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VideoGameVet
May 14, 2005

It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion. It is by the juice of Java that pedaling acquires speed, the teeth acquire stains, stains become a warning. It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion.

Ciaphas posted:

It took an hour and a lot of swearing but I got my (mechanical) disc brakes all dialed in the other day. It's nice to be able to stop on command again :v:

Anyone else in here with discs, how often do you end up loving around with those things because they loosened/got squeaky/whatever else?

If you have BB7s, this video WILL CHANGE YOUR LIFE!

Avid BB7 brake setup: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NasGJFtgq0A

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VideoGameVet
May 14, 2005

It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion. It is by the juice of Java that pedaling acquires speed, the teeth acquire stains, stains become a warning. It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion.

kimbo305 posted:

Other than his recipe for centering the pad range over the rotor, I don't know how that's much different from what anyone else was doing. The whole keep the caliper flush to the fork seems both obvious and tricky to get right when dealing with the conical washers.

It's exactly the alignment that I WASN'T DOING RIGHT. I was doing that visually because this is the first bike I've had with discs.

VideoGameVet
May 14, 2005

It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion. It is by the juice of Java that pedaling acquires speed, the teeth acquire stains, stains become a warning. It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion.
I use epoxy.

VideoGameVet
May 14, 2005

It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion. It is by the juice of Java that pedaling acquires speed, the teeth acquire stains, stains become a warning. It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion.

vikingstrike posted:

I don't think this is true, btw. Connex refers to a type of quick link sold by a specific company.

Well, look what happened to the word Xerox.

VideoGameVet
May 14, 2005

It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion. It is by the juice of Java that pedaling acquires speed, the teeth acquire stains, stains become a warning. It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion.

sweat poteto posted:

If you're lucky they'll have something that fits. There is no common standard for thru-axles, every one is specific to the fork or frame or was made for.

I love hardware standards, every company should have one.

Seriously, this isn't progress.

VideoGameVet
May 14, 2005

It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion. It is by the juice of Java that pedaling acquires speed, the teeth acquire stains, stains become a warning. It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion.

e.pilot posted:

Building a bike from the frame up is addicting, once you build your first one and it’s exactly what you want you’ll have a hard time compromising with a prebuilt bike again.

In HS (early 1970's) a friend and I has a business where we imported 531DB frames from Europe and put on Suntour/Shimano components and sold them. I even built the wheels (sew-ups) from scratch. My dad had a wholesale license so we could get components (Security-Seal was the distributor in NY) at decent prices. I recall paying about $125 for a decent frame (Knight).

It was a lot of fun.

VideoGameVet
May 14, 2005

It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion. It is by the juice of Java that pedaling acquires speed, the teeth acquire stains, stains become a warning. It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion.
Guess what’s back in San Diego....

Only registered members can see post attachments!

VideoGameVet
May 14, 2005

It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion. It is by the juice of Java that pedaling acquires speed, the teeth acquire stains, stains become a warning. It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion.

VelociBacon posted:

What is that?

Goat-head thorn.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8E95lxyZkGw

VideoGameVet
May 14, 2005

It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion. It is by the juice of Java that pedaling acquires speed, the teeth acquire stains, stains become a warning. It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion.

VelociBacon posted:

Is this a troll post? Why are you putting sealant in tubes?

I have BELL brand tubes with sealant and they got me back to the start with thorns in the tires. That’s why.

VideoGameVet
May 14, 2005

It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion. It is by the juice of Java that pedaling acquires speed, the teeth acquire stains, stains become a warning. It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion.

VelociBacon posted:

Have you tried just straight up tubeless tires with sealant? Probably less fuss and lighter and better sealing properties and cheaper.

e: Don't tubes have that talc-like powder in them? Wouldn't adding sealant to normal tubes just cause it all to gum up?

I scored a bunch of Vittoria 559-40 Rubino Pros slicks so no, although I do have the sealant.

I’d probably do the trick with the 20” tubes if I went tubeless.

VideoGameVet
May 14, 2005

It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion. It is by the juice of Java that pedaling acquires speed, the teeth acquire stains, stains become a warning. It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion.
I snapped this alloy fork putting the bike into a rack:



Replacing it with a steel one. The frame (recumbent) is steel anyway.

VideoGameVet
May 14, 2005

It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion. It is by the juice of Java that pedaling acquires speed, the teeth acquire stains, stains become a warning. It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion.

VelociBacon posted:

I actually think this was already compromised, it's not a close up (you can take a better look IRL) but these areas seem fouled/darker than the other areas:



It would be weird to have two points of failure from stress like that but it could be that this indicates a failure was already there as dirt had already gotten onto those surfaces, compared to the bright grey areas where the metal failed just now.

