permanent bodge?

[alecstilleyedye]

yesterday i lost two out of three chainring bolts on a club ride (we discovered that one had gone and another had stripped its thread post café stop) but, fortunately, some clubmates had some zip ties and we tied the chainring onto the crank with them.

the crank actually seemed perfectly ok, even with some honking up the rises. i have, for sartorial reasons, replaced the bolts, but i can't help thinking that it could have been a permanent solution seeing as any zip tie that failed would be so easy to replace anywhere.

anyone had a 'get you home' bodge that lasted a long time?

 

[02GF74]

I have used bits of wood or branches to space out the front mech away from the frame so as to be in middle ring when the gear cable snapped.

 

[Paul_Smith SRCC]

A friend of mine frame snapped his GT ATB frame when we were on tour, it was a frame where the seat tube extended quite a bit above the top tube and it had sheared ¾ way through at the join. To get him to the end of the tour I found some heavy duty zip ties that I wrapped around the seat pin and top tube, it looked like more like a Suspension bridge than a bike frame by the time I had finished!

Six months later and the replacement still hadn’t arrived, so he was still riding it !

Paul_Smith
www.corridori.co.uk

 

[Tynan]

blimey, not sure I'd trust life and limb to a patch like that

the main bolt fixing the mudguard to the back of the bracket area was replaced by a zip tie over a year ago, bloody handy zip ties init

 

[asterix]

Used a bit of fencing wire to fix my mudguard. I wonder if they ever got the sheep back?

 

[Chuffy]

I've just used a cable tie to lift my chain tensioner and create a little more slack.

Mickle would probably pass out if I posted a picture of it.

 

[Steve Austin]

I'm still running a square taper crankset with a tin foil shim. its been like that for maybe 4 years...

hasn't creaked once!

 

[Chuffy]

I move that anything involving cable ties cannot be described as a 'bodge' because cable ties are a valid and, indeed, essential part of any bike.

Motion carried?

 

[longers]

^ agreed, they've been holding bits to a well used bike for ages. They're better than zip ties I think.

Arallsop did treat them as rather more disposable items recently.

 

[buddha]

I broke the rear mech on my MTB in some woods. So did a quick single speed conversion. It stayed that way for 2 years.

 

[HLaB]

I manage to break my indestructible SKS mud guards the brackets holding the guards to the arms (or whatever they're called, the rods that connect the bike to the guards). I put zip ties on to hold them as a quick bodge, 4 months later they're still there.

 

[SimonC]

yesterday i lost two out of three chainring bolts on a club ride (we discovered that one had gone and another had stripped its thread post café stop) but, fortunately, some clubmates had some zip ties and we tied the chainring onto the crank with them.

the crank actually seemed perfectly ok, even with some honking up the rises. i have, for sartorial reasons, replaced the bolts, but i can't help thinking that it could have been a permanent solution seeing as any zip tie that failed would be so easy to replace anywhere.

anyone had a 'get you home' bodge that lasted a long time?

Only three bolts to start with??

Once snapped my handlebars near the stem, put a branch into the bit still attached and rammed the bar back on. Got me home. Didnt join in sprinting for any signs though.

 

[alecstilleyedye]

yep, only three very weedy bolts to start with (about 5mm square + the bolt head). it's an old '60s stronglight track crankset. it now has some rather heavy duty nut and bolt fixings, thanks to lbs.

 

[dan_bo]

Only three bolts to start with??

Once snapped my handlebars near the stem, put a branch into the bit still attached and rammed the bar back on. Got me home. Didnt join in sprinting for any signs though.

Peach. I've ridden home (gingerly) on a tyre stuffed with grass.....

 

[gbb]

I really wished i'd taken photos...but here's one i posted a long time ago...

Polish guy at work came all sheepishly to me one day...
'Colin...can you fix it ?...pleeease'
Bloody hell ...the BB square taper axle had sheared halfway along the taper and he's got the drive crank in his hand.

No way...you cant fix that Wasting your (mine actually) time.

Pleeease...i need it (They're notoriously tight fisted at work...anything for nothing or it has to be fixed at least twice before they give up on it)

Well i'll have a go at a temporary repair.... i extracted the half of the axle from the crank, ground deep chamfers onto both broken axle faces, clamped it all together in the vice and mig welded the lot together. Now i've got to get the now knobbly welded taper good enough again to locate the crank on. Half an hours grinding then filing...bugger.... it works

I told him.....you ride home, then take it to a bike shop and get a new BB.
Do NOT stand on the pedals.
Do NOT ride fast.
Do NOT forget to get it fixed...it could break any time.
I will replace the BB if you get one from the LBS.
I will not charge you anything.
I accept NO responsibility if it goes.
It may last 5 minutes, 5 days...i dont know.

5 months later, he was still happily riding it