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Dork disc

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View Poll Results: Keep dork disc or remove it
Keep it
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Dork disc

Old 10-01-19, 04:19 AM
  #26  
Stormsedge
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Sorry, wife called me away...what was the topic?
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Old 10-01-19, 05:21 AM
  #27  
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Originally Posted by Seattle Forrest
Just to clarify, because this is the 41, you set them on fire after you remove them from your wheels.
Have you no respect for tradition?!
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Old 10-01-19, 05:28 AM
  #28  
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Originally Posted by 79pmooney
Is the cost of perhaps a new rear derailleur, chain, paint, any carbon fiber in the area, the dropout, some spokes (and perhaps the wheel) for a should-never-happen but can mishap OK for you? If so, remove the dork disc. Recently someone here posted about the mishap he just had. The $$ total was impressive.

If you chose not to use a dork disc, see to it if you ride conventionally spoked wheels, that the "pulling" spokes on the drive/right-hand side come off the inside of the hub flange. In other words, if you are standing on the left side of the bike (on most, you cannot see anything behind the cassettes standing on the right), those drive spokes that come off the top of the hub and are pointed back as they go to the rim. Now, those spokes should be coming out of the hub flange toward you; so you cannot see the spoke heads. They are hidden between the flange and the cassette.

If those pulling spokes are indeed on the inside, then, when you do dump the chain off the cassette into the spokes, your non-pulling spokes will do their best to reject the chain and you will minimize damage. With outside pulling, the spokes will suck your chain down deeper and the damage level goes far higher. (If you try to visualize this, you will come to the conclusion I"m full of smoke. This was the word of both my shop mechanic 40 years ago and the local guru-to be who used to hang out at our shop, the then far from famous Sheldon Brown. Also my experience. Actually I've never tried outside pulling but I do look at both the damage and lacing pattern every time I see one of those mishaps. Yes, the worst inside pulling disasters are worse than the best outside pulling disasters, but overall, inside pulling comes out far ahead. I've usually been able to jury rig and ride home. Most outside pulling - that's not remotely an option.

Ben
I know you know this, but it’s not “when” you dump the chain into the spokes, it’s “if”, and it’s only going to happen if the limit screw is set incorrectly and/or the RD hanger is bent inwards accidentally. A normal, properly adjusted bike doesn’t dump the chain off the big cog. People manage to get tens/hundreds of thousands of miles out of their frames without a catastrophic chain drop.
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Old 10-01-19, 06:45 AM
  #29  
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Who cares.
Maybe your next poll can be about what color socks you should wear...
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Old 10-01-19, 06:47 AM
  #30  
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Originally Posted by downhillmaster
Who cares.
Maybe your next poll can be about what color socks you should wear...
Color matched with the bike, of course!
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Old 10-01-19, 09:01 AM
  #31  
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So. You've read several pros and cons and can't decide for yourself? If you're looking for a consensus to validate what you think you should do, you're not likely to find it here.
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Old 10-01-19, 09:16 AM
  #32  
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It's like keeping the plastic wrap on the edges of your brand new LED TV... (Ok, I'm guilty of doing that)
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Old 10-01-19, 09:23 AM
  #33  
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It's against the law to remove those things. It says so right on them, "Do Not Remove, by penalty of law".
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Old 10-01-19, 09:28 AM
  #34  
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No road bike should even come with one. Or any bike really.

My road bike did not, but my hybrid did - I was impressed with my ability to cut it off with a scissors without so much as removing the rear wheel.
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Old 10-01-19, 09:35 AM
  #35  
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for a semi-"actual" answer, these things exist because of lawyers, and because of department store bikes with rear derailleurs that manufacturers fully expect will be taken into a bike shop maybe once every two years when the tire flats. A properly adjusted RD will not dump the chain into the spokes, but a properly adjusted Shimano Tourney RD can become an improperly adjusted one after some kid dumps it on the ground a few times or bangs it against the garage door.

check your RD limit screws any time you adjust anything in the rear of the bike (cassette change, rear wheel change etc), and any time you crash or bang the RD against the cafe door when you try to bring your bike in like a nincompoop.
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Old 10-01-19, 09:48 AM
  #36  
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What's the worst thing that can happen? Suddent rear wheel braking?

Better hang your self tight to the bars! In that case, I'd recommend to have a good compression plug to make sure your fork tube does not break. There's another funny thread about that currently running.
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Old 10-01-19, 10:09 AM
  #37  
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Originally Posted by 79pmooney
Is the cost of perhaps a new rear derailleur, chain, paint, any carbon fiber in the area, the dropout, some spokes (and perhaps the wheel) for a should-never-happen but can mishap OK for you? If so, remove the dork disc. Recently someone here posted about the mishap he just had. The $$ total was impressive.

