Tools Explained

My dad sent me this in an email, which is a pleasant change from the usual overweight women and Harley-Davidsons.

DRILL PRESS: A tall upright machine useful for suddenly snatching flat metal bar stock out of your hands so that it
smacks you in the chest and flings your beer across the room, denting the freshly-painted project which you had carefully
set in the corner where nothing could get to it.

WIRE WHEEL: Cleans paint off bolts and then throws them somewhere under the workbench with the speed of light.
Also removes fingerprints and hard-earned calluses from fingers in about the time it takes you to say, 'Oh sh --'

SKILL SAW: A portable cutting tool used to make studs too short.

PLIERS: Used to round off bolt heads. Sometimes used in the creation of blood-blisters.

BELT SANDER: An electric sanding tool commonly used to convert minor touch-up jobs into major refinishing jobs.

HACKSAW: One of a family of cutting tools built on the Ouija board principle... It transforms human energy into a
crooked, unpredictable motion, and the more you attempt to influence its course, the more dismal your future becomes.

VISE-GRIPS: Generally used after pliers to completely round off bolt heads. If nothing else is available, they can also
be used to transfer intense welding heat to the palm of your hand.

OXYACETYLENE TORCH: Used almost entirely for lighting on fire various flammable objects in your shop. Also
handy for igniting the grease inside the wheel hub out of which you want to remove a bearing race.

TABLE SAW: A large stationary power tool commonly used to launch wood projectiles for testing wall integrity.

HYDRAULIC FLOOR JACK: Used for lowering an automobile to the ground after you have installed your new
brake shoes, trapping the jack handle firmly under the bumper.

BAND SAW : A large stationary power saw primarily used by most shops to cut good aluminum sheet into smaller
pieces that more easily fit into the trash can after you cut on the inside of the line instead of the outside edge.

TWO-TON ENGINE HOIST: A tool for testing the maximum tensile strength of everything you forgot to disconnect.

PHILLIPS SCREWDRIVER: Normally used to stab the vacuum seals under lids or for opening old-style paper-
and-tin oil cans and splashing oil on your shirt; but can also be used, as the name implies, to strip out Phillips screw heads.

STRAIGHT SCREWDRIVER: A tool for opening paint cans. Sometimes used to convert common slotted screws
into non-removable screws and butchering your palms.

PRY BAR: A tool used to crumple the metal surrounding that clip or bracket you needed to remove in order to replace
a 50 cent part.

HOSE CUTTER: A tool used to make hoses too short.

HAMMER: Originally employed as a weapon of war, the hammer nowadays is used as a kind of divining rod to locate
the most expensive parts adjacent the object we are trying to hit.

UTILITY KNIFE: Used to open and slice through the contents of cardboard cartons delivered to your front door;
works particularly well on contents such as seats, vinyl records, liquids in plastic bottles, collector magazines, refund
checks, and rubber or plastic parts. Especially useful for slicing work clothes, but only while in use.

SON OF A BITCH TOOL: Any handy tool that you grab and throw across the garage while yelling 'Son of a bitch' at
the top of your lungs. It is also, most often, the next tool that you will need.

Its time to start the music!

Crank this up:


Mute and full screen:

browser dump Jan 2010

I keep on finding fun bike stuff on the internet, and then never do anything with it.
So I present you with tabs 2 through 12 in my browser at the moment. These are things that I've left open for revisiting, but can now close.

Amazing cargo bike spotted in AZ. Be sure to check out that front wheel!

Mini Mega Downhill:


CHUNK 666 has a NEW WEBSITE, and it looks super polished like an urban culture shop.

A bearing size chart

Episode 1 of Pedaling NYC:

PEDALING: NYC - Episode 1 "Pizza Fixation" from Jim Fryer/BrakeThrough Media on Vimeo.

So bad its just bad. I know bikesnob ripped on it, cause that's where I found it. But here I am sharing it for some reason.

Mitsubishi Delica "Godzilla" Huge Lift For Sale

Nice vid of Jacquie Phelan:


Another awesome cyclist convo "PDX Chat before CX Natz":


Gnar tandem track crash:


Trailer for the upcoming film documenting the bike ride from London to Paris by a group of cyclists from around the globe - also known as Cutters:



Wait.. cyclists from around the globe are also known as cutters?
..and they rode 500km in cotton and ball hats?!

In the spirit of cotton and ball caps, Cody is putting on a bad party race and screening of this movie!

Vancouver screening premiere of "London to Paris"- Friday January 15th
RACE: Register at 5:30pm, race at 6:00pm - BRING 2 TALL CANS TO ENTER
FILM STARTS @ 7:30pm - FREE
race start, finish, and film screening all at Super Champion (245 Main St.)
More info on FixedVan

..and not really bike related, but still awesome:


Wow. Feels pretty good to get all those tabs closed. Its like spring cleaning my cache.

Newest Member of Team Naked

Looks like Naked bikes has imported some help with the getting rad!

IOLO in Canada - riding street in north vancouver. from aran cook on Vimeo.

I'm sure you're loving the roots and rocks Quadra has to offer =D

Eduards Zunda trippin'

You thought Latvia was good? Try out Copenhagen! Rasta tits!

Flashback Fabrications

I've been meaning to post this for a while.

Paul Brodie is somewhat of a legend around here. There was a day when his name was synonymous with 'The bicycle group' Kona, and Brodie bikes.

Back then it was all steel, and the bicycle group was pushing the 'sloping top tube', unicrown forks, and other MTB industry changing ideas (including double strap toe clips!).

I'm not sure when it happened, but Paul got out of Brodie bikes a little while ago. That's understandable. The brand still has power, and they make some really great aluminum race frames. Just ask Morgan.

Anyways, the reason I post this, is because I saw a post on Craigslist by the man himself. He was selling all of his jigs used on Brodie bikes. wow. Thats a lot of BC MTB history in one garage.

A friend and I sort of joked about going halfsies on the stuff, but still, too much $$$$ for me.

I was in Super Champion recently, discussing fabrication and he came up again. Tyler Lepore had seen the post, and was tempted as well. Then we started talking about fabrication and motorbikes.. Apparently this is what Paul is up to these days!

Flashback Fabrications



Just incredible! Have a look through his site. He's making EVERYTHING from scratch! I'm inspired.