Thorn Cycles Forum
Community => Muppets Threads! (And Anything Else) => Topic started by: jags on December 25, 2013, 09:29:37 pm
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So what did santy bring you lot.
me never got one thing bike related ::)
2 jumpers
3 pair trunks
3 pair thermal socks
3 new T shirts
well i'll be warm if nothing else ;D ;D
jags.
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jags,
lots of clothing there for you ;D
Marathon winters arrived for me,don’t know how santa got them in though as we lack a chimney and fireplace ::)
julian.
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Well Money to help buy a Dot.Com Thing!
Do you call a Laptop?
Pete :o
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A Dr Who Sonic Screwdriver !
The family were told by person or persons unknown not to buy any bike things for the undersigned !
Happy Christmas
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A beautiful Arkel TailRider trunk bag to go with my Arkel panniers.
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jags,
lots of clothing there for you ;D
Marathon winters arrived for me,don’t know how santa got them in though as we lack a chimney and fireplace ::)
julian.
Magic silly.
I got a new rohloff about a month ago early Christmas present, but on the day just a few bits.
But the kids got loads.
Peter
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Santa was thoughtful this year and I got some nice Endura overshoes made from that stretchy wetsuit type material. Just as well really: we were staying at my Mother-in-law's and when I cycled home on Boxing Day I decided to go on a route I knew would probably have a flooded stretch of road.
As I got near the flooded bit, a group of damp looking roadies came through and each in turn nodded, hi mate, 'morning, grunt, 'appy Christmas and finally "you'll need your flippers in a minute!". The water was so deep I kept my feet up and freewheeled through as far as I dared, then just before I completely stopped and fell off it was time to start pedalling.
They were great and passed the test - my feet remained dry and snug. They look a bit weird though.
Thanks Santa.
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Santa brought me a colour co-ordinated addition to my New Raven :D
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Mrs. Matt bought me a Nexus 7 tablet.
She wasn't sure it was right, so bought me the Nexus 4 phone as well.
No instructions. I guess everyone knows how they work?
Anyone here have either?
And instructions?
Matt
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Not really Matt i'm still on the wind up phone. ::)
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Hi All!
Santa kindly brought me a pair of Sporkifes from Primus (photo 1 below). Despite some initial skepticism about the hinge/catch, they seem to work very well and provide a real, dedicated spoon, fork, and knife (the outer fork tine is serrated but the tool is plastic so...cutting pasta?) rather than the traditional spork which always seems sharp to me when used for sipping soup.
I tour alone, so I got two, figuring that way I wouldn't have to hold a greasy spoon bowl when I wanted a fork, and vice versa. It also offers the opportunity to invite a guest to dine with me if someone happens by at mealtime.
Pretty well pleased with these so far. Time will tell wrt long-term durability, but the red is nice for quick recovery if they should get become misplaced. They fold to stow next to my little Coleman Peal 1 multifuel stove in the nesting pots that also make its case.
Next up in Santa's bag of goodies was an MSR piezoelectric starter (photo 2), replacing the one with fittings I turned out of brass and soldered to adapt a lantern lighter (photo 3). The old one uses a spring-loaded flint and textured spark-wheel. The MSR uses no consumables...basically, a little hammer hits a rock and it produces a weak spark, like a barbecue igniter. There is a trick to using it: Gaseous vapor has to collect in the tube before it reaches levels the spark can ignite. The flame-front then exits the tube and lights the gas. I can *just* get it to work on my meths/spirit/alcohol beer can stove and Mini-Trangia, but the alcohol has to be warmed a bit by hands on the fuel reservoir, and sheltered from the wind else the fumes get whisked away. Holding the MSR's tube close above the surface for 5-7 seconds seems to collect enough for a "go", though I'm not sure how well it would work in cold weather for meths, but it works a treat on gaseous naphtha (white gas).
I also picked up a second Coleman Peak 1 multifuel stove and pot set from 1990, new-in-box from eBay. Love these things. Unlike current multifuel stoves, this is one piece with self-cleaning jet and windscreen and a vaporizer tube that can be swapped so the stove can burn white gas/naptha, unleaded petrol, kerosene/paraffin, diesel, and JP-4 jet fuel. It is not the lightest stove empty; the weight savings comes from the large built-in fuel tank and really good fuel economy. It will simmer (really, truly simmer!) for nearly 11 hours, and the case really does make for a pair of pots, one serving as a lid for the other. The two folding spoons, the MSR igniter, a small bottle of oil for the pump leather, and a Victorinox Swiss Army Deluxe Tinker knife all fit inside, making for a very compact yet powerful and economical kitchen in one little cube/box.
