SUPERMAN

So, I'm commuting home and I'm stopped at an intersection. The light turns green, and i start to peddle. Actually, I stand up to peddle.

I'm a 280 lb. guy, not a light load. So my smallest cog on my 7 speed cassette strips, my foot slips,
and the next thing I know, I'm on my back dying of embarrassment, in a major intersection. I walked away with some road rash, a sore elbow, and knee.

Now I'm in a predicament. The cog that stripped is actually the only one I can use, because my rear shifter is broken and won't allow me to use any other (sort of like a single speed). Plus the wheels are now out of true and are rubbing the brakes.

Now, I still need (want) a bike to ride.
The thing is, I'm currenty saving to buy a new commuter and I told myself I don't want to put any money
into this bike since I'm gonna be buying a new one. Otherwise, I would have replaced most of the
components on this bike a long time ago. Like a new wheelset, shifters, forks, brakes and other things.

By the way, this is my bike: https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...95#post1963895
It is actually a little small for me (18in frame, I'm 6'1") so thats why i wanted a new bike. Plus, it's an old bike with old parts that barely work.

I dont have enough money to buy the new bike I want yet, but i do have enough to buy some decent parts
for this bike. I don't know if it would be wise to sink money into this bike, since its too small for me.

Should I wait a month or two to buy my new bike and just drive to work in the mean time? Or fix this bike up, ride it a while longer and save up even more money for the new bike. Then just keep the old (current) bike as a beater (I planned to sell it).

I would need to buy

1. A new cassette (7 sp).
2. get my wheels trued or buy a new wheelset
3. a new shifter/brake combo

or

a new bike at $1000 or less (not yet saved enough).

M. Rhoten

About the shifter, I'm assuming your rear shifter won't hold any tension on the cable. If so, does your derailer's limit screw have enough travel to push the chain up to the 2nd smallest cog? You might be able to use that gear, and if you can get the wheels trued up enough to ride, then you could do that and save money faster that way.

SUPERMAN

Thanks for the suggestion.

well, I went to take a closer look to see what actually happened, and also try your suggestion.

The cog did not get stripped, it cracked. If I try to screw it in, the crack widens.

I don't know if all hubs are the same, but on mine, the smallest cog actually screws onto the threads at the end of the hub and
holds in the rest of the cogs. so since mine is cracked, I cant trust it to hold on the other cogs.

maybe I'll go to the shop tomorrow and see if I can get that cog replaced and see how much it will cost
to true the wheels because I'd rather have it done professionally. Maybe they can talk me into a new wheelset.

SUPERMAN

oh, and your right, if I try to shift to another gear, it will go back down once I let it go. same with the front shifter/ derailer.

ilikebikes

I guess it feels kinda good to have proved all of the "aluminum frames suck!" guys wrong huh! been what? 2 years and the frame is doing just fine under your frame! not to mention 2 years ago one member estimated the age of the bike to be at least 10 years!? so that would make it a sweet a55 aluminum frame that has lasted a lot longer than the guys that knocked it thought it would! Ill tell ya. aluminum gets an undeserved bad rep from a lot of people most of my longest lasting frames have also been aluminum fix that puppy up and keep on riding!

MnIceBiker

What were you peddling? Or were you pedaling?

SUPERMAN

sheesh, add some insult to injury....j/k

anyway, I just watched a bunch of cycling crashes on youtube, so I feel a little better.

unixpro

I don't know about older bikes like yours, but on most newer bikes, you have to replace the whole cassette, not just the outer cog. That's the bad news. The good news is that it's pretty easy to replace. Nashbar has a 7 speed cassette for $20. You'll also need a cassette puller tool, which is about $8, and a chain whip, which is about $7. That's for the cassette and you doing the work yourself.

Of course, that doesn't address the shifter problem, but it would be the absolute minimum to get this bike back on the road (as a fixie).

truman

All the parts you need are on a $10 bike down at the Goodwill store - or a free one rotting in your neighbor's garage. Get one with bar-top thumb shifters and separate brake levers, then ride it to the bike store and buy a spoke wrench.

Go home and fire up the internets for tutorials on swapping the parts and tuning your wheels.

bizzz111

get a $100-150 bike off of craigslist that actually fits you and chuck the broken bike. Buy the new bike when you can afford it.

When you buy your new bike, sell the craigslist bike for $100-150 on craigslist.

squeakywheel

From the pictures and level of components, I think it was a decent bike. Right now, however, it needs some work and you say it is too small for you. Take it to a bike shop that deals in used bikes. Trade it in on a bike that fits. The shop can fix it up and resell it to someone it fits.

knobster

What you are describing is a uniglide or hyperglide cassette. I had one on my current commuter before I bought new wheels. I still have the cassette if you'd like the locking cog. No charge. PM me if interested.

SUPERMAN

Hmm, what do you guys think of this bike? Good price?


https://phoenix.craigslist.org/bik/514519205.html

probably a 58 cm

LittleBigMan

Superman,

You said that bike cost you $30 and wasn't your size. Face it, you got a good bargain, but you never got a new bike that fit you just right.

I'm sympathetic about your desire to keep riding, but think about this: the feeling of a new bike that fits you perfectly is hard to beat.

Especially if you'll be riding it for another 5 years.



[EDIT: I've always found a way to piece together a bike to keep my bike riding habit going until I could get another bike.]

LittleBigMan

Hard to say just by looking, but a Trek 1200 in your size for only $200 (if there's nothing wrong with it) might be a sweet ride.

Unfortunately, there's no way of knowing for sure without getting in the saddle, and having it checked out.

As long as you're not getting a bike that has wear and tear that's going to bite you. That current used bike of yours dumped you in a bad way, probably because it needed service, and wasn't ready for the torque of someone your size standing up to pedal.

Wino Ryder

You've been riding this bike for a while I see, and the whole time it never fit you. You can replace the seven speed cassette and get the shifting fixed and be back on the road, but you'll just be where you was before. But at least you'll be riding it where you can sell it later on, after you get the right bike you want.

I say fix it and ride it while saving for a better bike (one that fits you), then sell your old bike.

Mr. Underbridge

I can't believe that Trek is almost 20 years old. The tech is old but I imagine those 105 components were quality when new, and that bike looks great minus a ding or two on the paint. The components appear well maintained from the pic. I'd say it's worth $200 if it checks out.

Under normal circumstances I'd say fix your bike, but that Trek looks pretty nice as long as you dig downtube shifters.

Oh, and I agree with LBM - a big guy mashing on a little cog isn't good for you or the cog.

VA_Dave

If I was looking for another bike I'd be all over that Trek. That thing looks sweet.