the 'there's no such thing as a stupid question' bike maintenance thread

It’s a long cage derailleur. There is a fair amount of play/ wobble on the jockey wheels also.

Question for Tacx Flux users:

My belt is done for and I want to replace it, I'm wondering if anyone else has replaced there and if they know the dimensions (eg. 4PK820) assuming tacx didn't commission their own piece and use an off the shelf car auxiliary belt?

I see "premium" replacements online which are 3x the price of a Gates/Continental belt and probably no better.

So as a Christmas present I got a nice set of carbon aero handlebars. Today was the day I decided to fit them. I encountered a problem when I realised I would need to cut the olive off as the bolt to secure the brake hose would not fit through the bars. I do not have the requisite tools to attach a new olive etc.

So I brought the bike down to the local shop to see if they could cut the lines and attach some new olives for me. Now he has quoted me €10 for the olives which is fine. But he is saying I will need 2 brake bleeds and that is €60. Now that seems pretty steep to me? Am I wrong? I also said I have a bleed kit at home and can look after that part myself but he went on to say that without bleeding they couldn't check if there was a leak etc after fitting the olives. Am I being taken for a ride here?

And does anybody in South Dublin / North Wicklow have the tools/parts to cut a hose and secure a new olive and insert I could borrow?

Installation of olives was another €10 so €70 in total. I had actually made the decision to call back down and take the bike home as I didn’t want to pay for the bleed. But I was too late as they’d already done the work.

Wondering if anyone recognises these bike symptoms before I go straight to the mechanic..out for a quick spin this morning and noticed a slight clicking/knocking sound after a few km but couldn't figure out its origin, sounded like a pebbled lodged somewhere but got off and spun both wheels and pedals and nothing came loose nor could I see anything. The noise persisted whether pedalling or freewheeling and didnt stop til I got home. Ball bearings need replacing somewhere?

Not that I can remember but yeah seems a rear wheel issue, just went out to shed and got it pedalling and can hear the clicking, at least I've narrowed it down, cheers.

Most recent for me was wheel skewer too tight.

My moneys on worn Freehub bearings.

Seems to have worked, thanks! Although only tested it out by cycling a half mile, will see later on a full ride if issue persists, cheers.

Skewer needs to be only tight enough that the wheel doesn’t slip when you stand on the pedals to put the power down.

Too tight and you end up with too much side load on the bearings which can grind.

So would be a good idea to check your wheel doesn’t slip too. Hopefully you can find a balance point.

Is it just a sound, or can you feel it?

Sometimes bearings need to be loaded to feel wear, so just spinning the bb under no load might not show anything

I did a big and long overdue service on the Croix de Fer over the weekend, but ran into issues with sizing the chain.

I fitted a new 11-36 cassette, the old one having been 11-32, as I want to make the bike a bit more amenable to going uphill, trails etc. (ultimate plan is to downsize the chainring, but that doesn't need replaced yet so one step at a time). The RD is a Shimano RD R350 10 speed (https://bike.shimano.com/en-EU/product/component/shimano/RD-R350-10-SS.html) - a non-series Tiagra level part which has a listed max of 34t, but I'm relying on Shimano's reputation for being conservative. The chainrings are 48/34.

I couldn't use the old chain to size it since the the cassette was different, so I used the big-big method of wrapping the new chain around the big ring and big sprocket then adding 2 links. This however has ended up way too short. Here's the chain on the big ring and the 28t. It won't shift onto the 32t - which it obviously did before - never mind the 36t:

For the sake of comparison, here's small-small:

I'm assuming the issue is I fecked up sizing the chain (it was at the end of a long day and I was knackered - never a good state for something going right!), so is there a better chain sizing method I can use? Also question from the cheapskate in me, can I just splice a bit into the chain using a couple of quick links, or would that be inviting disaster?

RD looks to be done with as there is too much play even with all usual bolts tightened.

Ive watched a video or two and it looks okay to try at home replacing it so fingers crossed on Monday.

I just need to get 4 hours from it tomorrow 🤞.

Has anybody been to doctor/dermatologist for cycling related undercarriage issues?

I seem to constantly suffer from irritation/chafing in the same spot no matter what shorts/saddle/cream combination I use. Even after relatively short spins. And I seem to have the tiniest lump there, like the size of a pin head which doesn't seem to go away.

I'm wondering if a doctor/dermatologist could prescribe something or if a scalpel would need to be applied!

Apologies for the disturbing turn of conversation but it is really impacting my ability to just go out and cycle.

Thanks Cram. Wasn't so much the medical advice I was looking for, more if anybody else had had to go a similar route in looking for medical intervention. Everything you read online just points to the obvious changes to saddle/shorts/chamois and I half fear I'm turning myself into a hypochondriac!

Like I said, the lump is only miniscule so I think it is just a remnant of a previous saddle sore/friction which hasn't quite healed up fully and so constantly gets annoyed again when I jump back on the bike. So I'll take your advice and just book the appointment and hopefully get it put to bed.

If they're both 11 speed you don't need to change out the cassette. There's such little difference in cog spacing that it'll make no discernible difference to shifting.

On disc brake road bikes, do other people leave the thru axle handle in place on the wheel or do they take it off and carry it? I'd be afraid that it would come lose on a ride

Mine stays in the car. I haven't used it, other than letting my mate use it to take off his front wheel to get it in the boot.

I've a multi tool on the bike, and a proper set of hex keys in the shed

mine didn't even come with a handle, I've just used an allen key any time I've had to take a wheel off (haven't had a puncture yet fortunately but I do have a multitool in my kit).

Recently replaced disc rotors on a set of wheels but noticed slight rubbing. turns out i bought mtb ones and they are 2.0mm instead of 1.8mm. I switched wheels to those that have 1.8mm rotors and no rubbing. Is it worth replacing the rotors or can I just rub down the pads a bit?