Changing from a triple ring Shimano Sora chainset to a double ring chainset I've got a Scott S40 Speedster and I'm considering changing to a double chainset from the triple I have at present, also going from a 9 speed cassette to a 10. Not sure whats involved, do I need new wheels and a group set.

Much appreciate some guidence.

You won't need new wheels, but you'll need a new cassette in back. Also, I'm assuming that you've updated your shifters and rear derailleur from 9 to 10 speed? The minimum you will need to switch out going from 9 to 10 speed is the rear shifter, rear derailleur and cassete.

As far as swapping out the triple to a double you don't need a new front derailleur, but you will need to readjust it by bringing in the limit to accommodate the change from 3 rings to 2 so your chain doesn't drop inside when shifting down to the inner ring. You don't absolutely need to swap out the front shifter, but adjustments are a little more tricky as you currently have 3 clicks instead of the 2 needed. You can either limit the clicks to two or just use 2 clicks for shifting down. Be sure to check the outside limit as well. Once the limits are adjusted you'll just need to readjust your front shifting. There are plenty of instructions here and videos online that spell this out completely.

You might also need to adjust the length of your chain, so be sure to check that.


Why do cycle paths always have to be bumpy? In the UK there are cycle paths laid down with proper tarmac just like the stuff they have on the roads. However, none of them that I have come across are level enough to afford a comfortable ride at speed.

I don't understand why it has to be this way, it is not as if cycle paths get dug up every five minutes like the roads do, there are no 40 tonne HGV's to break up the surface and the machines used to lay the tarmac are just like the ones they use on the road.

This is unfortunate given that most bikes do not have suspension, whereas all cars do.

What countries are there where they bother to lay cycle paths completely level? Why are the British ones never made nice and smooth? Do rough cycle paths discourage you from using them, in preference to staying on the road?

Edit:

Originally 'cycle lanes', I mean't 'cycle paths' - routes that are not necessarily adjacent to the road.

I think it is an issue of foundation mostly. Because roads get very heavy (as in weight) traffic roadbuilders spend a lot of time on the groundwork, compacting, digging away soft and unstable earth or sand layers and replacing them with gravel or other heavy rocky debris before the tarmac is laid down.

Because a bicycle path only sees light bicycles less time has to be spent stabilizing the base before the tarmac can be placed. Unfortunately this means there is less of a hard pack underneath the pavement to keep roots away, and there is not as much heavy rocks and other stuff underneath the pavement stabilizing inevitable small shifts in the ground. So bicycle paths shift a bit more, and they are more vulnerable to getting pushed up by roots.

What it comes down to -I think- is money. Building a solid foundation takes time and materials, and hence money. For a bicycle, anything paved is better than what was there before (nothing or running the gauntlet on the open road) so I assume municipalities choose to get the bicycle paths out there fast and cheap rather than roll them out slow but more expensive. Spending a lot of money on car-load resistant bicycle paths also just doesn't make economic sense for most municipalities.

The good news: Here in the Netherlands a lot of municipalities have realized over the years that the cheap bicycle paths cost a lot more in maintenance and repairs, so the quality is steadily improving.


What are the minimum requirements to commute comfortably through the winter? What needs to change on my bike? I have an 80's Schwinn Traveler single speed conversion.

What needs to change with my clothing? I just wear regular street clothes now.

I'm looking for the minimum requirements to commute comfortably through the winter. I am open to modifying my summer bike but not if it is likely to get ruined. I am open to buying a "beater" specifically for winter. I can bring my bike inside at home, but not at work. I'm in NYC.

The bike doesn't matter that much, except when there's snow or ice on the roads.  What you need most is the right clothing.  It needs to be well-adapted to cycling (not loose or apt to get caught in the chain), layered so you can take off pieces BEFORE you get too warm, with wind-resistant and rain-resistant layers.

Your shoes need to be somehow protected from wet spray, with rubber booties or such.  Wet feet can get VERY cold.

Lots of opinions on gloves -- you should probably have several pair, from warm "ski gloves" for really cold days to lighter-weight gloves for most days.  "Glove liners" are a good idea -- you can use them alone (under regular cycling gloves) on warmer days, and they come in handy when you need to work on the bike in cold weather since you can work reasonably well with them on.

For the bike, any bike will work for plain rain or cold (though fenders are nice in the rain).  For riding in actual snow (where the roads have not been cleared) you want a substantial tread, and possibly lugged "mountain" tires.  For any sort of ice you MUST have studded tires -- riding on ice without studded tires is suicide.

I don't feel that commuting is apt to "ruin" a bike, but you probably wouldn't want to subject a $6000 bike to the bad weather, road salt, being parked outside at the other end, etc.  And if you do want to ride in the snow and don't already have a bike suited to knobby tires, it does make sense to purchase a modest "mountain" bike.

Added:  Forgot to mention the head.  I always wear a helmet, making a bulky hat impractical.  At one time I had a "helmet liner" (probably purchased from Performance or Nashbar) that was a sort of diamond-shaped piece of blue polypro fabric with loops to fit the helmet straps.  This worked well -- kept the ears warm in fairly cold weather, which is the main challenge -- but I lost it and never found a replacement.

I've tried several balaclavas and face masks but never found one that would fit comfortably, without either obscuring vision or interfering with breathing.


Hydro brake disk blackening I have had my bike for about 2 months now and about 2 weeks in the rear brake stopped working properly and I thought it just needed a bleed. The shop assistant showed me that my disk had oil on it however I have no idea how it got there. He was nice enough to replace my pads for no cost.

About 1 and a half month on I'm having the same problem on my front and rear brakes now and they're about to charge me £35 per brake just for new pads and service charges.

Why is there oil on my disks. I am not touching the disk or dropping items on the disk and my bike is stored in my living room covered with plastic away from any liquids or any contaminants.

The back brake is okay but it lacks braking power. The front brake lever comes about 2cm away from my grip before locking out fully. However when I pump it a few times it works but as soon as I stop pumping it resets which is a pain as that means it takes me at least 5 seconds to even engage the front brake.

There's very likely something wrong that's causing a fluid leak. Hose connection, piston damage, or some other mechanical defect. They did the prudent thing before by seeing if it was a one-off/fluke situation, but now it's likely proven that it's not. What's really needed at this point is for a mechanic to inspect the hose connections in case that's where the problem is, and go to caliper replacement if not. This stuff happens not infrequently on new bikes these days, and in part depending on the brake model there can be some different reasons how it came to occur on both brakes at once. The shop I work at would cover this under warranty no question, and if it is as you say we would likely cut to the chase and just do two new calipers.


Chain sometimes jumps. New parts Can't seem to get to the bottom of this. I have an 1997 Marin Eldridge Grade. I use it mostly for touring. The chain jumps or skips. It doesn't Jump down to a smaller sprocket. What the chain does seems like it could be several things.
1.It could be riding up on the sprockets
2. It could be riding up on a chainring
3. It could be a pawl skipping.
The problem is, pretty much everything is new.
New LX chainrings,New chain Probably a Whipperman Connex 808, 8 sprocket XT cassette, and a new freehub.
It doesn't skip/jump all the time and i think it is more inclined to do it at moderate load. It seems to be getting worse.
I've been a cyclist for 43 years and can sort most things out myself but this is doing my head in.

Chain is not jumping up and or down sprockets so not changing gear. It is riding up on teeth of sprockets or chain rings. I have already stated that chain is new.
Shifter and Derailleur are Shimano XT.
No stiff links in chain.

Even though the chain is new, you could have a stiff link.  I assume you cut the new chain to get the correct length.  If so I'd start there to make sure you didn't mess up the first remaining link.  Then I'd manually check each link for a stiff one.  If you find a stiff link, you can sometimes loosen it up by bending it a bit side to side.  That is at 90 degrees to plane of the pivot.


Barrel adjuster for sram gx rear derailleur? I'm doing a bit of an unorthodox build right now. It's a specialized awol using a sram gx 1x11 drivetrain, but, because I'm running trp hylex discs, I've opted to use a sram s500 bar end shifter. An unforeseen issue is that the gx system places the barrel adjuster on the mtb shifters and omits them from the derailleur, while the road oriented Rival system omits the adjuster from the shifter and places it on the derailleur. Long story short, given my setup, I've got no barrel adjusters and getting the correct cable tension is killing me!! Is there a way to install an "after market" solution. It should be noted that the awol is setup for full length cable housing.


It it impolite to "informally" join or draft a group of cyclists? On a recent Sunday ride on a country road, I was slowly overtaken by a group of (5) guys on road bikes. They were "proper" road cyclists, if you know what I mean.

When they passed me, I just slipped in behind them and drafted for about 5 miles until we parted ways.

I tried to keep a low profile. I didn't have trouble keeping up with them, but I didn't "take a turn at the front" because I wasn't sure I was welcome.

They didn't seem to acknowledge my presence at all (which was fine with me), except for one guy who cast a glance at my bike (a mtb).

Is this acceptable behavior? I sure wouldn't mind, but I'm not a religious roadie :D

It can be considered "impolite" by roadies, but not because of the bike you were riding or the fact you didn't take a pull (although I am sure some will argue for this).  The main reason random drop-in riders are generally frowned upon are because of:

the dangers associated with unpredictability of a new rider
lack of insurance coverage

Potential Unpredictability

New riders can behave unpredictable especially in a pace line.  In the same way, groups can  behave differently than you might expect even if you are an experienced road rider.  Jumping into a group without knowing what they are doing can lead to unanticipated behaviours which may or may not result in a crash.

From the groups perspective, they don't know if you are a stable rider or if you will try to ride too close and clip a tire.  They don't know if you will block one of them when they try to rotate their positions.  You are a complete unknown who has just shown up.  Most people are suspicious of unknown factors.

Likely they have also spent a lot of time training.  Maybe they are racers.  Maybe they are getting ready for a charity ride.  It doesn't really matter.  The last thing they want is to get taken out by someone looking for a quick draft or thrill.

Anecdotal Experience - Collision

I was starting to get ready for for cyclo-cross a few years back in August and part of my route was on the road with a transition to some local trails.  On the transition from road to dirt I usually hopped off the road to the shoulder, scrubbed about 10 km/hr in order to make a sharp turn on to the trails.

