Tag: wheel

Spoke Wrench

On By Michel McDonaldIn BikeLeave a comment

I just came back from Snider’s Cyclry, I had to get a spoke wrench for my bike.  I was going to wait until I got my check then have them “true” the wheel but I wasn’t sure how expensive it would be.  The guy at Snider’s told me it would only cost $17 but probably more depending on how bad it was and it’s pretty bad lol.

He asked if I’ve ever “trued” a bike before and I said no but I’ve been doing a lot of research on how to do it with watching YouTube videos and reading tutorials and stuff because I’ve read if you don’t do it right you can screw it up and you’ll have to buy a new wheel.  He said yeah and he showed me how to do it which was nice.

He said that a truing stand would cost like $75 or so which I don’t have that kind of money but he told me that you can put the wheel in your front fork where the front wheel goes and put a zip tie on the fork about where the top of the wheel is as a guide so when you are moving the wheel near that zip tie you will be able to see if it needs to go in which direction.

I’m not quite sure I remember everything he told me but I’m going to do my best.  I just want to save the $17 or so so I can buy my seat next in 2 weeks.

Well, I’m off to go try to “true” my back wheel in the front fork hehe.  Wish me luck.  And as always I will edit this post when I’m finished with a YAY I did it or oh crap I screwed it up and now I can’t ride my bike until I can get a new wheel lol.

Edit: I am happy to say that it worked out.  I didn’t totally 100% true my back wheel but it doesn’t wobble anymore.  I tried doing what he said by putting the back wheel on the front fork but it’s not the right size because of the freewheel (the thing that the chain goes on) made it too big.  So what I did was I put the zip tie on the fork for the front wheel and did a little practice test on the front wheel.  That worked out perfectly because the front wheel needed to be trued a little too.  So then I put another zip tie on the back wheel and I trued that as best as I could and then went out on a test ride and perfection.  Well, 95% perfection lol.  I didn’t want to mess with it too much and end up screwing it up.  But it was much easier than I thought because of that zip tie.

Pimp Your Bike

On By Michel McDonaldIn BikeLeave a comment

I just saw this article on the Dvice website.

Pimp your bike with MonkeyLectric LED wheels

This is so cool.  I used to have a little fan that did the same thing, I don’t know where that fan is but they sell them at the store for like $3.  But, who cares about such a small fan when you can have this on your bicycle on both the front and the back wheels.

It has 16 led lights on each side and it straps right to the spokes on the inside of the wheel so it’s not sticking out.  You can put 1 on your wheel or you can put 4 on your wheel or 1-4 on each wheel.  It’s really cool for teenagers at night so they can woo their friends and also be very visible to cars so they don’t get hit… from the side?  Cars can’t really see this from the back.

I wonder if this is street legal though.  I can see it being bicycle trail and skate park legal but what about the street?

This product from MonkeyLectric is only $60 per board and it takes 3AA batteries which are good for 30 hours.

Bike Repair

On By Michel McDonaldIn BikeLeave a comment

My bicycle has been having real issues with making noises, cracking, clicking noises.  It really makes me nervous when I ride, even if it’s just to the store.  And I can especially hear it when I don’t have my ear buds in.  At least when I’m listening to music I can ignore it.

I’ve been reading this website @ Mountain Bike World, they have an article all about the 6 most common problems and my problem is right in there.  Yes there is a problem with the back tire not being true and it does make these clicking sounds but the cracking or creaking sound is coming from the crank, not the wheel.

I have edited 4 paragraphs to update this post.  I have figured out what my bike problem is.  I don’t believe it is the crank at all.  I think that the crank needed some lube really bad so I sprayed a lot of WD-40 in it and held a towel to the bottom of it because it was getting all this black stuff all over the cement floor in my back patio.  I did that on both sides and it seems to be ok.

