servicing plastic pedals vp 536 clones 15

How to service & maintain cheap plastic pedals

Not all cheap, plastic bike parts are junk: at lots of bike forums, people automatically think plastic pedals are non-serviceable and junk. Funny thing is, there seems to be a general consensus on this, and nobody cared to take apart such a pedal! Most plastic pedals I know of is quite serviceable, and long lived. I bought VP Components VP-536 clone for $12 or less about 2 years ago, and they performed admirably. After 2000 kilometers of heavy use and abuse, I have zero complaints about them. They are not the smoothest running pedals I know, probably due to tiny ball bearings, but they are my go to pedals. Ok, now lets take them apart, clean, relube and inspect! We don’t need too much tools: a 12mm socket, a 14 one, 17 spanner, few qtips, and of course, a trusty… Continue Reading How to service & maintain cheap plastic pedals

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diy bushing remover for rockshox removed bushing.resized

Useful DIY bike tools for bike repair / maintenance in few hours or less

While reorganising, cleaning and maintaining my tools and supplies, I decided to put some broken stuff into good use. You don’t need to buy all the stuff you need, especially the ones you use less often. I built few wheelsets so far, and been too lazy to buy a spoke nipple driver. “Proper” spoke nipple drivers have rotating, offset shaft – I don’t need that. I just need something to firmly hold nipples, so they don’t drop into the rims. When I found a small, flat tip screwdriver with a broken nose, I got my angle grinder and shaved the nose to make it flat (as I can). Then, carefully grinding the edges, I made it fit to a nipple firmly. Mission accomplished! No dropping nipples anymore! It took less then 10 minutes, most time spent on getting the angle… Continue Reading Useful DIY bike tools for bike repair / maintenance in few hours or less

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greenland wax fjaellraeven

DIY waterproofing fabrics, bags, shoes and Brooks saddle – virtually anything

First thing you learn on a boat is to keep yourself dry, if it’s winter. It’s not different when you’ re on your bike. Being wet is not just uncomfortable, it can quickly become a health issue – from catching cold to having arthritis, depending on exposure time. On a bike, keeping yourself dry is easier said then done. Unfortunately, waterproofing works both ways: while you may keep away the rain, you may be soaked in your clothing due to excess sweating. You may not even imagine how much sweat human body can produce. Ask bike trainer users: without a huge fan, sometimes two, you’ll be dripping all over the place. While cruising on your bike at a relatively high pace, you don’t sweat that much, even under the hot sun thanks to wind. With waterproof clothing, wind does not… Continue Reading DIY waterproofing fabrics, bags, shoes and Brooks saddle – virtually anything

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copper grease anti seize agent

2 must-have chemicals for any mechanic: thread lock and copper grease

Copper grease and thread lock compound. Now, you can dismiss 🙂 Or, if you want to know why you need them, stick with me a little longer. If you have a look at the image, you’ll see an ordinary socket hexagon bolt. If you look closely, you’ll notice a tiny hole in it, indicating that it’s not a standard item. When I received my first disc brake set with mounting hardware, I was surprised to discover a very fine wire in the box and wondered what it was. Strangely, even on brand-new bikes, I never saw that wire. It’s a preventative measure against bolts slackening and falling off and causing catastrophic damage to your bike and you: that wire is threaded through two bolt holes and tied together: if they slacken a bit, the wire will not let any further… Continue Reading 2 must-have chemicals for any mechanic: thread lock and copper grease

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mtb dropbar

An ultimate guide to converting MTB to dropbars, or a road bike

I’ ve come across these questions a lot: can I convert an MTB to a road bike? Is it possible to convert an MTB to a gravel, or a cyclocross bike? No short answer to this; and this will be a long read about why should go ahead, or stop, or what are the disadvantages to this conversion? Which frames work best, which don’t; including a short primer on road bikes. What is the purpose of a road bike? This may sound as a stupid question, but in order to start a conversion, we have to determine if our idea makes sense in the first place. A road bike is designed for efficiency: it aims to reduce drag, which is very, very, very pronounced after especially 30 km/h, and let the rider pedal more efficiently. For a rider to go… Continue Reading An ultimate guide to converting MTB to dropbars, or a road bike

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