himespau 

Honestly, I haven't ever used mine. I just had a bike in which the tubing wasn't what was advertised so Ididn't have a seatpost for it right a way (and due to parts shortage, all I could find was low end ones that I didn't want, but I wanted to start building it up) and Ihad another frame that I wanted to paint without worrying about getting paint on the seatpost. Didn't end up using it for either of those things, but have it "for next time". Lots of my tool purchases are when I see something that I think would have made the last job easier (whether or not I plan on doing something like it again). But yeah, f-ing up tubes from over tightening is probably why it got discontinued.

Litespud

I clamp my 22-year-old Litespeed at the seat tube, above the bottle cage. Have always done this - the only downside is that it trashes one of the decals, but that’s the cost of doing business. Wouldn’t treat a carbon frame like this, but Ti is fine

blinky

Thanks Litespud , I have the Tuscany , originally with Chorus 10 - changed to mostly Ultegra about 3 years ago but kept the Campy parts for now - am curious , what type of repair stand do you have ?

cxwrench

I have no idea why anyone would want to clamp a frame tube when the seat post is such a good place.

BCDrums

I have always clamped to the seat tube on my 90pmooney, because that's how it was done back in '90. The tubing is Columbus SLX. When I occasionally work on a neighbor's or kid's bike, often the tubes won't fit in the stand's clamp and I am forced to use the seatpost. In recent times, I have seen mechanics simply hang the bike on the stand by the front part of the saddle.

I dislike clamping to the seat post because it places the bike lower on the stand and I have to get low to work on the drive train.

BCDrums

Clamping the seat tube places the bike higher on the stand, which I prefer, and I don't have to remove my under-seat bag, which I also prefer.

I have no idea why anyone wouldn't want to say brifter on such a nice Spring day! Brifter, brifter, brifter. 🎶 The hills are alive, with the sound of brifffff-terrrrrr...🎶

smd4

Well, my reason for not wanting to say it is because it sounds stupid.

cxwrench

What a mature reply.

BCDrums

Don't know why you'd think so. It's an old word, now. I don't know who coined the word originally, but I picked it up from Sheldon Brown's website. I guess that it originated when integrated brake/shifter levers first appeared to differentiate from separate brake levers and shifters. It made sense at the time. Today, a majority of road riders use integrated shift/brake levers, so we maybe don't need the word. But I don't understand what is stupid about it.

The person on BF who brings up brifters in his every post is you. How ironic that a guy who uses stupid in his signature has an opinion on maturity. Really.

veganbikes

Always use the seatpost which is designed to be clamped, please do not damage your bikes with bad advice. Do not think "oh I will just do this one thing and be really careful" because you easily damage something and not notice. Certainly yes some older bikes and heavier duty bikes might have more robust tubes but they still were not designed to be clamped. Seatposts are actually designed to be clamped it is how the stay in your frame is through clamping.

In terms of bags getting in the way, remove those bags, Topeak makes the Fixer which just clamps on to your saddle rails and allows you to slide your seatbag on and off very quickly and keep it quite secure. Otherwise generally they are simply hook and loop fasteners and don't require a ton of work to remove. One should not intentionally damage a bike simply because removing something minor was just too hard or we are just too lazy (really the case). Many good rear lights these days are silicone or rubber fasteners and you still will see some one attached with a screw and plastic clamp but those can be move out of the way pretty easily with a turn of the screw or you can change the height of your seat post briefly to work on your bike great thing about that is you can find out if you have done your job of greasing it properly so it doesn't seize and might just be a good opportunity to clean it out and re-grease. you can also use a marker or a blade and just mark where your post was or measure with a tape measure and write it down in case you need it.

smd4

You're right. I guess it's no more stupid than calling them "shakes."

blinky

I personally respect the input from someone who also owns and works on a Ti bike and is comfortable clamping to the seat tube but I also feel the post is a safe bet - but I have two other issues that now go to the top of the list : (1) for mounting on either the seat tube or post , who has a clever way - other than brute strength - to single handedly lift the bike , place it in the jaws , & then tighten the clamp and (2) what is a good material to lay in the jaws to reduce twist ?

Polaris OBark

I take it you don't have short legs and a horizontal top tube?

I sometimes loosely clamp the top tube wrapped in a towel, loose enough so I can slide the bike back and forth, and it is held in place by balance. The clamp is only tight enough to catch it if it slips.

smd4

I'm not sure there is a "clever" way. You just lift the bike up as suggested and place the seatpost in the jaws. Again, I line my stand jaws with a shop rag.

Luckily most of us have pretty light bikes, so I don't have to tap into any brute strength--which I'm sorry to say I'm sorely lacking anyway. My stand also has a cam lock for the jaws (like most shops have) so I don't have to spend a lot of time twisting a clamp down.

