Bike fettling tasks you do that you hate.....

[bigsi]

I'm on a steep learning curve at the moment, never really thought about maintenance before, but my bike is clocking up a few miles and its started to show.

V brakes, I cant seem to get them to return off the wheel correctly, so my answer = ordered some new ones!
I have a quill stem and it doesnt seem right to me, so thinking about chainging to A Head is it? (another term I am not sure of)
My gears are starting to click, so need to fathom that one out too.

Or I could just let it implode and that will convince her indoors that I need a better bike

Simon

 

[Holdsworth]

Bloody cantis, a pain to adjust and get them centred on my new tourer. Those little spring adjustment screws don't do much unless the yoke cable is even either side, mine wasn't so I undid two grub screws, centred the cable and re-tightened and it now kind of works. I still find it tricky getting the cable long enough to unhook for easy wheel removal without making the brakes too slack and undoing the barrel adjuster all the way, and then cross threading it getting back on and buggering it up so that it only moves a few [gritty] turns before jamming!

All is fine on the front but the back is still too short so I guess the tyre must go flat before taking the wheel off unless I can sort it.

 

[HLaB]

bigsi, At a guess the problems with the vbrakes is likely to be they are dirty or the cables are snagging, new v brakes will only cure the former and tbh is overkill for something that just needed cleaning. Probably not good practice but I tend to increase the return spring tension on my bikes with v brakes so sticking brakes is less likely to occur.
I believe you can get quill stem to ahead stem converter but I've no idea how effective they are but I doubt they'd change the feel of the bike or would be necessary.
If your gears are clicking, you probably just need you gear cables tightened.
PS dont tell SWMBO they'd be simple problems to fix, any excuse for n+1 is a good thing AFAIC

 

[4F]

Oh, and fitting Minoura Space Grips. They give me apoplexy.

Tried for an hour, ended up throwing into back of shed in a fit of rage. They are the creation of satan himself.

+ another vote for V brakes

 

[raindog]

I actually enjoy all the mechanical work but, and this would be obvious if you could see my bikes right now, I bloody hate cleaning them. In fact, if anyone on here enjoys it, they're welcome to call round and do mine.

 

[XmisterIS]

ditto on the cleaning. I hate it. I do like doing mechanical work, my most satisfying job of late was fitting new forks and brakes to my MTB.

 

[Ludwig]

I simply adore every aspect of bike maintenance. If there is any task you hate then cycling is not really for you and you would be better walking or getting the bus. If you read Zen and the Art of Motorcycle maintenance it will change your whole outlook on bike maintenance and you will love every aspect of looking after your machines no matter how easy or hard the task is.

 

[Christopher]

Setting up a mechanical disc (Avid BB5) that only has the adjustable nut on one side. The caliper has to be vvvvvvvclose to the disc and exactly parallel to it otherwise it won't work. Mind you it has the stopping power of a well-aimed halfbrick (to quote Terry Pratchett) now that it does work.

Setting up Frogleg cantis wasn't as hard as I thought it would be and they have huge power but will probably eat through the rim quite quickly when it gets proper muddy again.

Both brake systems are so much easier than setting up sidepulls where the pad could rotate all over the place, then you had to work the slack out the brake cable, centre it, tighten it up and after all that it had the stopping power of a wet sponge and worse in the wet.

 

[mickle]

I simply adore every aspect of bike maintenance. If there is any task you hate then cycling is not really for you and you would be better walking or getting the bus. If you read Zen and the Art of Motorcycle maintenance it will change your whole outlook on bike maintenance and you will love every aspect of looking after your machines no matter how easy or hard the task is.

Eh? So, if I can't change the cylinder head gasket on my car then motoring isn't really for me? And if I can't fit a new tap then bathing isn't really for me? And if cant read code then web sufing isn't for me?

 

[400bhp]

If there is any task you hate then cycling is not really for you and you would be better walking or getting the bus.

I don't like cleaning my house. Shall I live on the street?

 

[400bhp]

If you read Zen and the Art of Motorcycle maintenance it will change your whole outlook on bike maintenance and you will love every aspect of looking after your machines no matter how easy or hard the task is.

Are you a bible basher? Should we expect you on our doorsteps soon, preaching the virtues.

 

[raindog]

If you read Zen and the Art of Motorcycle maintenance it will change your whole outlook on bike maintenance and you will love every aspect of looking after your machines no matter how easy or hard the task is.

I read that book years ago when it first came out. On the back cover it said something like "this book will change your life", well it didn't change mine, in fact I didn't think it was very good.

 

[GrumpyGregry]

I simply adore every aspect of bike maintenance. If there is any task you hate then cycling is not really for you and you would be better walking or getting the bus. If you read Zen and the Art of Motorcycle maintenance it will change your whole outlook on bike maintenance and you will love every aspect of looking after your machines no matter how easy or hard the task is.

what splendidly provocative tosh ludwig.

the bike I was fettling I built up myselfl last weekend from a bare second hand frame and fork with a shot headset. I ride 100's of km a month on a variety of bikes, only one of which is retro with v's fitted.

I read Zen and the art etc., when I was ?19?, whilst riding through France on a 500cc Guzzi. Shortly before I bought a BMW parallel twin like those in the book. An R100RS. Far from changing my life that book didn't even persuade me to change the main jets in the Bings on my bike. Which iirc is one of things touched on in that tome.

Oddly Mr Persig chose not to write Zen and the art of British or American or Italian Motorcycle maintenance. Had he done so his 'chill' would have not been so deep. ime anyway.

 

[Jezston]

Re-installing wheels with hub gears. Shi**no particularly. I think wheels should be super easy to fit.

I do love my SA 3speed. Unscrew that bit, loosen either side, off it comes. Put it back on, tighten them back up again. Looked at videos of Alfine wheel removal when I was thinking of getting one ... blimey.

Shame there's probably no way of engineering some kind of quick release gear hub!

 

[Cubist]

what splendidly provocative tosh ludwig.

the bike I was fettling I built up myselfl last weekend from a bare second hand frame and fork with a shot headset. I ride 100's of km a month on a variety of bikes, only one of which is retro with v's fitted.

I read Zen and the art etc., when I was ?19?, whilst riding through France on a 500cc Guzzi. Shortly before I bought a BMW parallel twin like those in the book. An R100RS. Far from changing my life that book didn't even persuade me to change the main jets in the Bings on my bike. Which iirc is one of things touched on in that tome.

Oddly Mr Persig chose not to write Zen and the art of British or American or Italian Motorcycle maintenance. Had he done so his 'chill' would have not been so deep. ime anyway.

Guzzi wiring? Now you're talking!