Who Needs a Dish Tool?

More home improvement projects have kept me out of the shop for most of the summer. However, I did finally have a chance to address the out-of-dish rear wheel on my Peugeot that I mentioned in a previous post. One thing I wanted to note about this task is that I dished the wheel without a specialized dish tool. In fact, when I hand-built the wheels for my Panasonic touring bike, I similarly did so without the use of a dish tool. That doesn't mean that I didn't properly dish the wheels - I did! I just didn't see the need to shell out money on a tool that I wasn't sure I'd ever use again.

After scoping out some of the online forums, I found a few commenters describing a method of measure wheel dish wherein the rim surface is set upon three raised surfaces of identical height, such as beer cans or pasta sauce jars. Then you stack quarters underneath the axle until they touch - or nearly touch - the end of the axle. Next, you simply flip the wheel over to check the dish. If the quarters are touching or nearly touching the other side of the axle, then the wheel is properly dished. If the quarters hit the axle or if there is a gap between the stack of quarters and the axle, then the wheel is out of alignment.

I went about conjuring my own homemade dish tool using two spare strips of 2x4 lumber. I set the 2x4s parallel to each other on my work bench and set the stack of quarters in between them. When I laid the wheel onto the 2x4s, it resulted in 4 points of contact with the rim surface that were all equal in height. The rear wheel on my Peugeot was badly out of dish due to some changes I had made to axle spacers, so it took a few trips back and forth between my homemade dish tool and the truing stand before I got it right. But overall it was pretty straightforward and I don't think it would've been much faster, easier, or better with a store-bought dish tool.

If you're looking to dish a wheel and would like to avoid purchasing a dish tool - especially if you don't plan on needing one often, AKA are not a professional wheelbuilder - feel free to use the method I've described here. It's pretty handy and can be executed with things you probably already have around the house or garage.

Overhauling the Outpost

I'm ashamed to admit that I've badly neglected my old GT Outpost. You know that nasty, gray, salty slush that hangs around on the roads after it snows? Last winter, I rode through that stuff and then hung the Outpost back on the wall in the garage without rinsing it off first. Months of continuous exposure to salts, moisture, and other scary chemicals from the snowy road grime left the bike in pretty poor condition. Most of the components are now covered in a thick layer of surface rust and there are occasional spots of heavy rust on the frame. Of particular concern are the chainrings and cassette, which will likely need to be replaced. The front derailleur is in pretty bad shape as well, but I'm going to try to salvage it with a thorough polishing and, if needed, some wood bleach.

Thankfully, most of the rest of the bike is in serviceable condition. The frame will need to be touched up, the wheelset should be fine after the hubs have been repacked, and the rest of the components should be in good shape after a thorough cleaning. It'll need a new cassette and a full tuneup, but Kenneth gave me some replacement chainrings a while back, so I should be able to get the bike back to ride-ready condition without too much hassle. It's been disassembled and the frame is now hanging in the repair stand, so it shouldn't be long now.

Dusting Off the Wrenches in the Tinkery

As I mentioned yesterday, Spring is tune-up season. So I took some time over the weekend to get the Peugeot into prime condition for riding season. I should note that I ride nearly every day through the winter, so regular maintenance is a year-round affair. But on one of the first mild weekends of the year, it feels awfully nice to wrench on a bike with the garage door open and a beer in hand. I got the Peugeot up on the repair stand Sunday morning, which put me on a deadline for an afternoon ride on the Galloway Trail.

First step was to replace the dangerously spent brake pads. I picked up a bulk supply of Jagwire pads on the internet recently and I was looking forward to trying them out. They're a bit different than the original Nashbar pads that came with calipers - thicker and not as sleek - but they're a lot grippier than the Dia Compe pads that I used to use and I really like the old-school look.

