Dragging brakes.

[Tom Kunich]

I did a long climb on Thursday. There was about a mile of over 9% so I was a little tired by the time I hit the top. Over the top I was trying to be careful on the way down because although this is a backroad, I was passed by 100 cars on that short 4 mile climb. And there were cars coming the other way as well. So I took it easy around the sharp turns (slow to 15) and slowed up to 25. As soon as I get in the more or less clear I let it go so that I can get passed some stupid gated community at the bottom at the other side. Cars come out of there without looking to the left to see if anything is coming. When I do that ride I always wear very bright colors to be a visible as possible. In any case I was doing about 36 mph as I passed that section and I take the entire road at that speed since there is always a lot of gusting winds in that area.

At that speed I hit one of those invisible low sections that are like a very hard bump. I didn't have any control problems but unbeknownst to me it pushed the left shifter down about an inch on the bar pulling the front brake cable into the bar tape and pulling the brake assembly out of alignment and partially applying the brake. With the wind that strong I couldn't hear any dragging. So I rode 10 miles down a somewhat undulating road with traffic shooting by and again drowning out the dragging sounds. In this condition I climbed another 1,000 feet. This sort of answered why in a place I was normally doing 21 mph against a STRONG headwind I could barely hold 11 mph.

This morning before the ride I noticed that the front brake was dragging and so I loosened the cables, adjusted the brake position and corrected the engagement position so that the brakes wouldn't make contact.

As I left on the ride I realized that the entire left lever had been pushed way down the bar without mussing the bar tape at all. How this could have happened is something of a puzzle, but I'm sure that Jay and Frank know the precise mechanism without ever having the same components or bar tape. Or in Frank's case, without ever riding over 11 mph.

So I will now have to remove the handlebar tape, reposition the levers, reset the brakes and set the limit screw. Tomorrow is a climbing ride.

Shipping is really delaying getting my Crank puller though I did get the Power Shift adapters already. I have an FSA SL crank to install. It is one of the weird one's that uses Shimano 24 mm bearings. So with the puller I will have the crank changed to a compact in 10 minutes. Although the front derailleur appears to be a standard, it is marked "CT" so it works for either. And I do have a Dog Fang so it it doesn't shift into the small ring neatly the Dog Fang slips it right on and you don't even know it missed.

T

[Frank Krygowski]

On 7/17/2021 4:27 PM, Tom Kunich wrote:
> I did a long climb on Thursday. There was about a mile of over 9% so I was a little tired by the time I hit the top. Over the top I was trying to be careful on the way down because although this is a backroad, I was passed by 100 cars on that short 4 mile climb. And there were cars coming the other way as well. So I took it easy around the sharp turns (slow to 15) and slowed up to 25. As soon as I get in the more or less clear I let it go so that I can get passed some stupid gated community at the bottom at the other side. Cars come out of there without looking to the left to see if anything is coming. When I do that ride I always wear very bright colors to be a visible as possible. In any case I was doing about 36 mph as I passed that section and I take the entire road at that speed since there is always a lot of gusting winds in that area.
>
> At that speed I hit one of those invisible low sections that are like a very hard bump. I didn't have any control problems but unbeknownst to me it pushed the left shifter down about an inch on the bar pulling the front brake cable into the bar tape and pulling the brake assembly out of alignment and partially applying the brake. With the wind that strong I couldn't hear any dragging. So I rode 10 miles down a somewhat undulating road with traffic shooting by and again drowning out the dragging sounds. In this condition I climbed another 1,000 feet. This sort of answered why in a place I was normally doing 21 mph against a STRONG headwind I could barely hold 11 mph.
>
> This morning before the ride I noticed that the front brake was dragging and so I loosened the cables, adjusted the brake position and corrected the engagement position so that the brakes wouldn't make contact.
>
> As I left on the ride I realized that the entire left lever had been pushed way down the bar without mussing the bar tape at all. How this could have happened is something of a puzzle, but I'm sure that Jay and Frank know the precise mechanism without ever having the same components or bar tape. Or in Frank's case, without ever riding over 11 mph.
>
> So I will now have to remove the handlebar tape, reposition the levers, reset the brakes and set the limit screw. Tomorrow is a climbing ride.

Yet another mechanical problem!

Nobody has as many mechanical problems as you do.

You need a better bike mechanic.

--
- Frank Krygowski

[Tom Kunich]

How many miles did you ride last year? And in what sort of terrain. Let's see if you have the slightest honesty left in you?

[jbeattie]

WTF does Frank's mileage have to do with your under-torquing the clamp bolt on your levers and getting lever slip? That happens, but it is not a "puzzle" or unpredictable. It is totally predictable. Ordinary people just say, "hey, I f'd up. I better re-torque the bolt." I've had lever slip, but only before I taped the bars and was riding up the block to get the levers dialed in. On some bars, the standard lever position doesn't do it for me.
https://www.parktool.com/assets/img/repairhelp/lever_drop_3.jpg

-- Jay Beattie.

