The Review Thread
 

Tried anything good lately? I've notice that I've done a decent number of review threads, and some people have been happy to read a review on an otherwise unreviewed topic.

Yeah. I switched over from a dura ace chain to the KMC SL10 chain (with the removable link) and it was a great move. I can't say I notice a performance difference, but cleaning the drive drain is now so much easier, quicker and more effective.

is that the gold one?

Negative. Silver.

Picked up some Giro Lusso gloves. Great quality, comfy padding. Hopefully a pair that will finally last a while.
http://i191.photobucket.com/albums/z...Giro_Lusso.jpg

Just got Speedplay Zeros (Cro-Moly-I'm poor) and Mavic road shoes. A world of difference from my MTB shoes and cheap spd pedals. I used to get knee pain after 20 miles or so but it seems to be gone for good.

Anything Louis Garneau makes. Good stuff.

I picked this up from Racer Ex last weekend (he bought another 09 Noah to replace it) and built it up last night. I'll post up some better pics this weekend these were took with my iPhone. Basically the same build I had on the Orbea:

08 Ridley Noah size smal
Campanolo Centaur Alloy 10s shifters
Campagnolo Record Skeleton Brakes
Campagnolo Record RD/FD
Campagnolo Chorus Cassette 11/23
Reynolds Stratus clinchers (training wheels)
Nokon cables
FSA SRM 172.5 (53/39)
3T Ergosum Team bars 42cm
3T ARX Team Stem 120mm
Selle San Marco Aspide FX carbon 119g saddle

I still have to cut down the steerer tube and I have white hoods coming this week.
Attached Thumbnails
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frosted flakes. have not had them in years. had like 3 giant sized bowls for lunch today. paired it with 2% milk. despite the presence of HFCS i found it very enjoyable. later.

Well, not very exciting, but I purchased my first floor pump, a Bontrager. Seems my Zeta frame pump couldn't get my tires up to desired psi. Payed 45.00 for the Bontrager, right in the middle of their lower priced one, (30.00) and the higher. (60.00) Figured the middle of the range would suffice.

Very pleased with it. Pumps up to 120psi without much effort. Very smooth, and the nipple release has a nice positive action. Seems to be of good quality.

Not very exciting, as I said.

Patrick

"pumps to a good psi, smooth, nip release with 'positive action'..." all good things to have around

"not very exciting"... really? all that and "not very exciting"? is that also what she said? :p

Agreed - I am actually using a SRAM chain with the KMC link, and I don't anticipate going back to pin-style chains... so much easier to clean and work on.

Those are indeed nice ones aren't they?:thumb::thumb:

I had a Zero candy bar today. Actually, I got i 3 days ago and have ben nibbling at it since. Very very nice. Wished they had the "Sugar daddy" back too. That was one awesome candy.

Bike related:

*Continental water bottle from PBK. Very nice, cheap, and fit my cages better than most.
*Deda Logo Embossed Handlebar Tape. Very nice. I have been a cork Cinelli guy for years. No longer.

More to come.

I'm using a KMC chain. Primarily because I got it on sale cheap. Been 100% happy with it.

If you ever have the chance, there is some company making retro candy that was discontinued years ago. Big Hunk is amazing.

*Swiss Stop Yellow Pads:

The good:
They stop better than anything I have tried so far on carbon rims. Wet or dry, but especially wet.
The bad:
They are expensive compared to others and they don't last long.

*Assos summer gloves:

The good:
They fit at the same size as Castelli gloves, but much more form fitting. Their material is so much more softer and comfortable. Nice grip sticky stuff on the palm size. Very "airy".
The bad:
Can't see them lasting long. They are costly. They don't have finger tabs to pull them off, which I hate with a passion coming off as it is a struggle with your hands sweaty. It also becomes a struggle when they slip back some when changing hand positions, and you can't easily pull them back "out" by pulling on the tabs. You would think this is standards on gloves these days.
*Edit since riding with them*
They are mostly very comfortable except for the thenar (palm region under the thumb base) pad that seems to have the edge over where you would be resting the palm against the bars. Also, there is a little tab on the index finger that rubs your face rough when you use the side fo the gloves to wipe the sweat. Very annoying, otherwise these are great.