Other than a general cleaning, my other task was to repack the hubs. The front hub went pretty quickly, as it uses standard ball bearings. But I forgot that the rear hub uses Suntour cylindrical bearings, which had me scratching my head until I found some disassembly and cleaning instructions online. In the end, I got the hubs repacked and rolling smoothly.

I didn't have time to tackle cables and housing, which wouldn't have mattered anyways since the guy in the shop accidentally sold me a mountain brake cable along with the other road brake and shift cables I bought. I was also considering replacing the bottom bracket cartridge, so I'll probably end up grabbing one of those when I pick up the one brake cable I'm lacking.

Wheel Issues on the Raleigh Sports

I totally slacked off on regular maintenance of Ginger's 1972 Raleigh Sports. Ginger told me that the brakes were squealing so I threw the bike up on the repair stand. Once it was on the repair stand, I realized that the wheels were badly out of true. Upon closer inspection I found that some of the spokes were frighteningly loose. One of them was even broken! I pulled off the front wheel with the broken spoke and tossed it aside and then trued up the rear wheel as best I could. My old man has several old Raleigh Sports rigs and he came to rescue with a temporary replacement wheel. So now Ginger's machine is back on the road, which is nice. Though I have to confess that I totally forgot to fix the squealing brakes.

Now I'm torn on how to proceed. As I see it, I've got three options:

1. Replace the front wheel with a used or new wheel
2. Pick up a donor bike from around the same vintage and pilfer the wheels from it
3. Re-lace the original wheels

All three options have their advantages. Option 1 is probably the path of least resistance. It's pretty easy to find brand new 26 x 1 1/3 wheels for a good price. And I'm sure there are plenty on eBay and/or Craigslist. But most of the bike is completely original, so I kind of hate to do this.

Option 2 is slightly more intensive, but not much. And it still entails replacing the original equipment with non-original, which would totally suck.

Option 3 is the most attractive, but it's the most expensive (I would need to invest in a good truing stand and tension meter) and time consuming (I've never built or re-laced a wheel before). At the same time, building wheels is something I've been interested in trying my hand at. And a decent truing stand would be a pretty solid investment for someone who works on six bikes of my own, plus my friends' bikes when they need a hand.

The jury's still out on how I'm going to handle this. But I'll have to do it soon, because my dad's going to want that wheel back eventually.

There are worse places to flat

I walked out the front entrance at work yesterday ready to meet my coworkers at the pub for some happy hour drinks. I turned on my tunes, unlocked my bike, and threw on my helmet and gloves. I hopped on my bike, traveled a few short feet, and realized that I had a flat tire.

Shit.

Luckily, I always carry a spare tube, a mini-pump, and a multi-tool. The pub was just a few blocks away, so I used the mini-pump to inflate the tire enough that I could make it up the hill. When I reached my destination, I went in, ordered a quart-size beer and then went and fetched my supplies and my rear wheel.

I sat down with my enormous beer and my task at hand, and went to work. It took about 10 minutes or so for me to remove the tire and tube, find and remove the source of the puncture, install a new tube, and replace the tire. A few minutes more and the tire was mostly reinflated using the mini-pump - good enough to get me home, anyways. I left the rear wheel in the corner by our table while we ate, drank, and chatted.

When it came time to depart, I paid my tab, said my goodbyes, grabbed my wheel, and left. Cinching the wheel back on my bike was a snap, and then I headed for home.

Easiest thing in the world.

An Especially Special Stringer Bicycle

My Dad brought his 1975 Raleigh Sports into town last weekend to pedal around downtown for Bikes & Brews. He ended up leaving the bike with me so that I could tune it up, as it's been in storage for quite some time. Last night, I poured myself a gin & tonic and hauled the old girl down to the basement. It's really a beautiful bike: a classic English roadster with a copper color frame. It even has the original leather saddle (my old man bought the bike new in 1975).

