The bike mechanic activity I hate the most.

beeb

beeb

Dr. Beebenson, PhD HA, ST, Offset (hons)
I think the only task I really don't like doing is bleeding brakes. Mainly because I normally end up accidentally popping the bleed hose off the caliper nipple under pressure and showering my shed with brake fluid.

Internal cable/brake hose routing doesn't bother me that much as most of my bikes have had it, and I'm now just used to puzzling out a way to make it happen. It does annoy me though when the internal brake hose routing is 'guided'/sleeved with an ID so tight you can't pull the hose nipple through if you're wanting to remove the brake line without chopping it though. I prefer the internal routing that's loose-in-the-frame but capped at each end (with caps that clamp the cable outer/hose in place, and ideally with ports big enough to draw the brake hose (and fittings) through. Also makes our "moto" style brake setups a lot easier to route than when the bike has guided sleeves but is setup for American-style brakes (front brake on left, rear on right).
 
leitch

leitch

Feelin' a bit rrranty
Jpez said:
I’m happy changing tubeless tyres. Even with Cushcore. What I hate for some reason is pulling the saddle off to top up air in a dropper or something. As soon as I go to reinstall and align the plates on the rails I become all thumbs. I swear it takes me half n hour to reattach a bloody saddle, plates dropping on the ground.
I spent the last month manually pulling my saddle up with my hand on my hardtail/bike path bike because I couldn’t bear to pull the saddle off.
pathetic isn’t it.
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With you 100%. Currently lifting my saddle the last ~10mm because I cbf taking it off to get to the valve.
 
K

kten

understands stuff moorey doesn't
The Duckmeister said:
If replacing a hose or cable that's already in the frame, it's easy as, just poke a spare gear cable up the hose or outer, and feed it into the frame as you pull the outer out from the other end, leaving the tail of the guide cable ("mouse") hanging out enough to stop it falling back through the frame.

Poke the end of the mouse into the new hose/cable outer and use it to guide through the frame.
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No, it’s not the physical act of changing them, that is easy. It’s the fact I need to trim it every time, then rebleed etc. As I like a tidy cockpit I don't have long cables so it only lasts 3 or 4 changes then I’m up for a new brake line and an olive of some description. PITA.

I’ve resorted to buying external brake line c clips from eBay to go external on everything as I’m pretty sure my changing frame retail therapy isn’t done yet.
 
yuley95

yuley95

soft-arse Yuley is on the lifts again
Jpez said:
I’m happy changing tubeless tyres. Even with Cushcore. What I hate for some reason is pulling the saddle off to top up air in a dropper or something. As soon as I go to reinstall and align the plates on the rails I become all thumbs. I swear it takes me half n hour to reattach a bloody saddle, plates dropping on the ground.
I spent the last month manually pulling my saddle up with my hand on my hardtail/bike path bike because I couldn’t bear to pull the saddle off.
pathetic isn’t it.
Click to expand...
I thought I had nothing to add to this thread till I saw this. 100% spot on.

My Bike Yoke is the only dropper I’ve had that has not lost pressure over a year of riding. Worth the premium price just so I don’t have to remove the seat and add pressure every 6 months!
 
S

shiny

Go-go-gadget-wrist-thingy
yuley95 said:
I thought I had nothing to add to this thread till I saw this. 100% spot on.

My Bike Yoke is the only dropper I’ve had that has not lost pressure over a year of riding. Worth the premium price just so I don’t have to remove the seat and add pressure every 6 months!
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Agree. Saddle clamps are just fussy - ok is the bolt screwing in nope it just pushed out the nut which has now bounced around the shed floor.

I really liked the Hope mount I had before droppers - pop one rail and angle into the other side and squeeze snug up and then it was notched to adjust once in place torque and done.

