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-   -   Bike stuff that bugs you more than it bugs most people (https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=1220440)

jamesdak 12-29-20 09:41 PM

What really bugs me is not having something that bugs me.... I feel so alone..... LOL!

Wildwood 12-29-20 09:50 PM


Originally Posted by gugie (Post 21854355)
Actually this is the opposite of bicycle orthodoxy. It's about the things that bother you, but mostly not bothering others.

Call it bicycle unortodoxy.

One of you HAS to be guilty of Faulty Logic**.

But ........ which one?



....** not to be confused with Faulty Towers Logic. :roflmao2:
https://cimg6.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...fe26efee9d.jpg




Clear your handlebars, and your mind will follow.

gugie 12-29-20 09:51 PM

Finally found a good reason to use the "like" button, and I encourage using it on this thread.

I'd recommend not slamming someone else's post on this one, this is what bothers you more than it bothers most people.

Except @nlerner - no more Gugificazione for you! ;-)

If your post has a lot of likes, maybe what bugs you isn't so rare.

seypat 12-29-20 10:01 PM

If we're getting things of our chests.........those cassettes with sprockets larger than a circular saw blade sure are fugly. And they really bug me. I got no problem riding triples. I wish others didn't as well.

mkeller234 12-29-20 10:02 PM


Originally Posted by majmt (Post 21854154)
Not being able to find/fix some small but annoying click, tap, tick, or squeak etc that starts from wherever it’s not supposed to be coming from somewhere on your bike in the middle of a ride and it just keeps right on clicking, tapping, ticking, or squeaking etc despite your and your friends every effort to find/fix it and you continue on and try to just ignore it but you just can’t and you end up pissing off everyone else by obsessing over something they claim they can’t hear in the first place but you know they’re really just lying about it to get you to shut up - selfish jerks.

This nails it for me. I’d say I’ve even gotten a bit sloppier assembling bikes these days. It seems like I find for clicks and clacks than ever. A well tuned bike, tailwind and some sunshine is just pure joy.

OldsCOOL 12-29-20 10:07 PM


Originally Posted by gugie (Post 21854355)
Actually this is the opposite of bicycle orthodoxy. It's about the things that bother you, but mostly not bothering others.

Call it bicycle unortodoxy.

This thread is bike forums orthodoxy. This is a main reason I come here, to watch what others argue and counterpoint with.

repechage 12-29-20 10:12 PM


Originally Posted by Bianchi84 (Post 21853641)
Fork drop out QR retention/liability schemes that make a nutted hub seem more preferable. I never had one but worked on many that did!

I don't want to start anything but... bars wrapped bottom to top.

You know that the UCI requires “lawyer lips” now... I guess they can’t trust the team mechanics now, like the guy who could not remove a racers thru axle in the Tour this year...

OldsCOOL 12-29-20 10:14 PM

Ok, what pesters me most...not having properly adjusted sidepull caliper arms. That one arm that sticks out further than the other will compel me to put the bike on the stand and release the tension spring to bend it just right. Sometimes the spring snaps my finger and that suddenly puts it at the top of the pester list.

conspiratemus1 12-29-20 10:26 PM


Originally Posted by thook (Post 21853772)
they do look funny, but i've noticed they do help keep road grime from the pivoting points on the calipers

...and out of the headset.
But granted, full fenders do a better job and look so much better that I never use the little guys.

Charles Wahl 12-29-20 10:46 PM

Brifters.
Freehubs that SCREAM.
Fully chromed frames.
Gold or "gold" components.
Rims and saddles in weird colors.
Going overboard with black components (esp. spokes).
Four-bolt cranksets.
Tires with anything but minimal tread pattern.

merziac 12-29-20 11:06 PM


Originally Posted by gugie (Post 21854352)
That's the whole point of the thread. It's what bugs "you" more than any others. That makes the poster an outlier, and they're owning it.

It's not an attack on anyone else.

Maybe so, I guess it just really bugs me when we use ugly, terrible, awful, oh what a shame words to express how we think about someone else's setup that is obviously that way with damn good reason. ;)

dddd 12-29-20 11:35 PM

Long list here, not sure what to exclude/include, but here goes:

Excess chainline dimension and/or wasted space between freewheel and dropout (which is sometimes necessitated by derailer claw hardware).
Related: The modern crankset, having a fixed spindle length, but preceded by Octalink bottom brackets having few if any length options.
The problem being a radically crossed chain when using the big ring with the bigger end of the cassette.

