Tag: Brompton

Afternoon Ride and a New Helmet

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Photo info: Apple iPhone 12 mini, 4.2mm, f/1.6, 1/2000 sec, ISO32
 “Trail Bridge” Cedar Park, 2023

I bought a new bicycle helmet to replace my old Giro which was about 11 years old. The new Bern FL-1 Libre helmet was on sale at about 50%-off and I like the look of it so I figured it was a good deal. I think it will be a good summer helmet, with plenty of ventilation. My other helmet is a Giro Cormack in black, and it offers more protection but is heavier and hotter. Both are good, though!

Piplup and I went for a nice ride this afternoon to enjoy the beautiful 73°F / 22.8°C weather. I also wanted to test out the shifting because I made an adjustment to the chain-pusher. After I changed the chainring (and removed two links from the chain) last week, I noticed that the chain was skipping a bit.

After some testing, I determined that the chain wasn’t actually slipping off of the chainring or cogs, but the chain tensioner wasn’t lined up with the chain perfectly, and would “blip” every so often. I adjusted the chain pusher about a millimeter or so, and now the chain is lined up with the tensioner perfectly – no skipping at all. Yay!

I hope you had a nice day. :)

Photo info: FUJIFILM X-E4, 27mm, f/4.5, 1/210 sec, ISO320
 “Piplup Profile” Cedar Park, 2023
Photo info: Apple iPhone 12 mini, 4.2mm, f/1.6, 1/1600 sec, ISO32
 “Dramatic Sign” Cedar Park, 2023
Photo info: Apple iPhone 12 mini, 2.71mm, f/2.2, 1/290 sec, ISO25
 “New Helmet” Cedar Park, 2023

Cloudy Sunset Photo with Piplup

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Photo info: OLYMPUS E-PL9, 9mm, f/5.6, 1/60 sec, ISO200
 “Cloudy Sunset” Cedar Park, 2023

I was hoping for a beautiful sunset, but it turned out to be kind of overcast and grey. Still fun to go out and ride a bike, though!

I put a kickstand on my bicycle, and it’s very convenient, but I definitely need a flat platform to put under it when on dirt or grass. Today, my iPhone had that task. It’s not a long-term solution so I need to find something else to put under the kickstand.

For my motorcycle, I have a flattened soda can in the tank bag, but I think something a little more elegant would match the Brompton. Gotta find something.

Photo info: OLYMPUS E-PL9, 9mm, f/5.6, 1/13 sec, ISO200
 “Apple Kickstand Footprint” Cedar Park, 2023

Bicycle Photos

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Photo info: OLYMPUS E-PL9, 9mm, f/5.6, 15 sec, ISO200
 “Piplup at Night” Cedar Park, 2023

I’ve recently started following a several people on Twitter who ride and post cool photos of their Brompton (and other folding) bicycles and I thought I would give it a try too. Since I have a ginormous Borough bag for the front of Piplup, it’s easy to carry my tripod and a camera. So this evening I went for a ride around the neighborhood and took a night shot.

I think it came out okay – not the best of backgrounds, but not bad for the first shot. For these bicycle photos, I am going to use Mariko’s old Olympus E-PL9 camera since it has a wide-angle 9-16 mm (18-32 mm equiv.) lens. I am not familiar with the Olympus menu system so it’s a little frustrating to use but I love all cameras so it’s still fun.

I’m looking forward to taking more photos while bicycling! Follow me on Twitter if you’d like.

Photo info: OLYMPUS E-PL9, 9mm, f/4, 1/60 sec, ISO2000
 “Wide-Angle” Cedar Park, 2023

Lunchtime Ride to Test New Parts (and Have Fun)

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“Riding Along” Cedar Park, 2023

I installed the new 44-tooth chainring last night and took Piplup for a spin along the hike and bike trail today. The new chainring makes climbing hills much easier! I am very pleased with it!

But, halfway through the ride, I noticed that the chain would slip every so often when in the 2- gear, and sometimes in 1-. Since it was only happening when the chain was on the larger rear cog, I believe the derailleur/chain pusher needed adjustment. But it could also be that the chain has a stiff link. This seems more plausible since I had to remove two links when I replaced the chainring.

With that in mind, I made flexed the links that I had tinkered with a bit to loosen them up. I also made sure the chain tensioner jockey wheel was sliding correctly. Hopefully that takes care of the issue. Fingers crossed!

Photo info: Apple iPhone 12 mini, 4.2mm, f/1.6, 1/4500 sec, ISO32
 “Piplup” Round Rock, 2023

If you want to ride along with us, please watch the video I made. :)

Brompton Updates

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Photo info: FUJIFILM X-E4, 35mm, f/2, 1/105 sec, ISO2500
 “50T” Cedar Park, 2023

My next major update for Piplup is an 44-tooth chainring. The bicycle’s standard configuration comes with a 50-tooth chainring which is a little too high for me. In other words, the gearing isn’t low enough to provide a comfortable “granny gear” for climbing hills, and the common 44T switch should help with that.

I ordered the black chainring, so the silver ring part just inside the black chain-guard ring in the photo will change. I really like the look of the “black edition” Bromptons, so I am going that route with the new components, which include the chainring, fenders, and rear rack. FYI, the 2023 Bromptons have an option for black edition, but it costs more than the silver version. I would have liked to go that route, but I can’t complain since I bought my Brompton during the 20%-off sale.