David Marshall

When you put a new chain on the chain will slip by one tooth on the worn gears on the cassette (when powering hard). It can also slip on a worn chain ring but usually you pick up chain suck before this happens. Only change the cassette if the new chain slips. Check chain condition as per Droo's link.

I also prefer the spin bike. Converted mine from fixed to freewheel with a cheap BMX freewheel. Also find that the indoor trainers wear out shafts and bearings quickly. Another thing in favour of the Giant is that the seat and bar height adjustments are continuous which makes for more accurate set up.

To get the cassette off can be difficult once it has bitten in. I use two chain whips. One to hold the cassette still, the other to remove the gears one at a time.

+1 (or Pledge). Great on Carbon as well. Get those last minute thumb prints off before the customer arrives. Also good for getting the sticker residue off frames.

The nipple length will not change anything on the wheel build. The threaded section of the nipple starts at the slot in the nipple head and goes down for 10mm. That is on a 12 mm nipple you will have 2mm blank space before the thread starts. On a 16mm nipple you will have 6mm blank before the spoke engages the thread. When you calculate the spoke length you want the spoke end to finish up level with the slot. This gives you all the spoke thread covered by the nipple thread. Anything else, like the spoke protruding through the nipple or not comming up to the slot will give a weaker wheel. As to the price difference between straight guage and double butted spokes it is still a lot less than a rebuild later. The spoke warrantee on a double butted wheel I build lasts for the life of the hub or rim. The warantee on a straignt guage spoked wheel ends when you leave my workshop.

The o-ring is actually and imperial one 1.78mm X 12.29mm.

The o-ring is 1.8mm by 13mm (assuming it is the same as the older red cartridge). Best chance is from a bearing/seal shop. Not too difficult to do - just keep your wits about you. Observe the spring position and the way the spring shaft fits at the bottom. Check that it operates before you assemble the fork. In the unlikely event of you not getting it right contact Droo at Stoke and Suspension. He should also be able to provide the o-ring.

X9 ten speed - Cage Sizes 55mm, 75mm, 99mm. Don't know if X0 is the same.

When I do this type of work I always like to check the operation of the fork first. That is check that the lockout is working by manually activating it. If it works then the oil level in the damper is ok. It must cover the foot of the damper cartridge. Next the cable and cable housing. If in any doubt replace. Lastly you may have dirt in the top cap. I mean between the part that turns the shaft and the top cap itself (there is an o-ring seal in there, which may also be damaged and causing friction). To remove the topcap clamp the damper body in a tube clamp or failing this slide a 4mm allan key through a pair of the slots in the damper body to hold it while you remove the top cap with your 24mm socket. The cap loosens in a CLOCKWISE direction. You can now get at the seal and reset the spring if necessary. Hope this helps.

I don't think you will "feel" low tensioned spokes while riding, far more likely to be one of the factors mentioned above - hub, tires or a bent rim or some spokes looser than others. You didn't mention if it is a road or mtb. On a road wheel braking may be affected but on a disc brake wheel your first indication of a problem is the usually the tire touching the frame. There is one reason why you have this type of problem - money! People are fussy when it comes to groupsets and bike weights and that is what purchasers concentrate on. To keep prices competitive on entry and mid level bikes manufacturers cut costs on wheels. Still light and look good but not durable. Machine time costs money so the less operations that have to take place the cheaper the wheel. Machines can tension spokes and true wheels quickly. They cannot detect spoke wind up as easily. The solution is to use straight guage spokes, as they are less prone to wind up than double butted and to build to a lower tension. The lower the tension the more a spoke flexes and the quicker the nipple loosens. (That is why you always tighten a nipple when truing - never loosen it.) More expensive wheels will have had more time on machines and are often "hand finished" or even hand built. Without a bit of experience it is difficult to assess tension by squeezing spokes or plucking them. Different types of spoke have a very different "ping". 2mm straight guage can sound loose at quite a high tension while a bladed spoke can have a high pitch before its tension even registers on a guage. Just remember you can destroy a rim with too much tension long before you will break a spoke so be careful. Most wheelbuilders will place the hub on a wooden block on the floor and lean on the wheel while building. This allows for the spokes to relax from wind up and importantly to give an indication of the tension limit of the rim. Also remember that spoke tension will be different on either side of a wheel. Drive side much tighter than the left (rear) and brake side tighter on the front. This has to be to keep the rim centered on the hub. Some spokes will be tighter than others (on the same side) to allow for imperfections in the rim while a loose spoke has a "dead" tone relative to those around it.

