andrei_r

Great looking and a very functional bike!

Doctor Morbius

There are going to be some changes made around here!

DowneasTTer

NICE! Have fun during the build. It will be all worth it in the long run......Good Luck

Doctor Morbius

Thanks. It's mostly together. I need a nice sunny day to take a few pictures. All that's left are cable adjustments and a few tweakifications.

Skipjacks

I put on a new chain after the last one had a link seize up.

Yeah...I could have fixed it. But for $14 the problem was solved without me spending 3 hours tinkering with a bad link.

daoswald

Today:

• Switched out the worn down, original equipment Kenda Happy Medium 700x35c tires to Continental Grand Prix 4 Season 700x32c tires.
• Installed SKS Chromoplastic fenders to use through the remainder of the cold / wet months. I'll probably pull them back off in April or May and reinstall in October.

Earlier in the week:

• Installed a CatEye Velo 7 wired bike computer. Simple and inexpensive is all I need.
• Thorough cleaning.

December:

• Installed a Tubus Cargo Evo rack (used from Ebay).
• Attached a Topeak Mini Morph pump.
• Added a Topeak Aero Wedge Medium seat pouch.
• Installed Shimano PDM324 Platform/SPD combination pedals (used from Ebay).
• Installed a CygloLite Hotshot 100 tail light (used from Ebay).

The hybrid 2014 Cannondale Quick CX 3 (purchased used in October) is now fully ready to function as my backup bike, my errand bike, and my casual MUP ride.
My road bike remains the bike of choice for exercise, endurance, and fun rides.

As a side note, the 35mm Happy Mediums measured in at 34.5mm installed. The 32mm GP4 Season tires measure in at 31.5mm. The 28mm Grand Prix 4000s II tires on my road bike measure in at 30.5mm. So despite there being an advertised difference of 4mm between the GP4 season 32mm tires and the GP4000sII 28mm tires, the actual difference is about 1mm since one seems to run a little large, and the other a little small.

DorkDisk

Glad it wasn't a big issue but a stiff link can be loosened by grabbing the chain and working it back and forth just enough to un-seize it. Takes about 5 seconds, not 3 hours.

DorkDisk

Are these measured on the same rim? Different rim widths will affect the mounted tire width. Fulcrum wheels are intentionally a bit wider

hokiefyd 

Unfortunately, this is not uncommon. Continental Speed Ride 42-622 tires measure about 38mm on my 17mm internal width rims, and Schwalbe Little Big Ben 38-622 tires measure about 38mm on the same rims. They're the same size in practice, while the labeling is 4mm apart!

Schwalbes tend to run pretty true to size, and Continental, as a brand, seems to vary from "much smaller than labeled" to "larger than labeled", to "bang on", depending on the specific model.

Skipjacks

Actually...no it can't.

After I put the new chain on I spent about 3 hours trying to salvage the old one. That link is dead. It is never moving again. There is no amount of moving it back and forth that will resolve it.

Nothing was gumming up the link. It was physically damaged. I must have hit something, though for the life of me I have no idea what. Either that or it got jammed in the cassette and the gear teeth screwed it up. That's kind of what it looks like.

But it was physically deformed and not coming back from the graveyard.

So I removed that link and now I have a perfectly good spare chain with 113 links instead of 114. On a really long ride it'll be nice to know it's in the bag.

Doctor Morbius

That's exactly what I would have done!

DorkDisk

A stiff link, yes. A mangled link, no

Jarrettsin

Doctor Morbius can't wait to see pictures of the build!
Even if I had the space to do it, I doubt I would take on all that wrenching.

I did send the bike to the LBS for a winter tune-up and some new brake pads.

Doctor Morbius

Today I'm working on my hybridized MTB - a Raleigh M60 Mountain Sport. I'm swapping out the middle chainring as I find the stock 32t jobbie to be a tad smallish. I'm going to put a 36t middle on it AFTER I've thoroughly cleaned everything with mineral spirits and a tooth brush, of course. I can't have no dirty chainring going on one of my bikes. No sir!

EDIT: I learned something today. I just found out that the middle chainrings of the older 44t/32t/22t Deore cranksets are made of steel. I always though the middle and outer were aluminium.

But that's half the fun! I have 5 bikes around here in various states of "repair." They'll all be good to go come Spring time.

badger1

I think the aluminum middle (and outer) kicked in at SLX level?? I still have an '07ish SLX triple on my Rainier. Had a heck of a time sourcing a new Shimano outer/middle (44/32) when they wore, and had to go with RaceFace. The original steel inner ring is still on there.