*Briko sunglasses:

The good:
These are cool, retro, and very resistant to impact. Visibility on the sides and top is from good to very good depending on which model you have.
The bad:
Almost all cycling specific glasses have been discontinued for a while. Hard to find unless you keep looking on ebay. May give you that 90's retro not so cool look.

California Kitchen Pizza.

had one last night. i believe they call it the "White Pizza." it had white cheese and green spinach on it. baked it at 400 degrees in like 12 minutes. it was good, but not all that filling. especially since i had to share with my wife and kid.

later.

Selle SMP Pro. Cudos and many thanks from me, my balls and ex-purple meanie. One comfortable seat!

2010 Cannondale Super Six Liquigas Team Edition
Bike was equipped with Campy Super Record 11, Cannondale Hollowgram BB30 crank, Mavic Cosmic Carbone SLR wheels, Vittoria Open Corsa EVO CX Tires.

By far, the best frame I have ever ridden. I test rode a 2009 Super Six equipped with Shimano Di2 a few months ago and the 2010 is completely different. The 2010 is much more stiff in the rear and accelerates like a bat out of hell. I run the same wheels on my bike but they felt totally different and much more solid on the Cannondale.

I'm really curious how the new Specialized SL3 compares but the 2010 Cannondale was a "wow" bike.

I was not really left overly impressed with SR 11 so I am omitting it from the review.

For those gloves, just pull them off inside out. Plenty of material by the wrist to grab hold of, then turn them back right side out once they are off your hands. This makes gloves last a lot longer.

Thanks. Will try it.

*Assos Skin Web summer socks:

The good:
Socks are socks right? Well, that is what I thought before today. I have ridden in the multiple Castelli socks until now. Even the high end ones felt very nice. That is until I tried these sucks. I can't tell you why they feel so good, bt they do. Ordering more!!!!!!!

The bad
Normally, I would say at least the cost. Especially being an Assos product. These are however not that expensive. Especially when compared in price to the high end Castelli socks.

A little out of category, but...

SRAM X.7 MTB Group

I rebuilt my old MTB (1994 Kona Fire Mountain) with SRAM X.7 shifters, FD, RD and SRAM 9-speed cassette and chain. The quality is beyond outstanding for the price. The shifting is immaculate even under load and in rough conditions. Loving it...

http://chriscortez.com/images/kfm/ne...ew_800x600.jpg

I've been meaning to upgrade the components on my MTB. I was thinking of X.0 grip shifters with a X.7 or X.9 RD. Thanks for the review.

I'm having so much fun with it now. The XTR crankset with Blackspire rings is my favorite upgrade - $150 on ebay. (More than the bike was worth before all these changes.) But I've changed every single part on the bike except the brakes. Going from a pretty crappy quill front end (with bars I really hated) to the Surly 1x1 threadless fork, Cane Creek S-3 headset, Ritchie Pro Stem and WCS Rizer bar... it's hard to explain what a different bike it is.

I love reviving the bikes I've had the longest, with the most history. I don't Facebook much, barely at all, but I checked in today and had a message from an old friend about my very first "real" bike. In 1987, my freshman year in college, I had a financial windfall of $1000 from a random drawing. I bought a really nice Cannondale road bike for $1200. In 1991, I was moving and broke and sold it to my roommate for less than it was worth.

He wasn't a cyclist at all and spent most of his time on his motorcycle, so I didn't think he'd use it much. His Facebook message pointed out that he still has that bike and rides it every day, to work and for all his errands. He lives in a small Kansas town 1.5 miles from work and has no use for a car. A quote: "It gets me to the liquor store."

It was deep yellow with red lettering, biopace chainrings, and very narrow tubies. I loved that bike and really glad she's still out there. :love: