What would cause a pedal to loosen from its spindle while riding? I recently serviced an old pair of Wellgo platform pedals. They were already old and well-used by the time I got them, and they were slightly too loose, but useable. I rode on them for a few months before the slight rattle finally got on my nerves and I serviced them according to Sheldon's instructions on pedal maintenance. New loose bearings and plenty of grease.
Fast forward. A week or two ago I noticed the drive side pedal was loosening again. It didn't seem bad, so I put it on my mental bikes-todo.txt and continued on my merry way. Suffice it to say that I put off the repair job just one ride too long, and I ended up finishing yesterday's ride on foot. Whoops. It was dark outside, so I couldn't really tell what was going on until I got home and discovered that I had a pedal and a spindle, but no bearing cone, locknut, or dust cap - they are now flotsam on the side of the road somewhere.
So what happened? My best guess is that some part of the pedal assembly was greased too well or not well enough, causing the locknut to unscrew a tiny bit with every turn of the cranks. I followed the same process with both pedals, and the non-drive pedal has not loosened at all. What is the most likely culprit for this kind of adjustment issue, so I can be more careful with it next time I service pedals like these?

Sounds like you'd lost the locknut, allowing the outside cone to back off slowly, then walk right out the end pushing the dust cap with it and freeing all the ball bearings.  Perhaps you didn't tighten the locknut against the conenut and they moved as a unit?  Mismatched balls can push on the cone too, specially if there's spalling or pitting developing already.
Another less-likely possibility is that the cone nut was too tight against the balls, and they manually unwound the cone nut as you rode.  However this would be a tight feeling, not a loose feeling.
Given the cone nut is lost, its going to be less work to find a pair of replacement pedals, grease the threads, and fit them to the correct cranks.  This will get you riding again.
You might choose to save the old pedal remains as spares, or recycle them in some way.


When truing a wheel, is it enough to only use a tension meter, and not a truing stand? I presume that if you get all spoke tensions equal, and at the recommended tension for the spoke thickness, then the wheel will be true.
My intention is to get a wheel reasonably true (laterally) by seeing where it rubs against the break blocks in situ, and then use the tension meter to fine tune it. Just means I don't have to purchase an expensive stand to measure that the hub is centred, or the rim is over the centre of the axyl. Are these last two measurements unecessary if the tensions are equal?

A wheel could theoretically be trued by tension alone if you started with a perfectly manufactured rim, hub, spokes and nipples and you were building a perfectly symmetric wheel.   The reality is that there are minute differences and that tolerances are not all that tight.  Not to mention that ultimately the wheel has to go into a frame that also may not be perfect (dishing).

The short answer is no.  I've had many sets of hand built wheels that were beautifully crafted and never saw a tension meter because the tension was hand checked.  But, they were built in a truing stand and were incredibly close to perfect.  Your initial presumption is incorrect.


Wheel bust after 10 months, is this normal / usually covered by warranty? Not sure if this is the right place to ask...

I bought new bike about 10 months ago. The past few weeks I've had no end of trouble with the rear wheel (Mavic Aksium) in regards to spokes.

About 4-5 spokes on the non-drive side consistently come loose. I tighten them, then after riding for about 15 meters I hear the "twang" as they work themselves loose. One of them snapped right off at the nipple, looks a bit brittle where the break was.

Questions:

Is this normal for a wheel to wear out so fast? I've done about
2500km on it.
I'm missing 1 spoke, and loose on about 4 now. Is the wheel ready for the bin, or is it worth fixing?
Is this something that is normally covered in bike manufacturer
warranties, or is it a case of "sorry mate, its just general wear"

1) It's hard to say what's normal - what sort of riding have you been doing on it, as in, have you been going over a lot of curbs and potholes? The more you bounce on it, the more strain it'll have.  Have you hit one particular pothole hard recently?  How heavy are you? The heavier you are, the more likely you are to damage the wheel.

2) You should take it to your LBS, they'll be able to tell you the answer to this, but most likely they'll be able to repair it and re-true the wheel.

3) Depends on who you got it from.. and what warrantee you have I guess.  Probably going to be a general wear though I'd suspect.


How to avoid cramped/compressed breathing? Sometimes after a heavy effort I get into this compressed breathing which is very hard to break out of.

Heres what I mean with cramped breathing:
Imagine breathing with the top abdominal (1st row of rectus abdominis) muscles cramped up and pressing the air our instead of "belly breathing".

If I concentrate on breathing correctly I can make it go away temporarily but when the hunger for fresh air is high I quickly get back into this bad habit.

Its not painful or anything (this may sound worse than it is, but it is definetly not a medical issue) but I feel I cannot get enough air into my lungs this way and it makes me gasp for air and my breathing gets shorter and shorter until I have to slow down.

I thought that maybe my bike position may be at fault for this but on paper everything fits.

How would you explain  this and help me improve my breathing ?
I have tried belly breathing but as I said, I kind of forget about it.

I see you are aware of horizontal breathing vs vertical breathing - the former is "belly breathing" as you name it, the latter is the shallow type with shoulders vertical movement involved (hence less effective).

Perhaps this helps: on my firefighter training we've learned how to cope with hyperventilation - make sure you exhale deeply. The body will take care for inhale itself provided the lungs are properly emptied.

Good luck!


What are the advantages of a custom frame for a touring bike? I'm building a new bike for touring while traveling, so I want a break-apart frame with S&S couplers, like the Salsa Vaya Travel, or another steel touring frame retro fit with couplers.  I want a bike I can confidently take down the long roads knowing that if anything does go wrong, I'll be able to fix it on the road and get rolling again.  I also want a bike that I'll be able to ride for a lot of years, without investing so much in it that taking it out on the road will seem like an unreasonable financial risk.

So, my question is: should I spend the extra money and time on a custom built frame, or will my results be just as good with a well fit stock frame and components?  What advantages can a custom fit provide that are unavailable in stock frames?  Over many consecutive long days in the saddle, do the benefits of a custom fit pay off any more or less?  Are there any risks or complications involved with building and maintaining custom frames that I should be concerned about?

Unless you are of extremely uncommon proportions, you won't find much riding advantage in a custom-made bike— there's plenty of room to tweak a mass-production bike for the a perfect fit through component swaps. Moreover, unless you buy from an experienced touring-bike specialist, it's entirely possible that a custom-designed bike might have little annoyances that'd get caught in the prototype phase for production bike.

Most great cycling adventures have been taken on a mass-production bike of some sort. I rode across the USA on a used $300 Fuji, and it was fine (though a better wheelset would have been worthwhile had I had the budget). I've taken medium-distance tours on a 30 year old Schwinn Varsity, too, which meets all your criteria except packability— that bike fits fat tires, has comfy relaxed geometry, and you can fix pretty much everything on it with an adjustable wrench. By all means, if you have plenty of money and would enjoy a custom bike, buy one, but if funds are limited, I'd spend them on travel as opposed to the bike.


Bag for holding valuables on bike while parked? I ride regularly in the city with my a few valuables with me. My purse, phone, keys, company ID card etc. I hate having a bag on me while ride so I am looking for a solution to have these few items in a bike bag, but also have them safe if I stop somewhere to run into  a shop or a cafe for 15 minutes.

My original idea was to look for a small saddle or top tube bag that is lockable and also safely locked to the frame, and I can simply leave it there. As it turns out there is no such thing! Or I just did not find it?

My second idea was to search for a similar bag, but which is easily detachable and I can take it with myself as a waist bag for example. Same story, I couldn't find anything like this on the market.

Do you know any bag that could work for me? Or do you have an alternate suggestion for my conundrum?

Thank you very much if you take the time to answer! Ride safe!
János

Leaving valuables on the bike sounds like a very bad idea. Bike luggage just isn't going to be robust enough to resist theft if left unattended, and the whole bike itself may be vulnerable to theft.

What you want is a bag or caddy with a quick release so you can easily detach it and take it with you when you leave the bike. Many saddle bags have a quick release and come in a range of capacities.


When not used, what gear should I store my bike in Is there a conventional wisdom to what gear a bike should be left in, when used infrequently?

It doesn't matter for any perspective aside from convenience -- usually the most convenient gear to store it in is the gear you're going to use first when you start riding again.


Do suspension seatposts work as well as a full suspension MTB? I used to have department store (Target) MTB that i used for 2 years until it got stolen, i used to ride casually in the city no complaints as of reliability.

Want to buy same because we have very bad roads here where i live and i am tired of going over bumps on the city bicycle.
Where i live its tough to find used MTB with built in rear shock, would i get equivalent suspension if i buy hard tail MTB and upgrade to seat post with shock compared with bicycle on picture?

Suspension seat posts and full suspension have different jobs and can't be compared.
The primary goal of a suspension seat post is to provide rider comfort.
The primary goal of bicycle suspension is to keep the wheels in contact with the ground to increase grip and control over rough terrain.  This has a secondary outcome of increasing comfort.


When is a bike rim beyond repair? Short version of question:
If a rim becomes bent due to a loose or broken spoke, is there a general rule for determining when the rim is beyond repair?
Long version:
I bought a roughly $500 (US) aluminum rim brake wheelset online from Hunt and rode the wheels for 2,000 miles with no trouble. I got home from a ride one day and noticed one of the spokes on my rear wheel had become very loose and the rim was very bent. I took the wheel to three bike shops with the following results:

Shop 1: The mechanic told me the rim was bent beyond repair and immediately started selling me on a new hand-built wheel from the shop. This felt wrong to me - I had paid good money for these wheels and this seemed like a sell job - but also because I've fully broken spokes on wheels in the past and was able to have the spoke replaced and the rim trued up again. So I took wheel to...
Shop 2: I brought only the wheel to this shop, but the mechanic said it was fixable. When I got it back it was so out-of-dish it wouldn't fit in my frame and all the bladed spokes were twisted. I learned my lesson so I took my whole bike to...
Shop 3: They got the wheel mostly in true, although it's visibly a little off from round (I'm guessing they didn't take tire off), the bladed spokes are still twisted, and measurement showed that it's also a little out-of-dish

In the meantime I became frustrated and bought a truing stand on sale. At this point I could have just bought a new wheel, but I figured that since I plan to keep riding I might as well have this tool for the future and if I can fix this wheel then that will just be a nice bonus. Which leads me to...
My Qquestion: If I watch enough YouTube videos and move very slowly/carefully, can I fix this wheel myself? Is there any risk the rim is damaged beyond repair and I should abandon this wheel? If so, how can I tell and is there a general rule for determining this is the case?
Also, I contacted Hunt with similar questions and they were very nice/helpful, but there's only so much they can do from the UK (I'm in the US) without me shipping my wheel to them (too expensive).

