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Worst products...

syadasti

i heart mac
Apr 15, 2002
12,690
290
VT
Good point...but you didn't see it on the shop floor? Or was it an interweb purchase?
You can't see it from a glance on the shop floor or online and it's not a primary consideration for selecting a bike. It would be like not buying a car because it's hard to change the tire in a rare emergency.
 
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syadasti

i heart mac
Apr 15, 2002
12,690
290
VT
WTF is that supposed to be? I do not believe I ever ever seen the likes of it before.
It's actually not like a timewarp to 1994, they've had uncontrolled spring forks (springer, girder, etc) on motorcycles and bicycles for over a hundred years.



 
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syadasti

i heart mac
Apr 15, 2002
12,690
290
VT
"Worst" means sausage in Dutch.
You guys are smart, turns out worst might be the worst food option.

http://oregonstate.edu/ua/ncs/archives/2014/jan/new-compounds-discovered-are-hundreds-times-more-mutagenic

The parent compounds involved in this research are polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, or PAHs, formed naturally as the result of almost any type of combustion, from a wood stove to an automobile engine, cigarette or a coal-fired power plant. Many PAHs, such as benzopyrene, are known to be carcinogenic, believed to be more of a health concern that has been appreciated in the past, and are the subject of extensive research at OSU and elsewhere around the world.

The PAHs can become even more of a problem when they chemically interact with nitrogen to become “nitrated,” or NPAHs, scientists say. The newly-discovered compounds are NPAHs that were unknown to this point.

This study found that the direct mutagenicity of the NPAHs with one nitrogen group can increase 6 to 432 times more than the parent compound. NPAHs based on two nitrogen groups can be 272 to 467 times more mutagenic. Mutagens are chemicals that can cause DNA damage in cells that in turn can cause cancer.

For technical reasons based on how the mutagenic assays are conducted, the researchers said these numbers may actually understate the increase in toxicity – it could be even higher.
 

JohnE

filthy rascist
May 13, 2005
13,430
1,949
Front Range, dude...
You can't see it from a glance on the shop floor or online and it's not a primary consideration for selecting a bike. It would be like not buying a car because it's hard to change the tire in a rare emergency.
Maybe not part of your primary consideration for selection...I always look at replacement and maintenance issues when I buy bikes...but thats just me. Gotta identify what I can handle, how and where I can handle and who will handle it if I cannot. Its a common part of market research. But thats just me...
 

Jm_

sled dog's bollocks
Jan 14, 2002
18,853
9,557
AK
It's actually not like a timewarp to 1994, they've had uncontrolled spring forks (springer, girder, etc) on motorcycles and bicycles for over a hundred years.
The reason it's a time-warp to 1994 is those bad-ideas were rampant back then. The early 90s were a huge "throw **** on the wall and see if it sticks" period.
 

syadasti

i heart mac
Apr 15, 2002
12,690
290
VT
Maybe not part of your primary consideration for selection.
Yeah, whatever. I was told I was the first person to ask about trail side hanger replacement when I contacted them - traditional hangers typically attach with allen bolts so nobody is going to think to check them (split pivot/ABP necessitate some sort of alternative design). Someone can make a custom minitool or you can carry the full-sized tool in your hydration pack. You can't make trail side adjustments to center lock rotors (I don't have any) or cassette lockrings either (everyone has them). Some cranks have various sizes of torx bolts on them that aren't on minitools either. There are various things that can happen on the ride that a minitool isn't going to cut it - try to tighten your cranks down to spec with a mini tool if they come loose.
 
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HardtailHack

used an iron once
Jan 20, 2009
6,630
5,444
What about those little orange flags that stuck out horizontally from your seat post to keep traffic a safe distance away from you? Dont see those anymore.....
Used to see a guy near me with a length of steel sharpened to a point to make sure he had his own lane, crazy bastard.

