That crimp pattern looks rather nice. If I don't have a crimper around I will just press it but that certainly looks a lot more trick and with some skills and patience or maybe a CNC machine you could probably come up with some different patterns!

The bike - aforementioned hack included - is gone now, so it doesn't matter anymore. To answer your question, though, the bottle actually sat higher than it would on my Speed or Mu (both of which thankfully have bottle cage bosses from the factory; no such shenanigans required.) It sat higher than it would on a typical diamond frame such as my 7.6, with the added convenience of not having to fiddle my way around a top tube reaching down for it.

Do it with one of these for the win:

When spoke nipples fall inside a rim they are a nuisance to get out. What I find that works best to get them out is a vacuum. If you don't have a Shop-Vac or equivalent you will need to create a better vacuum inside the rim.

To create a better vacuum, first have all the nipples attached to the spokes and tightened, then cover the valve hole on the inner side of the rim with tape. ​​Second, use a rim strip or something non-adhesive to cover the spoke holes on the outer side of the rim leaving the valve hole open (there is no need to do this with a Shop-Vac). Next, position the rim so the valve hole is at the bottom and shake the rim to move the nipples near the valve hole. Finally, place the vacuum over the valve hole and suck the nipples out.

I use a Shop-Vac because it has tremendous suction, but most household vacuum cleaners will work if you create a better vacuum inside the rim. Be sure to empty your vacuum cleaner before use to make it easier to find the nipples.

To remove the rear wheel you do not have to unscrew the quick release. The rear drop outs do not have notches, and you can remove the wheel just by releasing the skewer.

Yeah, that's why they call it a quick release. In fact, many people (including my self) file off the 'lawer lips' on their front forks, so that quick release is also actually quick.

Damn straight. Death to lawyer tabs!

To save yourself from having to clean the vaccuum cleaner first, use cheesecloth or grab a pair of pantyhoses from the dollarstore and put it over the vacuum tube held on by an elastic

My 7.6FX's factory-installed Wellgo bear trap pedals didn't come with toe clips and straps. When I bought the bike, I picked up with it these VP pedals with straps built in:



Problem is, even with the straps and toe clips, they were crap for holding my feet straight. The originals, on the other hand, are great for keeping my feet in place, but not all that great on the upstroke.

Thing is, being broke and all, I couldn't spend money I haven't got to order straps online, nor were aftermarket toe clips available for me to buy at any of the local shops. I had a second pair of the same VP pedals lying around in a drawer, the spindle of one of which was bent and wobbly, so I decided to see if I could cannibalize them for the toe clips and find a way to bolt them to the Wellgos somehow. It turned out well enough.

I started with unscrewing the toe clips from the VPs:



Then pried out the reflector at the base of the toe clip:



Now, there were three nuts molded into the resin of the toe clip, so I had to cut these out so as to use two of them later to bolt the toe clip to the cage of the Wellgo (see next post):





Now on to cutting off all the excess resin:



(Continued below.)

(Continued)

Making the necessary measurements and drilling the requisite holes (by hand; no need to hook up a power drill, as the resin material is soft enough):





The base is 58.5mm wide. The screw holes on the Wellgo pedal where the the toe clip will sit (in place of the original reflector) are exactly one inch/25.4mm apart. I measured 16.5mm from each side in and 4mm down from the thick part of the base (the screw head is 8mm in diameter) and marked out where to drill.

Now, prying the reflector off of the front side of the Wellgo (the hole where the strap goes into the body of the pedal, and the corresponding "tongue" in the cage, indicate the back side of the pedal):



Now, screwing the toe clip to the same holes where the reflector used to fit, using the same bolts that used to hold the toe clip to its original VP body (and the same nuts seen earlier):





I even managed to push the reflector back into its holder without breaking it!



And voila! Two bear trap pedals with toe clips and straps!



Now, I have no idea if or for how long this kind of setup will hold up before the first toe clip breaks off, but I'm hoping for the best here.

The original VPs, intact and sacrificed:

One more thing - the rubber seals of those original Wellgos were shot as the bike sat behind a sun-drenched window at the showroom for months, so I had to finagle replacements. I dug out a pair of rubber caps - probably the kind used to plug holes in furniture; I couldn't tell you for sure - and cut out holes in the middle, then I slipped them over the ends of the shafts and had them shield the exposed ball bearings from the elements:

Thank you Very Much!

I think I'm posting this in the right place. Any tricks to unseizing this this stem?

hear hear!!!

If you google frame stuck stem or handlebar stuck, excellent sites of very knowledgeable people will come up, including my favorites, Park Tool, Sheldonbrown, davebikeblog, mytenspeeds, and many many more. Some stems are permanently bonded so good luck.

Usually I would flip the bike upside down and spray penetrating oil down the fork so that it reaches the stem. Rinse and repeat every hour or two. The next day, I would flip the bike back over with the wheel in the fork, clamp the wheels with your leg and turn the stem to see if it's loosened up a little (it's easier with handlebars inside the stem). If that fails, keep trying that for the the next two or three days and if it still doesn't come out, then I resort to cutting the stem out.

The pictures are missing! Could you post them again, please?

Goat Head season never seems to end in my area. I had some Shoe Goo laying around and wondered if I could use it to repair my collection of old yet good tubes. After a few trials I was able to apply a thin enough layer to seal the small punctures. I figure I've saved a few bucks from new tubes and patch kits.

Hi All, I have a Giant Twist Freedom DX.. it has been done for over a year and the battery is dead. What are my options?

Can the Battery be recharged? and if so how is this done?

Try asking in the Ebikes forum. https://www.bikeforums.net/electric-bikes/ You'll get much better response over there.

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My latest video demonstrating SRAM Double Tap cable replacement...

Just had to cut a new 10 speed chain. OPS - old tool made for 7/9 speed. Ten minutes with a file and it now works with 10 speed chains.