While I was holding the rag to the bottom of it on the side that has the chain and I was turning the crank I was looking at the cassette on the back wheel and noticed that it was moving up and down so I guess that just needs to be tightened and that should probably fix it.  So all I need are the tools to tighten the cassette which shouldn’t be a problem.  So on Wednesday morning when I get my check I’ll take the bus to the bike store and ask them for the tools to tighten it.  It’s good to have all the tools I need to do any/all maintenance on the bike to keep it in good working order at all times.

At least I don’t have to pay hundreds of dollars to get it fixed now.

Bike Wash

On By Michel McDonaldIn BikeLeave a comment

I decided that today I would wash my bike.  When I was at the store I bought some Dawn dish soap because it’s better at cutting grease than any other soap that I’ve used.  So I put some in a big bowl and grabbed a cleaning brush, it looks like a very very big tooth brush but it’s not.

I scrubbed and scrubbed every thing that was dirty and then I put some WD-40 on it so it wouldn’t give me any problems.  Then after that I started screwing everything that I thought needs to be screwed.

I do need some new peddles though.  The right pedal is breaking so it’s going to be no good soon and I won’t be able to ride it at all until I get some new ones.  The peddles that came with it are hard plastic so you have to expect that.  I’m going to get some metal ones that look the same but aren’t plastic.  And the reflectors keep slipping out of the right one too so that could pose problems.  Good thing I don’t ride at night.

I also adjusted the generator for the lights so it’s not on the top of the tire which provides more resistance when I’m riding.  I made it so it touches the metal wheel instead.  That’s actually the way it’s supposed to be but the directions said I could put it on either way.  I just never changed it until now.

Discouraging

On By Michel McDonaldIn Cycling, Diet, ExerciseLeave a comment

I bought my new bike wheel on April 13th, I think.  My first ride was on April 14th so I’m going to assume it’s the 13th when I got the wheel.  I have 2 weeks worth of riding in my log which technically is only 3 days per week.  But in those 2 weeks I haven’t lost 1lb.  It’s a bit discouraging when you ride so far and get no results from it.

I guess in all fairness I wouldn’t lose the weight so easily with only 3 days per week but I’ve just stared exercising again so it’s not going to be easy on my legs to just get back into the routine again.  I mean, when I first started riding last year I only rode for half a mile before my legs were just killing me because I hadn’t ridden in so many years.  And it took me 2 weeks just to get to the point where I was riding for 6 miles a day.  Then I went up to 10 miles a day then next thing you know I was able to ride 18 miles.  That of course was only 2 days that I did that.  I knew it was too much so I went back to 10 miles per day.

My point is that I’ve started up again going 10 miles a day instead of easing myself into it.  So it’s a bit discouraging that 30 miles a week gives me no results.

That first week that I was riding Darrin got his check on that Friday so he wanted to go to Hometown Buffet on Sunday for dinner when he got off work.  Then the very next day was his day off and he took me to China Town Buffet.  Oh and plus we went to Taco Bell.  I knew I wasn’t going to lose weight that first week but come on, the buffets and Taco Bell were a bit much for someone who is working so hard to lose weight.

The 2nd week I wasn’t even trying hard enough to eat right.  I’d have a bowl of cereal for breakfast or some days just toast then go ride and eat a Tiger’s Milk bar when I got to the half hour mark when I took my break to give me the strength and energy to get back home.  But then I’d come home and I was so hungry that I’d end up eating 2 sandwiches.  Some days I’d eat a whole box of Macaroni and Cheese (cooked of course duh lol).  That’s definitely not good for trying to lose some weight.

I’ve taken the last 2 days off.  The day before yesterday I took off because I had ridden 2 days in a row and my legs just needed a break.  Then that day I couldn’t breathe through my nose so I took yesterday off thinking I was coming down with a cold but I was fine.  I’m still a little stuffed up.  But I’m taking today off too because it’s Chips day off.  Plus our dog doesn’t seem to be doing too well for some reason.  I don’t know whats wrong with her.  She might be constipated or she might be sick.  We can’t take her to the vet so we’re watching her.

