I'm a champion bike mechanic...

[MichaelB]

I saw a 12 speed hydraulic Ultegra Di2 set secondhand for $1200 last week. Mind you I saw one for $4000 as well the week before.

Even after my brief Di2 experience with one broken shifter already I'm never getting a new mechanical groupset again. Unfortunately gravel bikes with Di2 groupsets are all ridiculously expensive!

That would have gone QUICK !!! Unless there was something wrong with it.

All I need for my other bike is FD ($280 ish), Battery ($250), 910 JB ($140) and Levers (merlin has the levers & calipers for $905 + shipping). May need the odd wire.

The levers are the hard part !! Expensive and LOW stock.

[Mr Purple]

Merlin when I checked were about the cheapest, though CCache also had good prices.

No-one seems to do a base modulus carbon gravel frameset with a GRX Di2 groupset so I suspect my next gravel bike will be a custom build.

I'm not paying $8-10k for a gravel bike that I'm only going to slowly trash. Well, I'll probably pay $8-10k for a gravel bike but in parts, so I won't realise how much I'm spending on it.

[jasonc]

https://www.canyon.com/en-au/gravel-bik ... e=R120_P01

$8k pretty sure mine was cheaper than that

[MichaelB]

https://www.canyon.com/en-au/gravel-bik ... e=R120_P01

$8k pretty sure mine was cheaper than that

https://www.canyon.com/en-au/gravel-bik ... e=R119_P01

This'd be the one that'd do for me, but still outta my budget, hence the F&F I'm looking at now.

[redsonic]

I've spent the last several weeks trouble-shooting an annoying soft squeak. Seemed to be related to pedal stroke.
For some background, I was taken out by a car 18 months ago, and also had Shimano's crank inspection, so I have relatively new shoes, saddle, crank and bottom bracket on the bike.
First, I checked the bottom bracket and crank arm torque, also the chainring bolts. Nada, squeak was still there.
Then, tightened up and lubed my cleats. Still squeaking.
Then, checked torque on my saddle clamp and ran some lube between the rails and the leather of the saddle. Still squeaking.
Was sure I'd found the problem when I realised my saddle-mounted tail light could be made to squeak when wiggled. Nope, wasn't that.
Opened, re-positioned and tightened front and rear QRs. Still squeaking.
Tried a different pair of shoes - SQUEAK GONE!!!!
A bit of talcum powder around the tongue of the new shoes - blessed silence. Such a champion bike mechanic I am

[jasonc]

Proved something to myself this morning - an rd-rd815 grx di2 2x rear derailleur will work with an r8050 front derailleur

[Duck!]

^^ I could have told you that; road & grovel Di2 bits are essentially the same, it's the MTB derailleurs that don't play with others.

Doing some work on my boss's wife's bike, converting from 2x10 to 1x11-sp. Had a fair bit of trouble with one chainring bolt seized and the notches in the back nut ramping out, making it difficult to get a grip to break the bind. The bolt assembly could spin reasonably easily in the ring/spider, so it wasn't extraordinarily tight, so I hit upon the offbeat idea of trying to tighten the bolt to break the threadlock, then undo it. It worked!

[jasonc]

Duck - the shimano compatibility manual says it would work. Just wanted to check myself before I told a workmate what he needed to buy for his grx di2 upgrade

[DavidS]

^^ I could have told you that; road & grovel Di2 bits are essentially the same, it's the MTB derailleurs that don't play with others.

Doing some work on my boss's wife's bike, converting from 2x10 to 1x11-sp. Had a fair bit of trouble with one chainring bolt seized and the notches in the back nut ramping out, making it difficult to get a grip to break the bind. The bolt assembly could spin reasonably easily in the ring/spider, so it wasn't extraordinarily tight, so I hit upon the offbeat idea of trying to tighten the bolt to break the threadlock, then undo it. It worked!

Yeah, not that offbeat an idea. I remember being told to try and tighten the bolt to shift the thread by car mechanics many years ago. It doesn't seem to be logical but it does work.

DS

[MichaelB]

I saw a 12 speed hydraulic Ultegra Di2 set secondhand for $1200 last week. Mind you I saw one for $4000 as well the week before.

Even after my brief Di2 experience with one broken shifter already I'm never getting a new mechanical groupset again. Unfortunately gravel bikes with Di2 groupsets are all ridiculously expensive!

That would have gone QUICK !!! Unless there was something wrong with it.

All I need for my other bike is FD ($280 ish), Battery ($250), 910 JB ($140) and Levers (merlin has the levers & calipers for $905 + shipping). May need the odd wire.

The levers are the hard part !! Expensive and LOW stock.

Almost go sucked into the Di2 vortex again. There is a seller with some GRX 815 levers (minor marks) that'll do them for $400 posted, but then need to spend another $520 to get a FD, Battery and JB.

Got a pang of common sense and abandoned the idea again ....

[twizzle]

Raced the other night with cork pads for the front wheel. Drizzle became downpour... stuff-all braking for the last three laps. Only scared myself once.

[CoffsGal]

Raced the other night with cork pads for the front wheel. Drizzle became downpour... stuff-all braking for the last three laps. Only scared myself once.

I try to not use the brakes, I find they slow me down.

[Duck!]

Raced the other night with cork pads for the front wheel. Drizzle became downpour... stuff-all braking for the last three laps. Only scared myself once.

That's why cork brake pads practically don't exist anymore - they are rubbish in the wet! Modern carbon-friendly resin-based pad compounds are much more functional in the wet.

[Duck!]

Raced the other night with cork pads for the front wheel. Drizzle became downpour... stuff-all braking for the last three laps. Only scared myself once.

I try to not use the brakes, I find they slow me down.

[twizzle]

Raced the other night with cork pads for the front wheel. Drizzle became downpour... stuff-all braking for the last three laps. Only scared myself once.

That's why cork brake pads practically don't exist anymore - they are rubbish in the wet! Modern carbon-friendly resin-based pad compounds are much more functional in the wet.

It's my "p$ss-take bike" (ie. not $10K+), built up from the spares pile. 10S mechanical, Ribble winter frame, non-aero fork with mudguard mount points etc. The front wheel is from 15 years ago and the pads are similarly dated. The cork pads had proven to be "O.K." in light rain. I have some modern pads somewhere, I might stick those in for wet events.