chefisaac

First, thank you for fixing my bike the other weekend. Appreciate it.

When I was at your place in PA, I asked if you would consider doing a maintance and repair class for some of us Clyesdales and you said you might be able to be persuaded. So, would you be up to it? I ask because recent posts of events leads me to believe it might be a good idea.

Case in point:

1) I need to lean
2) neil wants to learn maintance and repair
3) Sayres experiance with his tire
4) rays experiance with his bike last weekend

Would be greati f you could teach us. Whats in it for you? Beer and pizza? and laughes?

What do you think?

Rock31

I am so in...on top of beer and pizza I will offer free 8x10's to Chris of all of us in spandex

If I ride alone and something happens to the bike I am walking back

paisan

I'm always willing to show someone how to work on their bike and I'd be willing to do a small clinic but unless someone has a bike that actually needs adjustment it will be hard to do this. Bike repairs can't really be taught by talking through it. It's definately a hands on process so in order to teach we'd literally have to "unadjust" someones bike. I have to be honest I'm not real hip on that idea because I'm a firm believer that if it isn't broke don't fix it. Plus some stuff can't be "unadjusted" without running a risk of really screwing them up, like wheels for instance.

Bike shops can hold clinics because they have a ready supply of bikes that always need adjusting and one shop I worked at had a work on your own bike night every month where customers brought in their own bikes and we helped them do basic tuneups for free. I've taught people while building them bikes by walking them through the process and looking over their shoulder while they do the build. In that case It's not a big deal to hang a part to show them and then take it off so they can do it for themselves, but that's different than purposely taking someones bike out of adjustment.

If someone has any ideas or has done this before in a non shop environment I'd be more than willing to take any suggestions and give this a go.

chefisaac

How about if we buy a ****ty bike**********

paisan

I might have solved this problem today. Went to a local shop and found a surly cross check for super cheap so I might jump on that and use it for these rail to trail rides that NeilB is putting together. I have a 9 speed Ultegra group in a drawer and most of a 9 speed dura ace group on my Derosa that I was going to strip down anyway for that campy record stuff I have. Add in an XTR rear derailler and 12-32 cassette that I also have in a drawer and all I need are a headset, some brakes and cables to build it up. Prob is I have to decide by tmw and then I'll get the bike next wed possibly thurs. That's only 1 day(2 at best) to build it up before the first trip. I only need a few hours to get it together so if there's enough interest and I decide to get this frame anyone interested can come over thurs for the build. If Neil thinks that I can ride that first trail on my Speccy then maybe we can hold off on the build for a time that suits more people.

RollCNY

Don't know if you want suggestions on what to cover, but I have tried to focus new riders on the basics of road side repair, which usually does not include road side derailleur tuning. The stuff I have shown people can be done on any functioning bike.

1) Change a tube, what to inspect for when you get the tire off, and how to install a tube without puncturing it (ie without tire irons/plastics)
2) How to diagnose brake rub and what it means. Check the QR's for position and tightness. How to check brake position and how to get them out of the way if needed, like with a broken spoke. How to adjust cable tension on the brakes with barrel adjusters and with the cable clamp.
3) Stem and Headset looseness. How to adjust it and tighten it.
4) How to tell if your crank arms are loosening up, and how to tighten them.
5) How to look for a bent RD, and how to straighten it in a pinch.

The new folks that I have talked to about spoke tension usually don't understand, and I am by no means an expert in the first place, so I leave that out.

A bike that makes a good lesson bike is a single speed. I have taught my boys how to convert my old Sirrus to a single speed and back, and got them using crank pullers, cassette tools, and bottom bracket tools. Single speeds make a great bike to play maintenance with for me, because I can mount the DR's, have the boys adjust them, and then convert back to the single speed and not worry if they got it perfect.

chefisaac

good ideas. I would add:

How to true a wheel on the road and off the road in the shop
Derailer work
How to fix a chain
General maintance check up
tightening breaks an changing breads
replacing a spoke on the road


just some thoughts.

Rock31

sounds like fun and I hope we can get this planned

thanks for even considering paisan!

RollCNY

Good point on chains. I totally forgot. And how to make brakes not squeak!

Learning to fix your own bike adds a whole new dimension to cycling. Sounds like a fun get together. I am assuming you guys are all NYC way?

chefisaac

i live in nj, some live in PA, some delaware and some ny.

RollCNY

Very cool. BF does a good job of connecting regions. I always assume folks are far remote, and find the posts of folks riding with other posters interesting. I appreciated the riding invite from the cadence thread, but I never know anyone's locale.

chefisaac

hook up with us anytime. I would love to come over there and rie. Spent the day in NYC (working) and noticed the nice bike paths on the hudson.

RollCNY

I am in Central New York (STATE), so 4 hrs from the city. The only time I make it to that area is when the wife dispatches me to IKEA in Paramus. I'll have to bring the other wheels with me, and give you guys a heads up.

Not that I am complaining about my location. Between riding the Finger Lakes, and along Lake Ontario, I have a sweet riding area. Did 75 miles on the Erie Canal Trail without having to worry about being run over. I don't know how folks toward the city ride without having to stop constantly, or get run over.

Neil_B

If you mean Pine Creek Gorge, it's tire width, not the bike,that's the concern.

RollCNY

Hey, I've hiked that! There is a 27 mile long ridge trail, I think on the west side of it. Paid a guide to drop us off 30 miles from our car, and walked back over two days in November. Gorgeous area!

Neil_B

Yes, the West Rim Trail. One of my life goals, once I have my knees fixed or replaced, is backpack the West Rim Trail.

RollCNY

Good goal. I wish we had done it a tad slower. Through bad planning, had roughly a 36 hour window to do it, so there was one very long night involved, and we had to use logging roads instead of the trail at a few points to cover ground. I'd plan three days, 2 nights, to really enjoy it. Some great views in the fall, we were past peak.

Neil_B

I hiked up Mount Tom last summer. It's the peak on the East side of the canyon.

paisan

You are correct, I'll rephrase my question. Do you think that the pine creek gorge ride can be done with 700x27mm wide tires or should I push ahead and try to get the cross check built up before the ride so I can mount some 700x32 cross type tires.

The ride is not the determining factor for me getting the frame. The shop gave me a real good price so I'm going to get the frame no matter what. I've always wanted a steel frame bike and I think it will make a great all rounder type bike and will most likely become my main ride come winter time when the roads get sloppy.

chefisaac

ok folks lets get back on topic!

RollCNY

It's like herding cats. Sorry. I don't really like cats. Unless they act like dogs. Then why not get a dog. Which is why I like dogs. Cause they aren't cats. If I had a dog that acted like a cat, why I would just...

Or is that off topic?

paisan

Look, Squirrel!

chefisaac

NYC people= ADD

RollCNY

Couldn't agree more!