I'm a champion bike mechanic...

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ldrcycles
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Re: I'm a champion bike mechanic...

Postby ldrcycles » Thu Sep 26, 2013 8:23 pm

WyvernRH wrote:
ldrcycles wrote:I found out last night that there is more than one diameter of cottered crank axle, the british size which fits Raleigh cranks, and the ISO size which is, get this, only 2 tenths of a millimetre larger. I have Raleigh cranks so guess which size axle I have? :evil:
Hate to depress you even more but there were more than a few differing diameters of cottered axle made over the years. look out for older continental and Japanese stuff. :wink:
Not even going to mention cotter pin sizes....
Cheers
Richard
I have an update on this one, I took the cranks to the LBS to check against an axle he had. Non drive side arm fitted fine, drive side wouldn't go on. Had a proper loo at it and it had some rust inside that I hadn't cleaned out. So off to work the next day and clean it out with some emery paper, try fitting it that night, still no go.

Get the verniers out and the drive side arm is 15.87mm diameter, where the NDS is 16.15. Hell. So take the crank to work again, and ran a 5/8" drill bit through the crank which took it out to 16.1mm. Get home tonight and the crank pops on beautifully :D .

Install the cotter pin, all goes well :D .

Spin crank arm, CLUNK.

Axle is too short :evil: . Why me, I haven't even got a beer to drown my sorrows with!

This bike has been so much hassle, this is just the latest after the original stem needing to be cut/blowtorched out, the powdercoaters stuffing up the masking of the BB and steerer, oh and after fitting the new headset the new stem won't go in for some reason :roll: .
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Mulger bill
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Re: I'm a champion bike mechanic...

Postby Mulger bill » Thu Sep 26, 2013 8:36 pm

New bars, brake levers and old but beautiful threadless stem went onto the Reid Harrier FG this arvo, all done, bars taped, ready for final adjustment before the test ride.

Stripped out a thread on the steerer clamp :cry:

Off to hunt down a helicoiler...
...whatever the road rules, self-preservation is the absolute priority for a cyclist when mixing it with motorised traffic.
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ironhanglider
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Re: I'm a champion bike mechanic...

Postby ironhanglider » Thu Sep 26, 2013 8:56 pm

ldrcycles wrote:
...

Install the cotter pin, all goes well :D .

Spin crank arm, CLUNK.

Axle is too short :evil: . Why me, I haven't even got a beer to drown my sorrows with!
Just to rule out the simple stuff, you haven't got the axle in backwards have you?

Cheers,

Cameron

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ldrcycles
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Re: I'm a champion bike mechanic...

Postby ldrcycles » Thu Sep 26, 2013 9:07 pm

ironhanglider wrote: Just to rule out the simple stuff, you haven't got the axle in backwards have you?
Wouldn't have surprised me :lol: but no that is the one thing I've got right :) .
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Xplora
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Re: I'm a champion bike mechanic...

Postby Xplora » Mon Oct 07, 2013 5:32 pm

Just installed the new Aura 5 wheels with the rim tape... can't believe there was so much angst about the process on my part.

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coyote
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Re: I'm a champion bike mechanic...

Postby coyote » Mon Oct 07, 2013 8:16 pm

Mulger bill wrote:
Stripped out a thread on the steerer clamp :cry:

Off to hunt down a helicoiler...
Good luck and may the force be with you. 8)

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Xplora
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Re: I'm a champion bike mechanic...

Postby Xplora » Wed Oct 09, 2013 3:28 pm

God help me I'm a moron.

Just found out I ran the chain through the RD incorrectly so I've been scraping the middle bracket for 2-3 weeks. HUNDREDS of kms. Including a run up freakin' Bellbird. I'd love to think this was simply costing me power, but the grooves certainly tell a vivid story.

Seriously. I'm a moron.

