Tag: repair

March 18th – A bit of a tip for the Brooks saddle owners with a sheared tension bolt, as I suffered last week.

If your saddle hasn’t stretched much, it can be particularly hard to get the replacement bolt in – in the factory, the saddles are stretched on a hydraulic jig, so fitting a replacement can be a struggle to the home mechanic.

The problem is made worse because the pin isn’t threaded all the way up – and an extra 2mm of thread could make all the difference, and did on my saddle.

To make fitting a replacement easier, I took the adjusting nut from the new pin, and turned 2mm off the head on the lathe at work. It’s a steel nut, so there’s plenty of material left, and that 2mm allows the nut to be wound back clear enough to fit the pin with minimum leverage.

If you have this problem and don’t have access to a lathe, just find a handy local engineering company where someone will probably do this very quick task for a pint.

It could make the difference between doing the job yourself and having to return the saddle to Brooks.

September 15th – Catshill Junction Bridge has had this horrid step for years. There used to be a concrete ramp between the footpath and the bridge deck, but it broke up and washed away in the rain.

The Canal and River Trust have been asked to repair this on multiple occasions, to no avail.

Yesterday, they announced that a crew would be out on Wednesday ‘to make it accessible’.

I’ll believe it when I see it…

April 25th – The void in the canal embankment on the bend between Pier Street and Catshill Junction is worsening. It’s been growing for two years as the brickwork collapses, and the Canal & River Trust don’t seem to be in any hurry to fix it. They are undertaking repairs further down to sections of embankment that don’t seem as badly affected. Hopefully, they’re working up in this direction.

To me, this is a serious hazard that could trap a walkers foot or bicycle wheel. Like the cover to the sluice up at Clayhanger Bridge, it seems just like the kind of hazard they should be on top of.

The Canal & River Trust have been informed of both issues repeatedly.

March 1st – I noted with some curiosity that earlier that day, the worst potholes and uneven patches in Brownhills High Street had been fixed by the council. This is good news – some of those potholes were so old and large, they had their own ecosystems. But it does mean that a full resurface, which the street really does need – must be a long, long way off.

Bugger.

November 22nd –  I had to nip to Aldridge in the afternoon, and on autopilot, rode up the canal, to find it still blocked off for works between Northywood Bridge at the back of Brickyard Road and the Wharf Bridge in Aldridge, between Stubbers Green and the town centre.

I had, of course, had warning of this previously from TheMadOldBaggage and Stymaster, and forgot; still, the diversion wasn’t too bad.

The closure looks set to continue for a while as they rebuild embankments. Look out for it if you’re up that way. If you remember…

August 16th – Heading back towards Chasewater, I noticed the erosion that happens here every time there is heavy rain has been corrected again, in the same way it always has been: sweep the debris back into the hole, and stamp it down.

Expect a similar report next time it rains heavily. Getting an awful sense of deja-vu here.

This really needs a permanent fix. 

August 3rd – Terrible angle, sorry, but the heavy rains of Saturday morning again washed the footpath away on the canal bank at Anchor Bridge, for the fourth time in a year.

Watch out if on bike or foot; it’s a trip and fall hazard.

Just what will it take for the Canal & River Trust to repair this properly for once, instead of just sweeping the washdown back into the cavity?

June 13th – Credit where it’s due, several people (including myself, and I know @TheStymaster) complained about the water damaged towpath at Anchor Bridge last week.

Following heavy rains, the hardcore always washes out from either side of this concrete block, leaving a 6 inch void either side that can easily cause a pedestrian or cyclist to fall or injure themselves. It’s a recurring problem, and the Canal & River Trust appear to have sent someone out during the week to fix the damage.

It’s not a permanent fix – the loose material has just been shovelled back in, and first heavy rain, it’ll wash out again – but at least it’s safe for now. This needs a much better solution in the long term (like compacting properly, and maybe mixing in a little cement), but well done for filling the hole.

March 30th – The vehicle entrance to Shire Oak Park – which was formerly the main access to the quarry, and the route used by rangers to get into the lower are of the reserve – had the gate damaged and/or stolen about 12 months ago. It was never replaced by Waslall Council’s Greenspaces team, instead being haphazardly blocked with three light planks nailed between the gateposts.

A couple of weeks ago, the one remaining plank was smashed by a truck reversing through it, which then proceeded to flytip a large quantity of refuse.

This is the state of the ‘repair’, one good tug and those planks will be off. The previous, broken one still lies cast asunder in the ditch by the fence.

I support the Greenspaces team and have fought their corner many times. But come on, this is piss-poor.

This really needs sorting properly. If it had been fixed properly previously, the council probably wouldn’t have had to pay for the rubbish removal of the previous week, either.