[EasyRider]

Took the day off to run some errands and putter around Wakefield.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]21829[/ATTACH]

[EasyRider]

Happy New Bike Day for Ms. EasyRider! It’s a 2021 Jamis Coda step-over from Bikenetic. We saw it on the website, asked about it, and they built it up toot-sweet from the box. She went over for a test ride last night and loved it, especially the bottle cage. She’s been bike-less for a few years, since donating her Trek 800 to Phoenix.

I was surprised to find a sub-$500 bike in 2020, especially one with a metal headbadge, mid-fork rack mounts, fender mounts and a full crmo frame. The tires are 700×40 and 700×42 knobbies would easily fit. The components are nothing to write home about, but the lack of gaudy branding is a plus. The paint reminds me of a 2001 Bianchi Pista. It’s a great bike!

[ATTACH=CONFIG]21793[/ATTACH]

[EasyRider]

@secstate 202270 wrote:

Biking in the wet the past couple of days reminded me of my plan to replace my Space Horse’s tepid cantilever brakes with v-brakes. On a whim, I used the online chat function on the Contes website — amazingly, this instantly went through to an actual mechanic named Chris, who recommended several options compatible with my shifters, QBP numbers and all. (He sent a couple of inexpensive options, and these at the high-end: https://www.paulcomp.com/shop/components/brakes/linear-pull-brakes/minimoto/). Pretty cool!

You should buy those! What were the budget options, out of curiosity?

[EasyRider]

@Dewey 202254 wrote:

Turbo Como is a nice ebike. I think my beef with the ad is it reinforces this misperception that ebikes aren’t bikes. Sadly this feeds into more consequential stuff, for example this afternoon I looked at the transcript of the August DC BAC Legislative committee meeting. With Vision Zero out of the way the Council are able to reconsider Cllr Cheh’s 2019 proposals to update the District’s regulations around ebikes. Dear Lord, the arguments over whether to allow ebikes on street bicycle infrastructure. Ebikes are bikes, they get more people on bikes. Advocating for equitable access to safe bicycle infrastructure and protections from motorists who hide behind the Contributory Negligence law is why I joined WABA. I recognize the official DC BAC position is pro-ebike as shown by their support for the Vulnerable User Collision Recovery Amendment Act of 2019, that bill too was put on ice until after Vision Zero. I would love to see some movement on these necessary updates to ebike regulations in the District.

There’s the rub. Marketers still need to emphasize the non-bike like aspects of these vehicles (battery, top speed, etc, ) to sell them, it’s just product differentiation. Advocates have to downplay these differences in order to enjoy infrastructure that was developed and mostly reserved for plain-old bikes. At some point bike companies won’t have to emphasize the differences so much. Already it seems to me that ebikes are putting the faux-motorcycle bad-boy aesthetic behind them and getting normalized. But then something gets named “Turbo” and I wonder.

To me, an e-bike is an e-bike. It’s not a bike, and not a moped. The battery-powered nature is a game-changer. I think it’s why most cyclists would be happy to allow a Turbo Vado user to enjoy bike infrastructure but would balk if they wanted to use a 1 HP Puch Maxi moped, which like the Turbo Vado, has pedals and a top speed of 20mph.

[EasyRider]

@Dewey 202254 wrote:

Turbo Como is a nice ebike. I think my beef with the ad is it reinforces this misperception that ebikes aren’t bikes. Sadly this feeds into more consequential stuff, for example this afternoon I looked at the transcript of the August DC BAC Legislative committee meeting. With Vision Zero out of the way the Council are able to reconsider Cllr Cheh’s 2019 proposals to update the District’s regulations around ebikes. Dear Lord, the arguments over whether to allow ebikes on street bicycle infrastructure. Ebikes are bikes, they get more people on bikes. Advocating for equitable access to safe bicycle infrastructure and protections from motorists who hide behind the Contributory Negligence law is why I joined WABA. I recognize the official DC BAC position is pro-ebike as shown by their support for the Vulnerable User Collision Recovery Amendment Act of 2019, that bill too was put on ice until after Vision Zero. I would love to see some movement on these necessary updates to ebike regulations in the District.

There’s the rub. Marketers need to emphasize the non-bike like aspects of these vehicles (battery, top speed, “Turbo” this, ) to sell them, it’s just product differentiation. Advocates have to downplay these differences in order to enjoy infrastructure that was developed and mostly reserved for plain-old bikes.

