the 'there's no such thing as a stupid question' bike maintenance thread

aerothans are quality, the stuff I use ... well not so much lol. I'll try with a valve extender to see if it makes a difference. might be in my head but i just like the feel of tpu vs butyl.

So, to answer my own question, according to the Park Tool website, certain models of this freewheel don't have an adequate receiver for tooling to remove them.

So you end up taking the thing apart to remove it, then replacing with a new one.

Long story short, it's the red pin spanner I need.

Has my first puncture that required a plug today (running tubeless)

Found it hard to get the strip into the hole I'd created. It's one of the thicker black strips. Would it be worth buying some of the brown ones, as they look thinner?

This is loosely bike-related, but where is the best place to stock up on reliable CR2032 batteries?

I have a Stages smart bike that gives power readings from two independent power meters in the crank arms. Currently, I'm facing an issue with batteries draining quickly. I'm uncertain if it's a physical problem with the power meters, if they're misreporting the charge, or if I've accidentally purchased a bad batch of fake batteries from two different sources and manufacturers (Sony and Panasonic).

For now, I can only eliminate one variable. Could someone recommend a reliable supplier or brand through Amazon?

I'm heading to the UK later this week.

Probably the easiest way would be to use a multimeter such as this one where you place the wire in the middle and it should keep you a good estimation of the amount of amps flowing through the wire.

You can use an ordinary multimeter although that is more complicated since you need to connect the battery and motor in a series where the current flows through the multimeter.

Wow. I'm assuming it's rim brake. Is there a possibility there was a small stone got embedded in the brake pad and ate through it? I did have something similar happen on a cheap beater with v brakes years ago when I didn't know any better (or less charitably to myself didn't pay enough attention) and let the brake pad wear down too much so that some metal bit of the caliper came in contact with the braking track and made very short work of it. I don't recall there being any telltale screeching

Most rims have wear indicator holes in them. Once the rim wears down and the holes are no longer visible, that’s when the wheels should be replaced.

Cheers I brought it to the bike shop and he said the braking surface was fairly worn alright. The wheel was only 3 years old. I thought I would have gotten another season out of it

Presume it's an Allen head? If you can get a torx bit that's slightly too big and (gently) hammer it in, you might be able to get it to turn.

Otherwise, if you have, or can get, a Dremel tool, you can cut a slot for a flat head screw driver in the head of the fastener.

had same prob with my 830, contacted Garmin support , EU (not uk) by phone, got a refurb unit FOC after sending back old unit to their distributor here in ireland JDM? in bray. garmin will send you a link for a UPS label to do this .. u pack it up (just the head unit) and after about 3 weeks ur refub should arrive. that particular problem is well known ....support will ask for the serial number on the broken unit

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058317002/contact-garmin-support/p1

I'm planning a new gravel build and considering trying SRAM Rival AXS. I'm not sure if I want 1x or 2x yet but considering buying a 1x groupset to start off.

Just wondering if I did buy a full 1x groupset, if a 2x conversion is possible in the future (with new FD and crankset), or if I would also need a new shifter?

I'm not used to SRAM at all but for example with a Shimano GRX groupset, if you go 1x the left shifter doesn't shift

Little update, fitted a CS-M7000 on the bike. Still same chain and length 114 I think, but needed a longer b screw to push the derailleur for the 40. Bit ghetto and I'd only want to use the first 7 or so gears in the small ring the last last 7 or so in the big ring. Derailleur looks mad how far its out from the cassette on some gears but shifting is grand, maybe not as smooth as i'd like but could probably spend longer re-indexing.

Have a new chain which would probs help with not needing a longer b screw...

Just to close out on this, I contacted Giant Dublin about replacing the freehub when it failed less than a year old. They said that the inners of the freehub are not servicable. They suggested that it may have failed due to the way I washed the bike, i.e. using Muc Off and washing up liquid. They needed to see the bike in person. To get the job over and done with I just called into a local bike store and ordered a replacement freehub off a local Giant store for 40 quid. As its a commuter bike I couldnt go without it even for one day, which would mean repairing it myself.

Thankfully, the bike is now back and running again after receiving the new freehub.

Forgot to put the torque washer back on the rear wheel of the bike after fixing a puncture. Will i wreck it if i cycle it?

I've an issue taking the bloody wheel off again, because i stripped a bolt holding another torque washer in place (electric bike).