I put a couple coats of leather conditioner on the saddle and tensioned it a bit to reduce some sagging that was beginning to occur. Next, I ripped out all of the old cables and housing and ran new cables, including a new shift cable kit for the Sturmey-Archer 3-speed hub. Once I had all of the cables adjusted properly, I added a few drops of Tenacious Oil to the rear hub and pulled the machine out of the repair stand.

The bike is now functioning great. It could stand to have a few parts replaced in the near future; a new chain, new brake pads, new tires and tubes, etc. There are also some areas that are beginning to show some surface rust, so a heavy cleaning and rust removal might be in order. But other than that, it's in great shape and is an exquisite specimen. Maybe I can talk him into letting me hold on to it next winter so I can give it a full overhaul and polish.

The Great Shifter Upgrade

After I had finished restoring my Peugeot PH-10, there were a few things that I was still a bit unsatisfied with.  One of the main problems was that the outer chain ring was slightly bent; enough so that I get a fair bit of chain rub on the derailleur in otherwise reasonable gear combinations.  Another issue was the ugliness of the old Simplex stem shifters that came on the bike.  Not only was the bulky plastic molding between the shifters an eyesore, but it looked like it had been beat on with a hammer, which made it look notably worse.

I had been considering replacing the stem shifters with a pair of bar-ends, but just couldn't pull the trigger.  I had excuses:  I didn't want to have to re-wrap the bars, I didn't want to replace the nearly-new shift cables, the stem shifters worked perfectly fine so why fix something that isn't broke, etc.  But a couple weeks ago, I decided that it was time to take action.  I picked up a set of vintage Suntour bar-end shifters on eBay for about 40 bones.  They were in decent shape, and I got a pretty good deal on them.  Then I ran down to my LBS for some new shift cables and bar tape.


I removed the stem shifters and cables and unwrapped the bars.  To install the new shifters, they had to be disassembled so that the expander plugs and mounting bodies could be tightened into the ends of the handlebars.  Once the mounting bodies were secured in place, the levers were bolted back into them.  There's nothing to these bar-ends, and they were a snap to install.  Once the shifters were properly installed, I cut new cable housing and ran the cables.  I decided to go ahead and run the cables under the entire length of the bar tape.  I know some people prefer to have the housing exit the bar tape before the bars begin to curve, but I think that looks a little sloppy.  To keep the housing in place, I used electrical tape to secure the housing directly to the bars, and then wrapped the bars with the new tape.  It ended up looking fantastic.

The night that I finished installing the new bar-ends, I ended up riding home from a friend's house.  It took me a few blocks to get used to the action of the shifters - the first time I tried to up-shift I almost veered into a curb.  But it didn't take me long to get comfortable with the mechanics required to shift smoothly while holding a steady line.  I think the switch to bar-ends was a pretty good idea; they work like a charm and they look phenomenal.  Now I've just got to figure out what to do about that bent chain ring.

The Worst Is Over

I don't know how the hell the nut and washer came off of Ginger's front brake assembly, but that's definitely what happened.  I should've known that they were getting loose.  Her front brake suddenly developed a loud squeak that was progressively becoming both more pronounced and lower of pitch.  But whatever; the bike is fixed now.  The squeak is gone and the brakes are working properly.  And to make sure that they stay that way, I used a split lock washer with a nylon-insert locknut to bolt the brake back on the fork.  It's not going anywhere any time soon.  Unfortunately, the bent brake bolt went back on the bike, as that seems to be a particularly difficult piece of hardware to replace.

On a related note, for the past few years, I've been putting Grey Matter brake pads on all of our road bikes.  I think these particular pads are made by Dia Compe.  I buy them because they're very cheap - usually around $2.50 apiece at my LBS.  But when I put new brakes on my Peugeot, they came with two sets of Nashbar road shoes/pads.  I couldn't believe the difference in stopping power.  Now, I can't totally blame the higher quality road pads for the enhanced braking performance; after all, the bike also had brand new calipers and NOS levers.  But I was literally skid-stopping at every stop sign I came to until I got used to the more subtle touch that was required of the new brakes.  I can easily stop my bike with one finger on each lever, which is something that I was never able to do with my Raleigh.  What's more, I have also had repeated troubles with squealing brakes, which is probably due to the softer pad compound of the Grey Matters.

