . Creating a spray booth , of sorts .
Unfortunately , the roll of visqueen I'd put my name on at work , got used , so go to plan B ....

I , hastily constructed a supporting frame from 2"x2" R/S S/W from stock,and cross battened this using aluminium angle . Just a bit of light gauge stuff we use , cut to suit with tinsnips . With some short self drill ' tecscrews ' it didnt take long . Hey , it's what I do . Despite the corkscrew timber , and just eye and hand , it was fairly plumb and square  , making a space about 7' x 6' .
I had a few bits of polythene , so I gunned them to the roof battens . In the top left hand corner you can see a G'Clamp . That's pretty much holding the whole of that end up .

To the frame , determined to use the staplegun some more , I fastened ' correx' floor protection sheet . It's a corrugated plastic sheet used in construction to protect new floor coverings , or maybe doors . Stuff that could get a knock . Its in sheets of 8'x4' . It folds squarely down its length , and seeing as the garage is a smidge under 8' high , with a trim off the top , it's perfect . I laid a few on the floor , too .

 From work , obviously . What were you thinking ?

I've put a heater in there , and with the extra bit of polythene left over , I made a kind of ' door ' flap.
The whole thing was done in about an hour . On account of the EU directive on working hours , it was time for a brew . I had a Pukka Detox , with two bananas . All construction workers do this nowadays , and many have more than a passing penchant for late 80s fantasy horror .

 Here , the frame . . I'd have backed up to get a better shot , but behind me are six or seven bikes under a dust sheet . Hmm

Before I went home , I had a mad hour doing the final sand . I'm happy with it , so , with a bit of luck , chance of some paint tomorrow and then a week at gas mk6.
Mum will be getting her winter fuel payment soon , which will come in handy .

Warp and Weft

Grabbed a few minutes fettling today . I'm concerned that my wheels wont get done on time / in time , whatever . So , as tonight is ' mum shopping night ' and the wheels are at my mums , I would capitalise on available time .
One of the rims polished up a treat with some Autosol polish , but I still had one to do before I could take it for building . It's a bugger to do with the spokes in place .
I got away from work , ' handy ' , as we say in construction . Just I was leaving I phoned Mark at the shop to see what the deal is with turnaround times , and that . He said its not normally more than a few days , so in all honesty , I didnt need to rush .
 I said I'd see how it goes .

Got to my mums well in time .

Polished said rim . Dead good .
No pic , but get this . Using the detail palm sander thing , I removed the velcro backed sandpaper , and just placed a folded bit of terry towel on it . It kinda stuck to the hooky bit of the velcro . To this I applied a copious amount of Autosol . About a 1" squirt . And turned it on .
Dead good .
Probably used a bit more polish than if I'd done it normally , but in about 10 mins , possibly less , it was gleaming .
Oh , did the hubs , too . Just regular with the cloth .

My concern with the wheels is this . IF they arent ready in time , I havent really got a spare set. The other day I was looking at a similar ( little bit newer ) , ( '90 ) , pair of wheels . Real nice pair . Ooer missus . Araya rims . Black . RX-7s . Similar in profile to the 7Xs , bit narrower , 1.5s.  Stainless spokes . Dead nice Suntour XCPro hubs . Wobbly . Hmm .
Curious hubs . Early cassette . Probably in response to shimano . Get this though ... Sealed bearing on the non-drive side , loose ball behind a cone IN the cassette . By the look of them it appeared they were the problem . Another job then .

So , I get to the shop . Wheels ceremonially handed over . Pleasantries exchanged .
Shop's ready to shut . Last minute as usual , see , no need to rush . I follow mark into the back office , and there on the floor are 4 full cards of loose BBs . Mix of sizes .
OK , long story short . 38p pack of bearings fixes wheel . In fact , there's enough left to do another .
Got back to my mum's with them . 5 min job .
Brill .

Never mind the quality , feel the width .


Here , a guilty pleasure . John Tomac from before he was properly famous , test riding an SE Shocker .
Possibly my favourite magazine cover of all time .

Mr Sandman

Another  semi busy day . Few little bits of DIY , but to be honest , my heart wasn't in it. 

Tidied the shed out and liberated a few choice components . Like , 10 pairs of pedals . I dunno . 

So , Amy( girl child) has gone to her friends house . We need to pick her up at 5.00 , so there's a ' window' in which we're going to go to my mum's . The courier is there in the garage , so yet another ' two bird one stone ' thing . 

I get cracking with the sander. Whilst the frame overall doesn't look too bad , from a distance , up close it suffers from 25 yrs worth of MTB stone chips . The rear triangle is worst affected , but they're basically all over . I can't possibly just paint over it , so they need to be rubbed down . I'm using a palm style detail sander with a 120 grit paper . And mum has provided a cup of herbal tea , and some carrot cake . 

I love doing this kind of creative shit . 

Read - " The Case For Working With Your Hands...etc " , then get back to me ...

I was thinking I might get away with just t-cutting it .....

I'm about 99% there . The devil's in the detail sander , as they say . There are a couple of tricky spots I need to hand-rub , and I haven't done the fork yet . I'll wet+ dry the whole thing . Hoping to get some paint on midweek. 

The Daily Grind

Urrrgh . Bike restoration . Don't . Just don't.

 Busy today . Multiple trips to local tip following ' decorating' job upstairs . Anyway , 2 birds with one stone , methinks .

