Author Topic: What have you fettled today?  (Read 2134233 times)

Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #14150 on: 28 October, 2019, 08:42:28 am »
Some minor domestic fettling over the wekend.

First up was the fireback.  Our fireplace is a 50-ish year old BAXI, no back boiler, a floor level grate and underfloor ashcan. Saturday was it's bu now annual patching with fire cement to get it through another season.

Second was the vacuum. Our "everyday" vacuum - light and portable - is a Bosch Athlet cordless. Recently, at just over 2 years old, it developed an intermittent fault whereby it would stop and start for no apparent reason. Girding my loins to do battle with John Lewis over the SoG act and "reasonable" lifetime, I was Googling to see the cost of a replacement (ouch), when I idly entered "Bosch Athlet fault". That threw up a suggestion for a Youtube video on an intermittent fault. Turns out it's quite common. The detachable handle, which houses the on-off switch, has a projecting piece of PCB which slots into a connector.  Over time the movement of the handle on the body flexes the connector and there is intermittent contact.  A small piece of plastic - in my case the tail from a zip tie - pushed between one side of the connector and it's adjacent housing narrows the slot in the connector sufficiently to promote good contact. Voila!

Third was setting up my first "routine" in Alexa, to turn a table lamp on our lounge on and off (with the great advantage of being able to turn it on a set time before sunset) to provide illumination evening and morning, the latter for my breakfast.
We are making a New World (Paul Nash, 1918)

LittleWheelsandBig

  • Whimsy Rider
Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #14151 on: 28 October, 2019, 11:32:31 pm »
Finished setting up SPD cleats on two pairs of shoes, with one pair not being straightforward. The easy option was some nice Shimano MTB jobbies. Things are looking promising for these two pairs to be top of the pile for next year’s brevets.

The unusual shoes are Lintaman Minimal 2.1, which is intended for Speedplay road pedals but I have fitted MTB SPDs. https://lintaman.com/store/shop/minimal-cycling-shoe-version-2-0/ has swapped the wide Velcro strap at the front of my shoes with a second cable tensioner. The manufacturers say the standard sole accepts SPD cleats and the slots are in the right position for them but the teeth on the steel SPD cleat would not be a good match with the unprotected carbon fibre sole. I fitted some SPD pontoon adaptors for road shoes but had to sand quite a bit off them to match the curved adaptors to the completely flat sole.
 https://www.cyclesetsports.com/en/cycling-pedals/8809-shimano-spd-sm-sh40-pontoon-adaptors.html

Another couple of pairs of shoes need to be set up with SPDs for commuting and another pair of Bont shoes for Keo cleats. When I find an appropriate tuit perhaps.
Wheel meet again, don't know where, don't know when...

Tim Hall

  • Victoria is my queen
Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #14152 on: 28 October, 2019, 11:36:12 pm »
Dismantled, cleaned, lubricated, remantled and adjusted the steerer hinge clamp on the Bendy Bike. It still creaks but at least it no longer wobbles.
There are two ways you can get exercise out of a bicycle: you can
"overhaul" it, or you can ride it.  (Jerome K Jerome)

Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #14153 on: 29 October, 2019, 11:03:59 pm »
Feeling quite pleased with myself after managing to reassemble a 10 speed indexed microshift bar end shifter...
Feeling much less pleased today after realising that the shifting wasn't quite right and that the Tiagra 4700 rear mech isn't actually compatible with the shifter.  So, bar end shifters off and STI shifters back on and hopes of running a triple chainset dashed for now :facepalm:
Most of the stuff I say is true because I saw it in a dream and I don't have the presence of mind to make up lies when I'm asleep.   Bryan Andreas

T42

  • Apprentice geezer
Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #14154 on: 30 October, 2019, 08:48:37 am »
Fiddling with dust extraction. Lots dismantled, nothing assembled.  Workshop is witches-titsville.
I've dusted off all those old bottles and set them up straight

LittleWheelsandBig

  • Whimsy Rider
Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #14155 on: 30 October, 2019, 10:50:22 pm »
Got a set of cheap Crivit SPD shoes set up to become my main commuter shoes.

The last set of SPD shoes (Northwave) will take some thought as I want to slide the cleats further back and the heel cups dig into my achilles. I’m uncertain whether to put some padding inside the heel or to trim the top of the heel cup.
Wheel meet again, don't know where, don't know when...

Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #14156 on: 31 October, 2019, 12:55:31 pm »
Spent yesterday building up my new bike at Planet X in Rotherham. Had a great day and learnt some new skills. Even had a 'masterclass' in applying handlebar tape. Left Rotherham just before 5.00 p.m. and cycled 95 miles home without incident. So I must have done a good job on the build.
I don't want to grow old gracefully. I want to grow old disgracefully.

bludger

  • Randonneur and bargain hunter
Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #14157 on: 31 October, 2019, 01:12:26 pm »
I'm jealous I don't live closer to Rotherham, the pick it build it ride it deal looked great.
YACF touring/audax bargain basement:
https://bit.ly/2Xg8pRD



Ban cars.

robgul

  • Cycle:End-to-End webmaster
  • cyclist, Cytech accredited mechanic & woodworker
    • Cycle:End-to-End
Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #14158 on: 31 October, 2019, 04:24:12 pm »
I'm jealous I don't live closer to Rotherham, the pick it build it ride it deal looked great.

