What Have You Fettled Today?

[si_c]

The bearing is not just a bit rough, it is awful. I am not going to try to salvage it!

Always good to know when to cut your losses!

I have also decided that I will do the job myself without using the proper tools. The bottom bracket was cheap so even if I wreck it I won't have lost much. I watched a video on YouTube of someone doing a tool-less bearing swap and I think that, with care, I can manage that.

I will have a go at taking the old bearing out this afternoon and order a replacement.

Could be worth a look on aliexpress for cheap bearing press/removal tools you'll likely find something that will get the job done around a tenner. Worth it if you intend on doing this semi/regularly.

I'd also consider flushing out the light lubricant in the bearing on the NDS after install and packing with a heavier/waterproof grease, should make it last longer from the start.

 

[ColinJ]

Could be worth a look on aliexpress for cheap bearing press/removal tools you'll likely find something that will get the job done around a tenner. Worth it if you intend on doing this semi/regularly.

I think that might be necessary... it turns out that the 'tap bearing out with a screwdriver' method would be extremely difficult or impossible because the bearing housing covers almost all of the back of the inner race!

 

[All uphill]

Strange one today.

A friend asked me to look at his bike as the gears were "slipping". It's a utility bike with 3 x 7 gears and a freewheel.

I took it for a spin and couldn't find a problem. Checked derailleur hanger, checked chain wear, checked limit screws and took it for another ride. All still good.

It makes a change to be trying to find a problem. After talking with the owner I think he may be changing gears under load, and finding/causing a problem that I can't.

 

[Punkawallah]

There’s no problem like an intermittent problem.

 

[Pblakeney]

Derailleurs on the summer bike fettled on the trainer prior to a proper road test. Just got to check wheel trueness and wait on the weather changing to spring proper.

 

[ColinJ]

I have been riding my best bike while waiting to sort out the bottom bracket on the bike that I normally ride on unexciting routes.

I noticed that my left wrist was feeling slightly uncomfortable when I got home and then I noticed that the hood on that side was not quite lined up with the one on the righthand side. I tweaked its position slightly to sort that out and will see if that feels comfortable on my next ride.

 

[Andy in Germany]

Strange one today.

A friend asked me to look at his bike as the gears were "slipping". It's a utility bike with 3 x 7 gears and a freewheel.

I took it for a spin and couldn't find a problem. Checked derailleur hanger, checked chain wear, checked limit screws and took it for another ride. All still good.

It makes a change to be trying to find a problem. After talking with the owner I think he may be changing gears under load, and finding/causing a problem that I can't.

We had a sort of similar one from a customer recently: she claimed her chain was slipping when she pulled away from traffic lights. Chain measured and it wasn't stretched. This was an E-Bike, and it's common for people to wear out the upper gears because they let the motor do the harder riding instead of changing down a gear, so I asked if she uses the upper gears all the time. She said, "Oh, no: I change gear all the time: I use "Eco" most of the time, then "Tour" in traffic, and "Boost" on hills..."

 

[Gwylan]

We had a sort of similar one from a customer recently: she claimed her chain was slipping when she pulled away from traffic lights. Chain measured and it wasn't stretched. This was an E-Bike, and it's common for people to wear out the upper gears because they let the motor do the harder riding instead of changing down a gear, so I asked if she uses the upper gears all the time. She said, "Oh, no: I change gear all the time: I use "Eco" most of the time, then "Tour" in traffic, and "Boost" on hills..."

They walk among us. My mistake was I married one, before eBikes.
It was amusing at first.
Then way back there was " there's a red light on the car. I noticed it last week. Is it important? "
We were going out, " so no my little cherub that's the low oil light. Do you always drive in third gear? I'll deal with it."
Then something in the skill gap got wider and harder as well as the expectations of service delivery rising exponentially.
" My printer won't print! Sort it!"
Erm, my (not hers) office is full of printed papers
Did you look at which printer you selected on the network?
What network? I said print! It said how many? I said 20. Nothing is coming out of my printer"

I feel your pain.

 

[ColinJ]

I had got distracted by bottom bracket woes and forgotten about my new freehub bearing so I put that in this afternoon then put the freehub back on the wheel.

The plastic hub cover on the NDS of the wheel had snapped into 2 semicircular pieces which were in danger of falling off. That would have increased the chance of gunk getting into the bearing on that side. I could have tried gluing it back together but I opted for my trusty soldering iron technique - yes, I do know that you can't solder 2 pieces of plastic together, but melting the join between them can be very effective!

I noticed something else when I put the wheel back in... The wheel has always been slightly off-centre on that bike. It was never much of an issue with a 23C or 25C rear tyre but I have fitted a 28C now and just spotted that there isn't much clearance with the chainstay on one side. There is still 1-2 mm clearance on that side (vs 4-5 on the other) but that could be a problem if the wheel goes out of true on a ride! For now I have tightened the QR with the wheel centred but that means it isn't quite sitting right in the dropout. I will consider a more permanent solution at a later date.