relatively amusing craig's list ad

Tom Keats

In article <outef5-ad4.ln1@curare.zuvembi.homelinux.org>,
Dane Buson <dane@unseen.edu> writes:
> Tom Keats <tkeats2005@hotmail.com> wrote:
>> In article <571ae6fe-cacb-4b23-b892-4e0145a617aa@p25g2000pri.googlegroups.com>,
>> Claire <cpetersky@yahoo.com> writes:
>>> Over yonder: http://seattle.craigslist.org/see/bik/637385956.html
>>
>> At one point I thought /my/ bike was cursed.
>
> Before I even opened the craigslist page I knew that was ad for
> Henry's bike.

I hope it isn't cursed. I wouldn't wish a cursed
vehicle on anybody. Well, maybe I'd sorta wish the
James Dean Spider on whomever's trodding-down Sudan.

>> Until it and me got head-on'd by a car.
>>
>> Maybe just the parts I had to replace were cursed.
>>
>> But I'll tell ya what -- that frame is as solid as
>> a brick sh!740u23, and that's the truth.
>
> I wish I could say the same, my latest broken frame is sitting at
> Recycled Cycles waiting for them to go through all the motions with the
> Surly warranty department.
>
>> There's somewhat to be said for the hi-tens end
>> of the chro-moly spectrum.

Well, there ya go. I'm not particularly partial
to double or triple-butted frame tubing, and I
opine straight-gauge tubes are less failure-prone.
It makes for a heavier bike, but what is gained
by putting weaker and more flexy spots in a frame?
That's just my personal opinion, and I respect other
people's opinions.

Of course, when rear triangle stays separate from
the main triangle, that's just poor construction.
I don't know at the time of this writing if that's
what happened to you.

>> Black spokes would look good with my rhinestone-eyed
>> black skull valve caps. I need more skull/death's-head
>> themed stuff for my bike.
>
> In the frippery department, I've been contemplating what I would need to
> make my own headbadges. Probably not as swanky as this:
>
> http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=6128877

Y'know what? There's no such thing as tarnish-resistant
sterling silver, at least if it's not coated with laquer
or something. Their profferings are indeed pretty,though.

> But I might be able to turn out something interesting.

Back in the '70s Bike Boom, we Canadians got these imported
Japanese Sekines, the finer editions of which had escrutcheons
sporting a brilliant-cut rhinestone. With it, and in the
right angle of the sun, you could reflectively direct an
annoying solar beam into the rv mirror of the car ahead
of you that hesitates too much when they can get across
the darn intersection. That was before the advent of
laser pointers. My beloved 27"-wheeled mixte has one
of those headbadges.

>> The Craigslist seller should just get himself a bike
>> that he could ride and enjoy. Well, I guess he should
>> just enjoy whatever his reasonable volition suggests.
>
> He bought a Long Haul Trucker earlier this year, and AFAIK hasn't
> crashed it yet.
>
>> Anyways, nothing is ~cursed~. We just tend to put our
>> own baggage on stuff. You know that; why am I telling you?
>
> Exactly, the same sort of reason we shouldn't anthropomorphize machines
> and computers. They really don't like that.

I never, *ever* swear at computers. It just distracts them
from their background tasks, and makes things worse. Having
done a bunch of inventory counting, I also know when to not
bother people. As Archie Bunker said: "Patience is a virgin."

>> If those black spokes were octagonal ...
>
> As long as they aren't forged out of Octiron or give off Octarine
> colored emissions we're probably okay though.

I think I'd prefer my spokes to be somewhat but not overly
work-hardened by drawing, rather than forging. If coloured,
I'd think heat-blueing would do the trick. Colourations can
be effected with cyanides, but that's a little scary to do
at home.


cheers,
Tom

--
Nothing is safe from me.
I'm really at:
tkeats curlicue vcn dot bc dot ca

Dane Buson

Tom Keats <tkeats2005@hotmail.com> wrote:
> In article <outef5-ad4.ln1@curare.zuvembi.homelinux.org>,
> Dane Buson <dane@unseen.edu> writes:
>>
>> Before I even opened the craigslist page I knew that was ad for
>> Henry's bike.
>
> I hope it isn't cursed. I wouldn't wish a cursed
> vehicle on anybody. Well, maybe I'd sorta wish the
> James Dean Spider on whomever's trodding-down Sudan.

I think it's more that Henry shouldn't be riding fixed gear bikes. Lack
of attention, lack of respect for the inertia of rotating mass, poor
bike maintenance, who knows what the bugbear is. I think the broken
collarbone was the sticking point though.

> Of course, when rear triangle stays separate from
> the main triangle, that's just poor construction.
> I don't know at the time of this writing if that's
> what happened to you.

Dropout separation, the same thing that happened last time. I describe
it a bit more in the "A bike for sunny days" post.

> Back in the '70s Bike Boom, we Canadians got these imported
> Japanese Sekines, the finer editions of which had escrutcheons
> sporting a brilliant-cut rhinestone. With it, and in the
> right angle of the sun, you could reflectively direct an
> annoying solar beam into the rv mirror of the car ahead
> of you that hesitates too much when they can get across
> the darn intersection. That was before the advent of
> laser pointers. My beloved 27"-wheeled mixte has one
> of those headbadges.

Oooeeer, shiny. I don't suppose you've obtained a camera with which to
take pictures of said shiny things?

--
Dane Buson - sigdane@unixbigots.org
X windows. More than enough rope.

Tom Keats

In article <i00hf5-j39.ln1@curare.zuvembi.homelinux.org>,
Dane Buson <dane@unseen.edu> writes:

>> Back in the '70s Bike Boom, we Canadians got these imported
>> Japanese Sekines, the finer editions of which had escrutcheons
>> sporting a brilliant-cut rhinestone. With it, and in the
>> right angle of the sun, you could reflectively direct an
>> annoying solar beam into the rv mirror of the car ahead
>> of you that hesitates too much when they can get across
>> the darn intersection. That was before the advent of
>> laser pointers. My beloved 27"-wheeled mixte has one
>> of those headbadges.
>
> Oooeeer, shiny. I don't suppose you've obtained a camera with which to
> take pictures of said shiny things?

I'm afraid I haven't yet had such an opportunity,
but if you Google on "Sekine bicycle" and throw in
the secondary keyword: "rhinestone," I'm sure you'll
get some worthwhile hits & pix.

IIRC Sekine was so popular in western Canada,
they set-up shop somewhere in Manitoba.

Sekine was a very progressive mfg, sending-out
all kinds of experimental stuff into the market.
E.g: my mixte originally came with Shimano's
'70s Front Freewheel System (FFS) which allows
a rider to shift gears while stationarily leaning
against a pole or something, and back-pedalling.
It also comes with allen-wrench-removable (One
Key Release[tm]) cranks. The fancily knurled &
chromed, round headset nuts require a 3 pinwrench.
The frame is beautifully lugged, and painted in
luscious raven black.

I can only describe the beauty of Sekines to
people who've never seen nor experienced them.
It kinda makes me feel alone.

Of course, later models were decadent.
As with any human creativeness, there's
a formative age, a classic/golden age,
and a decadent age.

I suspect Sekine kept old SunTour in business
for quite a while after SunTour might have
been faded out. Some of that SunTour crap
was actually pretty good crap. And still is.


cheers,
Tom

--
Nothing is safe from me.
I'm really at:
tkeats curlicue vcn dot bc dot ca