A look at the “Junk Trunk”, an 18 litre Carradice-style roll-entry handlebar bag for bikepacking, touring, and just riding around, that is available as a downloadable sewing pattern from The Functional Sewing Project.
Bikes & Gear Archive
That Fairlight Faran
It took me a while but here’s a quick look at what I did with my friend’s used Fairlight Faran frameset ahead of a spot of touring in, hopefully, sunnier climes…
Surly Cross Check Bits and a Sewing Project
Revisiting my Surly Cross Check in its role as an all-weather, all-road, all-day mile muncher, and a new camera waist pack by way of enjoying some time at my sewing machine again.
A Fixed Wheel Journey, of Sorts…
Something of an ode to the fixed wheel bicycle and why I still love to ride them.
Loose Ends
A few loose ends, or threads might be more appropriate given the largely bag-making flavour of this post, to tidy up as the end of the year approaches.
Bagman Modifications and Other Things
Fiddling and fettling – modifying a Carradice Bagman Expedition for off-road use.
Surly Cross Check
It’s been in the Surly Catalogue for more than 20 years, what possible relevance could the venerable Cross Check still have in a world of modern adventure and gravel bikes…? That would depend on you, here’s mine.
Project: Big Fat Dummy Fenders
A workshop project to make a set of laminated wooden mudguards for my Surly Big Fat Dummy. Made from a blend of oak and smoked red gum with home-made brass and stainless steel fittings. They look cool and are a more sustainable solution than moulding composites.
Surly Big Fat Dummy
My Surly Big Fat Dummy.. a supertanker of a cargo bike that has proven to be way more fun loaded, and unloaded, than I could ever have imagined.
N+1 = Big Bro
Mk1 Brother Cycles Big Bro. A well thought-out rigid steel 29er for bikepacking and general trail duties, that supports the kind of old-fashioned standards that I enjoy fiddling with.
Brother Cycles AllDay
In a world obsessed with carbon, 12 speeds, & electronic shifting, the AllDay stands out as a simple, well-executed steel fixed wheel frame. Post now updated with new content after a few years of ownership.
An ECR + Tubus Vega post
** A quick update on this post, a couple of years on, while I remember. I’ve since ‘cold-set’ the Vega rack such it fits over a 3″ Knard on Rabbit Holes without any adapters/risers and with about 1/4″ clearance each side. I cut a block of scrap wood to just a bit wider than the gap between stays at the tyre position. Wedge the wood in place. Bung a quick release through the mounting holes …
Lightweight bike touring gear list..
Over time gear changes (mostly gets lighter), personal philosophy changes, bikes change and as a consequence so does my packing list for a bike trip. The last time I wrote one (in 2011, here) it represented a pretty heavyweight outfitting for a long, partly off-road journey featuring mountains, deserts and the potential for really bad weather and as such is still completely valid to my mind even if these days I would probably leave some …
ECR Fettling
Mk1 Surly ECR. Original thoughts and fettling from 2015, now with a 5-year update following many months on the trail together in the Andes, Himalayas, and other places.
Fiddling…
I’ve been fiddling around with my trusty old Nomad a fair bit this last few days in view of my imminent return to the High Atlas, Djebel Sahro and western fringes of the Sahara. Planning on a very much off-piste trip as much as possible having been twice before but both times on a bit of a mission, this time plan to spend a bit more quality time exploring backroads, tracks and trails. With that …