On the road I was in my drops plugging away on an interval when unbeknownst to me someone on a road bike had snuck up behind and was drafting me (my road section began at the bottom of a hill so I suspect this played a big role with suddenly picking up a rider). I was pushing hard on the flat so I suspect he was drafting tightly. When I sat up, to get ready to transition onto the shoulder, he collided into by back wheel.  I hadn't hit the brakes yet, but he must have been drafting me tight enough that simply letting off the throttle was enough to cause a collision.

Luckily we were both ok. I was livid that he was drafting me without notice and bent my wheel.  He was livid that I didn't continue my pull to where he figured I should finish (at the very end of the road).

This belies the danger of an uninvited riders. NO COMMUNICATION had occurred between either of us as a result there was an unanticipated maneuver which lead to an accident.  NO COMMUNICATION while riding in close proximity is dangerous.

Insurance

For a number of years I was on the board of directors and/or running a large cycling club in western Canada.  Insurance, believe it or not, is an important consideration for a club.  We can't hold training rides or other official club events without it.  One of the Caveats is that everyone on the ride must be properly insured. For a new rider this can mean signing a one-time insurance form.  For other riders it can mean belonging to either our club or another club and being a member of the local cycling licensing organization.  If an incident happens and someone is injured (I have attended many  ambulance visits over the years from group ride mishaps) and it is caused by a rider that showed up uninvited this could void the insurance coverage.  We would have to prove that you were not invited, and that we didn't mess up our insurance forms with respect to your unofficial attendance.  If people are recovering from injuries the last thing we all want is to deal with lawyers and a court-of-law.

We are not deliberately unfriendly

All the above reasons may seem very unfriendly, this is not the intended effect, it is just the consequence of the world we live in.  If you are interested in attending a club ride, contact one of your local clubs (a quick internet search away).  You will likely find that:

Most clubs will have a relaxed "C" group where you will be taught
the ropes.
They will be able to go over group etiquette and how the group works. For example:

where we double up pace line;
where we single up pace line;
average speed;
how the group should operate around traffic signage;
how to point out obstacles and road hazards to drafting riders; and
riding route

Most will not care what bike that you ride.
And finally, they can ensure you have filled out the proper insurance forms.


How should a competitive cyclist approach hills? In this answer Daniel wrote,

  Mostly what ChrisW said. If you want to become a competitive cyclist you might want to do it differently, but if your goal is simply to enjoy your cycling while building some reasonable degree of strength and stamina then [etc.]

How would you do it differently if you want to become a competitive cyclist?

I don't mean "elite", just competitive.

I'm totally amateur but my understanding is competitive types are in it to win, which means being across the line first.  This answer is race-focussed.

The answer varies slightly depending on whether you're in a bunch or riding solo.

A racer really wants to stay with the bunch in order to maximise aero advantage and cooperative assistance.  If the racer "falls of the back" then its very much harder to catch up the group.

So a climb is a great way for the Strategically-Minded to break up the group.   A strong climber might rest up a bit in the approach to the climb, and then blast off the front when the road pitches up or when the group looses its initial momentum from the flat.

The point is to leave someone behind so they can't catch up without a herculean effort.

Most riders downhill at roughly similar speeds so once the front rider has gained 10 seconds lead that could be 50-100 metres gap once they're both on the downhill.

Pacing doesn't really come into it in a race - you keep up, or you drop off.  If that means you go "into the red" on a climb then so be it - recover on the downhill, or realise you entered a race beyond your current ability.

This is why its really important to know the course in a race, having either ideally ridden it before or at least had a good study of the route map via google street view or by topological maps.

Riding competitively solo (like a time trial or setting a PR in strava) is all about getting the best overall time for the measured length.  Since there's no pack there's no assist from being in a bunch.  Instead you have to hit the start of the segment at a decent speed and maintain it as high as possible. Don't wear yourself out getting to the race either... take that easy.  If the grade pitches up, don't mash, get up and put some extra power in to maintain a high speed as possible.   After the segment you push through the end point and go on a bit, then you can slow down.

Some of my best hill climbs are when I've been chasing someone, not necessarily someone I know, just someone ahead of me who has a decent turn of speed. (ie they've just passed me :)


Is it safe to polish aluminum rims? Everyone loves polished aluminum, but you typically have to pay a good 30% more for it vs. any other finish. Since polishing is a simple process requiring widely-available tools, I thought I could probably get away with taking care of it myself on a some dull-finish or anodized rims. My concern is that I would remove enough material with the polishing wheel to affect the structural integrity of the rim walls, especially on newer rims that are built with very tight strength-weight tolerances.

If you're actually just polishing, you should remove very little material. I recently polished aluminium to a mirror finish in work (a very different setup as I had to keep the surface perfectly flat as well, but it's indicative). I removed only about 10 microns (but that's the limit of my Vernier calipers).

Braking abrades rims more than this, which is why rims usually have wear indicating grooves, which are considerably deeper.  If you try to polish out deep scratches you might reduce the life of the rim, but look out for the wear indicators which should still show plenty of depth. If the bike is very old it might not have wear indicators. If you don't have wear lines, or you're polishing a face that's not used for braking, you should be careful to remove the absolute minimum material.

If you've got ultra-light rims not designed for rim braking, caution suggests you don't do anything to them. But the combination of aluminium, light weight, and disc brakes would be rare.

You also need to be absolutely certain to remove any polishing residue, and to make sure that you don't make the rim slippery. I'd start by doing the back wheel, and a section of the wheel on both sides, then clean it up and test ride it. You don't want to feel a difference in back braking as the wheel rotates, whatever the conditions. This will also indicate something else: The finish might not stay nice at long as you'd like. Brake pads grind the rims. Slowly but enough to unpolish the surface before long.


Going from 7 Speed Cassette to 8 Speed Cassette here is the situation – I have a quasi-vintage 7-speed bike that still has the original front and rear derailleur (Deore DX) in very good condition.  I have recently took a wheel building class which, naturally, resulted in a nice new set of wheels that I would like to use on this bike.  However, the freehub on the new rear hub is for a 8/9/10 cassette.

Now, I realize that I could buy a spacer and place a 7 speed cassette on that bad boy.  My question is this – Could I put an 8 speed cassette on the new hub, avoiding needing a spacer, and then adjust the limit screws on the rear derailleur to accommodate the extra gear on the cassette?  I’m currently using a set of dura ace 8-speed bar end index shifters at the moment, so that wouldn’t be a concern.  I also believe a 7 speed and 8 speed drivetrain uses the same chain, too.

Thanks for any help!

Dura-Ace 6/7/8-speed used different cable pull ratios from other models. To get your shifter to work properly with your DX rear derailleur you may have to try alternate cable routing. As always, Sheldon has the details: https://www.sheldonbrown.com/dura-ace.html


What would be the best bike frame to build a gravel bike? This handsome devil road bike is what im kinda looking for but i want some suggestions of what is the next best thing to start with, any ideas?

I was looking for a good bike or bike frame that i can use to build up my own "gravel bike". I have gotten recommendations to use a older touring bike frame with the tire space or an older hybrid bike. I have found one good bike but i have lots of options of used frames that i would rather choose from.

When I was considering building a gravel bike from an older frame I considered two basic frame types: cyclocross and drop bar commuter.  A light touring bike frame would be a good basis as well, although many older touring frames were built for stronger 26" wheels.

The primary features you are looking for are cantilever brakes and clearance for at least 32mm preferably 35mm or more tires. Another is possibly the ability to mount fenders, which you will find on a commuter or tourer.

Steel seems to be the material of choice for durability and comfort, but if you value light weight Al can be made to work. It really depends on what compromise you want to make.

In terms of geometry take your pick between more aggressive cyclocross or more relaxed commuter. One thing to bear in mind is older cyclocross bikes predominantly have a 'Euro-style' high bottom bracket.


Finding Correct Size Wheel for Bike I am looking to replace the stock wheelset on my 2009 Jamis Aurora.  I'm looking to replace wheels because I have a number of spokes break over the wheel lifetime and now my rear wheel is only in true from my own periodic adjustments, which are needed with increasing frequency.  The LBS indicated that wheel replacement would be more economical than wheel repair.

For compatibility considerations, I am looking at the following variables

spacing (my stock hubs are shimano tiagras.  I think the spacing is 130mm for both)
tire diameter (700)
cassette compatibility (SRAM Powerglide 950, 9-speed, 11-32)
Tire compatibility (I current roll on 35 front 32 rear)

Are there additional variables that I need to consider from a compatibility standpoint? I'm looking at the Vuelta Corsa HD Road Wheelset because it is affordable and the reviews indicate that they're reliable.

Am I correct in thinking this is a compatible choice?  Are there other variables that I need to consider?  And is this a poor choice?  I know a lot of people advocate hand-built wheels.

Yes, the weight of you + your bike + your load should be a factor. At 200 + 28 + 30 lbs, your looking at close to 300 lbs. Consider 32h in the front and 36h in the rear.

For 32mm tires, look for rims that are 15-19mm wide inside, and for 35mm tires look for 17-21 mm wide.

I'm the same weight and have chosen 32h/36h but ride 38mm tires both front and back on 22m wide rims.

The wheels you link to meet those specs, so good choice (except for them not being in stock yet).


Trouble w/ Zycom Bike Clamp I have a Zycom 1st balance bike and I’m trying to put it together with terrible instructions and common sense. Anyway the clamp that is supposed to go around the handle bars’ bar and the front wheel bar doesn’t fit around both. And then the the clamp with a lever doesn’t tighten enough around the seat bar. This was an closed box (never been open) package. How can I solve these issues?

Assuming this is the bike you are talking about

Zycom My 1st ZBike
According to the assembly video on their website (I couldn't find a manual)
The fork and handlebars are held together with a clamp

And the seat post is held into the frame with a clamp

The two clamps look similar but might be slightly different sizes. Swap them back and forth to make sure you have the right one in the right place. If one clamp is a little larger than the other the larger one could be for the fork/handlebars leaving the smaller one for the seat post clamp.


