What Have You Fettled Today?

[SkipdiverJohn]

Intersperse this with all my tools doing the usual trick of scuttling away and hiding as soon as my back is turned (I think I live in a Toy Story style animated movie featuring cunning tools),

I mislay tools all the time, and when they reappear as if by magic, they are usually right under my nose. Hunted high and low for some cutters the other day, and had to resort to using an old blunt pair. Immediately after I found the missing good pair were actually in the pocket of my work trousers....

 

[BalkanExpress]

I finally unstuck a very stuck pedal. It had resisted:

Pedal spanner;
penetrating oil and then the pedal spanner;
the big bloke in the bikeshop and his pedal spanner;
"Cheater bar" fashioned from the leg of the bike stand;

Some digging around online suggested applying heat to the crank (alloy expands more than steel) but I don't have a heat gun so resorted to boiling the kettle and putting the pedal and crankarm in it. Left it for 10 minutes and then finally managed to get the pedal off

so it's time for a ...I'd better wash the kettle out first

 

[ColinJ]

I understand the desire not to be invisible to blind motorists approaching rapidly from behind, but I was semi-blinded by over-bright rear lights on one forum ride so I suggest that you can have too much of a good thing!

Super-bright rear lights used during the day could be handy though. The then-Brombtonfb had one on his bike and I could see it from over a mile away on a very sunny day. (He took a wrong turn ahead of me and I could see him disappearing into the distance. The light had a distinctive pseudo-random burst flashing pattern which was extremely eye-catching.)

As for my bike fettling today... very minor, but hopefully it will put an end to something that has been annoying me for months. The rubber hoods on my singlespeed bike kept loosening and bunching up under my hands. I had stripped the gear-changing parts out of some old Campagnolo Ergopower brake/shifters when I built the bike so I assumed that the hoods were slipping up into the gap left by the missing gear levers. It turns out that the problem was actually that I had wound the bar tape over 2 slot-shaped holes that tabs on the hoods needed to go into. Once I realised, I just had to cut suitable holes in the bar tape and it was then easy to straighten the hoods out. I haven't ridden the bike since then, but I think that will have cured the problem.

 

[si_c]

New brake pads on the front and bled the Hy/Rd caliper for good measure - was a bit wooly before. Now working much much better.

 

[Ming the Merciless]

Some nuts tightened and front shifting sorted.

 

[BianchiVirgin]

Adjusted my R7000 FD as it was dicking about a bit. It's a bit of a faff but got it sorted ok. Different adjustment to what I'm used to but figured it out.
On the same theme the 7000 series calipers are not much cop. Better than rim brakes but not what they should be. The rear one has been nothing but a PITA.

 

[ColinJ]

I replaced the tyres on my singlespeed bike. The old ones were getting very worn and I got 2 punctures on the Humber Bridge forum ride which might not have happened with better tyres on since it was tiny pieces of glass that were to blame. There is a good chance that they wouldn't have got through a thicker layer of rubber.

 

[Vantage]

Replaced the plastic zip ties with much nicer stainless steel ones. Pita to fit though.

 

[SkipdiverJohn]

I got 2 punctures on the Humber Bridge forum ride which might not have happened with better tyres on since it was tiny pieces of glass that were to blame. There is a good chance that they wouldn't have got through a thicker layer of rubber.

Which wheel did you get the flats in; front, rear, or one in each? I don't worry about running worn fronts but I like plenty of rubber on the rears, because in my experience the back wheel tends to puncture between two and three times more often than the front.

 

[ColinJ]

Which wheel did you get the flats in; front, rear, or one in each? I don't worry about running worn fronts but I like plenty of rubber on the rears, because in my experience the back wheel tends to puncture between two and three times more often than the front.

One each. They were old tyres when I put them on the bike in the first place and I managed to get another few thousand miles out of them after that so I can't complain. It wouldn't have been long before what is left of the rubber started to shred off. Rear tyres definitely wear more quickly than front, presumably because more weight is on the back of the bike.

I think I was given the old tyres years back, and the replacement tyres have been donated by fellow forumite colly so tyres for that bike are not exactly costing me a fortune! (I do put new tyres on my best bike though.)

I keep the old tyres for use on my turbo trainer, and possibly for carrying as emergency spares if I am going to be riding 'a long way from civilisation'.

 

[CXRAndy]

Dismantled our Meile washing machine, suspecting failed drum bearings. Unfortunately its the spider holding the bearing shaft has sheared

Not worth repair, drum alone cost as much as new machine

 

[Salty seadog]

Sterilised 6 water Bottles in Milton.

 

[alicat]

In the middle of fettling a yew arch. Must get back to it.

 

[Vantage]

Mowed the front and back 'lawns' (the ground is rough as hell).
Cut back next doors hedges which were overhanging my gate. Cut back some tree branches.
Put the laundry out to dry. Brought the laundry back in coz it started spitting 5 mins later.
Shattered!

 

[gavroche]

Went to Aldi to buy some milk and a bunch of sunflowers for my wife.