Bike Noob

Because I'm Always Learning Something New

  • Home
  • About
  • Contact
  • Partners

Backpedaling – With a New Old Crankset

02.03.2011 by Ray Niekamp // 4 Comments

I put in considerably fewer miles in January than in the last few months of 2010, mainly because the weather was so uncooperative.  But even so, I did come to one major conclusion about my bike:

I have to change cranks again.

Regular readers might remember that my bike fitting in April showed that I needed shorter crank arms.  The ones I had were 175 mm, and the fitter recommended 172.5.  I was able to change over much sooner than I thought, because guest poster Don Blount had an older crankset that he had upgraded, and was nice enough to send it my way.  The difference 2.5 mm made in the pedal stroke was noticeable, and an improvement.

But then came New Year’s Day.  The left crank arm fell off during a ride.

I prepared myself after that.  I put an 8 mm Allen wrench into my seat bag, ready to tighten the pedal bolt if I ever needed to.  Unfortunately, just a few days later, I needed to.  I stopped during a ride just to check it, and sure enough, the same left crank arm jiggled a little.

I mentioned the problem to a bike mechanic, and he told me the crankset was shot, and needed to be replaced.  I didn’t really want to, and figured I could just tighten it as needed.

But I’ve needed to tighten it more often than I thought.  And it’s very unpredictable, too.  On a recent 30-mile ride, the bolt stayed tight, even after I’d traveled some grungy roads.  But on an easy Veloway ride of half that distance a few days later, I had to stop on the second lap to tighten it down.

So, I’m retrofitting.  I still have the original equipment crankset and bottom bracket, and I’ll just swap out one for the other.  That means I’ll be going back to 175 mm crank arms.  Well, I lived with them for more than two years, and they performed fine – just maybe not as optimally as shorter arms.  For the casual kind of riding I mostly do these days, I don’t think it will be a bad thing.  Except maybe, I’ll just have to be more careful about lifting the inside pedal on tight turns.

Like this:

Like Loading...

Categories // Components Tags // components, cranksets

A New Year, a New Bout of Noobishness

01.01.2011 by Ray Niekamp // 11 Comments

The new year kicked off with a smorgasbord of different rides.  It seemed everyone wanted to get out on their bikes on January 1.  Mrs. Noob and I decided to do the “Resolution Ride,” sponsored by Bicycle Sports Shop and Austin Cycling Camp.  The 9 a.m. start didn’t faze us, since we have long since stopped going out on New Year’s Eve and braving the highways on “amateur night.”

Anyhow, got there in plenty of time, and the first two people I run into are two of my favorite Twitter pals, Torsten (@twtx61) and Tim (@T_Starry).

Torsten and Tim. TNT? They're dynamite bikers.

They were both doing the 50-mile option, but Pat and I decided to do the 25-mile distance.  The plan was for me to go out at my own pace, then wait for her at the end.  Since there was beer and tacos at the end, that wouldn’t be too much of a problem.

But I sensed a problem several miles into the ride.  My left foot felt like it was rocking on the pedal.  I’ve felt that sensation before, and it turned out to be a bad cleat.  However, I know that cleat is in pretty good shape, so I was trying to figure out the cause of the rocking.

My left heel felt a bump.  I looked down, and saw that my heel was hitting my left chainstay.  Wow, I thought, that cleat must be coming loose!  Since I carry a multi-tool with me, I decided to stop at the top of the next hill and tighten the cleat.

I never got there.  Suddenly, I heard a “clank,” and my foot fell into thin air.  I looked down at a horrifying sight – no left crankarm or pedal!

I stopped the bike, got off and looked back down the road.  There it was – about 20 yards back.  Some cyclists coming up behind me were pointing at it, and wondering who the poor sap was who — oh, it must be this guy, as they saw me walk toward the crank and pedal lying in the middle of the shoulder.

“Hey, ya need anything?” came the familiar call, as each cyclist passed me.  This time, I said something other than, “Nope, I’m good.”

“You got an 8 mm Allen wrench?” I called out.  Lots of sheepish looks as they pedaled by.  One guy thought he did, but it was the same Park Tools multi-tool I have, that only goes up to 6 mm.  I plunked down on the guardrail at the side of the road.  Although this was a non-supported ride, Bicycle Sports Shop did have a van on the route, helping with more than routine repair jobs.

One guy had a novel idea.  “Use my car key,” he said.  I’ll be darned – it worked, up to a point.  At least I got the pedal bolt screwed in about halfway.  I didn’t want to risk more than that.  “Thanks, but I don’t want to bend your key,” I told him.  “I’ll wait for the van.”

Pat caught up to me, and told me the van was helping with a flat tire a little ways back.  I told her to keep going.  I would either get fixed and catch her, or I would be a while, and meet her back at the shop later on.

One of the Austin Cycle Camp riders pulled up, and he had a super-deluxe spiffed-out multi-tool that had an 8 mm.

In no time, the bolt was tightened, and the pedal was securely back on the bike.  I hopped back on, and caught Pat about a mile down the road.  We had a great ride, with the wind mostly at our back on the return leg.

Pat is glad to be at the top of yet another hill.

So, why the heck did the crank come off?  It’s not the first time it’s loosened up.  I had the bike tuned last fall, and the mechanic mentioned that he tightened it.  I do the ABC Quick Check before each ride (except this one), but the day before it was tight.

The 8 mm wrench is sticking up from the set.

It’s an easy fix.  I’ve got an 8 mm Allen wrench, but it’s part of a set I keep in the garage.  Clearly, I couldn’t get at it when I was 30 miles from home.  This afternoon, that wrench came off the set, and is now ensconced in my seat bag.

