AdamR28

32 up front and something like 11-42 at the rear works well.

660mm I think...

My thoughts / experience: Trialtech / Jitsie pads are the best by miles. MT7s work well when new, then develop issues over time. Slightly more power than a Hope. Hopes wear in rather than wearing out, you can get spares if you need (rarely). More resistant to crashes / knocks. MT5 virtually same performance as MT7 but better value.

Hope

Mark - gotcha about the PCR / lat flow tests. As far as I can work out you take a lateral flow test first, and then a PCR test in an attempt to confirm that result? I guess my point is why do we use the rapid tests at all, when they aren't accurate. (Edit: I guess a positive result on a lateral flow makes you 'cautious' and take a PCR, if you didn't bother with the lateral flow at all you might never know that you potentially had the virus... That makes sense now). I think I have also figured out why PCR tests are not being used to end self-isolation, because again they are inaccurate in the case of negative results (false negatives up to 29% - eg. if the first test is negative, in up to 29% of cases repeat testing gives a positive): https://www.bmj.com/content/bmj/369/bmj.m1808.full.pdf As far as I can figure out, asymtomatic people will still have the virus 'particles' (for want of a better word) but already have the antigens available to produce the antibodies to prevent the virus from causing harm, hence should still test positive (but then again with no symptoms, I guess you are less likely to go and get tested). Perhaps wrong there! Interesting point about breast cancer screening. My thoughts around stuff like this are definitely unusual, and my opinion of the medical profession as a whole is gradually decreasing, but I do see that what they do is remarkable and can 'save' lives - inverted commas because I don't believe you can ever 'save' a life, only prolong it, because death is the only certainty that we have. The quality of life that many people experience after serious medical interventions is debatable, so that leads me to question the validity and motives of such processes. Anyway, back to breast cancer... Roundabout story but a few people close to me are definitely seriously affected by what I would call health anxiety - either living their lives bouncing from one test result to another, or have spent considerable time worrying about an 'abnormal' test result, or both. To me, quality of life holds more importance than length of life, so while I appreciate that regular testing (of all sorts) can 'save' lives, what is the cost of that? https://www.komen.org/breast-cancer/screening/mammography/accuracy/ - "After 10 yearly mammograms, the chance of having a false positive is about 50-60 percent" Cervical cancer is another one - regular screening encouraged, but lots of false positives and worried people. The actual percentage of cervical cancer prevalence is hovering around 0.7%, but "A long-term cohort study of 3,406 HPV-negative women who had annual Pap smears for 5 years found a 14.4% rate of false-positive cytology that resulted in unnecessary interventions and treatments" - https://www.karger.com/Article/Fulltext/365059 If people spent their time eating properly and doing exercise instead of having tests and worrying about whatever the results might throw up, would that be better at preventing cancer? Hard to say, but that's what I plan to do - while still being mindful that I will probably get cancer or another life-ending disease at some stage. If I can make as small an impact as realistically possible on the planet until that point, then bugger off and leave the space and resources for someone else to enter the world, then happy days. I guess the above links back to Covid, in that I think we should just crack on (and have from the start). It is a disease created by nature to remove the weakest of our species, because we are too numerous. It's not going away, and so far the average age of a UK Covid death has been 80.3, with an average life expectancy of 81.3 - we've ruined 18 months' worth of life already so I'd say we're into negative equity with that badboy. The amount of people down the bowls club (yes, I play crown green bowls ) who have completely changed (aged years) since I last saw them, and have said they feel pretty miserable now, is well over half. Bowing out of this thread now...

