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What do you keep buying even though you probably don't need it? For me it's lights. I don't seem to get out at night much these days but I can't stop buying lights, there's just something about a small but powerful light that's very satisfying.
Second is waterproofs but that's because I can't find one that really , really , works.
I swap grips a lot. I can't remember the last time I actually wore out a set of grips, but it's probably about 10 years ago at least! I buy more 7Mesh clothing than I actually need, but it's nice gear, it all works and fits amazingly and the guys and girls there are a great bunch of people so don't mind supporting them.
What do you keep buying even though you probably don’t need it? For me it’s lights.
Oddly enough I have a similar bad habit. I've actually got a little 350 lumen Lezyne light that I don't think I've ever used on a bike, it does make a great torch though!
Also pedals, I've got 3 times the pedals I need.
Gloves, I have far too many but still seem to buy more.
If I need to top up an order to get free postage, it will be a pair of gloves. £3 postage on something I need or add a £35 pair of gloves to the order for free delivery, gloves every time!
oury grips and the topeak hummer multitool.
wet screams too. as you know when you put them on its gonna be a mint ride.
Non bike specific water bottles that look like they will keep the winter/dog crap off the squirty bit.
They either don’t fit a cage or just allow the crap into the bits you can’t wipe with your sleeve.
Decathlon do a version I kinda like but they aren’t built to last.
How hard can it be to make one that is fit for purpose😡
Gloves here too. I've said it before, buy loads of cheap gloves, keep swapping them round and they don't wear out 🙂 Got some Troy Lees for £11 from Merlin this week.
Actually, just realised I do the same with Salomon and ION jerseys. Got about 6 similar of each in different colours and sleeve lengths. They fit good 😀
My favourite kit:
Specialized Road Bandit (swat)
Blackburn Big Switch
Topeak Joe Blow (over 15 yrs old and still going strong)
Wahoo Bolt
Cheap secondhand bikes.
I'm a total sucker for a 'bargain' so I see an unloved bike on facebook and think, hmm with a bit of tlc that could scrub up quite well as a winter road bike, turbo bike, bike for my daughter, winter hardtail etc etc
Then I spend about 40 hrs taking the whole thing apart to clean and repair, spend double the purchase price on new parts and end up with an ok bike that probably cost as much in time and parts as a brand new one.......
Tyres.
All of them.
Mudguards. Look horrible but if you're cycling for utility they make a world of difference.
Backpacks and tyres.
Tyres. Can never quite find the right one to compensate for my lack of strength and skill!!
Gloves for me every time. I have four pair and am constantly looking and will have to have a session on the couch to work out why.
Having spare parts in the back pack also, although never having a huge mechanical while out has not prevented me from appearing like an lbs on the trails
Oh, if we are listing things we cant stop buying then technical wear. I love the stuff and probably own more technical cycling clothing than normal clothes and I think i probably spend more on tech wear than i do on bikes.
Tyres - Far to many pairs in the garage.
Bar tape - Great to top up and order and I'll always use it.
Selle Italia Flite saddles - I worry they'll discontinue them so always have a spare or 2.
Gloves to a degree - I've got loads and another pair will do no harm.
Current favourite bit of kit are my S-Phyre MTB shoes. They are ridiculously comfortable and total overkill for canal towpath bimbling on my gravel bike.
The thing I have too many of is water bottles. I have a cupboard full of them. There must be 20 Madison Genesis bottles in there alone.
Chris King Headsets.
Schwalbe Racing Ralph.
Continental GP4000/5000.
Shimano shoes mtb/road.
ESi Silicon grips.
A perfectly setup Duraace mechanical groupset.
These things are constants - everything else is an experiment.
Dakine gloves and dakine backpack with Ltd edition artwork on it.got a few pairs of the gloves.
My favourite current bit of bike kit is my new Maxx D light. I’ve bought quite a few cheapy lights over the years - Chinese eBay jobs, Brite-R, Ryder Alumia, Bike Hut 1600, various Moon lights.
Decided to stump up for something crazy bright and it’s so worth it. The intensity of the light available and how stable it is on the bars etc is awesome.
The Moon lights are the best of the rest in terms of quality I’d say - I’ll continue using them for commuting and helmet lighting (until I get an Exposure Axis for my birthday).
Other than that just pointless little bling bits - swapped out a perfectly serviceable Nukeproof Nucelus stem for a Thomson one - plus decent enough alloy bars for carbon ones. Same with cranks - NX Eagle Dub out, X1 carbon gxp in.
Gloves and tyres, forever looking for the goldilocks model for different situations!
socks
Tyres. Got a shed full. None quite worn down to the point of disposal, but very few in a good enough state that makes me think they would be the ideal tyre for x conditions/rides.
Lights. And gloves.
That I don't really need? More bikes, probably....
Lights for me too, but mainly commuter lights, I've got one big off road light and a old one with a shonky battery. Think I've got 6 or 7 100-200 lumen fronts and a similar number of rear ones though!
Gloves, 2 pairs in use, (winter/summer) and one odd pair of Aldi cheapos. Tyres, one spare rear that has a repaired split that I'd only trust for a short period in an emergency.
Multi-tools.
Tyres. Gave almost 10 pairs to a local bike charity a year ago but still have loads left.