Imagine a theoretical new bare rim made to perfect tolerances with perfect uniformity of materials and construction. Without spokes, it is perfectly round and flat.
Add spokes and tension them all the exact same amount per side. It will still be perfectly round and flat.
Make it a real, good quality rim. It now has a seam that makes the radial runout repond to tension a little different in that area, depending on how the seam is constructed and how good the cuts were, and it's made of real material that has minor deviations from perfect uniformity, and it's being built by a human or machine that's not practically capable of getting all the tensions precisely the same. So instead of the theoretical rim with 0% deviation from average tension per side, this one has +/-10% per side. That's about what most good wheels are built to, and is about what it takes for a wheel to reliably live its life without going out of true, although tension balance is only one of the criteria wheel builders need to check off to achieve that. If the wheel were overbuilt for its application, it could have a less dialed tension balance and still be okay, but in most cycling disciplines that's here nor there because it means excess weight. It is possible to achieve up to around +/-5% on some rims, but in practice if we're being honest it's pretty common for seam quality to get in the way.
An okay quality machine built wheel is more like +/-15% by the time a responsible shop puts it in the hands of a customer. A lot of such wheels are going to be somewhat overbuilt from what the rider could get away with given a perfect build quality. This is about the limit of how out the tension balance can be and still be somewhat reliable for most applications. Again, note that if it's a super heavy rim and/or a dishless wheel like a rim brake front, there's fewer penalties for poor tension balance, because the low ones won't necessarily be all that loose if the overall tension is the maximum the rim can take.
Take a tweaked rim. You stack it on top of your perfect rim and you can see all the spots it has deviations from flat and round. You apply uniform tension to it, and those deviations are still there. Usually it takes a pretty bad total per side tension balance number to make it look true in the stand, and at that point you'll have either spokes that are very loose or very tight or both. Either make the wheel unreliable and prone to going out of true repeatedly and/or failing.
The ultimate corroboration of whether a messed up wheel is fixable is to carefully detension it incrementally until there is zero spoke tension acting on it, unlace it all the way if you want to really be thorough, check it against a bare known good high quality rim, and then retension/rebuild it if its issues really are minor or nonexistent. Anything beyond about a 1mm air gap laterally when viewed this way, with one rim laid on top of the other and no forces acting on it, is where I would call it toast, or 0.5mm radial dip or bump, except maybe up to 0.75mm at the seam. When you're learning, this is a good thing to do. Those numbers are conservative but represent what I would be willing to do for a customer as a shop mechanic. If I was putting a wheel together for myself out of trash or a discarded rim, probably add 50-100% to those values.
Another approach is to use a tensiometer to simply tension balance it from where it is now and then you'll have a look that way at whether the rim is damaged and how severe of a tension imbalance needs to be introduced to get it straight. This is a way of doing largely the same thing as above, but in practice for a beginner it's too advanced and too easy to make missteps.
Proper working mechanics can typically detect a tweaked rim within seconds of handling a wheel in the stand; there are characteristic spots where to get it radially and laterally true, you're forced to make one or more spokes way too loose and opposing ones way too tight and where tension balancing techniques aren't able to help without introducing other problems. Bike mechanics have a lot to do and we had all our long nights wrestling with wheels like this early in our careers. Whether mechanic #1 did enough to earn your trust on the matter before starting the "sell job" is a philosophical question, but being unwilling to go further fixing your wheel is well within their right, and not being interested in charging you to do so was them having integrity if they felt they found evidence of significant tweakage.


Tandem for limited space? I really enjoy cycling, but haven't been doing much lately.  My wife also enjoys cycling, but had a bad crash a couple years ago on her fast road bike and now will only ride her old (really slow) touring bike.  We're not sure why she crashed, she doesn't remember much of it, and I was ahead of her at the time.  She's concerned that it might be a balance problem, and has never been very comfortable with her road bike.

I was thinking that a tandem might be the way to go.  Thought being that it would be more stable, and she wouldn't have to be responsible for steering.  It would also keep us together while riding (her maximum speed right now is lower than my minimum speed, I end up doing lots of 360s in the middle of the road to let her catch up).

Difficulty being transporting it around for group rides.  We have 3 small cars (MR2, Celica, and Eclipse).  One is a two seater that I have a regular bike rack that fits, the other two are hatchbacks (neither has much space in the back, one of them can fit her road bike, but only if she takes the front wheel off).  Are there any tandems that "fold up" to fit on a standard bike rack?  I just don't see roof racks as being an option as the cars are so small.

Any other ideas that I've missed?  I don't think she'd go for the balance wheels on her bike (and it still wouldn't cover all the speed difference issue).

It does sound like a tandem is a good option for you and your wife. A trike for her (many recumbents are trikes) might solve the balance problem, but not the speed issue.

There are definitely folding tandems out there.  Might even be able to fold up and stick in the back seat.

The "simplest" way to get what you want is an an [S&S Coupled bike with a [single split in front](http://www.sandsmachine.com/tandem.htm#single split in front).  That's a bike that doesn't "fold", but does split into two pieces (or 3). If it splits in front you should be able to put it on a car bike rack and won't have to mess with taking a chain off. It's possible to retrofit many non-aluminum bikes into a folding/travel bike this way.

I believe usually people get an S&S coupled tandem so they can fly with the tandem and not pay outrageous shipping costs. Since you're more interested in getting a bike onto a bike rack on the back of your car you should have an easier time finding options.

So, the good news: yes, options exist. The bad news: they're custom or semi-custom and generally expensive.

Take into account that tandems can be hard to fit properly unless you're the "right" size difference.

Your best bet is probably locating a couple framebuilders near you and talking to them about your needs.  But look around at a few of these links to see what some options are:

Folding Tandems from Bike Friday -- folds up small enough to fit in back seat. Custom. The "example" build prices that look like a fast road bike tandem setups seem to start around $3000 USD
Zinn Cycles Tandems -- I think the Titanium S&S coupled tandem is a model I saw at a big group ride. "$12,000 and up", but the steel travel tandem could be as little as $8000.
Calfee seems to have carbon road tandems with S&S couplings available for $8000
S&S Coupling US Framebuilder List (look on their site through the photo gallery and retailer list, too. And at the tandem page. Oh, and the [tandem retrofit photo gallery](http://www.sandsmachine.com/#Tandem Retrofits))

(If I could afford it and had those needs, I'd talk to my local framebuilder since he's on the S&S framebuilder list and does a bit of tandem stuff even if he doesn't list prices for them yet. But framebuilders closer to you are probably a better option than one in my town.)


What year etc is this Specialized Epic Comp? I'm trying to find what kind of brand/year my bike is so I can find more information about it. It might help me determine if I should buy a new bike or just wait.
The only information I got now is this:
Epic Comp Specialized, but I don't know the year and so on

The nice people at specialized.com have a archive section with pictures of all the models produced since 2008.  Go to the web site and scroll down to the bottom of the page. There's a Support section with Bike Archive as the last item.

Answer shamelessly stolen from here.


STI Shifter Lever body loose I have Shimano STI shifters (model ST 2300) and the shifter lever (the part for braking and shifting) is loose. So if I hold the head (cockpit) and move it, the head also moves a bit. How can I tighten this?

There are a few reasons the brake and shift levers could have become loose with respect to the shifter body, but none of them are repairable. Shimano shift units are essentially riveted together and spare parts are not available (to my knowledge).

This is a Old Ultegra ST-5500 unit I had, similar to a ST-2300

The levers are fixed to the shifter body by the lever pivot pin. This may  have broken, or come loose from the shifter body. The lever pivot return spring may have broken, which would allow the levers to wobble on the pin.

The levers also pivot laterally on a shaft in the shifter mechanism, this may have broken, or the return spring has failed.

The fix is to find a replacement unit. You should be able to find a left or right hand replacement unit in Ebay, Amazon or other online source,


Equipment needed for Frame-building? Since misunderstood question here, a new question with narrow scope. So what are equipments need for frame-building?

The minimum tool set is something that gets discussed on the framebuilders list and other forums from time to time. I think the consensus is:

a heat source, usually oxy-acetelene or arc welder but you can start with MAPP (oxy-propane) which is cheaper.
a cheap hacksaw and 32tpi blade (technically you could use a file instead but don't)
a half-round file
a drill (even a hand drill) and 3-4 drill bits
a pen or scribing tool (even a nail will do)

Ideally you'd have more than that but you could build a bike with only those tools. But that is "making a point" territory. More realistically you would add:

a vise, preferably bolted to a workbench
a decent hacksaw and several blades
several half round files and a flat file
a set of locking pliers (vice grips or similar) to hold hot metal with
a hand punch (spring punch)
a small paint brush for applying flux, and a wire brush for removing it (if you're brazing)
a grinder with cutting and grinding disks and a wire brush (easier than hand tools for rough work)
an internet search engine, for answering random questions at odd hours :)

If you want to start building bikes I strongly suggest joining the framebuilders list or some of the online forums. There's a heap of things you can do to make your life easier, and having someone you can visit to see how they do stuff will teach you things you don't even think to ask. The Atomic Zombie crew or other garage homebuilders would be perfect if there's a group like that near you. Recumbent homebuilders are often equally useful and will probably help you even if you want to build a wedgie.

The advantage is that you built it yourself, and if you want something unusual you can build it. The disadvantage is that it's an expensive, time-consuming way to get an inferior bike. The first one you build will not be professional quality, you'll be lucky if it works at all. So if you want a traditional diamond frame bike the only reason to build it is because you can (like Suzy did). If you want a weird bike then you might find you have to either pay a professional framebuilder or do it yourself. Unless you already have a metalworking shop, it's cheaper to pay someone, even if they've never done anything like your bike before (so you get a first attempt that kinda works).