Probabily saved my rear end, maybe my life.

The new fork:

VideoGameVet
May 14, 2005

It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion. It is by the juice of Java that pedaling acquires speed, the teeth acquire stains, stains become a warning. It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion.

evil_bunnY posted:

Are you putting a good brake on it while you're in there?

The BB7's aren't bad, but now that I'm back to consulting (LA Gig ended) I have to be frugal.

VideoGameVet
May 14, 2005

It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion. It is by the juice of Java that pedaling acquires speed, the teeth acquire stains, stains become a warning. It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion.

Salt Fish posted:



Holy moly look at this bike

The original crank-forward bike.

VideoGameVet
May 14, 2005

It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion. It is by the juice of Java that pedaling acquires speed, the teeth acquire stains, stains become a warning. It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion.
I replaced the chain (actually 2.5 chains, it's a recumbent) and look what I found on the X9.



Luckily the nearby REI had the part because a few weeks ago someone else had the same issue and they (luckily) ordered an extra set just in case.

VideoGameVet
May 14, 2005

It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion. It is by the juice of Java that pedaling acquires speed, the teeth acquire stains, stains become a warning. It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion.
Nothing is as quiet and smooth as a new chain (chains in my case) that have been degreased and then lubed with Silca Super Secret.

The quiet of the drivetrain is sweet.

VideoGameVet
May 14, 2005

It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion. It is by the juice of Java that pedaling acquires speed, the teeth acquire stains, stains become a warning. It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion.
After closer to 10,000 miles of daily steep descents and hard braking, I replaced the rotors on the Bacchetta Recumbent.

The old ones were warped and when I had the fork replaced the shop told me that the front one was dangerously thin (it was notably thinner than the rear).

I did the deed and as a benefit the BB7's are now adjusted for less brake lever movement needed.

Nice.

New:


Old:


Bike:

VideoGameVet fucked around with this message at 20:18 on Apr 13, 2021

VideoGameVet
May 14, 2005

It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion. It is by the juice of Java that pedaling acquires speed, the teeth acquire stains, stains become a warning. It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion.

blk posted:

https://imgur.com/ZYqkMtJ

One of the calipers on my kid's bike is sticking. How do I fix this? I tried pulling it off and greasing where it mounts to the fork but it didn't improve anything.

OK, there are several possibilities here.

1. The spring on the left has popped out of the retention hole.

2. Just needs the tension adjusted (little screws).

3. The spring on the left needs to be placed into a different retention hole to allow for greater tension.

The authority: https://www.sheldonbrown.com/canti-direct.html

VideoGameVet
May 14, 2005

It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion. It is by the juice of Java that pedaling acquires speed, the teeth acquire stains, stains become a warning. It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion.
I figured out a squeaking sound and prevented myself from spending $50 on a new idler wheel.

First the bike:



Bacchetta Recumbent. Note the little wheel (idler) the chains are routed thru (under the seat).

So I'm on a group ride and I hear a squeak when I pedal with any force. My immediate thought was that since this was tied to the pedaling, it had to be something in the drive train. Pedaling 'softly' or backwards ... no sound. So it HAD to be the idler.

Then I got the idea of applying the rear disc brake lightly while pedaling. No sound.

Checked out the rear disc and the left pad was really close to the disc. Quick adjustment and all good.

So pedaling flexed the chain stays enough to have that pad touch the disc ever so slightly. Engaging the brakes stopped the squeak and was the clue.

10 second adjustment beats ordering a new idler.

VideoGameVet
May 14, 2005

It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion. It is by the juice of Java that pedaling acquires speed, the teeth acquire stains, stains become a warning. It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion.
I've given up on Semi-Metallic disc brake pads and gone back to organic pads.

Tired of the pads tearing up the rotors.

VideoGameVet
May 14, 2005

It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion. It is by the juice of Java that pedaling acquires speed, the teeth acquire stains, stains become a warning. It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion.

TobinHatesYou posted:

Presuming you've done the lovely napkin math WRT overall cost savings of longer lasting metallic pads vs longer lasting rotors?

$10 for organic pads from REI. ($20 for the pair)

Rotors? About $30 a pop.

But also I can swap pads (BB7’s) in about 10 minutes.

Also they are quieter.

Part of my issue is that any ride from where I live involves fast descents with traffic lights and/or stop signs and this is on a recumbent that has hit 50+ MPH on these descents (I tend to keep it under 40 for sanity), and I’m between 215 and 220 lbs nowadays.

When I had rim brakes on a similar bike I’d crack rims every 1500 miles or so from the heat stress.

