Kids bike Accumulation The last few weeks at Spindles has definitely established a pattern which consists of a busy period in the morning up to about mid day leaving us to complete the jobs hopefully by 4pm. Some people return to pick up their bikes armed with a donation kids bike. We have accumulated over 8 kids bikes over the last few weeks and if they don't sell by next weekend they are going in the 'Give n Take'.
Most of these we will hope to sell for between £5 and £10 but as they take up too much room they will have to go.
Speaking of child bikes we have had requests for racing bikes that would be suitable for ages around 11 which is a difficult spec as the wheel sizes still need to be small. There are many on line options using 24" wheels however these are expensive for what they are. One option is to use a mountain bike frame and fix 26x1.1 road tyres. Using rigid forks and narrow drop handle bars it could be a good solution to the problem as there are plenty of lite MB frames around. We will be building one up over the next few weeks and I'll put up some images when its done.
Removing Rust
I showed Ben how to remove rust using tin foil and water. Its an easy option if there is not too much rust and is good on Chrome. After testing it out on a kids bike he progressed to the delivery bikes that was donated by Ken last week. He showed real enthusiasm especially when the real paint colour shone through with the application of T-cut. Ben now has a project.
World Car Free Day
I've just found out about World Car free day which is an opportunity to not use motorised transport and get out on bikes. It's on Sunday 22nd September see http://www.worldcarfree.net/wcfd/ for details. Living Car free is a challenge especially for those living in the country side or with families. Making it easier to cycle with the use of dedicated car free cycle paths is a big step forward that could be taken. I listened to some of the parliamentary debate on cycling that too place on the 2nd September last. There were a lot of positive noises but getting firm action will take a long time. One reason for this can be seen in Corsham where a recent cycle path implementation on Valley Road illustrates that negative mind set that needs to be overcome. This cycle path consists of white lines painted on the road which peter out near a junction or road island thus still giving the car the priority. Many people are afraid of cycling on the road as they feel vulnerable and exposed. This particular cycle path does nothing to alleviate this issue. Only when priority is given to bikes in urban places will there be a mind shift of perceptions.