The reward is that you get something you built yourself. It's especially fulfilling when someone you approached initially who refused to build it sees your version and turns it into a commercial product (Greenspeed make a tandem that converts to a solo trike now, because I showed them it could be done).

(moved from Items required to manufacture a DIY bike?)


Using compressor gauge to determine tyre pressure? I own one of these "pistols" used with compressors, but have no idea on how to use them to determine the pressure inside my (tubeless) tyre.

When I inflate my tyre the values on the gauge get immediately to 80 psi, which, I believe, is the average pressure in the whole tyre+compressor tank system?

Thanks in advance.

The little thing you operate with your finger controls a valve, opening the circuit from the compressor to the tire. Once you release the trigger, the valve is closed and the gauge will measure the pressure in the tire and in the little hose connected to the tire (if the connection to the tire valve is tight). The compressor will be isolated by the valve.

So, what you have to do is:

connect the hose to the tire valve
pull the trigger for a short time
release the trigger
read the pressure
if the pressure is not enough go back to 2

What you don't do is:

pull the trigger for long time: you are not inflating a car tire. The first time I let somebody use it for inflating my tires, I ended up with an exploded tube (they were used to inflate car tires)


Making bicycle semi-motor powered Is there any way that I could easily and affordably (under $US200) add a motor to my bicycle, so that it would move both by my pedalling and with the help of the motor?

ebay.com, "Electric Bike" brings up dozens of possibilities. "Petrol bicycle" brings up several petrol option. Any of these kits will do the job, but you will get what you pay for.

Electric kits are expensive, at least twice what you have suggested.

In the price range you are looking, a petrol motor version might be best. It's tried and old technlogy, is reliable, is cheaper and has a longer range than electric.  Electric does carry the "Green Tax", is new and relatively expensive for good solutions.

Be aware of local laws as far as limits to motor power and speed go. Most locations limit the power to about 300W and often speeds to below 20km/h or 25km/h (above these the motor is not allowed to provide assistance).

What research have you done, is there any reason any of these is unsuitable?


How do I determine what types of maintainence I need to perform? I just got a new bike and I want to make sure I’m able to keep it up properly. I am entirely new to this.

Edit: thank you all for your responses, I’ll keep these all in mind and I’m adding them to my reminders to make sure I remember.

Know what pressure your tires should be at (range is written on the sidewalls). Check and re-inflate tires to proper pressure every ride, or every couple of days if you are riding regularly. You'll soon find out how often tires need some air.

Check and adjust brakes.

Clean chain, sprockets, idlers, chainrings; re-lubricate the chain. How often depends on how much you are riding and in what conditions.

Generally keep the bike clean.

Adjust derailleur indexing as needed. Check chain wear.

Periodically, check for rattles, and anything loose. Once a bike starts to get some miles on it you can check headset, bottom bracket, wheel bearings for play. Make sure pedals are tight in the cranks. Check wheel rims are true.

Eventually you start wearing things out: brake pads, tires and chain are the primary wear items. If shifting accuracy is suffering changing out cables and housings is necessary. Brake cables and housings can also be replaced.

There are plenty of guidance videos on YouTube to help you with specifics of all of the above. Personally I like the Global Cycling Network Tech and Park Tool's YouTube channels (and articles on their web site). I'd definitely recommend learning how to clean you bike properly as it has a substantial effect on how it performs.


Which shifters are compatible with dura ace 740x? I've read that Shimano updated the cable pull ratio on their other series early on but not for Dura-Ace until 1997 with the 7700. Which downtube shifting levers are compatible with their 7400/7401/7402 deraillers?

The 740x rear derailleurs are unicorns that only index with 7400 shifters. I believe there is an SL-7402 downtube shifter.
7400 shifters have a cable anchor routing trick that allows them to work with latter generation RDs, but there is no such trick that works the other direction for RD-7400 et al.


How to reliably tell if the rim is correctly drilled? The typical advice is to put down the rim, find the hole for valve and compare two adjacent holes which one is "higher" and which one is "lower" one (the counterclockwise hole should be higher).

The problem is with my new purchase I cannot tell the difference (maybe it is due to the fact so far I used 26" rims, now I have 28" and the distances are tad bigger between holes). I look once and I see pattern, I take a look again with different angle and I see the opposite pattern.

So, is there some reliable way to measure the difference and tell which hole is higher/lower? I would need this for my purpose but also to convince the shop they sent me incorrectly drilled rim (in correct one you have almost parallel spokes over the valve, in incorrect one the spokes are more angled making less space when using the pump over the valve).

Important note: Here and in general I am interested of testing new rims, so I cannot in any way change them or even fully unpack (i.e. remove the thin protective wrap which manufacturer glued to the rim), so if the rim is incorrect I could send it back and the return will be accepted.

The rim is DT-Swiss 535 28" and all I did so far is I took it out from the package. I looked it from the inside and from the outside as well -- but after first "reading" I also rotated rim by one hole and the previous reading was contradicted by the new one (the holes should be in high-low-high-low-... pattern) because I saw the same pattern. In short, I cannot rely on my eyes.

This is just an example of spoke crossing. The perfect rim would have valve at (for example) 12 o'clock, between parallel spokes.

It looks like the holes are quite close to centerline of the rim, but the rim profile has an angle that can be used as reference. So, here are my suggestions:

Use a vernier caliper to measure the distance from eyelet to the angle. Measure both to both sides, and several eyelets.
Arrange lights so that the flat center part is highlighted, like in the photo but so that the highlight covers several eyelets. Take a photo, zoom in and count the pixels to both edges of the highlighted area.

Finally, when you know how the spoke holes are arranged, you can always build the wheel so that the spokes are not crossed over the valve. Just start at the valve and choose the side for first leading spoke so that they match the rim, or choose the side first and spoke hole that matches the side second. Note that spokes from the same side are two holes apart, and you need to have spokes from both sides not cross at the valve.


Rear stand light on a Cube Nuroad FE not working I bought online a Cube Nuroad Race FE 2021 that comes full with fenders and dynamo lights. The front light is the Supernova E3 Pure and, although not stated clearly on Cube's site, the rear light should be Cube Pro-D dynamo mudguard rear light that includes stand light function according to Cube's site.
Now when the bike moves, both lights shine brightly and all is well. When I stop however (even after a long ride), the front stand light works, but the rear stand light does not. I noticed however a very very dim light in it.
I have asked Cube for help, but I am really wondering what is going on and whether there is a way to troubleshoot this. I know that this is not a bad component issue, since other users report the same behavior.
Also a minor note: I checked Supernova's manual and the only interesting thing I found was that the rear light should NOT be grounded to the frame. I checked it and could not see any ground cabling on the rear.

There are two wires going back to the rear light.

It would seem likely there's a problem with the rear light's capacitor. I'm a generator light user and nerd but not a real electronics person, so maybe someone else can answer better, but my understanding is that what you're seeing (everything works but the standlight is dim) indicates a capacitor that's barely functional. You could open the light up and try following standard methods to test and then replace it. Dropping in another fender mounted tail light is also an option, but they each have their own needs for where to drill the holes to get a good angle, so you might give up some of the integrated look of the stock light on that bike.


Flipping or rotating pads? I went to replace the pads on my front mechanical disc brake.

I noticed the pad on the stationary side had significantly less wear than the pad on the actuated side.

Could I get away with flipping the left pad with the right pad to get more life out of them?

Stationary Pad

Actuated Pad

Edit:

Pads: Tektro A10.11

Calipers: https://www.mate.bike/us/product/tektro-mechanical-disc-brake-set-mate-x/ can't find the model number

This is on the front wheel.

Yes, as long as they are not different.

It makes sense that the actuated side wears more as it does most of the work.

Just bear in mind that some pads are directional, but you haven't posted which pads you're usring.

One thing you should think about though, is how far the static pad can be pushed. Some cheaper mechanical brakes only have a limited amount of movement and if you bottom that out, then actuated side won't be able to push far enough to hold it. Again, this is a general statement as I don't know which calipers you are using.

Edit

You can physically swap the sides from Tektro A10.11 pads. Everything else from above still applies, ie about brake caliper limits.


How do 55/34 chainrings shift There are only very, very steep climbs here in the area. Instead of the standard 50/34 I would choose a larger big ring. What I'm worried about is how that would compromise shifting. Would there be any problems? (Yes I know, 55-34 is a huge gap [EDIT: in cadence])

I think you answered your own question. The huge gap will mean you need to use a long chain for the big ring and you may not have enough movement in the rear mech to tighten it if you're in the small ring.

My guess would be you'll suck the chain into the rear wheel in some combination of gears and, at best, snap your hanger, at worse damage your frame.

Why not use a mid-compact (52-36) and a large cassette (11-32)


Tyre rubbing against frame Bicycle : Fixie, it came with fixed gear and freewheel, I use the freewheel cog.

Today, after a tire and tube replacement it now rubs on the frame. The new tire is a little bit bigger but this problem existed even with the old smaller tire, just that I managed to keep it clear. It rubs onto either one side, no matter what I do. (Refer to pictures 3, 3a and 4)

Also, I have been told that the frame is bent, which I actually don't buy since I have never got into an accident, unless it's a factory defect. (Refer to pictures 1 and 1a)

My brother decided to tinker around with the screws between the frame and rim housing, they now both spin whenever one side is being screwed, what do these screws do anyway? (Refer to picture 2 and 2a)

What are your suggestions or options that I have?

What you call screws are really axle nuts.  Fortunately your hub appears to contain sealed cartridge bearings, so there are no cups or cones to tweak up.  The axle nuts should be done up close to the bearings and then locked in place against each other.

Your frame has horizontal dropouts so try sliding the axle back a bit to see if that provides enough space for the tyre between the chainstays.
I can't comment on the chain length, never owned or worked on a single-speed bike.

Otherwise, the tyre/tire is too wide for the frame.  Its possible the rims are not original either and the current ones are a bit larger in circumference than the frame was built for.  Sell off your trendy red tyre and go for a rear tyre that is smaller in width by 5 mm.   Or store it away as a replacement for the front tyre.


