short, fat, first time cyclist I'm short 5'2" (1.57 m) and 247 lb (112 kg). I've been working to lose weight and have come down 5 st (30 kg) so far. Now I really want to ramp up my exercise and was looking at cycling as an option.

I've tried looking on websites for advice but can't see something simple I can understand.

I need some advice on how to select a suitable model that would be a good first time purchase. I'm clearly not going for speed and adventure just yet, so something basic that will fit my size and weight.

You've got two things going against you:

Height: I'd suggest avoiding 700c wheels and going for 650b (pricer) or 26" wheels. For short riders (I'd say shorter than 5'5"), these provide better fit. Surly, for example, only makes their small bikes with 26" wheels.
Weight: You're going to have to check each manufacturer's weight limit. Generally, hybrids and mountain bikes will be rated up to 300 pounds. That being said, expect more risk broken spokes and rim damage if you hit a road hazard. Cheap wheels are going to be your primary adversary. You also want big tires so you don't have to run them at insane pressure (which can increase chance of wheel damage) to avoid pinching the tubes (unfortunately, big tires increase the standover height, which can be a problem for short riders). On the road (and light off roading), you don't need suspension (and for high weight riders, you're going to load the suspension unnecessarily, especially on cheaper stuff).

My recommendations are:

Find a bike shop in your area to buy the bike. With high weight and low height, online bike buying isn't going to be very good for sizing or comfort and you'll likely want to swap out some parts on a stock bike anyway (saddle, tires come to mind). And most people won't ride a bike thats uncomfortable.
You may want to buy upgraded wheels (or more likely, upgrade wheels when the ones that come with the bike may start to fail). In general, don't cheap out. Reading Peter White's page on wheelbuilding is a good place to start.
Look for bikes with no suspension that can take big tires. 700x32 minimum (preferably 35 or 37) if you choose to go 700c wheel sized (though I recommend 26"). 26x2.0" for 26" is ideal. Hybrids, mountain bikes (front suspension is OK but no suspension is better; swap on slick tires) or touring bikes are all good candidates. Cruisers are also not a bad choice, since a lot of them have step-through ish frames which can be easier to get in and out of. Step through and mixte frames in general are good idea for shorter riders (mixtes being stronger than normal step through frames).
Don't buy a bike just cause it looks cool.
Men's bikes work fine for (most) women. Most of what makes a women's bike is maybe a slightly lower top tube, a wider saddle and a ridiculous paint job. That being said, some women's bikes do have better specs for women (Trek's Shift line has 26" wheels, and their mountain bikes aren't all 29ers, though this seems to be happening on the mens side too).

You may want to look at bike forums with sections like "athenas or clydesdales" -- these are typically heavier riders (clydesdales are generally men over 220 lbs, athenas are women over 165 lbs). Example is this one. If you're upgrading components, they may have specific recommendations which may be useful.


Pain on the 5th Metatarcel and Cuboid I have got a new set of clipless pedals and shoes. Hardly used it for some 15 rides.
Whenever I use it I feel a pain on my left foot's 5th Metatarcel and Cuboid bones.
There is no pain whatsoever on the right foot.
I am using this pedals and this pair of shoes.

On the right set, The shoe is tightly set to the pedals after locking, that is, there is no lateral swivelling of my foot while riding.
But on the left side, my foot slightly swivels laterally. Could this be the reason?

Please let me know, if you had any similar pain and how you controlled it...

With these shoes you probably use Shimano's SPD-pedals or similar MTB pedals. Most, if not all of these do have some angular float of the heel when the clip is engaged. It is part of the system. I'd worry if there's no float.
As with the pain on your left foot it could be caused by the position of the foot on the pedal. Ideally the axle of the pedal would be under the ball of the big toe. You might experiment here by moving the cleat fore or aft. Go for a ride, take along an Allen key and experiment settings.


Double vs. single saddle rails? Looking into buying myself a Brooks saddle, and have found two models that primarily differ in having what the descriptions call "single" or "double" rails.

What in the world is the difference, and why would I care? (Rhetorically: why aren't there pictures of the undersides of saddles so that I could work this out for myself?)

A modern saddle has a single rail on each side that starts at the nose and runs to the rear of the saddle. A single or double bolt clamp attach the saddle to the seatpost. The Brooks web site show some profile images of their saddles. The images show two  rails on each side of the saddle. They merge together at the nose of the saddle. They are reputed to be the most comfortable of the Brooks line. Be aware that the images show a double clamp to attach the saddle to the seatpost. This will require an old style seat clamp (Brooks part# BYB 105) and seatpost.


Is there an online bike map for the Grand Rounds bike trail in Minnesota? This one is solid but not detailed.
This is just the south loop.
This says it's "available at the Longfellow House in Minnehaha Park and at rec centers and refectories along the route."
Google just shows a place.

Edit: Minneapolis just posted this map which is pretty good.

You can get a printed map from

Minneapolis Parks & Recreation Board office:
2117 West River Road

Or, you can call 612-230-6400 or email info@minneapolisparks.org and they’ll send you one.

http://wwwdocs.minneapolismn.gov/bike/index.html  shows all the bike stuff might be overly detailed.

Apparently its well signposted with maps on the way.

They're not small maps!

According to this photo blog  its well marked


How can I adjust for uneven brake wear? Well, my problems with brakes have turned out to be not an issue with pad longevity at all -- see the following picture:

Note how the one pad is excessively "toe-in" worn.

Here's a picture of the brakes they came off of, with the parts labeled as far as I know them (with the new pads I just put on...):

(Erm.. that should say "Centering Adjustment Screw" ... hooray for tpyos!)

I don't see any way to change if the pads are toed in or toed out... how can I fix this (is it even possible?) ?

There's two ways to adjust the toe in. The metal pad holders that are the other half of the brake pad assembly should have some semispherical washers in them, allowing you a few degrees of adjustment. Loosen the bolt that holds it on, jiggle it to free up all the pads, then squeeze the brake lever to pull the pad against the rim and get the alignment right. Using a wee bit of cardboard or something between pad and rim at the back to set the toe in, of course.

The other method is to carefully bend the caliper/brake arm. Obviously it's much better to use the previous method, but if that's not an option, set an adjustable wrench so that it fits tightly onto the slotted part of the arm (just above the brake pad), and twist the arm to a better position. Careful is the word - much better to have to tweak it three or four times than have to bend it back if you go too far.


Triple chainset to single chainset; BB compatability? I'd like to upgrade the chainset on my GT Avalanche 1.0 2013 so I have no front mech or shifter and just one ring on the front; just 10 gears instead of 30.

My current chainset is a Shimano M522 Octalink triple with a Shimano es52 BB and a Shimano HG81 10spd cassette and I'd like to upgrade to a Shimano Zee 10sp M640 with an m980 xtr bottom bracket (or similar), so essentially just 10 gears instead of 30. I believe the shell on the bike is 68mm.

In my case, I understand there is a difference between the BBs, is it  just a straight swap of the BBs and disconnect of the front mech/shifter, assuming I have the correct tools?

Would I also have to change my cassette and chain? Maybe even the rear shifter and mech?

Yes, this will be a straight swap (although you will need a cartridge BB tool, crank remover and HollowTech II BB tools)

The M980 bottom bracket is compatible with 68/73mm English threaded frames and HollowTech II cranksets such as the M640.

You would not have to change anything else on the drive train unless they were worn as running worn chain on a new chain ring can accelerate wear. However there are other things:

You will need to consider a narrow/wide chain ring or some form of chain retention to avoid chain drops once you remove the FD. As the Avalanche doesn't have ISCG tabs an option would be similar to this guide from Bionicon.

You will need to shorten your chain by removing links to fit the new set up. Use a chain equation such as this from Park Tools to get the correct length.

Your current set up will also be running a long cage derailleur which will now be redundant and you could move to a medium length RD. The longer cage could exacerbate chain slap so may be worth changing if that is important too you.


Loose pedals on Norco MTB Just replaced my pedals on a very old Norco MTB.

I noticed while working on it that the whole pedal structure is wiggling from side to side is this normal?

I took the plastic caps off the base to see if it is an easy tightening fix, but not sure if tightening that bolt is the  way to correct the problem?

You have a loose bottom bracket (BB). It needs to be replaced.

You need to buy a new bottom bracket along with two special tools: A crank puller and a bottom-bracket tool.

If your current bottom-bracket is cup-and-cone style (it probably is), it can be removed with basic tools and elbow grease. If it's cartridge style, it can be removed with the BB tool.

Here are links to all three at Amazon:

BB

BB tool

crank puller

Or, you could take the bike to your LBS and have them handle it. This is a common operation and probably wouldn't cost much.

BTW, the bolts that you see underneath the caps hold the cranks onto the bottom bracket spindle.


Convert from 3x drivetrain to 1x with 3x cranks There has  been some teeth on my front chainring chipped away from knocking on some curbs. I'm thinking of buying a 1x drivetrain because I rarely change the front gear. Can I put a 1x chainring on a 3x crank? There are bolts on the cranks and I'm wondering is there a chainring that can fit in it. I have a Shimano DEORE M610 crank set. I'm doing this because I'm trying to save as much money as possible.

A quick google of "Shimano Deore M610" returns https://bike.shimano.com/en-EU/product/component/deore-m610.html

This shows there are 6 different cranksets in the groupset offering.  Yours is a triple which excludes a couple, but your chainrings could have a mounting hole size of 104mm or 96mm for the big ring.

You need to identify your PCD or BCD dimension before buying a chainring.

We can see it needs to be a 4 hole mounting, not 5 hole.

There's nothing much to be saved by putting a 1x chainring on with its narrow/wide tooth design, because someday you will change gears by accident or on purpose, and then its a 1:1 chance your chain will go wrong when changing back to the big ring.   So you could remove the left shifter and wire, and permanently lock the front mech in one point using the limit screws.

Another thought - if you only ever ride on the big ring, then your big/big combination will have the most cross-chain angle.  This might be okay, or could cause premature wear on chain and chainring and cassette.

You could look at running a single chainring on your existing crank, and removing the other two for weight savings.