Replacing crankset on early-'70s Motobecane 10-speed I need a replacement crankset for my Motobecane Nomade 10-speed road bike (early '70s model), but am not quite sure what I even have at the moment and, once I know what I can use to replace it with, I still don't know where I could find it. Can someone help me with either of these two tasks?

Bottom bracket

I know that when I bought the bike, the seller had replaced the bottom bracket because the one it previously had was bad, but I'm not sure with what sort of bottom bracket he replaced it (e.g. French vs. Swiss vs. modern).

Crankset specifications

I was told by a mechanic that's a double crankset with 52/39 teeth for a square bottom bracket and an 8-speed chain (I think so?-- could this be right?).

From this photo we can see you have cotterless cranks, probably square tapered, which you'll be pleased to know are still a very common interface. Yours look like they're held in place with a 14mm nut easily removed with a socket wrench and crank puller.

I don't think there's any modern, cartridge bottom bracket with this style of nut, so this will be a cup and race type. You can typically remove the non-drive-side cup with a large shifter wrench and assuming the drive-side is left-hand threaded you can remove the fixed, drive-side cup using this one neat trick.

Depending on the desired chainline, if the cups/races of the bottom bracket are smooth and without pitting or gouging you can continue to use this BB with another set of square taper cranks. If the bearings are pitted replace them (they're almost always 1/4").

The four important factors in choosing a bottom bracket are:

Shell diameter
Threading
Spindle length
Interface (i.e. square taper)

This crib sheet is useful.

Front chainline is determined by combination of the BB spindle length, BB offset (i.e. spacers, asymmetric spindle) and the crankset. The crankset manufacturer will typically recommend a spindle length (or see this database).

As for a replacement crankset, you can buy new (basically any road double crankset square taper is likely to fit; or there's a few manufacturer's making quality, vintage-esque cranksets, e.g. Velo Orange), however you can also find some great quality stuff at your local bicycle swapmeet/bike shed. Whatever you choose to do, I recommend getting something with replaceable chain rings, so next time you wear your chainrings down you can simply replace the chain ring and not the whole setup.

Be aware that when your chainring teeth are this worn you have likely accelerated the wear of your chain and rear sprockets. You quite likely need an entire new drive train.

On chain itself, this is dependent on the number of cogs on the rear. With 5 on the rear you're using 3/32" chain, but modern 8-speed chain fits just fine (this is often sold as 6/7/8 speed chain).


Should I climb out of the saddle? I'm sure a question like this must have been asked before but I can't seem to find it.
Should one learn to climb out of the saddle? I have heard that if the climb is steep enough, then at some point that may be worth it. However even for short ramps of more than 20% I still feel more comfortable staying in the saddle. Should I try to get used to out of the saddle climbing to possibly alternate on longer climbs or punch up short climbs? Or is this up to personal preference and I may just be better off staying in the saddle? (but even then should I train out of the saddle riding for a bit just to try?)
I ride pretty much exclusively on the road. I have recently tried out of the saddle riding on a short 25% ramp and did lose traction because of some leaves on the road. Though in general this shouldn't be much of a concern.
I don't have specific goals, I never participated in any race or similar. I wouldn't rule it out for the future but it's not in my current plans (since frankly I don't think I am at a level where it makes much sense to compete). Mostly I just ride for fun however I would like to become a better climber/cyclist in general.
Currently I mostly ride the
short 1.7km climb at my doorstep but occasionally I will also ride some proper long climbs.
EDIT: Thanks for the many answers. The overall impression I got is that staying seated if it feels more natural (which for me it does) is fine so I guess I'll continue staying seated then. Thanks everyone for the answers.

There is no correct answer. Do what works or is most comfortable for you.
Bear in mind that if you train yourself to sit and spin at a higher cadence you’ll get better at that. If you train yourself to stand up and pedal slower you’ll get better at doing that.


Cheap carbon-fiber handlebar from Hong Kong. Will it break? I bought a flat carbon handlebar from Hong Kong, unbranded, at ebay. I've paid about AUD25...

I wonder, will it break? How can I tell whether the built quality is OK?

It is for a road bike that I mostly use for commuting, so a bit of bunny hopping.

Maybe.

A lot of (all?) pricey carbon stuff is made is made in the far east, and much of it in the same factories with the same moulds.

What you're paying for is accountability really. When you buy a pricey carbon widget you're moving the responsibility of making sure it's ok from you and onto them.

Any company with a valuable reputation is certain to have invested at least some time and effort into design, testing, insurance, etc.


What to consider when changing V-brake for a disc brake? The frame of this bike has the capacity for V-brakes and disc brakes. There are some problems with the rear V-brake and I am considering installing a disc brake instead (just for elevated coolness). The bike is one year old. The only part, that was exchanged is the chain  - one month ago. The bike is a commuter/touring/cross-country style ridden. The hubs of the wheels do not have holes for bolts, that should hold a disc.

What are the main things to consider when upgrading to a rear disc brake? What parts should I buy? I am considering brake + whole assembled rear wheel == hub+spokes+rim.

First, it's an expensive upgrade that won't benefit you much. You'll see quite a few cheaper bikes that only have a disk on the front, because that's where you get most benefit from a disk. So the cheaper option is definitely to buy a better V brake. It will work just as well and be cheaper.

You will need a new rear hub, and it's likely to be cheaper to buy a prebuilt wheel rather than pay someone to rebuild your current rim with a new hub into a wheel (I suggest not re-using the spokes even if you can). You will, of course, need to buy the disk brake as well.

Since it's the rear brake, I'd go with the cheapest cable operated brake I could find. The advantage there is that it's cheap. A more expensive cable operated brake will work slightly better and have both pads adjustable making it easier to set up. But it won't look any more like a disk brake, so there's no real benefit in your situation. Likewise, a hydraulic brake will work better in the rain and snow, but cost more.


Issue shifting from largest cog to second largest Got a Canyon Spectral 3 weeks ago, have done around 2 hours riding on it and have noticed an issue with shifting from the largest cog to second largest. The drivetrain is SRAM NX 1x12.
There are two different scenarios:

When the bike is upside down
The chain will stay on the largest cog no matter how much I shift down, the derailleur does not move when these shifts are done (hence why it stays on the largest cog). If I give the derailleur a gentle push it will then move into gear as the slack is there for it. When it's in a different gear I can go all the way down to the smallest cog fine and back up to the largest. After reaching the largest it repeats the issue.

When riding
When in the largest cog and riding it will shift after around 5 seconds of pedaling on some occasions and almost immediately when cornering like the motion helps it out of the gear. When on the largest cog and clicking shift twice it will skip down into the third largest no problem.

Video of scenario 1. https://www.dropbox.com/s/qs2k2ma9rgvlth4/VID_20181212_184618.mp4?dl=0
I'm already contacting bike shops and canyon have suggested taking it to a bike shop but putting this up to see if anyone has any ideas or has had a similar experience.

I would honestly just take the cable off the and use your thumb to push the derailleur into the biggest gear while turning the peddles. do this over and over again. if it ever sticks then you know its your derailleur. if it does not stick you can move on and look into cable issues.....

hope this helps.


Why is Shimano 105 5700 (10-speed) is more expensive than 105 5800 (11-speed)? Why is Shimano 105 5700 (10-speed) is more expensive than 105 5800 (11-speed)?

Does someone know?

Shimano, the distributor, and the retailer can pretty much set the price they want. It is common for older components to be more.

Clearly the distributor and retailer are not going to take a loss.

The marginal cost to Shimano is pretty low.  Most of the cost is R&D, tooling, and branding.

Shimano wants you in their higher end stuff to promote their brand.

Once Shimano has machining set up the cost for them to produce one versus the other is the same.  And they may have some innovation that the new is actually cheaper to produce.


Can a 13 year old wheelie/bunny hop on a mountain bike? I have a regular sized Kona mountain bike and I've been trying to at least lift the front properly, for several months. Is it maybe that I weight 105 (only)? What techniques would you recommend for somebody like me? I know bunny hops are usually for BMX, but they're useful for MTB a whole lot, for example this channel gives tips on starting, but for adult sized bodies I would suppose. Thank you.

Wheelies are about legs and technique so if you can reach the pedals and handlebars you can pull a wheelie on a mountain bike.

But bunny hops need weight so that will be an issue for you since it's a matter of using your weight to get the bounce and momentum you need.

Learning to wheelie (lift the front wheel) is fairly simple you get the bike barely rolling, put it in highest gear, and then push down hard on the pedal while pulling up on the handlebars. Keeping it going is a bit more difficult. I taught my 8 year old to wheelie using that technique but on a smaller bike. Be prepared to spin the whole bike upside down a few times when learning. But doing it this way you can't really get hurt since you're not going at any speed.

Safety first! Don't take the picture too seriously, but practising on grass is a good idea for beginners.


Cannot shift to lowest gear - chain too short? I’m in the process of switching from an 11-25 to 11-32 rear cassette.  The upgrade has involved replacing the cassette, rear derailleur (short to medium cage) and fitting a new chain.

I can cleanly shift through all rear gears on the small front cog, however on the large cog I’m unable to shift to the lowest few gears.  Towards these lowest gears the rear derailleur looks to be under a lot of tension, the upper jockey wheel is not engaged and things get jammed up:

I believe I’ve sized the chain too short but I’m looking for confirmation as I thought I used the largest front/rear without derailleur + 2 links when sizing.

If I have sized things incorrectly can I just pick up a few more link pins and add some links back?  Anybody able to offer suggestions on how many additional links to add?

Yep, chain too short.

Yes, you can add some extra links in. The chain is new so you wont have links with different amounts of wear.

What I would suggest is splicing the left over links into the chain first. Then you will have a chain a few links shorter then original unshortened chain. Then size, re-cut and join it.

UPDATE: I was reminded by a comment that you cannot push out the link pin used to join the chain. You have to break the chain in a different place and push out a regular pin. Therefore, when you splice a section of links in you will have three link pins in the chain (the one you first joined the chain with and one on ether end of the spliced in section). This is very important. The link pins are of a slightly greater diameter than the regular pins and widen the hole through the outer plates when pushed in. A link pin installed where a link pin was pushed out will be substantially weaker.