This week I have to really focus on what I eat and I have to try hard to get motivated to ride because I don’t want to be discouraged.  I need to lose this weight.  We’re talkin 90lbs here that I have to lose.  I have to try so hard to eat less to shrink my stomach so that I get full faster so I don’t overeat.  I’m going to try the best that I can.  I don’t have any money until Friday though so I have to eat what we got in the house.  I’m going to buy a head of lettuce though to try to eat some salad for lunch today and maybe for dinner too.  That should help start getting my stomach smaller.

I think one of the things that is stopping me is the stress from thinking about it too hard.  They say that stress raises your Cortisol levels which makes it harder to lose the weight.  I’ve been documenting my every move (my rides that is) so maybe that is causing more stress than anything.  Plus the stress every time I weigh myself.  UGH!

I think the new plan should be to write down all the info from the bike computer but not think too much about it.  Try my best to start eating salads and maybe even sliced cucumbers and carrots etc.  Just eat veggies as much as possible to help with my hunger pangs.  And maybe put the scale in the back of the car so Darrin takes it to work with him so I don’t have any way of weighing myself every day.  Just do my weekly weigh in.  Or maybe a month weigh in.  That should help if I only weigh in once a month.

Oh that reminds me.  (I’m sorry, this post is getting too long.)  A few years ago I think I was 212lbs and so I started eating salads.  I wasn’t restricting myself on what I put in it.  I put sliced olives, hard-boiled egg or tuna, cucumbers, carrot and I used the salad mix (not head of lettuce) and I used ranch dressing.  I didn’t weigh myself at all for 3 months and I got down to 170lbs.  All of a sudden I weighed myself and that was the end of the weight loss.  Weighing myself put stress on me to keep losing weight so I was constantly weighing myself and the weight started coming back on.  Maybe I should just act like I’m not trying to lose weight and eat the salads again but not weigh myself ever again lol.

WD-40 On My Bike

On By Michel McDonaldIn CyclingLeave a comment

First off, I just want to say a big fat DUH! to myself.

I’ve been having trouble with my bicycle shifting gears.  On November 20th I had an accident going up a bridge while standing on the peddles to try to gain speed and the gears shifted and it made me fall.  I had to replace the handlebar and handlebar stem, buy a new computer and a new wheel.  I could have bought a new bike with all the money I spent replacing those parts.

It didn’t occur to me that the reason the bike kept shifting gears while I was riding because it needed some WD-40.  I’ve had bicycles my entire life and not once have I ever had to spray WD-40 on the chain or the gears.  So, now I know and I will keep the WD-40 with all my bicycle tools from now on lol.

DUH!

T-Minus 9 Hours

On By Michel McDonaldIn CyclingLeave a comment

Hehe I’m counting down the time before I go out on the bike.  I’m really excited about finally being able to ride my bike again.  I really hope that I don’t have any problems with the wheel.

If everything is ok then great.  But whether it goes bad or is all good I’m going to still return the wheel to the bike shop and see if they have the correct wheel.  If not then I’ll see if they have the correct tire to go with that wheel.  I just don’t want to have any issues with it. But I want to be positive about it and hope that it all goes well.

You know when it’s going to be Christmas in the morning or you know that your parents are going to take you to Disneyland in the morning so you can’t go to sleep because that’s all you can think about?  That’s how I feel right now.  I took an ambien because I know I won’t be able to sleep.  Then again I have ADHD anyway so I know that I won’t be able to sleep lol.  But you know, I’m real excited.

I am not so excited that I’m going to wear all my biking gear and clothes with shoes to bed so I can just wake up and run out the back door and not have to worry about putting on my helmet and backpack and sunglasses because they are already on.  No, I’m not THAT excited.  Just regular excited.

That last paragraph was for Sue who tried to make fun of me and I was a douche nozzle to her.  So there you go Sue.  I really hope you got a kick out of it.