I can't remember where exactly now, but here's another, older link I just found. The reported accuracy seems to be dropping with further studies, from what I've seen: https://www.cochrane.org/CD013705/INFECTN_how-accurate-are-rapid-tests-diagnosing-covid-19 "Using summary results for SD Biosensor STANDARD Q, if 1000 people with symptoms had the antigen test, and 50 (5%) of them really had COVID-19: - 53 people would test positive for COVID-19. Of these, 9 people (17%) would not have COVID-19 (false positive result). - 947 people would test negative for COVID-19. Of these, 6 people (0.6%) would actually have COVID-19 (false negative result). In people with no symptoms of COVID-19 the number of confirmed cases is expected to be much lower than in people with symptoms. Using summary results for SD Biosensor STANDARD Q in a bigger population of 10,000 people with no symptoms, where 50 (0.5%) of them really had COVID-19: - 125 people would test positive for COVID-19. Of these, 90 people (72%) would not have COVID-19 (false positive result). - 9,875 people would test negative for COVID-19. Of these, 15 people (0.2%) would actually have COVID-19 (false negative result)." Haven't personally done the maths on that badboy, but I can see how that averages out to approx half given the 72% false positives in one of the 'variations'. In regards to the incubation period, I get the 10 or 14 day thing. My logical brain says that if the virus is present there has to be a way to detect it via a test (else our bodies wouldn't be able to detect it, rendering our immune systems useless, and therefore vaccines too), so why can't we do that to prevent or reduce isolation periods. Is it that a virus is completely undetectable until it has incubated? Or is it that the current tests can't do that? And if they can't, why are we carrying out testing? I clearly don't understand fully but this seems to indicate the virus is present at all stages. https://www.eurogentec.com/en/inside-the-sars-cov-2-live-cycle (Edit: I guess the study above makes a case for NOT testing after a ping, because the false positive rates being so high would lead to more people than necessary having to isolate)

Glad its working out Mark! That is some serious fuel economy

Makes sense, thanks Mark! In which case why not test at days 2 and 5, for example, and if both are negative you can crack on. Though if you can fool the PCR test with any acidic liquid, and they are now saying its barely better than 50% accurate, it all seems a bit pointless.

My take on that... Kids finished school for summer (approx 2 weeks ago). Human factor: Nobody is going to get a test if they aren't told to (by school, for example) or they don't have symptoms (remember, nearly 40% of people are asymptomatic, even without the vaccine). So: Number of tests being carried out dropping off since 2 weeks ago: https://coronavirus.data.gov.uk/details/testing Therefore: Number of 'positive cases' drops, due to a combination of the above. Other ponderings: 1) I still don't understand why a negative test doesn't over-ride a 'ping' from the NHS app. Unless the tests are not accurate enough to be relied upon... https://www.bmj.com/company/newsroom/accuracy-of-rapid-covid-test-may-be-lower-than-previously-suggested/ 2) The UK is carrying out about 1m tests a day and reporting under 50k positive results (<5%). With a test inaccuracy of higher than 5%, how can any of this be trusted?

More antibodies gives better viral protection, who knew My guess: 5th jab onwards will be payable, when the general population have been scared into thinking they'll die from whatever the latest variant is. A good link about viruses in general, with explanations in layman's terms: https://www2.mrc-lmb.cam.ac.uk/viruswars/viruses.php#antibodiesstrikeback

Always interested to learn... can you share some info or know where it can be found? Thanks in advance!

I'm in the same boat as Ali. If I don't know about something, I find and ask someone who does. The best placed person I know is a school friend who has a (related subject) 1st from Oxford and has worked in the pharmaceutical industry since leaving uni. He isn't going to be taking up the offer of any of the Covid vaccines at present, which spoke volumes to me.

Volvo V70 / V50 Estate?

Personally... Definitely the latter. Even older if I could. But definitely petrol non turbo if I wanted reliability. I have a 2000 MR2 with 133k on it, faultless, and a 2001 Micra with 25k (!) on it, also faultless. Both been on track days and driven back home. The 2009 VW Tarty van is currently on 130k and in for a turbo and manifold... the cost of that job will be more than double what I paid for both of the above cars combined

