Check out this bamboo bike at http://www.bmeres.com/bambooframe.htm
It looks really cool and it should be flexible and light.
For some time now, I have been fixated with the idea of building my own bike. I discussed this with Rohan and we are trying to figure out what materials to use.
I am thinking of fibre-glass since carbon-fibre seems very expensive. But now even bamboo seems viable. I am planning to start by building a frame for a road-bike so any ideas are welcome !!
Showing posts with label cycling. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cycling. Show all posts
Tuesday, February 13, 2007
Disc Brakes !!
For the past few weeks I have tried to configure my disc pads to not touch the disk while riding. But try as I might, I couldn't get it to work. Plus, the front disc when engaged, would cause the front wheel to twist to one side.
I then removed my front brakes that the rear brakes should be enough :-)
I couldn't get the brake lever off since I need a small hex key to get it off. The front wheel rotates smoothly now. Initially, it was a bit scary to ride the bike since it took longer to come to a stop. I hope to replace it with V-brakes once Rohan gets his shop up and running.
The freewheel is also giving me some problems and I plan to open it up soon once I get the right tools.
I then removed my front brakes that the rear brakes should be enough :-)
I couldn't get the brake lever off since I need a small hex key to get it off. The front wheel rotates smoothly now. Initially, it was a bit scary to ride the bike since it took longer to come to a stop. I hope to replace it with V-brakes once Rohan gets his shop up and running.
The freewheel is also giving me some problems and I plan to open it up soon once I get the right tools.
Monday, January 22, 2007
Wednesday, January 10, 2007
Hero Octane Review
I have been bitten by the cycling bug and as a part of this, I plan to review as many Indian bikes as I can get my hand on.
I'll start off with my own bike, Hero Octane 26T.
My colleague Rohan Kini has also reviewed my bike. Read it at Rohan's blog
Lets start with the bike parts. Check my previous post for a picture of the bike.
Cost: Rs 9600 with VAT (I obviously got cheated)
Pros:
1. Aluminum frame,
2. Narrowest seat ever (I actually like this)
3. Has a carrier (I carry a laptop and spare clothes to work and this makes a huge difference)
4. Full (Front and rear) suspension
5. Disc brakes
6. Shimano 24 speed gears.
Cons:
1. Rear suspension ;-)
2. Ugly carrier sticking out
3. Build quality (the pedal reflectors fell off on the first ride)
Rear suspensions are a bad idea if you plan to use your bike only to commute to work. They cause the bike to bob up and down when you pedal which not only feels weird but wastes energy. In traffic jams, I ride on the footpath and the rear suspensions are useful here. Rear suspensions help only when you go off the road unless you buy one with anti-bobbing suspension.
The carrier although butt ugly is functional. My backpack weighs about 7kgs with the laptop and spare clothes. I find it very difficult to breathe while cycling full tilt with the bag on my back.
The Octane is actually heavier than the Thunder but still lighter than steel frame bikes. The extra weight is due to the rear suspensions.
Right now, I have a plethora of problems with the bike:
1. The disc brakes touch the sleeves.
2. The front gears do not shift to the lowest gear.
3. The front chain rings are either bent or not aligned correctly.
4. The chain touches the front dérailleur in some gear combinations.
5. The disc brakes have a lot of play and do not feel so responsive.
Overall, I am not impressed with Hero Octane's build quality or the dealers servicing.
Another thing, this bike has quick release knobs for the tyres and seat. Although this is very helpful, it also makes it very easy to rob the bike's parts.
Ride:
This bike is lighter than my previous bike, Hero Swing.
The handle bars are very close to the seat and reduces stability.
The rear gears shift cleanly but the front gears feel clunky. The front gears also slip off the chain ring when I try to shift to top gear. But I think this is due to faulty installation.
The freewheel does not spin cleanly.
The bike is better than the Hero Swing but not worth the extra money. Th Firefox Target will retail for Rs 10,200 at Rohan's soon-to-open shop. But more about that later.
I'll start off with my own bike, Hero Octane 26T.
My colleague Rohan Kini has also reviewed my bike. Read it at Rohan's blog
Lets start with the bike parts. Check my previous post for a picture of the bike.