You could even replace the entire right crank with a single, something like the Shimano FC-M6000-B2 from the same groupset, which looks like this:

This appears to be a one chainring crank.  You need to match the crank arm length (or change both sides)   You'll also need to consider the chainline, which is how far outboard from the centerline of the bike is the chainring.  On your triple it will be further out (more in line with the little cogs than the big cogs.)

For maximal frugalness, just replace the worn chainring.   If you're canny and good with your hands, consider buying a used bike with the right parts, combine all the good stuff onto your bike, and give away the ratty old one or use it as a beater bike.


What tools do I need to disassemble and re-assemble an 80's road bicycle I would like to do maintenance on my 1982 miyata 310 road bike myself.  What tools are necessary to take the entire bicycle apart, lube, and put it back together?

Here is what I have come up so far:

Bicycle stand
Hex wrench set
Chain breaker

It depends to what level you want to disassemble. For general cleaning your list is a good start. As you dig deeper though you'll also need:

To service/adjust drivetrain

Various spanners and screwdrivers to adjust cables
Wire cutters if replacing cables

To service wheels/hubs

15mm spanner to remove wheels (unless you have quick release hubs)
Chain whip and a cassette tool to match your cassette to remove rear cassette
Cone spanners to remove and replace the hub cones
Spoke wrench (ensure you get a good one that fits your spoke nipples exactly, as it's very easy to damage the nipple)

To service cranks/pedals/bottom bracket

Pedal spanner to remove the pedals
Depending on the cranks you may need a crank puller
To remove the bottom bracket you may need a special spanner/tool

To service forks/stem/head tube

If it's a threaded fork, varying sized spanners to undo the nuts on top of the fork
If it's threadless, your hex spanners will be okay
Bearing cups - from the head tube there are specific tools to remove and then press them back on

As @Chef Flambe mentions it can be more economical to buy a kit containing many of these tools. This will give you a head start and you can buy the specific tools you need for your bike, as well as upgrade to better quality for the tools you use frequently.


Is it cheaper to mass produce a carbon frame than an aluminium frame? I've heard this comment but I have not found any information about it. Is it true?

Given that alloy framed bikes are generally cheaper than CF framed bikes, it's reasonable to conclude that an alloy frame is cheaper to produce than a CF one.

There are some videos on YouTube that show the basics of the process of making a CF frame. There hundreds of individually cut sections sections of CF cloth that need to be combined together in multiple steps to give the frame strength where it is needed. All the sections of CF cloth need to be combined together in moulds by hand. This is where a lot of the cost comes from.


Fixed gear wheel hard to spin My wheel feels harder to spin than usual. I just put new tires on, and at first I thought a tire must be rubbing, but that's not the case. Seems like the hub might just be gunked up inside, but I'm just speculating.

From this video, does anyone else think this is higher-than-normal resistance?
https://vimeo.com/57230216

The chain looks a little bit too taut for what I use in my fixie. But I don't rely on my chain to stop the bike, as I am of the sissy kind that rides with brakes, so dropping the chain is not that bad of an issue, although it has never actually happened.

But from your video, there basically does not seem to be any slack in the chain, I try go with 1-2 cm (1/2-1 inches) when pressing on it. That means that you see some curvature on the bottom side, yours appears to be running straight.

This other question may help you get the tension right.


Do we know this type/brand/model of vintage bicycle? JUNIOR (MADE IN AUSTRIA) AND THE FRAME SAYS ''JUNIOR FLIPPER''

ITs a generic BSO made for the 70/80's 10sp market, likely basic cro mo or gas pipe type.heavy as lead...not worth wasting effort or money on..


Securing a bike trailer My wife and I just purchased bikes for ourselves and a CoPilot Model A trailer for our 2-year-old.  We can lock up our bikes fairly easily, but the trailer leaves us a bit lost.  Everything on the trailer is easily detachable, and there's no evident way to lock the frame without removing the cover.

Is there an easy way to lock it up?  Currently, we bring it into the house when we're home, but that doesn't help when we bike to somewhere and need to secure it.

It depends a bit on what type of theft you want to prevent.

If you want to prevent opportunistic theft, then all that is needed is to put a lock through the wheels, as a thief would then decide that the trouble of breaking them isn't worth his effort.

If you want to prevent deliberate theft, then adding a clamp to the towbar and locking it with that to something fixed might work, although no lock can withstand a determined thief.

Here is a list of locks, with scores for how good they withstood some tests :
http://www.stichtingart.nl/sloten_resultaat.asp

Although the site is in Dutch, I think you can use it.


Spokes popping, chains jumping gears while not shifting and derailing when shifting, etc I've had the same Trek bike for 3 and a half years with ongoing shifting problems, but for the last 6 months I've had a litany of problems. My LBS is at their wits end.

Spokes are shearing regularly, the chain is jumping gears while not shifting and derailing when shifting, etc. This was going on before replacing anything, and is continuing after the following replacements:

Several spokes replaced
All spokes replaced
All front and back gears replaced
All spokes replaced again with the strongest ones the shop could get
Chain replaced
derailleurs cogs replaced
derailleur replaced
all cables replaced

I've had years of issues with gears not shifting correctly and chains jumping on both this and other bikes, so on that level it could be partially related to the way I'm riding (please advise), BUT this is a whole other level. I put a lot of power into my ride and push hard uphill in hilly terrain, though I'm not sure if or to what extent that would impact this.

Have you and the shop both checked the frame very carefully for damage?

It sounds as though you're probably too heavy or too strong for the frame you ride. Bikes are built light, and have a designed weight limit. But that limit is generally based on an average rider, so the stronger you are and the more you slog rather than spin, the more you have to allow as a margin over your actual weight.

It's quite possible that your long-term shifting problems stem from this - when you put the power in your frame flexes, the cable routing changes a little, and the gears shift. You can try crossing your gear cables under the down tube to reduce the size of the problem, but that only helps mask the problem, it doesn't fix it.

Over time you're also likely to crack the frame. Once cracks appear your frame will be weaker, and flex more than it used to. That will make the shifting problems worse. But the cracks will start out very small, and you'll need to clean the frame and basically polish it, then very carefully check for cracks in the paint in good light. One trick is to get contrasting touch-up paint and put that over any suspect areas, then once it's good and dry flex the frame. The touch-up paint will crack much more obviously than the underlying frame paint if there's a problem with the frame underneath it.

The solution to this is to buy a stronger bike. Especially if you're a heavier rider who tends to push big gears, you put a lot more stress on the frame than an average rider. You may find you need to add 10kg or 20kg to your actual weight and buy a bike rated to that weight.

(anecdote: I'm quite a powerful rider and have broken a stupid number of frames, and also handlebars. I've learned that carrying an extra kilo by buying stronger parts is well worth the effort, and my current lightweight road bike is between 9 and 10kg in "race trim", including disk brakes)


What is the difference between Shimano TZ50 and Shimano RD-FT55-SS What is the difference between Shimano TZ50 and Shimano RD-FT55-SS?

Shimano RD-FT55-SS

Shimano TZ50

I understand, that both of them a very basic.
(But it's the only options for rear derraliuer with reverse hanger.)

A quick compare of both linked websites shows that the TZ50 is rated for a total capacity of 34 whereas the FT55 is only listed as capacity of 17.

Both are rated for a biggest big of 28 teeth, which is also their smallest big cog supported.  IE its 28 tooth only.

The FT55 has a small of 11-14 and the TZ50 has a small of 14 only.

That means the FT55 is really only intended for a 1x setup, because 28-11 is 17 which is its maximum capacity.

The TZ50 is rated to be used on both a single and double chainring.

Additionally, the FT55 has a pulley wheel in the rear to reduce the amount of outer cable required.  Your inner cable could be shorter and have less loop to catch on things.  All up, I suspect the FT55 is intended for folding bikes with a 1x 14-28 freewheel.

These are $10 / £10 / €10 parts.  Realistically, noone cares about weight or colour or anything at this end of the parts spectrum.  Even the orange jockey wheel is pretty irrelevant.

And remember Shimano's specs are very cautious.  I personally have used a TX-50 6 speed derailleur very similar to this, and it now runs an 8 speed cassette with a triple on front and the cassette ranges from 11 to 32 tooth, and works well enough.  30 tooth would have been less clattery, and I suspect 34 tooth wouldn't work at all.


Front derailleur cable change I changed my shifters and need to change my front derailleur cable.

I just don't know how to proceed exactly.

A guide I found told me to:

on big sprocket, small plate (is that the english word?? ;p), adjust the LOW screw so that the left side of the derailleur is 0-0.5mm away from the chain
attach the cable
on large plate small sprocket, adjust the HIGH screw to have the right side of the derailleur 0-0.5mm away from the chain
adjust the barrel to get proper shifting for the middle ring

Now:

Is that guide correct according to you?
On step 2: in which position should the shifter be when attaching the cable? I would think on the largest ring position but I don't really know...
I don't have any barrel on my front derailleur casing, but the shifter has 2 close positions for the middle ring (I guess this is what they call the trimming thing), does this compensate the lack of barrel?

Thanks

That sequence is more or less correct, though different mechanics will likely do it differently.

First off, if you haven't changed derailers (or adjusted the the one you have) then the low and high limits should be about correct.

The front shifter has a spring that pulls the derailer cage in the direction of the small sprocket, so without the cable in place it will move that direction.  Adjust the LOW limit to center the derailer cage over the low sprocket.

In order to adjust the HIGH limit you need to have something (ie, the cable) pull the cage in that direction, so attach the cable.  To get the cable about right, though, put the shifter on the lowest gear setting, screw in any barrel adjuster, and then stretch the cable tight and clamp (but do not cut the cable short yet).  Then use the shifter to move the derailer to the high end and adjust the HIGH limit to center the cage over the large ring.

Once you've got high and low set, and the cable attached, you adjust the barrel adjuster to center the cage over the middle ring when that's selected with the shifter.  Then repeat the whole process to fine-tune it.  And expect to need to tighten the barrel adjuster again in a few days as the cable stretches out.

I'm skeptical that your setup lacks (and is intended to lack) barrel adjusters.  They may have been incorporated in the old shifters and the new ones lack them, in which case you'd need to buy inline adjusters.  Or the adjusters may be there but "hiding" -- on the derailer body, in one of the frame fittings for the cable, etc.


