Author Topic: What have you fettled today? (Read 2167711 times)

hatler · « **Reply #17050 on:** 24 July, 2022, 10:50:39 pm »

Went for a bounce along a bit of the South Downs Way today where it became obvious that Mrs h's bike had developed a) unbelievably squealy front brakes and b) a creak in the BB area. Bugger.

Brakes cured by cleaning the pads with Fairy Up and a dab of grease on the back of the pad, and BB creak cured by dismantling, cleaning and regreasing the HT2 bearing cup threads and re-assembling.

Very satisfying.

Chain on my bike needs replacing. One for a future weekend as I don't have spares at the 'van.

T42 · « **Reply #17051 on:** 25 July, 2022, 07:29:05 am »

Quote from: Mrs Pingu on 24 July, 2022, 09:12:03 pm

Quote from: T42 on 24 July, 2022, 03:19:10 pm
Filled a 2-litre jar with vinegar and steel wool, put cling wrap over the top and punched a hole to let off the hydrogen. It's sitting out in the sun now, bubbling away.
Why?

To make iron acetate, which darkens tanins in wood to make it look aged, the idea being to match the remaining one of our barn doors. I'll be painting the wood, which is something like white pine, with tea first to provide a bit more tanin.

Just thinking that I could cut up the fallen door and make a guitar with it...

rogerzilla · « **Reply #17052 on:** 25 July, 2022, 07:56:30 am »

^^ art forger. We won't tell

T42 · « **Reply #17053 on:** 25 July, 2022, 08:25:09 am »

Rats. Now I have to keel heem.

ElyDave · « **Reply #17054 on:** 25 July, 2022, 11:08:23 am »

Cut a piece of thick plastic to shape to fit in the base of my Carradice rack pack for a bit more structure. Need to just take care of the edges and maybe add a bit of anti-snag tape. I'm also thinking how i might mount it externally to the Tailfin - would like it to be removable when not needed. Thinking removable zip-ties, or strategically placed holed for the straps.

Wowbagger · « **Reply #17055 on:** 25 July, 2022, 03:18:42 pm »

This morning I had my first puncture on my e-bike, inconveniently as I was heading to my "Stoutness Exercises" session. I was thus 20 minutes late, and I pushed the bike home again afterwards.

I have now learned the procedure for removing the rear wheel. It is necessary to disconnect the cable that controls the Rohloff's electronic shifting, then remove the QR skewer, detach the drive belt, and Bob's your uncle.

Removing a Schwalbe "Johnny Watts" tyre was difficult. The bead and the rim seem somehow to click together. I managed it in the end, but there was foul language. The offending body was an industrial style gun-staple. I hard a pop-bang noise but it wasn't until about half a mile later that I realised that the tyre had deflated.

Getting the tyre back on again was also problematic, and that too required a fair old lubrication of profanities (being careful not to spill them on the brake disk).

So I think I would now feel moderately confident of fixing a puncture in the wild, but it's by far the hardest combination of rim and tyre that I've ever had to deal with.

ElyDave · « **Reply #17056 on:** 25 July, 2022, 05:48:32 pm »

Not tubeless considering the essential faffi-ness of the situation?

Wowbagger · « **Reply #17057 on:** 25 July, 2022, 07:36:54 pm »

I failed to spot the weakness with the particular manifestation of the Gates drive that my bike employs: a tensioner spring. This is just behind the bottom bracket and therefore easily overlooked. I didn't notice that the damned thing had come unhooked at one end and gleefully set of for a test ride. I'd gone about 100 yards when there was a horrible noise and I couldn't pedal any more. The loose end of the spring had become caught up with the belt wheel and was mangled beyond repair. As luck would have it, very shortly after buying the bike, I asked the shop for a spare spring because it gave me the impression that it was a weak link that might fail and leave one stranded in the middle of nowhere on a tour. So I have a spare.

Taking the mangled one off was a palaver involving removing the belt drive ring. Then the WR delivery arrived and now it's time for food so I shall put it back together after we've eaten.

Not all bikes with belt drives have this convoluted route for the belt to take. Some of them are much like the chain on a fixie. I wonder why they aren't all like that.

LittleWheelsandBig · « **Reply #17058 on:** 26 July, 2022, 06:44:05 am »

Setting the proper tension on a Gates belt takes a bit of care. A calibrated spring-loaded arm would be less trouble, provided it is flipped into and out of position at the appropriate times.

De Sisti · « **Reply #17059 on:** 26 July, 2022, 08:51:10 am »

Taken down all curtain, net-curtains, moved stuff out of the way of windows, in preparation for
sash double-glazed units to be installed*.

*Not by me though.

T42 · « **Reply #17060 on:** 26 July, 2022, 03:17:35 pm »

Filtered first batch of iron acetate, got a second batch bubbling in the sun. Also tried planing some of the ready-planed wood I had delivered to remove the fur the sawmill's planer missed. Didn't work too well but my 1970's B&D belt sander doesn't do too badly. I don't need perfection, far from it. Trouble is that the sander has a rectangular dust port that works well with the leaky bag supplied but not with my vacuum's hose, and my dust mask is bloody hot.