I think a vast majority are being identified as Delta, maybe 90%. I would say hospitalisation through Covid means you've got it pretty bad. https://www.pulsetoday.co.uk/news/clinical-areas/immunology-and-vaccines/gps-and-data-indicate-continued-rise-in-double-vaccinated-covid-cases/ "A weekly update from the ZOE study at King’s College London, said there were currently 15,537 new daily symptomatic cases in partly or fully vaccinated people, an increase of 40% from 11,084 new cases last week. By contrast in unvaccinated people in the UK there are currently an average of 17,581 new daily PCR-confirmed symptomatic cases of Covid, according to the ZOE figures, a drop of 22% from the week before. It suggests the number of new cases in the vaccinated population is set to overtake the unvaccinated in the coming days, the team noted." Of course, if 100% of people are vaccinated and there is 1 case then that means vaccinated people make up 100% of those with the disease, and gradually more people are having the vaccine - but with unvaccinated cases dropping and vaccinated cases increasing so quickly (faster than the speed of vaccine rollout), it seems to indicate that naturally acquired immunity is doing a better job than the vaccine. We are also seeing reduced deaths as a proportion of cases in this wave, but we are gaining natural immunity over time, its summer, and a proportion of those most susceptible to Covid have now passed on. Could be down to the Delta variant being more easily spread and less damaging, that is true.

Not completely, but certainly not the 90% or whatever is claimed...

I stand corrected, thanks Mark!

Don't worry, it won't happen until parliament are back from summer recess in September. Which - coincidental timing with 'freedom day' - starts tomorrow...

No wonder with how ineffective the vaccines appear to actually be: https://blogs.bmj.com/bmj/2021/01/04/peter-doshi-pfizer-and-modernas-95-effective-vaccines-we-need-more-details-and-the-raw-data/ TL:DR: 19-29% according to that article. If over 60% of hospital admissions have been double jabbed (I am quite sure that guy gave the correct stat, then was told to issue a 'correction', the sort of U turn becoming common for this bunch of idiots in charge), this is almost exactly the same percentage of UK adults who have been double jabbed... Yes, we are seeing reduced deaths as a proportion of cases in this wave, but we are gaining natural immunity over time, its summer, and a proportion of those most susceptible to Covid have now passed on. Yet they will claim to have done a brilliant job introducing the vaccine and its been amazingly successful, blah blah. Strong opinion alert: Prediction: Over the next year, our freedoms will be reduced and requirement for vaccine passports increased. Then Covid jabs will become a paid service with booster jabs required every few months to maintain valid vaccine passport status. We'll effectively have a nation of drug addicts. This will bolster the NHS balance sheet ready for sale (anyone remember "Save The NHS" and those working in hospitals commenting on how quiet it was?), and those with shares / fingers in pharmaceutical pies will make huge wedges of cash. (Edit to add: I know I have been skeptical throughout this thread, but I am not anti vax in any way. However, when I am being told to do something (2 letters and 7 text messages now, and counting) by someone / something it makes me wonder why. So I start to research things for myself, and form what I hope to be an unbiased and rounded opinion, no matter which side of the fence that falls, and always be open to changing that with further information and research).

An interesting video, which I agree with entirely based upon my experience: I feel the sweetspot is late 90s/early 2000s.

Thanks for the vids - I hear it, perfectly normal. The freewheels use open bearings as you can get twice as many balls in as a sealed bearing (thus better load capacity), but with no seal you can then hear everything that's going on inside. There is always a very slight variation in chain tension with a tight chain and horizontal dropouts, hence the 'on-off' noise as the bearings load and unload. It can be quietened by filling with grease, but then you risk gumming up the freewheel mechanism. Any skipping or stuff like that isn't good, but all safe to use as is

I think Vauxhall might do something too? Older Volvo, BMW? Edit: quite a lot of choice! https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-search?postcode=PR69BB&include-delivery-option=on&body-type=Estate&transmission=Manual&fuel-type=Petrol&minimum-badge-engine-size=1.6&maximum-badge-engine-size=3.0&advertising-location=at_cars&page=1

Generally sounds normal and nothing to worry about, but a video clip would be helpful if possible.

Sure, pop us an email and we can set that up for you.

Don't know much about those specifically but it looks nice! As long as the history is good I don't think you can go far wrong. I'm also going to be heading to Fulwood on Monday afternoon if that helps at all..