It is a great day out (I did it in August with a carbon Evo Ultegra disc etc, q.v.) - I had to stay in "travel tavern" the night before but that was pretty cheap and more than covered by the saving on the bike.

Just to comment - they abandoned the "pick it" part of the day after a couple of weeks as that was too time consuming and when you think about it the picking part is not a lot different from wandering round a supermarket with a trolley.   You get there - and there's the workstand with a frame and pile of bits ready to be assembled.

Not sure I liked their way to apply bartape - but each to his own!

Rob

PS- I wish I needed another bike 'cos I'd be back there like a shot to do it all again  :thumbsup:

Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #14159 on: 31 October, 2019, 04:58:41 pm »
To elaborate on my previous post. My 'Buy it,build it,ride it' turned into a two day adventure.

I searched out the most frugal way to get from Wolverhampton.
Bus from home to Wolverhampton station...free with my old peoples bus pass.
Train from station to Birmingham New Street station.....on bus pass.
Megabus to Sheffield......£3.05
Sheffield To Rotherham on the Supertram.......on bus pass.
Walk to cheap hotel....free.
Total journey cost for the 110 mile trip....£3.05

Sat in hotel bar in the evening and got asked to join a group of film extras who were staying there while filming a Netflix production at Worthington Hall. Too much beer was consumed that evening.

Next day I built my bike at Planet X, Left Rotherham at around 5.00 p.m. and cycled home in the dark on my new bike.

A very memorable two days, which happened to be only three days after my 70th birthday.
I don't want to grow old gracefully. I want to grow old disgracefully.

rogerzilla

  • When n+1 gets out of hand
Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #14160 on: 03 November, 2019, 08:30:11 am »
Went out in the rain and added to my garden railway sign collection.  I used to go past this very sign on the way to work in the early 90s.  They use the same hidden channel fixings as road signs.

20191103_082352 by rogerzilla, on Flickr
Hard work sometimes pays off in the end, but laziness ALWAYS pays off NOW.

Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #14161 on: 03 November, 2019, 09:19:59 am »
In the last 24 hours:

Pumped up my front tyre yesterday evening ready for this morning, walked away and heard a loud whistling noise.  yes a puncture. Spun the wheel a few times to see if the latex (tubeless) would do its job to hear fluid sloshing in the rim!  realised that last weekend I rode through 4 lots of flooding uptown my axles and water had got into the rim.  Wheel off, tyre off, valve out to let it drain.  Then could not get the tyre to reseat.  Tried a spare, still no joy.

Looked at rear wheel.  Water in that as well.  Off it came and same story.

Now usually i can get tubeless to seat pretty quickly.  I do not have an airshot and have always managed with my track pump. Last night I could not get anything to seat.  Gave it up as a bad job and ordered an airshot.

Whilst I waited for the wheel to drain, I decided to lift my saddle on the commuter a cm or so.  The seat post was solid.  This was a genesis day one, set up from new with no grease!!  Cue a couple of hours of springing the slot whilst dribbling releasing agent into it and warming the frame with a hot air gun.

I left it overnight and this morning a bit of twisting force and it came loose.  Greased and reinserted to the new length.

Now I have to go and take radiators off the wall in our new rectory so that the painter can paint the walls and then the diocese will put in new radiators.


Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #14162 on: 03 November, 2019, 05:54:08 pm »
The allotment pallet shed build is complete. Or it would be if I had the necessary brains to do the maths (cf Div thread)

Total of about 4.5 days including the "groundworks" (pic 3 shows that there was a degree of adjustment in the build ;)












Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #14163 on: 03 November, 2019, 06:09:36 pm »
That makes my fettle (replacement polycarbonate sheets on two cold frames) look rather pathetic.  :-\

(But it's something which has needed doing and is now done before the winter)
"No matter how slow you go, you're still lapping everybody on the couch."

LittleWheelsandBig

  • Whimsy Rider
Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #14164 on: 03 November, 2019, 06:12:51 pm »
Replaced the batteries in various bike lights (barend, mudguard, etc.) and retaped the bars on my fixed.

Replaced the cassette and chain on HK’s Kinesis, again (4th?). The Almotion rear tyre might finally be getting close to worn out after 10,000 miles. The front is still fine.

Helped pack HK’s Roberts for the flight to Oz later this week. The Geelong Flyer awaits.
Wheel meet again, don't know where, don't know when...