Proper use of shimano chain measuring tool I bought a TL-CN42.  The instructions are vague.  I inserted the double toothed end between 2 rivets.  The single toothed end then rests on another rivet, BUT if I push down lightly, it will go between rivets.  Is it time to replace?  This is a 9.5 month old, 10 cog cassette, touring bike with about 2,700 miles, 95% on roads or paved trails.

According to this PDF I found it seems that your chain still has life left in it.  It's when the ping drops between the pins that your chain has stretched too much.

This is pretty good: 2700mi is about 4400km which is approaching the expected lifespan of a chain (5000km).  I've had decent chains which haven't lasted nearly that long.
 (Admittedly I do occasionally ride in wet weather.)

(Apologies for getting this messed up earlier.)


My bike makes a noise from the cranks Weird problem. My mtb makes this clicking noise at the same spot when i pedal. It sounds like its coming from the crank but if i backpedal it goes away for about 5 minutes and then comes back. Is it a locked up link on the chain? It's making me crazy. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.

Probably not a link of the chain. It really can be anything, but I bet it is on the crank arms, bottom bracket or even the crankset in itself. You should take your bike to a trusted mechanic, clearly explain your issue and make him ride your bike and feel the noise. It is probably something loose or a bit out of place.


Mudguard deformed due to heat So, my front mudguard got a bit hot recently (bike was parked in the full sun w/o wind). It was not happy about this and got very tired, leaning to the lower right below the lamp. Now every little bump results in the mudguard rubbing against the wheel - which is rather annoying.

I thought about using a hair dryer to heat the mudguard again, bending it back to its original position, fixating it and waiting for it to cool off. Has anyone done this? Could it be feasible, or is it to be expected, that the material gets even more tired by bending it back, leading to not enough stability?

A heat gun is best for shaping plastic, but if it deformed in the sun then a hair dryer will probably work too. Depending on the shape you may want to have a heat-resistant surface on hand to press it against as you heat it; in my experience plastics can become a bit uncooperative and bend in strange ways when heated. Good luck!

Citation: My personal experience from working with reshaping a variety of plastics.


Cheap bike tools or can I just use generic hardware store tools instead? I want to maintain my bike. There a number of tools which are very specific, which also cost a lot of money. I have an old road bike which uses a freewheel. The freewheel remover cost me something like 7$! This really seems overpriced.

It would be nice if we had some sort of tool translation thread. Like, "these are the generic tools you would use in place of each of these specific bike tools."

Personally, I'm looking for replacements for the following:

The tools used to remove the bottom bracket.
The cone wrench, or the necessary tools to clean the hubs. By the way, do they have adjustable versions of the cone wrench?
The necessary tools for taking apart the headset. I've never done this. Maybe it can be done with generic parts?
chaintool?
anything else?

Maybe you really do need the bike specific tools for some of these. Oh well :(.

You are in luck! There are tons of threads on many forums talking about this very thing. However, I'll give you a head start.

You can use a vice-grip type wrench, but try to get something in between the wrench and the BB cup otherwise you risk damaging the exterior of the cup. I recommend ponying up the cash for a BB wrench, it's worth it.
While cone wrenches are nice because of how narrow they are, you can usually get away with any type of open-ended wrench. I've used an adjustable crescent wrench to great success.
This depends on the type of the headset, as noted in the comments. However, if you're looking to just pull bearings that's not too bad and you can probably tap them out with a screw driver, tire lever, etc. To pull the cups you can make your own tool from a piece of pipe by cutting some slits and bending it out. Might not be pretty, but it works.
Chain tools are cheap, buy one. You could try to clamp the chain and drive out the rivet with an awl or punch but you probably risk damaging the chain enough to need to replace it.
Here's where some searching will net you more. Check out BikeRadar, PinkBike, mtbforums, etc. for a lot of insight into homemade tools or alternatives. That's how I found out how to make my own headset press (granted I bent all the washers, but it worked and $15 of hardware is better than a $70 press).

It really comes down to your own cost/payoff evaluation. If you thought $7 for a lockring tool was expensive, you're probably not going to buy any bike specific tools. But you're also going to spend a lot more time cursing and nursing sore knuckles from having wrenches slip or tools break. Some tools will last a long time and won't need replacing (chain tool, wrenches) while some are only-if-you-want-it like a torque wrench.


Choosing fabric when shopping for cycling pants I have question similar to

what to look for when buying bicycle pants

Are Merino cycling boxers/cycling pants worth the cost?

Finding good pants for winter biking

How to minimize wear on pants

...but they all speak about padding and shape and do not discuss the fabric. I have been wearing only cotton (also linen a couple times) throughout my life and am trying to avoid materials which are not biodegradable. In the case polyester is not the only option, I would like to know what natural materials you could recommend.

I assume here that you want clothing designed for cycling, or at least for sports, as much as possible, so for significant commuting, leisure, or fast rides, but not just wandering around town, as that could be done in everyday clothes. I deliberately haven't linked to products, as I don't want to imply any endorsement. I've also mentioned clothing for other areas, as I came across things while I was looking into your main question and they're useful for the broader underlying question.

Merino wool is well known in cycling and other outdoor activities, especially as a base layer and for socks. You can buy jerseys quite easily but there's not much for your lower half

Bamboo fibre is almost always rayon, almost pure plant cellulose. Bike shorts and many other forms of fitness clothing are available. As cellulose, it should be biodegradable (over long periods I suspect) and it's from potentially sustainable sources. Other forms of rayon may also be suitable. I've had socks made from it in the past; though not specifically for cycling they seemed reasonable even when my feet got wet.

Gloves may be tricky. Leather is your best bet to keep the wind off and provide some protection from water, perhaps oversized to go over wool in the winter. Suede is good for gripping. Any padding won't meet your requirements - so comfort may be an issue.

A waterproof top layer might be tricky, unless you go for a waxed cotton jacket, but they tend to be bulky and heavy, and not designed for cycling.

For shoes, you'll also struggle. Leather bike shoes exist but are uncommon and by the time leather has been tanned using modern methods it's almost a petrochemical product held together with a bit of cow. Soles etc. are universally synthetic. If you really want biodegradable shoes you can probably get some espadrilles with cotton uppers - they'd even look quite stylish on a vintage Pashley, but you're not going to get cleats on them.

However if you're worried about microplastic pollution, shoes are much less of an issue as you don't wash them very often, and washing is when they shed. This also applies to waterproofs. When you've completely worn something out, you can dispose of it properly (yes, landfill, but a lot of textiles end up there whatever they're made of).


Can anyone help identify this "retro" muddyfox frame? My apologies I can't provide any further information, purchased from a flea market (primarily because I needed big horizontal dropouts) it has "DSP15t02" although that helps very little on Google. The obvious "Muddyfox" and "Dualpro" stickers on it (which are under the finish of the paint and don't seem after market jobs. None of the other parts came with it, they're a parts bin selection.

OK I've searched a lot and can't find anything that matches.  Muddyfox made a lot of bikes over time, so this is less of an answer and more of a dump of observations:

Points to note

Overall the bike looks "thick" - the chainstays are chunky, as are the seatstays.
Having trackends for rear dropouts is quite unusual on a MTB, but less unusual on a BMX.
The frame reinforcing gussets behind the head tube are unusual for a MTB.
The front suspension looks newer than mid 2000 because it lacks the stanchion boots which were common on earlier forks.
Paint on forks looks identical to frame so its likely to be original, making the bike a 26" hardtail
downtube

From a distance, it looks like a BMX, with a relatively low seatpost clamp.

I bet there's no brazeon mount for a front derailleur - and it may help to look closely for any paint marks where a bandon derailleur might have mounted.  If nothing found, I'd say this was a 1x setup from new.

At the rear, you have an electric motor now.  Was there any indication of a rear derailleur at any point ?  If not, this suggests the bike was a single speed OR it was fitted with an internally geared hub from new, both of which need trackends to set the chain/belt tension.

UPSHOT I think its a mid 2000 bigger kid's frame, designed to "evoke" the BMX, so possibly intended for teenage boys who have outgrown their 20" BMX.

It might even be called a 26" BMX in the right light.


How to prevent wrist pain on road bikes? When I started bike-commuting with my road bike I developed chronic pain in my wrists. It probably took a year to go away, and now I have been free of complaints for several years. My wife just started bike-commuting with her road bike and she started to complain about painful wrists as well. I assume this has to do with holding weak wrists at an angle for an extended period of time. I was thinking about pointing her handlebars downward a bit, but am worried that she will slide off the grips mounted to the top of the handle bar (I don't know what those are called...) when she rides with her hands above the bar and has to brake abruptly. Something else we were thinking about trying is wrapping her wrists with elastic bandages, but we weren't sure if we were going to exacerbate or at least prolong the problem, since she would probably use her wrist muscles less.

I switched bikes a year ago, and I noticed on my rides (50km - 70km) at the time that I had some numbness / cramp / pain in my hands and wrists, it was so bad on some rides that I need two hands to change gear.  The bike had slightly different geometry than my previous road bike.  I now ride frequently 100km and even up to 180km with little or no pain.

Here's what I did and what changed:

1) I took the bike to my LBS and asked them if there was something they could do.  The adjusted the shifters outwards so that I wasn't stretching so far to change gear. A good bike fit may be the only solution you need.

2) Good gloves with good padding in the right place, to prevent putting too much pressure on the nerves that run through your palm.

3) rotating hand position, on a road bike you have 3 (or possibly more ) hand positions.  Use them.  They are not always practical in every situation but you can often switch from the drops to the hoods or vice versa on the flat, and the hood to the tops or vice versa on climbs.  This change in position will help with cramping.

4) finger clenches and stretches.  As soon as I start to feel my wrists or fingers getting tired I take one hand at a time off the handlebars (where it is safe to do so) and clench and stretch my fingers 5-10 times.

5) Hold the handle bars loosely.  My main problem was that I was gripping the handlebars way too tightly.  If you relax your grip to the loosest possible you will reduce cramp and reduce the effect of vibrations from small bumps and rough road surfaces.  This is especially important for long fast downhills.  I would grip on for dear life (doing about 60kmph - 75kmph) clearly you want a harder grip as even small bumps can be dangerous, but squeezing very hard on the handlebars will give you cramp in no time at all.  Also when braking on the down hills its better to pump the brakes rather that keep them on the whole time.

