dollar

My latest Sora FD instructions stated that it was for a triple ring only. I used it on a double but did sukkel a bit to get it slick?

Before they sold "fork oil" I used to use ATF on my motorcycles (road & MX) with no problems. It must be pretty good stuff to keep an auto box in one piece? Does anyone still use ATF on bike forks?

Leet22 - people often say that I put the R350 in my pocket - I get to take home R60k per month Ha Ha - remember that my rate is in fact for my "company", albeit a very small one, and this includes all the overheads - truck, labourer, petrol, admin, rent, tools, bank charges, insurance, phones etc etc et bl00dy cetera

Agreed porky. The one thing that is a bit tricky is wheel building. It's really cool to watch a master at work - perfectly straight and perfectly dished - and it doesnt take him very long either. I have built a few motorcycle wheels - a sweat of note

Ja - I am always a bit nervous if the oke is a lot younger than I am - which is not hard

Leet22 - a leak on the intake manifold can be serious - it tends to "lean out" the mixture which may cause that cylinder to run hot. Get someone to look at it.

oops - meant to say - I get a kick out of the look on my clients face when I tell him that my pipework is guaranteed for his lifetime

Ja - service is what counts. It's also like any other trade - you need to build up a relationship of trust and accountability. I get a kick out of the look on my clients face when I tell him that my pipework is < ="-" ="text/; =utf-8">< name="ProgId" ="Word.">< name="Generator" ="Microsoft Word 11">< name="Originator" ="Microsoft Word 11"><> guaranteed for his lifetime

Jaqwil - I jest. Some of my attorney chinas are having a really bad time at present. Especially the ones into property! Also the courts are not operating too lekker and they moan constantly. Leet22 - nice, but very very high tech. You need a good mechanic - go and seek one out

Sorry - GP. What bike you got?

Are you an attorney? Sorry - typing error.

Very interesting thread. My 2c's - I service my own motorcycles, simply because I cannot afford to take them to Honda around the corner. Fortunatly I have been working on motorcycles since I was 14 and can rebuild a motor if I need to. I have also re-built car engines, worked on pumps, tractors and all kinds of other k@k. Bicycles are very, very simple. My job is of a technical nature - plumbing - so I am not afraid to get my hands dirty. I charge R350/hour - mostly. BUT - there are also guys who ride bikes who are attorneys (shame), doctors, bean counters etc who dont have the will or inclination to DIY. You may in fact have very technical okes who simply dont have the time? These are the okes who call on the "pro" bike mech. Unfortunatly the SA "pro" anything is sometimes V-good or F-k@k. Same as plumbers? You have to seek out the good ones and make sure you tell all. So - I suggest that you start a BB for great cycle mechanics, not the poor ones - there are too many!

I agree .2mm either side is nothing to worry about. I would be a touch concerned if it was more than half a mil either side though - or if I did not actually know what it was - I had not measured it because I dont have a vernier or mike.

Sorry - I already said finally, but one more obvious thing that I forgot to mention about shimming. THE LENGTH OF THE SHIM BECOMES YOUR DE_FACTO INSERTION LENGTH. So, if you have a piece of shim 30mm long that you use at the clamp so that you can make it lekker tight, then you actually have a 30mm insertion length! The bottom bit of the stem has a mm or so of clearance cause its not shimmed and it moves around in the tube as it gets loaded from the side - something that happens on a MTB? Where is all the load concentrated?

Greetings again, I am pleased to see that you are on top form tonight, and I trust that you are in good health. At the risk of repeating myself, where exactly in the second post (or the first) do I say that shimming stuffs up a frame??? - can I quote myself - "You could shim it but I dont recommend it - the shim slips, someone else adjusts the saddle etc etc. Get the correct size." I am not going to argue about the galvanic action - because I have not actually seen it in a seatpost. BUT do you have brass and aluminium (two reactive metals) touching on your bike? I am not talking about the bearings and all the other stuff - steel is not the problem. Galvanic action with steel is not much of an issue. I have however experienced a number of stuck seatposts - that's why I said that I "worry". Any finally I have actually seen a frame that was indirectly damaged by a shim - the owner removed the post for some reason. He then replaced the post and cracked the frame when he tightened the bolt. He only found out afterwards that it was in fact shimmed by the previous owner - albeit not very well.

Ah - my new china Johan Was wondering what happened to you! Where did I say that a frame can be ruined because of shimming? I said I dont recommend it. Why - because if it's not done correctly then you do run the risk of damaging the frame. Also somebody may forget about the shim at some later stage. Also I worry about aluminium/brass/aluminium together. Thing called galvanic action - just add a bit of water. I guess that you could use a aluminium blik. Personally if I have a bike worth a few grand then I would just get the correct post.

That sounds great big h - you are obviously much fitter than I am (and just a touch older). I find that going constantly over 80-85 burns me out pretty fast....

Ha Ha - 80-100? It also depends on how old you are! I start to smell smoke after 80 and can pedal all day at 65, albeit pulling a taller gear?

I recently bought some sora FD+RD's for a bike that I am building. I looked for some original campy stuff but the kit that was available at a half decent price was cr@p. The good campy stuff was right out of my price range. So the bike is now not original. Who will know - nobody here really gives much of a toss anyway. Anyway I have been pleasantly surprised - in future I am not going to pi$$ around looking for the "best" - I am going to spend my R400 and go with Sora - it works. It looks OK and it's a bargain.

You could shim it but I dont recommend it - the shim slips, someone else adjusts the saddle etc etc. Get the correct size.

Beware - Many frames have been stuffed up - scrapped because of exactly this. Spend the money and get exactly the correct diameter seatpost! You have been warned

Dont stress XTC. This is what younger okes do - it makes life more interesting. It draws old farts like me into the discussion which has lasted 5 pages? If you want the lightest bike in SA - thats fine. As long as you pay for the bits

Thing is that you are pi$$ing into the wind. All you need to do is throw cash at it and you can have the lightest bike in the world - but you would have to sell what you have now and start with a new frame? Have you looked at replacing some of the steel stuff with titanium? Is there any steel stuff on the bike still?

Use helium in the tyres?

I guess that you have heard about the "law of diminishing returns"? It costs you x to get to 9.5kg's, then it costs you 2x to get to 9kgs, then 10x to get to 8.5kg etc etc. Costs you zip to stop eating - as the matchman (i think) suggested....