I prefer Park Tool's recommended method to size the chain because it is far easier to perform (and safer). All you do is size the chain on the largest sprockets without threading the chain through the derailleur (because the chain would be pulled straight through the cage anyway). Without tension on the chain it's easier to hold in in place and mark the appropriate link.


I cannot go 30 miles without a flat. I can't figure out what the problem is I have Mavix CXP-12 wheels (20mm). I have relatively new Freedom ThickSlick 23mm Tires on the wheels. I've been using these inner tubes: Meetlocks® 700x18-23c. I weigh 165 lb.

I just keep getting flats, both rear and front. More often the rear. Sometimes I get flats twice on a single 20 mile ride.

I was inflating to 110 PSI, and I assumed these were pinch flats, so I tried going up to 125 PSI and that just made things worse. Then I tried running at 90 PSI and that didn't help either. I thought the spokes seemed a bit loose and maybe they were poking the tube on bumps, so I tightened all the spokes a turn and that didn't help. I replaced the rim tape and that didn't help.

The tires are not compromised at all. The rims have no burrs or anything like that and the rim tape looks perfectly intact. These are definitely some sort of pinch flat. The punctures are usually on the side or inside of the inner tube.

I was having this same problem on another brand of inner tubes (I forget the brand name). So I doubt that's the issue.

I have no idea what's going on. Is there an incompatibility between these 23mm tires on my 20mm rim that leads to flats? Do I need to have the wheels rebuilt? They look perfectly true to me.

Any pointers appreciated. My only guess at the moment is I need to get 20mm tires. But I'm worried that'll just be a waste of money.

I've had this exact problem.  I spent a whole lot of time removing the inner tube, patching it, etc...   All to no avail. I finally figured out that the side of a drilled spoke access hole was barely visible next to the rim tape.  When I'd inflate the inner tube, it would jut into that hole (depression) and get cut on the side of the drilled hole at the aluminum rim.  The fix was to get better (wider) rim tape, and carefully adjust it so there was a uniform overlap at the spoke access holes.

I also figured out that is VERY difficult to patch a hole on the inner side of the tube.  You have to use a patch that is at least two times its width (long axis oriented along the rim...)

Good luck with it.

Oh, and to help me in troubleshooting, I always label the fill port on the outside side of the tire (In my case I rotate the tire so the pressure rating is next to the fill valve. Then I use a paint pen to add a tick mark on the sidewall that exactly lines up with fill valve.)  This makes the pressure numbers easy to find, AND really help me in troubleshooting a leaky inner tube.  I can inflate the leaky tube in a bucket of water, find the leak, then remove it to line it up with both the rim AND the tire to search out root causes for the leak.

Edit..
I'm guessing that with certain rim cross sections and geometry, and with a soft rim tape, it might be possible for no sharp edges be exposed with tire and tube is off of the rim, but under high tire pressure, the rim tape may move a bit, exposing the inner tube to the sharp side of a drilled spoke access hole, or the end of a long spoke...


Why does my bike constantly break/need servicing? I only cycle about 4 miles per day, on roads and paths, which although a little bumpy in places, I'm not off roading.  I'm finding something is breaking or coming loose on my bike after only a couple of weeks or less after servicing it, and I'm having to take it back to the shop every couple of months.
I'd specifically asked for a bike that wouldn't require much maintenance and on questioning the shop I've since been told that ANY bike I bought would be the same, but I just don't really believe them.  People must be able to do 100+ miles without problems regularly surely?
The bike they sold me is a Claud Butler Windermere, which was way lower in price than I was prepared to pay (I was prepared to pay more specifically because I wanted to get something low maintenance that I didn't have to think about).  I also know/knew next to nothing about bikes.
In the 18 months I've had it

Bottom bracket worked loose twice (so it makes a clunking noise), once just 2 weeks after a service
Rear (metal) mud guard cracked through
Chain gaurd cracked through
Pedals loose, broken and replaced with metal ones
Pedal arm thing loose
Rear wheel loose (although they admitted that was their mistake??)
Mud guard bolts dropped out
Handle bars loose 3x
1x puncture
Saddle loose
Gears mis-aligned almost constantly (just make do with what happens to work)
Front break squeals almost constantly (fixed for about a day after service)
One set of rear pads worn, breaks need frequent adjusting, often "stick" on one side.

I have done less than 2000 miles so far, and it hasn't had any impacts - this breaks/cracks have all just come from vibration from riding.
My bike shop has simply told me "no there is nothing they can do in a service to stop these things happening, even the next day, it's just random" and "no you can't buy a bike that is better for any price, so there is no point replacing it".  I don't have access to many bike shops to shop around.  Are they fibbing?
My ideal would be to be servicing it about twice a year.  Is that just unrealistic?
edit
Just add some details on the roughness of the ride, as I may be a tad rough based on some answers.
I'm about 65kg but also impatient so tend to cycle quite quickly (in a non athletic sense). Top speeds 20-25mph on flatish.
There are three cobbled speed bumps on the route (i do slow down)
There is a short steep hill, which i just keep in highest gear (middle at front, smallest at back) and power through (160m long 12m rise).  I don't really use the front gear.
This is the uk so plenty of rain.
At home it lives in the garage. During day in a covered bike rack.
Edit
Just to add closure to this in case anyone is interested as it has been a few years now.  I followed the advice and switched bike shop AND bought a new bike - more expensive Raleigh Strada 5.  Totally different experience with this bike and shop - reliable and no comparable problems.  The new bike shop gave the old bike a good going over and it is now my back up bike - it is clearly nothing like the same quality as the new bike, but none of the alarming problems since switching shops.  It does go to show that even as just a commuter rather than a bike enthusiast, there can still be a big difference paying a little bit more.

The bike you have is a decent low/mid-range hybrid bike with entry-level name-brand components. It should absolutely be mostly trouble-free with basic maintenance for a daily 4 mile commute. While replacing the cheap plastic pedals with a decent set of metal or high-quality poly pedals is standard business for any new bike, the other problems are worrying.

To be honest I don't think it was assembled correctly at the shop, and the mistakes in assembly - mis-alignment of the derailers, improper torquing of components (too loose for the bottom bracket and crank, too tight for the chaincase), etc. - are causing new issues to pop up on the regular. If you bought the bike from the shop who's been fixing it, find another shop. Heck, find another shop, period - any pro bike mechanic worth their salt should be finding and fixing these issues on their work-stand before you find them on the road.

It may be that there are so many problems on the bicycle that need remediation, a new or gently used bike might be a more economical solution than trying to bring this one into some semblance of repair. Find a different shop to buy it at and to maintain it.


Shimano sora shifter no longer shifts On my commute yesterday, I noticed that my right shifter was no longer 'clicking' when shifting my rear derailleur up into a larger sprocket. It still shifted fine, but I noted that I should look into it this weekend. On the commute in this morning, it stopped shifting altogether.

Symptoms

Chain/derailleur is on the smallest sprocket. It is positioned fine, no noise.
When I press the brake lever inwards to shift the derailleur up, it moves a bit until I can feel the shift cable tightening ever so slightly. The shift lever stops and feels locked at that point. (It will not go through it's full sweep inwards)
The thumb lever on the sora shifter feels loose and has no tension. (Normal for when it is on the smallest sprocket)
If I pull on the shift cable itself (cable is routed along the top bar of the bike) the derailleur moves smoothly through the gears on the cassette.

When it first happened, I played a little bit with the cable tension, but that effectively did nothing.

This has never happened to me before, does anyone recognize these symptoms and should I attempt a repair or are the internals likely broken in the shifter?

I've experienced 2 problems on the Sora shifters- one condition was the cable wear caused strands of the cable to break- eventually all broken strands resulted in functional loss & cable replacement needed. When I disassembled the shifter, I found small pieces of the broken cable strands jamming the ratcheting mechanism. You may be experiencing a similar condition if the shifter cable has been previously replaced w/o a complete overhaul of the shifter. As the strands started breaking- the shift action deteriorates, and no click latching was one of the symptoms.  A second problem found on another Sora shifter that had similar shift deterioration was a result of a tensioning spring used for the return action- the 90 degree bend point of the spring was broken. Without an available replacement part, I finally mechanically "unwound" 1 loop of the spring to create a new 90 degree bend for the part. It successfully has been working for several years now on that bike.


Tiagra levers moving loose Lately I have noticed that, whenever I use the bar-end lever to shift the gears up (both front and rear) for the first couple of actions the lever feels loose: it moves to the end of its range without any action, then at the third time the shift is executed. For the rest it works smoothly.

What should I check to fix the issue?

The bike started showing this behavior after the winter break. It was stored in closed place, and I first noticed it after having transported it in the trunk of my car for the first ride of the season.

I'm not sure why you've not received an answer before now.  The fist thing I would do is change the cables and housings.  This is cheap and easy.  You can get a cable kit on ebay for about $15, and you can do it without any special tools*
It solves so many shifting problems because friction builds up in the housings after use and time.
It is not a guaranteed fix, but it is something you want to do periodically anyway. There are a jillion youtube videos explaining how to change cables and housings, but let me know if you want me to recommend one in particular.
*I mention no special tools.  Technically, a cable cutter is your best bet for cutting the cables, but not practical if you don't expect to be doing this much.  If you decide to hack it with a pair nippers of some other kind, you'll mash the housing.  Just make sure you try to return it to round as best you can with a pair of pliers.  Then take a toothpick or pencil or similar to make sure the hole (for the cable) is not obstructed by any of the metal that you mashed.  This is easier with shifter housing than brake housing.
I have had a lot of success with a pair of dual action mini bolt cutters.
When you take the old housing off, use it to set the length of the new housing that you will cut.
Note that shifter housing and brake housing are not the same, nor are the cables.  Shifter housing is slightly narrower, and has wires in a gently spiral running almost parallel to the housing.  Brake cable has a tight spiral and running almost perpendicular to the housing.  Shifter cable is 4mm, and the cable for it is 1.2mm.


