The Great Italian Motorcycle Display

Watch this, you can't but be impressed. In fact go and watch it on YouTube, that way my blog loads faster.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kTYGmjgSMv8

Just watch it.

Organically grown, hand-picked, sun-dried, ripe apricots

No poisons, no sulphur, no Woolworths packaging, no transport, dried apricots. In fact, none of the bullshit normally associated with dried fruit. The only catch is that you need to come here by bike to collect your sample!

So that is one of the reasons the blog has been a bit dry lately. Another reason is that these lovely little apricots have siblings, large numbers of siblings who have been turned into jam, chutney and sweet chili apricot sauce (to braai your snoek wif or to baste your Sunday roast). Again, all clean, packed in re-usable, recyclable glass.

So, in the local idiom, I am "op ge-jam". Tastings by appointment. Samples available to cyclists who arrive by bike.

Gaan ons Saterdag ry?

As with anything new, small steps can be frustrating and I'm not the kind of person to take small steps! Rather rush off in a direction, crash, bash, re-orientate, rush off again, crash, bash, re-orientate, run off again. Not for me the thoughtful, well-planned, carefully orchestrated.

Well, you could say that I waste a lot of energy in all this crashing and bashing, but at least the energy has less than @#$#-all to do with Eksdom.

So, Prince Albert Wheelers is a bit unusual for me, small steps, carefully considered ones too.

Our group of "development cyclists" (what a disgusting, patronising, racist, bullshit term), hereinafter referred to as the PA Wheelers, is coming together. Two Saturday rides later and we are beginning to attract the attention where it counts - amongst young, local cyclists.

The last ride on Saturday was a small affair, with yours truly being the clan elder (by far, and I'm still a youngster).

We have a warning to issue to one Burry Stander: Watch your back, Bull is on his way.

And I'm going to hit the criticism for a six before I even get it....yes, in the group were two boys on bikes with no brakes and no helmets. I do not have it in me to tell two laaities that they can't ride with us because they don't have helmets or brakes.

So we rode up to Eerstewater. And back. The exciting bit was Bull doing his Burry Stander imitation back down the pass. No brakes.No helmet. No fear.

I was the one crapping myself as I went round the corner expecting to find bloed, kak en hare smeared on the rock face. Only to find Bull with a huge smile on his face and eyes like saucers.

The most telling bit was the 50 metre skid mark he made on the road - with his bare right foot.

Bull demonstrating the fine art of braking

On a more serious note: If you have any spare cycling kit (helmets and gloves for now) Bull and his mates could put it to good use. Oh yes, and components. Maybe some brakes!

I refuse to believe

I refuse to believe that I am the only person in this country who thinks the bikes shown on the http://www.sunrace-sturmeyarcher.blogspot.com/ are beautiful.

Am I wrong?

I'll take all four, thanks!

Denial is not just a river in Egypt

....it flows pretty strongly through Prince Albert too.

Why is it that people are so offended when you tell them that their computer has a virus? Why do they fluff up and deny frantically?

I got whacked by a virus about 3 years ago and then went serious on anti-virus software (Panda, top product and even better live (human) service. And NOTHING gets through.

So happens I insert a clean, scanned memory stick into a local office computer (no names no pack drill) and when I plug it into my laptop again, Panda goes wild. Yup, not one, but two viruses off the other computer.

Now for the funny bit. I informed the IT person who looks after the computer that they have a virus, politely, very politely. Holy shit, it might have been easier if I suggested that they personally had the big H. They have the latest free antivirus software installed, so it's impossible.......

Denial flows through it.

By the way, the "free" antivirus software failed to stop the virus (W32/AutoRun.APJ.worm)

Mobility

Gert Swarts and his trailer

Mobility can mean different things, depends on your situation, I suppose.

One of the greatest limitations of bicycle transport is humping your "stuff" along with you, and that stuff can be anything from your slinky little Apple to a whole pile of garden tools and pretty much anything in between. Well, Gert Swarts is one step closer to overcoming that hurdle.

Bike trailers are nothing new and there are a host of variations on the theme; single wheel, double wheel, short, long, light, heavy, side hitch, top hitch..........
The only thing is that they appear to be few and far between (I only know of one person who has one) and I have never seen one in this neck of the vlaktes.

So that's probably what motivated me to make this trailer for Gert.

Appropriate branding !

