What Have You Fettled Today?
- Thread starter threebikesmcginty
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I guess your first song is Surrey with a fringe on top.
I picked up the wife's 'new' bicycle today - the Raleigh Pioneer 140 I have mentioned previously.
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Once home I popped it on the work stand and took a look. As always I'll start with the negatives
The front wheel is not roundNo amount of tweaking with a spoke key is going to fix it, the rim is properly bent
It would have been nice to know that it needed a new wheel before bidding.
Fortunately there are some positives; the overall condition of the rest of the bike is great. It's clearly hardly ever been ridden, I'd be surprised if it's done 10 miles in its lifeI've given it a quick clean and it's gleaming
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I've found and purchased a pair of cheap new QR wheels; it needed a new front anyway so I figured for a small amount extra I could add the benefit of QR at both ends. It'll be me taking the wheels on and off so it's a worthwhile upgrade
So what bling you got lined up for this one ? Can't have the Mrs being out done by you can we
Cracking buy all round should keep you in the good books for a bit.
So what bling you got lined up for this one ? Can't have the Mrs being out done by you can we
Cracking buy all round should keep you in the good books for a bit.
Bling-wise I've got my eyes out for a nice colourful top bag for the pannier but they seem to be mainly black
She is already talking about going cycling over the bank holiday weekend 
raleighnut
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Bling-wise I've got my eyes out for a nice colourful top bag for the pannier but they seem to be mainly black
D
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The new wheels arrived today, still no QR skewers or tires but the tubes and rim tape did show up. I didn't waste any time, figured I'd put the old tires and tubes on and fit the wheels using the QR skewers from the Kona. That way I could get the gears indexed, chain cleaned and lubed and brakes set up Wifey was so pleased with my handiwork we went for a little 10 minute ride together before dinner, she seems quite keen on her new steed
Once the new tires show up I'll swap them on with the new tubes. The only other thing I'm waiting on are some longer mudguard stays so I can get them fitted properly, they're a bit of a mess at the moment Hopefully that'll all arrive tomorrow
Wifey was so pleased with my handiwork we went for a little 10 minute ride together before dinner, she seems quite keen on her new steed Once the new tires show up I'll swap them on with the new tubes. The only other thing I'm waiting on are some longer mudguard stays so I can get them fitted properly, they're a bit of a mess at the moment
Hopefully that'll all arrive tomorrow SkipdiverJohn
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Was there something wrong with the old ones? They looked nice and round to me!
Saying that, when I got my Pioneer both wheels needed trueing, and the rear one still isn't 100%, but I cheated by "temporarily" swapping on the perfectly true wheels from an eBay special Apollo donor hybrid.
I'd had a couple of instances of the chain jumping off sprockets on my ancient Highlander MTB, whilst on rough surfaces, although the indexing works fine on gearchanging. I decided it was most likely due to insufficient tension being exerted on the chain, allowing it to whip. So today, before I went out for a ride I flipped the bike upside down and took a couple of links out of the chain to shorten it. Really could have done with 3 or 4 hands to hold it all in place whilst I got the rivet back in again, two are not enough! Anyway it seems to have done the trick as no more problems occurred during my 21 mile ride afterwards.
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raleighnut
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It looks to me that the stays have been fitted to the wrong sides so they are 'back to front' if you get what I mean.The new wheels arrived today, still no QR skewers or tires but the tubes and rim tape did show up. I didn't waste any time, figured I'd put the old tires and tubes on and fit the wheels using the QR skewers from the Kona. That way I could get the gears indexed, chain cleaned and lubed and brakes set up
Once the new tires show up I'll swap them on with the new tubes. The only other thing I'm waiting on are some longer mudguard stays so I can get them fitted properly, they're a bit of a mess at the moment
View attachment 426172
The long bit that holds the rear should be the shorter stay and the longer stay should be in the centre, I think turning them around wouldn't work but turning them round and fitting them to the other side might correct the clearance.
SkipdiverJohn
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The front was Pringle shaped, no amount of truing was going to fix it. I found a brand new pair for little more than a single wheel so decided to swap both and upgrade to quick release in the process
Mmmm…. it would have helped if I'd read your previous posting before asking, the pic with the front wheel off is a bit of a giveaway really.
The general appearance does suggest a very low mileage, and the transmission will probably be like new in that case, so plenty of wear life left in it. Plus you've got a spare rear wheel now! Maybe the owner had an "episode" which caused the front wheel to get bent and which also put them off cycling? I've got an old Raleigh Sabre MTB that is kept at a relative's house, which I am convinced has never been ridden more than half a dozen times despite being 24 years old as it looks and rides like a brand new bike. A lot of people must buy new bikes in a big burst of enthusiasm to get fit/lose weight - then hardly ever ride them. I can't see any other explanation for why there are so many hardly used bikes around that are sometimes 20+ years old!I wondered about that but a quick measure suggests the short bit is too short whichever way round they are fitted. New stays were only a couple of quid so it's not a major problem, I just hope I can straighten the mudguards up as they've got a nice twist to them at the moment
Cut off a section of metal coat hanger about 3 inches long and bend the ends in slightly more than 90° and it acts as your third and fourth hands. Catch it so you have slightly more chain between them than you need.
Edit: found a picture of what I mean.
SkipdiverJohn
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That's a useful tool, I've seen one DIY made before. I'll knock one up for next time. I've found breaking and remaking chains easy enough, it's just when you have to completely remove and re-insert a rivet to alter the length that the fun starts.