Litespud

I have an old Park - sprung clamp with three width settings - the widest (1 1/2" - 1 5/8") works for the Litespeed with its oversize (~1 3/8") tubes. The narrowest setting (1" - 1 1/8") works for my old steel bike with 1 1/8" tubing. Nominally the middle setting (1 1/4" - 1 3/8") would work for the Litespeed, but the wider setting holds it fine, so that's what I use. I'd have no problem using the seat post (27.2mm Ti), but the clamp width is just slightly wider than the length of exposed seat post, so it'd be too much of a faff extending the seat post every time I wanted to put the bike on the stand. Right now, I lift the frame into the clamp, flip the lever and it's done - takes literally a second to put the bike up or take it down. If I had a painted bike, I would probably be willing to cut the clamp down to use the seat post, but the rubber clamp doesn't affect unpainted Ti.

delbiker1 

The way that works best for you, whatever work you are doing, is what is best. When I am going to do more than basic maintenance, I use a fork mount stand, Feedback Sports model. The bb sits on the stand arm. If I am doing something that requires a bit of force, I use a strap near the bb to keep back end in place. It is adjustable for the size of the bike, can be moved up and down, and also spins. The stand is very stable and efficient, folds up and is pretty easy to store or move. A bit pricey, but it should last a lifetime.

veganbikes

Would not clamp the seat tube. Seat post always on all of my ti bikes and steel bikes and aluminum bikes and if I ever owned a crabon bike same thing.

I guess it depends on the stand, my Park stand with the micro adjust clamp is pretty easy to close and if need be I can get it enough to not drop out and just tighten once it is more held in place.I do lift and then tighten but potentially if you have a stand with height adjustability you could lower it put the bike in the stand and then use a little bit of strength to raise it up but I find that rather difficult. If you have a really heavy bike it will be tougher but one could probably figure out solutions to getting it up or look at the new hydraulic lift stand from Topeak.

In terms of your jaws I would just use the material there assuming you have a quality stand. I wouldn't put anything in my park tool jaws unless something was super messy. The rubber should be sufficient and if it is worn out and damaged I would replace it. If the bike is properly tightened in the stand it shouldn't twist too much and a little motion is fine as long as it is not free spinning which would be hard to do. Basically a little twist isn't so bad and has never affected my wrenching.

JohnDThompson 

Fresh paint (i.e. less than several MONTHS old) is easily damaged by clamps, even with padding. I've seen many a frame with cloth texture pressed into the paint from clamping on a rag wrapped around the tube. And decals are easily destroyed by clamps.

Always clamp on a seat post to avoid these issues. If for some reason the clamp won't fit on the exposed post (non-round "aero" style, bolted on accessories, etc.), get a cheap steel post of the proper diameter and insert that for the clamp to grip when you work on the bike. If you work on lots of bikes with different diameter posts, get one of the internal clamps mentioned above.

bboy314

Not necessarily practical cost-wise, but there are stands with hydraulic lift assist for e bikes and cargo bikes and such.

https://www.topeak.com/global/en/pro...PSTAND-eUP-PRO

blinky

Thanks BBOY314 for the link , will check it out .

blinky

Good tips , I have the same Park micro adjust clamp with 360 rotation mounted to a wooden post in the garage - if I re-position it to a lower spot , the lift and clamp should be easier - another idea is to rig up some pulleys to lift the bike .

smd4

My guess is, most shop mechanics use shop rags to add extra protection to the jaws. It doesn't hurt, so why not? For those who decide to clamp the seat tube, rubber jaws can play havoc with nice decals.

veganbikes

In some cases if the jaws are particularly damaged or dirty, yes it is not a bad idea assuming the rag is also not dirty but if in good shape typically, no. We have kept our jaws in good shape and replace them when needed. Having a rag is not going to cause any damage but no need for it if things are well cared for or at least replaced as needed.

Please don't clamp parts of the bike that are not designed to be clamped. The seatpost is designed to be clamped and is always clamped in the frame (aside from some vintage quill posts which are few and far between) If you really have something you cannot clamp get a cheap seatpost or use one of the internal seatpost clamps as needed or use a euro style stand that doesn't clamp and cradles the BB and then attaches via your QR or Axle. Yes there are frames that are sturdy enough to be clamped on the seat tube without damage but why risk it at least in normal circumstances for normal repairs obviously removing seized seat posts and things like that but no need to damage paint and decals when you don't need to.

Camilo

I don't have a single bike that has integrated shift/brake levers. But I'm a Sram and old school Campy Syncro (downtube) person, they don't use brake levers to shift. And yeah, "brifters" is a silly word that I won't use.

BCDrums

Of course you won't. You don't have brifters. I never liked downtube shifters, which were current when I first had a ten-speed. I went to bar-ends and stayed with them until I went to brifters.

Sincere question: what is the commonly used word that indicates integrated brakes and shifters? The word that makes brifters unnecessary and stupid and silly?