Jurek · « **Reply #17061 on:** 26 July, 2022, 05:09:43 pm »

Fettled a strip of 3mm closed cell foam into my spectacle case with a 'bump' in the strip to act as a spring and stop my specs rattling rhythmically with every step I take.
If there is one thing I cannot stand, it is anything in my pockets (keys, coins etc) making a sound, synchronised with my movement.
Where is the stealth in that?

Mrs Pingu · « **Reply #17062 on:** 26 July, 2022, 05:46:08 pm »

Replaced the chain on my Roberts y'day. At least the bike is ready for our holidays, even if I am not.

Jayjay · « **Reply #17063 on:** 26 July, 2022, 08:37:03 pm »

Some of ye elderly mower, parts now rotate instead of juddering unsteadily about an axis.

The Family Cyclist · « **Reply #17064 on:** 26 July, 2022, 09:21:50 pm »

Sewed up a couple of pairs of work trousers. Both are old and almost certainly from chariddy shops but one had split up the arse and one had a pen sized hole in the pocket

Both are now back in function

Cudzoziemiec · « **Reply #17065 on:** 26 July, 2022, 09:29:21 pm »

Added some cheap cloth tape, which I had lying around, on top of my existing plastic-type bar tape. The idea came up in chat on a ride a couple of weeks ago and then I was reminded of it by seeing a bike with no bar tape – but whose rider was just about to tape his bars, using some rather expensive, fancy cloth tape, having completed a four-day tour without it – at Temple Meads station on Sunday. Turns out the cloth tape wasn't quite long enough to cover the entire taped length of the bars, but it did the important bits. I think ideally for comfort I'd change the bars for something the same shape but 31.8 rather than 26, or even with a "wing" top.

Pedaldog. · « **Reply #17066 on:** 26 July, 2022, 10:08:48 pm »

Observed Sprogs OTP, as she managed to make a 30 year old Moped Shaped Object produce a Spark on the right bit.

Kim · « **Reply #17067 on:** 26 July, 2022, 10:30:23 pm »

Quote from: Jurek on 26 July, 2022, 05:09:43 pm

If there is one thing I cannot stand, it is anything in my pockets (keys, coins etc) making a sound, synchronised with my movement.
Where is the stealth in that?

I solved that by falling off a stage onto the contents of my pocket (a couple of screwdrivers, but fortunately not the pointy end) and being somewhat paranoid about carrying anything I don't want to land on about my person ever since. Keys - a chief cause of ratting noises - are right out.

I do like the foam spring idea for glasses cases though.

rogerzilla · « **Reply #17068 on:** 26 July, 2022, 10:46:57 pm »

Washed the LHT, fitted a new chain, and replaced the bar tape and the split brake hoods.

Jurek · « **Reply #17069 on:** 27 July, 2022, 07:36:22 am »

Quote from: Kim on 26 July, 2022, 10:30:23 pm

Quote from: Jurek on 26 July, 2022, 05:09:43 pm
If there is one thing I cannot stand, it is anything in my pockets (keys, coins etc) making a sound, synchronised with my movement.
Where is the stealth in that?

I solved that by falling off a stage onto the contents of my pocket (a couple of screwdrivers, but fortunately not the pointy end) and being somewhat paranoid about carrying anything I don't want to land on about my person ever since. Keys - a chief cause of ratting noises - are right out.

I do like the foam spring idea for glasses cases though.

Et Voila

robgul · « **Reply #17070 on:** 27 July, 2022, 07:43:05 am »

Quote from: Kim on 26 July, 2022, 10:30:23 pm

Quote from: Jurek on 26 July, 2022, 05:09:43 pm
If there is one thing I cannot stand, it is anything in my pockets (keys, coins etc) making a sound, synchronised with my movement.
Where is the stealth in that?

I solved that by falling off a stage onto the contents of my pocket (a couple of screwdrivers, but fortunately not the pointy end) and being somewhat paranoid about carrying anything I don't want to land on about my person ever since. Keys - a chief cause of ratting noises - are right out.

I do like the foam spring idea for glasses cases though.

So this will be a no-no for you then!

Cudzoziemiec · « **Reply #17071 on:** 27 July, 2022, 08:38:34 am »

As will the Swrve "cycling trousers" with their pen-shaped and intended pockets on the front of the hips.

T42 · « **Reply #17072 on:** 27 July, 2022, 10:37:30 am »

Sanded and sanded and sanded and sanded and sanded and... Also dismantled my dust-collection thingy, transported the bits back to the place from whence they came and re-assembled it, since it doesn't work with my sander.

Snakehips · « **Reply #17073 on:** 28 July, 2022, 10:56:31 am »

Implemented a bath/shower water collection system.

L CC · « **Reply #17074 on:** 28 July, 2022, 11:31:34 am »

Attempted to fettle replacement flaps on my commuter.
Turned out the RAW beauties were shorter than the stock ones.

Hmmm. Where did all that crap flung all over my legs come from?? Well, I know the answer, it came from the cycle path. But HOW?