Old and Slow

Good day I've got a set of DT Swiss wheels that I would like to replace the bearings on, but would like to do so myself. The hubs are 340's from a set of M1700 Spline 2 wheels. How do I source the correct bearings and are there any specials tools I need to acquire in order to do the job? Thanks, Trashy

I think this looks great. Some decals will really finish it off nicely. The wonderful thing about a project like this is, that it is your bike, and as long as you like the way it looks and get enjoyment from riding it, it doesn't matter one iota what anyone else thinks. I can't help with the sizing query unfortunately, but if you find it comfortable then I really don't see why you can't ride it as is.

The damage that happened above is in one of the few places on a bike frame that is very minimally stressed by typical riding forces, if the seatpost is sufficiently inserted into the seat tube. Additionally, it is strongly gusseted, making the entire joint stronger than it otherwise would be. I can guarantee you that the aluminium surrounding the repair is softer than it should be, and any hardness test would confirm this. The fact it has worked in your particular case does not make it good practice or good engineering.

Even if caught in time, you would still have to heat treat the frame after the welding repair.

Growing up my dad set my bike up front brake right, so that when I started riding motorbikes it would be natural. I've been riding mountain bikes with front brake on the left for 20 years now and it still feels strange some days.

Early long weekend spin.

I think Pat was exaggerating, at least a little bit. Even in the Morewood days (apart from the very beginning) the designs went through software analysis. I can't imagine things went backwards when he started Pyga, but perhaps I'm wrong. Your point remains though that he takes a very hands on approach to design, where software and analysis supplements hands on development and feel.

Greg Minnaar was set to run 2.4's on his dh bike had he raced, so I guess that also says something.

My guess is they are made in Taiwan.

Hi Nicholas and welcome to Bikehub. Are you trying to sell this bike? If so, you have landed up on the wrong side of the website and will likely have better luck if you post it on the classifieds, which can be found here: https://bikehub.co.za/classifieds/post/

Perhaps they are coming to you because they didn't like the other bike shops putting stickers on their bikes...

It's likely that your frame was just a dud. That is one of the hardest welds to get perfect and if the seat tube had been over-enthusiastically sanded before assembly, it may just have been ever so slightly too thin.

You most certainly can know for sure if it was heat treated. Heat treating to T4 is around 400°C for 40 minutes if I remember correctly. At that temperature the paint burns right off the frame... It is therefore very clear that this was not done for your repair. The problem with many aluminium welders that do these repairs, is that they seldom deal with aircraft grade alu that bike frames are made of. When we used to repair frames it wasn't uncommon for people to come with prior welding done on the frame. In addition. Even the slightest impurity in that weld (old paint, dirt) would compromise the weld strength. Cleaning the area for repair is not a quick and easy process.

That does look like your seatpost sits on the shallower side of things, but as long as it's inserted to the minimum depth, then the frame should be able to cope.

I actually don't mean dealers as stated above, but sellers in general. Many that sell here aren't dealers and don't care about a long term reputation. As the site aims to direct more people here to sell, the fly by night type will gravitate in greater numbers, bringing their lack of scruples with them.

From the little I've seen of your interactions on the Hub and from the praise of others here, it does seem like you are the real deal. I would wager though, that in the large pool of dealers, you are a minority.

And this is the bottom line. Classifieds cater to sellers- end of story. People posting ads is what keeps things turning and if sellers don't feel comments are in their best interest, then it makes no sense to have them from Admin's point of view. No campaigning will change that. As @Mountain Brusaid though, I personally would have comments for my ads and I really believe they benefit buyers. I recently bought a bike after taking a break from cycling for a few years, and despite 5 years of industry experience (many years ago), there were questions I should have asked the seller but only thought of after the deal was concluded. Having access to other insightful "window shoppers" through their comments on the ad would have benefitted me in my decision making. On the whole, comments favour buyers because they make it far tougher for seller's to deceive, exaggerate, lie or simply reply on a buyer's ignorance. As is the case with used car dealers, complete honestly is rarely profitable. The best salesmen are masters at making the buyer feel like they got an incredible deal, which is difficult to do when there are comments pointing out that it is not, in fact, an incredible deal.

I really struggled with my Express. Using fresh beans was the secret to success. My grinder is set to 5 for a fresh batch of coffee and moves to 4 just before the end.

I'm really bleak for you Mojoman. Unfortunately that was always going to happen. Aluminium needs to be heat treated after welding. You could have had a 1m long seatpost that touched your bb and that would have happened again!

My suggestion would be to make commenting on the classifieds a BikeHub plus member privilege. I would gladly pay for that, it would place a barrier on any random being a chop and any transgressors would have financial loss if their paid account is banned for stupid comments.

Blevins takes "multiple disciplines" to another level. His season "rap up" was also superb. Red Bull should pay him to do that every season.

It's bleak for them, bit that's also racing I guess. It just shows the difference pressure makes. Loris had no pressure all season and did incredibly well. Vali came in to the season with pressure and bombed at the start. At the end, Loris felt the pressure and succumbed to it. Vali finally took pressure off herself and was able to perform really well. Bruni has shown just what it takes to perform at the sharp end season after season. He is the master of dealing with pressure and it shows in his results. It was such an incredible racing week, and in fact the entire season, and I can't wait for another cracker next year.

So, you lost interest in the community aspect before the most recent changes started it towards a marketplace focused site, then returned to use the site for it's stated purpose, and complained about the changes....? There is still plenty of scope to discuss cycling related content here, and we are occasionally also indulged in pitchfork brigades....

I was bitterly disappointed in the closure of that thread. But I can't fault the argument above, and, to be honest, without the original posters participating, we were never going to get the closure we needed.

Someone GAVE one of these away a couple of weeks ago on the hub. Was gutted I missed it. What's the shifting speed like? I read a few reviews saying it was a little slower than mechanical shifting.