Generally speaking, nostalgia is a waste of time. Nothing is ever again going to be as good as when we were young. Realities are simply different today. So I Reserve St Stephen's Day for Cycling Nostalgia.

It's 17 miles cross-country over broken fields, thorny hedges without gates, across streams that qualify as trencherous rivers with your bike held above your head, through farmyards knee-deep in liquified pig dung, to reach this magical headland, and you need someone with a car who knows how to find the Devil's Whirlpool past Dunworley to bring you back because night will fall soon after you reach there, so I haven't been there again for nigh on thirty years, and it is highly unlikely I shall be back. We'll resist the temptation to wonder whether I will still cut such a muscular profile... On another occasion, we took turns holding everyone's ankles so they could hang over the edge to watch the seals playing on the rocks at the foot of the sheer cliff.

What, or where, or who with, is your moment of nostalgia, now that I've set you off?

Hey All!

Happy Holidays have brought news of a new plastic version of Rohloff's EX(ternal) Switchbox, as shown in the attachment. Photo and announcement from De Vakantiefietser (The Holiday Cyclist) in The Netherlands.

I'll admit to a pang of disappointment as I always prefer metal over plastic for long-term durability against UV and environmental degradation as well as thread longevity, but Rohloff rarely make mistakes and I'm sure this version has been thorougly tested. It likely overcomes any problems of galvanic corrosion from dissimilar metals and looks a bit more compact than the previous version.

I presume this is the pulley cover and adjuster mount only, with thebacking plate and geartrain holder being aluminum as before.

Anyone have one yet and wiling to share impressions?

Best, Dan.

Merry Christmas Andre, and to all the fine folk here on the Thorn forum

Ron

This is absolutely and wholly lovely, Andre.

Thanks so much for the good wishes and the very same to you!

All the best, Dan.

Would wrapping an elastic band (a big one) around the grip a few times give a softer rubber surface to hold?

Wrap a strip of double sided Velcro around the grip and lock it onto itself.

BTW there are at least 2 different Rohloff grips - maybe one is better than the other when wet?

I like the triangular grip, in part because summer and winter I cycle with thin leather dress gloves, which can get slippery when wet.

Before I changed to the Rohloff and its original triangular grip, I used yellow knitted glassfibre workmen's gloves which came with little black spots of some rubbery, grippy stuff on the palms. I bought them at the local hunting, shooting and fishing store. Bit hot in summer but I live in Ireland where the rain didn't get the memo about taking a break in the summer...