What Have You Fettled Today?

[C R]

You often get a build up of black aluminium deposits on the steerer, usually around where the split washer is that pre-loads the bearing. Used to happen fairly regular on my commuter road bike. Bit of wet and dry to clean up, re-grease and it's OK for some months.

Yep, that was it.

 

[Tenacious Sloth]

Yep, the loud creak at the front is gone, and it was reproducible leaning side to side on the bars on the floor, without being on the pedals. The SPD creak is much quieter, but now that the front is quiet it has started to annoy me.

You need to stop NOW before it’s too late.

I fixed one creak after another until the bike was totally silent.

Now the sound of my arse cheeks rubbing together when I peddle is driving me mad!

 

[C R]

You need to stop NOW before it’s too late.

I fixed one creak after another until the bike was totally silent.

Now the sound of my arse cheeks rubbing together when I peddle is driving me mad!

Maybe you should pedal instead!

 

[Tenacious Sloth]

Maybe you should pedal instead!

Doh! Schoolboy error. Don’t you just hate it when that happens?

 

[DCBassman]

Today, I shall be fitting these to the Scott, while it awaits the replacement tyre that has vanished into a black hole 'twixt Wiggle and Hermes.

It's not a major change (down from 52-42-30), but brings it more in line with gearing on the Revell mixte, which I really like.
And the poorly-hidden weight weenie in me will luxuriate in the few grams saved over steel rings currently fitted! Stupid, I eat more than the difference in weight if I sprinkle a few extra sultanas on my bran flakes!
Thanks to @Xipe Totec for the rings!

 

[JhnBssll]

I rode the Bianchi on Monday and noticed the brakes weren't feeling great; biting OK but a little spongy. I then rode the Pilot on Wednesday and the brakes felt night and day better, despite being near enough identical - both Hope RX4 calipers and shimano levers. This evening I decided to bleed the brakes on the Bianchi (for the eleventeenth time) to try and get them where they should be

They're a lovely looking brake and work fantastically when properly set up, but bleeding them can be a real pig of a job I've set up 4 pairs of them now and of those 4 pairs 5 calipers have been no problem at all. The other 3 calipers have been a real pain and these are 2 of them The 4 pistons and oilway layout doesn't make it easy for air to escape once you get a pocket trapped. Lots of vacuum and careful piston extension/retraction was needed but eventually I got there with both They now feel great and, more importantly, exactly the same as the others Hopefully I'll get a ride out on her soon to try them out but it's looking pretty windy over the long weekend so might have to wait - the pilot tends to take the inclement weather better

 

[DCBassman]

Fitted the new-to-me chainrings to the Scott, all good bar one persistent problem, which predates the change. Always cable-stretchingly hard to click onto the big ring. Having faffed with it extensively once the rings were fitted and the FD adjusted to suit, I'm pretty sure that this is a slight compatibility issue. The ST-EF65-9 shifters are MTB. When the bike was 8-speed, it wore a pair of ST-R221L/225R Claris/Sora STI flat-bar shifters (currently resident on @Reynard 's MTB build). The 221 left hand shifter matches road shifters perfectly, and copes well with MTB front mechs too, although I've no idea why this should be so. It just works. So I may yet revert to a pair of these and go back to 8-speed.
New rings weighed:

Old rings:

That's quite a difference! Not that it will be noticeable with me sat on top...
Also took the guards off the mixte, makes it look like a 'trackie'!

 

[JhnBssll]

Different cable pull ratios on some shimano road vs mtb front mechs - sounds like the shifters might be trying to pull more cable than the mech will allow?

 

[DCBassman]

Different cable pull ratios on some shimano road vs mtb front mechs - sounds like the shifters might be trying to pull more cable than the mech will allow?

To me, it feels the opposite, forcing the shifter to pull enough to get the mech swung out. Either way, can't be doing the shifter much good: on the stand, it takes both thumbs to make it click in. The mechanism won't stand that for too long, I;m thinking...

 

[DCBassman]

And yet the 221 will do road and mtb. Odd.

 

[JhnBssll]

Just did a quick bit of reading and it seems 9 speed are cross compatible so the problem potentially lies elsewhere

 

[DCBassman]

Just did a quick bit of reading and it seems 9 speed are cross compatible so the problem potentially lies elsewhere

For rear mechs, absolutely, but front mechs, not so much, I've always understood. It may also be that it's time the mech was fully stripped and cleaned. That's been done by me...never. And no idea if ever before that either. Remembering how the bike was when it came to me, it had been used hard and not well-maintained. Living outdoors under a cover isn't ideal either, but that's not something I can change.

 

[palinurus]

Gatepost at the back was wobbly. All rotten. Got one of those metal post repair things. Removed the gate, the fence panel and then the post just flopped over, the base was all spongy.

Tried whacking in the repair spur but it got stuck and I bent the pointy bit. Cut off the bent bit with a hacksaw.

Turned it 180 degrees and tried it that way and it went in easier, but it was really difficult to keep it straight. Sort of compensated a bit when I did the clamping bolts up.

Well- all reassembled and it's well solid, but a bit lean-y.

 

[palinurus]

Next time I'll get someone else to do it.

 

[Deleted member 1258]

Next time I'll get someone else to do it.

Thats my plan with our post out the back, the base is rotten, its 2 metres tall and supports a fence and gate of a similar height.