Not quite fettling… Santa put a spare inner tube in my daughter’s Christmas stocking. Today we brought in the mini pumps from both her and my bikes and practused attaching either pump to the tube and inflating it. She’s doing cycling for her D of E Bronze and we’re including some basic maintenance, repair and GCN watching… especially on the weeks when she’s been too busy to get out on the bike or the weather’s been too rubbish.
What Have You Fettled Today?
- Thread starter threebikesmcginty
- Start date
Page may contain affiliate links. Please see terms for details.
Jenkins
Legendary Member
- Location
- Felixstowe
As much as I hate the current run of wet & grotty conditions, it's given me a chance to catch up on a bit of maintenance.
Spa Elan - chain cleaned & lubed, wheels de-mudded, frame cleaned and given a quick polish with GT85
Van Nicholas commuter - chain cleaned & lubed, wheels cleaned, dreailleur jockey wheels removed, greased and refitted, frame cleaned
Giant flatbar - chain cleaned & lubed (it really needs replacing along wih the cassette as I think they're the originals with around 5000 miles on them), wheels cleaned, frame cleaned and pedals replaced with a better condition used pair from the box of bits.
Spa Elan - chain cleaned & lubed, wheels de-mudded, frame cleaned and given a quick polish with GT85
Van Nicholas commuter - chain cleaned & lubed, wheels cleaned, dreailleur jockey wheels removed, greased and refitted, frame cleaned
Giant flatbar - chain cleaned & lubed (it really needs replacing along wih the cassette as I think they're the originals with around 5000 miles on them), wheels cleaned, frame cleaned and pedals replaced with a better condition used pair from the box of bits.
raymondo60
A life behind bars
- Location
- Surrey Hills
Gave the MTB a thorough clean, then went out for a towpath jaunt and got it completely mucky again. Rinse and repeat.
HLaB
Marie Attoinette Fan
After my Hollowtech crank failure the other day (you know the type that according to sh1tmano doesn't exist) I am on a borrowed bike. It's got quite nice Portland Works Fenders but at about 50 miles the bolt for the rear stays decided that on Scottish roads with tyres at 70psi the tempo pace was too much for it. To their credit they held together for another 18 or so miles (although I did have to frequently stop to put the clamp back in position). The real fettle though was when I got back home. I took an old every ready light bracket apart to get its nut & bolt which I used on the mudguards.
A day with a lovely surprise. I had promised the girl that we would swap the pedals on her Liv hybrid for something a little less slippy in the wet. The LBS that I went to for tyres kindly loaned me a pedal spanner. I looked at you-tube and said to the girl that this job would either be very quick or very annoying and long. It was an absolute piece of cake. Compared to the last time when I had to use a mallet… I did one pedal and my daughter did the other one. Win.
chriswoody
Legendary Member
- Location
- Northern Germany
During today's rather wet and muddy ride the back brake was first dragging and scraping like mad, then it decided to give up the ghost completely. So this evening I thought I'd better give it the once over. Suffice to say one of the pads was worn down completely and the other one was not much better. One of the pistons was also sticking like crazy, so a complete clean of the calliper and pistons with Isopropyl alcohol took care of the pistons. Then I found a replacement set of pads and popped them in.
I checked the rear disc as well and decided it was high time it was replaced, I've had a spare kicking around for a while now, knowing that the rear was getting thin, I decided tonight was the night to replace it. Say what you like about discs, but I do love the fact that both pads and discs are easily and cheaply replaceable.
Also wiped off the chain with an oily rag and gave it a drop of oil.
I checked the rear disc as well and decided it was high time it was replaced, I've had a spare kicking around for a while now, knowing that the rear was getting thin, I decided tonight was the night to replace it. Say what you like about discs, but I do love the fact that both pads and discs are easily and cheaply replaceable.
Also wiped off the chain with an oily rag and gave it a drop of oil.
DCLane
Found in the Yorkshire hills ...
- Location
- Dewsbury, West Yorkshire
Bits by me, bits by my LBS (Sowerby Cycles, Mirfield):
- My Raleigh SP Race snapped a gear cable on Monday, with the rear cable guide tiny rivets also snapping (they were corroded) in the process. The LBS re-riveted the guide back on, with a new cable and new brake pads since they were down to the metal
- They also put new freehub bearings in my son's rear carbon Novatec training wheel. Despite covering only 3500 miles they've been hard miles on his training bike.
- I cleaned my Avanti Circa and adjusted the newly-fitted Shimano brakes. It all stops well.
- Son no. 2 also snapped the chain on his Boardman AirPro yesterday going up a steep hill -
- so that's been mended as well. It also needed a new rear mech hanger fitting, together with some other fettling. All good (hopefully) for a ride tomorrow.
- My Raleigh SP Race snapped a gear cable on Monday, with the rear cable guide tiny rivets also snapping (they were corroded) in the process. The LBS re-riveted the guide back on, with a new cable and new brake pads since they were down to the metal
- They also put new freehub bearings in my son's rear carbon Novatec training wheel. Despite covering only 3500 miles they've been hard miles on his training bike.