In other news, got my new wheels going on, but I actually called my LBS to confirm the huge ratcheting noise from the freehub was normal. I honestly wasn't sure if the freehub was greased or not :shock:

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Re: I'm a champion bike mechanic...

Postby g-boaf » Wed Oct 09, 2013 3:29 pm

Xplora wrote:God help me I'm a moron.

Just found out I ran the chain through the RD incorrectly so I've been scraping the middle bracket for 2-3 weeks. HUNDREDS of kms. Including a run up freakin' Bellbird. I'd love to think this was simply costing me power, but the grooves certainly tell a vivid story.

Seriously. I'm a moron.

In other news, got my new wheels going on, but I actually called my LBS to confirm the huge ratcheting noise from the freehub was normal. I honestly wasn't sure if the freehub was greased or not :shock:
Those wheels are LOUD! :D You ought to hear the ones with carbon braking surface under braking. SCREEEEEEEECH!! People get out of the way fast. :lol:

I noticed how loud they are when I went back to Giant PSL0 from my Aeolus 5.0 carbon clinchers and the 6.5s I also have. The PSL0's are almost silent.

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Xplora
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Re: I'm a champion bike mechanic...

Postby Xplora » Wed Oct 09, 2013 3:33 pm

You are hereby ordered to provide "first dibs" to myself in the event that said Aeolus wheels are "regretfully for sale" :lol:

Still, cheaper than a V8 or powerboat or a plane... g-boaf, performance JUNKIE.

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Re: I'm a champion bike mechanic...

Postby g-boaf » Wed Oct 09, 2013 3:35 pm

Xplora wrote:You are hereby ordered to provide "first dibs" to myself in the event that said Aeolus wheels are "regretfully for sale" :lol:

Still, cheaper than a V8 or powerboat or a plane... g-boaf, performance JUNKIE.
You just caused me to spit my tea everywhere! :D And my colleagues here at work are wondering what's so funny. :lol:

The 6.5s will be regretfully for sale when I want to finance a Nikon 400mm F/2.8 camera lens for some $9000. :shock:

There isn't much speed difference with the carbon clinchers and the alloy Giant PSL0. The giants are really light.

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Re: I'm a champion bike mechanic...

Postby TedDancin » Mon Oct 21, 2013 3:27 pm

I had a good one on the weekend when I decided to recable one of my roadies. Measured the housing out twice to make sure I had the length correct, got out the dremel and carefully cut through the housing. Took it back to the bike, clamped it in place, and only then realised I had already put a new brake cable inside and had cut straight through it too. Wasn't too wasteful in the end as I used it for the front.

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Re: I'm a champion bike mechanic...

Postby bigfriendlyvegan » Mon Oct 21, 2013 11:05 pm

TedDancin wrote:I had a good one on the weekend when I decided to recable one of my roadies. Measured the housing out twice to make sure I had the length correct, got out the dremel and carefully cut through the housing. Took it back to the bike, clamped it in place, and only then realised I had already put a new brake cable inside and had cut straight through it too. Wasn't too wasteful in the end as I used it for the front.
I was told to always do the rear cables/housing first so that when you stuff up like you did, you can use it on the front. I suspect you were not the first to make this particular mistake.

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Re: I'm a champion bike mechanic...

Postby elantra » Tue Oct 22, 2013 10:02 am

Well, dunno about being a champion bike mechanic but,
Did spend a few hours in the Shed yesterday.
Problem - bike on the right needs a new Fork.
Solution - take the fork off another frame purchased for a few dollars from another member of this forum.

Image

Image

Problems though... the brake that i had lying around in wait was not compatable with the "new" fork.
Image

Solution - swap it out for a similar unit from other bike...
Image

but then had to muck around with gears and shifters - till the cows come home etc etc etc.

but in the final analysis - hey presto - one functioning "new" bike !

Image

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Re: I'm a champion bike mechanic...

Postby nezumi » Fri Oct 25, 2013 10:00 am

Bike caked in mud after Wet Wednesday.