All this takes practice and I am sure that the muscles in my wrists got used to the abuse they were getting too.  In the end I am fine.


Should I remove unused screws from my frame? Is it a bad practice to remove all the unused screws from my frame (i.e. for the mudguards, front/back racks)? Could rust be an issue? Even if the holes for the screw do not expose the inside of the frame?

Thanks.

If you're a weight weenie then your frame wouldn't even have those mounts.

Removing the screws might save you 10-20 grammes, which is less than a good dollop of mud, or under half a snackbar, or a quarter the weight of your spare tube.

If you're worried about rust, remove screw and apply some grease then refit.

If you're really worried about rust on the bike then fit mudguards, for which you'll need those screws anyway.

Answer: don't bother removing spare screws/bolts from your bike.


Are there any permanent solutions for holes smaller than 1cm on outer tyre? My road bike tire is damaged because of some biketrap I fell into. After a month I got a flat while riding. I found this hole at the damaged area while repairing the puncture on inner tube. After pumping some air the inner tube is popped out from this hole. I put folded piece of paper inside to prevent another flat until I get home but I dont think that will hang on a bit more.  Any longtime solution to last it longer would be helpful.

You may be surprised how long your paper patch lasts. I've used dollar bills, empty energy gel packs and they have lasted quite a long time, but now carry Park Tool Tire Boots.

They have an adhesive and attach to the inside of your tire and stay put, even if you get another flat and have to change tubes. I've found that the money or paper solution will move or fall out of place without the pressure of the tube to hold it in place.

You should be able find the Park Tool Tire Boots at any local bike shop, but here is a link to Amazon: Park Tool TB-2 Emergency Tire Boot


Will putting an e-bike chain on a "traditional" road bike give more mileage? I was browsing through a webshop for some replacement parts and in the "chains" section I came across "e-bike chains" - claimed to be stronger than traditional chains.

Since 11-speed chains are supposed to be replaced when the stretch reaches 0.5% I came up with an idea of putting this e-bike chain onto a traditional (thus utterly human-powered) road bike to benefit from longer life of such a chain.

Since the price difference isn't dramatic (it may be 50% more which transfers to around €10 more compared to KMC X11) I got myself into thinking:

isn't putting an e-bike chain the way to go when aiming for longevity of the chain?
or should I either replace a cheaper chain more often?
or buy a higher quality "traditional" chain?

Which is the way to go when looking for the most miles per dollar? The question applies to 11-speed only. With no limitations going single speed would be the cheapest option, I know that.

Chains don't stretch under any kind of normal use, even the kind of power that an e-bike can put out (which, to be fair, can be several multiples of what a fairly strong rider can put out for extended periods).

Chains elongate through wear: the combination of lube and environmental grit acts as a grinding paste between the moving parts of the chain, so that side-plate openings enlarge (or rivets wear down), resulting in a longer chain overall.

If you want your chain to last longer, keep it clean.


What are these tiny pieces of metal that came with my Giant TCR Advanced 2? Last year I bought a 2016 Giant TCR Advanced 2. With the documentation in a small plastic bag came these two small pieces of metal with a spongy sticker on them.

One is slightly curved the other is flat.

What is their purpose?

These are to protect your frame from the support bolt on Shimano front derailleurs (I don't know if SRAM have the same).

You can see them on page page 7 of this manual.


Which electrolyte is most important for century rides? Besides keeping up with hydration and carbs, which electrolyte is most important in maintaining muscle endurance for longer rides like centuries?
I'm guessing it would be potassium or calcium.
Trying to plan ahead on which snacks or drinks to use for my next ride, RSVP, Seattle to Vancouver.

Most likely sodium.

However, a lot of it depends on the person. One person might need more of one electrolyte than another, so it's difficult to make a judgment on the order of your "most critical" electrolytes. A sweat test would be a great way of testing which it might be.


Safe rate for increasing long rides I'm a runner who has just started cycling. I did a 20 kilometre (12.5 mile) ride last weekend without much trouble, and a total of 50 kilometres (31 miles) during the week.  I'd like to cycle more and I'm wondering if there's a safety limit for increasing distance.

For instance, in long distance running, there's a 10% increase rule where you increase your weekly mileage by no more than 10%.

Is there anything specific you'd like to achieve or try while cycling? I cycle purely for fitness purposes and will cycle quite differently depending on available time as well as what I'd like to achieve in terms of strength or cardiovascular goals. As you're a runner, I'll assume you're well versed in gps devices like those by Garmin which will assist in tracking your efforts.

I was able to increase fairly quickly from regular 10Km trips to once off trips off 30Km to 50Km to 80Km to 200 Km in the space of 1 month. Since then I've focused on better return for time in the saddle as opposed just worrying about distance covered.

For my round trip commute of ~20Km, I will cycle pretty hard either on the way to work or on the way home which usually gives me a pretty good cardiovascular workout over ~20 minutes. For part of this I may go all out for 60-90 seconds.

If I've got 1-2 hours available for a cycle then I'll either go for a 25-40Km flat route at 25-30Km/hr effort for cardiovascular training or a 15Km hilly route which will provide cardiovascular and strength training.

For long spins of 3+ hours I will try to cover mostly flat terrain with a couple of hills included and will aim for about 25Km/hr depending on weather conditions.

As with any exercise, your nutrition and fluid intake before, during and after will be key in helping you maximise the return on your efforts.


Brompton pump mount? I have recently acquired a Brompton, which came with this zefal pump, which doesn't clip onto the frame:

The rear frame on my Brompton doesn't appear to have the cage-like mounts that new models have. The mountings that it does have are shown below. Are these intended for a pump, and if so, is there a specific pump that attached so these?

You have a Mk2 Brompton which uses a slightly shorter pump. I think your pump might be a Mk2 also. Does it physically fit within the frame? (the handle goes towards the axle).

The bit you are missing is the adapter bolt for holding the Zefal pump. This goes into the seatpost-end pump bracket and slots into the hole on the nozzle end of your pump. You could maybe improvise something with parts from a hardware store.

You could also try to get hold of a Bluemels pump, which is what the mounts were originally designed for, although these are now incredibly rare.

Much more info about Brompton pumps can be found in this Facebook post.


Is it safe to put child seat on drivers seat post? I purchased a Hamax child seat (not unlike this one), but when attaching it to the frame the child seat is too low and is touching the rear wheel.

As you can see in the photo, I don't think I can secure it higher up in the frame.

Is it safe if I attach it to the seat post?

I would strongly recommend against it. I have a similarly designed seat from Yepp, and the amount of force exerted on the frame is substantial. Seat posts can shear, and would result in a bad time for everyone.

You will also find that having your child that high up lightens the steering a lot. Mine is install in the correct position, and I have to consciously shift forward to maintain firm wheel placement; putting in on the seat post would make this even worse.

There are some that are designed to clip to the seat post, but their design is very different: This one for example and they rest on a pre-fitted rack.

Have you considered a crossbar seat instead?


Looking for a 29x2.25 tire for my first sprint tri-athlon I have entered a sprint triathlon on a whim and have a 29er mountain bike. Is there a road suitable tire for a 29x2.25 wheel out there? Looking for something that will give me good roll and as little resistance for my 110kg as possible.

Yes, there are tires out there that are smooth and will fit that rim.

Your rim diameter is 622mm. Same as most road bikes, most cyclocross bikes, many touring bikes, many hybrids, and some cruisers.
Figure out your rim width in millimeters. It might be printed on the wheel somewhere, it might be in the specs for your bike, and you might have to borrow some calipers to figure it out. You're looking for the inner rim width that fits outside the beads.
You should now have figured out the ISO size of your rims.
Work out what the acceptable tire widths. Something like Sheldon Brown's tire width to rim width chart should help.
Look for tires within the range you've worked out. I suspect 45-622 will be your smallest acceptable size and 60-622 is probably a tiny bit bigger than your current tire. If you go a bit smaller (35-38mm), you'll be risking pinch flats and rim damage, but there's a lot more tires available.

You'll probably find that tires marketed for comfort hybrids, cruisers, touring  or "urban/trail" bikes are were you'll find a big enough smooth tire.

Schwalbe makes the Super Moto in 60-622, which is specifically marketed as a competition-appropriate smooth tire for a 29er.

If you're willing to spend a lot more, consider replacing the wheels with Cyclocross wheels, some other 622mm wheel with a slightly narrower rim than a 29er usually comes with. That would allow you to get into the wide end of regular road tires where there's a ton more choices made for competition on paved surfaces.

Note: smaller tires will change the handling and lower the bottom bracket closer to the ground, so don't get too crazy.


Chain slipping on 10 speed Deore XT with new cassette, new chain and new chainrings The bike is about 10 years old with an average 30KM per week on it so roughly 15,000KM
It is a 3 * 10 speed Deore XT and it has performed great up until recently when my chain broke (bought a Park tool to make sure to check on chain wear).
I have an issue with my chain slipping while staying in the same cog. When my chain broke, I have replaced the cassette and I have also replaced the two larger chainrings. The chain was shortened to the same number of links as the last chain. The larger of the new BBB chainrings has 2 more teeth than the original Shimano and the middle BBB chainring is the same size.
What happens is that if I use the smaller cogs on my cassette, the chain appears to slip almost as if it is skipping some of the teeth on the chain. This happens on all 3 front chainrings but more with the middle and the larger one. The slipping is less likely 5 cogs in from the smallest (fastest) cog and more frequent when on the smallest cog in the cassette. On 6th cog or larger I haven't had it happen.
It is not a loud noise and almost sounds a bit like a change of gears (withouth it moving left or right), however after today's ride I noticed some metalic particles that the chain is picking up so it is definately adversely affecting the casette.
It happens while under very little pressure while going down a hill and it also happens when there is a bit of pressure on it. I haven't found it to be as much of an issue under heavy load. Unfortunatley it is not persisting all the time. I can get 4-5KM without it having any issues and other times, I can't use 4th smallest cog even without it skipping every couple of rotations of my crank.
Also, a few weeks ago, I noticed that my deraileur bolts fastening it to the frame were very loose before this happened and I have tightened it to ensure that it is consistent. I was amazed that everything worked as well as it did with one of the bolts being very loose.
I have adjusted the gear lever so the deraileur is perfectly aligned with the cassette cogs.
Any suggestions on what this could be?
My guess is the deraileur might be worn or the springs might have weakened. Could it be a link in the chain?