 

JohnE

filthy rascist
May 13, 2005
13,430
1,949
Front Range, dude...
Yeah, whatever. I was told I was the first person to ask about trail side hanger replacement when I contacted them - traditional hangers typically attach with allen bolts so nobody is going to think to check them (split pivot/ABP necessitate some sort of alternative design). Someone can make a custom minitool or you can carry the full-sized tool in your hydration pack. You can't make trail side adjustments to center lock rotors (I don't have any) or cassette lockrings either (everyone has them). Some cranks have various sizes of torx bolts on them that aren't on minitools either. There are various things that can happen on the ride that a minitool isn't going to cut it - try to tighten your cranks down to spec with a mini tool if they come loose.
Well there is always that preventative maintenance and pre/post ride check over thing...you know, when you look at what is worn and wearing, loose and in need of some TLC...

Given there are some things that are absolutely unpredictable...which is why we have duct tape.
 
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Jm_

sled dog's bollocks
Jan 14, 2002
18,853
9,557
AK
Indeed. Although the drivers that complain about my lights being too bright apparently disagree
It's the ONLY thing that gets people to actually LOOK in the direction they are turning, otherwise they constantly turn right while looking left in the opposite direction. I'd use a million lumens if I could.
 

jimmydean

The Official Meat of Ridemonkey
Sep 10, 2001
40,942
13,135
Portland, OR
I don't care what anyone says, my Proflex 855 was awesomer.



I miss putting speed holes in everything to save weight.
 

BikeMike

Monkey
Feb 24, 2006
784
0
:stupid:

Where can I buy those?
The company that makes the lasers: http://thexfire.com/
Not sure where to buy, but they do look nice. I use a red high power led with some kind of a rectange-maker lens and it makes an enormous difference with cars at night.

Also, in addition to lists being poor "journalism," the Switchblade helmet definitely does not belong on the list...though the author pretty clearly belongs with the peeps that could not comprehend the conspicuous signage on the helmet box and thought that they should use it as a DH helmet and do some mad hucks to flat. I used two of the things over many years (and had friends who also did), and had my face saved on several occasions. No broken faceguards either. Always figured if I ever fell hard enough to break the faceguard and got cut, I'd still be way better off than if I didn't have the faceguard at all. The only design flaw was that it was a pain to add and remove the faceguard so everyone just kept it on at all times, they could have just permanently fixed it in place.
 

kidwoo

Artisanal Tweet Curator
The company that makes the lasers: http://thexfire.com/
Not sure where to buy, but they do look nice. I use a red high power led with some kind of a rectange-maker lens and it makes an enormous difference with cars at night.

Also, in addition to lists being poor "journalism," the Switchblade helmet definitely does not belong on the list...though the author pretty clearly belongs with the peeps that could not comprehend the conspicuous signage on the helmet box and thought that they should use it as a DH helmet and do some mad hucks to flat. I used two of the things over many years (and had friends who also did), and had my face saved on several occasions. No broken faceguards either. Always figured if I ever fell hard enough to break the faceguard and got cut, I'd still be way better off than if I didn't have the faceguard at all. The only design flaw was that it was a pain to add and remove the faceguard so everyone just kept it on at all times, they could have just permanently fixed it in place.
Fvck that. Those helmets sucked. There's either a chinbar that protects your jaw or it doesn't. I've got a buddy who still has a scar from one of those things when it broke from a crash about 8mph when it went into his skin and scraped along his jaw bone. I saw the crash and there was nothing 'dh' about it. If you're not crashing hard enough to have broken one of those pieces of crap, your face would have been fine anyway from what I've seen from those things. If you're not a full face, don't pretend to be one. There's no way my buddy's injury would have been that bad with an open face.
 