- I cleaned my Avanti Circa and adjusted the newly-fitted Shimano brakes. It all stops well.
- Son no. 2 also snapped the chain on his Boardman AirPro yesterday going up a steep hill -
- so that's been mended as well. It also needed a new rear mech hanger fitting, together with some other fettling. All good (hopefully) for a ride tomorrow.
Last edited:
HLaB
Marie Attoinette Fan
In all honesty I should have cleaned the bike I've borrowed after yesterday's 111 miles over the Campsies but I did it today 
DCLane
Found in the Yorkshire hills ...
- Location
- Dewsbury, West Yorkshire
A frustrating afternoon of fettling and failure today;
I've been building a NeilPryde Bayamo TT bike and it's all done bar cables and a chain. However ... I can't get bits undone to thread the brake cables through the Zipp bars (they came with Dura-Ace brake levers already installed) or the gear cables through the frame. As a result I gave up, very frustrated with a sore back after two hours of trying.
Son no. 2's Boardman AirPro's been playing up again; he lost two of four chainring bolts (red AtoZ ones) on his ride today and the brake got stuck on, partly because he thought a rocky farm track was a road. Brake unseized and tightened (it had moved) and the rest of the chainring bolts, which were also loose, swapped for better ones. We'll await the next thing to go wrong on this bike ...
Finally we're Calder Clarion's New Year TT tomorrow. Just 5 miles but it's a nice start to the year. My aim was my new TT bike as the Principia's in storage - given the cable failure above I'm doing it on my Raleigh SP Race commuter. Son no. 2's doing it on his Carlton Corsa orange fixie for fun, having raced one of our Dawes Kingpin's when the TT last ran two years ago. I'm sure his chainring bolts aren't the only screw loose there
It's been a couple of years since the Corsa was last used and we pulled it out for a check-over, but it all seems to be working fine. Garmin mount on, plus front/rear lights are both are now CTT requirements.
I've been building a NeilPryde Bayamo TT bike and it's all done bar cables and a chain. However ... I can't get bits undone to thread the brake cables through the Zipp bars (they came with Dura-Ace brake levers already installed) or the gear cables through the frame. As a result I gave up, very frustrated with a sore back after two hours of trying.
Son no. 2's Boardman AirPro's been playing up again; he lost two of four chainring bolts (red AtoZ ones) on his ride today and the brake got stuck on, partly because he thought a rocky farm track was a road. Brake unseized and tightened (it had moved) and the rest of the chainring bolts, which were also loose, swapped for better ones. We'll await the next thing to go wrong on this bike ...
Finally we're Calder Clarion's New Year TT tomorrow. Just 5 miles but it's a nice start to the year. My aim was my new TT bike as the Principia's in storage - given the cable failure above I'm doing it on my Raleigh SP Race commuter. Son no. 2's doing it on his Carlton Corsa orange fixie for fun, having raced one of our Dawes Kingpin's when the TT last ran two years ago. I'm sure his chainring bolts aren't the only screw loose there
It's been a couple of years since the Corsa was last used and we pulled it out for a check-over, but it all seems to be working fine. Garmin mount on, plus front/rear lights are both are now CTT requirements.
Last edited:
Wanted to ride my Surly- hasn't been used for a few weeks. The headset felt stiff, weird to ride. Noticed the tell-tale rusty drips below the headset. Turned around, quickly popped the forks out, roughly cleaned out the brown shite and sort of massaged some grease into the lower bearing- nice! got out and got it filthy riding around the lanes. Will have a proper look at it when I get time.
biggs682
Touch it up and ride it
- Location
- Northamptonshire
A while back i picked up a set of Hope hubbed wheels , which today i popped into the Sinclair machine i am using and thankfully the rear is the right OLN with the correct off set so a new Gatorskin fitted and left to sit for 24 hours before fitting and re setting the rear mechanism
A couple of fettling successes today and a fail. I am putting new tyres on my Vita because the old ones are starting to crack. My successes were opening the noodles on the brakes and opening the quick release skewers. These wouldn’t normally be such achievements but everything came back tighter after the last service. I also got the tyre off ok… then absolutely could not get the tube/wheel/tyre to play nicely together. Turns out the tube is too big. Hopefully fixing that tomorrow.
Fitted a new rear mech inner cable to the StumpJumper, a job that I've been meaning to do for about 6 months now 
While I was at it I adjusted the caliper clearances and bled the front brake then put some air in the dropper post which had lost pressure. She's all ready for a new year run out now 😊
While I was at it I adjusted the caliper clearances and bled the front brake then put some air in the dropper post which had lost pressure. She's all ready for a new year run out now 😊
Elybazza61
Guru
New cassette fitted on the stayer 650 wheel and Hope rotor on new Hope/DT front wheel (still waiting on spokes to build the matching rear).