1703105880542.png
 
ForkinGreat

ForkinGreat

Knows his Brassica oleracea
rowdyflat said:
I have complained before and I put myself in the LTIH thread.
I hate setting up tubeless tyres.
Tubeless is fantastic almost zero flats but it is so hit and miss , I can spend hours and get no where, there is so much to go wrong.
I know you have said it before = its easy.
There are some tyre and rim combos that are good and others that are shit ,its hard to tell until you try.
I think I hate Stans rims they are always so farkin tight.
These problems include . Leaking at the valve .
Getting the tyre evenly beaded so it doesnt have a wobble despite the pressure rating I blew an almost new gravel tyre off the rim and now it and my hearing is farked .
The bead stretches and pulls the tyre out of shape.
I have had some success with Stans tubeless kits ie rubber liner with valve and of course I find Mavic Crossmax awesome no tape or sealant necessary but expensive.
If I need to replace a tyre my tape always seems to loosen due to the sealant.
I can do most things but maybe I will contract this job out to the LBS.
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Both my wheelsets have stans rims. (flow)
I get a soft brush, and dip it in some soapy water. brush that on the rim bed and around the bead area, the entire way around the rim. Muscle the tyre on howeever, including levers (the topeak shuttle levers kick arse) then inflate the tyre until the beads pop into place. Then remove the valve core and inject the stans fluid or whatever you use. Replace the valve core, inflate tyre. spin wheel so tubeless sealant coats inside of tyre etc
Make sure bead is seated properly.
Done.
**May only work with stans rims and Maxxis and Schwalbe tyres (??) NFI.
 
hellmansam

hellmansam

Likes Bikes and Dirt
When working in a Perth bike shop - I used to dread working on the family bike collections that only got used on trips to Rottnest and put away in the shed with a dose of salt from the ferry trip, for a year or three. They'd bring them into the shop for a 'basic service' the worst ones would have seized cables/chains, perished tyres/tubes and a few Redback spiders living under the seat and BB.
 
hellmansam

hellmansam

Likes Bikes and Dirt
Tubeless tyres - I kind of like fitting them - but hate putting sealant in through the valve so I'll get the tyre on the rim, using soapy water if necessary and then do a dry run inflating them without sealant. With new wheels/tyres it tests for leaks in the rim tape which IMO are best sorted out rather than relying on the sealant to fix them. Then I open the bead enough to pour sealant in from a cup, pop the bead back in place and inflate. Give them a spin or a driveway test ride to spread the sealant around, leave at 40-50psi overnight if possible and check pressure again. Eliminates any issues with leaks before the first ride and I never have to root around with band aid fixes.
 
Oddjob

Oddjob

Merry fucking Xmas to you assholes
Dales Cannon said:
Loose balls.
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I have a love/hate relationship with Shimano.

10 speed XTR love, love, love.
Cup and cone bearings, so much hate.

Saint brakes, love.
Diagnosing contaminated brake pads from leaky caliper pistons, WTF Shimano!

Hollowtech II, God tier engineering.
Chains made from butter, oh my god.

Despite having every bearing removal and installation tool ever made, I hate changing linkage bearings the most.


Sent from my M2012K11AG using Tapatalk
 
Dales Cannon

Dales Cannon

lightbrain about 4pm
Staff member
Oddjob said:
I have a love/hate relationship with Shimano.

10 speed XTR love, love, love.
Cup and cone bearings, so much hate.

Saint brakes, love.
Diagnosing contaminated brake pads from leaky caliper pistons, WTF Shimano!

Hollowtech II, God tier engineering.
Chains made from butter, oh my god.

Despite having every bearing removal and installation tool ever made, I hate changing linkage bearings the most.


Sent from my M2012K11AG using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
I cleaned, lubed and reassembled the cheap roadie wheels. Nipped up perfectly. Test ride for about 10km to settle grease etc. Adjusted cones. Perfect. Wheels spin forever. Neighbour (roadie person) gives them the green light. Neighbour rides it 50m. Cones are loose on the front wheel. WTF? Did I leave the locking nuts loose? Nope. Just shit. Adjust and all ok.
 
rowdyflat

rowdyflat

chez le médecin
Love the Koolstop tyre lever jack saves my hands from arthritis.
I use a small clamp to stop the bead from coming out as I put the tyre on.
 
Dales Cannon

Dales Cannon

lightbrain about 4pm
Staff member
rowdyflat said:
Love the Koolstop tyre lever jack saves my hands from arthritis.
I use a small clamp to stop the bead from coming out as I put the tyre on.
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I replaced the tyres on my observed trials motorbike many moons ago because you know as kids we always did the tyres by hand. Except these rims have grooves cut into them to help hold the bead from slipping and multiple rim locks. Took me hours. Used g clamps to squeeze the tyre together while juggling multiple aluminium tyre levers and ratchet straps to get the tyre finally seated. It was tubeless because the rim had no spoke holes just the valve hole. Went back to the bike shop a week later for some gear oil and found out they charge $10 to change tyres.
 
Jabubu

Jabubu

let you google that for me
I don't do all the things you can all do but for me it's loosening cranks. I don't know how many near misses with the chainring I've had but one day I'm going to lose my fingers..
 
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