Paul Ruinaard

That craft sells on auction at $1800 per knife. But I do think they are art and a once off, unique item, And I have some (kitchen) knives that I paid for which i then deleted the numbers from memory.

So to revive this thread for a Friday. Have a look here. Warning - serious Knife Pornography.

Best Advice Ever

So are the older folks who know about hub kultchurr and the like all standing around in a circle applauding each one of these mails? Are we also allowed to take the soap box? Its a hard place to learn this place - you stand a good chance of being slapped silly on your first post if you happen to take to moaning and the like (which many noobs including the recent one) found out at their peril. Me - been here a long time. Prior to this I was on Spinman (think there are a lot of you ex Spin folks here as well) where you could get your inbox flooded in an argument between the Pink Panther and some other dudes about their frame colours. Migrated here is about 2008, i thiik. Its a bit of a blur.... Ridden everything i can think of and also raced almost all the major races. Now I ride with mates (which according to the post about the Zen of cycling seems to be the highest level of evolution). For me its cause I am too fat, too slow and too lazy to put in the training required to go fast again. I like a good handbag swinging session and not above starting one occasionally (see no warning points though so i must know where the line is). I am pretty tempted to find out what one has to do to get banned or get warning points. Admin - please can i have a warning point so i can intimidate noobs?

Wow as a kid we used to press our nose up against the glass of the Deale and Huthe Cycles shop in DF Malan Drive in Blackheath. This is bringing back memories. My mate had their lower end road going bike - the swift and the dart. Our family was too poor and so these were like going to see the Ferraris in the showroom to perve at them. They also had the ultimate in Bike Porn in those days - a thing called a Zeus with wingnuts rather than Quick releases. These were al locally made in SA - there was another dealership somewhere as well.

Has anyone thought about lights and floating bridges? Not a good mix if you dont stay on the floating bridge....

I must admit that in the idle hours I have dreamed of a project like this - clearly you have big kahunas or a big stash of Euros. I think that my scope has been limited to Randelas rather than Euros or US$ cause the size of the risk is just too great. I agree with some of Skylark's posts and would err on the side of caution however I would think that you have done a lot of homework. As I messaged you, if some of my little plans come off then i hope to see Europe for 6 months with my wife and spend time in exactly the sort of establishment you guys are building - hopefully sooner rather than later. So there is a market, even amongst us Saffers, for such a destination. And there musty be a huge market in Europe. I even looked at (and haven't given up on) doing inbound MTB and road cycling tourism in to South Africa. I always remember that program on BBC where they followed people like you who were chewing off renovation projects in the places of their dreams (Spain., France etc). There were some pretty scary stories of how these people got in to hot water and under estimated the local context of what they were doing. The drain on their resources and the lack of understanding of what sort of roadblocks they could run in to was scary. Many gave up halfway or returned home to earn more GBP and then completed their projects. It wasn't a Grand Designs thing - it was something else - cant remember it now, but likely worth watching. I would say a wealth of experience in property and renovations, understanding the locals and language and a set of deep pockets (like budgeting a third more than your plan) would be my launch points. But that is me. Keep us informed. As you say - if it was easy all of us would be doing it.

Wow Wow wow. Didn't even know this place existed. This is something that just hit the bucket list

Okay it worked this time around - all fixed

Just tried to donate via credit card and there seems to be some back end processing issues with the payments gateway you may want to check.

I leave you luddites to dwell on your old steel frames with rim brakes and MTB's with V and Cantilever brakes. Oh and rigid and the like.... With Elastomer shocks .... Just think of a wet road ride with carbon rims at the moment - you are sometimes better off grabbing the guy next to you when you need to stop as its going to be more effective. Now add a nice big disc to the middle that doesn't worry about whether its wet. Safer?

Dead on the money. The fact of the matter is about 95% of people riding haven't got a clue about the physics of cornering and braking and how a bike wheel works. Hence the trickle down of technology is saving these luddites from themselves. Most riding is done by instinct - which is great cause when you start to think about it, you get in to trouble. Its not logical or intuitive. So you have to move your weight in any corner or else you wont turn - its not your tread pattern that turns you - its the change in plane of the spinning mass being your wheels. that is just to start And to make this clearer at anything above 30 to 40 kmh you are turning the bars left and the bike will turn right. Its all well known to motorcycle riders and racers. You steer the bike with the back brake on off road courses as well. So the addition of a better much more powerful brakes (cause face it the current calipers are really dated - like from 1900) will make the amount of control you have over these processes - the actual ones that make a bike turn and the like, much better and finer, rather than the rough ones we have today. Ergo Sum - you can brake later, turn in harder, make lighter wheels with less spun mass that accelerate faster and the like. Make bikes handle better and make them safer, and faster. And this will push other components like the DI2 XTR auto shifting we are seeing that is like a CVT gearbox. Linked to this is the trend towards wider rims, lower pressures and wider tyres which grip better and give you better braking and a better more comfortable ride so you are fresher over longer distances and can ride harder longer. And the lump of wetware on the top that is thinking he is actually riding the thing is really instinctively obeying laws of physics he doesn't really comprehend nor understand unless you are pretty advanced as a rider. Like they say - you never forget how to ride a bike. The fact is that once you understand you are not going to fall over the rest is instinct. You want dangerous - go and ride in a pack with people that haven't got the experience dont understand how to corner and brake and turn - that if they turn the bars left at speed the bike will turn right. That is where people hit things that they never intended and cant understand what happened when they took the bunch down And the trickle down effects of technology and Moore's law makes things that were very expensive, dirt cheap a couple of years in the future. ABS for bicycles is very easy to do with a bit of battery power and some years in the future it will be the next big thing.