Are you really sure it’s not jumping to the next cog? Sounds most likely with new parts.
I’d check that:

the cassette is correctly installed and tightened (it needs 40Nm tightening torque which is a lot)
that all links of the chain move freely, especially where it’s closed (I hope you’ve used a master link or a dedicated closing pin). If you’ve used a closing pin, make sure it’s flush. If it’s a master link, make sure it’s fully closed.
that the rear derailleur or derailleur hanger is straight and not bent.

Hang the bicycle somewhere (or put it upside-down), pedal with your hands and closely observe the chain as it moves. Check that everything shifts smoothly and precisely.
If the chain is actually skipping under load it should be much worse on the smallest chainring.
Regarding:

Also, a few weeks ago, I noticed that my deraileur bolts fastening it
to the frame were very loose before this happened and I have tightened
it to ensure that it is consistent. I was amazed that everything
worked as well as it did with one of the bolts being very loose.

I assume you mean the derailleur hanger (which is usually fastened with two bolts)? It’s mainly held on by the rear wheel’s quick release axle which firmly presses it to the frame. Usually you can actually see the derailleur hanger move slightly when you tighten the quick release.

The chain was shortened to the same number of links as the last chain.
The larger of the new BBB chainrings has 2 more teeth than the
original Shimano

I hope it’s not too short now. Make sure the derailleur is not fully extended when shifting to the biggest cog while on the big chainring.


Reverse a saved course on Garmin Edge 200? If I've saved a course to my Edge 200, can I reverse it to get back to the start? Or do I need to save two versions?

The "back to start" option only seems to be there when I'm already following a course, not when I'm about to set off. Which isn't that helpful if you've stopped for a while.

I am not aware of a way to do this using just the Garmin unit.  However, if you have a computer handy, then you can upload your ride to one of the many GPS cycling sites (for example, http://ridewithgps.com/ works well for this).  Once the ride is online, you can reverse the route using tools on the website.  You'll want to then verify that everything is as you expect because sometimes the route reversal can cause unexpected detours ;-)  Then you can save the reversed route back to your Garmin unit to guide you on your next ride.


Can Shimano 600 front derailleur handle 3 chain wheels? I have a 48-38-28 chainwheel and I wonder if Shimano 600EX Arabesque has enough leeway to accommodate it. If you know another derailleur from the same era that could do it that would be also useful to me.

Usually racing front derailleurs like an arabesque will not allow the extra tolerance for a third ring. With that being said, the only way to know for sure is to try it.

One thing to keep in mind is that the spindle length on your bottom bracket affects this as well. While your derailleur may have the extra tolerance to fudge it in some cases, if your spindle is longer than shorter, then it may push your crank too far out for your fd to reach, even with the limit screws taken completely out.

To try it, just throw the crank and fd on. Take some bare cable and attach to the fd so that you can pull it with your hand. Take the two limit screws all the way out and manually induce pull so that the cage moves all the way out, to check for the large ring. Then just see if letting go all the way will shift back down into the small ring.

Generally, I'd say it won't work... trust me, I've thought of the same thing before. I always end up finding another 28.6mm clamp fd that was meant to support three rings.


Finding a rattle in my bike I recently installed a rear luggage rack and washed my bike, and now I get a buzzing rattle when I ride over bumps in the road, independent of whether I happen to be pedaling at the time. It sounds like it's coming from somewhere below me as I'm riding, which probably indicates somewhere between the bottom bracket and the rear hub, or as high as the saddle. With my bike up on a repair stand I tapped the various components of the rack and tightened the screws but I didn't find anything obviously loose or that rattled as I tapped it.

How can I narrow down the source of the rattle?

Since you don't hear the noise when the bike is up on the stand, the problem is probably linked to the load of your weight on the bike (trying to formulate this in a way that doesn't sound like I'm saying you're a problem or you're overweight but it's impossible! haha). Sit on the bike, swing on the saddle to simulate the effect of a bump and have someone check if there's anything swinging/bending and touching a part of your wheel.

If you're really desperate and have some time on your hands, remove the luggage rack and go see if you hear that noise. Then re-install it carefully. Actually you might save some time doing this right off the bat.


Convert rear hub width 142 mm to fit 135 mm dropouts I recently bought a pair of Shimano XT Deore wheels. I then realized they cannot fit my MTB hardtail dropouts.

Is there any way to convert an MTB rear wheel with hub width 142 mm to 135 mm?

You've made a bad purchase by not checking the specs.

If these are brand new from a shop, you may have a limited time when you can return them for a full refund.  The time window will depend where in the world you are.

If you bought them used/second hand or more than a month ago, you're stuck with them.  Either resell them on ebay or similar, or look at your other bikes to see if they will fit.

Another option is to buy a frame that does fit these wheels, and build up another bike.

If your bike frame is steel then you may be able to cold-set the frame to accept the larger wheel, but this will utterly void any warranty on your bike.  If your frame is aluminium or carbon or titanium then this is not an option for you.


Using a chain-type oil filter wrench as a chain whip Long story short, I need to remove the rear cassette on my bike. The cassette is a pretty basic Shimano one, and the drive shaft bit I bought a few years ago looks like it also fits the lock ring.
That leaves me with the chain whip. I have been unable to find one at stores nearby, but a few ones carry chain-type oil filter wrenches. The chain looks like a standard bike chain.
EDIT: I don’t have an image of the exact tool I have in mind, but this one is similar. Basically, it is a length of chain with a metal handle attached.

Would this kind of oil-filter wrench work as a chain whip, for the purpose of loosening the lock ring on my cassette?

You can make your own chainwhip, either "from scratch", as the video below shows, or using the oil filter wrench for sourcing the base parts (handle, piece of chain).

I agree with others that the "oil whip" has a somewhat short handle.  Taking a cassette off can be a pain without proper leverage, so I would look for a longer (1.5 to 2 times longer) piece of metal to serve as a handle for a DIY variant.


Installation of the simplex SX410 The Simplex SX410 rear derailleur on my bike was dirty, so I got it off to clean it.

Yet, now I can't quite seem to get it on again in a correct way.

Specifically, I can't get the spring to be wound up correctly (the derailleur hangs quite loose).

Is there anyone here who has got the same derailleur and actually knows how to put it on correctly?

These are the alloy versions of the 'Sachs Huret' steel efforts of that period and I am familiar with the tension problems that can happen if you take them apart and put them back together again.

You undid the lower Allen key bolt, didn't you?

You need to take the little bolt on the side of the cage off, then undo the lower Allen bolt, swing the cage around approximately 180 degrees, tighten up the Allen bolt making sure the spring goes in, then pull the cage round approximately 180 degree, then pop the lower cage bolt back in.

Got it?

It can be done, don't go out an buy a new one, persevere.


Bike pedals not moving for upright position I need the help with my bike. When starting a bike (stopped position), I cannot move my pedals to the upright (power) position before starting. When I stopped in the traffic light, I need to move my bike to return my pedal to the upright position. I wanted to ask if it is normal for some bikes or there is a problem with the bike.

I suppose it is not fixie. Correct me if I am wrong. Is it possible to get it changed?

Since you don't mention that you don't have a fixie where this wouldn't be possible anyway, if your bike's rear brake has a back-pedalling aka coaster brake, turning the crank backwards is indeed not possible. It is system-inherent.


Why are my handlebars difficult to turn in one direction but not the other? Very odd thing.  I can turn my handlebars more freely in one direction that the other.  It feels like it's rubbing against something inside when I turn it in the "bad" direction.  Any ideas?

There are a couple possible causes. Proceed with caution.

One cause of this is if a ball bearing, or a broken piece of one, has
gotten out of place and is now grinding between the steerer and the
headset cup or frame. This could happen either due to extreme wear or
someone opening up the headset and not being careful enough when
putting it back together. This can wear a groove in the steerer that
can lead to failure, and it's also imaginable that it could lock up
the fork's turning while riding in a dangerous way.
It's possible that simple wear could wind up causing this, but only
if someone then adjusted the headset with the goal of taking out all
the play, and then it caused it to stiffen up elsewhere. If you
slowly acquired this problem without anyone putting their hands on
the headset, simple wear probably isn't what happening, although
extreme wear (balls and retainers tearing themselves apart, etc) could cause it.
A bent steerer causes this. So if the bike's been crashed or smashed
into something, that's important to look at.
Poor headtube facing causes this, although typically you wouldn't
experience that as an acquired problem. I could imagine a situation
where acquired headtube ovalization causes it too.
Incomplete cup insertion always causes this, but again that's not an acquired problem.
If the steerer is bulging, as in an overtightened quill stem wedge, or has any other irregularities that could affect the alignment of the headset, that can cause it.
It's uncommon, but threadless stems with poor facing (uneven surfaces) can cause this.


Where can I ride Paris-Roubaix style cobbles in the UK? Watching the Paris-Roubaix and the Ronde van Vlaanderen recently made me think I'd like to try out my road bike on similar-style cobbles, just for a laugh.

Is there anywhere in the UK (I live in Devon, so down in the South West would be best) with similar surface?

In all seriousness the only places I can think of where I've seen cobbles would be town centres. If you do a search on Google Images there are some stories dated 2013 which have images of the cobbled Market Place in Beverley - ironically the story there is that the council wanted to tear them up for health and safety reasons.

I'm pretty sure I once rode through a town in Dorset which had cobbles - I forget exactly where (possibly Wimborne Minster) but again it was a town centre.

Contrast that to what you see in Paris-Roubaix. Those cobbles appear to have once been vast thoroughfares through the countryside - they have got to be Napoleonic in origin, a way of getting his troops from A to B. That story about Beverley dates the cobbles to 175 years, so roughly the same ballpark, so I'm sure if you travelled back in time far enough you'd find such roads in the UK.