For right now, the machines that have the Grey Matter pads will probably keep them.  But when tune-up time comes around, I'm thinking I'll start swapping out the old pads with some higher quality road shoes/pads.  Then I can compare any difference in braking performance a little more directly.  And besides, a quick browse through some of my favorite online retailers tells me that I can get some harder-compound road pads for around the same price that I've been paying for the Grey Matter pads.   So there's always that.

Toys of the Tinkery

My little workshop out in the garage isn't all that impressive.  Basically, it consists of a 6' rolling workbench that's packed to the gills with all of my tools and a pretty nice bicycle repair stand.  I've got a toolbox that is filled with bike-specific tools such as a crank puller, various freewheel tools, cable cutters, cone wrenches, etc.  Then I've got a large wrench set, a toolbox filled with non-specific tools, and a lower shelf on the workbench that's packed with saws, drills, and other power tools, as well as a few odds and ends.  All of these items are pretty common in any workshop - especially a bike shop.  But I also have a couple of items that are particularly unique to the Stringer Tinkery.

A few years back, I bought a bunch of small adjustable wrenches from a guy in Jeff City.  He claimed that they were vintage bicycle wrenches.  Though I have no firm reason to deny this, I must say that they're awfully peculiar.  They are just slightly too wide to act as cone wrenches, but they're not really big enough for heavier duty jobs like tightening axle nuts.  And they don't open wide enough to fit around the headset adjustable race or the bottom bracket cups. I rather like them, though.  When I bought them - I think I paid $20 for ten wrenches of various sizes and makes - most of the wrenches had taken on a lot of surface rust.  So I cleaned them up with a little oxalic acid, and while they don't look as good as new, they're in a lot better shape than when I bought them.  I gave all but three away to friends and family.  The remaining three don't get a whole lot of use, but I like to show them off once in a while because they're pretty cool.

My most prized possession in the Tinkery is my shop apron.  It's a plain black utility apron that my sister embroidered with the words 'Stringer's Tinkery,' which are flanked by a bicycle wheel, wrench, and drive side crank.  At first I was hesitant to wear it because I didn't want such a wonderful gift to become fouled with grease smears and oil spatter.  But then I realized that getting the thing dirty was the whole point; and some heavy use could only give the apron the character it so justly deserved.  Besides, if it gets too beat up, I'll just have my lovely sister make me a new one.  And not only does it look great, but it's superbly functional, with three large pockets that are perfect for holding wrenches, cable crimpers, or other tools that I want to have on hand.  It now hangs from my repair stand and is worn regularly.

A Note on Cable Cutters

One of the very first tools any fledgling bike mechanic should own is a decent pair of cable cutters.  Sure, you can slice through shift and brake cables with electrical crimpers or the shears on needle-nose pliers, but you've got to have something a little more specialized to bite through cable housing.  Years ago, when I started doing my own bicycle repairs in earnest, I picked up a pair of Pedro's cable cutters.  The mechanic at my LBS told me that the Pedro's cutters would be the one tool that I would never have to replace.  And after using them consistently for a number of years now, I can certainly attest to their quality and sturdiness.  They really do seem to be built to last.

Something that's irked me over the years, however, is that the Pedro's cable cutters don't have built in crimpers.  They cut through cable and housing with no problem, but when it comes time to crimp a cap onto the end of a cable, I have to dig out an additional tool to finish the job.  Before I bought my Pedro's cable cutters, I had been eyeing the Park Tools professional cable cutters online.  The Park cutters have an integrated crimper, and it seems so natural for cable cutters to have a crimper that I assumed that they all had them.  At the time, my LBS didn't carry the Park cutters, so I bought the Pedro's.  And while I haven't had any problems with the Pedro's, if I had it to do over again, I would probably end up going with the Park cutters. 

