elgrande

This small rubber dustcap-esque thing fell from somewhere around my rear derailleur / rear hub area. I have no idea where it came from. It is about 5mm long and the head has a diameter of about 4mm. Any ideas?

drive.google.com/open?id=1Qd08XGek2wCh6zUn_ivEHRb84QtXb9cZ

Would be grateful if anyone has seen one before.

Ben

2manybikes

Link does not work.

elgrande

Apologies; I am not allowed to post a photo until I have 10 posts. My browser automatically adds the https : // (with no spaces) which the full link requires.

elgrande

Maybe now I have enough posts...?

hokiefyd 

Link fix:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Qd0...84QtXb9cZ/view

I'm not sure what that is. I don't recognize it as a derailleur part. Do you have a rear disc brake? Perhaps it's a rubber dust boot/cap for that?

2manybikes

Photo is fine. Looks like a plug for a hole? Don't really know. If you tell us about your bike and drivetrain that will help, pictures of the bike will help more. Someone might know then.

elgrande

Thank you for offering to help. The bike is an Aluminium Trek Road bike. Drive train is bog standard Shimano Sora. Rear wheel is Mavic Aksium. The rack is a Tubus Logo, but I see nowhere on the rack that looks likely. The rubber plug fell when I undid the quick release and popped the wheel out of the frame (the bike was upside down and I lifted the wheel vertically).

shelbyfv

I think that's off the bottom of your coffee maker.

dsbrantjr

That looks like a plug for a rack mounting hole. Look on the other side of the bike to see if there is one like it there someplace.
Edit: Did it perhaps come out of the end of one of the rack tubes?

2manybikes

Possibly a plug for an unused bottle cage mount?

woodcraft

Doesn't look like something from a bike.

Also, you could ask for some cable cutters for Christmas.

dwsmartins

+1 on the end of the rack tubes. The open end can lead to water inside it and consequently rust, unless it’s aluminum. If there’s no other one on the other side, I’ll assume it’s missing too. Measure the openings and look for rubber plugs somewhat wider than it for a snug fit replacement.

tomtomtom123

It came from the deep.

SalsaShark

That is a plug from the end of the tube on the bottom of your rear rack, near the derailleur.

elgrande

It may indeed have come from the deep. Except the confusing thing is that it came from at least the height of the hub or above (as I said, the bike was upside down when I lifted the wheel from the frame). I may not have made it's size clear; the attached photo shows that it is smaller than the rack tube diameter. The only thing it remotely matches is the small holes in the brake shoes. But even then, it's too small and it fell from above there anyway.

It's clearly some kind of dust cap, so it's not mechanically important, I'm just neurotic and would like to put it back.

And the neuroticism accounts for not cutting my cables; due to various screw ups, I had to rethread that cable three times, so I was glad that I didn't cut it. Then I left it to insure against further cock ups.

tomtomtom123

Well, if you say that it's 4mm in diameter, then it's probably a plug for M5 threaded hole, or a 4mm hole. Maybe it's the drainage hole in your stays, or a threaded mounting hole, like for a rear kickstand. I don't think anyone can tell you anything more, since we can't see your bike. Only you can see it, unless you showed every inch of your bike frame, but if you put the effort into taking all those photos, then you'd probably be able to find the hole yourself.

stardognine

I'll vote for the coffee maker too. Although......🤔

elgrande

Thank you all for taking a look! Who knows; a mystery. I'll keep the plug with me. Maybe for years at this rate. Then one day I'll be able to fix someone's coffee maker.

alcjphil

Clearly the previous photo of that plug did not provide sufficient information as to its size. As for the cable, the way you have bent it after it exits the pinch bolt pretty much spoils its usefulness if you have to lengthen the cable run. Even then, most of the time a cable has been affixed by the pinch bolt the pinch point deforms the cable and creates extra friction inside the cable housing.

2manybikes

If you lose it you will immediately, figure out what it goes to.

Miele Man

Did it perchance come off the pivot bolt of your brake caliper?

Cheers

elgrande

A good shout. But I've checked and no. That would also have required it to defy gravity. It's such a mystery.

Troul 

Water bottle mount hole

bikeme

Cut that shifter cable and put a crimp on it. I've never seen that done with a tag end before.

nomadmax 

The easiest way to determine this is to throw the plug away. One day after the trash man comes you'll be made aware of how important and hard to find it was