If you chose not to use a dork disc, see to it if you ride conventionally spoked wheels, that the "pulling" spokes on the drive/right-hand side come off the inside of the hub flange. In other words, if you are standing on the left side of the bike (on most, you cannot see anything behind the cassettes standing on the right), those drive spokes that come off the top of the hub and are pointed back as they go to the rim. Now, those spokes should be coming out of the hub flange toward you; so you cannot see the spoke heads. They are hidden between the flange and the cassette.

If those pulling spokes are indeed on the inside, then, when you do dump the chain off the cassette into the spokes, your non-pulling spokes will do their best to reject the chain and you will minimize damage. With outside pulling, the spokes will suck your chain down deeper and the damage level goes far higher. (If you try to visualize this, you will come to the conclusion I"m full of smoke. This was the word of both my shop mechanic 40 years ago and the local guru-to be who used to hang out at our shop, the then far from famous Sheldon Brown. Also my experience. Actually I've never tried outside pulling but I do look at both the damage and lacing pattern every time I see one of those mishaps. Yes, the worst inside pulling disasters are worse than the best outside pulling disasters, but overall, inside pulling comes out far ahead. I've usually been able to jury rig and ride home. Most outside pulling - that's not remotely an option.

Ben
You have very unconventional opinions. Consistently, no matter what the topic is.
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Old 10-01-19, 10:22 AM
  #38  
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I see the DD as coming from the same school of thought that brought us "lawyer lip" forks, various annoying wheel-retaining washers, turkey levers, chain guards, flags, kneepads, safety vests, mirrors, etc. All promising to deliver a safer, virtually "idiot-proof" cycling experience but mostly failing in everyday use.

If you let these people go too far, we'll eventually have mandatory rubber tooth guards on all bicycle stems (to keep from chipping your tooth) and top tube padding, on every new men's bike sold, to prevent reproductive damage.
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Old 10-01-19, 10:32 AM
  #39  
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Originally Posted by Lemond1985
I see the DD as coming from the same school of thought that brought us "lawyer lip" forks, various annoying wheel-retaining washers, turkey levers, chain guards, flags, kneepads, safety vests, mirrors, etc. All promising to deliver a safer, virtually "idiot-proof" cycling experience but mostly failing in everyday use.

If you let these people go too far, we'll eventually have mandatory rubber tooth guards on all bicycle stems (to keep from chipping your tooth) and top tube padding, on every new men's bike sold, to prevent reproductive damage.
Yep. Probably that same school of thought that resulted into putting warning stickers on hair dryers to not use them while taking a bath.
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Old 10-01-19, 10:34 AM
  #40  
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Originally Posted by Lemond1985
I see the DD as coming from the same school of thought that brought us "lawyer lip" forks, various annoying wheel-retaining washers, turkey levers, chain guards, flags, kneepads, safety vests, mirrors, etc. All promising to deliver a safer, virtually "idiot-proof" cycling experience but mostly failing in everyday use.

If you let these people go too far, we'll eventually have mandatory rubber tooth guards on all bicycle stems (to keep from chipping your tooth) and top tube padding, on every new men's bike sold, to prevent reproductive damage.
my favorite was the plastic guards on exposed cable ends on rear derailleurs. prior to those, ERs were just flooded with poor cyclists who had impaled themselves with Nuovo Record RDs. Sad to see.
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Old 10-01-19, 10:54 AM
  #41  
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Originally Posted by 79pmooney
Dork disc, those plastic, aluminum or chromed steel discs between the rear wheel spokes and the freewheel/cassette. Common on lesser derailleur bikes from the early '70s on. Their purpose is to keep the derailleur from hitting the spokes when either poorly adjusted or the derailleur hanger is bent. They may also keep the chain from falling into the gap between cog and hub or minimizes the subsequent damage if it does happen. Basically good, simple insurance that no respectable roadie would ever be caught dead with.

Ben
Thank you for the explanation, Ben. My bicycle has one of those, (clear plastic) and it has apparently done its job a couple of times, as there is some wear on it. So, it will stay on.

It is hard to clean but it never occurred to me that it could be removed. Don't know when the scratches were made on the thing. I've owned the bike since new in the early 70s... Purchased in Portland, BTW.
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Old 10-01-19, 11:50 AM
  #42  
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Originally Posted by sheddle
Nuovo Record RDs.
Brings back memories. Had Nuovo Record drivetrain on the Trek 660 I bought used in college. And black Modolo brakes with aero lovers. I felt like a real cyclist. Rode the hell out of bike until a crack formed in the head tube. It became my permanent trainer bike until a rear chainstay snapped.

