greenmeansgo

This thread has got me thinking - I've not used Ebay a hell of a lot, but I can see why they've introduced this new policy to protect buyers from big sellers with a few thousand positive feedbacks. I've seen lots of retaliatory negative feedback which affects people with low scores the most. Doesn't the new policy include something along the lines of buyers can't leave negative feedback until a week after the transaction, so they've had time to calm down and sort out any problems with the seller? I don't think it's a very good policy from the seller's perspective mind, but I've generally dealt with good people on Ebay. My way of choosing who not to buy from is a bit like the T-F validation idea - don't buy from sellers who type everything in capitals, who can't be bothered to write full sentences, take photos in focus etc. Also not to buy expensive items because of the risk involved. Paypal can only order a refund if there's money in the seller's paypal account (I think?), so holding the money for a while on expensive items seems like the only way to secure this?

They are designed for use with special magura mounts on the seat stays/forks. They can also be run on standard V-brake mounts with an adaptor. Why not give the shop a call to discuss what it is you're after?

I've been dead keen to get back riding trials, amassing parts slowly to rebuild my bike, but having sprained my ankle rock climbing last night, and now watching that vid of wrists breaking , I'm thinking I should find a safer hobby....only that never seems to be as much fun!

You're talking about two different things here - anodising is a harder protective layer that is applied to bare aluminium. Well actually, it's more like a surface reaction which prevents further oxidation. When you get brightly coloured shiny aluminium components, they have generally been anodised. I'm pretty sure this is not an easy DIY task. People do spray paint frames, but I understand it's pretty easy to make a bog of it if you don't know what you're doing, and spray paint doesn't give a very durable finish. Try asking at your local bike shop if they could powder coat it - that would be the smartest looking solution probably. I'd seriously consider whether you need it doing at all - bikes get scratched - and it will be really annoying first time you scrape if you have paid to get it painted/ spent ages doing it yourself.

Tarty bikes have a few on sale at the moment in green. Their advice has been brilliant in my experience - why not give them a call/email?

Ok, thanks for the info. If you're having problems with this, you probably need to fit a BB with a longer axle (i.e. it's not down to the cranks themselves unless they're flexing a lot). Bear in mind that some cranks push onto the axle slightly more than others, so you might have to play around and fit a couple before you get the right size.

Cool, thanks. Second hand Middleburns sound like the way to go. But out of interest - does anyone have any experience with either of those cranks I linked to?

Thanks guys, that sounds like a good plan (except for the waiting ) £30-40 sounds like sensible money too. It looks like the for sale threads work on a similar format to eBay - is that right?

I'm rebuilding my bike (DDG shooter) after a few years of it sitting idle. The drive train is worn out, and I've decided to go single speed. I just bought an 18 tooth ACS freewheel, and am after some cheap(ish) cranks with a 22t chain ring and a bash ring (length probably 170mm or 175mm - to replace 175mm STX-RC cranks with a home made bash ring). I've looked at the DDG and mission cranks on this website - what do you reckon? I've been out of the scene for a while so I'm not sure what to get. Any help much appreciated.

Hi, my name's Gerard and I'm just trying to get back into riding trials after a long hiatus (I started back when MBUK was full of Martyn Ashton features circa 1998), but haven't ridden much in the last 5 years. I'm based in Manchester now, and it would be great to have people to ride with once I've rebuilt my bike. Are there many riders in Manchester? I've seen a few around town, so I know there's some. Anyway, would be good to hear from anyone in the area who's interested.