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This morning I think I figured out my hand problem. My right hand sits naturally at the top of the hood and the only “pressure” is in the pocket in between my thumb and pointer.

My left arm and hand want to sit with my palm resting on the bar and more of my hand against the hood.

I can rotate my hand forward so it matches my right hand but it doesn’t feel natural, and I have to consciously think about keeping my hand in that position. It also causes my elbow to stick out at an angle, where my right forearm is parallel to the ground.

I knew my arms weren’t symmetrical, but being left handed I would have thought the problem would have been the other arm.

Yes, there’s this thing that redirects water back to the boiler if the pressure gets too high so the pump can run but no water comes out. So, because the 3-way valve is plugged and it can’t send water to the group head, it’s returning it to the boiler. I tried decalcifier but it didn’t work. I’m going to try it again before I disassemble the thing.

I wondered about your PM status on the ride today. Bummer.

Someone please remind me to NEVER color Jackie's toenails again.

Got it. Yeah, I had to replace my valves once, the seals had just gotten old/worn, but it wasn't too bad. My grouphead design may have more easy access, though.

Edit: found some pics that I took during the process, the first comparing the old/new valves and the others in an exploded view (which is always nice when it's time to put it back together). Do you need to have any food grade lube on hand or anything? Double-check before you pull things apart.

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The only part of my coffee operation that needs descaling is the kettle. We have a mineral-rich aquafer.

Don't do it. Never.

Done.

Take a look at this post. It does a pretty good job of showing where the pressure should be on your hands, you want to be careful not to compress any of the nerves in your palm.

I ride on pretty rough roads with thin unpadded cotton bar tape and unpadded or no gloves. After longer rides my hands sometimes hurt, but I've never had any numbness.

Thanks for wondering. The tingly anticipation is over when the thing is consummated, never to return. I'm going to sit here, become aroused over text and images of PMs and crank arms on the internet, and savor the tingle.

Soooo... what color puffy decals did you get? Did you bundle some chainrings?

Black. I am not against adding some color to the generally funereal look of the bike, but I don't think that's where I want to do it. My computer only came in red and looks okay, so maybe I'll change my mind later.

I got the Praxis 50/34 set, since the 6800 crank is moving to the Lynskey. The Shimano chainwheels look like crap on the PM IMO and I wanted 5-bolt for cost and flexibility reasons too.

Personally, I would have gone pinker with sparkles

Another bit of culture I missed out on, having spent my adolescence in a home for incurable weenies. I just think "kit" is a bit naff.

Gentle reminder, talking here about other forums/threads on BF is bad etiquette.

Got it.

Yeah that's bad etiquette. I get it.

I'll be interested to hear your thoughts on the Praxis. I like the way they look and they're supposedly the only chainrings besides Shimano to be cold forged. I keep meaning to pick up a set, but then 5750 'rings pop up for a price that I can't resist.

My one argument for colorful decals: how else are others going to know, with only a casual glance, that you're an Elite with a PM? :foo:

Beautiful moderations.

So here is the weekend dilemma. I am on call this weekend. Typically I get one page/hour, during "normal" hours say 7AM-10PM. I get fairly few pages between 10PM and 7AM. I do want to ride this weekend. Each page takes typically 5-10 minutes to put out the fire. So clearly I am not doing any group rides. I think it makes sense to start out extra early like 5:30AM so risk of pages first 2 hours of ride is low, and accept that once/hour I will have to take a 5-10 minute "rest stop" to answer the page, address the issue and put out the fire. Ideally I would ask a partner to cover a few hours for me but it seems no one is willing this weekend.

The alternative is to not ride at all and sulk. Which feels rather tempting TBH.

Thanks! Never had pain, just left hand numbness on longer rides.

As for the rings, as long as the shifting is halfway decent, I won't know a thing.

A good sulk is sometimes nice, but a ride is almost always better in hindsight. I'd try to squeeze in a metric.

If you need an excuse for a weekend off, by all means avail yourself of this one.

Two things from the morning ride:

1) Was it datlas that recently expressed chamois cream FOMO? I've still never used chamois cream, but I did use a somewhat analogous product that was recently recommended in the Greater 41 - some Gold Bond anti-friction stick that looks like an antiperspirant. It was... not bad. I don't feel like I *need* chamois cream, but there's usually an, um, adjustment period wherein I need to sort out pinching/rubbing. It's typically when I first get on the bike or when I get back on after a bathroom break, convenience store stop, un caffe, etc. No adjustment period today. That was nice.

2) As my riding load has increased, I find that I'm really liking the stretching and foam roller work post-ride. Man, does that help. Hurt like **** when I first started doing it, but it's a hurt-so-good thing now, and I'd be in a lot more discomfort if I didn't do it.