To me, an e-bike is an ebike. Just like a moped with pedals is not a bike and is not a motorcycle either. The battery-powered nature is a game-changer. It’s why most of us would be happy to allow a Turbo Vado user to enjoy bike infrastructure but would balk if they wanted to use a 1 HP Puch Maxi moped, which like the Turbo Vado, has pedals and a top speed of 20mph.

[EasyRider]

My only encounter with Pete was at the finish of last year’s Disaster Relief Trials. He was helping me, of course, holding my bike steady so I could lift a big water jug out of the front basket without toppling over. Thanks again, Pete.

Here’s a short profile of the man from the Falcon Guide to mountain biking the Washington area. Hope it’s OK to post, it’s a good book and well worth the coin. I’m looking forward to doing the Waterford Dirt Ride shown on the opposite page.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]21651[/ATTACH]

[EasyRider]

@dkel 202074 wrote:

Is this the same bike from your freewheel removal thread? How did you solve your spacer problem?

Yup, it’s the same. I just flipped the order of the spacer and “cone”. All good. Now both the cone and locknut are outboard of the freewheel body, and accessible to a wrench.

[EasyRider]

Working from home has drastically reduced my mileage, since most of my riding was on commutes while the kids were in school and daycare. The practical thing would’ve been to buy a used trainer, or to read more, but instead I’ve frittered away the time building another commuter bike. All dressed up and nowhere to go.

It’s a single speed, a revived version of the fixed gear bike I put together from spare parts in 2006 and then disassembled three years ago to make room for other projects. About half the parts are new, the flashiest being a White Industries freewheel. But my favorite part of building it might be the fenders. They were old, gray, and kinda beat up, so I painted them with a rattle-can of Rustoleum Trim and Bumper paint. The matte finish turned out much better than I expected.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]21620[/ATTACH]

[ATTACH=CONFIG]21619[/ATTACH]

[EasyRider]

@tovahrovah 202044 wrote:

Thanks. I was the original emailer. Luckily, now I have a forum account. Thanks for all the helpful insight! Some follow up questions:

1. Is the Spray.bike as durable as powder coating? (Press releases on their website are making me think the product has been on market perhaps only 4 years.)

2. Any thoughts on how to get powder coating to match the “celeste” color? Use swatches? Anyone heard of someone matching the color well? (I realize the color ‘celeste’ has changed over the years.) (I think Spray.bike has a “Celeste”-like color, so this is more an issue with powder coating perhaps. I know auto body shops have machines that can color match for *wet* touch-up paint.)

3. Any performance (paint adhesion) differences between, for instance, using an edge sander with an abrasion pad vs. paying someone to sand blast the bike?

4. Has anyone used phosphoric acid (either applied with a sponge/gloves or as a bath) to stop progress of rust? (I’ve heard of BMX’ers using a much harsher chemical too …. oxalic acid.)

5. @ Judd – The link you sent may have changed during copy/paste process. Any chance you might be able to resend?

1. Probably not.

2. No, but maybe you could have the bike powder-coated gloss white or gloss black and use celeste replacement decals, cable housing, bar tape, etc., as accents. Those are pretty easy to find.

3. I have no experience with edge sanders or media-blasting, but I think all the prep that happens after those steps could matter just as much, like how clean is the surface, was a primer used, how skillfully was the topcoat applied. I would guess that Spray.Bike could look quite good with practice, and careful prep work, even on bikes where the existing paint was just scuffed up a bit and and coated with a thin layer of primer.

4. I have used Evaporust and can recommend that for DIY rust removal. It’s practically non-toxic and so easier and safer to use than a corrosive like CLR or naval jelly. You can saturate a few rags with the stuff and wrap them around the frame for a day or two, with plastic wrap over top that. Evaporust will make cleaning and sanding more productive, though it won’t do that work for you; it’s not sand-blasting in a bottle, for sure. You’ll really want to scrub and wash the bike several times.

FWIW, I rattle-canned a 1970s Raleigh Grand Prix about 15 years ago. Prep consisted of washing the frame, sanding off specks of surface rust and old decals by hand, washing it again, then wiping it with a tack cloth before spraying. I took my time so turned out OK. But also, I knew I couldn’t make it look great, so I didn’t try. I painted it primer gray with a clear coat, to communicate the important thing about the bike was its function. Unfortunately, being an old Raleigh with a worn out, proprietary-sized headset and bottom bracket, it didn’t function very well, and I traded the frame for parts a short time later

Whatever way you go, consider spraying the inside of the frame with Boeshield or FrameSaver, and drilling a hole in the bottom bracket shell if it lacks one.