Clean off the whole thing. Take wheels off and wipe down. Remembering not to get oil on the disc brakes, I give them a clean with WD40 instead....

Then remember how not-good that can be.

Leave the bike for a day to let the WD40 dry off. Ride in today - spongy brakes.

Off to the professionals to try and get the brakes functioning for tomorrow's gravel grind. :(
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Xplora
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Re: I'm a champion bike mechanic...

Postby Xplora » Fri Oct 25, 2013 10:28 am

nezumi wrote: I give them a clean with WD40 instead....
Gosh... snickering like Mutley here... :mrgreen:

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Mulger bill
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Re: I'm a champion bike mechanic...

Postby Mulger bill » Fri Oct 25, 2013 3:27 pm

nezumi wrote:Bike caked in mud after Wet Wednesday.

Clean off the whole thing. Take wheels off and wipe down. Remembering not to get oil on the disc brakes, I give them a clean with WD40 instead....

Then remember how not-good that can be.

Leave the bike for a day to let the WD40 dry off. Ride in today - spongy brakes.

Off to the professionals to try and get the brakes functioning for tomorrow's gravel grind. :(
New pads for you mate :( Once contaminated by oil they're borked.
Metho for cleaning rotors every time.
...whatever the road rules, self-preservation is the absolute priority for a cyclist when mixing it with motorised traffic.
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Re: I'm a champion bike mechanic...

Postby ldrcycles » Fri Oct 25, 2013 8:41 pm

Another update on the cursed cottered crank saga, I replaced the axle with a longer one and installed the drive side crank arm, spun it around, CLUNK.

This time the crank arm clears the seat stay, but one of the chainring bolts (clearly not original) sticks out too much.

Take it to work, cut it down to match the other bolts, back home to reinstall and SUCCESS!!!

Then I install the NDS arm and...


CLUNK.


I really hate working on bikes sometimes.
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Re: I'm a champion bike mechanic...

Postby g-boaf » Wed Oct 30, 2013 10:18 pm

nezumi wrote: Clean off the whole thing. Take wheels off and wipe down. Remembering not to get oil on the disc brakes, I give them a clean with WD40 instead....
I'm sorry, I shouldn't laugh. But, ooops. :lol: :shock:

And today I'm the champion bike mechanic. Had a puncture - ran over some twig or stick at the better part of 36km/h or something like that, then thought I heard a slow soft hissing. So I slowed down, kept going and thought - hmm, feels a bit soft at the back. Better stop. Stopped and sure enough down it was going. The tyre itself had obviously held some air in, but it soon went right down.

So I get the GP4000S off, get the dud tube out and then proceed to put a new one in. Put it in, find that both my C02 cannisters are hopeless, get help from passer by with a hand held pump. Then struggling to put the tyre back on (it was extremely tight) - managed to pinch the new tube. :cry: Oh man... I didn't have a puncture for 6 months or more... :oops:

The tyre itself is a wretched thing to get back on, the sidewall seems to buckle/wrinkle and it becomes really difficult to put back on - but only on the Giant PSL0 wheels. On the other carbon rims I have, no trouble at all.

So I've put other wheels on it and I'll see if the other one will hold pressure for a few days without letting go:

Image
(image for Xplora). :mrgreen:

Riding the bike like that, you feel like you are taking an F16 to the local shopping centre.
Last edited by g-boaf on Wed Oct 30, 2013 10:50 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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Re: I'm a champion bike mechanic...

Postby ZepinAtor » Wed Oct 30, 2013 10:46 pm

So I was welding a cartridge bottom bracket in place with an arc welder.

It was a tricky little sucker to clamp into place being cylindrical, but managed after many, many attempts to position it satisfactorily.

So I start to weld after managing to strike up a nice bright red glow (looking through a welding mask of course).............

........then suddenly there was this almighty flaming eruption which shot out at me from the BB cartridge.

