the art of the useful hack

I got another trailer, a very old Burley 2-seater whose fabric is beginning to flake its waterproofing and that's missing the rain fly. But I needed a trailer to replace the one that got stolen (http://bikelovejones1.blogspot.com/2014/03/bummer-stolen-trailer-in-portland.html) so this is what I found. Plus, it folds up so I can lock it inside more securely at night. Now begins the work of improving it to suit my purposes.

Part one: restoring the screw-stop on the hitch.

The old-style hitch (now called "Classic" by Burley) comes with a button at the top of the tightening bolt to keep the screw from coming off. This one was missing it's button, so I looked around for something I could fashion as a replacement. A little beeswax (I still have most of the dixie cup-ful I bought fifteen years ago from Rivendell), an old Trick Top valve cap, a little manipulating (which consisted of stuffing warmed beeswax into the larger hole of the valve cap to make up the difference in diameter), and voila! This may not be a permanent soultion -- ultimately I may want to use epoxy if the beeswax melts in the summer -- but it works for now.