Friday Randoms: Wooden XC Racer, Run-Flat Inserts, and the Most Expensive Tire at the Show - Sea Otter 2018

 What next, they're gonna use zip ties as a lock for bikes and sell em 20 bucks each??? (scroll down). "Hiploks sell for about ten dollars each, $19.95 for the the pack to temporally lock your bike where you can see it" WTF?!

 @Jo-rides: aviation snips will cut that nice and quick. Never mind bolt cutters on a rope.

 Pool noodles are made from expanded polyethilene foam, not EVA

 @romphaia: very true but don’t tell that to the bro unless ya say “enduro blue”. Your description of the diffence in materials is way above his paygrade

 Why do people squark about things they arnt forced to buy. Its so weird. Make a ghetto one if you want and leave others buy one made out of high density foam, which wont soak up stans, or block the air valve if they want.

 @gonecoastal: i think it's meant for if you run down to the store on your bike or something and want to make it so there's an extra step to getting away with your bike. you're more likely to notice if someone is fiddling with it. it's also another thing in the way of them hopping on it and riding off.

 That stuff is made of closed cell foam, pool noodles are a different open cell foam. There are insulating foam rods that are the same stuff but much cheaper and likely, a different density.

 Yep, whenever I see the prices of the tire inserts, I can't help but think of this guy:

www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=1&v=Jj0uBQ7j5c4

Someone needs to update the clip to include the tire inserts.

 @Jo-rides @gonecoastal they're meant for those times you need to run into the gas station or rip a piss at a busy trailhead and you don't want to leave your bike entirely unsecured. I've had many a solo ride, often in unfamiliar towns, where one of these would make me feel way better. You can get through ANY cable lock with a set of angle cutters or tin snips in under a minute. So all locks are stupid except for U-locks and hardened chains, by that reasoning.

 @djm35: yeah much cheaper, like 42x times less? come on, both are quite the same cheap price and extruded by kilometer per hours
What you pay is the 100k$ per year of marketing

 @trialsracer: Takes zero time to lock my bike to my "New York" series lock. But feel free to use a glorified zap strap

 @Mac-Aravan: Yes your right you can buy 30 meters of closed cell foam tube on amazon for £20 it's a complete rip off!

 I've ridden them for a while now and am quite pleased. I used the Huck Norris and Schwalbe Pro-Core all last year and I like the Airliner a lot better. More protection than Huck Norris (more like Pro-Core), easier to install than Pro-Core (more like Huck Norris). It's a nice combo of easy to use and good protection. Just my 2 cents as someone who's ridden them...

 @charmingbob: can never get enough of that!!!

 Points for that man!

 Exactly what i thought at first glance

 No offence RC but I don't think you will be modelling for the calendar.

 Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee! If you can get away with it, heck yeah! Wish I could!

 I can't even criticize that thing. As a woodworker the complexity of it is staggering.

 @jclnv: I’m strangely drawn to those bamboo frames...

 So, not a materials engineer or anything of the like I take it? Any of you get through school far enough to learn the history of wheels? I mean, let's make everything out of plastic, that's super strong! Oh My God it's wood we're going to die! The ignorance is palpable.

 @waywardtraveller: you think a wood frame is a ideal material for a mtn bike? Wood frames are stupid they warp and can't be transported to different climates without warping.

 @gonecoastal: My father told me that when he raced track WAAAY back in the day and he used cane rims. They glued linen to the outside of the rims for grip. Or he had dementia even earlier than I thought...

 Yep and I can guarantee nobody is going to compare that price to the bicycle equivalent. Ya know, a race-ready bicycle tire with cutting edge compounds and casings.

 Unless it had a bottle cage, then the price would be justified.

 Not to mention the magnesium centrelock rim.

 Ive always been fascinated by the balloon tires on F1 cars. Small wide rims and huge tires is so different from nearly all other types of road racing.

 @GTscoob: probly owned by a dentist

 Some guys on the Australian forum at Rotorburn have been giving various hardware store options a try! I think the $4 foam pipe insulation from the plumbing section is the choice at the moment.

www.rotorburn.com/forums/index.php?threads/huck-norris-anti-flat-tubeless-protection.311471/page-2#post-3166483

 the problem is that everyone that figures it out ends up starting a foam tire insert company once they see the 10,000% profit margins

 @xeren: And then goes bankrupt when they sell two in the first six months.

 I'd hazard a guess and say it'll fail at that tiny pin/screw just above the rear drop-out. All terrain forces go straight through what looks like M3 bolt. Does not look like sound engineering to me. Further if their road bikes are anything to go by neither of us mortals can afford one.

