A to B m a g a z i n e

Available from selected outlets, online at www.exacteditions.com or by annual subscription on 01305 259998 or www.atob.org.uk

£13.80 (United Kingdom), £19 or US$27 (overseas airmail)

Issue 76 February 2010 A to B 40 Manor Road, Dorchester, Dorset DT1 2AX, England

ISSN 1460-0587 . tel 01305 259998

email (editorial) atob@atob.org.uk (subscriptions & advertising) teresa@atob.org.uk . web www.atob.org.uk

Editor David Henshaw . Administration Teresa Ridout . Proof-reading Peter Henshaw Contributors Ian Coleman, David Edwards, Peter Henshaw, David Henshaw, Kate Osborne, Andrew Wager

Printers Henry Ling . Next deadline 21st March 2010

We need your help! After producing 23 ‘Folder’ magazines, and 76 A to B magazines over nearly 17

years, we’ve reached our 99th issue.That’s the best part of two million words and at least 1,000 separate articles, some more memorable than others. And that’s the problem - we maintain a basic index on our website, mainly covering road-tests, but it’s becoming more and more difficult to pinpoint other articles and subjects that aren’t listed there, and there are hundreds and hundreds of them. We need a volunteer (or more likely, volunteers) with access to a computer, and the time to create a master index based on article titles, subjects and key words. It would help if you have a complete collection of back issues, but we can supply missing ones if you don’t.The aim is to create a web-based index, available to all, and launch it on or around the date of our 100th issue. Payment? Well, there’s the fame, of course. And how about a five-year subscription too?

Contents Book Reviews . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 A to B Letters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 A to B News . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Piv ot Points: Chain Length, Batter y Replacement . . 18 Tested: Like-a-Bike Maxi . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 Histor y: Bike/Rail in Victor ian Times . . . . . . . . . . 24 Commuting: Bike/Rail b y Br ompton Re visited! . . . 28 Technolog y: Gr ey-w ater Rec yc ling . . . . . . . . . . . 30 Technolog y: Electr ic Scooter s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 Infrastructure: Wales b y Tr ain & Tr aws Cambr ia . . . 39 A to B Smalls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

COVER: 1909 Postcard of a Midland Railway train in Ashwood Dale near Buxton. Courtesy of the Roy F Burrows Midland Collection Trust www.atob.org.uk

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A to B 76 Feb 10