Tight-radius handlebar drops like cinelli Giro model 64. Causes me hand pain by means of a pinching action like a rough handshake.

Bulky modern stems on a traditional steel frame. JUST-LOOKS-AWFUL (to me).

Saddles with narrow and/or hard nose area. Makes me prefer only the shortest rides. The saddle makers have responded as of late, hurrah!

Seatposts with sticking adjusting hardware that has to be impacted in order to make a fine adjustment to the saddle tilt (clamped barrel-type cradles et all).

Not usually a vintage concern, but q-r seatpost clamps together with a post that falls freely into the seat tube. Maddening!

Vintage wheelsets on a bike I've bought, where a shop has replaced a rim and had to use 36 14g spokes to save a few bucks on inventory or possibly at the cheap owner's request (not that the rim mismatch isn't usually even worse!).

Rims with narrowest brake tracks, like HED Belgium (or Ardennes complete wheelset).

Over-packed hub bearings, as if the bike was going under water.

Seat bags with stuff jingling inside (I don't use seat bags on the road).

Modern bikes where running the cable housings through the bars and the frame seems to take several hours.

Modern derailers that mangle the cable at the pinch bolt. It's like they've suddenly regressed 60 years to the days of Allvit derailers and cheap brake calipers.

People's insistence on cleaning chains with solvent (I lube and wipe only).
Related: Over-lubricated chains.

Outsized Jagwire housing ferrules, intended as advertising flags, but often sit crooked, look gaudy and don't belong on my bike.
Related: Shimano's largest-cog color and graphics, yuck!

Front brake cable hanger noodles with a sharp bend. Look like box-store design quality exactly (and even worse with no plastic liner).

Heavy steel reflector brackets. Did these really need to be as strong as a crankarm?

Vintage rear derailers featuring too much of a chain gap distance for use with flexible modern chain (even with any b-tension screw removed).

Any component that requires special, rare and/or expensive tools to service and/or install or remove.

Any freewheel that can hit a false neutral and "skate the chain", even if only occasionally.

The difficulty in finding clipless pedals for 1/2"-threaded, one-piece cranks (I got mine, eventually).

SRAM and Shimano's wonderful 12-32t 7-speed cassettes, not being available as freewheels! (12-14-16-18-21-25-32t). Thirty million box-store bikes be needing these too.

The old split-tip freewheel cogs not being available in cassette form, ...NOT.;)

Leg cramps while sitting down enjoying post-ride coffee.


And (just so that I don't leave this thread all grumpy), here are a few things that I don't mind:

Wrapping bars bottom to top (I always wrap bottom to top).
Safety levers
Stem shifters
Pants guard ring
The blessings of modern chain, even though some vintage components don't always get along with them in every situation without modification.
Components that require special tools (but are tools that I already have, lol).

.

tkamd73 12-30-20 12:29 AM


Originally Posted by BFisher (Post 21853853)
Still thinking of marketing here, "premium" products that are not premium.

IRD freewheels - $80. I have one here. Had it apart. Not impressed. Pawl springs are way too strong, causing excessive friction even with the lock ring loose! Proven track record for QC issues. I get the gear range thing, but if a Shimano or Sunrace freewheel is $13, this one is worth less and nowhere near $80.

Just bought one of those, what a waste, looks nice, built like a tank, but the 13 dollar Shimano still shifts better, and is way quieter.
Tim

tkamd73 12-30-20 12:40 AM


Originally Posted by DiabloScott (Post 21854249)
While we're at it - skewer positions not conforming to Rule 41

Sorry, but I’m going for the aero position on the front skewer too.
Tim

g-funk 12-30-20 01:01 AM


Originally Posted by merziac (Post 21853802)
Not controversial for me, glad you can own your disdain, you have plenty of company and I get it but my comfort and ability to ride all day long trumps any problem you may have with it.

It bugs me when others try to dictate how I set my bikes up.