 Even just using your helmet straps does the trick.

 @madblack: helmet strap and heaviest gear are my go to security tricks when I'm a few meters away from the bike. Never leave it out of sight though.

 For the fist time fill yeah till they coat the insert then few weeks later do another top up and it's same as normal after that. Got huck norris in my rears and rate it very highly. Saves jumping a lot of extra weight on dh grade 1200g tires to avoid that bang bang bang of the rim on rocks weight is bugger all.

 I've been testing them for a while and haven't had to use more sealant than normal. The sealant really only needs to be on the outside so I just put it in normally and it has worked fine!

 Join the club. I wasted...err, researched several hours this week

 Bolt cutters might struggle with something as thin as a zip tie... Maybe some sheet metal sheers, but a crook is less likely to be carrying those.

 There was a similar lock tested a while ago and they couldn't cut through it after ten minutes with bolt cutters. I'm not sure if this is the same brand but it was steel insert with Kevlar surround.

I'm getting one for sure. (The one that was reviewed!)

 @BikesBoatsNJeeps: valid observation

 No bolt cutters required a decent side cutter gets through them with little effort

 My pup used to be my bike lock. I tied her leash around my top tube (of my town bike) and nobody would go near it while I was getting groceries.

 I never lock my bike up, If I'm ever in a situation where I need to lock my bike I just get out of the situation! works pretty well, never had my bike stolen!

 @mikeyrides: if you lived in Eugene theyd just steal your dog and your bike.

 @l-Naz-l: Or just get the one-fits-all key from Hiplock.

To quote RC: " This "key" fits all Hiplok straps." While I get the idea, it's still a very strange idea for a lock.

 @mustbike:

I don't think so..When you see a big black German Shepard with all of her teeth showing, and Growling, I doubt anyone would try to even get close enough to steal anything.. Thieves around here, So. Cali, always carry bolt cutters. Youtube has video of them stealing bikes in broad daylight, and in a crowed place, those a holes are brazen.

 The idea behind every lock is deterrence and delay in walking away with a bike not absolute protection. I’ve seen 3 bike thefts personally and two of them involved unlocked bike (yeah yeah only in Sweden) Some hipsters were sitting in a cafeteria and guy walking buy just grabbed one of their fixies and rode away with it. Nobody knew what was going on until one of those hipsters said where’s my bike? As the thief picked up speed.

Yeah I have a fkng giant chain and lock from Abus that survived one theft attempt and considering thief had all the time in the world to steal it as long as he wasn’t making the noise, it’s a good system. But it weighs 10kg total. I’m not going to fkng take it around town with me only to win in internet battle royale of “I am the most responsible bicycle owner that will never get his bike stolen”. A lock has to be convenient to carry around. Even mu Abus U lock isn’t.

 @speedyjonzalas:
its OTTOLOCK Cinch Lock and yeah its insanely hard to break i have yet to see someone cutting through with normal tools

 Loosen the stem bolts? Never tried it but maybe when your bike is away from you but in sight, it will delay a thief from riding off long enough to get to them and greatly incease the risk of injury to theif?

 @Braindrain: Turn saddle around facing bacwards if it's QR or after stopped engage shifters to lightest gear works fine and it's simpler if you're keeping it under sight

 @Braindrain: I had an evil idea once. There is a street in the center of Gothenburg that goes straight across a steep hill and there is no other way down that hill than the steep straight street both ways. So if you placed an unlocked bike with cut brake lines the thief would easily reach 40-50km/h before he came to the first crossing and he would have 3 more to do going that fast with T crossings at the end.

 @miguelcurto: my way is tool free. Derail the chain off the biggest cog in the cassette and put it against spokes then put the bike upside down. I may eventually leave it standing upright and then I remove front maxle since it is easy to do and doesn’t affect the setup of the bike.

Another good tip: Do not attach helmet to the bike in any way, like to lock the front wheel with it. A random dude who takes the helmet off the bike, puts it on his head and then proceeds to take the bike is less likely to raise suspicion.

 @mustbike: she was a staffordshire terrier, not many folks would approach one if they didn't know the dog.

 @WAKIdesigns: this post ties in oddly with your last post in that if you leave your bike upside down, air in the master cylinder can work it's way up to the caliper. When you put the bike right side up again, and go to ride off, you'll have no brakes! It's for this reason I stopped turning my bike over to change flat tires. I had to hop off my bike and launch it down a hill because I had no brakes. Quite startling at the time, really!

 Looks like pile of shit compared to that Unno.

 @jclnv: ill stay with the Capra

 @tomasyr: Because it's half the price!

 I like. Not unlike.

 @oldfut: what?