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PaperclipPerfector  12d ago (text post)   2073 thread views

Friday Fun Thread for December 5, 2025

Be advised: this thread is not for serious in-depth discussion of weighty topics (we have a link for that), this thread is not for anything Culture War related. This thread is for Fun. You got jokes? Share 'em. You got silly questions? Ask 'em.

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I was watching a video today on a controversial new bicycle from Trek, and perhaps my favorite product of all time featured heavily. That product is Gorilla Tape.

When I was a kid and was first being taught how to repair things, I went through a long period of fascination with glue: Super, Hot, Epoxy, whatever. That same fascination extended to tape. While some liquids were cool to work with, I was always disappointed once adhesives were combined with fabric. I see this same pattern repeating itself in my son - he tries to build or fix the same way I did and can't help getting frustrated with Scotch, Package, etc.

I got my first roll of Gorilla Tape as an award ("Fix Anything!") at work while a frontline software guy. Rather than keep it on my desk, I decided to just use it. I did so for years, and it was a revelation.

This shit is almost a parody of what tape can be. A child's concept that should exist only in cartoons. Fuck self-driving cars, this is the apex of technology. It's a shield of protection, stays put for years, tears straight across with just your hands, and a single roll lasts forever. You can wrap it around your camping water bottle and repair your tent, a bike tire, a bike rack, or whatever else you need to just keep together. It's superbly sticky, but tolerant of being adjusted. I can't say enough about it.

controversial new bicycle from Trek

What bike, and why is it controversial?

It's a link to a YouTube review of the Check Out.

It's a full suspension gravel bike. Some people already consider gravel to be a "made up" segment, and manufacturers have been slowly making what were once essentially road bikes with bigger tires ever more heavy, plush and closer to mountain bikes. This is another step in that direction.

It has a ton of proprietary parts and is really fuckin' expensive ($5-8k), so the hipsters who can't shut up about having the same Surly frame since 2004 consider it an insult.

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