What have you fettled today?

[perpetual dan]

Fitted a front rack to the inbred, and got new panniers set up to attach to it.

[Kim]

Removed some chain from the Brompton's rust.

[Feanor]

One thing leads to another.

The transmission on my winter/commuting bike has been rough in a number of ways for quite a long time.
I decided it was time to sort it out.

Now, I already knew the chainset had a worn middle chainring.
You could see the teeth moving in the chainlinks if you gave the pedals a decent shove.
It's been this way since the chain was new, some time back.

So new (to me) chainset. ( The rings for the old one are manufactured out of pure unobtanium ).
This sorted out the chain-slop on the chainset.

But in doing the chainset swap, it became clear the Hope BB bearings had also reached end-of-life.
So new Hope BB bearings fitted to the shells.
Now, the chainset is not worn and spins sweetly.

But there is a residual movement and clicking I can still feel.
The chain is very noisy on the chainwheel, but it's OK according to the Park chain gauge.
I decide to change it anyway.

So new KMC chain fitted last night.
Also fine-tuned the indexing whilst I was at it.
Now, the transmission is silent and no residual clicks and klunks.
It's like a new bike again.
100% success.

Except.
On this morning's ride into work, as soon as I hit the first very modest hill leaving the village where I live, OOMF!
Massive slippage.
New chain on worn cassette fail.
I can use any gear I like, except the gear I like.
So I had to HTFU and push a higher gear and go a bit faster in order to reach my comfortable cadence.

So new cassette on order.
It's never-ending.

[matthew]

The garden fence has been painted (in part) The outside facing sections have now had a coat. Unfortunately I think a second is required and I still have to do the inside of the garden. So it will take at least another 4 solid afternoons of good weather when I would rather be on my bike.

Whoever thought those panels in a brick wall that consist of three horizontals with diagonals mounted on alternate sides needs to be up against a wall. They may look good and let the air pass through, but you have to reach between the near planks to get to the inner face of the far side.

[David Martin]

One thing leads to another.

So new KMC chain fitted last night.

Except.
On this morning's ride into work, as soon as I hit the first very modest hill leaving the village where I live, OOMF!
Massive slippage.

I found that when I had not trimmed the chain to a short enough length.

[andrewc]

My cutlery drawer.  I can now open it again!  The 2 handles of the bloody garlic press had opened and one was jamming against the cabinet when I tried to open the drawer.   

Multiple implements were tried, but in the end a sheet of cardboard was able to knock the press into a different plane so I could open the drawer.   Damn, now I'll have to tidy all the stuff on the draining board away!

[Kim]

Have you made an appropriate sacrifice to Anoia?

[andrewc]

Have you made an appropriate sacrifice to Anoia?

   Until last year I'd never read any Pratchett (just not enough shelf space),  I have since acquired a few volumes & finished "Thief of Time" earlier this week.   I've yet to encounter this deity though.....

It's not even a very good garlic press, over engineered & a pain to clean 

[hatler]

One thing leads to another.

The transmission on my winter/commuting bike has been rough in a number of ways for quite a long time.
I decided it was time to sort it out.

Now, I already knew the chainset had a worn middle chainring.
You could see the teeth moving in the chainlinks if you gave the pedals a decent shove.
It's been this way since the chain was new, some time back.

So new (to me) chainset. ( The rings for the old one are manufactured out of pure unobtanium ).
This sorted out the chain-slop on the chainset.

But in doing the chainset swap, it became clear the Hope BB bearings had also reached end-of-life.
So new Hope BB bearings fitted to the shells.
Now, the chainset is not worn and spins sweetly.

But there is a residual movement and clicking I can still feel.
The chain is very noisy on the chainwheel, but it's OK according to the Park chain gauge.
I decide to change it anyway.

So new KMC chain fitted last night.
Also fine-tuned the indexing whilst I was at it.
Now, the transmission is silent and no residual clicks and klunks.
It's like a new bike again.
100% success.

Except.
On this morning's ride into work, as soon as I hit the first very modest hill leaving the village where I live, OOMF!
Massive slippage.
New chain on worn cassette fail.
I can use any gear I like, except the gear I like.
So I had to HTFU and push a higher gear and go a bit faster in order to reach my comfortable cadence.

So new cassette on order.
It's never-ending.

I certainly don't follow the line that at every change of chain you should change your cassette. Nor do I follow the line that I should change my chainset at each change of cassette.
I do however work on the basis that if I am changing my chainset I do replace the cassette and chain.