Best,
Dan.
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Mrs. Matt bought me a Nexus 7 tablet.
She wasn't sure it was right, so bought me the Nexus 4 phone as well.
No instructions. I guess everyone knows how they work?
Anyone here have either?
And instructions?
Matt
You have grandchildren, Matt? They know. Ask them.
If you're too embarrassed to ask a teenager, you'll find instruction manuals on the net. If you can manage at least to switch them on and get them on, you might find the manuals are already loaded onto them, or at least in the bookmarks so you can refer to them on the net. Of not neither of these applies: Your devices use Android operating systems and one tablet or phone with an Android OS is very much like another, so the instruction book for anything approximately the same will do. Except for the phone facilities, you need only one book between the two of them, because they will work the same.
Good luck.
Andre
(Who denies that he's still trying to work out how to operate a DVD recorder that is probably already obsolete...)
PS Where's the winder handle, Jags? I knew there was something I was missing about this dead Galaxy on my side table!
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i thought when i bough my smart phone it would make me smart at last ;D
it didn't :(
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Ah, jags...you were smart to buy it! Takes good photos, too, so doubly smart, getting phone, camera, and web browser in one.
Best,
Dan.
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Santa didn't bring me anything directly bike-related; for indirectly see lower down. I wanted a new seat post, and Julian (who posts here as Julk) kindly gave me an adapter for my twin rail Brooks saddle, but I haven't had time to track down a suitable seat post, though I found two (actually, Julian suggested one and I found one) that I like the looks of that were unsuitable for one reason or another.
It's embarrassing for an old revolutionary like me, who used to go into exile in the clothes he stood up in, to have become so middle-class that he has so much stuff that he can't think of something that he wants for his birthday or Christmas, so that his family just gives him money. This year, triumphantly, when I collected the envelopes, I pulled from under the table the gifts that they paid for, and said smugly, "Of course, unlike some other members of my family, I know what I want for Christmas, and this is it. Thank you so much!"
(http://www.coolmainpress.com/andrepaintings/pigskin_case__oil_miscible_paints_brushes_photo_andre_jute_800pxh.jpg)
Studio painting kit in a pigskin case.
(http://www.coolmainpress.com/andrepaintings/jullian_thumbbox_8x6in_photo_andre_jute_800pxh.jpg)
Outside painting kit; it's a pochade box by Jullian of France that sits on your thumb which you stick through the hole visible near the top right. The palette slides in over the paints and brushes and is also varnished but I've covered it with wax paper to save on cleaning up.
Here's a painting I've made with it:
(http://www.coolmainpress.com/andrepaintings/andre_jute_-_the_lawyer_s_arboretum_on_the_river_bandon_2013_oil_on_canvas_6x8in_600pxw.jpg)
Andre Jute: The Lawyer's Arboretum, River Bandon, 2013. Oil on canvas, 6x8in.
MULTIPURPOSING MY BIKE
I'm planning on taking the small pochade box above on my bike. It's okay for a quick sketch to hold it on the thumb, but for anything complicated you want to put it down because it weighs about a pound and a half. I have a gorilla pod, which is a tripod with bendy legs you can wrap around bicycle tubes. Its previous use was to mount a rear facing movie camera (cheap Kodak Zx1, super waterproof little sports camera) on my bike that I used to photograph and embarrass a dangerous driver with so that now she pulls off the road and sits there crying until I have passed. I'll wrap the gorilla around the luggage rack or the handlebars if I want to sit on the saddle to paint, and mount the pochade box on that with atripod mount I have that I will attach to the bottom of the pochade box. For standing, I have a very lightweight extendible monopod with a socket one side and a tripod screw the other that can be used to bring the pochade box up to painting height. (For new members who wonder why I don't just take the car, I gave up the car for good in 1992, and haven't missed it a single day.)
