JXV

Rode my Maverick ML7.2 since 2003, averaging 2000km a year. Front wheel bearings replaced for the 1st time early this year. I never serviced them in all that time. The XT ball and cone bearings in my rear hub needed more regular attention. The suspension pivot bearings have now been replaced about 3 times. They wear faster, I'm guessing because higher impact loads and only part rotation. The point I am making is that the standard fit-and-forget cartridge bearings are so cheap and last so well that IMO it is not worth taking the trouble to interfere with them....but nothing stopping you if you choose to...

The nicest way to do it imo. Did it like this with some friends about 8 years back. The route is not all beach riding but choose a time of year when weather is stable and ideally you want spring low tides between about 7am and 11 am. Because it will not be an organised event you are unlikely to find ferries at all the river crossings so you will have to swim some of them. The Bashee being the scariest iirc. Time the crossing to coincide with the tide change or incoming tide. Take a length of nylon washing line for towing ur bike and some drysacks to keep essentials dry (e.g. phones, gps cameras). I would advise to use an old hardtail if you have one, fit biggish tires (2.3 or wider) and then check that the bike floats. Strip and rebuild the whole bike with marine grease beforehand, then again when you get home to clean all the salt out. Advisable to have a driver that can transport your stuff between your overnight venues. Enjoy

+1 the Specialized advice. I used a Spez Avatar gel for quite few years. On my new bike I bought a Phenom Comp Gel. It is MUCH harder but strangely enough, even more comfortable on longer rides than the Avatar. Also a bit lighter. The Spez saddles are available in different widths, hence the need to get measured.

Bend it straight with ur fingers taking care not to cut yourself on the sharp edges

Looked at rims and hubs in lbs today. Weighed on scale there is less than 10g diff between Hope pro2 and DT Swiss 350...both quite OK hubs. Beware hubs with alloy freewheel bodies....cassettes eat these over time and some brands more than others. Do your research

Inclined to agree with Wyatt here. If you are very careful not to nick the seal lip or bend the moulded-in metal backing plate then yes you pop the seals off, clean, repack and replace the seals. However in practice, for a working mechie, the time taken to do all that costs more than putting a new unit in because these bearings are mostly quite cheap. Less comebacks too. If you repack a bearing that has even the slightest bit of play when clean....then it will not last as long as a new one. If you are a home mechie with free time on your hands then go for it. In my experience by the time I can feel play in a bearing on my bike it will be worse after I clean and repack it. Rather just put new. Preventive repacking of bearibg that is still running OK introduces risk of seal damage and ingress of dirt. Run them till they die and put new ones

Why you disagree Wyatt? What I wrote has always worked for me

Freezer trick should work but as soon as you take that bearing out the freezer moisture from the air is going to condense on it and you will now have water in your pressfit housing. Water steel and alu/carbon in contact with each other is a recipe for corrosion. Rust takes up more space than the steel it is made from -you can work out the consequences. In a dry climate the freezer trick may be OK but here in KZN I rather use grease and careful press technique

Use the old bearing or a socket that fits to the outer race as a drift.....stiffer than washers. The threaded rod used to pull must be centralised to reduce risk of pulling the new bearing in skew. Centralise by wrapping with tape so it fits snugly .

Banjo bolts are pure evil. Thought we got rid of them after the original Hopes and quite sad to see them making a comeback. More weight, more sources for leaks, more fragile. I guess the variety of frame and brake mounts now on the market requires a system that allows more range of hose alignments.

I ended up with with a Tallboy LT but the Bronson, Camber, Stumpy and a Pyga were on my shortlist. If you jump and are rough on bikes then 27.5 wheels might suit you better. Go for the longest travel you can get that still pedals nicely......thinking a 5010 or Bronson or maybe a Pyga Pascoe. Stage races/marathons and jumping/drops.....sounds like u actually need 2 bikes.

Have not had a bad experience there but I have had better service elsewhere. I think the shop is entitled to tell their side of the story. Several problems....sealant corroding spoke nipples?...surely the rim tape prevents the two coming in contact? Spoke nipples breaking like that is unusual and hints at a different cause. The back wheel story is horrendous but Ieaving your bike in a shop for months on end is an invitation for problems...human nature being what it is. Not defending the shop but seeking a balanced view here.