Totally forgot those things are packed full of grease :roll:
Gas propulsion.......it's natural don't fight it.

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Re: I'm a champion bike mechanic...

Postby bigfriendlyvegan » Wed Oct 30, 2013 10:52 pm

And every time you look into the mirror until your eyebrows grow back you'll be reminded of it :)

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Re: I'm a champion bike mechanic...

Postby Xplora » Wed Oct 30, 2013 11:34 pm

g-boaf wrote: (image for Xplora). :mrgreen:
Son of a b.... :evil: Don't tempt me, tempter! :lol:
Riding the bike like that, you feel like you are taking an F16 to the local shopping centre.
Except that you couldn't commute with the F16 without a runway
Except that you couldn't park with the F16 without burning the other cars
Except that you need 20/20 vision to be allowed to drive the F16
Except that an F16 is worth more than half your house as scrap

No, it's like taking a Bentley to the local shopping centre. You can't help having a vehicle that RAWKS, it's not your fault 8)

Hiplok to ensure it's still there when you come back? :shock:

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Re: I'm a champion bike mechanic...

Postby Duck! » Wed Oct 30, 2013 11:41 pm

g-boaf wrote: The tyre itself is a wretched thing to get back on, the sidewall seems to buckle/wrinkle and it becomes really difficult to put back on - but only on the Giant PSL0 wheels. On the other carbon rims I have, no trouble at all.
'Cos it's the same rim extrusion as the P-SLR1 tubeless wheels, there's an extra little lip on the inner shoulder of the bead seat which takes a fair bit of pneumatic grunt to pop the tyre over.
I had a thought, but it got run over as it crossed my mind.

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Re: I'm a champion bike mechanic...

Postby g-boaf » Wed Oct 30, 2013 11:47 pm

Duck! wrote:
g-boaf wrote: The tyre itself is a wretched thing to get back on, the sidewall seems to buckle/wrinkle and it becomes really difficult to put back on - but only on the Giant PSL0 wheels. On the other carbon rims I have, no trouble at all.
'Cos it's the same rim extrusion as the P-SLR1 tubeless wheels, there's an extra little lip on the inner shoulder of the bead seat which takes a fair bit of pneumatic grunt to pop the tyre over.
Little wonder it's such a bugger of a thing. :roll: I'd previously had raw knuckles, blisters and the like trying to put those damn things on the wheels.
Xplora wrote:on of a b.... :evil: Don't tempt me, tempter! :lol:
:D :D :D

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Re: I'm a champion bike mechanic...

Postby CXCommuter » Thu Oct 31, 2013 8:39 am

Xplora wrote:God help me I'm a moron.

Just found out I ran the chain through the RD incorrectly so I've been scraping the middle bracket for 2-3 weeks. HUNDREDS of kms. Including a run up freakin' Bellbird. I'd love to think this was simply costing me power, but the grooves certainly tell a vivid story.

Seriously. I'm a moron.

In other news, got my new wheels going on, but I actually called my LBS to confirm the huge ratcheting noise from the freehub was normal. I honestly wasn't sure if the freehub was greased or not :shock:
Did the chain thing myself for one ride- thought it wasn't lubed (was a brand new chain) due to the noise, thankfully noticed it when I lubed it otherwise would have done another ride with it. Not the first time I have done this either.
Image

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Re: I'm a champion bike mechanic...

Postby WestcoastPete » Thu Oct 31, 2013 9:42 am

Heading out with friends the other evening, in a bit of a rush. Realized I hadn't changed my pedals back to platforms after a long ride using spd's the day before. No worries, easy to swap. I'm usually pretty specific about this process after slipping and punching the chainrings once before; I usually set it up so I push the tool downwards to crack the thread, away from the chainrings.

But I was in a hurry. I can catch it when it goes and not punch the chainrings.
Actually, no I can't. Big, well lubed teeth marks across my knuckles.

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