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or what i did this week.
We've had some quite benign weather so far this week, oh it's been cold, there's been some fog but the flipside has been sunshine and temperatures nudging towards double figures once the water vapour has cleared.
The plan for Monday was to crack on with Trixie, i made a start but it wasn't happening so i ended walking down to the Swedish store for some lunch. So strike one.
Tuesday i dragged myself to get some lunch down Trowbridge way, the ride out was fog shrouded with a high of -2c but after a pleasant stop in the cafe, whem i resumed things, the temp was five degrees warmer! A loop through Melksham and Lacock set me up to climb across the Cotswolds before returning to Brizzle with 103km on the clock and still a bit of daylight left in the day.
And so to today, the writing vibe was again not there so instead of contemplating my navel, i sorted out a box of stuff to help keep the GS occupied at half term, took that to the PO then continued by bus to get some stuff at the nearest 'out of town' shopping 'mall' and after a terrible lunch headed back to base. After getting the tea going - a beef stew, i finished the new shifter install on Aunty Bev's road bike by fitting new bar tape and had a play with my new pump, the one to replace the self sestructed model that caused so many issues three weeks ago.
That one puncture episode has been expensive, new tyre £30, new pump £30, spokes + bar tape for Bevs bike £33, (Bev bought the shifters), person hours spent doing the repairs/replacements - six. I've also bought £40 worth of innertubes and repaired another dozen so hopefully the time and expense will keep me on the road for a while and on the plus side, as i have done the spannering myself, i've 'saved' @ £150 in workshop fees and the internet got me both tyre and pump @ half price even with the postage. Luckily i had some Xmas money unspent, its been spent on a good cause and not frittered away as usually happens so i'm not too much 'out of pocket'.
Which brings me to a question for you all. It was suggested a couple of weeks back that something along the lines of 'Gaby's Bike Repairs' might be a popular book item, but with all the new technologies and stuff that have come along in the last few years, things gave got quite complicated. So the question is, what would you like to see in (a potential) Gaby bike manual? Are there specific things folk struggle with? simple jobs that you feel you should be able to tackle but are afraid to?
I've probably forgotten more about bikes than most sane people ever want or need to know so it could be anything to do with bikes from fixing a puncture to replacing bar grips, so don't be shy, i won't laugh at 'stupid' questions, after all, i know sod all about Hi-fi or motorbikes!
That's me for today, i'll be back at the weekend with more Gaby and maybe a few more km under the rubber!
Tschuss,
Madeline Anafrid
Comments
Stuck cranks
No laughing at the back please!
Like you I can do almost everything bike related and have almost all the tools, er, somewhere that isn't handy at the moment. I do draw the line at building wheels from scratch, though I can true them fine, and I've never tried installing a new headset.
Late last year I started to dismantle some of our collection of bikes for refurbishment and to replace 20-year-old grease in the bearings. Unfortunately, I can't get some of the cranks off the bottom brackets. Any tips? Preferably not recycling tips!
I looked at getting some frame builder to do it for me, some of the frames need a respray anyway, but in the end decided to buy a new bike just to get myself back to fitness. It was actually cheaper to buy new than rebuilding my touring bike, and that is a modern problem. Cyclists of old - like you and me - are traditionally a notoriously thrifty bunch and I don't like the way things are going.
Anyway, any tips for shifting cranks?
Penny
How
Are the cranks held on? I’m guessing square taper with a nut/bolt but that’s not a given.
If that is the system then you need a crank extractor that screws into the crank after you’ve removed the retaining nut/bolt. Screw the outer in firmly then the centre part will draw off the crank as it’s tightened.
That’s the proper way but in a push you can remove the retaining bolt/nut and slowly ride around the block, never seems to fail but can damage the allot crank. There are other ways but we are moving into last resort country.
If you don’t have square taper there will be specific tools for your crank set up at which point it might be simpler to go to a bike shop to get the job done - some of the extractors are expensive!
Of course removing the crank is only half the job, bearing removal is a whole other can of worms, correct tools are essential but after 20 years you could have a fight on your hands! And of course, most BB bearings are sealed units so you can’t service them anyway. Easy way to check on that, if there is a separate lock ring on the non crank side it’s an open cup that you can service, if not it’s a sealed unit.
Probably above Gaby’s mechanical abilities unless Dave has been teaching her.
Hope that helps
Madeline Anafrid Bell
Been there, done that
I have two extractors with slightly differing threads for certain makes of crankset. I built - until the most recent purchase - all the family's bikes and I think almost all have a steel shaft BB (with square ends) and alloy cranksets. Only one of the bikes has a sealed unit.
I have tried both tools with little effect. I think there has been some interaction between steel and alloy, thus making everything more difficult. I guess I don't have the strength to wrangle the tools as I did 20 years ago. Yes, I have added WD40. No, I haven't tried a blowtorch. I am wary of trying too hard in case I bend something - like the frame.
By contrast I have never had a problem disassembling the bottom brackets themselves, although Shimano seem to be doing their best to make each model have a different tool.
Do I just give in and let an expert do these?
like i said
just remove the retaining bolt/nut and gently ride around for a bit, never failed me yet!
I've never done the heat bit myself but apparently you don't need a lot, i'm told a good hairdryer is usually enough!
Madeline Anafrid Bell