My really old Specialized waist pack(bumbag) Massive and takes two bottles too, straps to hold a rainjacket, lots of small pockets for keys,change. Nothing for phones as they werent invented then 😆
I'm reading it as what bits do we own that we particularly love rather than something we buy a lot of which for me is socks my favourite of which on one side say 'squamish sucks' and on the other side says 'dont go' sooooo true!
Had a bike fit by Adrian and although not cheap it came with the SIDAs custom insoles which I always thought were good and very happy that they support my high arch. I left my shoes with them in at my fellas at the weekend I've had to use some bog standards in some summer shoes on the turbo this week, it was literally like night and day and was a HORRIBLE experience. So uncomfy and hot spots all over my feet and couldn't get my foot right.
Also few months ago finally pick up a morvelo gillet and I bloomin love it! Zip it up for extra warm and unzip and its close fitting enough that it doesnt flap around like crazy but then allows the air to flow. Tiny to take off and shove in a pocket too, bloomin' brilliant!
Blingy, needlessly powerful, German brakes.
Once you've tried them...
If we're raving about a bit of kit that is great, I'd have to say the PX Magma jersey/jacket I got last Year for £30... Wish I'd bought at least one for the spares box to use in a fw years time, it's just so temperature adaptable, while being nice and clingy/aero.
Exposure lights! I don't use them enough considering the cost of them but when I do I always think "these are special". Although, the Halfords 1600 is brilliant.
I was expecting the same from my Hope E4s. Despite looking really nice I think they are a bit pants.
BITD I had a thing for swapping tyres regularly, trying different brands/ patterns/ etc.
Wasn't sure why because I would always replace them with Panaracer Fire XC.
Fires would wear out, I'd buy (for example) Rocket Ron, hate them, buy Fires again, wear them out, buy something else, repeat.
Second is waterproofs but that’s because I can’t find one that really , really , works.
+1
I have a *lot* of jackets, can't find the perfect one.....
oreetmon, check out fresh goods friday, Nukeproof to the rescue.
My One Up EDC tool. Been used to death by me and my companions but it never misses a beat. No faffing about hunting for a tool in the depths of a bag and everything I've ever needed is right there.
Bits of kit I love?
Oury grips, Endura Zyme shorts, Bicycle Union BMX gloves, Only What’s Necessary boots. Hope. All of it. I’m a self confessed Hope fanboi. Brooks Cambium C17 saddles.
Things I buy even though I have too many?
Oury grips and Endura Zyme shorts.
Non bike specific water bottles that look like they will keep the winter/dog crap off the squirty bit.
They either don’t fit a cage or just allow the crap into the bits you can’t wipe with your sleeve.Decathlon do a version I kinda like but they aren’t built to last.
How hard can it be to make one that is fit for purpose😡
camelback podium bottle with the separately available mud cap...
Jackets, I have variety for different conditions and ride locations, I have never found a jacket to rule them all.
wheels. love looking at them, love thinking about them, love building them, love using them.
but in truth i love all bits of bikes but can not get excited about headsets.
Ravemen PR light
Always wanted a light that does road properly yet still can deal with gravel and some natural trail.
Is due this winter to be upgraded to the big brother version (1600) which will be all the‘on-bike’ light I’ll need for any situ.
The 1600 also has extended runtime by piggy-backing from USB power bank.
The remote button on the bar is the cherry on top.
Fidlock bottles. I like it every time the click into place.
On one Midge bars on my gravel bike. Comfy on the tops, great feeling of control on the drops.
Aussie Grit thermal gilet. Really well made, versatile bit of kit. Sad they're no longer in business as not sure what I'm going to replace it with when it wears out.
Titanium leather saddle
Bibshorts and saddles.
With other bits of kit you could call it an obsession, but when it's bibshorts and saddles I definitely think it's a fetish.
I think suspension seatposts will be the next obsession, I love the Thudbuster ST on my gravel bike but it's a rattling mess withing 1600km despite having already had the bushes replaced under warranty. I get the feeling the updated version will be next on my shopping list, and I kind of fancy a the eeSilk for my winter road bike...
Oh wait...the new light is in competition with my Brooks Team Pro Special saddle
I’ll sit happily on a Bel Air RL, Gobi Wingflex, Spesh Phenom. But the Brooks has all kinds of ‘not-there-ness’ about it. Looks nice too. But I don’t care about that because I sit on it. It feels coool and doesn’t encourage sweat. It is just the right amount of ‘compliant’. It lives on the tourer now but it does get swapped onto the 29er if I’m going out for hours and want to give my bonch a rest from those hard plastic grippy things
Like many others: gloves (can’t resist a bargain on Ebay), tyres (shed full... also under the stairs, and in the porch, plus some overspill in the loft), chains (currently 14 in the cupboard) and Middleburn chain rings (another Ebay weak spot). If there’s a nuclear winter I’ll have enough parts to keep going for a while...
Gore Shakedry Jacket for road riding. Folds up tiny, windproof and still totally waterproof after 3 years and only needed rinsed a couple of times under the tap. Haven't worn any of my vast pre-Shakedry collection of supposedly waterproof jackets since. Nor my gilets. Other than summer the Shakedry is always either on, or in the back pocket. Brilliant piece of kit.
Pikes.
3 years old, put a luftkappe in there at new, all I've done is lower leg services, they've been awesome.
2.6 Magic Mary in soft addix is also up there.
The advances in both of these technologies in recent years has been taken for granted, to think I used to think my pace forks and fire xc tyres were great! 🤣