Good luck, and post some before and after pics!

[EasyRider]

@drevil 202035 wrote:

If this person wants to try DIY, I recently discovered that Squid Bikes sells their paints for amateur and pro use: https://spraybike.us/

If you’ve never heard of or seen a Squid bike, their paint jobs are craaaaaaazy cool: https://www.instagram.com/squidbikes/

This product looks really interesting and I’d give it a try if it were my frame. Apparently, this stuff doesn’t run or spatter, which are the main issues with rattle-can paint jobs.

For me, a mid-80s Bianchi that needs to be saved wouldn’t need a paint job that requires shipping and costs several times the frame’s market value. If it had sentimental value I’d probably just clean it up and keep it as original as I could.

FWIW, I’ve rattle-canned a few items in the last month, and I’ve been pretty pleased with the results. No bikes, but a rusty Snap-On tool chest rescued from the neighbor’s trash, a homebrewed truing stand, and some plastic fenders for an upcoming build. For the toolbox I used a two-part automotive clearcoat from Eastwood. It worked pretty well and has a better spray nozzle than the Rustoleum cans I used for the color coat. Like all paint jobs it’s the preparation that matters the most.

[EasyRider]

Some trails seem less traveled. Here’s the usually well-worn dirt path between Washington Blvd and the GW Parkway near Memorial Bridge.
[ATTACH=CONFIG]21616[/ATTACH]

[EasyRider]

@drevil 201998 wrote:

I too have had to destructively remove cheap freewheels before. I just ran into this, but it would’ve been nice if I had a tool like this Unior back then

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nu-5aPLZ9pY

Neat tool!

[EasyRider]

@dkel 201994 wrote:

You could go the other way with the spacers: use narrower spacers and aim for 123 mm (or so), so you are gaining some advantage for your freewheel tool, and you can squeeze the frame that couple of mm to make up the difference. I tried a 120 hub in a 125 spaced frame, and found it put the rear wheel slightly out of square with that much frame deflection; in that case I went ahead and opted to have the frame respaced to 120 by the LBS since it’s easy and inexpensive to do that to a steel frame. If your frame is steel, that is another option, then you can just chuck the spacers altogether.

Clever idea, thanks. The tool could almost engage, a couple millimeters more is all that would be needed to get it seated.

[EasyRider]

@drevil 201987 wrote:

Once you put on the White Industry freewheel, you’ll never need to take it off

As an alternative, I wonder if you could have taken off the nuts on the other side, then push the axle out, exiting the freewheel side.

To answer your question, I’m thinking that they put the “cone” closest to the bearing because it has threads and braces against it. If you put the cone against the locknut, it’d be further out and possibly get looser more quickly?

if it was me, I’d see if my alternative worked. If so, I’d put the cone back against the bearing.

Thanks. If I’m being honest, taking off the Shimano freewheel was a want, not a need

I did try taking the nuts off the fixed gear side but the axle didn’t budge when I gave it a pretty good “tap” with a mallet. After 3 taps I got the “you don’t know what you are doing” feeling so I figured I’d wreck the freewheel instead of the hub. Another thing I tried was to squeeze a cheapo combo wrench between the locknut and track nut on the opposite side, to simulate a dropout. I figured maybe I could get it tight enough, I could hold the wrench and axle still while undoing the locknut on the other side. That didn’t work because when I put a wrench on the locknut it was pretty easy to overcome the friction holding the combo wrench in place.

What you say makes sense about the cone vs washer. I’ll think I’ll give the reordering a try though. With spacers the hub is 130mm, and my old Trek frame has 126mm dropouts, so maybe it’s less likely to loosen, being a bit squeezed already.

[EasyRider]

I think this issue is common to most bike trailers, which are designed for kids of varying sizes, ages 1-5.

The usual advice is to roll up a bath or beach towel as a sort of lumbar roll, so that the kid’s head isn’t pushed forward with chin down. You could also put a folded up towel or two on the seat to raise them up a bit. Or a small pillow.

They’ll outgrow the problem in a few months. I’m not sure it’s a good idea to strap a car seat in there, unless the trailer was designed for it.

[Author]

Posts