I suspect road building policy has a lot to do with it too - France is twice as big as the UK so possibly in France they just decided to build brand new roads from scratch, taking a slightly different route, and to allow the old roads to decay to what we see today. Maybe in the UK they took the approach that, to save space, they dug up the old road and replaced it with new, following the same route.


former weightlifter turned triathlete repeatedly breaking hanger Every year, it seems I am on a training ride 5-10 miles from home and while torquing up, I snap the hanger throwing the rear derailleur into my spokes and locking up my rear wheel. I am 205lbs and 5'10" and still squat pretty heavy so I am wondering if the combination of my weight and my force is wearing out the hangers quickly causing this and if there is a known way to check this for fatigue before I get on the road. I use a 2012 GTR Series 5 aluminum bike. If I ask at a bike shop, they will just try and sell me a tri bike. I want a tri bike but I don't want one if it wont change anything in my sprint and olympic tri experience.

The way you asked the question, it sounds like you think the following is happening: first, the derailleur hanger wears out/weakens, then it snaps, and this causes the derailleur to go into the spokes.

It is much more likely that the chain of events is the following: the derailleur is mis-adjusted, when you shift to the largest cog on the rear, the derailleur goes into the spokes, and this causes the derailleur hanger to break off.

Possible causes:

the inner limit screw on the rear derailleur is too far out, needs to be tightened a bit, until it reliably keeps the derailleur from moving too close to the spokes
the chain is too short, and when you shift onto the largest rear cog and the largest front chainring (not recommended in general), the chain gets too tight and this rips off the derailleur.


What can be done to seat post too long/saddle too high? Recently a mountain bike --someone's hand-me-down--, came in my way. Size wise it might be slightly big for my ideal but within the range of manageable, I accessed. After trying a few times, however, it became clear that its seat post becoming too long and saddle too high with the way it was. I broke the parts apart and the only way I could make do with this seemed  not to use this post or any post at all, crazy it may sound, but it should work out only if the saddle cushion part immediately placed on the seating area. (Somehow the depth that the post can slide down is limited to half of the post length due to its structure: a "coil type' object obstructing and blocking the post. I'm a girl of 5 foot 2. Although the bike is a mountain type, I am not planning to use this for adventurous rides in mountains or slopes but for small scaled travel nearby with no bumps and/or environments as parks, etc. I am an experienced cyclist but also a city dweller, who would be cautious due to frequent casualties observed in the area where I am currently located: urban.

I think what you are saying is that you need to drop the seat post all the way down into the frame, so the saddle is as close to the frame as possible. You need a seat post to connect the saddle and frame. You can't attach the saddle directly to the frame.

If the post cannot be slid all the way into the frame due to an obstruction it can be cut down to shorten it. As long as the minumum length is inserted into the frame you will be structurally safe. You can buy a shorter post of course.

However, if you need to drop the saddle all the way to the frame the bike is likely too large for you and possibly dangerous, as you will have no standover clearance.


Correct angle for front light? I have recently invested in an LED front lamp with a battery pack. The results are great, it's incredibly bright and I will feel much safer with it on my bike.

However, I don't want to blind or hinder any other road users with how bright it is.

Car headlights are brighter but angled in a specific way, what is the correct angling (roughly) for a bike front headlight to maximise visibility whilst not impairing other road users?

Car headlights are more complex than bike lights. The beam is 'shaped' to throw light away from oncoming drivers and has a sharp cutoff on dipped beam. therefore bike lights will always cause a greater degree of glare (for relative brightness) than car lights.

Point the beam so its shining at the ground about 10-20meters in front, and slightly towards the curb. The faster you go, the higher it needs to be. Curb side is where you need most light, as that is where the glass and rubbish is, and it avoids blinding oncoming motorists. As far as being seen, add a non-directional flashing light and hi-vis gear.


How to find compatible cranks? The threads on both cranks got busted due to putting the wrong pedals by the shop (here is my post with details) so I need to find replacement. How to find compatible cranks? My bike is Carrera Gryphon Hybrid 21" frame, 16 speeds, cranks are FSA Tempo, arm length is 175mm. The bike was sold by Halfords in 2012 but I couldn't find the technical info they gave me back than so these are the only details I know right now.

What else (other than the arm length and the 2 rings) do I need to look for? I tried looking for the part IDs online (A2F0953410 and A2F0964132) but nothing came up. Another ID I see printed on the back of the cranks is "CK-200-1 D" and "CK-C200". I tried searching for these but the cranks I found did not seem to be of the same type or size.

Here are photos of the backs of the cranks (photos of the fronts can be seen at the above link):

Can you point me to compatible cranks?

ps. I now realise that I haven't tried to look up the QR codes on the cranks - will try to do this tomorrow but if you have any suggestions in the meantime - please let me know.

Lets say you wish to replace a crank similar to yours and you cannot find the exact same crank as the one you have.

BIG PICTURE: Unless you can find the exact same crank as yours, you'll need to purchase both a crank and matching bottom bracket. A guide for choosing a crank is listed below

Measure the length of the Bottom Bracket shell. If it is 68mm or 73mm you're in good shape because thats a very common 'British' or 'ISO' size
Count how many chainrings you have. 1? 2? or 3? 1 is a little tricky as its hard to come by, 2 (yours looks like 2) is commonly a 'road bike crank' and 3 is commonly a Mountain bike crank, though there are also 3 for road bike too.
Count the teeth on the chainrings, or look for markings that may indicate the number of teeth (e.g.. 52teeth for the big one and 39teeth for the small chainring). If you like the gear ratios on your bike I suggest you stay with the same number with little deviation
Count how many cogs you have at the rear. 6,7,8,9,10,11? Anything 9 and below will allow many interchangeable cranks. 10 and 11 will require specific 10speed or 11 speed cranks ( i suspect yours is 8, thus you could get a crank designed for 9 speed or less. don't get one for a 10 speeder or higher)
Length of crank arm is less important for me. but you can select the same number as yours. 175mm
With that information, I'd suggest to get a crank and matching bottom bracket for your bike. If you are using a square taper or Octalink or similar Bottom bracket your replacement crank may fit in it, but the length of the spindle of the bottom bracket may be incorrect for your crank.. so its very tricky. for example for square taper bottom brackets there are about 6 or more different spindle lengths. getting the length wrong could mean incorrect chainlines and issues with the drive train. So unless you get the exact same replacement crank.. you'll need to get a matching bb to the crank.
At this juncture you might consider one of the HollowTech 2 cranks/bb from Shimano.. they work well and have less issues with spindle lengths though it may be challenging to get cranks for 9 speed or less unless they are old stocks.


Is the XTR Di2 battery compatible with Ultegra Di2? I'm considering installing an Ultegra Di2 groupset on a small road bike.  The space below the water bottle bosses is too little to install the regular road Di2 battery, but the XTR SM-BTC1 Di2 battery holder looks like a good option: http://bike.shimano.com/content/sac-bike/en/home/components1/mountain/xtr-m9000/sm-btc1.html

The question is, can the XTR Di2 battery actually be used with Di2 road shifters like Ultegra 6770 or 6870?  Or is there some other battery offering similar mounting options for road bikes?

One reason for optimism is that the XTR battery page says "Six E-Tube wiring ports with cable organizer," which sounds perfect since the bike in question has no space for an internal wiring junction down near the bottom bracket.

The page also says it holds the SM-BTR2 battery, which seems to be exactly the Ultegra/Dura-Ace internal battery stick that goes in a seatpost.

According to BikeRadar, "The battery unit as well as the wiring for XTR Di2 are identical components to the ones used in Shimano's electronic road groups. The battery can be mounted on a bottle cage, in a seat tube, frame and can even be contained within the steerer unit of certain forks (via the use of PRO's new Tharsis components)."


Are recumbents more fatal in an accident than a regular bicycle? I noticed a bunch of people riding recumbents a few days ago, as well as upright bikes, for an event happening in my town.  What struck me was the low ride height and poor visibility (by others) of the recumbent riders, and, yes, they had flags.

While I hope it never happens, I couldn't help but think that if one were to get hit by a vehicle on a recumbent, it seems like one would be more likely to get run over/squashed/crushed under the tires, whereas on an upright bike, it seems more likely one would just fall off the bike if one were to get struck by a vehicle.

This is what has happened to me when I've been hit by cars in the past; I got injured but kind of just flew off the bike and to the ground.  I have never ridden a recumbent so I'm not familiar.

I know closing speed, impact angle, preparedness, etc. all factor into how bad one is hurt or not during an accident and I would like to know, on average, is a recumbent more fatal in an accident than a regular bike?  Are there any statistics that speak to this?

I have been riding a recumbent for the last couple months.  Its a highracer so higher than a lowracer, and puts me at about even face height with sedan drivers.  Thats roughly even with the saddle on my road bike.  I have a flag but its not much above my head.

You're harder to see because you're behind cars rather than peaking over cars
As a rider you have more limited visibility of other cars for the same reason
BUT as something highly unusual on the road, drivers seem to perceive you better - the visual image passes from the lizard brain to the conscious brain and other road users notice you more.   I experienced the same thing when riding a tandem either solo or together, or when towing the kiddy trailer - vehicles gave significantly more passing room than they do when I'm on my boring upright road bike.

To address the "more fatal" part - an upright rider is higher than a sedan, so an accident is more likely to hit the bike and "scoop" the rider up and over a bonnet/hood/windshield.  With a lower bike, an impact will be more of a "push" leading to more impact and sliding, than a "lift" which would be more throw and impact with the ground or other objects.

Personally, I'd prefer to ride defensively and avoid the potential accident all together, regardless which bike I am on.


Drafting in small triathlon I am going to be doing a small triathlon soon.  It is just a local triathlon (no affiliation with large triathlon agencies) and the prize money is small, about 50 US dollars.

Is it legal to employ drafting during the bike portion?

Is it a dirty move to employ drafting during the bike portion?

The problem is a good portion of the race the bike trail is too narrow(6ft, two lanes) to pass another biker without drafting on them for at least a little bit.

EDIT: I have checked the website of the triathlon.  There is no statement about drafting.  They have a section about safety guidelines(being careful traffic, obey all laws, etc) but nothing about drafting.

