Education We Like to Ride Bicycles

How have they managed to do that?

 

It amazes me at times just how ignorant of issues most people actually are, which I can only assume comes from a top-down lack of understanding of how mechanical systems work. After all, if you don't know any better then how could you say that something wasn't working as it was meant to? Plus there is every chance the user congratulated himself in using the bike "hard" enough for the chain to keep coming off - cognitive dissonance at it's finest, and something I see all too often. In a situation like this I would guess no more than a couple seasons caused this level of damage. Thankfully it is non-serious and safely ignored, but still: it would have done quite a number to the chain!



@RevDarny: one of two scenarios. Either the calliper bolts were not appropriately torqued down from factory/the last rebuild with thread-locking compound applied, or the user was experiencing issues replacing brake pads/issues with adjustment and picked the wrong set of bolts to adjust in an effort to remedy their issues. The latter is much more common in my experience, though getting people to admit as such isn't easy

 

That makes sense, I guess they've opened up the caliper in order to get the pads in there.

Think I'm going to have a weekend of brake maintainance. New Ultegra brakes turned up for my roadie, that will be easy to fit. The messy part will be the rebuild of my Avid Elixir hydraulic levers. They're suffering from the sticky lever issue. On the plus side this will also give me the chance to fit the braided hoses I have for the set up.

 

The owner of said bike does not have the sense to replace the pads, I think his opening statememnt was "errrrr, me brakes not stopping me bike like".

The reason I say he doesn't have the sense is that his front caliper wasn't even tight on the mount, one piston was stuck and the left pad had worn through the braking surface and half the metal backing.

 

done that, however one side seems to pull away from the rim, and the other side dosent seem to move away.

there both in the same holes for tension. on the side that isnt moving away, i've tried adjusting the screw on the spring, but no difference.

sure i'm doing it wrong, but no idea where!

 

A quick question. I was buying a new chain for my bike and noticed that they are sold for different number of gears. Now I can understand that with an 8 speed casette you should have en 8 speed derailleur. But what about chains? Are there any noticeble difference between an 8 speed and a 9 speed chain for instance? The reason I am asking is that the 8 speed chain was half the price of the 9 speed..

 

Firstly check the wheel is in straight, as a wonky wheel will sit over to one side, meaning the brake on that side will have less to travel, if it has any room to move at all.

If not, does the spring extend from the bolt which secures it to the frame half way up the arm? If so you can bend the spring outwards adding more tension. Then adjust the screw again to even up the brake. Or you can just bang the weaker side in the top hole.

9 speed chains are usually thinner than an 8 speed chain as the extra gear is squeezed into the same space on the freehub. It could have just been a better quality chain though. In my shop a basic 9 spd chain is £24.99 but I can get stuff of £50+.

 

Thanks for the advice - as I'm planning on tool upgrades in the future (ratchet spanners etc to replace any cheap and cheerful stuff that I still have) I'll get park tools stuff as I need it - we have a dealer here in Yeovil (Tri-Uk - google them, they have some lovely kit in their showroom a mile or so away from my house) - Crank and Cassette will be replaced around June (Birthday bits) as I want to improve my fitness/confidence/skill on the bars before any major further work is undertaken on the bike, then hopefully it will last a while with proper maintenance.

Bike is now 3rd hand, guy I bought off had previously bought from his mate who was getting heavily into riding, upgraded the parts and then sold the whole thing on to fund part of a better bike, second owner was finding it difficult to find time to ride it and so sold it on ebay

 

I wouldn't bother with Park to be honest. Yes it's nice stuff, but it's not cheap, I run a full Pedros master tool kit at work and it's fine, though some of the heavier tools I have are made by Cyclo and they are going strong.