Cost: Rs 9600 with VAT (I obviously got cheated)
Pros:
1. Aluminum frame,
2. Narrowest seat ever (I actually like this)
3. Has a carrier (I carry a laptop and spare clothes to work and this makes a huge difference)
4. Full (Front and rear) suspension
5. Disc brakes
6. Shimano 24 speed gears.
Cons:
1. Rear suspension ;-)
2. Ugly carrier sticking out
3. Build quality (the pedal reflectors fell off on the first ride)
Rear suspensions are a bad idea if you plan to use your bike only to commute to work. They cause the bike to bob up and down when you pedal which not only feels weird but wastes energy. In traffic jams, I ride on the footpath and the rear suspensions are useful here. Rear suspensions help only when you go off the road unless you buy one with anti-bobbing suspension.
The carrier although butt ugly is functional. My backpack weighs about 7kgs with the laptop and spare clothes. I find it very difficult to breathe while cycling full tilt with the bag on my back.
The Octane is actually heavier than the Thunder but still lighter than steel frame bikes. The extra weight is due to the rear suspensions.
Right now, I have a plethora of problems with the bike:
1. The disc brakes touch the sleeves.
2. The front gears do not shift to the lowest gear.
3. The front chain rings are either bent or not aligned correctly.
4. The chain touches the front dérailleur in some gear combinations.
5. The disc brakes have a lot of play and do not feel so responsive.
Overall, I am not impressed with Hero Octane's build quality or the dealers servicing.
Another thing, this bike has quick release knobs for the tyres and seat. Although this is very helpful, it also makes it very easy to rob the bike's parts.
Ride:
This bike is lighter than my previous bike, Hero Swing.
The handle bars are very close to the seat and reduces stability.
The rear gears shift cleanly but the front gears feel clunky. The front gears also slip off the chain ring when I try to shift to top gear. But I think this is due to faulty installation.
The freewheel does not spin cleanly.
The bike is better than the Hero Swing but not worth the extra money. Th Firefox Target will retail for Rs 10,200 at Rohan's soon-to-open shop. But more about that later.
Guide to buying a cycle in Bangalore
I decided to visit Majestic, SP Road and Commercial Street, in that order, to find out more about Hero Thunder Racer
A. S. Char street is close to Majestic and has a long line of cycle traders. Initially, none of the traders I asked had ever heard of this bike, finally somebody pointed out a shop called Jayant Cycles at the end of the street who were supposed to be the largest dealers around.
The owner of Jayant Cycles, a dude called Hemant Shah, seemed to be a jovial dude, passionate about cycles. He not only had my bike but also had showrooms for Firefox and Trek bikes. The Thunder Racer costs 6500 bucks without gears and 7,900 with gears. He then talked about the Hero Octane and praised it no end. He did not have any of these bikes assembled so I had to just evaluate them according to pictures and tech specs.
I finally had the following choices:
1) Hero Thunder Racer (with gear) - Rs. 7,900
2) Hero Octane - Rs. 9200
3) Firefox Target - Rs. 11,500
The Target seemed too expensive so I had to stack up Octane vs Thunder. Octane has disc brakes, full suspension and Shimano 24 speed gears. Thunder Racer doesn't have any of these and would be fitted with 6 gears of some local brand. So I decided to buy the Octane.
The moment I saw the assembled bike, I regretted my choice. It had a weird looking frame and the carrier was sticking out. But it was too late to do anything since I had already paid.
The first time I rode the bike, the reflector on the pedals broke off. I had to ride back through busy Majestic and couldn't get the hang of the bike since the gears felt very different.
I can't stop regretting my decision. I had set out to only find out more information about road bikes and ended up buying an MTB instead. I hope the Octane proves me wrong !!
A. S. Char street is close to Majestic and has a long line of cycle traders. Initially, none of the traders I asked had ever heard of this bike, finally somebody pointed out a shop called Jayant Cycles at the end of the street who were supposed to be the largest dealers around.
The owner of Jayant Cycles, a dude called Hemant Shah, seemed to be a jovial dude, passionate about cycles. He not only had my bike but also had showrooms for Firefox and Trek bikes. The Thunder Racer costs 6500 bucks without gears and 7,900 with gears. He then talked about the Hero Octane and praised it no end. He did not have any of these bikes assembled so I had to just evaluate them according to pictures and tech specs.
I finally had the following choices:
1) Hero Thunder Racer (with gear) - Rs. 7,900
2) Hero Octane - Rs. 9200
3) Firefox Target - Rs. 11,500
The Target seemed too expensive so I had to stack up Octane vs Thunder. Octane has disc brakes, full suspension and Shimano 24 speed gears. Thunder Racer doesn't have any of these and would be fitted with 6 gears of some local brand. So I decided to buy the Octane.
