kamotE trails

Noise is a sign that something is wrong or malfunctioning on your bike. Having noisy brakes is irritating not to mention the loss in braking power. Most of the time, the noise is caused by contaminated rotors and pads. This can lead to irregular brake wear. world's lightest 1PC stainless steel rotor I have been experiencing noisy front brakes. This is extremely noticeable during wet rides when water comes to contact with the rotors. My front brake is a 180mm Alligator brand rotor. This rotor is the noisiest one I've used so far. My rear rotor is an Ashima Airotor doesn't make this irritating noise. Since I've had good experience with my Ashima, I decided to replace the front with an Ai2 Ashima rotor. On Paper The Ai2 is an upgraded version of the Airotor . It weighs 97 grams based on its label. It uses less mass so Ashima warns on fast rotor heat up but if proper brake application is used, this is not a big issue. The low mass enables it to cool down faster...

I wondered what an original German beer would taste like so I tried Oettinger. I don't know how to pronounce this right and there are weird letters which I don't know how to sound. I got the 500ml can of Oettinger from the grocery. Only the can is available but I would have preferred the bottled version. It came in a yellow and blue can.  It is a naturally cloudy weissbeer according to the label. Alcohol percentage is the usual 4%. I poured it in a clear glass because I don't like to drink from the can. The taste of this beer is okay. I don't have anything good or bad to say about it. It's just "okay". I can drink this with a bag of chips and enjoy a movie without thinking about how the beer tastes.  Not much to say about it. 

I got these powerbanks from Lazada when they did a flash sale. Talk about hot products. All stocks were gone in a day.  I was lucky to get these two because they limit purchases to one for each color. It comes in a small color coded package. I got the gold one and my wife got the pink. She wanted the gold but that means I get stuck with the very masculine pink so she gave me the gold. The gold is not really like Saudi gold or the yellowish gold we're familiar with. It's more of a metallic brownish shade which is nice. The pink is also nice, looks like metallic red and not hello kitty pink. I could have gotten away with that color. Build The powerbank is made of aluminum. Solid feel and cold to touch. It claims to be credit card sized but not credit card thick. It's fat but small. On the front are four led to indicate status and charge. A power button which doesn't seem to do much but just check on the remaining charge. There are also a micro USB plug for chargin...

Tagaytay is famous for its cool weather so a lot of tourists come here on the weekends.  This is also a usual destination for most southern cyclists.  There are various places and routes cyclists take when going to Tagaytay but one thing is sure, all of them goes through a hell of a climb. Tagaytay is located south of Manila. There are two major roads you can take to reach the Tagaytay proper; Santa Rosa route or the Aguinaldo Hiway route. Last weekend, we tried to climb Tagaytay after a long break from our weekend biking routine. The familiar feel of your thighs burning during the climb all came back to us. Our starting point was at Jollibee Pacita in San Pedro, Laguna. From there, we took the national hiway up to Pavillion Mall in Binan. From there we took the inner roads going to Nuvali. As we reached the intersection of Nuvali, we turned right to Sta. Rosa-Tagaytay road then the uphill battle begun. fog covered road ahead After some 16 kilometers of uphill cl...

I've had this brake set for almost a year installed on my Merida HT bike. There are various reasons why I chose this brake set apart from other options in the market. Tidy cockpit with I-Spec technology I-Spec - this brake can be used with the XT I-Spec shifter that I planned to buy that time. Its also neat on the handlebar since there are less clamps that are cluttered on the bar. Brake pads with fins that are seen on the higher Shimano models can be used with this brake set. Value for money - nice brakes that won't break your bank. Squishy levers One thing I noticed after installing the brakes is the squishy lever. Coming from an Alivio brakeset where a slight squeeze will apply the brakes instantly, I feel that the new brake lever need to travel more before the brakes bite. I don't know if this is how a modulated brake is supposed to feel but it really doesn't feel right. noisy combination. Alligator rotors + Deore brakes I topped up the min...

I've got this grips 3 years ago and its still the shit. I got it for Php 500 at Cartimar when I first assembled my mountain bike. Dabomb Holy Shit Grips Build It's a "lock on" grip meaning it has clamps on both end that you use to secure it to the handle bar.  I prefer this kind of locking mechanism for the grip compared to the traditional slide on type. It's easy to pull out in case you want to change your brake lever or shifter. It's also easy to replace your handle bar. The other type of grip is such a pain to remove and it's also prone to movement when in use. Definitely find the "lock on" type of grip for your bikes. Feel The grip is made of soft rubber with embossed skulls all over. At first, I found the skull design a bit dorky but it grows on you. The feel is superb. It's soft and grippy. Very comfortable. Durability After some years, my grips are worn out on the outer palm side. It's understandable since that...

I recently changed the pads of my V-brakes in my foldie.  The old pads were quickly depleted after a rainy commute home.  Water on the rims and brakes dramatically increases the wear on your pads. Blue Jagwire Pads on the front brakes I purchased 2 sets of Jagwire V-brake pads from Paulina's at Cartimar. They were twice the price of the local MOB brake pads. I was hoping for better performance with the "Jagwire" pads. "Jagwire" in quotes because I am in doubt if its genuine just a China rip off. After cleaning the wheels and installing the new pads. There was a noticeable noise when braking from both the front and back brakes. It was so irritating that it was calling the attention of all the pedestrians I pass by. A loud metal screeching noise. I tried a few things to eliminate the noise: Let normal use eliminate the noise. (FAILED) 40 kilometers of commuting and the noise is still present and mocking me. Clean the wheels (FAILED) I realized...