Frogglegs cantilever brakes £39.

95/set
Having never really been satisfied with the
performance of my Deore LX cantilevers
when used with Sora STI levers on my Argos
5J1 touring bike, I was eager to try
someihing different. Thanks to a greater
armangleandleverage.theFrogglegs
wntis hive nearly matthed the power and
control of the dual pivot callipers on my race
hike. This new set-up proved to be simple
duetothelack of vertical adjustment- a
case of setting the pad angle and length
identically on both sides with the spring
undipped, then setting the straddle bridge
height and straddle wire length and
reapplying the springs. Any misalignment
can be corrected with thestraddle wireand
fixed in place using two Allen holism the
bridge. Quick release is simpleasihe
supplied end barrel simply rolls out o! the
cantilever even with a tight set-up, which
will prove useful for cycloooss where
seconds are precious. Foi tourists using
panniers it may be worth checking that the
broad 5tm of clearance required Irom the
centre of the boss will not interfere- it
didn't in my case.
It's hard to fault these quirky looking
brakes, whether you're talking function,
style, weight or price, so if you want toadd
a funky touch andstopping power to your
tourer or'crosser then you haveachokeof
black, ret green, silver or blue.
Richard Miller
Weigh 1293g both pairs
Frogglegs Paul Milnes Cycles n 01374
57 6197 w ww. p a ul mi I n escyr les.com
Calliper performance can
with i quirky touch and
easy set-up

PowerplayRacePro Lite stem £29.99

There's nothing rematkableabout reconstruction of this Powerplaystem.andthat'sa good thing, in my opinion:
making stems out of simple aluminium lubes is still the best way to get a good balance of stiffness and weight.
This stem will hold your oversize bar nice and lightly in its four-bolt clamp, and it's plenty stilf for even a big rider
like me. At 145gii's not a featherweight, but thereare plenty more expensive stems thataren't as stiff and weigh
more, including many carbanones. In fact, it'd certainly be one to recommend ifPowerplay didn't rather shoot
itself in thefoot by making a non-lite version too, that's about lOg heavier and £10 cheaper,and available in a
wider range of lengths. Given thechoice, I'd save my money every time. If you think the slightly seiisr
ciampand tiny weight loss isgcod value for your tenner, that's your call.
Dave Atkinson
Weight 145g Rise -W-7° Lengths 100,110,120, BOmm
/■ Powerpiay Fisher Outdoor" 01727 798345
f"» i ik v.mv.fisheroutdoor.co uk

\good stem,but Powerplay's

cheaperverslonismuch
better value

Crank Brothers Power Pump Alloy

Reelight SL100 light set fofhub/fixed/singlespeed bikes £27.99 (battery back
up version - SLI20 £33.99, geared bike version £32 (flash) £37.99 (back up)
Reelight isa Danish brand newto the IK and the
SLIOOis a simple but very dever light system. A
white frontand red rear flashing unit with large
(IViin) reflective lenses mount via simple stainless
steel brackets toihehubailes on thefrontandrear
of the bike, then two large magnets are fitted to
the spokes so they pass the centre of the light's
head unit; as the wheel spins, each pass of the
magnet creates enough power to make the unit
Hash.Simple but brilliant. Fittingisan absolute
doddle and although the instructions say the
magnet must pass wilhin 3mm of the light unit we
found this somewhat overcautious (the light still
operated atmoiethan twice that distance).
The units are very robust and have stood up to
adverse weather eitremely well. Obviously these
aren't lights to see by. but they doa great jobof
helping you lie seen and they comply with the UK's
legal standardsfoinashirajlights. Asa back-up
system I'd recommend these wholeheanedly as
dynamos, 01 any delicate wires or cables to worry
about), The only downside! we've found are that,
on this the basic system, when you stop, they stop,
and also, the axle mounted position is quite low
(although iia car isclose enough that they can't
see the light they are already too close to you).
A battery back-up version isawilable (which
will Hash for two minutesafter stopping) and the
version tested hereisfor fixed/single or hubgeared
bikes. A derailleur version is also available (Ihe rear
bracket is shaped to fit around ihe cassette).
In all we would recommend the Reelighl
wholeheartedly for your winter/commuter or
training bike as you'll never forget your lightsot
run out of battery power again.
Wanen fiois/fer
Weight 3<Hg (front light, rear light, mounting
brackets sndflx magnets)
Reelight www.Jpure.co.uk, www.reelight.com
£26.99 "
Most pumps willdo high pressure (road tyres) or
high volume (mountain bike tyres), but this
aluminium-bodied mini pump does both, with a dial
at the bottom ofthe pump to change between the
two. The pump head is I-shaped. wnh Presta one
side, Schrader the other, and you roiate it to Fort it
onw the valve, There's also an analogue gauge,
which reads lo lfflpsi.The pump is rated to 13npsi,
and with effort I got a road tyre to UOpsi.The
chunky plastic pump head cover can be zip-tied to
your frame to fii the pump there, and it protects the
pump headeven if you keep it ina saddlebag or
Camelnak pump port. On the first sample I had, the
(uncovered) pump head somehow unscrewed and
p
fell off in the middle of a forest, but fortunately this
kind of thing is covered by warranty, and the
replacement is going strong,
There are pumps that do one job better - such as
a Zefal IfPX for road use - but ilyou want a mini
pump that's suitable for any tyres, this isprobably
your best option. Vou get a free patch kit too.
Dan Joyce
Crank Brothers 2pure w 0131448 2884
www.2pure.co.ukwww.cra nkbrothers.com

3
they never need batteries and are fiied Simple, innovative, robust and Very versatile foramini
green - perfect back-ups to pump, doing 120psi road tyres
permanently to your bike (without the drag or
your lights aswell as fat off-road treads
increase in tyre wear found on traditional

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