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i thought when i bough my smart phone it would make me smart at last ;D
it didn't :(
It doesn't make you smart, it makes you look smart.
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Oh! What a lovely studio painting kit *and* plein air pochade, Andre! Wow! Anyone who loves tools (that would be me, like you) has got to also love such things even if that don't paint (that would be me, you seem to be doing just fine judging by the Lawyer's Arboretum, which turned out very nicely indeed).
Just a pleasure to look at such a nice outfit, Andre, and nice to see the results it helps produce as well; thanks for sharing!
All the best,
Dan.
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Dunno if this counts, 'cos it arrived in today's mail...a new pot-stand for my Mini-Trangia (lower-right in the first photo below).
I've got a Mini-Trangia I've never been happy with, largely 'cos of the stand/windscreen, which has never done well at either task in my hands. I've found it too unstable for good stirred-pot support on rough ground and not very good as a windscreen. Worse, I found it difficult to fit or adjust the simmer-cap, as it fouled the 'screen/support uprights.
The solution for me seems to be a separate folding windscreen (mine is like this; they're all over eBay at reasonable prices: http://www.ebay.com/itm/BRS-Camping-WindScreen-Camping-Stove-Windshield-WindScreen-BRS-42-/190884921838?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item2c71a0c1ee ) that I can snug close to the pot for thermal efficiency *and* my new Mojo Pot and Stove Stand: http://www.ebay.com/itm/140901929793?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1497.l2649
Videos here: https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=mojo+pot+stand&sm=3 The stand holds the burner assembly a few mm clear of the ground minimizing conductive cooling of the burner. There's just enough room to slide a thin section of silicone pot holder beneath the stove as a genuine thermal isolator. Works well in cold weather.
Real stable, not much heavier at 58.5g vs 51.1g for the Trangia version and the separate windscreen (a different eBay source) adds 103.3g but is worth it for the greater effectiveness and heating efficiency.
Real pleased with the new setup.
Best,
Dan.
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Dunno if this counts, 'cos it arrived in today's mail...a new pot-stand for my Mini-Trangia (lower-right in the first photo below).
I've got a Mini-Trangia I've never been happy with, largely 'cos of the stand/windscreen, which has never done well at either task in my hands. I've found it too unstable for good stirred-pot support on rough ground and not very good as a windscreen. Worse, I found it difficult to fit or adjust the simmer-cap, as it fouled the 'screen/support uprights.
The solution for me seems to be a separate folding windscreen (mine is like this; they're all over eBay at reasonable prices: http://www.ebay.com/itm/BRS-Camping-WindScreen-Camping-Stove-Windshield-WindScreen-BRS-42-/190884921838?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item2c71a0c1ee ) that I can snug close to the pot for thermal efficiency *and* my new Mojo Pot and Stove Stand: http://www.ebay.com/itm/140901929793?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1497.l2649
Videos here: https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=mojo+pot+stand&sm=3 The stand holds the burner assembly a few mm clear of the ground minimizing conductive cooling of the burner. There's just enough room to slide a thin section of silicone pot holder beneath the stove as a genuine thermal isolator. Works well in cold weather.
Real stable, not much heavier at 58.5g vs 51.1g for the Trangia version and the separate windscreen (a different eBay source) adds 103.3g but is worth it for the greater effectiveness and heating efficiency.
Real pleased with the new setup.
Best,
Dan.
Hi Dan,
I use a http://www.clikstand.com/ (http://www.clikstand.com/) and love it for most cooking but I plan to use my Primus Omnilite Ti Cooker http://store.primuscamping.com/backpacking-stoves/all-fuel/omnilite-ti/ (http://store.primuscamping.com/backpacking-stoves/all-fuel/omnilite-ti/).
(http://www.clikstand.com/images/CS2_WS2_Combo_lg.jpg)
Clikstand
(http://store.primuscamping.com/images/products/preview/p-321985.jpg)
Omnilite
Good Cooking :o
Pete 8)
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Well I got a new Road Bike Frameset and build it up with left over parts from my Africa Bike.
(http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3735/11725941266_6323401b14_z.jpg)
Sorry it's Not a Thorn! Be it cost a lot less.... NOS
Pete 8)
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Is that knobby rear wishbone carbon, Pete, or even the whole bike?