Are there downsides to cross-top brake levers? Compatible with all mechanical-hydraulic disc brakes? I have a Genesis Croix de Fer 20 from a few years ago with the following specs:

Brakes: TRP HY-RD mechanical-hydraulic caliper w/160mm TR160 rotors
Levers: Shimano Tiagra ST-4700

I would like to fit some cross-top brake levers (otherwise known as "interrupter", "in-line" or "top mount" levers) but am concerned about the following:

Can it decrease the braking efficiency of the main levers?
Are cross-top levers compatible with my mechanical-hydraulic disc brakes?
Are there any specific models that are recommended for this setup?

I'm considering the Tektro ones depending on my OD:

24.0mm - RL720
26.0mm - RL726
31.8mm - RL721

I am a maker of custom bikes for kids and small adults. I am a heavy user of the interrupter-style levers, even for main brake levers. The main reason that I use them is that they are easy to adapt to a custom bracket which fits smaller-diameter handlebars and smaller hands. Another great benefit, they are some of the lightest levers available, period, at as little as 45 grams each in stock configuration. I am familiar with both Tektro and various clones.
To answer your questions,

It is not likely to decrease the braking efficiency of the main levers. I doubt you will notice a difference. Technically there could be some more friction from the cable flowing through the lever, but the lever itself should have less compression than brake housing. To minimize friction, consider using lined end caps such as those available from Jagwire here: https://jagwire.com/products/small-parts/lined-end-caps
These types of levers are "road pull", so they should be compatible with your Hy/RD road calipers
Tektro is a safe option but the various clones available on the market seem almost identical in function and even in appearance. Do be advised that many of them come in strictly left-hand and right-hand versions, according to the shape of the lever itself. This could be important if you plan to put the lever in an odd location, or in a "reversed" configuration.


Advice for servicing a Scott Sub 10 [8 speed Alfine hub gear] I purchased a Scott Sub 10 last year and use it almost every day for commuting doing around 12 miles a day.

I'd say I've done around 2000 miles since purchasing it last Summer.

I am going to take it in to get serviced soon as I feel the wheels need to be straightened and other things aught to get looked at.... as sometimes the gear (Shimano Alfine, 8 spd IGH) slips when I put it into 8th gear.

I was surprised the bike didn't come with much in the way of instructions about servicing the hub since it came with guides for most of the other components.

I went to one bike shop and they quoted £140 for the hub to get serviced, which seemed a bit excessive until I went and looked at how much the official Shimano servicing kit costs alone.

I want to service this myself as I think it'll be a good lesson to learn.

So my questions are:

Does anyone have any experience of advice for doing this?
What tools will I require?
What lubrication is recommended?
Are there any guides?

I've owned a Scott Sub 10 Alfine 8 (orange 2011) since Jan 2012. I've done 1600 miles and it runs very nicely indeed. Unfortunately I rode through a 'puddle' during the floods, which turned out to be 18" deep - it completely submerged the hub for 5-10 seconds. I bought a litre of the magic shimano oil for £60 from a shop which has since gone bust. When I opened the hub there was absolutely no water ingress and the internals looked factory fresh. I followed Shimano's servicing instructions to the letter. It's not difficult, taking about 2 hrs - a professional mechanic could do the whole thing in 30 mins.
The quote of £140 is very steep. Although the oil retails for £80, it is reusable - just leave it to settle and return to the tin. I weighed the oil can before and after, and I used 35gm - in other words there's enough for 30 services. The cost to a shop which regularly services Alfines would be £3 per hub. Adding 1 hour's labour would come to about £30. If you do your own servicing, don't degrease the hub in solvent - the drive side bearings are inaccessable without buying an expensive tool, and thin oil, like ATF, will not keep them sweet for long. Read the net for loads of people who've done this and now blame Shimano. Regarding 8th gear: this has the most cable tension,so if it's an adjustment problem, it needs more tension. Also look out for a rusty/ bent cable. Finally, if there's dirt behind the casette joint it might limit movement.
Try removing the cassette joint, cleaning it and regreasing the cable while your at it. I'd be quite happy to talk you through the service, but I don't want to publish my email/phone. I'll keep an eye on this page incase you want to contact me again.


Are there any disadvantages to running a stainless steel bike chain? We are currently using KMC Z51RB rust resistant chains on our bikes, a competitor has started to use stainless steel chains.  Does anyone know the advantages and disadvantages of using stainless steel and should we be thinking of changing to SS too?

Many thanks.

Your question doesn't clearly state your criteria in choosing a chain except that your competitors are using stainless steel and you use an alternative rust resistant chain, so I'll answer generally on the assumption that corrosion resistance is the main criteria.

As far as I know there are no bicycle chains that are completely stainless steel.
You will note on the Connex Wipperman stainless steel chains that only the inner links are stainless steel, so you won't get complete rust or corrosion resistance by using them. You will still need to lubricate and clean the chain to avoid corrosion and increase the chain's life.
The stainless steel in those chains may give you longer wear, with a slight weight penalty as seen in this review.

You will have noticed from the Connex page that I linked to before, that there are a number of other corrosion resistance mechanisms including nickel and brass coatings. Other manufacturers also have a variety of means of corrosion resistance.

The main disadvantage of stainless steel would probably be the expense and possibly a slight weight penalty, although the review I linked to suggests the longer life will offset the expense for their purposes.

Overall though, there is no zero maintenance bicycle chain that I know of that is completely rust proof and maintenance free. Only a belt-drive bicycle transmission will not require lubrication and will not rust and it is claimed they will not stretch. Yet there are other issues with belt-drives, which you can research separately to this question if you are interested.


Are there any locking options that lock the drive train of a bicycle? I've been looking into the different kind of locks available, and came upon this short documentary about bike thefts in London. Seems that just about any lock on the market can be easily beaten by a large enough set of bolt cutters. So I was trying to think of a better system, and I thought of something: Why not have locks that are built into the bike itself? Something that locks out the drive train in some way?

It seems that in the majority of thefts, the thieves are riding away on the bike. From about 10 minutes of pondering the question, it seems like a small hole could be placed in the crank axle without compromising the strength too much, and then you could incorporate the locking mechanism into the down tube. When the bike is locked, the cranks can no longer turn.

Searching on the internet yielded no results for locks that lock the drive train of the bike. Is it just an unworkable idea, or has nobody thought of it until now?

You would still have to lock the bike to a rack to ensure that someone doesn't just carry it away or put it on the back of a truck.  But it would make the bike that much less of a target if the thief knew that such a system was in place.

Wheel locks are an implementation of this idea. They simply prevent the rear wheel from turning, which is effectively the same thing.

Again, any thief with large enough bolt cutters will be able to effectively sidestep the problem without hassle. But worse than that, the odds of your bike being stolen while being immobilized like this are still orders of magnitude higher than locking your bike to something with a U-lock. Any thief can merely pick up the bike and run off with it (which is more doable than you'd think) or toss it into the bed of a pickup and be gone.

And that's simply what it comes down to. Locking the drivetrain doesn't provide any additional mechanism that a prepared thief wouldn't already be able to work around, and, while better than leaving your bike totally unlocked, is still far less safe than a U-lock.


Eddy Merckx Road Bike Identification Can anyone help me identify the model of this bike and possibly give me a time period in which it might have been made? I am considering buying it for a total of $350 with riding shoes in my size, a helmet, and a stationary stand for it. I know nothing about road cycling but am looking to get into it and from what I can tell Eddy Merckx is a great brand with a few exceptions. He says they components, pedals, and shoes are shimano. Apologies for the poor pictures they were all he had. I have not seen the bike in person yet and am a bit concerned that it is disassembled, is there anything in particular I should look for?
Thanks

For anyone following this thread, please reference the following that may be of some help.

http://www.cadre.org/Merckx/

Below is a list of serial numbers and descriptions for a variety of Eddy Merckx steel frames.

Serials are of the form --. When looking at the bottom bracket, with the frame vertical and the headtube at the top, read this as upper left, lower left, lower right, upper right. Sort of a U shape. Why? Because it sets a standard way for me to record this info, no other reason.

Only when either a frame has been date verified by Gitabike or the Merckx factory do I add a verified model year. Model year bikes are begun production the year before, and as such its possible for their date code to be somewhat different than what the pattern suggests

Pattern? Right, the patterns.

The left side of the serial gives model and (sometimes) size information. Sometimes there are some other letters I haven't deciphered. But here's the general gist

Letter  Model
A   (Professional?)
B   (Professional?)
P   Professional
C   Corsa
X   Corsa Extra
T   TSX (Century)
M*  Strada

On frames prior to, roughly, 1986, the M probably denotes a multisport or other model, and does not necessarily denote a Strada. If there's a Columbus SL style sticker on there (either no tubing type mentioned, or an SL), then its probably not a Strada - which will have either a Strada or possibly a Cromor decal, depending on the year.

Sometimes things don't match up -- there are multiple Corsa Extras marked with an H, for instance. Things to figure out as the sample space gets larger. Originally, I thought an S designated a Grand Prix (made of Seven-fifty-three tubing), but has shown up on a variety of other frames clearly labeled as other models.

The left side number will give the last digit of the frame size. C5, for instance, would be a 55cm Corsa. On some frames, this might show up as 5C, but it means the same.

The right side of the serial is less easily defined. The numeric portion seems to be at least semi-linear. The two identical Grand Prix differ by 1. Other frames from the 88/89/90 time frame show numeric portions radically different. Its possible the number portion is sane for a given model type.

The final letter, however, seems to be at least a somewhat reasonable marker for timeframe. Its possible that the letter corresponds to the catalog which the model comes from -- Merckx didn't necessarily issue a new catalog for every year, so the letter may indicate the catalog year to which the model is designed.

In general, the letters from 1986/87 and on seem to follow a somewhat recognizable pattern. 84/85, part of 86 maybe, also seem semi consistent:

Letter  Date Range
Z   85
A   86/87
B   88/89
C   90/91
D   92/93
E   94/95*
F   96/97
G   98
H   99
* The E is a tough thing to deal with -- a misdating of a frame in the table below as a 94/95 by Gita, when it is very clearly early 80's, strongly points to E as 94/95 when its an appropriate looking/constructed frame. But the E also appears for frames in the early 80's. So use the list wisely. If you have over-bottom-bracket cable routing, you don't have a 1990's frame.