Can a 10 speed rear derailleur be modified for 9 speed and then modified again to a 10 speed deraileur? I have Shimano RD-5700 105 Rear Derailleur (10-Speed, GS Medium Cage, Black).   I bought it to use on my 9 speed bike, but now what to add new shifters (3x10).  My bike shop wants to replace the cassette and chain, which I have done.   But Rear Derailleur, he wants me to replace as well.  I disagree, but I need to show him in writing.   Please post the web link or manual.   (I am an America in Spain trying to demonstrate to my Spanish bike store).

There is no modification to be done. You can use a 10spd Shimano derailleur with 9spd or 10spd components no problem. If they're telling you that they need to "modify" your 10 speed derailleur because you were previously using it with 9 speed components, bid them good day and go find another shop. However I don't think that's what they're concerned with.

Since you're going to be running a 3x10 setup, my guess is that the reason your bike shop wants to replace your derailleur is the cage length of the current derailleur that you have. 3x10 gives you the widest gear ranges, but with wider gear ranges come longer cages to account for larger capacity, that is the derailleur's ability to take up or deal out extra chain between gearing extremes (big-big, small-small, or close to either). Too short caged of a derailleur can cause the chain to lose tension when nearing the small-small combination, or cause the bike to be unable to shift into gear combinations approaching big-big at all. Neither one of those are a good situation and can potentially damage your bike's drivetrain.

If you're running a 3x10 setup, you likely need at least a medium cage derailleur. If you're running a dinner plate on the back (read: cassette with very low gearing, likely 29t or larger) you may actually need a long cage derailleur, or a mountain bike derailleur.


How to setup rebound? I have fancy new full-suspension bike and both shocks have this strange setting, called Rebound. It's a red dial, beside the blue CTD lever.

Increasing it makes the shock less responsive to small obstacles. Thus, pedal bob is reduced. However, if I max it out, the shock becomes so stiff, that even jumping onto the saddle (the bike is stationary) from quite some height doesn't move it a bit.

What are some guidelines to tune my fork and rear shock for the terrain that I ride in and for my mass?

My rear shock has CTD. Why would I ever want to limit the travel and sustain high pedal bob, when I can just increase the rebound and enjoy efficient pedaling?

It is known from Linear systems, that a suspension can roughly be modeled by

m*a + b*v + c*s = Fs, where
m - mass
a - second derivative of position with respect to time
b - damping coefficient
v - first derivative of position
c - spring coefficient
s - position
Fs - fore on the suspension element.

Is rebound the same as the coefficient b above?

Rebound is close to b in your equations above. The guides I've seen and used recommend the following procedure for setting rear shock rebound.

Ride over a sidewalk curb ( ie. 4-5 inch drop ) and adjust the rebound until you have only one bounce. I.e. you want the shock to be able to absorb a hit, but not keep rebounding to cause you to lose control.

Setting the rebound on the front fork is similar, but not as straight forward. Find a short bumpy descent and keep doing it until you feel like you've got the best control. It's a balance between absorbing the hit and keeping control of the front wheel. If the front shock is "bouncing" more than once after the hit you are don't have control during the up phase.

If you set the rebound too high, the shock won't be able to function as designed to absorb the terrain. If you think of it as a wave form, you want the rebound to not significantly damp out the initial height of the wave, but to damp out the oscillations as quickly as possible.

As you get better and faster you will likely need to tweak the rebound. The trick is to always find that balance between absorbing the hit and sustaining the hit through oscillations.


Is component's thread torque a factor in how 'stiff' a bike rides? Would a racer want higher torque? Is higher pressure into the frame going to reduce vibration and hence improve stiffness?

There is an extremely small stiffening effect because the interface contact area increases slightly. But in aerospace we usually consider this a negligible effect. To make a system stiffer all the parts have to become stiffer, which of course does not happen because you tighten a bolt in the system


What should I do at, and what should I know about, bike shows? The Toronto bike show is this weekend. I've never been to it, in previous years, or to any other. Apart from what my LBS told me briefly about the show last year, and the show's web site, I don't know what to expect.

I think the show is for consumers, LBSs, and manufacturers: I'm a consumer (I commute by bike).

Click to visit the Spring Show page

Ok. It's basically a trade show and exhibition. According to your link it appears to be typical of trade shows/exhibitions.

1. What should I do? Walk around. Explore. Watch events. Shop for products of interest. Ogle bikes and collect brochures. And also, talk with manufacturers about things you find of interest.

2. What should I know about? It's not a test, so you probably don't need to know anything in particular. You might "know" about products that you're considering, but other than that...

Otherwise, you'll get to see new bikes, new bicycling technologies, and new accessories. And, it appears that you'll get to watch some bmx and mtn bike events.

Last thing... Bring along a friend who is vacillating about taking up bicycling. There's nothing like pretty gizmos to get someone started. ;~) And things like this are usually way more fun when you have a friend along.


What is the black piece above the bottom bracket on this bike? I came across the 2018 Specialized Diverge road bike. What is the little black piece attached to the downtube and seat tubes?

It looks like a SWAT box (tube, co2, levers and multitool) see https://www.cyclingabout.com/2018-specialized-diverge-light-touring-bikes  from https://www.topvelo.fr/actualite-materiel-velo-nouveau-specialized-diverge-serieusement-rapide-serieusement-fun-3-993.html


What should a big guy look for when buying a road bike? I'm 6ft 4" (1.8m) and 22st (139kg).  I do a fair bit of cycling, mainly spinning and mountain biking.

I would like to get into road riding so I'm looking to buy a road bike. I want to spend between £500-£750.

I've had some issues in the past with pedal shafts rounding off the crank, especially when riding hard standing up on my mountain bike.

What things should I look for when choosing a road bike? Obviously a big frame, but what are the sizes? Also, a strong crank; are there any makes that are stronger than most?

Here's what I'd recommend

As others have suggested, you should avoid a stock bicycle. They're designed with the top of the bell curve in mind, and you're simply half-again as much man as the normal one. For more information on any of these topics, consult a bike shop!

Crankset: Since you asked specifically about them, I'll start here. The stiffest, strongest crank you can get is an a two-piece crank with an external bottom bracket. There are different types, made by different manufacturers, but they've been around long enough that they should all be durable (and as a bonus, better bearings!).
Sizing: The right size bicycle for you is determined by your leg length. A good shop should be able to measure you for the proper frame size. Along with stand over height, you should be measured for reach (which is a combination of your torso length and arm length), and handlebar width (measurement across shoulders, I believe).
Frame: Material doesn't particularly matter here. In the past, carbon has had durability issues, but that's largely been solved (so long as you select a quality manufacturer). However, with your budget in mind, steel or aluminum is a better choice.
Wheels: This is what you should be focusing a huge portion of your budget on. Quality, hand-spun, 3-cross wheels will last much, much longer than any pre-built wheelset.
Tires (tyres!): Be sure to select a wider tire than the old standby 700x23. I would even consider a 28, honestly. It's a small sacrifice in acceleration, but in terms of long-term comfort and cruising speed, a wider tire will be better.
Other components: What fits within the remainder of your budget. Road bike parts are super pricey, especially those fancy integrated shift/brake levers. Consider bar-end or even downtube shifters if you can handle it.


Are children's helmets with styling less safe? In a couple well received answers to a recent question it is suggested that sliding on the road is an important consideration for helmets.

A number of children's helmets now are available with spikes or ears or fins that would seem to have a meaningful impact of the ability to slide.

Are these helmets less safe?

Sad to say, I think with children the main injury mechanisms are falling off their bike at low speed or getting hit by a car. Both are blunt force trauma that the helmet can mitigate with little sliding.

Contrast against a road or mountain bike going downhill at 50 kph and wiping out at a corner.


Checking spoke tension without specialized tools I have laced and trued my first wheel (YAY!) at home, while in the fork. It is fairly true (to the point I used to pay money for), but I am not sure if the spokes are tensioned properly (I guess it is possible to have ill-tensioned wheel which is true). How to check that? Also, if the spokes are tensioned OK on the whole, how to check if individual ones are off? Squeezing by hand doesn't show any noticeably looser ones.

On a standard front wheel all spokes (both left and right) should (in theory) make the same musical note when plucked. A rear wheel is 'dished' to make room for the cassette. The non-drive side spokes will be at a lower tension (and pitch) than the cassette side.
If you can find a bike with the same spokes and lacing pattern use that as a guide. If not, any newish bike can be used.
Too much tension will damage the rim at the eyelets, whereas broken spokes are a sign of under-tensioning.


Clipless pedals for my 9 year old My 9 year old son has a Trek 220 mountain bike and really wants to get clipless pedals because he tried a mountain bike race and is doing a cyclocross clinic that he loves.

Problem is that he rides his bike to school and around the neighborhood so needs regular pedals too.

What is the best option for him?

A clipless pedal that is a flat pedal on one side for normal shoes,
Clip less pedals with adapters to make them into regular pedals like fly pedals or,
Just change out his flat pedals to clip less when he wants to (although I'm worried we would be doing that a lot).

As a parent who has been through this with two children and multiple bikes, I would definitely choose the dual sided pedal option (sometimes called "campus pedals"). This has the advantage of needing to only change the pedals once, and not having extraneous parts that can easily get lost.

I've personally tried the adapters and never found one I was particularly fond of. When dealing with a child's bike, I would want to avoid anything that could easily get lost.

The option to swap out the pedals would be my second choice. It's not hard to do. But it does have a couple drawbacks. You are again dealing with extra parts that can get lost. As well, it's easy to mix up the sides, or cross thread the pedals, and now you are dealing with replacing the crank arms. Finally, most 9 year olds lack the leverage to loosen a tight pedal, so you are going to have to be the one switching them whenever they want to change the ride.

I actually use campus pedals on my main commuting bike. That way if I ever decide that instead of riding the whole way home, I am going to take the train to the closest stop and just ride the last 2 miles, it's easy to do in street clothes with my normal shoes.


Bike size - will a 2cm make a difference I am buying a Cannondale Synapse 105. I have to buy used, not new.  There are two I am considering, they are identical except one is 54 cm and the other is 56 cm. My height is 5' 10/11".  I have read many articles on bike size.  Are there any experienced bikers here who can offer good guidance?

Many people fall between two sizes and can get a smaller size or larger size to work, possibly with a few adjustments/parts (e.g. new stem, etc.).

