A lot of early- to mid-1990s mountain bikes are starting to come in with Shimano Rapidfire shifters that seem to have lost their memory.
At our shop we used to call the early onset of this condition shifter amnesia and the later one shifter Alzheimer's. However, exploratory surgery has disclosed that the problem is a simple and treatable one.
The grease Shimano used in the shifter pods stiffens up over time to the consistency and color of ear wax. Because the temperamental shifter units depend on smooth operation so that the hapless rider can actually get one or more usable gears, the ear wax gumming up the little ratchets causes annoying problems. These range from inaccurate shifting to no shifting at all.
Well-prepared by Shimano's own propaganda, we dutifully replaced a number of these units when a forceful douche with Teflon spray lube did not blast things free. We didn't know yet exactly what was going on in there and didn't really want to take the time to delve into something we could simply huck and replace. In other words, we did just what the manufacturer wanted us to do.
Shimano's own attention deficit disorder led us to rip a shifter apart one slow day. We couldn't get parts anymore and I'd always been challenged by the notion that these things could not be serviced at all. I don't like them in the least, but I don't feel that the customer should be punished for buying what was available at the time.
The older units have fewer parts than the newer ones. Since they are also the more failure-prone, it works out well. I did unstack the whole mechanism once or twice, until I figured out where the critical areas are. Just remember exactly how everything came apart.
Pro Link is the new wonder lube for all your shop needs. It turns out to dissolve ear wax and free up shifters, with a little help from a willing technician. I still take the shifter unit off its bracket and pull the covers off it. I just don't unstack any of the mechanism. Just pick away the visible ear wax and drip Pro Link into the little ratchet pawls. Work them back and forth to help the lube penetrate and displace any ear wax down around the little pivot pins. It should not be necessary to pull the teeny-tiny circlip and slide either pawl off its shaft.
Some patients respond better than others. Knowing what I have to do and how to do it, it only adds a few minutes to a typical tuneup when needed.
To pull the covers off the shifter pods, you need to pull the shift cables out and unthread the cable adjusters, if present.
When Rapidfire first came out, one of our favorite custom jobs was to saw the tabs off the brake levers and slap on a nice set of thumb shifters. With that no longer an option, the least I can do is keep a few of these Crapidfire units out of the landfill for a while longer.
Tuesday, May 30, 2006
Wednesday, May 24, 2006
Here's the Altus C.O.D.
The Altus recall crank has a distinctive 38-tooth big ring that matches the E-type derailleur that was usually paired with it. 
Remember These?
There are still a few bikes out there with these "Cranks of Death." That's my pet name for them. I don't think anyone was actually killed. They came on certain models from almost every bike manufacturer in the 1995 model year. Free (FREE) replacements are still available from bike shops, although you may have to remind the staff there about this. THESE CRANKS BREAK. GET THEM REPLACED.
More Fabulous Content
Cult of the Bicycle had this link to a wonderful site for fixed gear fanciers. I had to pick it up here for my half-dozen (at best) readers.
Sometimes I feel too small and too old ever to catch up with all the cool stuff out there. That's when I just need to step back and remember that it's always going to be bigger than a single person can experience. Just remember to be present wherever you are. You never know when the experience might come in handy later.
Sometimes I feel too small and too old ever to catch up with all the cool stuff out there. That's when I just need to step back and remember that it's always going to be bigger than a single person can experience. Just remember to be present wherever you are. You never know when the experience might come in handy later.
Monday, May 22, 2006
Utility Cyclists Unite
Probicycle.com has started a gallery on their site to recognize utility cyclists. Commuters and other transportational cyclists are encouraged to submit a little note about themselves and a photo if they have one.
Probicycle is a great advocacy site. It's worth a visit.
Probicycle is a great advocacy site. It's worth a visit.
Who Commutes by Bike?
Has anyone tried to find out in detail who uses a bike for transportation and why?
First divide the statistical population into those who choose the bike and those who are sentenced to it. Reluctant cyclists who are simply enduring driver's license suspension or revocation may find themselves changed by the experience. These changes may be temporary or permanent. But they became cyclists by accident, so to speak.
Just scanning people I know or have heard of, the exploratory or transporational cyclists seem to lean heavily toward mechanical or engineering types who like the machine as a machine, and various kinds of humanities majors (to use a higher education term), who like the necessary human element a rider brings to the equation.
