Winter bike modification plans.
 

Fabricate milk crates into workstand for Ketts.

Greenspeed GT3
Replace crankset with the original. Install the 152mm Sugino crankset onto Mrs. Grouch's Kett.
Remove bike computer. Install computer onto my Kett.
Remove seat pack.

Mrs. Grouch's Kett
Acquire and install derailleur mast and front derailleur & shifter.
Fabricate computer mount.
Acquire and install bike computer. (Would we like GPS navigation capability?)
Acquire and install rear view mirrors.
Figure a way to mount Rans Streamline tailpack (from Greenspeed). (For day-to-day use)
Figure out how enormous Ortleib seatpack closes. (For overnight tours)
Fabricate base for safety flag.

My Kett
Install Specialized wireless computer. (from Greenspeed)

Marin beater bike
Acquire and install short (152mm or so) crankset. Lower seat to match. Think about also lowering handlebars.


Shopping list:
Kettweisel front derailleur mast.
Kool-Stop tire bead jack.
Terratrike seat bag?
SRAM X.0 front shifter.
406 presta valve inner tubes, 28-40mm.
Short crankset for beater bike. (can existing crank be modified?)
Mirrycle mountain mirror.
2 Mirrycle extenders.
2-tone Incredibell.
Computer for Mrs. Grouch's Kett.

Looks like you will b busy.

On GPS- I like it but that is for the things not normally found on normal computers. Height gain- height of hills- gradient- and the transfer of files to a computer so I can see how much out of shape I am. If you need or even want the extras- they are good. But on a ride- all I look at is current sped and distance which a standard computer will also do. The other items get looked at once I am home and then deleted.

I like to know my current speed and the distance ridden but it would never occur to me to transfer the files into my desk top computer. If we're riding together with the Kett's linked together, Mrs. Grouch won't have a front wheel so a GPS based computer would be useful for her. I think that it would sometimes be handy to have a map/navigation function but I already have that (of sorts) on my cellphone.

I'm thinking of buying the most basic Garmin cycling computer but I'm open if other posters have opinions that they'd care to share..

Garmin and I had a choice for a 200 or a 500. Went for the 500 as it would also have a heart rate monitor option. I find the Garmin useful but without the Heart monitor- the 200 saves a lot of $$'s

I have no concept whatever of what you just said.

I transfer my time and mileage to a spreadsheet on Microsoft Skydrive (which I can access from anywhere). I do it to track how I'm doing and also to track maintenance on the bike (when I replace chains & tires and such).

I am in the same court as Retro. 15 years ago I was into IT but that seems a long time ago now. Technology has overtaken me completely and although I have an android phone-I have trouble attempting to use anything other than make and receive calls on it. The camera I got for Christmas I even had trouble taking it out of the box and had to engage the brain which seemed to go walk-about for a few hours.

But the Garmin is the popular GPS computer and in reality is very basic. You just have to work out what you want recorded and disregard the rest.

My problem right now is the rubbish on my computer desk. I have USB leads for the Garmin- the phone- the Camera- The LED light and the Go Pro. There are also 3 other leads there that I do not know are for and I also have 5 mains chargers for the units that are in a box under the desk. I am having trouble finding the right lead for the unit I have to charge. I want to go back to working with steam right now.

I'm pretty good with things that have chains and sprockets because I can see and visualize how they work. Electronics, not so much. I had my grand daughter show me how to post pictures but I didn't take adequately detailed notes. I just get frustrated whenever I try so my posts never have any. Christmas Eve my brother-in-law took the random "jingle" out of my cell phone that I'd been living with for months. A bicycling friend/educator once asked me if I was a visual learner. BINGO! Every idea that I've had in my life came to me as a picture in my head. "Click on such and so" doesn't register in my brain. The post from qcpmsame might as well have been written in Martian for my understanding.

I just don't have enough interest in charting the elevation gain of my rides to dedicate myself to learn to do it. The net gain is almost always zero anyway so why should I care?

