Education We Like to Ride Bicycles

hipsters would kill for that

 

Even if you weren't joking, I wouldn't take offense. The original thinking behind a cheaper bike was that I wasn't sure if I was going to stick to using it - I didn't want to spend hundreds on something I wouldn't use much. Now I'm using it more, it's going to be gradually upgraded and tweaked to within an inch of it's life (like the broom that went through 18 handles and 12 heads).

I tend to get more pleasure from building / rebuilding things into a working creation of awesome, than just buying said working item off the shelf. It's the same with computers, airsoft guns and pretty much anything else I touch.

Anywho, so I'm looking at:

- Making sure everything is done up nice and tight
- Sanding the rims / pads with some coarse sandpaper
- Toe-in the brakes

And if this fails, new pads followed by new callipers and rims.

This should keep me busy for a few hours. I was speaking to a friend last night who apparently bought the same model but has no squeak. Hopefully this is a good omen. That said he did have the same pot-metal saddle clamp...

Also +rep to you sir...

 

I always find WD40 stops most squeeks

(Disclaimer - don't apply it to brakes)

 

Latest additions!





I also got some padded shorts - but I'm not going to post a photo of them, it's a family friendly forum after all

 

I wasn't suggesting removing your brakes and going fixie. Just going singlespeed (retaining your brakes). I can understand you wanting a few gears, but out of experience, you won't miss them much for city riding.

Just to expand on this point slightly. From experience, rim brakes squeal because the front of the pad touches the rim before the rest, causing them to vibrate and squeal, for the short time until the rest of the pad touches. Simply adjusting the pad so the rear of the pad touches just before the rest get's rid of the noise (Ideally the entire pad would touch the same time, but this is almost impossible to achieve). I'm sure this is what Malvolio meant by toe-in as opposed to toe-out, but thought I'd explain it a little further. I hope this is what was meant?

Honestly, that's stretching things to call that the same broom lol.

 

Triggers Broom
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pbha4XclSMU

 

No. You're talking about toe-out. The "toe" of the brake pad is the front, much like your foot, so to say a brake pad is "toed in" is to say that the forward part of the pad touches the rim first before the rest of the pad. I will happily explain to you why toe-out (again: what you are referring to) is a terrible idea and tends to lead to failure if you so wish, but I feel it is enough to strongly advise against this practise.

And no, the vibration is not at all caused by only part of the pad touching, it is a multitude of other factors (and these factors are further exacerbated by the brake pad hitting the braking surface flatly). If a flat brake pad prevented brake squeal, why do car brakes or disk brakes squeal? But I've explained these other factors in depth previously, but would be happy to go over the physics of this once again if necessary.

 

Malvolio, as you know I also work in a bike shop, I would be the first to admit I do not know anywhere near enough about road bike in general inc sizing / gearing / riding a compact ect. Other than speaking to brand rep's what would you say is the best way to learn? I can read and memorise the Trek / Giant range but this won't give me experience which would aid in the sale of a road bike.

The reason for my lack on knowledge is that even though I've worked in a cycle shop for close to 6yr we have sold very few (read less than 6), but I start a new job on Wed in a shop which would be more of a hire center. My plan is to only be there briefly and move into a large store owned by the same company and show them what I can do.

Cheers.

 

Can't believe my heckler is almost 10 years old....





took it for an xc rip last Sunday , still makes me smile over the rough stuff..

 

Ah man I always wanted a Heckler when I was younger...

/trots off to ebay

 

its an awesome machine , dont ride mine half as much ad i should , its got a fifth element rear shock and a fox vanilla rlc front fork... al circa 2003 vintage.. had the rear shock serviced at tftuned about two years ago also using their bush kits which fixed the rear bushing rattle that the heckler always suffeted from. ive also replaced.the frame main pivot bearings once

 

Hmm, learn something every day. It was something I was told by a bike mechanic when I was relatively young, and it's never failed to cure squeaking brakes, and never had any issue setting brakes up like this. I'm talking about the tiniest amount of toe-out, almost a negligible amount really, but it's always helped.

Anyway, everyone ignore my advice above. Malvolio is the professional here.

 

Eventually got back on my bike again today after too long. Felt good even though it wasn't a long ride (baby steps and all that).

One thing I wonder if someone could point me in the right direction with though, is there any do and don't rules with regards to cleaning the whole bike? This may seem a bit of a stupid question but it's been so long since it's had a good clean and I want to avoid any damage to paint, components, etc.

Thanks in advance.

 

Ride them, work on them, shop for parts (either for yourself or customers), and play with them. Speaking from personal experience most of my knowledge of fit and performance comes from talking one on one with sales people that I worked with, and from getting into that side of the sport myself. As well, I do quite a number of hours of research into things every week as they take my fancy, and I spent nearly a year immersed in road bike parts whilst I was researching my Allez build.

However, as you are already well experienced with other forms of bicycles in their operation and feel I would suggest just trying to relay your existing personal experiences and memories with those of the bikes you'll be working on and selling. You'll quickly realise that the levels of components correspond rather well between the two sides of the sport (mountain and road), so XT = Ultegra, X.0 = Red, ect. Much the same can be said of the ride quality, power delivery, and fit (a performance machine designed for speed will feel much the same no matter what genera it slots into). The best way to do this is to ride them as they are intended to be ridden. Approach your employer and state your lack of experience and that you want to learn, and see if they'll loan you a demo bike for a weekend to give it a good thrashing. See if you can get something with an Ultegra (or similar) groupo, as that is roughly mid-range and a good starting place to compare things with.

