What Have You Fettled Today?

[cyberknight]

Did a couple of hours work on the scrap find boardman mx race circa 2013 this evening .
Greased the wheel bearings as the were bone dry
Sanded down the brake rotors and pads followed by a generous spray with disc brake cleaner then got the brakes set up
Swapped the saddle for a charge spoon as the original was shredded and then set seat height and set back best i could based on road bike settings .
Replaced the stem from the 100 mm provided to an 80 mm as the original bolts were near enough seized and a load of rusty water came out of the stem so i guess the bike has sat unloved outside , this current set up with the stem at the top of the steerer even though its flipped so its horizontal means the bars are about 8-9 cm higher than the bars which feels way to high and compared to the road bike they feel too close .
Got a new chain coming tomorrow as the gears are still a bit off especially one gear that doesn’t want to index properly which atm i put down to putting an 8 speed chain on a 9 speed groupset.

 

[cyberknight]

 

[ColinJ]

this current set up with the stem at the top of the steerer even though its flipped so its horizontal means the bars are about 8-9 cm higher than the bars which feels way to high and compared to the road bike they feel too close .

Moving the spacers to above the stem would not only lower the bars, but also push them further away. You could lop off the spare steerer length if that offended you.

 

[kynikos]

Had to fit a new bottle cage to my 1998 Ridgeback, the original having failed after a mere 27 years. Should I check the warranty?

 

[ktmbiker58]

Braved the heat to finish my top secret Birdy project:-

And here she is - Speed Birdy, Hubsmith 20" wheels with Schwalbe G-One Speeds in 40mm, Shimano GRX crankset with Wolftooth 46t chain ring and Stages power meter, Whiskey carbon fibre drop bars (in cruising position I can drop them another 50mm in an instant). Sram Red midlength rear mech with XG1190 ultra lightweight 11-32 cassette. TRP Spyre calipers, saddle is an Ergon that I might replace with a Selle. Karoo Hammerhead computer. I have left the cables on the long side I may trim them after I have folded her a few times to make sure nothing stretches or gets snagged.

Weight is exactly 10kg, I could drop it below that with a lighter saddle and the rack is quite heavy.

It honestly rides like a full size bike, I am amazed and really pleased, she folds even easier than before.

The next step is lighter saddle and try to find some 20" tubes with 60mm valves as I am having to use extenders at the moment.

 

[cyberknight]

The 9 speed chain for the boardman scrap bike came yesterday and once installed the shifting instantly improved
A bike that was dumped has cost me a new chain and from stock a gear cable , a bit of grease and saddle to get it to a reasonable condition.Total out of pocket expenses less than £15.

 

[HLaB]

Ive that dreaded rhythmic click when the drive is under pressure. I put a new chain and cassette on a few weeks ago and it stopped instantly for a few rides but it came back again. So tonight I've put in a new BB. The old one doesn't look like it was in bad condition at all.

🤔

 

[HLaB]

Non bike fettling today, although I may fettle the good bikes chainring bolts, to try and track down that click (or at least rule them out. My fettling today has been building this. I've still to attach the roof but you get the jist.

Well I did end up checking the chainring bolts and I took the headset apart too. Whilst I was at it I also took the commuter's head set apart as it's headset had become marginally loose.

 

[ktmbiker58]

With Birdy build complete it was time for a bit of fettling on the Genesis, first job was a Rohloff oil change, second job was to swap out the Fox 32 TC forks for the standard Genesis forks, I've given the Fox forks a good test and on balance for my riding they weren't worth the weight penalty - for gravel riding I will stick to the MTB rather than ride the equivalent of a 1990's MTB!
I swapped the Panaracer SK tyres for Conti GP5000 All Seasons which seem a pretty tough tyre and perfectly good on hard pack cycle tracks.
Final fettling was to fit the mounts for the Tailfin rack - a quick test ride and shes good to go! Editted to add a new chain arriving next week!

 

[fossyant]

Rear hub on my commuter has just started the occasional clunk. Means the pawls are grubby. Usually appears after you freewheel, pedal and clunk. Vintage XT hub so easy to disassemble. Removed freehub and hub side seal and drowned in in brake cleaner. Great stuff for dissolving dirt and grease. Squirted a few times, let it dry then dribbled some oil into the internals before applying grease to the rear bearings near the hub, fitted seal and reassembled hub. Some how found there was one bearing more than there should be.