You really have to try the bike to find out. I happen to be 5'11" as well, and my neighbor (who is also 5'11") did own a Synapse 105 (a few years ago; doubt its the same bike still) 56 cm and found it fine but on the bigger side. I found it a bit small when I tried it.

Depends on the rider -- there is no way to find out otherwise without trying them.


How can I attach a set of five panniers? My ex's mother gave me her old set of five panniers. When researching it seems that they normally come in sets of two and, as I understand, they normally attached to a rack over the rear tire.

Having five, I'm not sure where all of these go without getting in the way of the rest of my bike. There just doesn't seem to be an arrangement where they would all fit.

Pictured at top: The top two have rectangular backing plates, so these seem like standard rear tire mounted panniers.
Pictured at bottom (the one with the reflector): It seems like a front or back pannier? No hooks, only bungies.
Pictured in middle (two oddly shaped ones): The very large, backing plate has five sides shaped like a sideways baseball diamond. They have hooks as well.
The brand seems to be REI PeakValue, but my searching turned up little on this brand.

How would all of these mount to a bike?

The top pair should attach to a rack on the front fork legs. The middle pair is for the rear, and the slope on the backing plate is to provide heel clearance. The fifth bag looks like it should mount to the front of the handlebars.


Scott Aspect 710 chain: Shimano or SRAM? How can I tell the difference between Shimano and SRAM chains?

I replaced my 10 speed chain and it fell apart. Do I need a power link or a power lock?

Shimano chains are joined with a special pin that is driven through with a chain tool. SRAM chains come with a PowerLink or PowerLock.

I don't know if all Shimano or SRAM chains do but many have the maker and model stamped on the outer plates.

SRAM 9 speed and below use reusable PowerLinks, 10 speed and above use one-time-use PowerLocks.

Shimano and SRAM chains are interchangeable, as are KMC and other aftermarket brands.

If your newly installed chain 'fell apart', you may not have joined it correctly.


Why have suspension stems disappeared? I remember in the early 1990s contemplating getting a suspension stem for my 1989 non-suspended Rockhopper MTB.

I'm surprised that suspension stems appear to have essentially disappeared. Why? They seemed a cheap and easy solution to give a bike front suspension. They could also be made lighter than suspension forks. What were the negatives?

To make suspension effective, it must decouple light-weight moving parts from heavy stable parts. For this reason it is most effective to suspend the wheels - they will move fast up and down, while the frame and the rider will not move vertically. A suspension stem is not very effective because it does not carry much vertical load. A suspension seat post is better but will never work as well as wheel suspension.

You can observe the same principle in cars: light-weight aluminium rims are better for suspension than heavier steel rims.

In sort: suspension stems are ineffective for suspension, add weight and complexity, and potentially dangerous failure modes.


Windsor - The Hour - Bottom Bracket Dimensions I'm looking to replace the bottom bracket in my Windsor "The Hour" since I'm buying  a new crank set for my bike.  What are the dimensions for the bottom bracket: both shell width and shaft length?  I can take the bottom bracket out to measure it, but I would rather only do it once while installing the new parts.

In http://www.bikesdirect.com/products/windsor/thehour.htm it says:

Sealed Cartridge 103mm

Trying to find shell widths for 103mm sealed cartridges only gives 68mm as the only possible combo for 103mm the length. e.g http://sheldonbrown.com/harris/bottombrackets.html

So it should be 68m x 103mm.


help me identify this kids bike? I would much appreciate it if someone could help me identify this bike?

i went ahead and did the measurements asked as well as took a photo for scale. the folding bike infront of a 29" mountain bike tire

tyre reads 12x38
from ground level to the topside center is 21in
from the rear axle to the pedal gear axle is 9.5inches
distance between the two wheel axles is 23.5in

It looks a lot like this Bianchi / Nealeco

Apparently this style folding frame was quite popular in Europe during the 1970s - many small boutique bike companies imported them [from Yugoslavia?], slapped their own identifying marks (decals) on them and sold them to their urban, and urbane, clientele. At least that is what I have read about them.
CLR Effect

Here's a 12 inch wheel version in not quite Bianchi green
The chain stays and rear dropouts are a little different

It also looks like this Chiorda Safari

Slender Fungus Cycling Association

The brand is Chiorda and it is a old italian bike. They made a high end road bike ridden by the famous Felice Gimondi. The company was later bought out by Bianchi who also bought out the Famous Legnano.

It looks like there were various wheel sizes with various brand stickers on this bike over the years.


I unscrewed the lockring, and *both* BB cups rotated - what's going on? I'm fixing up an old tandem, and the cup-and-cone bottom bracket at the front sounds very gritty, so I picked up my c-spanner and applied it to the lockring.  With a bit of effort, left cup and lockring both rotated together.  Not hugely surprising that they're stuck together - both bits are quite old and grimy.  But then I noticed that the right cup was rotating as well - as if it were rigidly attached to the left.  The entire set (two cups and lockring) won't easily rotate more that about 20 degrees,and I didn't want to push any harder.  How can this happen - aren't cups meant to be separate?  Will I damage it if I keep rotating it?  How should I unscrew it?

Some more details:
The tandem is a 1940s Claud Butler - spec here: http://www.nkilgariff.com/CBcats/Cat_40/CB15.jpg. The bracket is inside an eccentric casing.  I can't shift this at all, so I don't know how it's all connected inside.  BB make is Bayliss-Wiley.

Photos are here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/88429902@N04/

This a request for clarification rather than an answer (sorry, I don't have enough rep to comment yet).

First thing to assess is the threading of the right cup.

I assume the BB is English threaded, because it's a CB product; if this is correct then when you unscrew the right threaded left cup, the left threaded right cup would rotate in the same direction, hence would unscrew itself. Can you see a gap developing between the frame and the right cup when you unscrew the left cup?

If my assumption were correct, the fact that they do not rotate more than 20 degrees might indicate that there's some sort of connection (intended or not) between the two. By unscrewing both sides simultaneously you are stretching the connection, hence the block at only 20 degrees.

Finally, sorry if the following comments sound offensive. Depending on your experience in bicycle repairing:

are you sure you are not rotating the whole eccentric when you rotate the cups? I can see you have an eccentric in your pictures.
you might be surprised on how much strength one needs to unscrew old BBs, so when you say "won't easily rotate", what do you mean exactly? Are you applying strength with the arm only or are you using your body weight?

Cheers


Oil on the back of brake pads? I noticed that the pistons on my hydraulic brakes (Shimano M365) leave traces of oil on the back of the pads. Is that ok or it is considered as a bad leak?

The quantity of oil is barely noticeable but it's there. The pads are not contaminated at all.

I should note that the system needs a proper bleed.

Edit : I forgot to mention that the system features an "automatic compensation" for brake pad wear. I am guessing it just lets a little bit of air inside when the pistons extend too much, which could explain the leakage.

It's not good but it's a fairly common problem and there's nothing you can really do about it short of replacement. Shimano doesn't sell replacement caliper internal parts or rebuild kits.

Oil there is capable of getting worked on to the pads or rotor, possibly causing sudden loss of braking power.

Pistons getting extended too far is something that should only happen by accident when the wheel is out. If it leaked some oil then and only then, that's not something to be alarmed about. Likewise, if it only leaks immediately following a bleed, or it had some leakage there when new but not again, that's annoying and not something it "should" do, but probably (and only probably) not an indication of bigger or imminent problems.

If it does it all the time in normal use, I'd recommend replacement.


Michelin Proteks pop off rims I have an OLD (Columbus tubing anyone?)...Corsaro 27" X 1 1/4 12 speed road bike I am reviving. The first thing are new tires and tubes. I got 2 Michelin Protek 27 X 1 1/4" tires and Bell tubes. I installed one and all went well until I inflated it to 80 PSI, whereupon the tire popped off the rim.  The maximum stated in the instructions was 87 PSI. I called a friend at Off Ramp in San Jose and he said that my bike had older aluminum rims (?) which would not allow 80 PSI. He suggested 65 PSI. I am trying that.

From your question, I'm getting that the bead of your tire is slipping off the rim. I'm assuming you've looked at the sidewall of the tire and you know the rated pressure but you are not able to pump to max pressure. With skinny road bike rim/tire/tube combos this can get frustrating... Inner tubes can twist or worse get pinched in-between the tire bead and the rim. Pinched inner tubes can hold and blow with a load "crack!" causing violent flats. Or sometimes push the tire bead off as you increase pressure (my assumption for you). Here's my process for installing a tire/tube on a rim:

As always inspect everything. Use your fingertips to inspect inside the tire (don't get cut on the tire bead). I've missed staples and bits of metal here, finger tips are your best friend. Also run your finger on the rim channel where the spokes are. Inspect rim tape, all good? Proceed...
Put enough pressure in the tube to barely have it hold a shape. This is critical as it prevents twisting when installing.
Load the inner tube in the tire. Optional, line the valve up with the tire label or obvious marker, makes it easier to find to fill up with air.
Always start at the valve on the tube, valve hole on the rim. Load the valve into the valve hole.
Hold the wheel in your hands, valve at the top. Push one tire bead on, starting at the valve. Now center up the inner tube check to make sure nothing is twisting. Halfway there.
Again starting at the valve, close up the inner tube in the tire with the other tire bead. Use your thumbs and working from the top 12 o'clock position, slide the tire bead on. Move your hands equally down each side of the wheel attempting to evenly put the tire bead on. It will get tighter as you go and close opposite the valve. This method gives the most slack and helps with that last piece to close up the tire.
With practice you can push all the way on with finger tips. Sometimes I find using the crease where the base of your middle finger and top of palm helps too. If a new tire is too tight, gently use a tire lever under the tire bead to close up the tire. Make sure when using levers you don't pinch inner tube on the rim. If you have to when using a lever slide it a bit along the rim wall to feel for inner tube, if you don't feel metal reposition it.
Last I start at the valve and gently pinch the tire to inspect the outside of the tire bead and the inside of the rim wall. If you have inner tube caught here hold your hands approximately 4 inches apart and gently pinch, pull up and attempt to roll the inner tube inside the tire.
Now fill your inner tube approximately half way. Inspect again, also you can spin the tire slowly to compare the edge of the rim to the tire, check both sides. Do you see any big dips or wobbles? You might need to roll the tire bead up or down on the rim wall to get it to seat correctly.
Last, take your tire to full pressure, install valve cap, you are done.