Another good tactic is just to be honest with your customers, explaining that you are a bit new to this side of the sport, but can still help them with whatever knowledge you have. And really, there isn't much to it: find their price range, match that up to a bike, and explain where the parts spec fits within the product range of that manufacturer. Insofar as fit goes, I'm going to assume you have a basic grasp of how to fit a XC bike, right? Well, it really isn't that different, just a little bit more leaned over with some bend in the elbows.

Somehow I feel as though I've gone off topic a bit... Anyway, just browse some catalogues and ride bikes, learn it the same way you've learned what you already know! If you need pointers on any specifics let me know and I'll happily elaborate in as much detail as you like (or that I know).

And best of luck at your new job! It's always exciting when you start a new opportunity!

Trust you me, I've seen more than a few seasoned mechanics do some very strange, dangerous things, so your experience isn't uncommon. I will say this though: toe-out does decrease squeal much as toe-in does, but the former tends to reduce the usable life of the pad insofar as they tend to break. The pads quite literally are not designed to handle forces in that way, so it isn't out of the question for the pad to fold or just come apart altogether. Neither of these situations are very fun The real crux of the noise is the flexation of the various bits of the bicycle in an oscillating pattern. This audible noise can be reduced or eliminated by changing the frequency of this oscillating through stiffening or alteration of the contact surfaces (change the friction). Hence why you most often hear noisy brakes on cheaper bikes: they are flexy by nature.

I do feel as though I need to apologise though, as the tonality of my previous post wasn't in as good of a nature as it could have been. But by no means do I take a differing opinion as a negative thing! We can only learn by hearing something different to what we already know, and even with as much experience as I have, this still happens all the time to me. So I thank you for your post and your aide, as I know it wasn't in malice.

This is by no means a stupid question, as I see people muck it up all the time! If more people inquired as to appropriate steps to take when cleaning their bike, I wouldn't feel quite so bad for most of the clunkers that come through my shop door.

Basic supplies checklist for cleaning your bike: bucket, rag, water, dish soap (or some citrus-based degreaser). A brush or a bicycle-specific cleaner can be useful, but these four basic things are more than enough to clean even the worst bikes. For extra style points you could also put the water and cleaner in a spray bottle!

The best technique I've found so far to do this at home would be to tip your bike upside down, exposing the dirtiest areas to your searching hand. Start by removing the larger chunks of detritus by hand (mud, leaves, sticks, badgers, ect), then give the frame a good wipe-down with a moist rag (either wetted by the bucket filled with water and detergent, or through liberal application of water/detergent via the spray bottle). Do much the same for the wheels and other bits of the bicycle, ensuring you don't get too much water near any bearings, nor your braking surfaces. Finish by giving your bike a good wipe with some clean water and a fresh rag, drying if you feel like it.

Once complete, ride the bike at a slow pace in a controlled area, ensuring the brakes still function properly (cleaning fluid plays havoc with braking surfaces and pads, so it isn't uncommon for your brakes to not work immediately after a good cleaning. If this is the case, ride slowly in large circles in a controlled area with the brakes on as hard as you can until you can feel them operating appropriately once more).

There are more advanced techniques for your drivetrain, but if you aren't over-lubricating everything (you're not, are you?) you shouldn't need to put too much effort into cleaning your chain or cassette (the latter with generally stay relatively clean, while the former is best cleaned during lubricant application) and your chain rings are easily enough cleaned with a rag (just wipe them a bit), same for your derailleurs.

 

As promised, here is a picture of my new bike out on a ride this week.



Loving it so far!

 

Very nice picture, and I'm glad you're liking it!

 

Bought a new front fork for my full sus build that has 150mm travel do ya reacon I could use it on my hard tail (currently has a 100-120mm travel fork) for a little while?

 

There's no real problem using a suspension fork with longer travel. But be warned that it will change the bikes geometry quite substantially, which can have unknown effects really. Sometimes the bike will still feel reasonably similar, but sometimes it can cause it to feel a bit twitchy, or sometimes the opposite.

At the end of the day, frames are designed to be used with a certain length suspension fork. Changing that will alter the angles of all the frames tubes, and this can alter handling.

I've seen 150mm forks on old Kona frames that were designed for 80mm forks and the owners were happy with the results, but I've also seen people hate the result of installing a 100mm fork on a similar age Kona. Ultimately it's down to individual tastes really, so give it a try if you want.

 

I believe that with a longer fork on a frame designed for a shorter fork there is a chance of ripping the head tube off IF the bike is used for things a little more extreme which would usually require a longer fork.

Archtronics,

What frame do you have?
What are the gussets like around where the top tube and down tube intersect the head tube?
What types of riding would you be using the bike for once the 150mm fork is installed?

 

Frame is the one used on all Ghost SE models aluminium drop forged I believe.
Will have a look at the gusset tomoz.
All mountain bike round landegla tbh its mainly because I'm impatient and want to try it out I may only use it the once.