GodSmack

Chimp
May 27, 2013
88
0
BC
Most of those products have ideas that have resurfaced as quality stuff. The Giro helmet. predecessor to the endure style helmet. Grip shift. I have it on my AM bike and it works flawlessly! The Hanbrink fork. The humble start for the Fox 40. Big tubes are stiffer.
Now for some modern stupidity. 800 mil. wide bars great if you are over 6 feet tall. The rest of you are posers following a trend. Like those super long stems.
Tapered head tubes. Realey people are snapping off head tubes??????? Ya right! Makes buying a new fork or selling your old one a pain in the ass! Oh now they have this 1and1/4 to 1.5 taper to add to the mayhem!
400$ cog sets?????????? on 1by11 set ups. Cant wait till mine wears out. Maybe they will have a "cheap" 200$ version lol.
 
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BikeMike

Monkey
Feb 24, 2006
784
0
Fvck that. Those helmets sucked. There's either a chinbar that protects your jaw or it doesn't. I've got a buddy who still has a scar from one of those things when it broke from a crash about 8mph when it went into his skin and scraped along his jaw bone. I saw the crash and there was nothing 'dh' about it. If you're not crashing hard enough to have broken one of those pieces of crap, your face would have been fine anyway from what I've seen from those things. If you're not a full face, don't pretend to be one. There's no way my buddy's injury would have been that bad with an open face.
Completely disagree. Getting launched and skittering on the faceguard across shale counts to me as worthwhile prevention of significant surgery (got gouges and scratches to faceguard, no breakage). Between riding buddies and me, we went through at least half a dozen of those helmets and never had catastrophic failure. I completely believe that I would not have needed the dozen stitches that recently came out of my face if I'd been wearing one (crash also shattered vertebrae, doc was surprised I wasn't paralyzed--and it was a super slow one on a mellow XC ride--apparently you don't need to be going fast or doing extreme things to fall surprisingly hard.) Anyways, you can keep your opinion, but I look forward to one day again finding a light duty ventilated FF helmet with regular helmet style-retention to use for everyday mtb rides so I can be unfashionable and endure the ire of those who feel there is no place for middle ground. And hopefully stop collecting scars. (Spec prototype Deviants looked promising...then they changed them for production.)
 

kidwoo

Artisanal Tweet Curator
Do you know how to crash?

I know if I'm going for a face plant with an open face helmet, I turn my head. I've let the chinbar on my dh helmet auger itself in just because I know I have a full face on. That's my gripe......it gave the belief that you had some protection there. Beyond that previous anecdote, I've seen several of those thing rip out of the back of the helmet too. Maybe you were the market. No one I know is and there's no way in hell I'd let a reissue go on my head if were to happen.

I could definitely see it doing some good at a glancing angle sliding on some shale but that's a pretty limited use.
 
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BikeMike

Monkey
Feb 24, 2006
784
0
Do you know how to crash?

I know if I'm going for a face plant with an open face helmet, I turn my head. I've let the chinbar on my dh helmet auger itself in just because I know I have a full face on. That's my gripe......it gave the belief that you had some protection there. Beyond that previous anecdote, I've seen several of those thing rip out of the back of the helmet too. Maybe you were the market. No one I know is and there's no way in hell I'd let a reissue go on my head if were to happen.

I could definitely see it doing some good at a glancing angle sliding on some shale but that's a pretty limited use.
Clearly I am a terrible rider with no idea.

FWIW, I don't generally try to auger the chin area, moto-esque helmet on or not. Maybe I don't know how to ride and crash. Maybe I got f-k unlucky. However, it seems rather ungenerous to assume the former. It certainly crossed my mind that it was possible your buddy unknowingly mistreated or damaged that part of his helmet without taking notice, but I'm not going to assume that must have been the case just because your beliefs and experiences don't mesh with mine. Maybe he just got unlucky. Sh*t happens.

The argument that it's bad to have some protection because it makes someone think they have lots of protection, however, is lame. That's just a cognitive problem with the operator.

Seriously, we just disagree, and apparently both feel quite strongly that the other is mostly wrong. Oh well, life goes on.

Back on topic: any STI units with the non-replaceable brake levers, cranks with riveted chainrings, tire liners