 

[DCLane]

Son no. 2's back at home after university until he finds a job. The bikes he's been using to commute into and around the campus for three years have survived but needed some work. At least they weren't stolen.

First up to be worked on was the Specialized Hotrock single speed conversion, which we built in 2017 sold later that year and bought back in 2022. That had a broken front wheel which originally was from a Dunlop girl's bike. We replaced it with a NOS 24" red wheel. The main issue was a D-lock which had seized through the frame: this was eventually un-seized. Finally, the brakes were adjusted and it's all ready to go.

Second bike to look at was the Carlton Corsa orange fixie conversion which had a seized bottom bracket. The expensive seized Velo Orange bottom bracket was replaced with a basic Shimano UN100 model, but it'll do. Chain and other bits lubricated and it's ready to go. Ideally it'd benefit from a re-paint as the frame has suffered but it's not that important. Oh, and the chain isn't rusty - it's a dark orange colour.

We're not sure what will happen to either of these, so for now they'll just be stored.

He's brought back one more bike which needs work; an old Columbus X-Wing cyclocross bike, which we'll look at next and has broken brakes. Then the Giant FCR is going to get a few changes.

 

[PedallingNowhereSlowly]

Quite a bit of fettling done yesterday.

I stripped down the 2009 Specialized Sirrus Comp I acquired and gave it a good clean up. Unfortunately I couldn't find anything that would remove the black paint flecks all over it, but the frame is at least now quite shiny. And although features a good number of cosmetic scratches, is free of any dings or dents. Literally everything on the bike is knackered, apart from the saddle, seatpost, bars, stem, crankset, front mech and shifters. So it needs a good sprinking of new parts.

I then stripped down and assessed a Islabikes CNOC 16 for the wife's best friend's smol hooman. She's outgrown the CNOC 14 already. Sadly the 16 is not as tidy as the 14, having I suspect being through quite a number of smol hooman's already. It got a good wash and polish. I stripped, cleaned and regreased both hub bearings. Cleaned up and packed some extra grease into the headset bearings (look to be cartridge type). Chain looks to have some life left in it. Both front and rear rims are just servicable with rim wear indicators just visible. I think they will last until the smol hooman is ready for the next size up. I've ordered new grips, pedals and a rear tyre for it today.

Then finally, for yesterday, the purple Ribble Hybrid AL (turning out to be a great bike btw) got a wash and degreasing/re-lube after traversing some very dusty gravel towpaths earlier in the week.

Today I fetched the Sirrus's frame back out to check the alignment with some string. I'm not sure whether the results were bad or not.

 

[avecReynolds531]

A little time spent on a couple of rewarding tasks: some tyres brought back up to the right pressure after resetting a chuck & washer on an antique Pista - kudos to the company & SJSC for keeping parts: https://www.sjscycles.co.uk/pumps/silca-242-gasket-for-presta-chucks/

Reset the contact points on an aluminium mudguard, eliminating an occasional creak heard last time out on the road & improving the line.
Reducing stone chips, cleaning time & the toll on components/ drivechain (when the clouds open*) are all good.

*Classic Lightweights retells an anecdote from a top West Mids builder who was asked for a frameset - with no mudguard eyes - & answered: ‘Don’t be bloody daft, do you think it’s never going to bloody well rain?’

 

[All uphill]

This morning I spent a happy hour on Ms AU's Felt road bike which hasn't had much use recently.

The left shifter was very sticky, both wheels out of true and the FD limit screws needed adjustment. All done before mid-morning coffee.

 

[sevenfourate]

Today I fettled:

…..my Trek Hybrid into the back of the work van. On the way home I then stopped at my LBS.

For the princely sum of £7 (£5 charge + £2 tip”) they fettled the derailleur clutch; removed the derailleur - straightened the hanger, re-fitted hanger and indexed the gears.

All in the short amount of time it took me to walk across the road to visit the Bakery.

Successful afternoons work I think 😎