Doctor Morbius

Got caught in a nasty downpour today so when I got back I wiped the chain down thoroughly and re-lubed. I also trued both wheels. Should ride like a champ now.

sjanzeir

Complete teardown of the 7.6. I realized that this thing hadn't had a thorough cleanup since it left the factory, including the two years that I've owned it and the two years it spent gathering dust (literally) and being thrown around the dealer's shop floor before that. Lots of caked-in gunk and dried-out lubricants, and road grime in every nook and cranny - that stuff even found its way all the way up the steered tube and inside the fork's blades! The cassette and chain were so gunked up that even professional grade degreaser - mixed with WD40 - needed a couple of soaks to get all the blackness out. I even took out the bottom bracket, and found that the protective grease around it had turned into gum. I wiped that off and dabbed it with some new grease. Even the rubber spring in the Isospeed monostay (inside that ugly black rubber boot on top of the seat stays) was dry and squeaking, so I dabbed it with a smidgen of machine oil. Also, I found that both shifter cables were about to break, so I changed them out while I was at it.

Skipjacks

I added a small USB battery to my tiny saddlebags and a cable long enough to reach my front light, back light, and phone I use as a GPS computer so I can charge anything while riding if a light goes out or the phone battery dies or something.

Even put small velcro straps at both ends of the top tube that the wire can easily be attached to in seconds to keep it out of the way of my knees.

Works like a charm too!

3speedslow

ColonelSanders

One of those will be in my future too, soon.

andrei_r

Will it be wide enough to fit a KFC bucket?

ColonelSanders

That's a big undertaking you have decided to do there.


I'm pleasantly surprised you were still able to source the spring inside the Isospeed Monostay(I'd be stocking up on those ).


Is the scratch/gouge on the bottom of your downtube a concern for that tube's structural integrity?

ColonelSanders

I'll have to settle for just Large Chips.

sjanzeir

I am so sorry - I must've taken a wrong turn while I typed out my post! I meant to say that I changed out both shifter cables because they were the ones that were about to break, and not the rubber Isozone spring or its rubber boot! I just edited the original post to reflect this. The rubber spring and boot are fine (at least for now); the boot is just a little discolored from exposure to the sun. Again, my apologies.

Your remark got me curious, though - just how easy would it be to actually source replacements for that Isozone monostay? Easy enough, as it turns out, albeit rather costly. I have sourced other Trek/Bontrager stuff from them before, so I knew that they were most likely to carry this sort of stuff.

As for that dent, I, too, often wonder if, and how much, it somehow might compromise the frame's structural integrity. I couldn't tell you for sure how it got there - whether it was caused by me throwing the bike across the room in a fit of rage after some family member "borrowed" my pump to inflate his motorcycle's tires without bothering to ask first, or if it was a result of all the abuse this bike had suffered on the shop floor, is anyone's guess. The shop left it baking in the sun for weeks or months on end, throwing it around the showroom as other bikes came and went while the poor old 7.6 just sat there without finding any takers. The handlebar was already discolored from black to a dark shade of purple by the time I picked it up - except, of course, for the part hidden under the stem, as well as a small strip of original black where the front reflector used to be.

I would say that for the time it was on display at the showroom before it got heavily disconnected, people just couldn't justify paying what could easily amount to road-bike money for what's essentially just a well equipped hybrid. Hell, I had my eye on this bike for a year before they called to tell me to come pick it up for a hefty 35 percent discount in a December fire sale; I wasn't about to pay full price for it, either, no matter how bad I wanted it!

finch204

Oh man LMAO. Good start to the morning, thanks!

Doctor Morbius

Today I did some work for my hybrid, but not necessarily on my hybrid. I reorganized and swept up the area of the garage where I keep my bikes, spare parts, extra wheels & tires and helmet & gloves.

3speedslow

Doctor Morbius

This evening I waxed the frame on my Sirrus project and put its new wheelset on it. It's starting to take shape and look like a screamin' demon.

Earlier I rode the Roam, but didn't do any wrenching.

jlmonte

3speedslow

Doctor Morbius

Today I put the cranks and pedals on the Sirrus Elite. And after a 20 mile ride on the Roam-2, I thoroughly wiped down the chain and relubed it.

3speedslow

3speedslow

jlmonte

finch204

Adjusted saddle height on my Roam and went for a ride last Saturday. It is amazing what a few mm of adjustment can do to comfort. I was wondering why the WTB Speed saddle was more comfortable when I had it on my flat bar Madone than on the Roam. Turns out my saddle was just a tad too high. I'm now keeping this saddle on the Roam.

3speedslow

3speedslow

crazyravr

Put on Ergon GP3 grips and Cygolite 1100.

Skipjacks

I am in the market for something like this. A bike that I can have not weighed down with racks and bags and fenders and etc etc like I do for my commuter bike. (It's a great commuter bike but it's heavy with a suspension fork, bags, racks, etc etc. It's even a good touring bike for a long haul because it's ready to take bags and such at a casual pace.)

I'm looking for something that I can keep lighter weight and just go for 40-50 miles on rail trails a little bit faster on without lugging the extra load. Maybe just add a small frame bag where I could store a spare tube, tools, and a granola bar. But I wouldn't use it nearly as much as the commuter so $350 is a price range I like.

Is this a good bike for that purpose?

And is it really orange? Or does it look different in person? (I'm mildly obsessed with Orange)

Doctor Morbius

Today I did the following:

• Wiped down the frame and other bits on my Roam-2 with mineral spirits to clean up a bunch of chain lube splatter*.
• Changed the cassette from a 12-25t to a 14-25t for tighter gear ratios.
• Added another front chainring** so the bike no longer has a 1x9 setup.
• Soaking chain in plastic bottle with 2nd batch of mineral spirits***.

* Made the mistake of using an oil based lube and it turned the chain & cassette black and the lube splattered all over the rear wheel and frame. I like a clean bike and drivetrain so it's back to wax based lubes for me. Just bought a 32 Oz. jug of White Lightening Clean Ride and I have some Boeshield T-9 too.

** The Roam now has 44t and 42t chainrings as I'm experimenting around with gear ratios to see what I like. I'm leaving the front derailleur off though. I'll have to move the chain by hand to switch chainrings.

*** The first batch of mineral spirits became filthy after some shaking so it's soaking in a clean batch now. Tomorrow I'll strain the mineral spirits through a coffee filter and continue soaking and shaking the chain in the plastic bottles Sheldon Brown style.