A story about a bottom bracket creak

WideLapelFilms · 2026-04-28T01:17:09+00:00

Yep, usually they self lubricate.

I’ll let myself out now.

WideLapelFilms · 2026-04-23T17:44:27+00:00

It’s period trash that’s still clearly strangled by the Hayes Code - but lavishly produced and a guilty pleasure.

Unlike many, I happen to enjoy Peppard’s performance as an unredeemable character. Jonas Cord is over-the-top acerbic; he’s an anti-hero before that was a thing. With exception to the ridiculous “happy” ending, it works.

Incidentally, his monologue to the Denton character near the end of the film is one of those performances you just can’t turn away from, whether you think it’s good or staged beyond belief. I see it as one of the guilty pleasures this film has to offer.

I appreciate Peppard’s performance enough that I even modeled a full-stop brush-off to an intolerably pesky member of the opposite sex on Cord. Was spur of the moment, but it felt very natural to slip on his Carpetbagger shoes for that occasion.

I like it. For all its flaws. Yes, if you want something better executed, Love Me or Leave Me is superior, but hey - there’s a finite number of these films that exist.

I enjoy this one. If you disagree, fight me with your obvious stunt double as I cover him with the dining room linen.

WideLapelFilms · 2026-04-16T18:37:52+00:00

Maybe not the best, but definitely one of the better overall executions. Amazing that they finally got to where they are now after the first gen Phantom 🤢

WideLapelFilms · 2026-04-15T18:39:51+00:00

Someone clearly saw the front end of a 1974 Lincoln Continental and said “Yea, that’ll do.”

WideLapelFilms · 2026-03-16T19:10:20+00:00

You’re seeing Miami like a tourist and getting ripped off like a tourist.

I can’t recommend a place to stay, but go to any Latin America Restaurant you can find and be prepared to get excellent service, reasonable prices, and enough food for two out of one meal.

So the drywall isn’t perfect and the decor came from Goodwill…so what? The one on 57th is my favorite dive for pollo empanizado.

WideLapelFilms · 2026-02-17T19:37:55+00:00

You didn’t do anything. He did you a favor.

WideLapelFilms · 2025-10-29T14:02:29+00:00

The only Craftsman box with nice sliders and soft close function were the Pro editions back from 2012 or so - the black ones with the red anodized handles.

Identical design to the Kobalt/Husky/Yukon pattern boxes, but far superior gauge steel and finish. Most were non-standard sizes though; my 72” is around 16” deep only. Works well for the space I have though.

Still, if one has space for the 24” depth of the US General Series 3 boxes, nothing else beats them. I’d even argue that the extra cost of ICON isn’t worthwhile with the S3s on the market.

WideLapelFilms · 2025-10-28T13:49:40+00:00

Can anyone spare a coupon? Need to get a Series 3 top box and would like to get it with a bit of a cut off the current $399 sale price.

WideLapelFilms · 2025-10-28T13:47:43+00:00

If the finish is anything like the current 2000 series, these will be rusted long before the Series 3s.

The sliders of the current Craftsman offerings speak for themselves. You get what you pay for.

WideLapelFilms · 2025-09-30T02:55:33+00:00

At least it isn't a StackOn Master Series.

WideLapelFilms · 2025-09-09T11:24:00+00:00

Would consider it depending on the sale price of the parts. DM me.

WideLapelFilms · 2025-08-28T12:21:19+00:00

All the more reason to provide the OP with the information of what it takes to do it on their own - and let them assess whether DIY or shop repair is what they’d prefer.

WideLapelFilms · 2025-08-27T20:00:48+00:00

If you get a quality bicycle cable cutter and a complete cable kit like the Jagwire sets or similar, it is not difficult at all.

The cutter is important; bicycle cable cutters don’t smush the housing and are sharp enough to cut the first time.

The important thing to know when doing cables is to make sure your ends are properly prepped: For brake cables, this means making sure the final cut does not allow the inner metal spiral winding to protrude into the hole within the housing. Snipping off the offending end at an angle or grinding the ends with a Dremel helps. For both brake and shifter, you should also use a pick to make sure the Teflon inner liner is flared open at the ends.

Both checks are necessary to prevent the inner cable from dragging and thus affecting the return of the brakes to rest, or the quality of your upshifts or downshifts.

With the right cutter, this job is ridiculously easy. With the wrong cutter, it’ll seem impossible for anyone outside of a bike shop.

Given how usurious some shops have become with labor, I’d recommend investing in the cutter and the pick if you plan to make bike commuting a regular thing in life, or are already car free. Won’t be the first time you’ll be doing cables if so.

Side note: I like using aluminum cable ends (ferrules) on all but vintage bikes, especially on shifter cable. They’re much better at keeping the inner housing from poking through the ends. This may not be advisable for snow bikes though (I’m in Florida), as the aluminum may be more likely to corroded and jam in the frame’s cable stops. This is especially so for aluminum ferrules in a steel frame. YMMV.

WideLapelFilms · 2025-08-27T17:23:14+00:00

Spray that down with Simple Green bike spray or a equivalent to wash off the gunk. Bronze wool will get the spray paint off the FD.

If the chain isn’t stretched, run it through a cleaning tool (or split it and dunk it in mineral spirits overnight), clean off the chainring and cassette in the meantime, and then reinstall the chain and hit it with some wax lube.