[Tom Kunich]

You get funnier by the second Jay. Why don't you tell me more about the huge forest fires around Klamath Falls? Most people that actually work on real bikes and don't pretend to as you are doing know that there are torque limits on carbon fiber bars. The clamps are steel so the torque limits have to be adhered to. But I suppose that you tighten anything to anything you like.

Give us some more of your imaginary belief systems. Look, it was your absolute adherence to your Democrat Party principles that have placed your entire future in jeopardy. I'm sure it will all work out in the end but not from the slightest effort on your part. The actual people of Portland are going to have enough and take care of it for you. You will cry and say you wanted to resist and were trampled under foot as you walk to the bank but we all know Democrats and their far left views by now. Law is only for the hoi polloi.

[Lou Holtman]

The first ride after installing a handlebar/levers is always without bar tape (maybe a piece of the old tape around the drops). First get the tilt of the bars correct riding in the drops (a bit longer than 'around the block) and after that get the position of the shifters right riding on the hoods. Torque to spec of course. It is a no brainer.

Lou

[jbeattie]

It's a puzzle for Tom. I just use my 5nm click-wrench which is below Shimano spec for that clamp but within the range published by the CF bar manufacturers. All my carbon bars have non-slip in the lever area, and I've never had problems with lever slip absent a crash. I will do my best to get bar/lever position right going around the block or the neighborhood and starting with the usual fit conventions, but if its not just right, I'll fiddle with it more later, and If I have to re-tape the upper bar and the housing, its no big deal. I've fiddled with the bars/levers on my commuter bike for years because I just don't like them. The bend is not to my liking, but I'm too stubborn to dump the bars -- which were a sale table set of aluminum bars bought as a quick replacement for the OE Cinelli aluminum bars that broke on my way to work. That's the only time my levers "slipped" in a non-crash -- because the bars failed about four inches in from the stem clamp, one side of the bars bent down and then off -- it felt like my lever had slipped off into my hand. Quite the eye opener at >25mph on a busy street.

-- Jay Beattie.

[Frank Krygowski]

Most people don't even say that, because most people don't have the
problem. Granted, many of them (including my 10,000 mile-per-year
friends) may let the shop mechanics do most of their work, but that
makes them smarter than Tom. They at least admit their limitations.

Tom needs a better bike mechanic.

--
- Frank Krygowski

[John B.]

Good old Tommy. First he amazes us with his tales of how difficult it
is to fix a bicycle, "See them bottom brackets are immensely
complicated's you not only gotta screw one in the right side and one
in the left but your gotta figure out which goes in each side".

And then when someone points out what a pisspoor mechanic you are you
change the subject and start bragging about how many miles you've
ridden.

O.K. so lets talk about riding. Frank's ridden across the U.S. and in
a number of foreign countries while you've ridden in Nowheresville,
California.
--
Cheers,

John B.

[Tom Kunich]

So your friends don't have any problems or so you think. But I need a better mechanic. Like you I suppose?

[John B.]

Well, Frank has posted extremely few times, if at all, about
mechanical problems while you are whining on a nearly daily bases
about your problems.

So, yes, you definitely do require the services of someone that is at
least competent, which you so obviously are not.

--
Cheers,

John B.

[Frank Krygowski]

Sure, bring your bike-of-the-week over here. I'll do my best to help.

I have to ask, how many mechanical mistakes will you need to make before
you realize you need help? I've never known anyone else with your
mistake count or frequency, and I've been in our local club for over 40
years now. Plus riding with friends for over 8 years before that.


--
- Frank Krygowski

[jbeattie]

On Sunday, July 18, 2021 at 6:48:20 PM UTC-7, Frank Krygowski wrote:
> On 7/18/2021 7:09 PM, Tom Kunich wrote:
> > On Sunday, July 18, 2021 at 11:51:26 AM UTC-7, Frank Krygowski wrote:
> >> On 7/18/2021 1:00 PM, jbeattie wrote:
> >>>
> >>> WTF does Frank's mileage have to do with your under-torquing the clamp bolt on your levers and getting lever slip? That happens, but it is not a "puzzle" or unpredictable. It is totally predictable. Ordinary people just say, "hey, I f'd up. I better re-torque the bolt."
> >> Most people don't even say that, because most people don't have the
> >> problem. Granted, many of them (including my 10,000 mile-per-year
> >> friends) may let the shop mechanics do most of their work, but that
> >> makes them smarter than Tom. They at least admit their limitations.
> >>
> >> Tom needs a better bike mechanic.
> >
> > So your friends don't have any problems or so you think. But I need a better mechanic. Like you I suppose?
> Sure, bring your bike-of-the-week over here. I'll do my best to help.
>
> I have to ask, how many mechanical mistakes will you need to make before
> you realize you need help?

Catchy lyric. The answer, my friend, is blowing in the wind.

-- Jay Beattie.

[Tom Kunich]

I'm not in the least surprised that you think that you can do something you've never done before better than the people who do it. But that is the Kragowski mythology isn't it.? Once a fool, always a fool. That is why you could achieve nothing in life but to be a teacher. And no doubt a very poor one at that. But at least you could lord it over students that didn't know any better.

It just breaks your heart that others aren't as gullible to your bullshit doesn't it?