Almost all amateur triathlons are DRAFT ILLEGAL.  This was originally because triathlon famously has its roots in finding out "who the best athlete is" (Ironman, specifically, was founded by a group of friends who each specialized the different sports, and each thought that their sport was the "hardest").  In that context, drafting was/is seen as taking advantage of another athlete's work and thus counter to the point of the competition.  Today, most triathlons remain draft illegal for several other reasons, including:

reducing the danger for athletes who may not have experience or feel comfortable riding in a tightly packed peloton
balancing out the potential gains of the three sports; allowing drafting on the bike results in a much larger focus on the run at the expense of the bike and especially swim legs, where spending extra energy to attack the group is frequently (though not always) a poor tactical decision.
reducing congestion in the transition area; having riders arrive at T2 in packs of 10 or 20 or more would be incredibly chaotic and, again, dangerous at most venues.

You say that the course is too narrow to pass, but 6 feet wide seems like plenty to me.  It is possible you may not be able to pass immediately (such as if another competitor is passing), but it should clear relatively quickly (this is another reason draft-legal would not work; that ISN'T enough space to have an entire pack ride together safely).  Just make sure to call to the rider in front of you before you pass so they are not surprised when you go by.  The rule triathlon uses, IIRC, is that you must maintain 3 bike lengths separation unless passing, and once you initiate a pass, you have 10(?) seconds to complete the pass or yield the 3 bike lengths.

If you are unsure about any of this, you should ask the race director.  They will be able to tell you for certain what rules the race is being run under, although I'd be 95% sure the race you describe would be as I've described.


Is there a wheel which can use both disc brakes and rim brakes? Could I buy such a wheel, or would I just have to build it? I've heard disc-wheels won't take the punishment from normal brakes.

Edit: I want to get new wheels, and I want to be able to swap them between frames. I don't want to convert all my frames to disc brakes, but I do want parts compatible between all my bikes.

Rim brakes need an appropriate braking surface on the rim -- if you apply rim brakes to a rim which doesn't have an appropriate braking surface, it'll wear down the rims quickly to be unsafe to ride on (or possibly damage the rims in other ways).

Disc brakes need a hub that can mount a disc rotor.

As you can note from the two points above, they're basically independent requirements -- you can easily build a wheel which has a rim suitable for rim brakes and a disc brake hub so you can use disc brakes.

People do build and sell wheels with a disc brake hub and a rim suitable for rim brakes. These used to be more common than they are now since disc brakes are cheap, but you can still find them.

The question of why you want one is another matter -- in the past, it was relatively common to find bikes spec'd with rim brakes from the factory, but the frames were suitable for mounting a disc brake (for the user to upgrade). These days, a lot of bikes that would have come in that configuration have dropped the rim brake bosses and just gone disc brake only to begin with because the public expects discs.

In regards to the edit: " I want to get new wheels, and I want to be able to swap them between frames. I don't want to convert all my frames to disc brakes, but I do want parts compatible between all my bikes."

Obviously, you need to make sure all bikes can physically accept the wheels ( compatible frame spacing, rim size are the main things; if you had a more specialized case e.g. 1 bike using regular QR and another thru axles, you'd know about that and deal with it; EDIT: Carel has done more details in the comments for road bikes, for example).

But even assuming this is the case, you may not want to do this. Why? Usually, the (non-custom) wheels that are sold this way are on the low end of the quality spectrum (which raises reliability issues). If you are going to build custom wheels this way, you can get very good wheels BUT there is a decent likelihood that you could get a good disc wheel and a good rim wheel for less than the cost of going custom, unless you have special needs (e.g. you're very heavy).


Is Trek Emonda ALR have thinner or thicker diameter tubing than the carbon model? I'm wondering if Trek Emonda ALR have thinner or thicker diameter tubing than the carbon model SL/SLR? I might actually get the aluminum one if it's thinner.

That's a question with multiple answers depending on what you're trying to find out.

From a distance the Aluminium and Carbon bikes look almost identical.
 Compare these two Emonda bikes and see which you think is CF and which is Aluminium.  Try to ignore the wheel rims and different colour schemes, barsm stem, saddle, seatpost, and that both have a carbon fibre fork.

SE Bicycles doesn't offer the Spoiler markup tag.....
.
.
.
.
.

The top bike is the aluminium Trek Emonda , and the bottom is the carbon fibre version of the same bike.

Differences:

The CF bike has visually chunkier tubing over the AL one.
The CF downtube appears to be consistent thickness whereas the AL one tapers thinner as it drops to the BB
That head tube on the CF bike looks enormous compared to the AL head tube.
CF bike has thicker chainstays and seat stays over the AL bike
The seatpost clamp area looks quite different too - the AL bike has tubes that stop at the welds whereas the CF bike has curves merging one tube around a corner into the next tube.

Curiously, the only tube that looks the same on both frames is the seatpost tube.

However the hidden difference is that the CF bike could be as much as a kilo lighter than the equivalent AL one.


Do tubeless tyres explode more easily than standard one? Yesterday I was at a bar with a friend with our bikes parked near us and his bike's front tyre (a tubeless one) exploded.

When we went to the bike shop, they told us that tubeless tyres explode more often than standard one especially during hot weather.

After searching on google, I could not really find any proof of that.

Are there any evidence that they do or was it just the guy from the bike shop trying to sell us a new (wheel + tube + tyre) instead of just a tyre?

Tyre pressure was about 3 bar / 43 PSI.
His bike is a road bike
The outdoor temperature was 28°c (82 F)

TLDR - I have been commuting daily on tubeless tires now for about 3.5 yrs. In my 20 years of daily cycling experience, I have had a number of tubed tires spontaneously rupture due to heat, especially if a wheel set was left in the back of a car! I haven't had a tubeless tire explode yet using tubeless specific rims and tires.

Hypothesis: Previous damage
My best guess is that the tire was already  damaged (e.g., road debris causing a partial cut that could be re-sealed) and then the added heat could have caused it to rupture. A damaged tire casing can undergo rapid decompression regardless of whether you are running tubes or tubeless.  In the case of tubes, if the tire cords (the internal structure that actually counteracts the force from the pressurized air)  gets damaged the tube can escape out of the tire carcass and rupture as a result.  Similarly, in the case of a tubeless setup, if the tire gets damaged in such a way that it can no longer support the pressure, a the tire would rupture in a very similar way as a tubed tire.
What about the shop's claim?
Tubeless tires can also rupture if their is an unsuitable tubeless tire/rim combination. For example, in the early days tubeless specific rims were rare, so people often converted regular rims to a tubeless setup.  It can be done, but the tolerances are not as good, one problem is that the tire bead can climb over the rim hook if pressure is too high for the tire/rim combination (many wheels are slightly undersized (i.e., out of spec) for easy of tire mounting).
With a tubed tire this is less of an issue as the friction against the tube helps to prevent the bead from climbing, even if the rim is slightly out of spec.
Ad hoc tubeless setups were also less of an issue in mountain biking because mountain bikes run lower pressures. That said, tubeless is still a bit of a wild west when it comes to road tubeless. There unfortunately isn't a single standard and some wheel/rim combinations (even if specified as being tubeless) can fail under high pressures.  Further adding to the confusion people may also be experimenting with "road tubeless" with regular road rims which will be highly unsuitable due to the higher pressures typically used on road tires.
I suspect these issues may be what the shop was referring to, but it's hard to assess as we would need to directly speak to them.
That said, I don't think this was you issue.  In your description you also described the tire has having a gash, as such I suspect the tire failed due to damaged as was described above, not from a poor tire/rim combination.
As such, the shop's claim may be a bit of a red herring in terms of your described experience.
So are tubeless more dangerous?
I doubt it. Anecdotally, I have been commuting daily on road tubeless tires for about three years, including one tire that had a partial sidewall gash that resealed (descending too fast on very rocky gravel trail), and never had the tire explode like you describe. Furthermore, I have never had a flat tire in those three years.  I would suggest, that there is higher "risk" with tubed tires, as getting an unexpected flat can easily cause a crash.
In terms of your experience, if this was the result of tire damage, it was likely the culmination of a number of low probability events.  Partially damaged tire, that resealed, then increase pressure due to heat that didn't cause the sealant plug to fail, but initiated a structural tear in the tire due to the earlier damage. Because of the low probability of these events it is hard to assess how likely this type of event is by tire type.


Swap Shimano/SRAM freehub for Campagnolo Through my work I am able to get a set of freewheels pretty cheap (less than 100€). I know they are not super special but they are still an upgrade to my current ones.

Here are the wheels:

https://www.bike-components.de/de/Mavic/Cosmic-Elite-UST-WTS-Laufradsatz-Modell-2018-p57945/
https://www.bike-components.de/de/Fulcrum/Racing-Quattro-LG-Laufradsatz-p44852/

Now the problem is all the wheels I can get are for Shimano/SRAM cassettes but I have a Campagnolo 10-speed. So my questions are:

How difficult is it to change the hub on the new wheels to Campagnolo hubs and would it be possible to just simply swap them out for the freehubs on my current wheels?

Thanks in advance!

Swapping hubs to a complete wheel is almost never practical. You would need a hub that matches the exact drilling of the original hub, or has similar spoke counts if you also replace the spokes. Even spoke counts may be difficult if the wheel has different number of spokes on left and right, as the Fulcrum does.

The good thing is that since these are both third party brands[1] that are marketed for both Shimano and Campagnolo users, you can get just the freehub body for different cassette as spare part for about 50€.

[1] Technically Fulcrum is owned by Campagnolo and the products are mostly the same, just marketed for people who haven't figured out that Shimano compatible wheels have been sold under Campagnolo brand for a long time.


At what point does one need to replace a chain ring on a mountain bike? The large chainring on my mountain bike is missing a number of teeth on one side (apparently the side I like to go over rocks on). Is it harmful to the drivetrain to ride without these if I'm not having issues loosing the chain?  At what point should i replace the chain ring?

While replacing any part comes down to when you want/can do it, you should replace any damaged part immediately. That's true whether you experience symptoms of failure or not.

Missing teeth on a chainring may not seem like a big deal until another one breaks off, causes chain slip or a dropped chain that sends you over the bars and into a tree or rock. Suddenly a missing tooth seems like a big deal.

As a side note, you should probably invest in a bashguard/ring if your knocking teeth off your chainrings!


Beginner trails near Manchester UK I'm very much a novice when it comes to mountain biking. By novice I mean I have absolutely no experience of this. I have two questions

Are there any trails within commute from Manchester that are suitable for novices?
Is my bike suitable for trail work?