Suntour derailleur compatibility with shimano shifter I bought today a bike with a Suntour rear derailleur (XR 150 8 speed) for my daughter. It has old rotating shifters I with to replace with triggers.
Will a shimano 8 speed (e.g. Altus/Acera) fit this derailleur ?
I am not sure of the cassette brand, but the rear wheel hub is a Deore LX.

This is going to come down to the cable pull ratio: that is, how far the derailleur moves sideways for a given cable pull from the shifter.
Suntour hasn't made derailleurs for decades, so it will be hard to find experiences using them documented online. Based on this discussion, I would not be optimistic. The cassette (or possibly freewheel in this case) will only complicate matters further, since the distance between sprockets will also determine how well your setup shifts.

All derailleurs do not behave exactly
the same way. Why should they? Suntour requires a different amount of
cable pull compared to Shimano to move the same amount of lateral distance
across the cogset. Specifically, Shimano derailleurs require about 10% more
cable travel to achieve the same amount of movement across the cogset than
Accushift. So the mixed marriage of Suntour and Shimano may sort-of work
over 5 cogs or so, but eventually the cumulative error at the ends of the
cogset will cause sloppy shifting.


Replacement Brifters for a shimano 105 2x10 I have a 2009 Specialized Allez Sport C2.  It came with shimano 105 components all around.  the left hand (front) shifter recently broke, and will no longer hold a position.  I can reach down and grasp the shifter cable and pull it, and the derailleur will move, so it is definitely the shifter.  As i understand it, this is a common problem for that vintage of shimano 105's.  I'm trying to figure out how to replace the brifters with compatible components, so I won't have to replace the whole groupset.

new 105 components are extremely expensive, and are set up for an 11 speed rear.  What are my options to just replace the brifters?

The first thing to do is check the brifter out to see if its actually broken - maybe its just a cable broken at the brifter or inadequate cable tension or something. You can get your bike shop to check this out. If it is broken, you can look for people who specialize in refurbishing brifters (they do exist, but they are hard to find).

As for replacement brifters, any Shimano 10 speed brifter will work on the right (you can easily find 10 speed Tiagra, 105, Ultegra, etc. shifters on the web (I see several at Chain Reaction Cycles, for example)). On the left, you just need a Shimano brifter set up for a double. You can buy just a left or just a right in some cases (possibly on ebay).

Other options are to use something like a Retroshift or bar-end shifters and a regular brake lever instead of a brifter. Microshift brifters are also Shimano compatible.


Conversion 9 spd to 10 spd I'm thinking of upgrading from a 9 speed (11-34T cassette) to 10 speed.  Scoped out a few components and
1) Shimano Deore XT CS-M771 10-Speed Cassette 11-36T 10-speed HG cassette
2) Shimano Dyna-Sys, super-narrow 10-speed HG chains (hg95)
3) Shimano Ultegra 6700 Shifter (for 10 speed)

I have an existing Deore XT rear long cage derailleur used to support 9 spped 11-34T cassette.  Two part question:

A) can existing rear derailleur support HyperGlide chain and cassette?
B) any other comments on compatibility of proposed new components or suggestions?

The first thing to check is that your rear wheel can take a 10 speed cassette. If this is the case, then you can move to step two, which is picking compatible rear derailleurs and shifters.

A 10 speed Shimano road shifter needs a 7-9 speed mountain/road rear derailleur or a 10 speed road derailleur. A 10 speed Shimano mountain shifter needs a 10 speed mountain shifter. You're proposing a road shifter with a mountain derailleur (both 10 speed) which won't work.

Once you know the cassette size you want to deal with, you can choose the appropriate model of rear derailleur (long cage, medium cage, short cage, for example) by looking at the required capacity.


What is causing noise/vibration high power input on right hand (drive side) crank? I am getting a repetitive grinding sound/slight vibration while fully mashing on my Kona-humu single speed.

Description of Problem
This grinding is more similar to what you would hear from an un-greased chain (maybe clicking is a better term) but much loader. This noise/vibration is also accompanied by a slight resistance. It only occurs during hard pedaling and only during right hand crank input.

Attempted diagnosis
Since the issue only occurs during hard pedaling I've had a difficult time coming up with reasonable ways to diagnose. After the first 5-10 cycles I am spinning fast enough I cannot provide the needed input to reproduce the noise/vibration. I have tried to use brakes and building to hold me up right and put lots of pressure on the drive train to flex the frame and see where there may be rubbing. This has not produced much.

Possible Issues

Chain line - I'm thinking it could be a chain line issue when the frame is torqued. Eyeballing is the chain line looks good to me without a load on the drive train, and it was recently inspected while installing a new BB at the LBS.

Front chain ring - If the chain line is off the issue maybe from the added friction of the chain "popping" as it engages and disengages the chain ring.
Rear cog - Same issue as the Front chain ring but happening on the rear cog
Front chain ring guard - While recently installing a new BB the LBS noted the extremely tight clearance on the chain ring guard. Doing my best to diagnose as I ride I couldn't see an obvious collision with the chain ring guard, but it's hard to tell for sure while moving.
Frame - I'm fairly certain there is just too much clearance in all directions for this to be an issue.
Something else - Maybe there is an additional issue I'm not aware of?

Rear tire rubbing on frame - The wheel is fairly centered in the frame with about a half inch on either side and again I don't see this happening while riding.
Something else altogether?

I've occasionally had this when the drive side axle was slipping in the drop out. When enough torque was applied to the pedals the axle moved just enough that the front of the tyre was rubbing on the inside of the left chain stay.

You could check the paint there and see if there is any evidence of rubbing. If this is the problem, a chain tug would solve it.

Also, how close are your brakes to the rims? Maybe a bit of flex is enough to cause the brake to rub.


Does pedaling while standing wear down the pedal? I'm a new user. I searched for this question but couldn't find it.

While I was riding today, about 10 miles in my pedal spontaneously popped off. I was later able to repair it with a wrench, but I'm concerned that pedaling while standing excessively could have caused this. I'm very careful not to place a disproportionate amount of weight on one side or the other. Only one pedal fell off, the right one.

Is this something I should worry about? My bike is less than a year old.

No, pedaling while standing will not cause a properly installed pedal to come off. However, if a pedal comes off, it not particularly desirable to be standing.

As far as weight distribution, putting all your weight on one pedal for extended periods will not hurt you bike or cause things to go wrong with the bike.


Q-factor of external bearing BBs Seems to me that the Q-factor for an external bearing bottom bracket will be greater than that of an equal size (say, 68mm road bike BB) cartridge bearing.  Is that the case?

Not necessarily.

For one thing, many cartridge style bottom brackets will have some spindle exposed when the crank is mounted. This is because even though two bottom brackets might both be 68 mm, one may have a longer spindle than the other. If you mount the same crank on both bottom brackets, it might fit flush against the bottom bracket shell on the shorter spindle, but would have a gap on the longer spindle.

More importantly, most cranks curve outward from the bottom bracket so that the cranks will clear the chainstays. You can see what I mean in this picture:

That's obviously an external bottom bracket, but a crank that sat flush against the bottom bracket shell would have to have an even more significant curve to clear the chain stays (assuming the crank arms were the same length, thickness, etc).

Technically, Q-factor refers specifically to the distance between the point where the pedals attach to the crank arms.

However, many people refer to Q-factor in the broader sense of the distance between your feet when pedaling. Given this broader definition, your Q-factor would also be affected by the length of your pedal spindles combined with the position of your feet on the pedals, whether you're clipped in or riding on platforms.


What is the benefit of fat tires on pavement? This year in my area, I've seen a lot of people using fat tires on paved bike paths and roads, when there was no fat bikes before. I also see a lot of these bikes in grocery stores. It is summer, so there is no snow.

I'm curious of the benefits of a fat tire beyond the obvious off-roading capabilities. Is it just a weird fad or is there some benefit of a fat tire vs a hybrid or a road bike?

What you're witnessing is probably a mixture of convenience and all-around-increased popularity of fat bikes, rather than actual 'benefits'

A lot of people don't have the luxury of owning multiple bikes: one for the road, one for grocery trips, one for cross country, etc. If someone only has the resources for one bike, and they chose a fat bike because they like the versatility, you can understand why they would take that bike to the store. It's easy to argue that a fat-bike can go off-road, on the snow and sand, and of course to the store. A road bike cannot do all of that.

Also, wide tires are generally more comfortable. I could shed some weight and increase my speed a little by running ~30mm tires, but I choose to run 40mm tires most weeks because they handle bumpy roads and gravel with comfort and ease.


What's this cotter pin on the barrel adjuster for? I bought a new Salsa Colossal frame to build up and it has a cotter pin on the frame mounted barrel adjuster:

If I turn the barrel adjuster too much, it is going to start digging in to the paintwork.  Should I remove the cotter pin?  Is it required once a cable is installed?

I pulled the cotter pin off and it turns out there's a spring inside the grey knob that pushes it down to the blue frame piece.  That engages the 4 bumps on the grey knob with the 4 dents in the frame (giving 4 index positions per rotation of the knob).

Seems like the cotter pin was meant to be removed all along and maybe only acts to hold the grey knob and spring in place before the barrel adjuster is installed on the frame.  I'm not 100% sure that this is the answer to my question, so wanted to throw this information out there before accepting my own answer.


Can I upgrade brakes despite interface difference At one point I had to replace my rear V-brake mech (at the wheel).  At first I tried a Shimano BR-M432, recommended by and bought from my LBS.  I brought it home to do it myself, but the more I looked at it the more it seemed like a bad fit.  In two significant ways, the Shimanos were shaped differently (see pictures) from the generic brakes that came with the bike.

The mechanic at the LBS insisted he could make them fit, but in the end I returned them.  Instead, I bought something off eBay that looked like it had the same design as the one I was replacing.  That's what I'm using now.

So my question is, was the mechanic at the LBS right?  Would the BR-M432's have worked?

(The reason I'm asking is my current brakes really could be better so I'm looking at this again.  I assume the Shimanos were more like a standard than the generic ones I have, meaning fit at the mounting interface will likely be a problem with any good replacement brakes?)