The detail of how I made it is in an earlier post, with some rather poor quality pictures, but you'll get the general idea. If there are any "rules" then they must be:

• weight centred over the axle
• strength over weight
• made of locally repairable materials

For the rest, the trailer can be made to order, depending on what's available. Some of the Northern Hemisphere sites talk of using wood (but with Black X SA Pine rather not!)

Interesting to note that both of these frames were about to go off the scrap recycling depot in Oudtshoorn, talk about saved from the knackers!

And what has it meant to me?

Quite a lot in fact, to take two scrap frames and fabricate a pretty decent trailer is very satisfying. And helped along by the legendary Jame Marshall Hendrix.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eJ_Kip3FP0Q

and.. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BCwCBh0z3Hs&feature=related

... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GydN5VDDBMM&feature=related

So, if you have two old steel frames in sight, you'd better tie them down or they could just end up in the Karoo as a trailer. If you have two old steel road bike frames even better. (In fact we've closed in on the old steel frame futures market!)

Hasta la vista, Gert

"So sleep die ding" (That's how it tows)

Gert Swarts has taken the proverbial bull by the horns, his red "Gerrie Visser" is one busy bike. Gert looks after a number of properties in town, so being mobile is vital.

A week ago, Gert mentioned that he needed a trailer to haul his tools, compost and other work-related stuff around town. This clearly intersected with one of my needs (to make a bike trailer). I said to Gert that if he supplied two old steel bike frames (carbon doesn't weld so easily), I'd build him a trailer.

Anna's husband, Ampie generously donated another old steel frame from his scrap yard and , voila, we were in business.

After some not very fruitful internet research, I felt that I'd just follow my instinct and make the trailer. I'll describe this bit in detail, in case there are others who want to do the same. Unfortunately, I'm not good at documenting this kind of process, so the pics are all "after".

Part 1 : The Trailer

I took two old steel 26"(wheel size!) mtb frames (it helps if they are dimensionally similar, but that's not essential. The older, the better. (The older bikes have thicker steel sections which make for easier welding)

Strip the frames, re-cycle the bits.

Using two one-metre long pieces of 10mm threaded bar, fix the two frames alongside one another, this aids in alignment. I put one through the rear drop-outs and the other through the bottom bracket shell (Here I made large wooden washers)

Now it starts to look like something. You should have two frames, side by side, with a 10mm rod fixing them at the rear drop-outs and the BB. Don't worry about wheels at this stage.

Look at the inside chain stays, this is where you will attach the supports for the load bed. Depending on your design, you can probably remove the "front half" from the frames at this stage. Cut the top tube just in front of the seat tube and cut the down tube just in front of the BB.

The picture gets clearer, you now have two rear triangles which will form the wheel arches of your trailer. And not unsurprisingly, they will fit a standard 26" mtb wheel - what a bargain.

At this stage, you will need to attach the cross supports between the two inside chain stays. I welded them, but I'm sure one could also rivet or bolt them.

You will need to extend the load bed behind the axle in order to spread the load evenly over the axle. Again, welding and flat bar come to the rescue.

I then welded a length of flat bar between the tops of the two seat posts. All nice and rigid now.

Use a decent bit of steel for the goose-neck to attach the trailer to the bike (I used 20mm x 1,6mm square tube)

Old steel frames are much easier to work with (easier to weld) and can be bent to exacting tolerances. Remember, we are using two rear triangles and would ordinarily need to use two rear mtb wheels. Once you have welded the load bed together, it's a simple matter to bend the outer chain stays inwards (carefully) to bring the drop-out width to something approximating a front wheel (110mm, plus or minus half a brick). Because we are weight weenies, this is an important detail.

Put wheels (mtb slicks work a treat) on your trailer and suddenly you feel like this could actually work!

Part Two: The hitch

Gert wants a trailer to carry up to 25kg bags of compost, so I made the hitch accordingly. Gert's bike has mounting points for a rear rack, so I made up a rudimentary rear rack of flat bar and fabricated a simple hitch. So simple that I can't describe it, so look at the pictures please!

The idea is that the trailer is put at 90 degrees to the bike, the hitch is inserted and then off you go. The trailer and the bike have to be at 90 degrees to each other for the hitch to be removed.

This trailer can carry 100kg, although Gert will probably not carry much more than 25kg at a time.

I would appreciate any comments as I think this is the first of many trailers........


Trailer incomplete, rear view


Hitched to bike, almost complete


Hitched


Close up of rack.


Close up of hitch


Hitch pin (12mm square bar)


Trailer at 90 deg. to bike

Hitch pin going in


Hitch pin in



Go!