PedalSmart.blog

Minimalist Tool Kit While many people like to be “prepared for anything”, I have always strived to have the smallest and lightest toolkit that will simply “get me home”. For me this means:  fit flats reconnect broken chains adjust critical bolts and screws. In tube tire days, I needed a spare tube, tire levers and arguably a bigger pump for 120 psi tires. With a hooked bead tubeless configuration, I carry only a tubeless repair kit. I know, you can carry spare tubes but I find that to be impractical. Converting to tubes on the road takes a lot of time and is messy. Also, I use only hooked bead rim and TLR tires. They don’t come off the rim in a blowout like hookless rims commonly do. This improves the odds of getting by with just a tubeless kit. After many iterations, here’s what I settled on: 1. Old versus new: As mentioned above, just a tubeless repair tool and “bacon strips”. I carry only the hex wrenches I need (that’s 3, 4 & 5 mm since I have replaced all screws on my bik...

What's Your favourite Chain Lube? Asking random people for opinions on chain lubes is not going to tell you much. Poor chain hygiene will wear out chains over the course of months and thousands of kms. Few riders will be able to distinguish good from bad on their own. Not to mention wax zealots who are well intentioned but don't know that they must clean and re-wax every 300km (that's weekly for me) to get the stellar numbers that wax can achieve. Better news: Chain lube testing is getting better.  Zero Friction Cycling Lube Testing  is probably the best testing site out there. They test lubes over extended periods, in different dirt/contamination/touch-up/wetness conditions (called blocks), to simulate real world performance. Zero Friction is not only about watts (FWIW: I have zero interest in watts saved). Friction induces wear that forces you to replace chains ($100), cogs ($200) and chainrings ($600) faster than you need to. Use a good lube ($30) properly and you will ...

 HOOKED VERSUS HOOKLESS RIMS (ROAD BIKE) IMHO: There are two types of tubeless tire riders, those who get stranded and those who don't. Riders who get stuck the most have hookless rims that allow the tire to fall off in a blowout. They can't get the tire re-seated and need to call for help. The other tubeless camp has hooked rims (includes me). Ours tires rarely come off. We can patch with a tubeless repair kit bacon strip in 5 minutes. We don't even need to carry a spare tube. My limited sample: On club rides this year, about a half dozen people have needed to call home home after getting a tubeless flat. All were riding hookless rims. Few people seem to know the difference and vendors are pushing pretty hard to sell us hookless rims. Does this pass the smell test? DEJA VUE ALL OVER AGAIN? Hookless Rims remind me of Press Fit Bottom Brackets 15 years ago. Vendors insisted they were great. Reality for most people was different: Noisy, loose fitting and bearings that faile...

 MANY MAGIC LUBE METHODS Here's the thing about novel and well-intended chain lube methods: How do you know it works? Lubrication is a long game. Wear is measured over months and 1000s of kms. How can any one person tell if their method is valid? You might be personally happy but you really don't know if you're creating more drivetrain friction and wear compared to a more conventional approach. In the auto industry, we have independent testing so we can use the right lubricant, in the proper manner, for the correct time interval. I might think olive oil and WD-40 is a great crankcase lube. Testing will say otherwise. Not so in the bike world. Independent testing is scarce. ZERO FRICTION Many in this group know about https://zerofrictioncycling.com.au/lubetesting/ . Good work is being done here. Understanding their testing protocols requires some work - but worth it if you ask me. SOME TAKEAWAYS ZERO FRICTION TESTING: Long term chain wear is their indirect indicator for fric...