I have one of those very handy Dymo tape labellers. Put a "nametag" at both ends of each cable/lead and then you know what the visible ends are for, and it also makes life easier when you're scrambling beneath the desk. That's a place I try to avoid . . .

No problems RG, I deleted the offending posts, Martian never was one of my favorite languages. I don't do any type of tracking, we are flat here so no elevation to worry about. My apologies.

Hey Grouchster,
Would you take a pic or two of your DIY work-stand? There is no way to put my bent up on my Park workstand, and I've yet to come up with a replacement other than to put it up on my car bike-rack. Not good for this time of year.

Let me back up a bit because I didn't find your original post to be even a little bit offensive. I just didn't understand some of the programs or technical terms that you used. You didn't do anything wrong and I'm sure most readers understood you fully. I'm just not part of that group.

It ain't done yet.

I posted on bentrideronline that working on my Ketts was a pain - literally. I got a bunch of the typical responses but one guy made one with stacked milk crates. The rear axle is supported on a zip tied stack of 3 crates with the front cut out of the top one to allow the chain to pass. The front wheel is supported on a 2 crate stack. I like it because it doesn't take up a lot of storage space and I can also use the milk crates for other things.

I also built a PVC workstand to support my wife's Greenspeed tadpole from plans that I got from bentrideronline. It works OK but it's bulky to move and store. Since she got the Kett Mrs. Grouch wants to sell her Greenspeed so an improved tadpole workstand is a low priority.

I built one from scrap lumber for my Rans SWB that cradles the main tube and relys on a fork mount to hold it steady. It works OK but it's still in the beta design stage. I need to modify it so it doesn't rub when the chain is on the biggest rear cogs. I'll probably redo it sometime next year.

I see that Bill deleted his postss -- but the ones that I saw were relevent and valuable to this discussion. So, at the risk of starting a death spiral let me offer my take on it:

Strava is an online tracking tool for runners and cyclists. It tracks your time, distance, climbing and speed. But to use it you need either a smart phone or a Garmin. I use it with an IPhone 5 -- so based on that you would:
1) Go to Strava.com on your computer and sign-up
2) Go to the App store on your phone and search for the (free) Strava app, select it and install it.
3) At the beginning of your ride: tap the Strava icon on the phone then tap "New Ride" at the bottom, then the "Play" arrow. That causes Strava to start monitoring your ride. I then turn off the display and put the phone in my pocket.
4) At the end of the ride, tap on "finish ride" then tap on "save". Strava will then do its calculations and send them up to it's site on the web.

When you get home go back to Strava.com on your computer and you will see your ride (including a map of it). Strava also keeps track of all your rides and can show you graphs of how you are doing -- like a graph of how far you rode each day or how many miles for the week and for the month and year.

it's good for tracking your training. Things like: How often, How far, How long, How high, and How fast. The premium membership will also track things like your heart rate (if you have a monitor).

You can also share the ride with people on Facebook (assuming you haven't deleted your Facebook account per our other thread!).

The only drawback I can see is that you need a smart phone or a Garmin to use it. And, too: you can't download the information and use it elsewhere. So that's why once a week or so I copy the information into a spreadsheet. I do that for 2 reasons: first to be sure I don't lose it if Strava goes away and secondly so I can track maintenance on my bike (like when I change chains and so on)....

I hope that helps and doesn't confuse.

In any event, there are number of ways to monitor how you're doing. Strava is just one of them. But I've had good success with it.

I think that I've got all of the parts needed for Mrs. Grouch's trike except for the derailleur mast and the Garmin computer. I suspect the derailleur mast will have to be ordered from Germany and I shudder to think of what it may cost. A similar but lighter duty bracket for holding a computer head costs $79.00 US.

Assuming I can get the part for under $150.00 (The fork mount to hitch 2 trikes together is $200.00.) I'll save approximately $150.00 over the cost of buying the trike as a 27 speed vs. a 9-speed. Besides saving the money I also get to have the winter fun of putting it together and making it work. That's a win-win.