 

Not doing it wrong, more to the effect of giving up before you've achieved victory

That happy little screw on the side is effectively a preload adjustment - screw it in (to the right) to have a stronger spring, screw it out (to the left) for a weaker spring. Start by turning in the screw on the limp side a full turn and pump the brake lever a couple of times. If repeating this does not lead to the brakes being centred, turn out the screw on the opposite arm (the one that isn't limp) a full rotation and once again pump the brake lever a couple of times. Do not be afraid to have one screw turned in all the way - 100% in - with the other mostly out (but not entirely).

If even this fails then there are two things you can do: shift the spring mount point of the limp side into a higher hole on the brake boss (assuming there are three installation holes), or manually manipulate the spring itself to be more forceful. You already know how to do the former courtesy of Cookie's lovely instruction, but the latter can be a bit tricky and should only be used as a last resort.

You've already answered your own question here: you need 8-speed specific drivetrain components for an 8-speed drivetrain. Price difference comes down to quality and availability.

Whilst I don't disagree with you, Park Tool's "home mechanic" line are actually cheaper than Pedro's and about the same quality. There are a few things within Pedro's line that I'm not terribly impressed by quality wise, but for the home mechanic looking to be a bit serious about things they're hard to beat, so just stay away from the more plasticy bits or those made of thin pieces of metal and you'll be fine.

 

I've bought a Cove hustler, 140mm fox forks, mavic wheelset, headset and some rotors. Need a bottom bracket, drive train, breaks and some pedals and she will be up and running pics to follow as I'm out of town on my mobile, but it's black, and really nice. Second hand and I got it for a great price, now need to work out how to carry it all home on Monday! 250miles, train journeys multiple bags and most of an unassembled bike!

The rims can run tubeless do you think that I should get some tubeless tyres?

 

What rims are they and how much hassle are you prepared to deal with?

 

The rims are mavic crossmax. I don't think I want much hassle.

 

If they're Crossmax they'll likely be UST. If the rims got no spoke holes in it it's UST, get some UST tyres and a blob of sealant in each wheel and it's the easiest tubeless set you'll get.

Non UST tyres will also work but are a bit more faff to seal initially.

Alternatively, Presta tubes and don't bother.

 

As already said: you've got the easiest system to work with, so either go whole hog with some UST or otherwise compatible tyres, some good quality sealant (I've found Stans to work best), and have a go at it. Realistically the benefits of going tubeless are minimal, but it is fun one way or the other

 

Do you not need a compressor to pump your tyres up as a track pump can't force the air in fast enough to pop the tyre onto the rim ?

I've looked at tubeless but you still have to take an inner with you in case of a serious puncher so no point.

 

They are ust - I only have a track pump though so if I need a compressor then I'll just run tubes.

 

I've got tubeless tyres on my bike, and I can pump them up from completely flat with a little hand pump.

Think I need some new sealant in them though, as they keep going down over time, bikes not being used at all though, so any sealant is probably all sat at the bottom.

 

Sometimes. Generally UST and other good quality, well mated systems will just fit together in such a way that any high-volume floor pump will inflate them without too much issue, but systems like the Stan's NoTubes? Well, good luck even with a high CFM compressor! I've seen more than one occasion wherein the struggle to get a tubeless tyre to seat far outweighed the usefulness of actually having it tubeless, particularly given the fact that they rarely held pressure for more than twelve hours after initial seating.

Biggest trick is to try and use a valve with a removable core so as you can fully bead the tyre without any fluid in first - in case of a blowout or failure, to avoid making a mess - then simply deflate and add in your fluid through the valve without ruining all your hard work by removing a bead to get fluid in. This makes a lot more sense after you've read the directions to setting up a tubeless system.


@Cerberus90: sealant typically is only useful for about a year before it is a singular congealed mess somewhere in your tyre, making it wobble about all unbalanced like.

 

Probably need some new stuff then, must be atleast 3 years old, probably more,


Also, just read more thoroughly, my wheels are Mavic Crossmax too, with Hutchinson tyres.

Great wheels. Not convinced on the tyres though, never had much confidence in them in the turns. Been thinking of getting some new tyres, but not bothered yet as I'm not riding enough.