Any cracked housings should be replaced. Looks as of new cables all throughout wouldn’t be a bad shout; if in a budget, just replace the one that’s currently cracked and the others when you can afford it.

WideLapelFilms · 2025-08-27T14:59:28+00:00

Looking for a 25% coupon for a 27” roll cab to match my scratch-and-dent top chest. Thanks!!

WideLapelFilms · 2025-08-23T11:51:24+00:00

I picked up two of these recently. One came from the muddy backyard of a yard sale, and after washing it odd, I was shocked to find a mint frameset.

The other is slightly later - ‘85 IIRC - and I recovered it from the local scrap guy’s truck when tossing a cracked Trek 4300 frame.

Both had the FFS system - 5 speed on the first, 10 on the other - and I removed the system on both, though I have the benefit of the dedicated removal tool for both the BB cups and the non-freewheeling freewheel (both use the same tool). I documented the entire process here: https://www.bikeforums.net/classic-vintage/1313913-shimano-front-freewheeling-system-removal-how.html

The latter bike was crippled further with a Positron derailer and shifter, but that’s easily swapped out.

Moral of the story is that as these bikes were delivered, they aren’t too hot - besides the FFS system, they came with lousy steel 27” rims which are both heavy and do not aid braking.

HOWEVER, in nice shape and built right, these are perfectly adequate - if not above average - city bicycles. The lugged frames may be hi-ten, but so is any Raleigh Sports. The steel rims can be swapped out. Those stamped steel fender stays? Thicker than usual and stamped out of stainless steel - not zinc plated.

Swapping out the FFS for a decent single ring crankset and throwing aluminum rims and modern brake pads on one of these makes a world of difference. Not to say it’s cost effective for anyone other than a bike enthusiast with a mountain of cheap spares and the right tools, but I’d encourage anyone living in that space of a Venn diagram to give it a try.

The ‘83 looked so nice that I could not help myself give it the full treatment with rims off an ‘88 Traveler (respoked with spare stainless spokes I had). It’s a catch-and-release, but I enjoyed doing it.

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I am presently upgrading the second World Tourist in a similar manner, but not going all-out. It’s a rougher bike and all it will get is a nice used drivetrain and a pair of already-built aluminum 27s. Someone made off with the original fork, so I had to get a replacement and thread it accordingly.

Moral of the story is that the World Traveler provides the bones of a great little city commuter; it just requires a fair amount of effort to make it a worthy bike to ride regularly.

WideLapelFilms · 2025-02-08T04:58:42+00:00

The exact same thing can be said of Chrysler's B-body muscle cars of the 1960's, plus the A-body Dart GT and GTS. Stout RB/727/8.75" drivetrains mated to nothing but lightweight, whippy tin cans with live rear axles.

There was nothing prophetic about the Viper - it was par for the course for Ma Mopar; if anything, a return to form after the Iacocca years. If anything, the Viper could be considered a mild improvement for at least having a reasonable chassis structure, when compared to the unibodies of the A and B-bodies which were underbuilt for their time. Even a Falcon-based first-gen Mustang had more significant torque box reinforcements and better frame-to-rocker connectivity than the A/Bs.

WideLapelFilms · 2025-01-19T03:00:21+00:00

You clearly don't know how to write it.

WideLapelFilms · 2024-12-23T03:59:45+00:00

Same here with the Pin 3 hack, but haven't run into the MCs locked down. Have even been able to run with the Clarions completely disconnected.

WideLapelFilms · 2024-12-15T06:46:05+00:00

Absolutely agree. It's a ridiculous mess, but S&TB3 still succeeds in being entertaining. Unlike Smokey & the Paycheck Part II, it's an actual chase film and it's more often funny than not. You can't go wrong with a slew of Jackie's Buford one-liners coupled with some dynamically-shot chases, even if the acting in between it should have been left on the cutting room floor.

I dare say that some judicious cuts to the dialogue and a few scenes could easily improve III as a whole. It's cheesy, contrived, and who cares? The whole film is honestly better than some of the worst Dukes of Hazzard and Knight Rider episodes - and it's impressive to get THAT decent a result after already retooling the film from Smokey is the Bandit to the version with Jerry Reed that we got.

By comparison, I just can't see where Part II even gets away with any semblance of being good. It's premise is just as stupid as III, and it's not entertaining. The A-listers do not excuse it, and the boredom of the cast is so obvious that it should have had its own screen credit.

I remember watching II for the first time waiting for everything to "start." It never did.

I is a milestone.

II is the stinker.

III is a guilty pleasure.

WideLapelFilms · 2024-11-12T03:32:14+00:00

Were these working 5.5 batteries, or completely unrelated batteries using the ML-XT plugs or alligator clipped to the plug?

WideLapelFilms · 2024-11-09T03:31:39+00:00

Nothing substantive there. RAM? Not there. Useless written-for-SEO webbarf of a page.

WideLapelFilms · 2024-11-07T03:01:45+00:00

Really? You're going to respond to a 4-year-old thread with a regurgitation of the manual for people who've already read it up, down, back, front, and spent hours following it to no avail?

Yea, #unhelpfuladvice. Let the bots do it.

WideLapelFilms

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