What About Bob?




Our Bob bag kept our feet warm in the mountains; doubles as a back-pack for treking; keeps all our things dry through the mud and wet of the Carreta Austral.


His tight welds and material quality are surpassed by none.

But, as it turns out, his China made rear wheel is better designed inbounds touring.

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He pulled and yanked at where the bearing used to be and just shook his head. ´no´. I was then given directions to a place where two streets intersect. His bike shop did not have the part, though it looked like it must have pretty much everthing else remotley close to a bike part.

I found a steal bearing after three hours of circling the town of Coyoheque. Comming from the remote 500 person or smaller towns, this place is mad. I found the intersection and the car parts store. Just what I was afraid of.

The auto store manager demanded the Buggy stay outside. I grabbed my number and stood with a nervous twich by the door, waiting for someone to run off with my bike. Displayed outside the door with no lock.

The woman at the counter seemed to understand what I was after. Took off for ten minutes. Then came back with a bearing. Two days prior I took off the wheel, tilted, and out came a dried up worm looking piece of ceramic.

I cranked the Buggy back up hill to the bike shop. The man shook his head again. His thick chubby fingers pushed and poked, trying to work the bearing around the post inside the wheel. Eventually came his hammer, clearly his favorite tool, a steal bike seat post welded (probably by him) to a baby sledge (see picture above). He whammed and smacked. Then he said it again ´no´. I grabbed his chisle, among a pile of other industrial bike tools, and motioned that I could file down the post--something we would never resort to at home. He smiled and grabbed a grinder. Put on some goggles and started spraying sparks all over the shop.

BOB--Your China made rear wheel has been morphed into a steal beast. Don´t put ceramic bearings on a trailer designed to be a mountain goat!!

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