woodcraft

I'll probably have to balance the wheel after this....


Update: Rode it several rides- maybe 200 miles. The stitching held well,

but there's a slight bump, noticeable mainly on very smooth pavement.

Just pulled it off; satisfied w/ the experiment, but moving on to a new tire..

timtak

I removed the ripped leather and foam covering from my Selle SMP Evolution saddle

Removing the Leather by Timothy Takemoto, on Flickr
So that it is just the plastic remaining

Leatherless Selle SMP Evolution Saddle by Timothy Takemoto, on Flickr
and it works fine. I did not like the shape of the Dynamic saddle that I bought to replace it.

i updated the Sidi-fied heels of my shoes and tried putting some liquid plastic on the cleats
S
idi-ed Heels and Shoe-goo-ed Cleats by Timothy Takemoto, on Flickr
But the stuff I bought was so hard that it made walking on flooring like ice skating so I tried some rubber pads instead using the carbon epoxy that I used to mend the toe of my left hand shoe.

Added Carbon and Rubber by Timothy Takemoto, on Flickr
The carbon is from a Carbonology repair kit as before. The rubber pads soon came off. I have some Chinese shoo goo on order.

I while back I put a spare rear light on one of my bikes.

I also changed the bottom bracket on my other bike but failed to prevent the creak coming from that area. I don't think it is the pedals or the chainrings (which do creak if those star shaped nuts get loose) so I am not sure what the cause of the creak could be.

I got cheap chain checker but it says my chain is not yet worn even though it is slipping.

I also raised my saddle even more than abnormal since I damaged my thigh in karate.

timtak

I got the dreaded "bottom bracket creaks". I googled these two checklists on other forums. The first on road bike review did not have what turned out to the the cure
Clicking and Creaking sound/noise checklist
https://www.lfgss.com/conversations/...omment13782570

I CLEANED MY DROPOUTS!

The grit in the dropouts, combined with a not very tight, lightweight open cam quick release allowed micro movements of the rear wheel as I pedalled, resulting in carbon frame creak. Changing to a sturdy closed cam quick release reduced the noise. Wiping with a rag almost got rid of it. Cleaning with brake cleaner (and scratching the paint off the surface of the dérailleur hanger) got rid of the creak completely!

I have junked a carbon frame for this! Tell the world! Clean your dropouts!

My KMC missing link is going parallelogram and could be lethal so I have ordered one of those too. It comes in three days. I hope my chain does not break before then. Death.

I am bidding on a non-compact crank set since I am always in my highest gear and destroying freehubs partly as a result, I think. I want to be in third from top when cruising (leaving the top to for downhills and tailwinds) not in top gear all the time.

catgita

My front derailleur cable slipped, must have neglected to torque it. I don't use it much, so never noticed. Also re dished the rear wheel.

timtak

I had my gear cables changed and the bar tape at the same time. I chose the cheapest, highest visibility tape and found the bar tape to be very thin and harsh on my hands. So, after trying some 100 yen shop prototypes,

Cheap Bar Tape Augmented with 100 yen Shop Bar Grips by Timothy Takemoto, on Flickr
I ordered some ordinary shopper/MTB handlebar grips from China for about 1.5USD in the same colour as my new bar tape.

Now with Yellow Bar Grips by Timothy Takemoto, on Flickr

I find that the only place I put my weight is on the hoods (where tape has little impact) and on or in the drops, where this new idea to use standard grips on the drops is highly recommended. It was tough getting them on though since they are for 22mm bars where as my bars are "oversized" but with some washing up liquid and effort they are on and ready for tomorrow morning's cycle.

"Drop Tube" handlebar grips in one of seven colours available here
https://goo.gl/enAXCQ

I think that most people who use their drops would be well advised to use some simple handlebar grips on their drops. I am sure why I did not think of this sooner.

Silvercivic27

That looks AMAZING!!! Bravo!

ClickClickBoom

I recovered a S-Works saddle with leather after it had worn itself out.

I patched Three pairs of bibs that had worn holes in them from my saddle bag on my commuter.

Nachoman

Yellow handlebar tape for daughter's bike, to make it look prettier.

Wileyrat

New chain on the CF roadie today. Maybe rewrap the bars too.

GlennR

Replaced the battery in my speed/cadence sensor.

wipekitty

Minor adjustments to both derailleurs. No more clanging on the FD in the lowest gear, and now I'm hitting the 11 in the back just great!

Stormsedge

Had the windshield replaced in my pickup after taking two rocks during trip to Blazing Saddle 75 in Granbury, TX.

evan326

What's going on with that stem? That has to be over -17 right?

Sangetsu

Installed titanium bolts in the front suspension pivots of my folding bike. I also cleaned the chain on the same bike, and my wife's bike. I replaced the brake pads on my old Gios, and trued the wheels as close to perfect as I could get them (which was pretty close). The original Record brake/shifter levers were worn and scratched, I was able to find a set of NOS Record 9 speed carbon levers for a decent price, and installed them with an NOS Record 9 speed carbon rear derailleur. The bike shifts like new again.