Some riders combine mechanical aptitude with human romanticism. It's a continuum, with very mechanically inclined riders at one end and mechanically helpless but hopelessly enamored enthusiasts at the other.
Mere educational credentials do not fully indicate intellectual capacity and interest. Since any more or less able-bodied person can hop on a bicycle and make it go, the pool of riders is vast and hard to sort.
I'm going to guess you will find fewer people with business degrees than with liberal arts degrees commuting by bike. Partly that has to do with the preponderance of liberal arts graduates in the fast food industry and other service jobs, compared to people who kept their eyes on the financial prize throughout their academic career.
Hey, prove me wrong. I'm a liberal arts graduate working with dirt, for dirt. You're only worth what you're worth, after all.
There are many practical reasons to use a bike to get around, but none of them counts a damn if you don't like to ride. That is the single unifying characteristic of all riders.
First divide the statistical population into those who choose the bike and those who are sentenced to it. Reluctant cyclists who are simply enduring driver's license suspension or revocation may find themselves changed by the experience. These changes may be temporary or permanent. But they became cyclists by accident, so to speak.
Just scanning people I know or have heard of, the exploratory or transporational cyclists seem to lean heavily toward mechanical or engineering types who like the machine as a machine, and various kinds of humanities majors (to use a higher education term), who like the necessary human element a rider brings to the equation.
Some riders combine mechanical aptitude with human romanticism. It's a continuum, with very mechanically inclined riders at one end and mechanically helpless but hopelessly enamored enthusiasts at the other.
Mere educational credentials do not fully indicate intellectual capacity and interest. Since any more or less able-bodied person can hop on a bicycle and make it go, the pool of riders is vast and hard to sort.
I'm going to guess you will find fewer people with business degrees than with liberal arts degrees commuting by bike. Partly that has to do with the preponderance of liberal arts graduates in the fast food industry and other service jobs, compared to people who kept their eyes on the financial prize throughout their academic career.
Hey, prove me wrong. I'm a liberal arts graduate working with dirt, for dirt. You're only worth what you're worth, after all.
There are many practical reasons to use a bike to get around, but none of them counts a damn if you don't like to ride. That is the single unifying characteristic of all riders.
Monday, May 15, 2006
Get Out the Snorkel
The flooding is much worse to the south of us, but the riding looks to remain damp as I resume the commute on Wednesday. Another storm is forming off the coast tonight, bringing up to two more inches of rain on top of what we've received so far.
Total rain accumulations sound like snowfall totals, with isolated areas recording 12 inches. My rain gauge overflowed yesterday. I don't know how much I missed before I emptied it, but we've added a couple of inches to the six the full tube holds.
At least it's supposed to taper to showers. Riding fixed gear in showers feels hard core. Riding any bike in a continuous downpour makes me question my sanity.
When I have the time in rainy weather I like to drive to a lake that lies along my route and paddle four miles. That takes four or five times as long as riding the same distance, but at least it saves some gasoline. After the paddle I walk the last mile across town. It's a multi-sport day. But it adds at least three hours to the workday, with loading and unloading the boat and all.
I have ridden in a light neoprene tee shirt in heavy rain, when the air was too warm for a rain jacket and too cool just to let my jersey get wet.
Sustained wet weather takes its toll on the bike. You should really open things up and drain them out, even if you have sealed bearings. Or you could do what most of us do and just keep riding with a burden of guilt because you're abusing your equipment.
Those of us who don't have the sense to come in out of the rain, anyway.
Total rain accumulations sound like snowfall totals, with isolated areas recording 12 inches. My rain gauge overflowed yesterday. I don't know how much I missed before I emptied it, but we've added a couple of inches to the six the full tube holds.
At least it's supposed to taper to showers. Riding fixed gear in showers feels hard core. Riding any bike in a continuous downpour makes me question my sanity.
When I have the time in rainy weather I like to drive to a lake that lies along my route and paddle four miles. That takes four or five times as long as riding the same distance, but at least it saves some gasoline. After the paddle I walk the last mile across town. It's a multi-sport day. But it adds at least three hours to the workday, with loading and unloading the boat and all.
I have ridden in a light neoprene tee shirt in heavy rain, when the air was too warm for a rain jacket and too cool just to let my jersey get wet.
Sustained wet weather takes its toll on the bike. You should really open things up and drain them out, even if you have sealed bearings. Or you could do what most of us do and just keep riding with a burden of guilt because you're abusing your equipment.
Those of us who don't have the sense to come in out of the rain, anyway.
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