What Have You Fettled Today?

[avecReynolds531]

A previous Brompton had a handlebar stem that wouldn't budge. Took a lot of WD40, then plenty of patient work with a hammer - and adapted quill stem bolt as a punch - before it was set free. Thankfully, this one was fine.
Headset all cleaned & reset in WG2.
Folding pedal required mini breaker bar assistance (sawn off seatpost), drive side pedal met a Park PW-4 - no problems there.
BB was in good condition, chainset & cranks too. Everything cleaned and reset.

 

[Punkawallah]

After the best part of six months chipping away with heat, cold, PlusGas, various tools and sawing, -finally- managed to get the chuffing pedal off a chainring. Not that I -needed- a chainring, but it was the principle.

 

[geocycle]

After the best part of six months chipping away with heat, cold, PlusGas, various tools and sawing, -finally- managed to get the chuffing pedal off a chainring. Not that I -needed- a chainring, but it was the principle.

I’ve been there….!

 

[DCLane]

I knew the Carrera Vengeance magnesium's front brakes needed doing. However, the rears decided to give up the ghost this lunch-time whilst out.

So ... new front brake pads plus adjusting the rears. Oh, and I added a bell. Just in case the brakes don't work again ...

 

[ColinJ]

I bought a set of seatpost Garmin mounts and just fitted one to each of my Yorkshire bikes. I have one spare mount which I will take down to Devon in the spring and fit that to the bike I have at my sister's cottage.

They are to hold the Garmin RTL515 radar rear light that I bought a couple of weeks ago.

 

[HLaB]

Topped up the sealant in my rear winter bike (the front runs tubes as the forks/full guards are too tight for 25mm tubeless).

 

[Tom B]

'tis the season of moving derailleur clamps it seems.

After my usual commuter bike FD moved a few weeks back... My clunker that lives at work suffered a moved front mech earlier this week, handily id used a blob of nail varnish to mark its position 12 months ago when I last had the front mech off, so I slackened off the clamp and reset it.

Then a colleague reminded me I'd promised to change his brake pads and rear tyre so i got on with changing his pads while he got on with brewing up. Couldn't change the tyre as its an e-bike with a hub motor and nuts on the rear wheel and i didnt have a spanner, so i need to take a spanner in.... I'm sure that'll need another round of brewing up :-)

 

[avecReynolds531]

Continued the Brompton yesterday: ultrasonic cleaning of chain, etc. While drying in the sun, the BSR Sturmey Archer 3-speed hub was cracked open. Shell, bearings & cones in good condition, but the seals aren't great - grit/ sand had got through.

I made the amateur mistake of forgetting that some of the pawl springs can easily fall out. No matter, it was a laugh asking yourself: "How stupid could you be?" The hub was all back together for the end of the day - with the addition of the recommended cone lockwasher HMW147.

This morning a M+ tyre, front block, 15T sprocket & newly shiny chain installed. Gears set up & short test ride - all good. 44/15 gives the choice of freewheeling in place of walking up some hills - which seems ok as a compromise.

Final clean & attending to paint chips is all that's left, soon to be completed. It's been several years since I worked on a Brompton & it's amazing how much you forget. Bike forums are a fantastic place to learn about bike maintenance & I'm always grateful for all the knowledge that is passed on.

This has been very enjoyable & rewarding work - glad to be finished; this M3L is a winter gift for a loved one.

 

[All uphill]

Two fettles today:

Checked chain wear on my ebike having reached 1000km on it. Still under 0.5 so that's as expected.
Checked and adjusted the rd hanger alignment to improve the shifting that has gone from being clunky and positive to clunky and hesitant. Success.

Sorted out my beard trimmer that had stopped working. Turns out the trimmer head can be removed to clean out hair - maybe I should have read the manual.

 

[Ming the Merciless]

Fairy lights on bike for tonights Christmas lights ride

 

[sevenfourate]

Synchronized light charging day.

Not convinced it’s ever going to be an Olympic Sport……

 

[ColinJ]

I wasn't happy with the alignment of the brake assembly so today I put the bike up on the workshop stand and had a good look at the brake. It wasn't right so I loosened the mounting bolts and realigned it. It looks a lot better now and the front wheel spins freely without the disc rubbing.

There was heavy rain all day here, which put me off going out. Sunshine is forecast for tomorrow though so I will give the brake a good test then. I suspect that the pads will still be iffy, but I will see if heavy braking can revive them.

I have been ill so today was the first proper test since I adjusted the brake. It was greatly improved! I didn't need to do any heavy braking today but what braking I did do was smooth, progressive, and effective.

Next time I ride down a steepish hill I will see how quickly I can stop!

 

[Andy in Germany]

Not much bike fixing today because we were doing the inventory. Fortunately, the stool by the till broke (I lifted it up, and the wooden seat came off the metal frame).
The training centre I work at also has a wood workshop, so I was able to mix my old and new job and repair it so it was properly solid, which made a nice break from counting...

 

[Wheelspinner]

Been fettling the new bike, changed cranks for a power meter, swapped bars for a wider and more comfortable bend, new tape and a decent clean up. Hope the weather plays nice for a decent ride to try it out tomorrow.

 

[DCLane]

This morning I found some more time to look at the Giant Rock SE MTB I picked up at the end of September; it's been delayed due to work / family / other pressures. Looking originally like this:

Previously it's had the Honda Goldwing / wooden / plastic-covered-foam seat removed, the seat frame removed, a different seatpost and saddle done. That sorted out the overly-heavy imbalanced rear end. So it steered. Honest!

Attention then turned to the gears - which we'd done a few weeks ago but I'd not documented on here. The seller had simply ground the gear levers off so the brakes could be bolted to the steering wheel. We've added 7x3 levers mounted to the steering wheel centre with new cables and a new chain. They do work.

The old and cracked MTB tyres were swapped for a pair of 1.5" Schwalbe CityJet's plus Presta inner tubes. I've also got a pair of Schwalbe Ice Spiker tyres for winter use. I also swapped the old plastic pedals for a pair of SPD/flat Shimano A530's. The paint was flaking off the steering wheel centre so that's had a coat of black Humbrol.

The final task was the brakes. They sort of worked. This morning they were dismantled, cleaned, re-greased and put back together with the outer cables shortened as there's no stem. New inner cables and guide pipes were used as well. The rear wheel was trued and it all now looks like this:

The seatpost is set for son no. 2, who's a plan for this weirdness. It does ride OK though.

Overall I'm pleased with this one. Spend was low; £1.16 for the bike originally via an eBay bid with the Honda Goldwing seat back being re-sold on eBay for well over the purchase price. We've spent on other bits (tyres / chain / shifters) plus the seatpost / saddle / pedals were from the parts shed but overall spend is about £35.