Way Better Than Trial-and-Error

I'm a little late getting around to this, but PedNet is offering a Bicycle Mechanics College program.  It looks like a good series of courses if you're interested in learning how to effectively work on bikes.  According to the PedNet calendar, the series started at the beginning of February and goes through early April.  The class is held on Tuesdays at 6pm at Walt's.  Although you can sign up for the entire 8-week series of courses, it would be pretty pointless to do that now since they're already several weeks in.  But you can still sign up for each class individually.

As of now, I can't really attest to how worthwhile this class is.  However, if I have time, and if Gina lets me show up without registering, I may try to sneak in next week to see what the class is like.

Cody's Reading List: Bicycle Repair and Maintenance

Maybe you're a weekend racer.  Or you have a hybrid leaning against the wall of your bedroom.  Or you're a  burgeoning bicycle restoration guru.  If you've got a bicycle, you can probably count on dropping some money into repair and maintenance at some point.  And you can definitely save some of that money by doing the work yourself.  This installment of Cody's Reading List will help you find the resources you need to get the job done.

Although there are some good references out there on the information superhighway, it doesn't get much better than learning from an experienced bicycle technician.  For me, that person was my father, who is quite adept at bicycle repair and maintenance.  He definitely showed me the ropes and taught me to take care of my bicycle.  But now that I have my own garage of bicycles to keep in good working order, I sometimes need some quick guides when I come across a problem that I haven't encountered before.  And phoning up my old man isn't always an option.

If you've ever done a Google search for anything related to bicycle repair, you've probably come across Hugh's Bicycle Blog.  This site can be a good resource if you are able to wade through several years of regular blog updates to find the information you need.  The guy seems to be pretty capable and takes on some pretty interesting projects.  What's more, the work that is included in his posts ranges from the most basic, here's-how-you-inflate-a-tire-with-a-pump tasks all the way up to intensive rebuilds.  There's one notable catch, and that would be Hugh's writing.  His posts can be pretty rife with grammar and spelling errors and he seems to have some sort of infatuation with improperly used hyphens and quotation marks.  But other than that, it's a good blog and I am a regular reader.

If you want a website that moves a little more toward an easy reference guide, Sheldon Brown's website is it.  Sadly, Sheldon passed away in 2008, but to this day, professional mechanics will still reference his site when recommending sources of information on bicycle repair.  This guy was a true expert on everything bicycle-related.  His site is fairly easy to navigate, with various subjects separated onto their own respective pages and the ability to browse or search the site.  His explanations are very straightforward and there's even some occasional humor thrown in.  The information on the site can get very technical, and includes lots of tables on sizing, threading, pitch, and other measurements for modern and older bikes, as well as now-defunct parts.  This is often particularly helpful for those of us who like to work on vintage and classic machines.  If you are at all interested in bicycle repair and maintenance, you must bookmark Sheldon Brown's Bicycle Technical Info.  No exceptions.

Lastly, there's the all-out quick reference guide option, brought to you by Park Tools.  The Park Tool Repair Help site is probably the most comprehensive and easy to use bicycle repair site out there.  You simply highlight the area of the bicycle diagram that you're interested in and click.  You're then given an extensive list of common repair and maintenance how-to guides.  The individual articles are step-by-step procedures and there are clear pictures and diagrams that accompany nearly each step, almost like a set of instructions.  For common issues related to bicycle repair and maintenance, this site is indispensable, and I used it quite regularly as I was learning some of the more advanced repairs.

Speaking of Park Tools, I should also mention that I received the Big Blue Book of Bicycle Repair for Christmas last year.  I haven't had a chance to crack the cover yet, but if it's anything like their repair website, you can bet that it's pretty much invaluable.