Sounds like a shimmy. Just google "high speed shimmy bicycle". Also threads here on the hub - speed wobble etc.

Sometimes the play can be from the skewer. Try a different one before you spend too much time on the preload.

PVC waste pipe with an ID of 33 and OD of 40 works lekker (this is the white one plumbers often use on small hand wash basins). Get a piece longer than your steerer tube. Put the race in position and with the fork upside down hold one leg of the fork with one hand and the pipe with your other hand. Bring the whole affair down onto a wooden block on the floor enough times and with enough force to seat the race.

The shock needs an air sleeve service. The oil should be in the main pressure chamber. You could have a little oil in the second chamber, depending on who serviced it but that much oil is escaping through the main seal. Can't tell what is leaking on the fork - could be from the pop lock or the fork. Dont know what the service interval is on that fork but 1000km probably relates to about 80 hours, depending on the rider.

Disagree with 16mm nipple building a stronger wheel. The threaded portion is the same length as that in a 12mm nipple (9mm - 10mm). What it does do is allow you to cover up incorrect spoke lengths - leaving you with a weaker wheel. The argument of double butted vs. straight guage spokes has been well documented. Double butted gives a more durable wheel. Period. For downhill you want a durable wheel.

Your budget is a bit tight. Decent spokes and nipples alone will set you back about R350. You may get a good deal on a 26" rim but the hub is another story. Spoke length depends on what rim and hub you choose and any of the main suppliers' double butted spokes will do. If you go for an online deal make sure that you can get hubs and rims with the same number of holes - preferably 36 holes for jumping.

You should be able to read the size/code on the seal of the bearing ( different sized bearing on each side). From this you can check who has stock.

Usually you can straighten the hangar. Best done with the right tool.

I am suprised that you have a 110mm BB because that is usually only used on road frames with two chainring cranks. Road tripple BB's are often 118mm and MTBs longer. Just check the following before you make the change. 1) the bb shell width of your frame (68 or 73mm). 2) are there any spacers on the drive side of your BB? These will effectivly lengthen your BB. I would try your new crank first on your current BB.

Home made rivnut setting tool. First use a Dremel or such to grind the top off the loose nut in your frame. (The part that takes the time is getting the rest of the rivnut out of your frame - BB or fork removal.) Drill a 4mm hole in a piece of thin flatbar. Insert the new rivnut into the hole in your frame - the same size as the one you removed (usually one taking a 4mm bolt) using a high tensile or stainless bolt - preferably with a hex nut head, tighten the rivnut with the bolt going through the flatbar. You use the flatbar to keep enough tension on the rivnut to stop it rotating while you tighten. When the nut is "set" remove the bolt and away you go.

Shudder is more likely to be from the caliper not centered evenly or the pads not aligned properly. Depending on your calipers you usually have a small screw on the one side that you use to set the caliper so that the gap between the rim and pad is the same on both sides. You may have to loosen the bolt holding the caliper to the frame to center it if the screw does not move it enough. Your pads also should be aligned with some "toe in". To do this loosen the pad, hold a business card between the back end of the pad and the rim and with someone activating the brake tighten the pad in this position, making sure that the pad is well positioned on the rim - clearing the tire and balancded with the pad on the other side.

Pads and / or disc worn?

I have a handy .xls spreadsheet calculator for comparing gears. It is based on the distance travelled for one full crank revolution with different chainring/gear combos. Shows the result as a % difference of the two distances. Can email it to anyone who wants. The above 52/11, 53/11 comparison gives a 2% difference.

I think the tables are gone forever. I have the one from 2006. I think the top tube - seat tube ratios are close to the 2008. Edit: oops! does not load lekker. pm your email and I will send it to you.

Could be a number of things - long piece of grass to damaged freehub or bearing. I'm also in Midrand. Give me a call if you haven't got it sorted yet