Some bikes seem to slightly predate or post date the range. These may be bikes manufactured to the new specs in the year prior to the model year -- Gitabike indicates, for example, the Grand Prix's in the list to be 89 model year, while a 10th anniversary TSX frame also carries the B. Might be a late 89 build?

This list is (roughly) in the order that they were probably produced, based on the letter, claimed date, as well as look + model. As earlier frames seem less likely to follow a pattern, I've placed them first. At some point I'll make tables that break out by frame-type, where identifiable or strongly guessable.

I'd also recommend reading this blog post I wrote about using frame details for dating. As in, figuring out what time frame a frame is from. Last thing I need is for the wife to have written evidence suggesting I take the bikes out more than her.

Something else worth taking a peek at is a series of blog posts I did for team color schemes. Merckx has sponsored a slew of teams over the years, in a variety of liveries.

Full table is at the link quoted above.


Help identifying this rear-wheel part (photo) I took off my rear wheel, and this fell out on the floor:

Is this a "rear wheel axle"?

It looks like it should indeed be in one piece instead of two. I would like to order a replacement for this part(s) without having to replace the entire rear wheel.

It is indeed a broken rear axle.
If you nave no proper tools (freewheel/cassette remover, cone wrench 15mm, wrench 17mm, new QR axle, 2 rings of new bearings), get it to an LBS to replace it.
It's also recommended to check the wheel bearings cups for defects, it maybe a good time to replace the wheel - all depends on the shape of other parts, and the cost to bring it to proper state.


How to know and which to use? I have these shifters and derailleurs:
front shifter Shimano ST-EF41, 3spd
front derailleur Shimano FD-TZ500, 3spd
rear shifter Shimano ST-EF41, 7spd
rear derailleur Shimano RD-TZ31, 7spd
I want to change my rear system with SRAM X5 rear derailleur (Long 9 -Speed) and SRAM PG-950 9 speed cassette(12-23 t).
The present Shimano has a freewheel whereas SRAM has cassette. What else will be needed?

If your goal is to convert your 3 gears in the front and 7 gears in the back to a 3 in the front and 9 in the rear this will be quite expensive. A new rear wheel will be required Your current rear wheel uses a screw on freewheel to mount the rear gearset. Nine speed rear wheels use a freehub mounting system with a cassette. You will need a 9 speed rear shifter and derailleur of the same brand, Shimano shifter with a Shimano derailleur or Sram derailleur with Sram shifter. You may need a new front derailleur, some 7 speed front derailleurs can be adjusted to work with narrower 9speed chains but it is trial and error and shifting may not be optimal. If you front shifter is a non indexed type this may actually improve shifting in this mismatch scenario. You will need a 9 speed chain. If you are doing these improvements yourself you will need to add the cost of a chain-tool, freewheel removal tool, cassette install/remove tool and a chaiin whip.


How much can we change our bike wheel diameters before needing another bike fit? How much can we change our bike wheel diameters before needing another bike fit?

If we change the size of our bike tires, it raises or lowers the front or rear of the bike. That means it can affect the reach, handlebar height, setback, saddle angle, and handlebar angle. That means even after tilting the seat up or down to make it flat, we need the setback readjusted, and we likely need a new stem to readjust the reach and handlebar height. Adjusting the setback affects the reach.

It seems like even a mm of adjustment can be significant in terms of optimizing our bike fit. If we extend our knees, our hamstrings are engaged when extending our hips like on the downstroke but if our knees are bent, they don't get activated so we get less power. Most of us notice the stretch in our hamstrings when when trying to reach our toes with our knees extended. There's a reason why a bike fit can take at least 2 hours. Some bike fitters recommend another bike fit when we get new shoes as they can have different sole heights in addition to needing the cleats adjusted.

Sometimes we need or want to change the diameters of the wheels.

Examples include:

Tire clearances are different for both the front and rear wheels while the rider desires fitting the widest tires possible. Adding a fender also decrease tire clearances.
Even replacement tires with the same width markings can have slightly different actual widths when installed onto the rim.
Rim replacement since changing the rim inner widths can affect the tire widths.
Spare wheels since some cyclists have multiple wheels for different conditions, race days and training, different gear ratios, etc.
Upgrading the hub to a hub dynamo, internal hub gearing, coaster brake, power meter, etc. The new hub may have different hole counts so a new rim, which may have a slightly different inner width may be needed.

How much can we increase the difference in the two wheel diameters before we need another bike fit?

The thing about bike fit is that it's almost exclusively about relating your body position to the mechanical parts of the bike. The relationship between handlebar, saddle and pedals is unaffected by changing the wheels.

If you make a change to one wheel diameter it will be equivalent to the tiniest of slopes. Let's take a worst case: Say you go from 35mm tyres to 25mm on the same rim (a 10mm difference in nominal radius, which is what actually matters) on a bike with an unusually short 1m wheelbase. That's a 1% change. Does your fit change on a 1% slope? More typical changes on more typical bikes  would work out closer to 0.2%. I doubt you can even measure whether the saddle is level to that precision, for example, never mind whether it should be. You'd have to change the bead seat diameter for it to make much difference, and while people do put 650B wheels on 700C frames they normally do both at once.

Shoes are very different, in that they come between your body and the bike, and in a particularly important way.


Identifying an eccentric bottom bracket? I have a bike powered by a Gates belt-drive and a Shimano Alfine 11. It also has an eccentric bottom bracket to adjust the tension on the belt drive, and a SRAM GXP bottom bracket.

The other day, just by following videos on Youtube since no other help was available, I tried replacing the old bottom bracket with a new one… and it looks like I ruined the threading on the drive side of the eccentric BB: I can hand-tighten it, but when tightening it further with a wrench, it loosens again, ie. I can never tighten if fully. It looks like I'll have to buy a new eccentric bottom bracket :-/

The issue: How to identify the brand + model of that eccentric BB without taking it out (I'll need to ride it to a workshop to fix it)? There's nothing written on the sides, short of L/R:

Also, while I wait for a new eccentric BB, I was thinking of applying some medium-strength threadlock in the hope that the drive-side bearing won't move. What do you think?

Thank you.

--

Edit: I cut the derailleur + hydraulic brake hoses that run through the EBB, and pulled the EBB. It's just a cheap plastic part; According to the bike manufacturer, it's a Prime Aero from a company in Taiwan.

Anybody knows where to get a replacement, with the opening in the middle to let hoses through?

Pulling an eccentric out that's not stuck is usually pretty straightforward once you've gotten the cranks off. If you want to find out the brand and model info (which might not actually be that useful anyway), that's probably the only place you'll find it, if it's there. But, if you're going to try to source a new eccentric yourself, you really should pull it anyway to get an exact measurement of the shell's inside diameter.

If this is any kind of mainstream bike manufacturer, where I would start here is calling them up and seeing if they have a replacement they can send to either you or a dealer. If so, that path is going to be about a million times easier than anything else, and probably cheaper.

I'll also mention that the framebuilding suppliers like Nova are the main source I've seen for more simple 1-piece eccentrics like you appear to have. Most of what you'll find elsewhere are the premium ones like Bushnell, Phil, and Niner.

As for the Loctite idea, with GXP there's not really any place for it to move to. I would never recommend riding on a loose cup, but people do all the time, with the main consequence being noise and play in the cranks.


Navigating on tour / in urban areas It's been a while since I've ridden places where I needed a map. So long that the last time I did it I used an Eclipse handlebar bag with a paper map folded in the pocket…

Sadly the Eclipse bag is no more, and I'm thinking that my iPhone might do a pretty neat job of replacing a paper map. For those of you who do this, I'd appreciate any insights you can offer into that to look for in a bag and/or a phone mount.

One major concern for me is the ease of navigating in urban areas where situational awareness trumps studying the map.

I have used bicycle mode of Google Maps for this purpose. Of course Google maps is not available everywhere. The idea is to use the voice prompts for each turn. You may be able to follow a route created in other software, but I haven't tried that.

I've done it two ways. The first time, I arranged a small pocket, pinned to the upper left of my jersey. It looked somewhat unstylish, so the next few times I put my phone in the back pocket of my jersey. The first way was easier to hear. I didn't want to use an earpiece because it can reduce, as you say, my situational awareness.

There are issues with using Google Maps in this way, so It's important to review the route before you start. Use Street View to check places where the route turns. The main issues I found are

Sometimes it selects a route that is not viable for a bike, even though it supports bicycle mode. Again, Street View can help here. I prefer not to ride with 100kph traffic, or take my road bike on goat trails.
Sometimes the voice prompt is misleading, for example when telling you to "take the fourth exit" from a roundabout. Does that mean a U turn? Or sometimes telling you to turn right, when maybe you need to veer right. And because of GPS device and software limitations, it can sometimes get a bit confused about where you are. Again, reviewing the route helps.

If you hear the navigation voice saying things you don't understand or expect, then stop, get your phone out and see what's going on. The last time I used it I took a wrong turn in a hurry. At first it just said "turn left", but I kept going. When it started saying "make a U turn" I figured it was time to see what it was talking about.

The big advantage is that if you get off your route, it is already working out a new route to get to your destination.

In response a comment: Google maps does have the ability to produce turn-by-turn instructions. You can either print them or view them on your device. I have successfully used this method for 1000km road trips (by car).


How do I tell if a used bike (craigslist) is worth it? So there are always a lot of sales going on on craigslist / ebay / etc. How do I tell if what they are selling is worth it?

I don't really know the difference between a $500 bike and $1500 bike. I know weight is one of concerns but 20 or 25 lbs or even 30 lbs it's pretty hard to tell the difference. There are multitudes of brand names and even more variations within the brand name.

