How do I...

[SatNavSaysStraightOn]

...teach an old dog new tricks please?

His road bike which he (sometimes) uses for commuting and occasional leisure rides was making the most horrendous noises (rear hub knackered) last time we went out together, so I had a quick look over it and ordered new parts (new wheels, new cassette, new chain, new brake pads, new brake cables, new brake sheath) and have just set about replacing the parts today.... I've managed to keep the cost down below 3 figures until know. Somehow (presumably the chain was over the middle chainring at the time), I have missed this....

Now his bike has done less than 1/2 the mileage mine has before I had to replace my chainset but mine was nowhere near as bad as that... that middle chainring has seen less than 2,000 miles of use!

So please, how do I get an ex-cotton mill mechanic (yep mechanic) to actually maintain his bike and not work on the principle of "it still works...."? He complains bitterly about me maintaining his bikes (don't ask!) saying they make more noise as they get dirty again, and keeping them dirty and rusty makes it less knickable from work when he locks it up alongside bikes costing 3 or 4 times what his did...

I'm not sure his mountain bike is in much better condition and I am seriously considering just buying him a new mtb... can't afford for him to have a new road bike as well....

 

[dan_bo]

Taser?

 

[Rickshaw Phil]

Don't know the solution to the problem I'm afraid, but just wanted to say at the state of that chainring after comparitively few miles.

 

[SatNavSaysStraightOn]

Can't get the ******** nut undone to get the chainset off.... its the retaining one before I use the pedal tool...

which way does it turn please? (the bike is upside down to complicate matters...)
Its the one with the allen key that I am trying to undo... physical strength issues are most likely the problem

 

[fatblokish]

Turn anti-clockwise to undo, the bike being upside down makes no difference. Pass a closed loop spanner over the allen key to increase leverage. And wear a thick glove on your business hand in case of slippage...

 

[eck]

Erm, do you want to get the chainset off just so you can replace the middle ring? If so, you might be able just to wiggle it over the arms without removing the whole thing. I've managed that lots of times with a middle ring on a road chainset. (But getting the granny ring off needs to have the chainset removed.)

 

[SatNavSaysStraightOn]

Erm, do you want to get the chainset off just so you can replace the middle ring? If so, you might be able just to wiggle it over the arms without removing the whole thing. I've managed that lots of times with a middle ring on a road chainset. (But getting the granny ring off needs to have the chainset removed.)

tried the wiggling, hence why it is loose in the 2nd photo - can't wiggle it off... I have my old chainset which can go on as a temporary replacement - its in much better condition (after 4,000 miles) than my OH's after 2,000 miles!

Turn anti-clockwise to undo, the bike being upside down makes no difference. Pass a closed loop spanner over the allen key to increase leverage. And wear a thick glove on your business hand in case of slippage...

thanks - will have another try... was using a metal lever through a closed loop allen key as it was... will try with a spanner... might help.

 

[SatNavSaysStraightOn]

OK - just managed to tease the middle chain ring off....
thanks all... much appreciated.

 

[raleighnut]

The bolt may have been fitted using Loctite Studloc or similar this is a superglue type product that is destroyed by moderate heat (about 240 C ) using force will probably snap the bolt before it releases . Just use a small blowtorch or hot air gun to GENTLY heat the bolt head as you don't need to get it that hot
This stuff is used to stop bolts coming loose due to vibration but if you are unaware of it you can wreck stuff easy-peasy

 

[summerdays]

I'm impressed how much damage can be done in such a short mileage!!! I think I managed at least 3x that without it looking anything like that! Friend of mine just used to buy old BSO's and literally run them into the ground before buying a replacement BSO to last the next few years (and he worked at Rolls Royce!! dealing with expensive kit, somehow it didn't apply to bikes).

I think you are very nice looking after his bikes for him, since he obviously can't be bothered himself.

 

[Scoosh]

Does he ever use the other 2 chainrings ... or does he always ride in the middle ring ???

 

[potsy]

Leave him to it would be my advice, especially if he doesn't appreciate you maintaining it for him, that way when he's struggling on a ride due to a badly worn bike and you're making it look easy, your smile will say it all

 

[SatNavSaysStraightOn]

Does he ever use the other 2 chainrings ... or does he always ride in the middle ring ???

seems he does. All of my old chainrings were in better condition than any of his... well he now has 2 newer ones, the smallest one is going to have to be replaced soon - my old one will do for the short term but I think a complete new chainset is needed. The question is whether he gets a £34.99 one from decathlon and I let him murder that, or try something harder wearing for £47.99 (once I have checked it is 100% compatible (http://www.evanscycles.com/products...ple-50-39-30-square-tapered-chainset-ec057601 but they don't do it in a 175mm crank length which is what he is on now, so I may have to scour ebay...) and I will have to have words with him...

I'm impressed how much damage can be done in such a short mileage!!! I think I managed at least 3x that without it looking anything like that! Friend of mine just used to buy old BSO's and literally run them into the ground before buying a replacement BSO to last the next few years (and he worked at Rolls Royce!! dealing with expensive kit, somehow it didn't apply to bikes).

I think you are very nice looking after his bikes for him, since he obviously can't be bothered himself.

He prefers his Rohloff hub... mind you so do I but they are too expensive to be left locked up outside a work place. But that said he only got 6,000 miles out of his rear sprocket on his rohloff hub before it looked like this! Look at 6 o'clock on the old sprocket....

Mine was replaced after 9,000 miles looking like that, so I think it must be something to do with the way he hammers bikes..... still repairing this one is only going to work out at half the cost of a new Triban 3... so it is still cheaper and the parts are better quality and I knew our muddy lane does not help matters. We have 3/4 mile of this to ride each way and every time we leave our home and that is by no means the worst section (probably 3rd worst!)

 

[Flying Dodo]

I have NEVER seen chain rings and sprockets that worn. Surely the chain was just constantly slipping - and must have started slipping a long time ago?

Presumably he's just kept the same chain on? You can reduce wear on the other components if you change the chain as it starts to show a bit of wear, rather than leaving it until the last minute. A good, clear guide shown here.

 

[SatNavSaysStraightOn]

nope - that is his 3rd chain on that combination of cassette and chainset... I don't have these issues despite having almost identical bikes (we both have Triban 3's in red, both have spesh rockhoppers though mine is newer and we both have identical touring bikes built to the same spec, just different size frames...) Tis something he does or does not do!

He has just owned up to only really using the middle chain ring! Don't know how long my old one will last him... at the current rate maybe only 600-900 miles but tis all I can do until I can get new... and nag him....