In the pictures you can see two potential problems, 1) the return spring mounting pin is shorter and 2) the brake body doesn't slide all the way onto the mounting post on the frame.  Together, these mean the return spring pin penetration is about 3mm or 4mm less with the new brake.  On top of that, the new one's return spring pin is conical on the end, not squared off, giving it even more wiggle room.

In my experience, the gap there isn't a problem.  Usually those "long" spring ends go all the way through the brake mounting plate and a bit out the back side anyways, so there isn't an issue if they are a little shorter.  As for the gap on the v-brake mount on the bike, too short is an issue.  Too long usually isn't.  As Criggie says in the comments, fantastic job on the photos showing the exact issue.  But as long as the Shimano brake's spring end goes through the hole in the mounting plate(and doesn't back out of it) and the brake moves freely with the mounting screw tightened, you should be good to go.


what does a 22 gear bike look like? I read that road bikes on average have around 22 gears and mountain bikes up to 30-40.

But my hybrid only has gears numbered 1-3 on the left hand and gears numbered 1-8 on the right, so my bike's a 8 gear biked.

the 8 gears stacked together are a bit under 4cm horizontal.so 22 gears would be around 10cm. so for a mountain bike the gears could go up to 20cm.

Wouldn't that look really ridiculous?

I think the terms used here are a bit confused. Rather than saying that a road bike has 22 "gears", you should be saying that it has 22 "speeds" (or more correctly, as pointed out in the comments, "gear ratios" is the technically correct most accurate term (when people say 'gear', they are using it as short for 'gear ratios')).

Even that can be a bit confusing, but to figure out the number of "speeds" a bike has, you would multiply the the number of gears in the  front (in the case of your bike, 3) by the number of gears in the back, (in the case of your bike, 8). Meaning that your bike is actually a 24 "speed" bike.

A typical road bike manufactured today might have 2 gears in the front, & 10 or 11 in the back - so a 20 or 22 speed bike.

For a mountain bike, 30 - 40 speeds is a bit of an exaggeration. Most mountain bikes will have 2 or 3 gears in the front & up to 10 or 11 in the back. The largest cassettes (gear set in the back) manufactured have 11 gears. So the max number of speeds (again, gear combinations) a bike can have  would be 33 (3 in the front x 11 in the back), although this may be an uncommon combination.

Here is a photo of a 30 speed drive train.

Here is a photo of a 24 speed drive train.

Here is a photo of a 22 speed drive train.

Whether or not all of these gear combinations are actually practical to use is another question though.


Building up second hand frames to resell I have built up a bike for myself recently and really enjoyed the process. Now my built is finished, I wish to work/build more bikes. I do not wish to do this full time or as my job, I would just like to work and tinker on bikes in my free time.
Would I be able to make ( small ) profits or even break-even when buying lose parts ( frame, wheels, groupsets, ... ) and building them up myself to sell?
I only wish to work on/build bikes as a hobby, but can't afford to buy and own multiple bikes. Is it possible I can turn break-even or make very small profits ( even $50 or $100 ) after selling complete bikes? I am not doing this to make money, I just can't afford to lose any on it.
! Not taking into account the tool I buy, since I will be able to re-use them on my own bike or bikes from friends. Not taking into account the hours spent, researching and looking for parts or even building the bike up.

There could be some sticky points with what you propose in that even though you won't see what you're doing as a business, your customers probably will. You'll be accountable to doing right by them and there will be times when that will feel like work, be work, and cost you money or time like work.
The answer to your question also depends entirely on what you're paying, if anything, for the bikes and parts you're working with. In some times and places, old bikes in need of work that's hard to time-justify outside of being a labor of love are abundant. But if there's a strong used market, maybe not such much.
A very good avenue for the passion you're talking about is getting involved with community or nonprofit bike shops as a volunteer. Most cities have organizations or businesses in this vein, and most of them welcome volunteer labor to make sellable bikes out of their old parts. And, they typically have proper insurance and other trappings of actual businesses in place, which are all other ways the outside world could expect you to be a business even if you don't consider yourself one if you're just doing it on your own.
Some of these community initiatives keep a very low profile, often without any web presence, and might be tricky to find. They are sometimes side projects at various charities (focused on homelessness, substance abuse or prisoner resettlement), schools, churches or even squats. It's definitely worth asking around in local bike shops or clubs.
If you don't have a community bike shop or project nearby, consider starting one. But the time you've done all that asking around you will likely have some contacts etc.


Front rack symmetry - spacers and handling The combination of disc brakes and full mudguards on my tourer means I'll need to space the left lowrider rack at least 30mm from the fork. On the right I'll only need 5--10mm. Should I space them equally from the point of view of handling?

The panniers for the first trip will be fairly lightly loaded and will be different: one will be my Altura Morph that converts into a backpack because I'll need a backpack when I arrive; the other will be a slightly fatter roll-top.

I've already got the rack, having used it on my hybrid. With a single front pannier the handling was awful at low speeds (but I also had a child on the back) so I'm wary about getting it wrong for a longer ride.

No, use the minimal amount of spacer possible. Having to space them out at all is a necessary evil and introduces risk of the bolts loosening or getting bent/broken. That risk far outweighs any upside of making them symmetrical, because spaced out rack bolts having issues like that is a real thing that happens. You probably won't be able to notice any handling differences from this much spacer regardless, but if you did you could negate it by packing slightly less weight in the more leveraged side.


Please help me identify this frame The sword on the frame is the only identifiable mark on the bike. A guy I used to rent a room to left all his crap here. It's been sitting in my garage for years.

OP's answer-as-a-comment:

  I found out it is the Killing Machine by Solid Bikes. Not sure what year yet, but early 2000's


Converting tandem to cargo bike I live in South America where we don't have substantial supply of modern two-wheeled cargobikes in the market at reasonable prices, so I think converting a tandem bike by dismounting the stoker seat would be a good idea to have more place to put saddle bags. Also it would deter thieves from taking my highly customized, weird and hard to sell bike.

What would be the advantages and disadvantages of such a conversion, compared to a cargo bike?

If you want to have a real cargo bike, e.g. an "inverse Bullit-style" the challenge will be structural integrity of your frame: you can't easily cut the 2nd diamond of your frame without risking to break the frame.

However, I don't see a problem with removing your back saddle, cutting/removing the back cranks and building a sturdy plywood/mdf cargo hold left and right of the frame/using bags to attach. You could still haul a ton of stuff but would have the frame in the middle. In fact, there are quite some people that have done this before.


Are bicycle helmets repairable or disposable? Suppose I wear a bicycle helmet, and I fall hard and my helmet cracks. Do I buy a new helmet or can I try repair the old one with some glue?

They're designed to take the impact of the fall, once they've done the job they can't be used again and you must buy another. It's not safe to attempt to repair a helmet with glue.


How to store bikes inside a house or unit with limited internal space? Between my girlfriend and myself, we have 5 bikes of which 3 would ideally be stored inside (the two road bikes and my duallie). However, my house is a relatively small terrace house which doesn't have huge spare rooms on the ground floor for bike storage.

What is the best storage solution you've seen for keeping the bikes inside that:

Is compact and keeps the bikes relatively out of the way,
Allows the bikes to be easily accessed for going on rides,
Preferrably doesn't involve permanent fixtures on the wall, and
Looks good?

Friends of mine use a Two-Bike Gravity Stand, and are really happy with it.  It doesn't require any modifications to your apartment, and does a pretty good job at keeping the bikes out of the way.  For myself, I installed a pulley system, but that does involve drilling in the ceiling.


Old freewheel removal I have an old rear wheel - I think its from a Raleigh Arena roadbike from the late 70s or early 80s.   There are broken spokes that require the sprockets removed to access.  I've done this plenty of times on 26" MTB type wheels.

This bike has me stuck - its a 6 speed and I cannot get the freewheel off.

Here's the first shot, after the axle and ball bearings were removed but with the lock ring and dust shield in place.

I used a "hook" tool to unscrew the lockring - it was a standard righthand thread.   The dust cover responded to a screwdriver so I gently levered it out without bending it.

So my question is - do I continue using chain whips to try and unscrew each sprocket, or do I try and snag something into those two slots in the side of the bearing cup, or are those 9 tiny little slots where some special tool should engage?

It seems like the first question to answer here is: freewheel vs. cassette. The, assumed, age of the wheel and being a 6-speed does suggest that it's a freewheel. However, even if it is an original wheel from the late '70s it is not out of the question that it could be a cassette (at least according to Wikipedia).

Looking at the parts, I see several clues that make me think cassette:

The three rivets visible in the second and later photos.
The nine splines around the outside of the freewheel/cassette body.

Sheldon Brown has a page called Freewheel or Cassette that may help. The biggest differentiator that he mentions is that:

On freewheels the extractor splines do not move when it is spun backwards, but
On cassettes the lockring splines do turn when it is spun backwards.

He also mentions that many cassette hubs have a distinctive bulge, like the one on the image below, on the cassette side of the hub. Sheldon says that if it is there you almost certainly have a freehub, but that the absence of a bulge is not a definitive sign of a freewheel.

Once you know what you've got you'll know if the the strategy is to unthread the freewheel body or to find a way to loosen and lift off the cassette. It is possible that the cassette has worn into the freehub body, like this image from Sheldon:

and will need some fiddling to remove. This article and video may help.


Niner Biocentric I eccentric bottom bracket adapter won't budge Niner Biocentric is the asymmetric bottom bracket adapter for a single speed.

Below is the II. I have the I. I could not find a picture of the I.

It is stuck. I have tried penetrating oil for days.  On side (drive) moves a little and the other no movement.

Any ideas on how to get it to free up?

Big hammer is not an option.

It used to move OK but it was squeaking a bit so I torqed it to spec and it froze up.

I am thinking about taking it apart but right now I cannot get my Raceface Evolve crank off.

I ended up taking it apart, clean, polish with 600 sandpaper, and grease.  Got it to move / rotate.

It was very dirty as I used that bike to explore the city during a flood.

If you have this setup I recommend you tear it down and clean every couple years and after submerging in muddy water.

Comment from Nathan is valid if it is totally frozen.  But I would recommend a separate longer bolt.

