Pads, Cassetes, Cables & Chains

Winter can chomp through consumables, at an alarming rate. Pads are no exception and I’d bought replacements, knowing the time was edging closer. Fade struck, along a regularly traversed 1in7. Decision made. Pads stripped and replaced within minutes of returning home.

These patterns lasted a year, or so. Fixed relies less on mechanical braking, thus usefully extending pad and related component life. Provided you’re not living in a particularly hilly region, of course. I continue to be delighted by the Halo Fixed-G rear hub. Perfect chainline also ensures a nigh on silent transmission. Acceleration feels tangibly brisker, too. I’ve reached my conclusions regarding the Tioga City Slicker tyres https://www.sevendaycyclist.com/tioga-city-slicker-tyres  

Richard Peace has been putting the Carrera cross city folding bike through its paces  https://www.sevendaycyclist.com/carrera-crosscity-folding-electric-

Pad changing presented an obvious opportunity to give the bike a deeper clean, than usual.  The Velo 21 dirty weekend pre-wash did a decent job. It’s a subtle formula that doesn’t foam, or anything visually exciting. Science suggests the surfactants are doing the business. Eating into the grime, rather than just foaming on the surface.

Suffice to say, it romped through organic grot and slurry, without needing to agitate. Even petrochemical based spatter slithered away, left marinating for five minutes and then rinsed. These Soma Fabrications Condor II shallow drop bar also arrived this week, so I wasted no time fitting them.  

Elsewhere, having averted potential castration, my Univega’s cassette was resembling one of those “fat balls” supposedly breeding in our sewer systems. An obvious candidate for Velo21 degreaser.

Chain, cassette, jockey wheels and ring came up quite nicely too. Not without a fair bit of elbow grease. It’s worth noting that Stealth, is a very stoical ceramic. I’ll need to see how it works on less tenacious lubes, before passing appropriate, fair comment.

I also checked the chain’s health, using this digital chain checker. Budget analogue units are dirt cheap, accurate enough too. However, I prefer the pin-point, in a glance confirmation. Chains don’t stretch, they wear. Consign to the bin, once wear measures 0.8mm.     

Time spent undertaking regular inspections and preventative maintenance is priceless. Aside from extending the life of expensive components, I’d rather be out, enjoying the miles than fixing stuff by the road/trailside. Let alone the long walk home. 

This housekeeping also proved the ideal opportunity to fit the Easton EVA wrap and swap back to the Schwalbe Marathon Mondial https://www.sevendaycyclist.com/schwalbe-marathon-mondial-tyres , now the threat of ice, has greatly diminished. https://www.sevendaycyclist.com/after-the-gritters-went-home

Bored with Brexit, red top tabloids have now fixated on extreme weather. Coastal flooding now tops the agenda.  

After some casual, late night trawling, I came across an Alivio rear mech, to replace the long serving Microshift M45. Crucially it was of a higher spec, and at the right price. I’ve stripped, cleaned and inspected the M45 and there’s surprisingly little slop.

I changed the cable and closer inspection revealed the SRAM chain was fit for the knackers’ yard, cassette not far behind (though thankfully, I already had an 11-28) so retired both.

Worth buying a stock of both, if you do big mileages and/or ride in harsh conditions. However, as I’ve said before, there’s a fine line between sensible stock-piling and hoarding.

Cassette lock-rings can become very stubborn, even when they’ve been given a lick of stiff grease. The 11-30 Sram was no exception, benefitting from a quick blast of penetrant spray.

11-28 tooth electroplated Sram replacement on the freehub body and lock ring greased, I torqued it to 40nms, reinstated the wheel, then cut and fitted the new chain. I ordered two, so there’s one on tap, when the chain checker chimes 0.8mm.

While the other 9spd components are in solid shape, I’ll stick to this grade of rear mech and consumables. Unless I’m presented with an interplanetary (hub gear) system, I’ll probably upgrade to ten speed. An Octalink crankset, Deore mech and Sun Race brifters seem good options. The production Alpina 506’s factory specification, was a mix of Shimano LX and XT.