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Is that knobby rear wishbone carbon, Pete, or even the whole bike?
Hi Yes its got Carbon Seatstay/Wishbone and Forks.
:D
Pete 8)
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A late Santa Present.
I've had a plastic one for some time but found it rather bendy.
this is titanium ....the buisness :D
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the buisness
I'll say! A thing of beauty, as well...ooh!
This transcends "dinnerware" and falls straight into the "fine tools" category.
So glad Santa remembered you with this lovely!
Best,
Dan.
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Santa brought some wonderful intangibles, including Meg, our daughter, visiting from Berlin & planning a velosafari later this year, perhaps in Denmark.
Not quite "gifts", but we did negotiate & agree on lotsa Bike Bits for John. (For "specialized items" within the family, things linked to one of us but not the other, we negotiate Permission To Spend While Preserving Domestic Harmony.) Some of these were Big Expensive Items like a New Raven frame-and-forkset, and trick German hubs for the Raven. There were some nice smaller items, as you'll see from the foto attached:
> A nice black Nidd saddle from Spa Cycles, to be mounted on my Eclipse when my Brooks Premium migrates to the Raven.
> Very spiffy XD2 cranks, also from Spa Cycles.
> A really good--I mean, really good--EVO S18 Swiss Army Knife, made by Wenger, with quality far beyond the Victorinox I've had for ages. Wenger has been bought out by Victorinox, and it's not clear that the Wenger variant will be made beyond 2014. So, if you want one, suggest you get it asap.
> A tiny wee BrightBike Revolution USB charger, to mate with the front Trick German Hub mentioned above. Plus a USB splitter cable, to charge two Sanyo Eneloop USB batt-chargers at the same time.
> Excellent Portland Design Works Radbot tail-light, which takes 2 AAA batts; cheaper from Universal Cycles (Portland, OR) than from Portland Design Works' online store. (?!)
> The LPG guide, Cycling France: After the Denmark trek with Meg, I'm thinking to do un circuit de la Bretagne in early September. If this happens, it could be the first stage of a meander through the Celtic fringe of Europe, spread over a couple of seasons. (Denmark connects to Celtic Europe, you say? It's a roots thing: my father's family came from the Schleswig-Holstein area & ended up in Sussex, a thousand or so years back--they were Jutes, as the story goes. [Fn: Bet that woke you up Andre!--check yer DNA, lad.] And, my mother's family are Scots-Irish.)
'Nor is it finished --'twas a productive negotiation!--as still to come are an Arkel seatbag, and a Trangia stove & clikstand, the logic for the latter being a more compact cooking setup. And maybe even an upgrade on my Nikon P50 point-and-shoot.
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Boy!
Nice loot from Santa*, John; sure fun to see what everyone got in bikely terms.
Agreed about the knives...my similar one is here: http://www.thorncycles.co.uk/forums/index.php?topic=3968.msg17665#msg17665
Sounds like Good Times ahead in 2014!
Best,
Dan.
*By whatever means, Santa's prob'ly behind it.
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A late Santa Present.
I've had a plastic one for some time but found it rather bendy.
this is titanium ....the buisness :D
..........and it won't melt and make the beans taste yuk !
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..........and it won't melt and make the beans taste yuk !
........................Good Point :)
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I received the exact same bar bag as you, frogprince! I'm very happy with it: bye bye wet sweaty back during my commute!!
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I received the exact same bar bag as you, frogprince! I'm very happy with it...
But what if you both want to use it at once? ???
Best,
Dan. (...who is feeling both literal and silly this morning ::) )
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................doh :-)
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But what if you both want to use it at once? ???
Best,
Dan. (...who is feeling both literal and silly this morning ::) )
:D
Father Christmas also brought me a used copy of "The Custom Bicycle", very interesting book so thanks for the tip Dan!
Ciao,
Etienne
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Santa brought me a 'Next Best Thing' for removing the cassette when out on tour .... as soon as the garage warms up a touch I'll go and practice, which should preclude any broken spokes ;-)
http://www.m-gineering.nl/nbtg.htm
a belated happy new year
sdg.
Oh - and some photography gadgets, and a family trip to Twickenham for Saracens v Exeter .... neither of these have anything to do with cycling. Although I wish I could cycle as fast as Saracens passed the ball ;-)