I'm honestly a tad surprised by the hostility that's sprung up here recently. And I'm sorry if my wanting to repair old parts rather than buying new ones, or having a different opinion about something offends anyone. It's in my nature to tinker, experiment, and conserve resources rather than solving every problem with my credit card. And if at all possible, I'd prefer to avoid this thread turning into a pissing match about lights. Let it suffice to say that I already own a set of lights and a set of Eneloop NiMH rechargeable batteries for them, that the environmental impact from my continuing to use them is essentially zero, and that is far less than if I were to toss them into a landfill and buy three new dynamo-equipped front wheels (one for each bike) plus a new set of lights.
Anyway, I spent an hour this evening watching old M*A*S*H reruns and wet-sanding the front rim with 220 grit. Wish I had something a little coarser to start with as this paint is pretty tough, but I got one side of the rim down to clean metal with a nice crosshatch pattern in it.
Planning to do the other side tomorrow night after I pick up some more aggressive paper, after which I'll report on the results.
Also took out the brake pad inserts, and found that they''d accumulated a fair amount of white schmutz. I cleaned 'em up a bit with the sandpaper to get back down to clean, green rubber:
Hopefully this is sufficient evidence of progress to satisfy Leisesturm's
"fish or cut bait" ultimatum.
Originally Posted by
Leisesturm
There are folding bikes, just saying.
Yeah, I did go that route initially. Bought a Dahon from a local shop back in November and gave it a shot, but ultimately that wasn't the right solution. Not only did I really dislike the handling and overall ergonomics of it, but even the little one with 20" wheels was just too awkward and cumbersome to comfortably lug around through turnstiles and carry aboard packed, rush-hour PATH trains.
Originally Posted by
Leisesturm
Citi-bike is bankrupt and will likely be extant in a year or so. Enjoy them while they last.
The Canadian company which manufactured the bikes (Bixi) is in bankruptcy and undergoing reorganization, though it's true that CitiBike, while solvent, is also under financial scrutiny. It's a shame, as all they really need to do is double or triple the amount that they charge annual passholders like myself. $95 a year is insanely cheap, especially as compared to the $112 per month that we'd all be paying otherwise for an unlimited-ride Metrocard (subway pass). From what I understand, the planners assumed that far more of their revenue would be coming from tourists buying 24 hour passes for $10, while in reality we resident commuters have turned out to constitute the vast majority of their business.
Regardless, this is yet another reason why I am presently looking for an alternative in the form of keeping my own bike on the Manhattan side of my commute rather than relying solely upon CitiBike.
Originally Posted by
Leisesturm
Are they disc equipped?
CitiBikes use drum brakes on both wheels. They're not extremely aggressive, however they are pretty much identical to discs in terms of exhibiting consistent performance regardless of weather. That is the specific quality which I am trying to achieve; consistency.
Originally Posted by
surreal
My solution, so far, has been to stay out of Manhattan.
Hehe. Well, I'll keep trying to convince corporate that we need to move WPIX to Hoboken, but until then I'm stuck having to cross the river and head up to E. 42nd St every day. It's hard to complain, I do ♥ NY