[citoyen]

I do however work on the basis that if I am changing my chainset I do replace the cassette and chain.

I recently fitted a new chainset, BB and both front and rear mech, but I kept the existing chain and cassette because they're not that old. Seems to be working fine.

Like Feanor, this started out as an operation to change a chainring. It's worth it though - again, like Feanor, I find it feels like a new bike. 

[Jurek]

Fitted 3 x pairs of Exposure clamps to three road bikes, thus now making all my bikes Hope Vision 1 compatible (following the demise of my turn-of-the-century Cat Eye EL530s) without the usual need to adjust-the-point every time the lights are removed / replaced.
In each instance this necessitated adjustment / replacement of the brake outer cable (in order for the cables to clear the bar-under-slung lights), and in most cases necessitated replacement of brake cable inners on account of abject ham-fistedness with the cable cutters.
Just as we go into summertime, all I need now, is to be allocated my own darkness, so that I can test the lights.

[drossall]

Wasn't there something somewhere explaining how that works? I've got a Hope Vision 1, and it's one weakness is that the bracket is permanently fixed to the light. It's not that hard to move to another bike, but it's a nuisance. I'm sure I read somewhere about using alternative brackets.

[Jurek]

Wasn't there something somewhere explaining how that works? I've got a Hope Vision 1, and it's one weakness is that the bracket is permanently fixed to the light. It's not that hard to move to another bike, but it's a nuisance. I'm sure I read somewhere about using alternative brackets.

It may've been me.
It's recorded on here that I used self-amalgamating tape on the bars. The rubber blocks on the Hope clamps would make their impression in the SA tape, giving a 'key' for the next time you fit the lights.
The  trick here was to give the SA tape one wind of electrician's PVC tape. Otherwise the Hope's rubber blocks would self-amalgamate to the tape wound round the bars.
I've been using Hope Vision 1s for about 6 or 7 years. I really wish I had done this sooner. The faff-reduction is not insignificant.
If you're not removing / replacing your lights a lot, it is probably of less significance.
The cycle shed at work is the only part of our 6 acre site not covered by CCTV, and it is adjacent to Goods In (vans coming and going 24/7)  .

ETA
TimO, Sgt Pluck, and possibly Roger, amongst others, use the Exposure clamp on their Hopes.

[hatler]

Fitted 3 x pairs of Exposure clamps to three road bikes, thus now making all my bikes Hope Vision 1 compatible (following the demise of my turn-of-the-century Cat Eye EL530s) without the usual need to adjust-the-point every time the lights are removed / replaced.
In each instance this necessitated adjustment / replacement of the brake outer cable (in order for the cables to clear the bar-under-slung lights), and in most cases necessitated replacement of brake cable inners on account of abject ham-fistedness with the cable cutters.
Just as we go into summertime, all I need now, is to be allocated my own darkness, so that I can test the lights.

Ooo. Those look neat, and I have more than a couple of Hope Vision 1s. I may be tempted.

[Jurek]

Fitted 3 x pairs of Exposure clamps to three road bikes, thus now making all my bikes Hope Vision 1 compatible (following the demise of my turn-of-the-century Cat Eye EL530s) without the usual need to adjust-the-point every time the lights are removed / replaced.
In each instance this necessitated adjustment / replacement of the brake outer cable (in order for the cables to clear the bar-under-slung lights), and in most cases necessitated replacement of brake cable inners on account of abject ham-fistedness with the cable cutters.
Just as we go into summertime, all I need now, is to be allocated my own darkness, so that I can test the lights.

Ooo. Those look neat, and I have more than a couple of Hope Vision 1s. I may be tempted.

They're a world of difference from the Hope clamps.
As I've mentioned, I wish I'd done this sooner.
On the other hand, I've never had a Hope Vision 1 launch road-ward whilst awheel.
It happened the other day with the new clamp, (and new light) but that was entirely down to operator error.
(It also says a lot for the robustness of the Hope, which suffered very little damage!)

If you are going down this route you should note that the Exposure cleat takes an M6 bolt.
The female thread in the Hope is M5.
You can bodge the M5 using spacers, as I understand it.
If you need an M6 finishing tap, I have one you are welcome to borrow.

ETA:
Avoiding over-drilling the depth of the tapping hole is the (buttock-clenching) key.

[Mrs Pingu]

So, can you explain further, are you removing the Hope lamp body from it's clamp and attaching it to that Exposure one instead?
What advantage does the Hope one have over the Exposure clamp?

