Chain cleaning and lubrication thread is the cyling version of the car forum "what oil" thread!

Keeping my chain clean on my winter bike is nigh on impossible for more than a week or two. I have 2 chains I rotate and use KMC chain links (which annoyingly are not re-usabel for 11 speed).

I tried the wax tpe lube but find it bilds up in clumps in the casette and crank spider arms, also it need to be applied regularly and squeaks like mad if you forget.

So now I boil my chains!! Then lub the rollers one at a time whne the chain hot from having been dried in a low heat oven.

Key peice of kit is a chain wear tool. I have a roloff one and have not had to replace a casette in years. If you keep the chain within limits and rotate 2 or more chains once a month then the rest of the drive train will last for ages.

What make of disc brakes do you have?

Like MRS, I upgraded the Avid BB5's on my Boardman CX to BB7's and the 7's are easier to set up and keep from from squeaking, as well as coming with the exra in-line adjusters that the OE setup did not have. However, it can take a some trial and error to get the caliper position and piston position just right. On the Boardman CX for example where the rear brake outer cable is attached to the chain stay, it tends to want to push the caliper out of position.

But every time I go back to another bike with rim brakes I realise just how good the discs are.

My brakes are a mix of Shimano Deore calipers/levers and Quad Axis 180mm discs.
The Deore seems to be 2 hydraulic pistons so I'm guessing they shouldn't need any fine adjustment.
I've just had the caliper apart and one of the pads was a bit low compared with the other.
There's a return spring which possibly helps the pistons back in but doesn't return them on its own.

I had a rubbing issue on my MTB which I solved use the "apply brakes" alignment technique. I think the spring is just an antichatter spring - I think piston return should be hydraulic

Thanks MRS.
New bearings in there now and I had a go at freeing off the caliper in the usual FIAT way (pumping and returning), so it isn't binding any more.

I found a great way to keep my feet warm this morning.

A folded up carrier bag stuffed between the toe of the cycling shoe and the overshoe had my feet warmer than they've been for a long time.

Yup - they work well. Better still is tyvek

I see you can get Tyvek shoe covers too.
Shoe Covers

Do you have to cut a hole out for the cleats?

I'm thinking MRS means that the Tyvek should be scrunched up into the toe of the overshoe, same as with the polythene bag.

The shoe covers would be good for keeping the overshoes a bit less wet and muddy. The cleat may also work through it without cutting a hole. Looks like interesting stuff.

Tyvek works in lots of situations. Some people use it inside their shoes (as an outer sock), some inside their overshoes and some just as overshoes. It's great stuff

I rather let the atmosphere get to me at the final Tour of Britain stage that finished on the cobbles of Guildford High Street, where I bought a pair of Pro Vison over shoes without checking if they would fit or do the job.

They were only £15 from the stall so I thought why not. They've been great at keeping the mud and water out of my socks and Shimano shoes, and keep my feet nice and warm now that it's getting down towards freezing in the morning. But I'm not sure how long the "material" will last around the edges of the cut-out for the cleats, it's looking frayed already...

We have certainly gone a bit more off topic now! Brakes, chain cleaning, lube, shoe covers...what next?

I budget a pair of new overshoes per season. They take a lot of wera around the cleats and in the end they tend to fail when the zip at the back pulls away from the material.

My USPS Neoprene OS are 6 years old and still going strong

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/USPS-Pro-neoprene-cycling-booties-overshoes-size-S-M-/330572791087

Wear Sealskinz socks

http://www.probikekit.com/uk/sealskinz-t...CFQzKtAodGwMAgA

and don't overtighten shoe fasteners.

Well my Outeredge overshoes are 6 months old and both zips have failed, they aren't waterproof, they don't keep your feet warm, and the piping is falling off the bottom.

I might have a look at those USPS ones.

Wait, 6 years you say? US Postal Service? Have you checked for drugs?

PS: I'm not sure I could bring myself to buy "booties"

They'll make you ride faster though ..

But Rob do you commute daily? I have a treck from the bike park to my changing area and then there is the fact that they are ziped and unziped 4 times a day every day for 6 months. Even the most expensive overshoes fail in a year under that abuse.

I tried the sealskinz socks but my feet get wetter from perspiration. I prefer a good pair of merino wool socks as at least they are still warm when damp.

No, their just used during winter for bashes in the hills and faster flatwork without the need to walk.
The thin Sealskinz socks work better with mesh panel shoes (budget Shimano SPDR) allowing breathing and don't velcro/buckle up too tight.

SealSkinz socks are horrible. Their gloves are far worse.

BBB for overshoes - best I've tried yet and have a large band of supporters.

Poor old Bradley.
Only nipped out to the filling station for some fags & gin and this happens...
Cycling Messiah Injured in horrific and very significant accident.
Nice to see they commented that the car driver was uninjured. Now where did I put those portable gallows?

Did he have lights on I wonder? And if he was barrelling along at 50 mph then it's no wonder the old dear didn't see him (it was reported elsewhere that the driver of the car was a local woman).

And since we're off topic again, there was a bit on the BBC TV News this morning about a police community support officer in Bristol city centre who posed as a bike thief, walking around with large cable cutters and taking bikes, or just yanking the bikes away from the stands where they had been "secured" with D locks that just fell away, with onlookers raising eyebrows but not raising the alarm...perhaps bike theft is so common that people ignore it, just like car alarms going off...?

And since we are firmly off topic ... but on the topic of lights, I've just bought a set of these Ay Up lights from Aus

With the nights closing in, but with a desire to still get out on my bike, they are mainly for me to use on my regular off-road route. I'm very very impressed with them They give out an amazing amount of light, the battery lasts for well over 2hrs, and they aren't that expensive (relatively!).

When on-road, they look pretty much as powerful as car headlights ... and one light can be faced backwards, with a red shade on (provided), to give a bright rear light

No was riding an MTB slowly with full lights and hi-viz on the way to meet some local cyclists.
You pratt!

I have Ayups - they are fab and really robust. Light and light

Easy tiger, I didn't think for one moment that our Bradley wouldn't have had lights on...

I've got the MagicShine front and rear lights and get plenty of comments about how bright they are, great for riding through Swinley Forest in the pitch black evenings...

And now the GB coach has been knocked off too.

Go carefully out there folks

Revenge of the Armstrong? He's working his way through the cycling elite, one country at a time...

I too gave the ay ups. I have the endurance battery which gives almost 6 hours light. Had them for 5 years now and the battery is still going strong. Last year Ihad the leds upgraded to the latest spec and it makes a massive difference.

Back to the tyre mounting issue..
I found the right rim tape and lots of pressure >100 psi would get the tyre to mount properly on the rim.

So I've been through my assortment of pumps and made an interesting finding.


Left To Right

Muddy Fox track Pump
£10, 800g, 160 psi

Sainsburys Traditional Pump
£2, 120g, 95 psi

Dunlop Mini Track Pump , Sports Direct
£4, 400g, 55 psi (then it broke)

Halfords High Volume Bike Pump
£9.99, 150g, 50 psi

BTech Mini Pump from Sainsburys
£5, 160g, 45 psi

Pound shop mini pump
£1, 100g, 42 psi

Even though the traditional pump is pretty excellent pound for pound it is a bit borderline for getting the tyre up onto the rim, so I'm thinking a long/thin high quality one like this is possibly the way to go next.

http://www.tredz.co.uk/.Topeak-Road-Master-Blaster-Hand-pump_1164.htm

I don't really need a mini pump- quite happy to give up 100g of weight saving if it means no more pinch flats and round wheels.

Has anyone used Topeak? Is their sealing mechanism to the valve good and reliable?