Got the slack out of the chain:


Upgrading SLX brakes, do I also need SLX rotors? Gearing up for my first big upgrade and recently bought a pair of Shimano SLX brakes for both my (2009 Gary Fisher Piranha) and my wife's (2011 Trek 6000 WSD) bikes. I'm just wondering if it's worth upgrading the rotors to SLX rotors also or can I continue to use the existing rotors? Is it safe to assume that if I have rotors that work with resin pads they'll continue to work with the new SLX resin pads? Thanks.

(Proviso - I assume your existing rotors are in good condition - if not the upgrade is a replacement of a worn component which needs doing anyway.)

It will be fine to use existing rotors.  Rotors come in all shapes and sizes and prices, so it can get confusing, but within the same size, the difference is more about balancing cost, weight and durability, the ability to shed mud and the ability to handle heat. Throw into this mix marketing and sales, and most of the information you will find is driven towards getting you to spend money you do not need to spend.

There would be advantages in upgrading, my guess is they would be very small and probably imperceptible once riding. You gave no indication how much cash you have burning a hole in your pocket, so we cannot really give you a "Is it worth it? Yes/No" answer.


Can I run a wheel with a 130mm hub on a mountain bike with 135mm spacing? I'd like to build a wheelset that would work on my cross bike or my 29er, assuming I had disc brakes on the 29er and rim brakes on the cross bike, is there any way I could use a 130mm hub (that fits the dropouts on my cross bike) and make it work on the 29er with 135mm spaced dropouts?

The problems I would see would be that the disc rotors wouldn't line up on the 29er.  Could I use spacers to make the hub fit on the 29er or would I need to use a 135mm hub and spread the chainstays on the cross bike?  Would either of those options work?

I've respaced a steel road frame from 130mm to 120mm for a track hub. It's super easy, although Mr. Brown recommends not doing this for a change as small as 5mm.

I'd try a 135mm mountain disk hub with a 700c cross rim, this gives you the most correct breaking surface on both setups.

The advantage here is that when you come to put the 130mm road wheel in your cross bike, it still fits. Although your cross bike MUST be steel and not aluminium of carbon.

One last thought, this whole scheme is going to be a bit of a bodge however it's done.

I'd be more tempted to have a pair of shared road wheels, where the stresses are much lower and a dedicated pair of off road for each bike. A 120mm/700c cross set, a 135mm/29" MTB set and a 135mm/700c shared set with slicks.


Rear wheel sliding/slipping on turns? When I take turns, my rear wheel is sliding to the outside of the turn. I'm riding a 2012 Norco Heart, brand new stock tires, single-speed. I'm not carrying much weight, or taking turns too tightly. Any ideas?

Try adjusting the tire pressure you may be to high or to low. If it is low the sidewall can squirm inturns making handling inconsistant, too high and the tire can be so hard it bounces off the surface when hitting any imperfection.


Tube sealant vs. tire liners vs. puncture-resistant tires -- which best prevents flats? Clarification:

I am not asking for a solution to punctures, or about the nuances of ride quality with the various solutions. I am asking whether one method of reducing punctures has been proven better than others through scientific testing.

Preface:

I often see people online using tubes with sealant rather than tire liners or puncture resistant tires, and wonder "why?" The slime is messy, can clog the valve, weighs more than liners, and does nothing to actually prevent a puncture, but rather waits until the puncture occurs to go into action filling it and (hopefully) coagulating in the hole. I've read that this really only works on small holes, too.

Purely anecdotal evidence:

I've ridden for the last eight years on the same route during my commute. I started with tire liners on regular tires, then went with Continental Gatorskins (Kevlar belted), and am now on my second set of Vittoria Randonneurs (double-shielded), and of the three setups, only ever had punctures on the Conti's -- at least two flats per year (grrr!). Zero flats on the Randos in nearly four years while laughing my way through the fields of glass.  I see Schwalbe Marathons recommended more than any other brand, and while many say they've never had a flat with them, I also see some cyclists posting that they've had flats with those, too.

It just seems to me that there's no competition: double-shielding wins, IMO.  It's less hassle that liners or sealant, and just as protective as liners/more protective than sealant, and generally weigh the same or less than sealant-filled tubes or tire-liners.  Not to mention the cost factor over time.

Question:

Can someone explain the advantages of using liners or sealant over puncture-resistant tires, specifically relating to resisting punctures?  Have any scientific studies been done to compare the three methods?

There is more to tire set-up than just puncture proof.  Many are also interested in tire suppleness, traction and rolling resistance. Tubeless tires are the in thing at the moment because tubeless construction take material away (aka the the tube) and allows lower pressures, which results in a more supple tire, that has more traction and often less rolling resistance.

Supple tires can often roll faster and with less effort as they deform more easily to surface imperfections. This translates into a smoother ride and less pedaling effort and more traction. Many of the puncture proof setups add material to the tire making the tire carcass stiffer, this in turns means it takes more energy to deform the tire when rolling (or encountering a bump), which in turns results in a harsher ride and a higher rolling resistance (the energy to deform the tire has to come from somewhere; i.e., forward momentum).

Summarizing:

Tire Liner - Cheap and reusable as it can be applied to current tires, but has a fiddly set up (e.g., getting the liner to stay in place), will reduce suppleness of the tire and does not provide puncture protection on the side wall.
Puncture resistant tires - These have what is in essence a liner built into the tire carcass. Because of the unified construction should be more supple build than a tire liner and vary the degree of coverage. Different manufacturers and models will have different trade-off between suppleness and puncture resistance.
Tubeless - Primary goal is really to create a lighter, more supple tire, that can be run at lower pressures, the setup also happens to have good puncture resistance properties if sealant levels are maintained. Mounting a tubeless setup can be a hassle (i.e., you need high pressure to seat the tire), sealant is required and handles sealing the system including handling punctures. Sealant also needs to be topped up every few months as it dries out, and without sealant you lose puncture protection. The setup also requires wheels with tubeless compatible or tubeless ready rims, tubeless tape, and tubeless valves are also required. The design goal was less to be "better" than (1) or (2) in terms of puncture protection, but optimizing the tire for a different set of criteria (i.e., weight, suppleness, traction, rolling resistance and puncture protection).

If puncture resistance is your only concern then your "double-shield" setup looks like a good solution and will be easier than tubeless.


Upgrade cranks, chain, gears on a Carrera Vengeance MTB I have a Halfords Carrera Vengeance 2011/12 bike:

Carrera Vengeance Mountain Bike 2011/2012
The Carrera Vengeance  Mountain Bike will have you powering up steep hills and across rugged trails in no time. It has a Suntour XCM-V3 suspension fork which soaks up bumps like a sponge, and its SRAM 24-speed gears will make the afore-mentioned hills a piece of cake.

Approximate Weight (KG): 14.6kg

Forks: Suntour XCM-V3

Frame Material: Alloy

Front Brake: Tektro IO Mechanical disc brake

Number of Gears: 24

Rear Brake: Tektro IO Mechanical disc brake

Wheel Size: 26"

Cassette: 11-32T

Chainset: SRAM S200 3.0 chainset

Fork Lock-out: No

Fork travel: 100mm

Frame Colour: Satin Gunmetal

Front Mech: Shimano FD-M190

Gear Shifters: SRAM X4 trigger shifters

Gender: Mens

Handle Bars: Alloy oversize riser bars (30mm rise) (31.8mm diameter)

Headset: Semi integrated

Hubs: Alloy with Q/R

Pedals: Wellgo alloy platform

Quick Release Front Wheel: Yes

Quick Release Rear Wheel: Yes

Rear Mech: SRAM X4 rear mech

Rims: Double wall alloy rims

Saddle: Carrera

Seatpost: 350mm Alloy 31.6

Stem: Ahead aluminium stem

Suspension: Front

Tyres: Kenda Tyres

But the gears are quite bad IMHO. It takes a lot of force to switch gears. I'd also prefer bigger cranks as I pedal on roads a lot. I'm perfectly happy with the brakes and the fork.

I'm looking to buying a set online, e.g. from https://www.merlincycles.com/groupsets-81168/ , but they come in a million sizes. How do I find one that will fit my bike?

ANSWER This is a bad idea.

Your bike has 24 gears total, so its probably a 3x8.  Thats three front chainrings and 8 cogs on the rear.

You could get more road speed by having a smaller small on the back, or a larger large on the front.  However the default rear cassette is 11-32 and 11 is as small as they go.  Your specs don't say what the front chainrings are, but on a triple MTB they're likely 26/36/46 tooth, or similar.   If you put a 50 tooth front chainring on, then the FD has to be able to get there.  Most simply can't handle more teeth.

If I were you I'd look at the gear cables and see that they're moving okay through the outers.  The inner wires should be shiny and slide easily.  A new set of inner/outers will cost you a lot less than a group and should help sort your shifting.  Also measure your chain for wear (ie stretch) and if its over 1% elongated, replace it and the rear cassette if it is worn or starts skipping.

You ride on the road a lot, perhaps you could consider a dedicated road bike?  If you've got the budget to buy a new groupset, you're within spitting distance of a complete road bike anyway.  And then your N is 2.

Summary: You're on a hiding to nothing doing expensive part upgrades on almost any bike.


DIY colouring components I find silver, black and occasionally red are quite dull colour choices. Granted there are some components out there in more interesting colours, but the engineer in me won't let me choose the "wrong" component simply because it looks pretty.

So I'm wondering what the options are for colouring metallic components, chainring bolts, brake levers, etc, at home. I suspect painting wouldn't look quite right and in the case of bolts, might cause things to get stuck or flake off in use.

How about anodysing? Is it something that can be done safely at home without too much risk of ruining the component? Does anyone have experience of this?

There are  Powder-Coating kits that are made for home use. They are available in the U.S. from Sears-Craftsman, The Eastwood Company and others. They range in price from under $200 to as much as you want to spend. The process involves using the supplied gun to apply a colored dry powder to the part. The part is then baked in a household oven. The baking cures the powder to something similar in appearance to a ceramic glaze. It is a very durable finish. It does create some issues though. It cannot be touched up if damaged. The coating is thicker than paint. Threaded holes and close tolerence mating surfaces must be protected during the process. Of course you could only color components that can have all their plastic parts removed.