Bicycle Diaries: Kraftwerk

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3.11.06

Kraftwerk


Not quite; but the lyrics and a sound-file link for Tour de France 03 are at the bottom. Rather today's post is all about DIY arts-n-crafts. I've been stuck at home the last week or so with my usual early winter headcold. When I got through all my current reads I decided to finish a leather tool bag I'd been working on since last spring. That's it to the left. I originally got it at a local army surplus store.

As I've written before, I'm a cheap SOB. I didn't want to drop the big bucks on a Park Tool BK Roll-up Workshop. Basically, mine contains 12" zip-ties great for the temporary replacement of lost nuts, a spare innertube, and a new leather roll-up bag.

I found a free source of quality leather in the golden alley next to my apartment building. Over the years I've dumpster-dived enough cool retro furniture to fill a good-sized apartment. Like I said, I'm cheap!

Somebody had trashed a large travelbag in a dumpster. It was in great condition although the zippers were busted. A tag inside revealed that it began its life in far-off Venezuela.

I cut a piece large enough to hold my tools in four pockets with a protective fold-over flap. The only challenge was sewing in the pockets. A buddy of mine, who owns Broadway Shoe Repair down in Lakeview, came to the rescue. He only charged my $5.

The roll-up now contains what I consider to be my five most essnetial tools. The first is a small Sterling A-1 Bicycle Wrench. Forget the Park folks. The tool pioneer, Frank Mossberg, invented this beauty, the orgiginal bike wrench, back at the turn of the 20th Century in Attleboro, MA. The other tools include a #15&17 cone wrench, three steel tire irons (that double as spoke wrenches as well as various sizes of cone and other wrenches), a small screwdriver, and a tire guage.

To protect my small investment I also bought a jar of Sno-Seal. Atsko has been making this wonderful stuff for years. My grandfather used it to waterproof his fishing boots. All you need to do is heat the leather slightly with a hairdryer then slather on the Sno-Seal. Let it set overnight and wipe away the excess with a clean clothe. I did this three times to the roll-up as well as the outer bag.

That's how you get yourself a cool leather tool bag and retro roll-up for no more than $10. And for the folks who made it all the way to end of today's post, here's Kraftwerk's Tour de France 03.
Tour de France

Radio-Tour Information
Transmission télévision
Reportage sur moto
Caméra vidéo & photo
Les équipes présentées
Le départ est donné
Les étapes sont brulées
Et la course est lancée

Tour de France

Les coureurs chronométrés
Pour l'épreuve de vérité
La montagne, les vallées
Les grands cols, les défilés
La flamme rouge dépassé
Maillot jaune à l'arrivée
Radio-Tour Information
Transmission télévision



Translation

Tour de France

Radio-Tour Information (radio reports on Le Tour)
Television broadcast
Reports from reporters on motor bike
Video and photo camera
The teams are presented
The start signal is given
They're all running past eachother without stopping
The run has started

Tour de France

The timed cyclists
To prove the truth
The mountain, the valleys
The red flag is passed ( triangular red flag, signalling the last kilometer of the tour)
Yellow jumper at the finish (the leading runner receives the yellow jumper)

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1 Comments:

Blogger dharder said...

Bloody genius!!!

5/11/06 00:54  

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