This week I need to install a new carbon seat post and a new B17 Ti seat on my Birdy folder. My folder was originally a 1x8 with Sora components. I upgraded it to Dura-Ace 7800 on the front, and XTR 9000 on the rear, giving me a 2x11 setup with a 40t big gear in the back. I had to fabricate a bracket to hold the 7800 front derailleur, and then modify the shifter and derailleur lever length to give me the right travel. The cage interfered with the rear swing arm, so I had to grind part of it away.

timtak

15 - 30 a "Rock Crawler" "trial bike" (not time trial bike) stem flipped due to my purchase of a fairly "relaxed" bike in a smallish size. I can't find them any more.

These look good.
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/Cycl...8-3042ecdc7467
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/Adju...1-acd201efa00b
Very enterprising. Way beyond my capabilities.

GrainBrain

Lol well I was going to have nothing to report but now I'm going to drop my quill stem an inch after seeing that pic, that's crazy slammed. I've been meaning to do it for awhile now that I've gotten better at tucking.

timtak

Back (?) in the days of quill stems there seems to have been a lot of long, negatively inclined stems. I have recently been thinking of purchasing a beautiful ftitanium framed keirin bike with a quill stem but the online site may be a rip off, which is a great shame.
**********)???? PRESTO ULTEGRA **********?? **********? ??? ?? HONJO 540********************???? ********************************************************************************?? ??? ??? ********** ??? - 103,500?

San Pedro

It's going to be removing some kind of some, glass, or nail from my tire/tube and patching the tube, one it stops raining.

timtak

I am about to do this too because my carbon fibre roadie is creaking again. I wonder if the chain will help. Just tightening and improving the rear quick release worked for a while.

And for the past two days we have had light rain during which time the creaking has ceased suggesting to me that it is a lubrication/tightening issue not a cracked frame.

One of the "drop tubes" (handlebar grips) on my drops burst apart. The 100 yen shop grips were more flexible but a bit shorter. I have ordered some more grips like the 100 yen shop grips but a bit longer (and partly in yellow) from alixexpress.
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/2Pc-...311.0.0.xzNZih
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/New-...311.0.0.xzNZih
New chain. Perhaps a new cassette.

indyfabz

My front tubeless tire punctured during a century ride to NYC on Sunday. It repaired itself as I took a bite of an apple.

timtak

I am still working on my handlebars.

My new yellow drop tubes (handlebar grips) split fell off on one side and before the aliexpress grips could arrive, I realised that I had a 45cm long closed cell foam tube, designed for padding chair legs and such for those that have toddlers (I guess). Unfortunately it is brown and the cells are not quite closed so it takes on a bit of water in the wet, but it goes right up into the ⊃ of my drops. This is comfort.
Bar Grip Evolution by Timothy Takemoto, on Flickr

Additionally, I have attached the grip that split and fell off to the top of my bars with cable ties.

I have paid lots of money for carbon fibre forks (and frame) only to ride around on a handlebar without much in the way of padding. Why is grip tape so thin?

timtak

The chain and chainwheel was warn, and I was always in the smallest 12T at the back, so I swapped to a 11-25T cassette, a new chain, and a non compact right hand side Ultegra 130 PCD BCD standard crank paired with my old 10 crank on the left. The only non-compatibility appears to be the plastic crank mounting bolt (which I have on order, but for the time being just tapped both sides with a mallet) and the colour. I have Ultegra silver bling on the right and 105 black on the left.

I would prefer 53 (or 54 of 58) 39 but I had a 42 to hand and 53 in 9 speed was cheap so 53-42t it is.

53-42T Ultegra Right Crank by Timothy Takemoto, on Flickr

105 Left Crank by Timothy Takemoto, on Flickr
And my bars are now wrapped up like a sofa. Old man?

Sofa Bars by Timothy Takemoto, on Flickr

I am not sure why I did not pad my handlebars a decade ago.

JohnDThompson 

On my own bike? Replacing the stripped axle key on my Sturmey-Archer hub.

woodcraft

Frame 'repair'. Over 300 miles.

timtak

I had a bike shop replace my front derailleur wire. There are two types of bike shop in Japan. Those that service shoppers and those that cater to road bikers. The former are very cheap, the latter very expensive. The gear wire (inner and outer) replacement was 15USD including wire. I want to go and give them a present.

The wire replacement required the removal of my bar tape and 'drop tube' (my name for road bike handlebar padding) which split when being pushed back on. I used some more Chinese bar grip covers from aliexpress at less than 1 USD again to replace it. I will get another two more grips for symmetry.
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/2Pc-...311.0.0.lriDr7

Drop Tube Replaced with Chinese Grips by Timothy Takemoto, on Flickr
I just don't know how I managed to cycle 10 years without padding my handlebars. I got the idea because my local road-bike-related bike shop charged me 16USD for some paper thin bar tape.

I still have not sourced some padding for the hoods. The yellow grips are a bit too smooth. The stripey red ones above are a bit too short (10.5cm - I need 13cm)