Squeal is caused by slight mis alignment between disc and caliper which allows the pad and its backing plate to oscillate very rapidly between the two when brakes are applied while the disc is turning. New discs and pads and caliper alignment will nearly always fix the problem. If it does not, your caliper mounting posts might not be in line with the disc and this is a difficult problem to fix. The other approach is to apply a damping material between piston and backing plate of the brake pad. Sometimes the backing plates are painted and this should help. Copaslip also helps but put it on very very thinly. I would always recommend going as far as you can with alignment first, then try copaslip as a last resort.

My LBS put it this way when a friend was looking for a new bike "the geometry is not much different if at all. Real problem is that women's specific bikes are difficult to sell 2nd hand and automatically have lower resale" If you can find a genderless bike that suits it will likely be better value in the long run.

When you say slipping....is it slipping on the chosen cog or changing up/down to other cogs occasionally? 1)I have seen a chain slip on a cluster where so much gunge had compacted into the gaps between rear cogs that the chain could not seat properly onto the cogs. 2)Bent hanger/derailler always a problem. Difficult to straighten it accurately on the bike. Remove, straighten on workbench, refit....or replace with a new one. If hanger was bent then check the frame wasn't damaged at the same time. 3)Worn RD? When there is free play in the pivots of RD it will not shift reliably in both directions

Yes all correct EXCEPT IF the disc rotor is not exactly in line (parallel) to the pad surfaces. This can result from mis-aligned caliper and/or worn out discs. Both will absorb some lever travel and give reduced braking effort. And yes, to be fair this can occur with any of the popular brands.......... Have owned Juicy 7 and they were nice but the previous model XT brakes were better and needed less maintenance. The current XT brakes are savage with big rotors - true one finger brakes

Yes all correct EXCEPT IF the disc rotor is not exactly in line (parallel) to the pad surfaces. This can result from mis-aligned caliper and/or worn out discs. Both will absorb some lever travel and give reduced braking effort. And yes, to be fair this can occur with any of the popular brands.......... Have owned Juicy 7 and they were nice but the previous model XT brakes were better and needed less maintenance. The current XT brakes are savage with big rotors - true one finger brakes

Dont use paint for a temporary trail marker .... seems obvious. Every sq.m of land in SA is owned by somebody so it is real important to have owners permission for permanent markers

SRAM? If not changing down then either chain too tight or FD not pushing the chain across correctly. Agree with trying limit screw adjustment for the inner limit but also check FD alignment. When upside down chain hangs off top off sprocket under the FD and more easily deflected. When rubber side down the chain hangs a fraction lower and needs a bigger push to deflect it. So look at angle of FD to chainring from above and maybe adjust tail of FD in a fraction. If you are using a directional chain is it mounted the right way around?

PS also make sure u did not spill brake fluid on the new pads while bleeding the brakes

Are the old pads worn exactly parallel to the backing plate? If not this is a sign the calipers and new pads are not aligned to the disc. If the brakes were working well before changing pads this could be the reason. Juicys have those cone washers on the mounting that allow you to get the pads exactly parallel to the disc. Do this alignment first. Then if the brake levers still fell spongy air is the likely cause and bleeding is needed. It wont hurt to clean and gently sand the new pads by rubbing against fine sandpaper backed by a flat surface such as wooden block.

Good answer Johan. Roller bearing can tolerate higher loads than spherical (ball) type but there are other issues. Straight roller bearing cannot take any lateral loading. Tapered roller bearings (like on a car) can take side loading but are also wider/thicker than a ball bearing...thus heavier.....and they need to be precisely preloaded. Overkill for cycling if u ask me

BTDT. If you have rear sus then going SS when ur hanger breaks can be a problem. Most suspensions cause small changes in BB to axle distance as they flex. Every time the chain goes slack on suspension movement it wants to change up at the back and eventually it rides up onto the biggest gear it can and locks out the suspension. May go so tight you cant turn the cranks.....at which point you might break something if you keep riding. Emergencies only IMO. I always carry a spare hanger 'cos I never want to do this again>_>

Been running BFG A/T on Defenders and now on LC100 for yonks now. Routinely getting 100 000 to 120 000 km per set of 4. High price but low price/km. Next set now due will be same again.

Prefer the screw in Shimano BB with Hollowtech II cranks. Reasons: 1) I already have a spare BB (for my previous bike) 2) I already have the tools for fitting/removing it and it is an easier job than the press-fit. Was a factor in selecting a SC Tallboy LTc over a Spez Stumpy when I bought a bike recently. I think I would have enjoyed riding both bikes equally but for a home mechy like me the SC looked to be easier to maintain in the long run.