I find the bike is very hard to control on the trails. I'm constantly fighting with the bike to keep it on the trail. I could hear the back wheel constantly being tortured. This bike was serviced by me under supervision of a qualified bike mechanic @ a bike repair class. However I found the brakes aren't really that effective on the trail.

I can't comment on whether or not your bike is suitable for use on trails.

As for trail in Manchester, Clayton Vale has some blue and red routes. They're not the best trails in the world (or the UK for that matter) but they're the best you'll get anywhere near the city.

They're right by the velodrome and the Manchester City FC stadium. Here:


Front wheel inexplicably misaligned I have a Civia Bryant which I ride around the city and to work everyday.  Yesterday, while walking the bike into my apartment building, I noticed that there were noises coming from the front wheel.  Later, when I was able to take a closer look, I noticed that the disc brake rotor was making contact with the brakes and that the tire was touching the fender too.  I removed the wheel and tried to put it back while making sure it was aligned properly, but as soon as I tighten the skewer, it becomes misaligned again.

I haven't taken any spills nor has the bike gone through something that could explain this.  I do ride in NYC streets everyday and when in traffic cannot avoid all potholes, but that's it.

Does anyone have any idea about what the cause of this could be and how to go about fixing it?

Thanks in Advance.

Edit: I should point out that I changed the quick-release skewer that came with the bike for a locking skewer.  It is when tightening the hex nut for this skewer that the wheel becomes misaligned.

You may have overtightened things...you can do this with a quick-release, but easier when you apply a tool to the process. This can cause the alignment to go a bit wonky. This is actually the less likely thing...I mention it first as folks have a tendency to over-tighten things when they take them off and on a time or two and I'm about to ask you to remove the wheel!

My initial guess is that you didn't get the axle seated correctly in the fork. This could be caused by a bit of gravel or dirt or just the angle the bike was leaning. Take off the wheel and make sure everything is clean. While you are there, look for any damage to the end of the fork. If one side is a little twisted, you may have a fork issue but from your narrative you haven't had any crashes so probably not.

Once satisfied all is clean and undamaged, put the wheel on and "jiggle" it to make sure it seats well. Hand tighten the skewer and see if the wheel turns smoothly. You may have already bent your disc from earlier, so keep that in mind...if you are mechanically inclined and your disc is bent, you can straighten with a crescent wrench tightened so it just slides over the disc.

Tighten the skewer a bit more, make sure all is good, then tighten down...ideally with a torque wrench but realistically a "firm without cranking it down" tighten.

If it still gives you trouble, stop by your LBS and ask them to help you troubleshoot it. Many will give you a hand for free (or a couple bucks). Bigger stores less so.

Happy Riding.


What to do with scratched top tube on carbon fiber frame with no structural damage? No physical damage, if i press into it nor while riding.

I did wipe the surface to get rid of dirt and paint chip. Attached also a video to demonstrate the scratch. Should i put epoxy or tape or nail polish on it?

Youtube Link

There doesn't appear to be any cracking, and its hard to tell from the photo/video, but it also doesn't seem that deep, so that rules out the need for epoxy for either bonding or to act as a filler.

I'd start with nail polish - i've had fairly good results with it although not on such a large area.

Tape as a last resort as its ugly.


Carrying Pizza on a Bicycle I have a rear rack.

However, I don't really have a good way to carry pizza.

Cables?  Any big enough bags?  I can avoid leaning too much, I'll slow on the turns if I have to..

Edit: Delivery?  Not in this town.  I just want a pizza...

For the ultimate in pizza carrying, you want a pneumatic air suspension, pendulum-based anti-sway bar equipped carrier. This are/were used by ramen delivery bicylists in Japan, although they are getting rarer (people don't order delivery ramen noodles like they used to) and mostly on motorcycles now:

With one of these babies, your pizza (or ramen) will not sway from side to side, bump around, and end up all mashed into one big congealed mess.

Of course, it costs around $400 and you can only get it in Japan. But if you're serious about your pizza carrying, it's the only way to go.


Shimano MF Z012 replacement Freewheel? I need to replace my Z012 freewheel due to wear on my 12 speed road bike.  I can't seem to find a replacement that matches it.  The large gear has 28 teeth and the small has 13.

I bought a MF-TZ20 to replace it but the teeth on it are 1/8 in shorter and about 1/3 narrower?  The small gear has 14 teeth rather than the 13 on the original.  Will this work and if so will it effect the type of chain it will take? I need to change the chain as well.

Really any 6 speed freewheel will work. You'll want to get the tooth numbers close, but they don't have to be exact (your 14-28 will be a fine replacement.) Chain sizing for 6-7-8 speed drivetrains hasn't been significantly changed since they became popular, though the profiles and faces of the freewheel cog teeth have, in most brands, been altered to improve shifting quality (see the image below.) There is no need to worry about the tooth profile being incompatible with a modern 6-7-8 speed chain.

You will, however, want to replace the chain. This is because as a chain ages and wears, it becomes longer. The chain rollers/bushings/pins are spaced at an exact 1/2", and as it lengthens, they wear the chainrings and freewheel cogs into a hook profile. If you use your old chain on your new freewheel, you'll likely find that it skips when pedaling (hopefully your chainrings aren't similarly worn, but if they are you will know what to replace next.)


What size mounting bolt does a Shimano SL-M7000-11 take (pic included) I've searched far and wide and can't seem to find a parts list for this shifter. I've lost the bolt and need to purchase another. It is the right-hand (rear) shifter, for an 11-speed Shimano XT group.

From Shimano's Technical Documents website comes this exploded view of your right shifter. Typically on these drawings, Shimano will give the size and length of any fasteners highlighted in the drawing (see the "Clamp Bolt" listing--#8--in the linked schematic), however the entire base cover with it's screws is one part number and no information is given about the screws themselves. As has been typical of these kinds of shifters over the years and different models, the bottom cover utilizes two and even 3 different size screws in one unit.
Your missing screw is part of the assembly listed as #3 (of the referenced exploded view) and carries part number, Y06M98030, the  R.H. Base Cover Fixing Screw Unit. I googled, "Shimano part number Y06M98030" (without quotes in the search query), and this is the most relevant link that wasn't the same Shimano site I linked above. Still nothing about the size, but you can get a good look at the threads and the shoulder of it.  My final answer is that it's an M3 about 5mm long. Because of that shoulder, a matching fastener won't be easy to find in the local hardware store, but I wouldn't be put off trying an M3 socket head cap screw, short as I could get (though a Dremel with a cut wheel could customize a longer one) and seeing if that would be a satisfactory substitute.  Or, obviously, the part is for sale.


Clicking/cracking noise while seated My initial suspicion was that the clicking/cracking noise my bike makes was coming from my bottom bracket. But today, I noticed that when applying full power while standing up, no clicks are present.

When I am not standing, my center of mass obviously goes to the back of the bike. Therefore, I suspect the problem comes either from the back part of the frame (closer to what I hear) or the rear wheel (less probable in my opinion).

My frame/rear wheel have a warranty of 2 years, so I would really like to know if the noise comes from the frame or the wheel. Is there a way to diagnose such a thing? Removing the bottom bracket and inspecting the interior of the frame would be worth?

The only way to rule out a wheel issue would be to get another wheel to test?

The noise was coming from the seat post. Removing the dirt, reapplying some grease and re-tightening the clamp solved the problem. I have also identified that the seat clamp is kind of broken, and the saddle was not leveled.

Thanks for the comments, I didn't know that noises coming from the seat post were that common.


What does "2×4" refer when talking about food? This post repeatedly uses "2×4" when referring to food eaten on a long, multiday tour. I suspect it's a shorthand for nutritional guidelines when planning meals but it's hard to Google for. What does this refer to?

  Our route headed past Devil’s Punch Bowl and climbed into the clouds powered by the 2×4 of eggs, hashbrowns, bacon and stack of pancakes

http://tenspeedhero.com/features/crush-the-coast/


Drop Bar for Lespo Frame? I've been riding my Lespo single-speed since April, and been contemplating whether to change my handles to a drop bar:

Any advice if changing to a drop bar will have a dramatic effect on my fitness and overall riding experience? I usually ride an hour at around 15-20 km, on a village road terrain with some hills and humps.

My current handle bar is a Truvativ World Cup riser bar.

Switching bars affects bike fit. So, you may not fit well to a bike when switching handle bar types, since the way you hold onto the bars changes - you may need a different stem length (and height) or more saddle adjustment than on your current seat post than is possible to get a good fit (if its even possible - it isn't always). Note that well adjusted drop bars actually let you use the drops, not just the hoods or the middle of the bar or whatever. Also, drop bars have a different diameter where the brakes what not clamp on, so you need new brake levers.

Drop bars give you multiple hand positions (which can convert to more aggressive riding positions), which is useful on longer rides (20 km is a pretty short ride), so you won't really see much gain and you will have to buy new brake levers. So, I wouldn't recommend getting drop bars. With a flat/riser bar, there exist bar ends to provide a few more hand positions (Ergon GP3 is the set I use on my commuter, but primarly for the sweet grips rather than the ends).

Here is some good reading on setting handle bar height and types of handlebars.

Totally unrelated, but wow that saddle is tilted downwards.

Want more fitness? Ride longer and harder. Multiple speeds may help with hills (esp if you have knee issues).


Repairing a damaged cone nut So I've got a nice hybrid bike that I picked up secondhand, was doing some maintenance on it to get it up and running and thought I'd replace the bearings in the rear axle.  In doing this, I've found a small pit in one of the cone nuts.

I don't have a picture, but this is the type of thing (In reality, mine's not as bad as this, it's less long and less deep):

Just thinking, would it be a really bad (or silly) idea to try to file the whole nut, so that the surface is smooth. I appreciate that this would be quite a lot of work to get right.

Cone nuts seem to vary so much and finding an exact replacement could be tricky, so thought I'd explore this idea...

Look forward to hearing your thoughts!

Unless you have a lathe the tolerances are going to be too high for you to be able to to do an acceptable job here.  Plus, I believe that the cone is surface hardened, after you grind through that the underlying material will be too soft.  If you visit your local bike shop they should be able to match it up.