On a serious note...I did manage to skewer myself pretty deeply with a uncapped FD cable. Hurt like hell.
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Old 10-01-19, 12:06 PM
  #43  
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Originally Posted by indyfabz
Brings back memories. Had Nuovo Record drivetrain on the Trek 660 I bought used in college. And black Modolo brakes with aero lovers. I felt like a real cyclist. Rode the hell out of bike until a crack formed in the head tube. It became my permanent trainer bike until a rear chainstay snapped.

On a serious note...I did manage to skewer myself pretty deeply with a uncapped FD cable. Hurt like hell.
It's always fun and games 'til you hurt yourself. My right foot fell of the pedals a few years ago (mountain biking) while I was on the small chainring - a few teeth ended up inside the lower back of my leg where my calve is. I still have the scars to prove errrthing.
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Old 10-01-19, 12:10 PM
  #44  
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Originally Posted by eduskator
It's always fun and games 'til you hurt yourself. My right foot fell of the pedals a few years ago (mountain biking) while I was on the small chainring - a few teeth ended up inside the lower back of my leg where my calve is. I still have the scars to prove errrthing.
That also happened to me to during a fall, except I got spiked in the ankle. Also hurt like hell. Thanks to the dirt and grease and me being a tough guy the thing got infected.
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Old 10-01-19, 12:16 PM
  #45  
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Originally Posted by eduskator
Yep. Probably that same school of thought that resulted into putting warning stickers on hair dryers to not use them while taking a bath.
How else are you supposed to warm the bath water?
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Old 10-01-19, 05:49 PM
  #46  
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I voted 'keep it' if it is shiney metal! If plastic then...make it go away.
Those discs are really vestigial disc wheel remnants. Back in the really olden days the rear wheel was a complete disc but climate change caused them to change. It wasn't very windy 'back then' but as the climate got hotter all the dinosaurs tried to hide under the trees for relief but ended up knocking them over and trampling them so there weren't any wind breaks. The bicycles had to evolve or perish and there you have it! Dork Discs!
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Old 10-01-19, 06:01 PM
  #47  
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Originally Posted by Seattle Forrest
My bike didn't even come with them, nor did my fancy hoops. I'm just not cool enough.
+1. I never removed mine as my bike never had one, and didn't realize I was missing it til ~12yrs later from a thread like this. It's now going on about 16 years.
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Old 10-01-19, 08:30 PM
  #48  
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Originally Posted by 79pmooney
Is the cost of perhaps a new rear derailleur, chain, paint, any carbon fiber in the area, the dropout, some spokes (and perhaps the wheel) for a should-never-happen but can mishap OK for you? If so, remove the dork disc. Recently someone here posted about the mishap he just had. The $$ total was impressive.

If you chose not to use a dork disc, see to it if you ride conventionally spoked wheels, that the "pulling" spokes on the drive/right-hand side come off the inside of the hub flange. In other words, if you are standing on the left side of the bike (on most, you cannot see anything behind the cassettes standing on the right), those drive spokes that come off the top of the hub and are pointed back as they go to the rim. Now, those spokes should be coming out of the hub flange toward you; so you cannot see the spoke heads. They are hidden between the flange and the cassette.

If those pulling spokes are indeed on the inside, then, when you do dump the chain off the cassette into the spokes, your non-pulling spokes will do their best to reject the chain and you will minimize damage. With outside pulling, the spokes will suck your chain down deeper and the damage level goes far higher. (If you try to visualize this, you will come to the conclusion I"m full of smoke. This was the word of both my shop mechanic 40 years ago and the local guru-to be who used to hang out at our shop, the then far from famous Sheldon Brown. Also my experience. Actually I've never tried outside pulling but I do look at both the damage and lacing pattern every time I see one of those mishaps. Yes, the worst inside pulling disasters are worse than the best outside pulling disasters, but overall, inside pulling comes out far ahead. I've usually been able to jury rig and ride home. Most outside pulling - that's not remotely an option.

Ben
This all depends on how quickly you'd recognise the sound and get off the power. As soon as the chain stops pulling, you want the spokes pointing the other way, because you'll still be rolling.
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Old 10-03-19, 07:51 AM
  #49  
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Back in my 1990's bike shop days, we knew a rider wasn't "serious" if they had a dork disk, plastic reflectors, or a kickstand.

Now that I am a mature 40-something, this seems ridiculous. Yet I still don't have bikes with any of these items. I can't shake my old bias.

And I will say, that in multiple decades of riding, including may crashes in my early years, I have never thrown a chain in to a wheel. Not once.
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Old 10-03-19, 12:24 PM
  #50  
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Dork disks rule! My Domane still has it's dork disk. The dork disk on my 1.1 fell off several years back... sad day. All of my reflectors eventually came loose and fell off on both road bikes.
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