There are also the group sets (even discounting too much of customization)

My stats: 5'10, 270 lbs
Purpose: Commuting ~12 miles daily (each way) - (assuming for long rides 50+ a hybrid is better)

I am planning to go to a local shop to try out some bicycles but, i also don't mind used, but somehow doubt someone from Craigslist will let me do a 'test drive'. Hopefully this is enough information about what my purpose and question is

to sum it up:
- What should I look for that will make the difference between a $500 bike and $1500 (both for same purpose) when it comes to Frame/Components

I would say that most people on Craigslist would be willing to let you give it a test ride, I mean it's similar to buying a car. Just, as I always tell people, meet with the person in a very public space. Much safer place.

As for what to look for, I would do a little research into exactly what you are expecting to use the bike for. Figure out the kind of bike you need and do a little research on the kind of mech recommended for what you're doing,(frame, gears, wheels, shifters, brakes, drive train.) Once you figure all that out, you can narrow down your selection on Craigslist. Just like looking at different models in the store, online you will find pictures, descriptions, e.t.c. So you can find the right bike for you.

Once you think you've found one, speak with the seller and find out more about the bike. Research things like the bikes brand, how old it is, e.t.c. Once everything checks out, boom. You have your bike!


Not enough clearance on road discs for rotor (rotor rubbing) I'm building up a 2014 specialized awol frame with fulcrum red power wheels and trp hylex brakes. I'm using the rotors that came included with the trp's. My issue is that there does not seem to be enough clearance between the pads. The rotor is constantly rubbing. I've removed the pads and reset the pistons. I've used the self centring technique (mounting the wheel then squeezing the lever before fully tightening calliper mounting bolts). All to no avail. It doesn't make sense that I don't have the clearance as I'm using the packaged rotor. Any suggestions?

Many brakes just don't work very well with the squeeze-the-lever-and-tighten-the-bolts technique, despite whatever the manufacturer says. It's worth trying but also something that needs to be given up on quickly if it doesn't just work.

Centering it by eye using a white paper as backdrop is a normal thing to have to do. Don't overtighten the caliper bolts; 8nm is all you need and will generally let you avoid squirm.

While you have the white paper out, make sure to check out your parallelism, and get the mounts faced if needed.

You don't indicate how true the rotors are. Many need truing out of the box - again it's not necessarily how it's supposed to be, but it's how it is.

Unlike what's sometimes seen with DOT brakes, brand new mineral oil brakes such as this usually don't actually have issues with the pistons being overextended and not able to retract fully. You can double check that you're good on that front by taking the pads out and confirming that you're able to push the piston faces down level with where the pad will sit against the caliper body. If you can't, that's weird, but it would mean you'd need to either bleed the brake or potentially burp some fluid and then bleed if it doesn't go smoothly enough.


Shift Cable for 1963 Schwinn w/Sturmey Archer Shifter This is the shifter on my 1963-64 Schwinn Racer:

This is the old cable:

I'd like to replace the cable and found this:

It's hard to tell what the cable ends look like inside the packaging but is anyone familiar with this Schwinn part number and if it's compatible with my shifter? I know there are newer style cables with a loop connecting the adjusting nut (ferrule?) to the hub chain, but I'd like to find the older style if possible.
This is my bicycle. There are many others like it, but this one is mine. My bicycle is my best friend. :-)

Based on the information provided by @P.Barney and @NathanKnutson, I realized that while the cable will most likely work in my shifter, the housing is the wrong length for my particular application. Based on the specs of my old cable, I believe the correct cable to be:


Am I too tall to bother modifying my old trek? I bought an old Trek 500 series road bike a couple months ago and have put love and parts into it but it's just too damn small for me (I'm 6'4"). All the post adjustments are at their safest limits. Are there mods or extensions worth buying to make it more comfortable/efficient or would it be cheaper/easier just to sell it to a short person and find a bigger framed bike? Thanks, J

If you adjust a bike to the max and its still significantly too small, you should sell the bike and get a new bike.

There are extra long seatposts, and extra long quill stems and what not, but in all likelihood its not really worth it if the bike doesn't fit with the normal seatpost + stem; the other parts of geometry like top tube length are probably too small anyway.


Measuring a fixie/single speed bike Do fixie bikes measure like classic road bikes? i.e: https://www.ebicycles.com/bicycle-tools/measure-frame/road-bike/classic

Or only up to the top tube? (without the part of the seat tube that's above the top tube)

Fixie/single speeds have the same measurements as any other bike.

Most fixies/single speeds have geometries that are like old road bikes or hybrids depending on how they're built (obviously a fixie built from an old road bike will have an old road bike geometry!). So, you need to take that into account and preferably try the bike before you buy it. You may find you want a longer top tube or shorter top tube or whatever.


What is the widest tire I can fit on my 32c wheels? I have Shimano WH RS30 rims which are 700c x 32.  I would like to use a beefy 35c tire.  Is that too much width for my rims?

(My forks and brakes are wide enough to handle a 42c)

Thank you.

Assuming that your rims are actually 622x15 ISO size, like the Shimano page for those rims says...

According to this handy chart on Sheldon Brown's site, putting a 35mm tire on a 15mm rim is slightly bigger than recommended. It's close enough that it should be fine, however. That chart is fairly conservative (and even says so at the bottom).

As far as the widest, you could put 42mm on there if the fork, brakes, stays, bridges and seat tube all have the clearance, but that's really pushing it quite far and likely to cause poor handling or other issues. 35mm is just barely pushing it and should be fine.


walkable clipless pedal shoe to replace normal shoe? I have a touring bike which I use almost exclusively for commuting.  I am thinking about getting a clipless pedal with walkable shoes.  At the same time, my normal shoes which I wear when not cycling need to be replaced, and am thinking that to save money and avoid the need for carrying extra shoes back and forth, instead of buying two shoes I would like to buy a shoe that can both be used as a normal shoe as well as for cycling.

While I see that some clipless pedal shoes are "walkable" I don't see much if any data regarding wearing it as a normal shoe all the time.  Preferably I would like to get about the same amount of wear as a regular shoe out of it.   Just for normal everyday walking around the office, out to lunch, and that sort of thing.

Is there some specific model recommendations or something specific in terms of feature I can look for, or is using the same shoe for both things out of the question?  I think it will be required - and I'm definitely open to - using MTB shoes on a road bike (as I think the increased pedaling efficiency will outweigh the weight drawbacks considering my usage pattern), but if it can't be done I would prefer to not get clipless and just buy some inexpensive shoes and continue to use pedal clips.

I just leave a pair of shoes at the office and change shoes when I get there so I don't have to take them back and forth. It's amazing how much space shoes take up in a backpack/pannier. I think that even the "walkable" shoes aren't that comfortable to be in all day.  And any cycling shoes that you did want to walk around in all day would lose a lot of the advantages for having a dedicated cycling shoe, such as a stiff sole. My office shoes are just cheap ones I picked up at Walmart.  This also has the added advantage that if my cycling shoes get wet from the rain that I always have a dry pair to change in to.


How to read stem measurements? I'm thinking of getting a shorter stem for my road bike. But I don't understand how they measure in terms of lenth and angle.
I measured it from center to center and it came up to 4.25 inches. I'm guessing this is the standard 110 mm stem?

Length is measured center to center, and as you guessed, 110mm is roughly 4 1/4 inches. Angle is measured as difference from right angle, so a 0 degree stem will be actually pointing at 90 degree angle from the steerer tube. Yours looks something like 5 degrees.


Do spoke nipples come in one standard body size for the gauge? The descriptions for spoke nipples focus on the spoke diameter (or gauge) compatibility as well as the overall length of the nipple but not really anything about the round part between the head and the square part which sits in the hole of a rim.

 ________
(________)   <-- head
  (    )
  (    )     <-- round part
   |  |
   |__|      <-- square part

    ||       <-- gauge
    ||

Do the nipples come with a standard body diameter for a particular gauge or is it possible to find slimmer or fatter bodies?

Here's measurements from 3 in my immediate vicinity:

Sapim Sil Brass 14G 12mm, I believe featuring the Sapim Polyax design: 3.7mm

Wheelsmith Duristan BN14 (Silver 14g Brass): 3.82mm

DT Sil Brass 14g (I think): 3.9mm

(I don't have al nipples to measure at home, sorry.)

That's more variance than I would have expected.

One major point of design consideration for this area of the nipple (the round part and the shoulder) has to do with different manufacturers' schemes to get the nipple to swivel as freely as possible in the rim at whatever angle the design of the wheel puts it at, to avoid bowing of the spoke due which can lead to failure, or to avoid having to take steps in wheelbuilding to correct the spoke line at the nipple (the Bicycle Wheel by Jobst Brandt has more info on this). I imagine you get more swivel the thinner you make the round part, but the tradeoff is you want material there behind the threads to avoid failure, especially with an aluminum nipple.

Sapim emphasizes the swivel factor with their nipples so that might explain why their number is the smallest of the above.

A related note is that the outside diameter of the area in question doesn't really vary much between gauges. That's one reason why many prefer 1.8mm threaded-end spokes (either straight gauge or Supercomps) for disc brake wheels with al nipples - you get more material there to counteract the extra stress of the brake, which can contribute to nipple breakage.


Need help identifying Industry Nine part I recently picked up a box-lot of Industry Nine parts, including the items pictured. They are 92mm wide, and of varying diameters. Could someone please tell me what they are, and what they are used for?

Thanks very much,
Norm

Flangeless front hub shells.

Standard OLD for front hubs is 100mm - which these would be with bearings and axle installed.

The array of holes at each end are for attaching spokes.


Effectiveness of techniques to improve the performance of rim brakes My bike does not perform badly at the moment, however browsing this site has lead me to wonder whether the performance of the brakes (the front one in particular) could be improved by various means and how effective those are. I am squeezing fairly hard and stopping in a short distance, however I am looking to improve the 'stopping force per force applied to levers' ratio.

My bike is a road bike that has single pivot side-pull calliper brakes and alloy rims. I think the pads are rubber (not sure exactly).

The techniques I can think of are:

(already done) Steel to alloy rims? Answer: Large performance improvement in wet conditions
Single pivot to dual pivot? Wikipedia says "These brakes offer a higher mechanical advantage, and resulting better braking." What is the experienced improvement?
Changing to materials for the brake pads (Rubber, leather, cork)?