VideoGameVet
May 14, 2005

It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion. It is by the juice of Java that pedaling acquires speed, the teeth acquire stains, stains become a warning. It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion.

SimonSays posted:

If you change your chain and not that old cassette, it'll skip under load, you need to do both at the same time.

Not if you have been changing your chain before it wears down too much. I've got over 10,000 miles on the cassette and chainrings and have gone thru 3 sets of chains.

I use the Park tool and change the chain as soon as possible when it gets to 0.5" on the indicator.

VideoGameVet
May 14, 2005

It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion. It is by the juice of Java that pedaling acquires speed, the teeth acquire stains, stains become a warning. It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion.

SimonSays posted:

Sure but that cassette doesn't look fresh and you change and clean your chains more that anyone else here

I do clean the chain, but I also get a few 1000 miles per chain because there are 3-chain lengths on the Recumbent. And I run SuperSecret chain stuff which apparently is as good as they say it is. At least in terms of quietness and apparent low friction (crank spin test).

Also it helps that I ride in San Diego and Orange Counties, California.

VideoGameVet
May 14, 2005

It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion. It is by the juice of Java that pedaling acquires speed, the teeth acquire stains, stains become a warning. It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion.

Safety Dance posted:

The only worse crime is slotted screws.

Or whatever the Avid BB7 uses for inside pad adjustment.

VideoGameVet
May 14, 2005

It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion. It is by the juice of Java that pedaling acquires speed, the teeth acquire stains, stains become a warning. It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion.

kimbo305 posted:

What tool is there for those kind of BB cup?


50 years ago I was in a place with my parents selling antiques and I found a tool just for that notched ring:

VideoGameVet
May 14, 2005

It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion. It is by the juice of Java that pedaling acquires speed, the teeth acquire stains, stains become a warning. It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion.

norp posted:

Hanger alignment tool is super useful to have, and given they are basically a bar with a bolt aren't too expensive for bike speciality tools.

I have a bike with a hanger that'll go out of alignment if you look at it funny so it paid for itself pretty fast

I had to buy one after I paid a shop to do an alignment and found out that they flat out lied about having the tool and used an adjustable spanner instead (steel frame).

Worth it.

VideoGameVet
May 14, 2005

It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion. It is by the juice of Java that pedaling acquires speed, the teeth acquire stains, stains become a warning. It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion.

norp posted:

Wtf

Surely shops should be checking hanger adjustment on bikes all the time. I don't know how you would conceivably do the task with a spanner.
I've had my 11sp bike be impossible to dial in shifting with less than 2mm hanger error measured at the rim.

Edit: on a 700c rim 2mm out at the rim is 0.33° - and given you only need to adjust half of that the "spanner" would have to eyeball 0.15°

What's crazy this shop had an expert wheel builder, but FLAT OUT lied about having the Park Hanger Tool.

The shop is gone by the way.

More examples (different shops):

Shop assembled a bike but didn't tighten the derailer bolt - result? derailer into the spokes, what fun!

Shop asked to re-tension a wheel, lies about having a spoke tension gauge.

Shop didn't torque the crank bolts sufficiently (this was a new bike, I discovered this on the first ride).

VideoGameVet
May 14, 2005

It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion. It is by the juice of Java that pedaling acquires speed, the teeth acquire stains, stains become a warning. It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion.
Had a great ride in OC, California on Saturday BUT one of the bikes (new) on the group ride ended up getting a chain between the spokes and cassette.

Once again a LBS didn’t understand how to set limit screws. I’m guessing they relied on the cable tension and didn’t even do this.

And yes, I've seen this before.

VideoGameVet
May 14, 2005

It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion. It is by the juice of Java that pedaling acquires speed, the teeth acquire stains, stains become a warning. It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion.

Man_of_Teflon posted:

any recommendations for parts distributors that are willing to work with very small 1 person home bike repair businesses? I have an S Corp lying around & all the required crap there, just no commercial location (which QBP requires).

OMG, the place I used as a teenager in the EARLY 1970'S when I used my dad's reseller license and had a little business with a HS classmate buying 531DB frames from the UK (Knight) and assembled them with Suntour/Shimano/SR components IS STILL IN BUSINESS!

https://www.bicycleretailer.com/north-america/2013/09/26/security-continue-shimano-sales-small-builders#.YjQTEy-B0z8

WOW, JUST WOW

VideoGameVet
May 14, 2005

It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion. It is by the juice of Java that pedaling acquires speed, the teeth acquire stains, stains become a warning. It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion.
My chains* are getting close to the 0.5 wear level with the park tool.

Last time I degreased new chains you could get mineral spirits in California. No more.

What the best way (besides flammable liquids) to remove the grease so I can then use the Silica stuff on them. I’ve heard simple green somehow creates cracks.