New Wheel

On By Michel McDonaldIn CyclingLeave a comment

I finally got my new wheel today although there is a problem with it lol.  I put the tube and the tire on it and screwed it to the bike and then started putting air into it.  As I was putting air in it I saw that the tire at the bottom was bulging out and so I stopped putting air in and started taking it out again.

I don’t know what happened but apparently it’s the wrong size.  The tag said 26″ so I thought it was the right thing but the tire says 26″ x 1.95″ so I can only assume that the wheel is not right some how.

I’m not going to return it yet though.  The guy said I had like 2 weeks or 1 month or something, I didn’t hear him but he said I had time to return it if something was wrong with it.  I’m going to ride it tomorrow to see if it does good or not.  If not then I’m going to have no choice but to return it.

Just to be sure I’m going to go out to the patio and take the air out of it and adjust the tube and wheel a little then put air in it again just to be sure.

I really hope it works out because I need to get back on the bike trail because my weight is out of control.

P.S. Ok so I went out there and put the tire back onto the wheel and pumped it up right on the table instead of on the bike which I think is the right way but I did it on the table and it was fine.  I put it pumped up on the bike and it seemed pretty sealed up with no problems.  I rode it for a minute and it was perfectly fine.

If I have issues tomorrow on the bike trail or even on the way to the bike trail then I guess I’ll have to walk home and then return the wheel for a new one.  Although, I’m going to have a long walk depending on where I’m at.  That is unless I can just deflate the tire then pump it up again but not fully just to get me home faster.

Bike Supplies Arrived Today

On By Michel McDonaldIn CyclingLeave a comment

Well today my Blue Wave Camelbak 70oz/2 Liter backpack came as well as my Sweatvac Ventilator Cap (Diablo).  I’ve been waiting for it all morning and the stupid mail carrier didn’t even ring the doorbell.  What the hell!  This isn’t a very good neighborhood for leaving shit on my doorstep.  Hello!

Anyway, it came and so I’m happy.  Of course I tried on the skull cap immediately and thankfully it fits perfectly.  I started wondering maybe I bought one that was too small or too big but it’s perfect so that’s good.  I had this f’d up dream last night that I got it but it was 1 inch thick all the way around and it was a lot bigger than it really is and I was pissed off in the dream.  Also it wasn’t Diablo, it was blue and black lol.  I put it on and it covered the top of my head and parts of my face and it was so heavy lol.  Well, the real one is ultra-thin and lightweight, it’s so light you don’t even know you are wearing it after a while.  I wore it around the house for half hour and not realizing I still had it on.

My Blue Wave Camelbak is really nice.  It’s red and black and it has 2 compartments for you to carry other things.  I like it.  It’s 70oz which according to the tag is 2 liters and that’s enough for me.  Normally when I go riding even when I did the 18 mile trek, all I had was a 32oz cup.  Actually when I was doing the 18 miles I ended up having to refill it at one of the rest stops which was fine.  The water wasn’t great out of the drinking fountain but it was fine until I got home.

So all I need is my front wheel from Snider’s Cyclry and then I’m all set.  I was supposed to have it yesterday but they told me Monday so now I have to wait until Monday which is fine I guess.  I can wait just a couple more days.  But if they still don’t have it I’m going to raise hell because I can’t stay this fat forever lol.

No New Wheel

On By Michel McDonaldIn CyclingLeave a comment

Well I was supposed to get my new front wheel for my bike today because on Monday when I went in to buy one they told me that they would get them in on Friday.  Well, today is Friday and so I called at around 2:30pm or so and they said that the UPS delivery won’t come until 3:30.  So I called at 4.  They told me that it will be in by Monday.  So I gotta wait just a little bit longer.

That’s ok because I’ve waited all this time and my Camelbak and Skull cap haven’t come yet and I’m sure they won’t be here until Monday anyway.  So that’s ok, I can wait.