The moment I saw the assembled bike, I regretted my choice. It had a weird looking frame and the carrier was sticking out. But it was too late to do anything since I had already paid.
The first time I rode the bike, the reflector on the pedals broke off. I had to ride back through busy Majestic and couldn't get the hang of the bike since the gears felt very different.
I can't stop regretting my decision. I had set out to only find out more information about road bikes and ended up buying an MTB instead. I hope the Octane proves me wrong !!
Cycles ????
Now that I have decided to buy a cycle, I had to find one which would fit my size and pocket. Bicycles in India start at 3000 rupees and go all the way up to 15-20 thousand. Of course, there are cycles which cost 35-50 grand, but that was not on my radar.
I wanted to get a road bike since I always thought that MTBs were too heavy. I have set my budget at around 5000 bucks.
Two of my colleagues ride a Firefox Target which are MTBs and cost around 10,000 bucks. The ride felt really great compared to my landlord's cycle and these bikes were very light.
Another colleague rides a Hero Thunder which costs around 5,500 bucks. I haven't ridden it yet.
The Hero cycles website didn't help much. But I did manage to find a few more models ie: Hero Thunder Racer and Hero Octane.
One of my colleagues (a bike "expert") gave me all the gyan about aluminium frames, suspension, brakes etc. He advised me to pick up the Hero Thunder Racer since the Firefox road bikes start at Rs. 17000.
Being the geek that I am, I trawled the net to see what information I could find online about Indian bikes. I managed to find a few phone numbers of cycle dealers in Bangalore through an online yellow pages.
After a lot of calls, I learnt that many of them had not heard about the Hero Thunder Racer and those who did know about it, did not have any stock.
So I have decided to visit Dispensary Road (Near Commercial Street) and A. S. Char Road (near Majestic) over the weekend. These are supposed to be where all cycle dealers are available.
Lets see what the weekend brings !!
I wanted to get a road bike since I always thought that MTBs were too heavy. I have set my budget at around 5000 bucks.
Two of my colleagues ride a Firefox Target which are MTBs and cost around 10,000 bucks. The ride felt really great compared to my landlord's cycle and these bikes were very light.
Another colleague rides a Hero Thunder which costs around 5,500 bucks. I haven't ridden it yet.
The Hero cycles website didn't help much. But I did manage to find a few more models ie: Hero Thunder Racer and Hero Octane.
One of my colleagues (a bike "expert") gave me all the gyan about aluminium frames, suspension, brakes etc. He advised me to pick up the Hero Thunder Racer since the Firefox road bikes start at Rs. 17000.
Being the geek that I am, I trawled the net to see what information I could find online about Indian bikes. I managed to find a few phone numbers of cycle dealers in Bangalore through an online yellow pages.
After a lot of calls, I learnt that many of them had not heard about the Hero Thunder Racer and those who did know about it, did not have any stock.
So I have decided to visit Dispensary Road (Near Commercial Street) and A. S. Char Road (near Majestic) over the weekend. These are supposed to be where all cycle dealers are available.
Lets see what the weekend brings !!
Cycling to work - A fool's dream
I think I might have found an end to my traffic problems. The silver bullet is CYCLING.
A couple of colleagues cycle to work. They have been doing this for a year now. So I decided to give it a try.
The distance from my house to office is approximately 10km and I couldn't believe I would be able to cycle that far. So instead, I requested my landlord to loan his cycle to me. But he, in turn, wanted to get rid of his cycle and so requested me to buy it instead. But I managed to borrow it for a week to "evaluate" it.
The first day, it took me 45 minutes to get to work and I felt dead the whole day. But by the end of the week, I had brought it down to 30 minutes.
The week up, I had to return the cycle since I didnt like the ride too well. Hope to buy a bike soon.
A couple of colleagues cycle to work. They have been doing this for a year now. So I decided to give it a try.
The distance from my house to office is approximately 10km and I couldn't believe I would be able to cycle that far. So instead, I requested my landlord to loan his cycle to me. But he, in turn, wanted to get rid of his cycle and so requested me to buy it instead. But I managed to borrow it for a week to "evaluate" it.
The first day, it took me 45 minutes to get to work and I felt dead the whole day. But by the end of the week, I had brought it down to 30 minutes.
The week up, I had to return the cycle since I didnt like the ride too well. Hope to buy a bike soon.
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