A random thread for small things that don't really warrant a thread of their own

[Beardy]

I’ve been known to use encompass but I’ve never heard compass in this context before , only a pair of compasses for the drawing of circles or a magnetic compass for navigation in historic times before GPS

[Cudzoziemiec]

Never mind that. Marvel at the claimed fitting time of 20 seconds!

[robgul]

Today's post from Spitalfields Life has some interesting cycling accessories from days of yore -  https://spitalfieldslife.com/2022/01/17/the-metropolitan-machinists-company/

Some of the saddles look pretty uncomfortable

Having scanned through the catalogue again I'm rather taken by the "rifle clips" ... presumably attached to the crossbar [that's "toptube" to you youngsters] . 

And the trouser clips shaped like hair-grips - I can remember having a pair like that in 1958 and being the envy of my school pals that had the circular cycle clips .... of course the roadie in the 5th form that rode a Rory O'Brien bike used toe-clip straps as trouser clips . . . IIRC he also had a double-clanger chainset.

[Cudzoziemiec]

a double-clanger chainset.

Like this?

[Cudzoziemiec]

Looking at the saddles, I'm struck by how almost all of the have cut outs. I wonder when they ceased being the norm?

[Wowbagger]

Last night, I scraped the ice of the windscreen, picked up my pal Sherry, and we had a sea swim to the light of the full moon. There were probably 30 or 40 others who had already had their dip and were drinking hot fluids around a fire pit.

[Jurek]

Last night, I scraped the ice of the windscreen, picked up my pal Sherry, and we had a sea swim to the light of the full moon. There were probably 30 or 40 others who had already had their dip and were drinking hot fluids around a fire pit.

'Kin hell. It is showing -2°C out there at the moment!

[Wowbagger]

Last night, I scraped the ice of the windscreen, picked up my pal Sherry, and we had a sea swim to the light of the full moon. There were probably 30 or 40 others who had already had their dip and were drinking hot fluids around a fire pit.

'Kin hell. It is showing -2°C out there at the moment!

About an hour before, I had had a stroll around the park, which is in a stream valley, and the grass was crisp with frost. The thermometer read 3°C when I left home. I was in a wetsuit. The vast majority were in swimsuits.

[T42]

Looking at the saddles, I'm struck by how almost all of the have cut outs. I wonder when they ceased being the norm?

First time I was out on a saddle with a cut-out some lunk pointed at it and said "that's a woman's saddle".  Real men crushed their pubic nerves in those days.

[Cudzoziemiec]

Looking at the saddles, I'm struck by how almost all of the have cut outs. I wonder when they ceased being the norm?

First time I was out on a saddle with a cut-out some lunk pointed at it and said "that's a woman's saddle".  Real men crushed their pubic nerves in those days.

But Victorian and Edwardian men preserved them!

[citoyen]

Last night, I scraped the ice of the windscreen, picked up my pal Sherry, and we had a sea swim to the light of the full moon. There were probably 30 or 40 others who had already had their dip and were drinking hot fluids around a fire pit.

'Kin hell. It is showing -2°C out there at the moment!

Water temp here* is more like 8-9ºC though. Quite pleasant once you get over the initial cold shock.

(*I'm assuming it's similar over at Wow's side of the estuary.)

[Zipperhead]

Looking at the saddles, I'm struck by how almost all of the have cut outs. I wonder when they ceased being the norm?

After the first WNBR?

[hellymedic]

Looking at the saddles, I'm struck by how almost all of the have cut outs. I wonder when they ceased being the norm?

First time I was out on a saddle with a cut-out some lunk pointed at it and said "that's a woman's saddle".  Real men crushed their pubic nerves in those days.

My (male) partner happily used my hand-me-down saddles until they were worn out (thin Lycra on gel and foam).

These saddles have been discontinued.

Of course!

[T42]

Looking at the saddles, I'm struck by how almost all of the have cut outs. I wonder when they ceased being the norm?

First time I was out on a saddle with a cut-out some lunk pointed at it and said "that's a woman's saddle".  Real men crushed their pubic nerves in those days.

But Victorian and Edwardian men preserved them!

Maybe the Decline and Fall of the British Empire was due to numb genitals.

[Beardy]

I have to say it’s the first time I’ve seen a headline about a pope and my first thought was to wonder how it would affect my son.

Apparently German investigators have uncovered potential misconduct by the former pope while he was a cardinal in Germany in connection with some child abuse cases. Thankfully F is a safeguarding officer for the Catholic Church in the uk and so I assume wrongdoing in Germany is outside his jurisdiction.

[perpetual dan]

Looking at the saddles, I'm struck by how almost all of the have cut outs. I wonder when they ceased being the norm?

First time I was out on a saddle with a cut-out some lunk pointed at it and said "that's a woman's saddle".  Real men crushed their pubic nerves in those days.

I tried a cut out saddle once.
By which I mean one ride.
It felt like something was chewing me as the edges of the cut out moved.
Or is that the attraction of them?

[Feanor]

Dunno much about sadles,
But that was close to being a pome!

[ElyDave]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cambridgeshire-60084347

Robot vacuum cleaner escapes in Cambridge

[Beardy]

Our Dualit toaster proves it’s worth again. After 20 years service it’s had two rotary switches replaced and I’ve just ordered a new heating element as a replacement for the one that went bang yesterday. So that’s three toasters saved from landfill. I only need to make another 10 or so repairs and it might even start to cost in 

I am tempted to modify the toaster in the name of efficiency by replacing all the elements for ‘end’ elements and rewriting it so it doesn’t heat half the next slot when your not using all of them. But I it would require a bit of thought and the acquisition of some heat resistance insulated wire as well as the extra ‘end’ elements. It probably wouldn’t make that much of a difference in any case. And there’s always the possibility it would go bang or kill me even if it did work otherwise.

[Wowbagger]

Is it about a bicycle?

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/jan/22/two-men-take-corpse-into-irish-post-office-to-claim-dead-mans-pension?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

[citoyen]

This made me snort coffee…

https://twitter.com/localnotail/status/1484663886695571456?s=20

[T42]

Wuff!

[Gattopardo]

Looking to buy a road bike while in France.

Seems the other bikes in bits aren't giving me any satisfaction being in bits.

[woollypigs]

Today the local windows cleaner sadly halfway through washing our windows, found out he was washing windows on the wrong house ...

[robgul]

Looking to buy a road bike while in France.

Seems the other bikes in bits aren't giving me any satisfaction being in bits.

Don't forget that the brake levers will be the wrong way round if you're used to a UK spec bike . . . .