At present, it’s an eclectic mix of Ultegra, Deore, 105 (equivalent) and some slightly lower end but extremely serviceable parts. Components that make it go and stop in excellent proportion. I’m a constant tinkerer, and some would say, contrary figure.  Who knows what will follow…

Rides of Rediscovery

  

After several weeks, I woke the Univega from its slumber, swapped the Schwalbe Marathon GT 365 https://www.sevendaycyclist.com/schwalbe-marathon-gt365-tyre for some lighter Michelin Country Rock, the HT Leopard 878 for these Shimano A530 touring pedals and made good my escape along the unlit lanes.

I liked the Country Rock’s sprightly persona over dry, dusty trails but have found the casings vulnerable to sharps. Not just razor sharp thorns but flints too, hence their substitution.

Some riders are more prone to punctures than others. That said; there. Assuming hidden assassins, such as expiring rim tapes, protruding spokes or tyre beads aren’t the root cause, weekly inspection can greatly reduce their frequency.

Some riders swear by goo-filled tubes and I’ve had reasonable results, although find the sealant eventually goes-off. This can gum up the valves, preventing inflation and a nasty cut can see you battling a big old mess by the road, or trailside.  

Brushing the casings after you’ve been through shards of glass prevents them working inside the tyre casings as you ride. Weekly once-overs are the ideal time to give the machine a quick, sudsy bucket wash.

Tickle the casings, using a medium firm brush to dislodge any foreign objects, check the pressures with a reliable gauge and top up as required.

I initially leaned toward some 1.4 inch, wire bead, WTB Allterainasaurus. I’d bought the batch on offer-£14 for two pairs back in 2002 and ran one set on my mtb based Frankenbike cum daily driver.

Not the fastest rubber on asphalt but surprisingly reliable in the wet and I never succumbed to a flat-on, or off road. Narrower profiles also offer surprising bite along wet forest trails-provided you’re not pushing them beyond 18mph.

Quick enough for most, impromptu getaways from the madding crowd.  For the time being, I’ve gone for Schwalbe’s mighty Marathon 365 up front and Kenda’s sprightly small block 8 at the rear.

I like Oxford Products tyre scrub, which lacks the Green Oil eco brush’s versatility https://www.sevendaycyclist.com/oxford-products-tyre-scrub  but is inexpensive and delightful to use. https://www.sevendaycyclist.com/green-oil-bicycle-brush  These also make spotting nicks and minor cuts in the casing that bit easier. Fill any with a drop of superglue and like patched tubes, ideally leave this to cure overnight.   

An unplanned reconfiguration of the garage also unearthed my much loved Cool Tool. Arguably a game changer- the first modern bike specific multi-tool, it featured an adjustable wrench cum cone spanner, 4,5 and 6mm Allen keys, Phillips driver, chain splitter and 13mm socket for cranks. This one belonged to my late father.

A decade since his sudden death, I was relieved to reclaim it from the mischievous garage gremlin. Quaint and of little relevance to contemporary road and mountain bikes. Nonetheless, coupled with a smaller, eight function folding tool, it remains genuinely useful for my fixed gear builds.

Back to the chemical romance. Having tweaked the tubby tourer’s brake pads and arrival of these lubes and greases imminent, I decided then was the ideal opportunity to purge the waning, yet still unexpectedly tenacious existing lubricant. This had formed a lightly congealed glaze across the 9 speed cassette. The sort of fatty residue commonly found on grotty old cookers in bedsit land.

I’m not anti-petrochemicals, rather careful in their deployment, for several good reasons. Being as the “Soviet Block” was hosting a wealth of terracotta pots, I opted for the lawn, which dictates something turf, pet and plant friendly.

Concentrate FS1 seemingly in hiding, a healthy blast of “Mr Whippy” (Fenwick’s foaming chain degreaser) was an obvious alternative. Give the aerosol a vigorous shake and deliver like a roadside ice cream vendor.

Left a minute or so then tickled with a stiff bristled brush and rinsed with clean water, the impacted grime slithered away, revealing gleaming, unsullied electroplate beneath.

Since I’m long-term testing Muc-Off Team Sky Hydrodynamic lube on my ‘cross inspired fixed and Teenage Dream, I’ve dressed the Univega’s in some TF2 ultra dry wax. Be interesting to see how it performs in the real world and against other low friction, clean running wax blends.