I'll load up the car , then after the first dump , I'll hightail it to my mate Rick @ Cyclehouse . I've a freewheel to remove off the Courier . I want the wheels rebuilding , but first the rims and hubs need a good buff up .The freewheel's also just worn enough to skip with a new chain ,which it definitely needs, so it's going bye bye.

 I'd tried in Alan's yesterday , but despite an impressive array of freewheel removers , none would fit . Ironically , the first ever bike specific tool I bought , was a Suntour two pin remover . But I cant find it .
So , Rick thinks they might have one . To be fair it's a 25yr old , obsolete freewheel , but it's worth a try .

I'm busting a gut to get there . Even though its only about 5 miles from the tip , I seem to catch every traffic light , and it being Saturday , all the shoppers are out .
Unfortunately , Rick's tool was also deficient.

And I've got another 2 or 3 trips to make to the tip, at least .

So , I get home . Dinnerish time . Whilst waiting for lunch , I get the big hammer out and an old chiseldriver . You know ?
You cant normally go wrong with a bit of violence . I've got the block lifted up on a piece of timber , so that as I whack it , the impact does n't damage the rim .

Still no joy .

It's funny how things go . Back at the tip , like an old magpie , a piece of shiny shiny catches my eye . It's a socket . One of the long sparkplug remover type . On the floor . Just there . I instantly think . I can fabricate a tool from this . Maybe .

So , FFWD>>>> a good hour or so . I've done another trip , and gone straight from there , to my mums . The angle grinder is there . It only takes a few minutes, with a dead thin cut-off disc, to cut some slots in the end of the socket , and then some cuts in the side , to leave two stand up lugs . It's kinda right as I offer it into the slots in the freewheel . I've got a big 18" Stilson wrench on the end , but the lugs aren't strong enough , deform , and slip out .
I'm pissed off .

I'm looking at the freewheel .

I'm looking at the grinder .

Freewheel . Grinder .

Grinder . Freewheel .




Definitive 'after ' pic . You can see the fabbed socket thingy .



In for a penny .....
One-handed power tool photography not recommended . Don't try this at home kids , I'm a trained professional.

Minutes later I had the Autosol out . One rim and hub are gleaming . I'll try to get the others done tomorrow.

"Tackle , is half the battle " as my old dad used to say .

Always try to be self sufficient .....

Here . Some additional retro MTB twaddle . I scanned in some old magazines and stuff last week . Early stuff .

The earliest of the earliest is this . In 1987 , cut and paste was a fighting style .
There was an almost total absence of MTB literature . I would buy the odd bike mag but they were literally 95% biased toward roadie with maybe touring thrown in . There was a point when Bicycle Action magazine started to include a section devoted to off-road , called MBUK . A few pages at the back .

So , info was hard to come by . I guess I must have followed up on an ad , and joined the national Mountain Bike Club . It was run by MTB pioneers , Jeremy Torr , and Max Glaskin . It was a very low key ' fanzine' style affair . Just a single sheet of A4 , with the absolute smallest of print , xeroxed by the million . Well , tens . At least . A few issues in came this . Guidelines on how to put on an MTB event . Have a gander .

 

Kinda funny , eh ? Remember kids , all bikes should have tyres at least 1.5" wide . 

Ok , that's it for now . 

I am the Muddy Fox Courier . 

The Inner Workings of the Human Mind...

Here's a little story to be going on with ...

I am the Muddyfox Courier


 

The story begins , like all good stories , with a 32mm spanner ...

The last time I undid this nut , or to be precise , an identical one on another courier , I was filled with trepidation . What would I find under this nut ? What strange delights ?

See , back in 1987 we were waiting for our Muddyfox Couriers . Alan and I . We waited . And waited . And then waited some more . I had a full page flyer ad for the courier  , that I pawed over for some time . It's difficult to relate these days , but they were simpler times . Of all the different wild and exciting new features listed in the bike specification , one item in particular perplexed Alan and I .
It said , " Check out the MORI Permalock self adjusting headset ... "
SELF ?
ADJUSTING ?

What ? You adjust it yourself ? Right ?
As a kid gowing up , fettling BMXs on a daily basis , headsets were a source of constant jiggery pokery . A small variety of headset locknut devices were available , that kinda worked , but what with the tall handlebar leverage scenario , coupled with my penchant for front brake antics , they'd be forever coming loose. It's difficult to convey just how exciting a self adjusting headset was going to be . With the time I would save I could catch up on betamax recordings of Miami Vice . Well , if it worked . I was skeptical , to say the least .

It's funny how a simple thing can take you back in time . As I picked up the spanner tonight , I was transported back to that first time that I unscrewed the top nut on a Mori Permalock self adjusting headset , to reveal it's secret  .




It's quite elegant really , and super simple . The top nut ' locks down ' against the second one in a fairly standard manner , but where the second nut is usually the top bearing  race, here the race is seperate . It's tightened down to eliminate any play , then a coiled ' watchspring ' clicks into a recess , locating into the vertical slot in the threads, and the other end after winding tension in it , it locks into place. As it applies clockwise force to the screwed race , should any play occur , it should , in theory , take up the slack . It's a pretty passive system , and to be honest , I've never actually witnessed it in action , but I still think it's quite a cool thing .


  

Here , a pic of it with no tension wound in .

 

 

So , the obvious question is this . Why the hell am I typing this shit up at the wrong side of midnight on a schoolnight?

And why am I completely disassembling the Muddy Fox ?

 

Words and pictures to follow .

urgggh me 'ead .....