I'm going to assume you will quit riding when you can't ride them like that anymore. ;)


https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...a97d049d41.jpg
https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...aa6e51c959.jpg
https://cimg5.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...50183b8598.jpg

all these great looking bikes have the saddle at or above the bars. I don’t care how you set up your bike for comfortable riding, but the right proportions make them look better.

Drillium Dude 12-30-20 01:13 AM


Originally Posted by merziac (Post 21854477)
Maybe so, I guess it just really bugs me when we use ugly, terrible, awful, oh what a shame words to express how we think about someone else's setup that is obviously that way with damn good reason. ;)

How about: "results in a unique look which is somewhat at odds with common cycling orthodoxy" :)

DD

merziac 12-30-20 01:22 AM


Originally Posted by g-funk (Post 21854554)
all these great looking bikes have the saddle at or above the bars. I don’t care how you set up your bike for comfortable riding, but the right proportions make them look better.

Tx, they all have pretty serious caveats, the silver Merz is a big one at 66cm with 90 degree stem effectively making it a riser and has the bars cranked up as well.

The pink? Merz is a bit smaller with a lot of Technomic sticking up and the bars cranked way up.

The brand new Strawberry was built with all this in mind and accounts for riding way down the road to the end with its extended HT taking care of some of this for now.

Part of all this can be mitigated by bringing the levers way up on the bars, all of them could be more so but they all have the seats where they need to be for proper leg extension. Every time I lower one, I have to raise it back up. ;)

merziac 12-30-20 01:31 AM


Originally Posted by Drillium Dude (Post 21854556)
How about: "results in a unique look which is somewhat at odds with common cycling orthodoxy" :)

DD

:thumb: Tx, as you well know, I normally go to great length's (wordy) to avoid stark commentary, despite my better judgement. ;)

The Thin Man 12-30-20 01:39 AM

The word, "brifters".

Cringe.

philpeugeot 12-30-20 02:10 AM

For me, it has to be when people turn perfectly useable multispeed bikes into F I X I E S. And I'm not talking about bikes that have stamped dropouts and no braze-ons, I'm talking about bikes that have forged dropouts, cable guides, and shifter bosses. The person clearly had the money to buy a bike, so why not get a frame that was meant to be used as a single-speed? It's made even worse these hipsters file away the derailleur mount for no reason. A few days ago I came across a C&V frame, I think a Trek touring model, on Craigslist, and the knob had removed everything useful that would have made it desirable. It really boils my blood to see this happen.

nlerner 12-30-20 06:31 AM


Originally Posted by The Thin Man (Post 21854563)
The word, "brifters".

Cringe.

I don’t mind that so much but calling a stem a “neck” always makes me cringe.

top506 12-30-20 06:41 AM


Originally Posted by nlerner (Post 21854660)
I don’t mind that so much but calling a stem a “neck” always makes me cringe.

How about 'goose neck'?

Top

Bianchi84 12-30-20 07:09 AM

I've seen bikes that, after many years, still have that: "line up chainring teeth here" FD sticker. These are usually the same bikes that look like they've been only ridden in whatever gear it left the store in during the Clinton Administration.

mstateglfr 12-30-20 07:15 AM


Originally Posted by canklecat (Post 21854203)
Unicorn forks. Yeah, all my bikes have 'em. And they're functional. Probably a bit more aero too. But they just don't look right.

See, I have been searching for just 1 unicorn fork, and here you apparently have em on all your bikes! I feel so unlucky. My search for a unicorn fork shall continue.

mstateglfr 12-30-20 07:21 AM


Originally Posted by merziac (Post 21854477)
Maybe so, I guess it just really bugs me when we use ugly, terrible, awful, oh what a shame words to express how we think about someone else's setup that is obviously that way with damn good reason. ;)

It looks like this post is perfect for a thread about what bugs you more than it bugs most people.
You are bugged by some words that are used to describe how some bikes are set up and that bugs you more than it bugs most people.
Others are bugged by your set up and it bugs them more than it bugs most people.

You already posted the solution to all this- you will ride bikes that you view as fitting well even if others view them as ill fitting because life is to short to make aesthetics the priority. What bugs them isnt more or less valid than what bugs you- this entire thread is an airing of grievances- its likely that each of us will not see eye to eye with some views.

And like I said, I get it and don't disagree per se but I'm not vain enough anymore to sacrifice more, better riding for aesthetics, life's too short for that.


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