Bicycle Mechanics - fixing a loose stem, attaching fenders...

Hopefully you are either out on a Sunday morning ride or have already gotten one in (for those in the eastern U.S.!).

I have a few questions so will throw them into one post and let anyone contribute their knowledge where they can.

FENDERS
I have a pair of SKS full fenders that I am about to put on my "townie" but I don't have the little brace-bar between the chainstays on my frame. There is a little tab on the fender where it could be screwed/attached to that brace bar. Do people just let it flop around? Any creative alternatives?

Also, while the front fender attaches to the fork with a little tab, the rear fender doesn't have a tab on the back of it, but I do have a hole in my rear brake bridge where I could attach the fender via a tab. Has anyone put there own tab on the back/top of the rear fender? I probably could drill a hole and mount something to allow me to attach fender to frame at the brake bridge, which might help solve the chainstay brace bar issue.

STEM
I've tightened down the upper head cone housing and the lock nut of my headset and yet my stem/handlebars still turn when in lock the wheel between my legs standing over it - to test if it is tight. I am not sure why this is happening. Like I said, the nut is pretty tight. I'm using a Shimano headset and a Shimano stem and am rather positive they are both 1".

TOE CLIPS
I have a new pair and they are nice steel clips. The size is great for my foot, but they are a little too narrow at the end and squeeze my toenails. I'd like to open them up. Does anyone have any experience or special tips...or should I just push them open a bit by hand or by kind of wedging some sort of tool in there?

FENDERS
I have a pair of SKS full fenders that I am about to put on my "townie" but I don't have the little brace-bar between the chainstays on my frame. There is a little tab on the fender where it could be screwed/attached to that brace bar. Do people just let it flop around? Any creative alternatives?

Also, while the front fender attaches to the fork with a little tab, the rear fender doesn't have a tab on the back of it, but I do have a hole in my rear brake bridge where I could attach the fender via a tab. Has anyone put there own tab on the back/top of the rear fender? I probably could drill a hole and mount something to allow me to attach fender to frame at the brake bridge, which might help solve the chainstay brace bar issue.
The chainstay bridge on most touring frames is drilled for mounting a fender. I recently installed a pair of Gilles Berthoud 40mm 700c stainless steel fenders on my '72 Schwinn P15-9 Paramount, but because the bike was originally equipped with 27" wheels and now has 700c wheels, the gap between the chainstay bridge and the fender required a larger than ordinary leather washer, which I built up of laminated layers of leather.

If you don't want to drill your chainstay bridge, you can use an Adel clamp.

http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d7/k4drd/Bicycles/CIMG3282sm.jpg

For the seat stay brake bridge, I fabricated an "L" bracket from a scrap of sheet stainless steel.

http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d7/k4drd/Bicycles/CIMG3279sm.jpg

http://i32.photobucket.com/albums/d7/k4drd/Bicycles/CIMG3280sm.jpg

On my sks fenders, I drilled a hole and installed an appropriate "tab" which mounts on the brake bridge- it works fine. As far as the stem, check the bearings and cones to look for signs of significant wear and, if needed, replace them. The ideal tool for the steel toeclips would be some sheet metal pliers, but in a pinch I would use regular pliers or just bend by hand. Hope this helps..

FENDERS
I have a pair of SKS full fenders that I am about to put on my "townie" but I don't have the little brace-bar between the chainstays on my frame. There is a little tab on the fender where it could be screwed/attached to that brace bar. Do people just let it flop around? Any creative alternatives?


Zip ties. crude but effective. you might want to use some electrical tape to prevent paint from rubbing off.


Also, while the front fender attaches to the fork with a little tab, the rear fender doesn't have a tab on the back of it, but I do have a hole in my rear brake bridge where I could attach the fender via a tab. Has anyone put there own tab on the back/top of the rear fender? I probably could drill a hole and mount something to allow me to attach fender to frame at the brake bridge, which might help solve the chainstay brace bar issue.

the fenders normally come with a clip that mounts at the brake bridge, but you can get a cheapie wald one for a few dollars. replacement sks ones are available but are probably more pricey and harder to find.


STEM
I've tightened down the upper head cone housing and the lock nut of my headset and yet my stem/handlebars still turn when in lock the wheel between my legs standing over it - to test if it is tight. I am not sure why this is happening. Like I said, the nut is pretty tight. I'm using a Shimano headset and a Shimano stem and am rather positive they are both 1".

make sure the stem bolt and cone or wedge are greased. Check the inside of the steerer tube for bulges frome overtightening (which can also lead to catostrophic failure). Some stems, particularly french and italian stems with the cone design, often never tighten down to the point where the bars a solidly locked in place. This isn't totally a bad thing--it allows the bars to turn rather than bend in the case of a fall or crash.



TOE CLIPS
I have a new pair and they are nice steel clips. The size is great for my foot, but they are a little too narrow at the end and squeeze my toenails. I'd like to open them up. Does anyone have any experience or special tips...or should I just push them open a bit by hand or by kind of wedging some sort of tool in there?

i have the same problem, and is an important one to me as i'm prone to ingrown toenails. you can bend them around quite a bit to suit without fear of breaking them. soma also makes a "oppy copy" toeclip, which is sort of like a steel mtb clip, but they're costly. personally, i've pretty much switched over to clipless or plastic mtb clips, albeit at the expense of losing the class factor.

The chainstay bridge on most touring frames is drilled for mounting a fender. I recently installed a pair of Gilles Berthoud 40mm 700c stainless steel fenders on my '72 Schwinn P15-9 Paramount, but because the bike was originally equipped with 27" wheels and now has 700c wheels, the gap between the chainstay bridge and the fender required a larger than ordinary leather washer, which I built up of laminated layers of leather.


I did a similar thing with my raleigh international/honjo fenders at the chainstay bridge, using a cut down velox bar plug. yours admittedly looks a lot nicer.

Fenders:

You can zip-tie the front edge of the rear fender around the seat tube using a small wood or plastic block as a spacer.

The "tab' for the rear fender is a separate bracket that slides over the fender and is crimped into place after it's located properly. It should have been included with the installation hardware. If you lost it, you can make your own or zip-tie the fender to the brake bridge by drilling a couple of small holes to thread it through.

Stem:

The locknut on threaded headsets has no effect on stem tightness. The stem is tightened with an internal expander by a bolt in the top of the quill. The bolt head may be recessed and hidden under a rubber plug so you may not see it unless you remove the plug. . A Shimano stem? I didn't know they ever made them.

Toeclips:

Bend them to fit.

Thanks for all of the replies. I tightened the stem down (what I think is/people are calling the cone...put an allen wrench down inside the stem) and this seems to have solved the problem.

I didn't see one of the fender parts - yes, it has a bracket included which allows mounting at the brake bridge. As for chainstay bridge...I don't have one on my frame. I'll see what I can rig up...zipties might be called in for the rescue:)

Yes, it is a Shimano 600 stem that they made for a short period. Really nice, in my opinion.

Thanks again everyone!

As for chainstay bridge...I don't have one on my frame. I'll see what I can rig up...zipties might be called in for the rescue:)
You might try using Adel clamps around each chainstay to form a bridge, and attach the fender to it (them?)..