*Yeah, 3 chains. It’s a recumbent.

VideoGameVet
May 14, 2005

It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion. It is by the juice of Java that pedaling acquires speed, the teeth acquire stains, stains become a warning. It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion.

Slavvy posted:

Can you get kerosene?

I’m going to soak the chains in this in a jar in a garage.

I’m looking for a non-flammable solution. Citrus?

VideoGameVet
May 14, 2005

It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion. It is by the juice of Java that pedaling acquires speed, the teeth acquire stains, stains become a warning. It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion.

TobinHatesYou posted:

Zep Citrus and an old water bottle. Dilute it 8:1 water:degreaser. Shake chain in bottle. Replace cloudy solution with fresh solution. Repeat until it stays clearish.

Thank you!

VideoGameVet
May 14, 2005

It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion. It is by the juice of Java that pedaling acquires speed, the teeth acquire stains, stains become a warning. It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion.
They also make twisting a wheel in the dropouts less likely ... somewhat.

That's a nice friction derailleur.

VideoGameVet
May 14, 2005

It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion. It is by the juice of Java that pedaling acquires speed, the teeth acquire stains, stains become a warning. It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion.
I ordered a TyreGlider on a whim and the day after it arrived I realized I had to change the rear tire because it was worn down to the threads.

I've always just done that by hand (no tire irons) but got tired of literally pealing skin off my thumbs on difficult fits.

The tool works great at removing tires. Didn't use it to put on the new one (Vittoria Rubino Pro 40mm 26" ers) because they mount easily.

VideoGameVet
May 14, 2005

It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion. It is by the juice of Java that pedaling acquires speed, the teeth acquire stains, stains become a warning. It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion.
I'd like to build a decent (mechanical) 1x12 setup on a bike with a 135mm rear spacing.

Thinking of a 10-52 SRAM Cassette and a 40t chainring.

Does that make sense? Will that work on a typical gravel 650B wheel?

VideoGameVet
May 14, 2005

It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion. It is by the juice of Java that pedaling acquires speed, the teeth acquire stains, stains become a warning. It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion.

Man_of_Teflon posted:

microshift does make a 12spd bar end shifter! that’s what i used and it was great (but i love bar ends)

I too love Bar Ends, Thanks.


(My Bob Jackson in 1976 with Suntour Bar Ends)

VideoGameVet
May 14, 2005

It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion. It is by the juice of Java that pedaling acquires speed, the teeth acquire stains, stains become a warning. It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion.
The bike I'm building up:



(I bought the large size frame with the fork for wide 650B wheels)

VideoGameVet
May 14, 2005

It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion. It is by the juice of Java that pedaling acquires speed, the teeth acquire stains, stains become a warning. It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion.

e.pilot posted:

Hardest part would be finding a 135mm QR hub with XD

barring that an 11-52 HG cassette would work just fine too

That sounds like a good solution given the 135mm rear spacing.

VideoGameVet
May 14, 2005

It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion. It is by the juice of Java that pedaling acquires speed, the teeth acquire stains, stains become a warning. It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion.

wooger posted:

If you drag them on long steep descents the failure mode is different:

The hydraulic fluid can boil causing moderate to complete brake fade. Don’t drag your brakes down mountains. You can recover somewhat by pumping the levers.

This is why I stay with mechanicals. I live at the top of a grade where I will break 50mph if I stay off the brakes and there’s a traffic light most of the way down.

When I had rim brakes the heating would result in rim cracks after 1500-2000 miles.

On my discs I now run ceramic pads. Quiet and no fade.

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VideoGameVet
May 14, 2005

It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion. It is by the juice of Java that pedaling acquires speed, the teeth acquire stains, stains become a warning. It is by caffeine alone I set my bike in motion.
Good tip on 12 speed chains:

If you’re doing a 12 speed SRAM setup take note of the master link. It has to be oriented correctly else you’ll have skipping on the 10t cog.



This was on my build of a very laid back, carbon recumbent:



A shop sold me this new Pelso Brevet frame for less than 1/2 price and then I proceeded to spend a bunch on components.

It was hard to find a XDR compatible rear wheel with 135mm QR hub,. Spinergy came thru.

Craziest thing? I ordered the 40t front crank from Amazon and it turned out to be shipped from a shop in NY called “Brands Bicycles”. I worked there as a teenager in the early 1970’s.

Well, anyway I broke all my climbing PR’s with this over the last month and descents are pretty exciting.

I did the SDBC toy ride yesterday and was able to climb Fairmont (San Diego) as well as most of the riders.

Oh, 1x12 (10-52 cogs) with a Microshift thumb shifter is so so sweet. No more triple chainring drama.

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