I think I’m also going to have to be more attuned to the tiny variations in my bike’s feel.  If I know the cleat doesn’t seem right, for example, I’m going to stop right away and check it out – not wait until I get to the top of the next hill.

Like this:

Like Loading...

Categories // Equipment, Maintenance, Rides Tags // cranksets, repair

Compact Double or Triple? You Have Alternatives

09.30.2010 by Ray Niekamp // 10 Comments

My posts comparing triple cranksets with compact doubles continue to get a lot of views on an almost daily basis.  Clearly, riders are interested in comparing the two versions to try to determine which is best for them.

Now, I’ll offer some further confusion.

The choice doesn’t have to be between a triple — usually a 52-39-30 tooth crankset and a compact double — usually a 50-34.

SRAM came out with its Apex drivetrain this summer.  It’s a double crankset — you can’t get a triple from SRAM.  But what you can get is an 11-32 cassette, that will give you the range of a triple with the narrowness of a double.

The SRAM Apex 11-32 cassette and 50/34 crankset.

SRAM claims the wider range of gears offered on the ten-speed, 11-32 cassette give less redundancy between chainrings and smoother transitions between gears.  The chainrings come in three variations: 53/39, 50/34, and 48/34.  Couple a 34-tooth chainring with a 32-tooth cog and even the Bike Noob  ought to be able to climb most any hill he comes across.

Velo Orange, which caters to the long-distance cycling crowd, takes a different approach: they have a new Polyvalent crank with 46 and 30-tooth chainrings.  They suggest these would be great on city bikes and utility bikes, but I’ve seen randonneurs drool over it on their online forums.  Obviously, a 46-tooth big ring won’t let you get to the top end speed of a typical road bike, but for people who spend 12 or more hours in the saddle at a time, ease of pedaling counts for a lot.

The Velo Orange 46/30 crankset.

Either of these would be worth considering if you need help getting up the big hills on your cycling routes.  The VO Polyvalent is listed at $105.00 on the Velo Orange website; The Apex 50/34 crankset can be had at Amazon.com for $118, and the 11-32 cassette for $78.

Like this:

Like Loading...

Categories // Components Tags // chainrings, cranksets

  • « Previous Page
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • Next Page »

Get Email Updates

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 257 other subscribers

Categories

  • Accessories
  • Bike fit
  • Bikes
  • Blogging
  • Books
  • clubs
  • Cold weather
  • Community
  • Commuting
  • Components
  • crash
  • cycling
  • Equipment
  • Favorite rides
  • fitness
  • food
  • guest post
  • Heat
  • Injury
  • logs
  • Maintenance
  • Mental
  • Nutrition
  • Odds 'n ends
  • People
  • Poll
  • Racing
  • Records & stats
  • Review
  • Rides
  • running
  • Safety
  • soreness
  • Specialized
  • Technique
  • Technology
  • Tips
  • tires
  • training
  • Travel
  • Uncategorized
  • Home
  • About
  • Contact
  • Partners

Recent Posts

  • Getting Back on the Bike: Road Cycling Tips for Older Cyclists
  • Are BCAAs and EAAs Good for Cycling?
  • How to Fix Numb Toes When Cycling
  • How to Find and Vet a Bike Club
  • Celebrate Pearl Izumi with Big Savings in the Memorial Day Sale

Categories

  • Accessories
  • Bike fit
  • Bikes
  • Blogging
  • Books
  • clubs
  • Cold weather
  • Community
  • Commuting
  • Components
  • crash
  • cycling
  • Equipment
  • Favorite rides
  • fitness
  • food
  • guest post
  • Heat
  • Injury
  • logs
  • Maintenance
  • Mental
  • Nutrition
  • Odds 'n ends
  • People
  • Poll
  • Racing
  • Records & stats
  • Review
  • Rides
  • running
  • Safety
  • soreness
  • Specialized
  • Technique
  • Technology
  • Tips
  • tires
  • training
  • Travel
  • Uncategorized

Archives

  • May 2024
  • December 2023
  • November 2023
  • March 2022
  • October 2020
  • November 2018
  • May 2018
  • September 2017
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • January 2016
  • July 2015
  • June 2015
  • May 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • February 2015
  • January 2015
  • December 2014
  • November 2014
  • October 2014
  • September 2014
  • August 2014
  • July 2014
  • June 2014
  • May 2014
  • April 2014
  • March 2014
  • February 2014
  • January 2014
  • December 2013
  • November 2013
  • October 2013
  • September 2013
  • August 2013
  • July 2013
  • June 2013
  • May 2013
  • April 2013
  • March 2013
  • February 2013
  • January 2013
  • December 2012
  • November 2012
  • October 2012
  • September 2012
  • August 2012
  • July 2012
  • June 2012
  • May 2012
  • April 2012
  • March 2012
  • February 2012
  • January 2012
  • December 2011
  • November 2011
  • October 2011
  • September 2011
  • August 2011
  • July 2011
  • June 2011
  • May 2011
  • April 2011
  • March 2011
  • February 2011
  • January 2011
  • December 2010
  • November 2010
  • October 2010
  • September 2010
  • August 2010
  • July 2010
  • June 2010
  • May 2010
  • April 2010
  • March 2010
  • February 2010
  • January 2010
  • December 2009
  • November 2009
  • October 2009
  • September 2009
  • August 2009
  • July 2009
  • June 2009
  • May 2009
  • April 2009
  • March 2009
  • February 2009
  • January 2009
  • December 2008
  • November 2008
  • October 2008
  • September 2008
  • August 2008
  • July 2008
  • June 2008
  • May 2008
  • April 2008
  • March 2008
  • February 2008

Copyright © 2026 · Modern Studio Pro Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in

Go to mobile version
%d