I'm actually thinking of a refresh for this bike. Thinking SLX 1x and brakes. The heart of the bike is still great: the '05 'old-school NORBA geometry' frame fits me well and suits my use of the bike, and the fork (aftermarket Marzocchi MX Pro, back when M. made really good forks) and wheelset (Mavic 717XC on XT hubs) are in perfect condition. Gratuitous, albeit lousy, pic, just 'cos!

Doctor Morbius

Thanks for the info.

Sounds like you have a project on your hands. That's what Winter is for, IMO. I would do it, especially if there is any sentimental value in the bike. If you tried to sell it you'd be offered peanuts, so you may as well strip it down to the frame and build it back up.

badger1

Absolutely! I'd never sell the Blue Pig. Bought it new in '05, and upgraded/rebuilt everything in 07/08. The only original bit is the frame. Served me faithfully (only bike) for five years -- road/off-road (w/tire change), whatever. Did my first century on it -- no problems. I have my two bikes -- this, and my Sirrus (flat-bar road bike). If I had to choose, I'd keep this one. New Sirrus ('19 Sirrus Comp X) on the way, but the sentiment remains.

DorkDisk

The latest Shimano triples all use drilled steel middle rings with nylon (SLX) or carbon (XT) spiders. Deore IIRC is plain steel middle. Complete weight is low and durability is high. For stocking up on Shimano chainrings, my experience is that you have to keep an eye out for sales and not "when you need them".

Edit: Nice bike. I have an '06 as my "new MTB". Recently got a mid-life update from 9sp to 10. We have the same wheels

badger1

Cheers! I have an irrational (?) liking for 'old' 26er hardtails, circa 2000 to 2006 or so, with old-school xc race geometry. Probably because that's all I rode from '02 to '10, on road and off, after taking up cycling again. I'm pretty set on the drivetrain update, just a little unsure yet on the brakes. My Rainier unfortunately doesn't have proper guides for hydro hoses, and I'm not keen on stuff like zip ties. Might go with TRP Spike (I think that's the name), a dual-piston mechanical, to replace the Avids.

Doctor Morbius

I learned something new today. Just because a set of cranks and a chainring have the same bolt circle diameter, doesn't mean they will fit! Both parts were Shimano too. The 36t chainring would not SEAT properly on the Deore triple cranks.

So... everything is back to the way it was - 44t/32t/22t. Plus everything is sparkling clean now too.

I could have dug a file out from the garage and shaved off enough to where the chainring would seat properly, but that's more work than I care to do at this point. Maybe sometime this summer when it's nice out and I can sit in the garage and work on it. I'm doing this stuff in my living room and didn't want to deal with metal shavings.

Such are the best laid plans of mice and men!

hokiefyd 

Shimano did some strange stuff in the 1990s. I think some of their cranks looked like they'd be 94mm BCD (bolt circle diameter), but were actually 95mm or something like that. It's just enough so that you can't use market standard parts as replacements. I have an STX crankset where the middle and large ring bolt to the spider with five bolts (I assume it's 94mm BCD, but maybe it's 95mm), but the small ring bolts to drop flanges on the middle ring...and I don't think it's a standard BCD. So I couldn't replace any of the chain rings on this particular crank. I don't need to (and I'm actually not even using the crank on a bike right now), but it is frustrating if trying to restore or make new something old.

I don't know if that's your specific issue or not, but I do understand they had some odd proprietary sizes back then (and maybe still now!).

Doctor Morbius

That's definitely not it. The two cranksets in question are an FC-M610 Deore 44t/32t/22t, which I purchased in 2005, and an FC-M391 (Acera maybe?) Trekking 48t/36t/26t that came on a 2012 Sirrus Elite.

The large chainrings from each of the cranks are interchangeable. But, for some reason there's more flange on the Deore cranks, which prohibits the 36t chainring from sitting flush.

Roadie64

I got a clip on back fender to help keep the dirt and water off my back side. I do lots of trail riding and it has gotten really muddy lately. Now it's frozen so it's not so bad.

Ride outside. It's not during winter once you get a good kit figured out.

DorkDisk

Yeah, I like the old 26ers myself but my era is the 90s because thats what I rode also.

Coincidentally Im currently working on a 99 Cannondale for the wife with SLX brakes and cranks, XT hubs and 717 rims. I am using Jagwire hydraulic hose adaptors for the top tube https://www.jensonusa.com/Jagwire-Cable-Grip. I still haven't figured out the seatstay portion yet.

I just did my rig with XT M8000 and honestly SLX M7000 looks nicer

drpower

2018 Giant Fastroad CoMax 1 - Added the SQLab 311 Handlebar cut to 680mm and leather grips. Recieved a shipment from Amazon, a Rockbros 5L Triangle Bag, fits perfect really nice bag.