bradjackson

LOL, those washboard stutterbumps on dirt roads are really evil, especially on a hardtail. If your teeth are chattering and your vision is blurred from the vibrations then your tyres are too hard for sure!! Softer tyres definitely help on a surface like that.

Yes I bought my first one online from overseas soon after they were released. Was so impressed with it that I ordered more which I have sold. And now I have just received my 3rd batch. Check my signature for the link to my site where you can buy them. They really are fantastic little lights.

It sounds like you are in the same place I was a year ago. I spent copious amounts of time reading up and learning a whole lot about lights (LED in particular) and batteries and charging circuits, etc. My intention was to build my own monster LED bike light. In the end what brought a sudden halt to the whole DIY idea for me was the release of the Magicshine bike light onto the market. I could no longer justify the expense and effort of DIY'ing, when this light met all my requirements, and at such an attractive price point. I still have intentions of building up my own battery packs for the Magicshine (smaller & larger packs for varied run-times and weights). Which should be enough to satisfy my DIY aspirations. I am also generally a DIY kind of guy but am not particularly clued up on electronics. I don't think you will get much gain out of tweaking your existing Topeak light. If you are still keen on DIY, I suggest a good starting point for you would be the MTBR DIY forums. There are lots of very helpful people on there, and most of your questions would have already been answered by someone on there.

I don't measure the pressure, but rather prefer to use the squeeze test. Harder tyres definitely feel faster to me so I ride them as hard as the terrain will allow. Sandy or very bumpy terrain = slightly lower pressure. Gravel roads or hardpack = high pressure. I see the trend these days is to ride softer tyres (especially with tubeless) so a lot of people will disagree with my logic, but it works for me. I don't have a problem keeping the bike under control in fast corners, etc even running higher pressure, and my current fitness level results in my lungs losing traction before the tyres do on really steep climbs.

Eish... The road works are all over the place these days. Here in PE, my commute to work takes me along a stretch of BRT construction. All I can say is thank goodness I ride a MTB, its a lot less susceptible to the rough patches on the road, and you can hop onto the pavement if needed.

I've done a couple of 4x4 trips through Lesotho and from my experience, its safe enough. I am at the very early stages of planning a MTB trip through Lesotho, but we will be a few riders with 4x4's as backup vehicles. Regarding places to stay: There's a nice backpackers lodge at the bottom of Sani Pass, near the Sani Hotel. I reckon it would be a good place to start your ride (you will want fresh legs for the pass). Although I haven't stayed there, you can sleep at Sani Top, it looks decent enough. From there it would probably be quite a ride to the next stopover point. Katse Dam Lodge is decent, as well as Sehlabathebe National Park. Keep posting on your progress, I am interested to hear how your trip works out.

Cycle Fan, did you manage to sort your charger out in the end? I am picking up on this thread rather late, but I just wanted to add my R0.02 on the dangers of using any old charger to charge Li-Ion batteries. In case anyone else reading this thread decides to try this recommendation. As already mentioned, Li-Ion batteries will get damaged by using the incorrect charger, but more importantly, there is a real risk of your batteries exploding and setting your house on fire (or worse), if you use the wrong type of charger. Li-Ion's require a specific charging algorithm in order to prevent nasty things like internal short circuits inside the battery, which can start a chain reaction with a not-so-happy ending. Bottom line: Only use a properly spec'd Lithium Ion charger to charge Lithium Ion batteries!! Same applies for Lithium Polymer.bradjackson2009-10-14 06:07:47

LOL Sure. The lights have been working great so far!!

A few of us will be doing a night ride tonight, leaving from the Elliot Centre on William Moffet at 19:00. Anyone keen to join? bradjackson2009-09-25 05:27:57