Final week I discussed “nature’s spin cycle” (or perhaps “rinse cycle” is extra prefer it), the phenomenon by which a interval of heat temperatures and rain adopted by freezing clears out all of the snow after which freezes the paths right into a state of agency rideability.
Effectively, final Friday evening what really occurred was that every one the rain froze up earlier than the water had an opportunity to go anyplace, so once I hit the paths on Saturday morning they regarded like this:
Actually frozen, crystalline timber tinkling within the breeze imparted a way of Narnian marvel to the proceedings, however simply whenever you began to let into it you’d spherical a bend and encounter one other massive patch of ice:
Then as soon as the solar acquired excessive sufficient within the sky the ice instantly become mud:
Temperatures remained frigid by Sunday:
So the scenario wasn’t a lot better:
Although no less than there have been loads of Ice Cthulhus to admire:
On Monday it warmed up, however it rained as soon as once more, although not fairly sufficient to dissuade me from driving:
Once I first took supply of the RockCombo I famous that the brakes have been a bit wanting for retarding pressure, however I’m happy to announce that between decreasing the cable yolk and switching to Kool Cease lox slabs that is not an issue:
The shifting can also be dramatically improved:
That is because of the brand new wheels I simply acquired from Traditional Cycle, and extra particularly to the Hyperglide drivetrain the Shimano hub permits me to make use of:
It’s fairly superb how a lot simply altering the cassette and chain has reworked the texture of the bicycle, which now shifts quietly and effortlessly, even below load. Indexing could have taken over bicycle transmissions utterly, however so far as maximizing shifting efficiency goes it’s incidental at finest , and it’s actually formed cogs and chains which might be doing all of the heavy lifting in that division, actually and figuratively talking. Now there’s only one tiny downside, and it has to do with the derailleur:
Particularly, as you’ll be able to see, the bolt head for the derailleur pulley is on the inboard facet, and it protrudes fairly a bit:
Or, if you happen to can’t see, right here’s a more in-depth look:
I needed to again off on the low restrict screw with a purpose to let the derailleur shift to all eight cogs (the earlier wheels have been seven-speed), and the upshot is that once I’m within the lowest gear that bulbous bolt head will contact the spokes only a teeny weeny bit once I’m climbing–not sufficient to scratch or gouge something, however sufficient to be ever-so-slightly audible. It’s not an issue of alignment, and certainly if you happen to have a look at newer derailleurs you’ll observe the within of the cage is sort of clean, presumably to attenuate the chance of this type of factor ever occurring.
With a view to remedy this downside, it appears I had a number of choices:
- Exchange the derailleur
- Exchange the bolt
- Exchange or modify the cassette
- Go away the cassette as is and lock out the biggest cog
- Ignore it
Sadly, all my spare derailleurs have been brief cage, and I couldn’t discover a appropriate bolt. I additionally discovered the remaining choices unappealing, for the reason that complete level of a Shimano hub and friction shifting is that you should use just about any cassette you may probably have available, no matter speeds, free and unfettered. (So far as ignoring it, even I’m not lazy sufficient to danger my derailleur going into my spokes, although I suppose I might have included “Set up large pie plate” as a doable resolution.). This could imply I’d must go derailleur procuring.
At first I thought of varied classic derailleurs on eBay, however finally I went with the wagon wheel-pulleyed Shimano Altus, as a result of not solely is it ridiculously low cost, however Grant Petersen endorses it, and at this level in my life I’m prepared to only cease considering and do no matter Grant Petersen says:
Really, that ought to simply be Rivendell’s official slogan at this level:
Rivendell: When You’re Prepared To Cease Pondering And Simply Do No matter Grant Petersen Says.
Anyway, hopefully it solves the issue, and hopefully I can stay with a comically outsized hybrid bike derailleur on my in any other case period-correct bicycle.
Within the meantime, in the present day we’re having fun with practically spring-like circumstances:
So I loved the primary dry, non-frigid trip in fairly a while:
The drivetrain should still want tweaking, however a little bit heat and solar was all I wanted to get myself again into adjustment.