You did the right thing by replacing the steel rims. Vintage bikes are nice, but the 70's can keep their steel rims. :-)

As others have said, you should make sure that the entire brake system is properly adjusted.

Since you're dealing with an old bike, I recommend just replacing the brake cable and casing. This can be done for less than 20 dollars. Before inserting the brake cable smear a thin layer of grease on it by running it past your fingers with a dab of grease.

If your levers are in good shape, slather the interior pivot points and cable anchor with grease. If not, then just replace them. Again, that can be done inexpensively-- and you can get "aero brakes" which route the cable under the handlebar wrap (non-aero brakes are another thing the 70's can keep!).

Finally, there is nothing wrong with single pivot brakes. Yes, dual pivot is marginally better because they tend to stay in place (not rub the rim) and you get a barely noticeable increase in leverage. You absolutely will want to replace your brake pads, however. Modern brake pads are sooo much better. I and many others have had success with the koolstop dual compound brakes.


Changing the front forks I have an older trek 8500 aluminum bike with rigid forks and I would like to change them to be suspension forks. Is this possible? Btw the tire size is 26".

If original, this is an old bike - the Trek 8500 went to shocks before 1998.

The 1996 is listed as having a 1 1/8" head set, so technically it would be a straight forward swap with a fork with the same headset (Most are now tapered). A shock will lift the front of the bike, changing the geometry. A smaller travel shock (under 100mm) might be acceptable and not change handling significantly.

You would need to find a 9mm qr fork with brake bosses for V brakes - (hard to find now unless very cheap model, although possible to find used ones in good condition, theres not certainly of it.)  The 1996 had V brakes, but earlier bikes might have had canti's. Upgrading brakes to discs (new front wheel) would be an option if you cannot find a fork with bosses for V brakes (requires a new front wheel).

Overall, unless you have a real affection for the bike or it is in exceptionally good condition, the cost will be prohibitive. Most people (myself included with a similar spec 1996 KHS I now really miss) end up doing the home work and opting to upgrade the entire bike.


chain stay protection on carbon frames I am worrying about this type of protection against chain sucks. After 1-2 months with a new Cannondale F29 2, I've found out that this part was not where it should be. Instead, the chain did it's ugly job.

Talking to a mechanic, he guessed(!) that attaching metal to carbon might not always work, both materials have quite different properties, i.e. that loosing the protection should be a common problem. Is it?

Apart from myself, I've never heard of issues with lost chain suck protectors...

EDIT: Thank you for your comments, and sorry for not being able to reply earlier!

@Criggie / @Frisbee: The following image shows a Cannondale F29 with a chain stay protector attached left of and next to the largest chainring..

@User 3875425: No, AFAIK, by reducing the space between largest chain ring and the frame, they should actually (also) prevent chain sucks. Here, I am very open for correction! BTW: Currently, I am using a can tin wrapped around the frame thighly around the correspunding postion. Looks weird, is not 100% fixed all the time, but works.

@Frisbee: There is a legal case going on.

@ebrohman: The question is whether you have or have heard of problems with metall chain stay protection as weak design part on carbon frames. In order to do so, you should either have such expereience made yourself or you should be in a position, as bike dealer, club member, where you can notice such issues - or not.

---END EDIT

My experience is that they help minimise the damage.

By being malleable and typically having a foamy backing (for shock). Usually only good for a few impacts.
By having ~1mm foam and being somewhat rigid it may help with less aggressive sucks.
But if they were stiff and had no tolerance toward the frame, it would mean all the force would transfer through and damage the frame at the edge of the protector.

Chain suck typically has a range of causes and is very noticeable and should be addressed straight away.

I wouldn't see it as a weak design part, more in line with something like a crumple zone of a car that is meant to give way, if that makes sense.


Bottom Bracket Lube? Lately, after my normal wash & lube routine, I've been squirting a little Teflon lube into the bottom bracket hub. I do so without dissembling by inserting the lube straw into the hub crevice. Is this advisable or a bad idea?

From what I can tell it seems to help prevent creaking, but maybe that's in my head. For what its worth I commute and ride often and live in the PNW (read: wetter than usual conditions).

I would avoid doing this. If the Teflon lube has any kind of solvent in it (which it probably does to carry the Teflon), it will break down the grease in the bottom bracket. Eventually, the grease will thin out enough that it will flow out of the bottom bracket, and No More Lube=A Very Bad Thing.

If you are using a basic cartridge bottom bracket, they are typically not serviceable, and you'll have to replace it when it wears out. Higher end cartridge BBs have replaceable bearings.

If you have a more traditional-style cup/cone/spindle BB, you can service it, but you'll have to remove everything. After cleaning and checking for damage, reassemble with a heavier lube (marine grade bearing grease is good; available at most auto supply and hardware stores) to resist the wet, and go ride!


I am hauling my bike a couple of thousand miles Without the seat and post in.  Any suggestions what to plug the tube with?

When I've had bicycles shipped, its generally just been left empty (on a used bike), or had a little plastic plug in it (on a new bike). If you do want to plug it with something (say, you're storing it without the seatpost for some reason and don't want any critters in there), you could plug it with some news paper or something which you can easily remove or cover the hole with a bit of duct tape or something -- It's just a pipe.

I'm going to guess the question is really how to package a bicycle for moving and the easy answer is to use a cardboard bike box. Some directions are here, and most bike shops will package a bike for a small fee and even ship it for you. Normally, you remove the seatpost, the wheels, take off the handlebars, pedals, and then just arrange them in the box (without disconnecting the cables). Then, put all the things back together when you get home (note that the left hand pedal is opposite threaded).


Crank arm play, should I get spacers? I'm building my first fixed gear bike and I'm nearly finished, I just have to tighten up my crank bolt and wrap my handle bars. The thing is, the crank arm seems to wobble a lot and idk what to do. I've already tried tightening it some more, but I don't think that'll help.

Bottom bracket shell: 68mm

Bottom bracket: SRAM GXP's

Crankset: SRAM Omniums

video showing wobble:

https://imgur.com/f26nppn

I believe there can be an issue with play in GXP cranks. The play in the bearings is taken up by the non drive side crank arm sliding up along the splined taper as the bolt is done up and compressing the wave washer in the drive side. The bolt can be tightened up to the correct torque but there is still lateral play.

Definitely check you have the spacers and wave washer installed correctly. You may need an additional shim to take up the play.


How to attach maps, etc to handlebars of a Boris Bike? (London bike hire scheme) How can I attach maps (or any routing tool) to the handlebars of one of the Boris Bikes (i.e. the 'rental' bikes in the Barclay's Bike Hire Scheme) in London?

I tried cobbling something together:

but I kept dropping my smart-phone (it nearly got run over by a taxi!) and to be honest the screen's too tricky to follow on busy London streets. I've ended up just using a hiking map holder and the print-out of the suggested route from their cycle journey planner:

but this feels a tad eccentric.

As you can see from the first of those pictures the handlebars are not an easy shape or cross-section to mount to. They are based on the Bixi cycle rental system that operates in Montreal and other Canadian cities, if that helps.

Phone Attachment:
I would need to get better views of the front of the bike. Probably fab something starting with an existing mount (looks like you started down that direction).

Map Case:
It looks like you already have a map case, if not, do a search. If you take one that will fit more or less in the gap on the bar and add some lengths of double sided velcro you should be in business. May require a bit of playing around to find the best attachment points.

I'd start with medium loops at the bottom circling the bars about where they attach to the "stem area" (not a real stem on the Boris bikes) and a bigger loop going around the front plate. If this tends to slide, you can add pieces of velcro at the back of the top strap coming down at an angle (think a 'K' rotated 90 degrees to the right) and securing underneath the map case.

Once you have it figured, you can wrap the velcro that is not actively sticking anywhere with some old jeans and run the sewing machine across. This will help keep it all clean and make it so you aren't spending all the time unsticking it from itself.

Searches:
'bike map case'
'velcro cable tie roll, 3/4" x 5 yards"'


Are 130 BCD chainsets stiffer than 110 BCD? I would expect the crank spider not to sacrifice much stiffness in expanding from 110 to 130, but the chainrings seem flimsy in comparison.

Do I buy extra stiffness by using a standard chainset instead of a compact?

There's little difference noticeable but the chainrings will make a big difference as some cheap ones will flex a surprising amount


Saddles and Bent Metal Rails Has anyone else had issues with bent (slow deformation over time) metal rails on the saddles they have used? I previously had three or four saddles that all ended up tilted over to one side and accordingly less comfortable than when they were new.  I have since switched to only carbon railed saddles and have not had any issues.  However, I am now wondering if it might have been a brand issue (I can't recall if the set of saddles in question was all from one manufacturer or not, but it's a possibility) or this has occurred with other riders.

The head mechanic at my shop claimed it was "just me" and I do have an ugly stroke, but I am wondering if others out there have experienced this or if I should have been blaming the manufacturer.

I have not just had them bend I have had them fracture.
I took my saddle to the shop thinking they would say "wow how did that happen" and the response I got was it happens all the time - that saddle is a few years old.
Aluminum will fatigue - low end seats have a limited life.
A steel or titanium seat does not suffer from fatigue (will not at nearly the level of aluminum).
Carbon also is reported not to fatigue but I don't have any experience with carbon railed saddles.
Inspect your rails on a regular basis for deformation or cracks.
If you go out the back and land your bumm on the wheel because the rail fractured it gets a lot easier to spend $100 on a saddle.

I think the seat position was also a factor as I had the seat all the way back.  What that does is create a longer lever from the back of seat to where the rail is clamped.  I also put an offset seat post on the bike so I got what I consider a better clamp position.


How to safely remove dried tire sealant from a carbon frame? I have a carbon mountain bike frame with some good sections of tire sealant stuck on it (Stan's specifically).  If there an easy and/or safe method for cleaning unicorn juice off without hurting the frame?

A credit card usually does the trick.

It's flexible enough to bend slightly but firm enough to serve as a scraper/pusher. It's soft enough that it won't scratch most finishes.