T42

  • Apprentice geezer
Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #14165 on: 04 November, 2019, 10:20:32 am »
The allotment pallet shed build is complete. Or it would be if I had the necessary brains to do the maths (cf Div thread)

Total of about 4.5 days including the "groundworks" (pic 3 shows that there was a degree of adjustment in the build ;)

That is pretty bloody impressive in the time.  Haven't seen the technique before but I haven't really looked.

Do you need planning permission for stuff like that?  I have a feeling that we do.
I've dusted off all those old bottles and set them up straight

Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #14166 on: 04 November, 2019, 05:41:43 pm »
I looked around at what was out there and to be honest, it wasn't much help. Most people have taken a different approach, I wanted strength, durability, speed and convenience, built from the pallets I had to hand rather than searching out like sized ones, or buying them.

The location is a slight encroachment onto waste ground at the allotment,  I didn't want it to appear too large but I did want to make certain it could store 2.5M bean canes, final dimensions are 1.8 x 2.7 exterior (1.8=wide enough, full size of "standard" feather edge and conveniently worked around a non-standard pallet I had), 2.7 is very conveniently 1.5 x 1.8, but that's more luck than judgement. Pent roof chosen to get most height, low wall facing access (again, so it appears smaller), 1.7 at the lower, 2.0 at the higher wall so most area is high enough to stand. 

Did the best I could in short space of time with the groundworks, had to build up one edge, failed by about 2", but reckoned I could compensate in the build (which I did). Overall construction was jigsaw-piecing the pallets as I figured that would avoid fault lines, with some uber-strong-types forming the door edges. Cut and re-made pallets as required for the top layer of the walls. Breaking up pallets gave me my linking timbers and stuff, some slat removal/moving addition needed doing to support the cladding (top tip - a mattock is the best tool for non-destructive pallet disassembly, as you can lever with the width of the blade*). I gave up looking for ex-fence/shed feather edge and bought new (£100 total :( ). Made a door from two gravel boards and some more feather edge . Bought two bitumen sheets and two clear plastic for the roof (£30)

No, doesn't need planning over here, neither at home nor on the allotment (Below 2.5M, less than the size of Blenheim Palace, not near your neighbour, don't live in it, is the criteria). I was worried that some people on the allotments were going to get arsey, but I've only had positive feedback.

*ETA it is also the best tool for destructive disassembly if you have weak slats and/or all you need is the central 4x2 or whatever. Whack the slats front and back midway between the supports with the wide part of the mattock head to break them, this will release the central spars individually. You can then whack the slats with an ammer which should leave the nails in place on the cross member, there to be removed by claw, especially if they are annular ringed.

Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #14167 on: 04 November, 2019, 05:57:53 pm »
Pictures needed.

Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #14168 on: 05 November, 2019, 07:45:16 am »
Are you unable to see the pics upthread or are there specifific points you are curious about?

Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #14169 on: 05 November, 2019, 11:07:16 am »
You could stuff some insulation into those pallets - cosy. No vapour barrier tho. Great shed solution.
Get a bicycle. You will never regret it, if you live- Mark Twain

LittleWheelsandBig

  • Whimsy Rider
Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #14170 on: 06 November, 2019, 01:30:38 pm »
Tonight's jobs include replacing the rear tube on my fixed (been commuting on the Frezoni meanwhile, changing gears is a hassle!) and replacing the rear Almotion tyre on HK's Kinesis while she is riding her Roberts in Oz. Around 10,000 miles and the first flat to defeat the sealant.

Hopefully the remnants of the bottle of Stans will be functional for the new Almotion tyre. It tends to form a latex skin within the bottle. Is this common?
Wheel meet again, don't know where, don't know when...

T42

  • Apprentice geezer
Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #14171 on: 07 November, 2019, 07:51:21 am »
Shoved my dust extractor through to the section of the barn next to my workshop and led the cable and hose back in through a length of 10cm PVC pipe I let into the wall years ago. Repurposed an old bottle cage as a hook to hang up the 5 metres of hose. The cable plugs into the mains via a remote-control socket.  Operation is now virtually silent.

I now need to build a hutch around the unit in the barn: it's hellish dusty in there.  I also want to get a few more metres of hose and lead it overhead to my more static machines.
I've dusted off all those old bottles and set them up straight

Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #14172 on: 09 November, 2019, 12:55:56 pm »
Our winter log pile. The load gets tipped in the road out front and needs hauling round the back (I use the dustbin) and stacked. Finished 10 minutes ago, and 5 minutes ago It’d started raining  :thumbsup:
We are making a New World (Paul Nash, 1918)

Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #14173 on: 09 November, 2019, 02:00:29 pm »
We are moving house so I did not order any wood this year.

ElyDave

  • Royal and Ancient Polar Bear Society member 263583
Re: What have you fettled today?
« Reply #14174 on: 11 November, 2019, 09:25:52 am »
Thorough clean and descale of the coffee machine, now working much better
“Procrastination is the thief of time, collar him.” –Charles Dickens