[drossall]

I think this is what we are talking about. From that page, advantages are that the clamp is less likely to move round the bars, the quick release, and that you can swap the light quickly between bikes while maintaining its alignment.

Disadvantage is cost,

[Jurek]

So, can you explain further, are you removing the Hope lamp body from it's clamp and attaching it to that Exposure one instead?
What advantage does the Hope one have over the Exposure clamp?

Drossall's link has it in a nutshell.
I think the Exposure clamps win over those from Hope.
Big time.
And yes. Cost.
If you've 5 bikes, each running a pair of Hopes, it is spendy.
No way would I have done this while I wasn't working....

X-post with Mrs. Pingu, I think

[Mrs Pingu]

Ah cool, thanks drossall.
The main issue for me is if I want to take the Hope off the bike I have to put the 2 bits of rubber I have shimming the fit somewhere safe and it's a pain putting them back on.

[Feanor]

One thing leads to another.
<snip tales of woe>

I certainly don't follow the line that at every change of chain you should change your cassette. Nor do I follow the line that I should change my chainset at each change of cassette.
I do however work on the basis that if I am changing my chainset I do replace the cassette and chain.

Neither do I.
That cassette has seen out several chains, and has simply got to the point where a new chain slips on it, and so it's time to change it.

The chainset was old and part-worn when it was installed on that bike.
It's done a bunch more miles, and the middle chainring has had visible ( and feelable ) slop even with new chains for some time now.
I'd been ignoring the feel of it moving for a long time, but I eventually decided it was time to swap it out.
So it's time had come too.

It's now really sweet to ride, except in my preferred gear!

[Cudzoziemiec]

Fitted 3 x pairs of Exposure clamps to three road bikes, thus now making all my bikes Hope Vision 1 compatible (following the demise of my turn-of-the-century Cat Eye EL530s) without the usual need to adjust-the-point every time the lights are removed / replaced.
In each instance this necessitated adjustment / replacement of the brake outer cable (in order for the cables to clear the bar-under-slung lights), and in most cases necessitated replacement of brake cable inners on account of abject ham-fistedness with the cable cutters.
Just as we go into summertime, all I need now, is to be allocated my own darkness, so that I can test the lights.

Ooo. Those look neat, and I have more than a couple of Hope Vision 1s. I may be tempted.

They're a world of difference from the Hope clamps.
As I've mentioned, I wish I'd done this sooner.
On the other hand, I've never had a Hope Vision 1 launch road-ward whilst awheel.
It happened the other day with the new clamp, (and new light) but that was entirely down to operator error.
(It also says a lot for the robustness of the Hope, which suffered very little damage!)

If you are going down this route you should note that the Exposure cleat takes an M6 bolt.
The female thread in the Hope is M5.
You can bodge the M5 using spacers, as I understand it.
If you need an M6 finishing tap, I have one you are welcome to borrow.

ETA:
Avoiding over-drilling the depth of the tapping hole is the (buttock-clenching) key.

An SPD cleat bolt fits.

[Mr Larrington]

"Might such an Exposure clamp be bodged for a Vision 4?", wondered Mr Larrington, whose example of the latter is mostly used as a high-powered torch for untangling electo-spaghetti behind the AV receiver.

[Jurek]

"Might such an Exposure clamp be bodged for a Vision 4?", wondered Mr Larrington, whose example of the latter is mostly used as a high-powered torch for untangling electo-spaghetti behind the AV receiver.

Hard to tell TBH, based on the image on CRC's website.

[citoyen]

The boy had a CD of pictures he wanted to download. The only computer in the house with an optical drive is an ancient iBook G4. He stuck the disc in and... whirr... whirrr... nothing. Computer won't even admit it's holding the disc hostage, never mind letting us eject it.

Of course, this is the generation of iBooks that don't have a manual eject switch on the drive. Tried various techniques from the internet, none worked.

Found a guide to removing an optical drive from an ancient iBook and started following it. Got as far as step 26 out of 40 before giving up - just couldn't work out how to remove the top cover without breaking it. Reassembled the iBook by retracing my steps. Eventually realised I should have kept better track of which screws came out of where...



Oh well, at least the thing actually works.

Well, I say it works. It no longer has sound. And the disc is still as firmly stuck inside as ever. 

[Pingu]

Removed a couple of rounded allen bolts using a torx bit and percussion: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vyx-QoP3IsI