Hmm - my fantasy trip (for when some of the share options vest) is to go to Europe for 6 months - 2 in each of Italy, France and Spain over the period of the grand tours. And Barcelona has always ben high on my list of "if i got offered a job " destinations. Thing is any time i got close the industry or economy crashed. And Spain and Portugal are properly broken, plus I am pretty old now. So I was actually looking at a travel company that would do outbound cycle tours to the Santiago de Compostela as a business with a Spanish mate at one time. So your plans have a ring of some that i have sat and dreamed about. I dont know you guys at all so it would be interesting to hear how old you are, what sort of work you do and what inspired you embark on this adventure? It makes me want to start planning my big trip rather than the maximum 2 week breaks I get.

Just got a new toy - an Anova immersion heater. I brought it back from the States. It allows you to do Sous Vide but at a much lower entry cost than the traditional Immersion Bath Cooker which costs you R 12k entry level. It work beautifully - I did a whole chicken yesterday for the first time - it cooked for 6 hours at 65 Centigrade, and man was it succulent and moist inside and full of flavour. Its quite an eye opener when you work out what the restaurants have been doing to get your food like it is. Its also pretty depressing cause now you can do it at home (and sometimes better) it means you dont go out as much and are critical when you do.

So where does one get one of these ?

Does anyone know if any local folks have stock of these - I want a set but cant find them anywhere...

Is the route still going down the slimy concrete storm water drains where a lot of folks fell? Also was very dark. Maybe ride with lights on... Me - I reckon i can ride them in a sinch but the chances of falling and having a cracked hip or femur are just too great - rather sit this one out if they are in. I cant see on the route.

If its electronic fuelling you and ignition you may have to remap the ECU to make sure that it understands that there is less back pressure. These things are very Cleva... I took the Cat Converter out of my Triumph Explorer and had a look on some forums how this would work. Also put in a DNA Filter. Basically you reset it and make it re-learn the configs of the bike from the sensors. The intelligent ones recalibrate and it changes the way it fuels appropriately. It has a lot broader and lower torque band and pulls really well, plus a little bit more on top, not that it needed it. And consumption improved. Maybe that will help your conversion?

Bought the latest widest Specialized saddle - 162mm I think it is. Man its great having all that support for my wide ar$e after that 143mm anal death machine I was on. Lets just say I understand what fisting would feel like.

I want these brake levers - but will have to do 11 speed to do it all. That means new wheels and carbon rims..... I was planning it all last night before bed. FWIW- modulation on discs is really great. I have the TRP cable actuated on my tandem and my CX bike and they are just is a different league. Exactly what the other guys said - bigger tires on wider rims will mean more traction and better braking. On any given descent you will not be able to stay with a disc braked bike with this combo. And then there's the reduction in spin mass on the rims cause you don't need the thick braking surfaces.

They are truly excellent dogs. I have another 3 so you are talking to a convert. And so many at the rescue centres that need a home. Two of mine are rescues. It is a risk but Labbies have sensitive stomachs and dalmatians are deaf. So every furry friend breed has their issues. I think the thing that scares us the most is how much we love them and when their time is up having to make some tough calls. Give a little guy a home. If you do get a dachsie then always feed them good joint food and dont let them jump off and on beds. But man they are excellent hounds. I could have you in tears of laughter about all their antics, especially this one. Thing is when they are gone its tears of pain. Was 9 excellent years. They are normally pretty low maintenance and very rewarding. And get a pair. Send me a picture when you do.

Just had to have one of my Dachsies put down owing to back injury. The surgery didn't help and she went downhill. RIP Layla. I've Lost my first two dogs that my my now wife gave me after the divorce I went through and the ex took the previous pair of Dachsies. So they were pretty special. Louis and Layla. Kept me sane inside insanity when there wasn't much else in my world that seemed stable or worth holding on to I have three others and we will get another one - will have to be a pup this time. Its amazing how we I mark events in my life and timelines on the passing of pets. Always remember - they may be part of your life, but to them you are their total life.

If you ever rode a 360 Husky you knew. Blinding fast in a straight line and like a piece of spaghetti in a corner. Used to ride with mates at Eureka Sands which is basically now Steyn City. One of them had one of these. Look at those uber strong downtubes there in the front of the frame.

If you did one of those then you would know the haul up Blue Route is anything but fun... Swore i would never do another "De Tour"

Mine eventually arrived - ordered 16 September. Handwritten slip delivered to my old work address but it got through. Have faith - we are accelerating backwards as a country but eventually seems to be the watch word....