Q&A: Finding a crankarm that's no longer in production

QUESTION:
Dear Jim,
I was wondering where I could find a non drive side crank that is no longer in production. I bought via ebay an FSA Carbon Pro Elite Compact Crank 50/36 (170mm crank length), but I didn't realize at the time it was just the drive side crank. It's probably a 2-3 year old model, but never been used. I contacted FSA directly and they said there wasn't anything they could do since it was a model that they don't produce anymore. I have scoured ebay and craigslist to no avail for the matching non drive side crank, can I substitute another crank in it's place? Or did I just buy an expensive paperweight? Thanks in advance for your help.

Sincerely,
Christopher

ANSWER:
Hi Christopher,
I would keep trying to find the left crankarm on eBay. The same way you found the right side you will probably find a left if you look enough. But, really, if you just bought any FSA left 170 crankarm, or any crankarm that fits your bottom bracket, you would probably forget that it didn't match the other one after a few rides. You certainly won't feel any difference. It'll just look different and even then you'll probably only notice if you look at it. I bet few people notice when you ride with them, either. They'll just think you have a truly custom crankset ;-) All that matters is that the arm you use is the same length and that it fits on the bottom bracket correctly. I would think FSA could sell you one that would work. Hopefully it's not some proprietary bottom bracket design that they don't make crankarms for any more. I think they have stuck with a standard for a while and I would hope they could sell you a crankarm to fit your bottom bracket. It won't match your right side but all you need is something the right length and that fits right.

Good luck,
Jim

Q&A: Cable stuck inside Shimano STI shifter

QUESTION:
Good morning Jim,
I have a problem with my Shimano Ultegra shifter-10 speed, triple crankset. The cable broke inside the shifter and the end piece that holds the cable fell below the cam. Now I can not turn the levers and can not get the piece out. I know the piece is in there because I can see the frayed end of the cable. There are very limited diagrams on the shifter assembly.

Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated.
Bob

ANSWER:
Hi Bob,
Well, it can be tricky to get the cable out if it breaks like that, however, if you can see the frayed end, you should be able to persevere. Unfortunately you can't take the lever apart. So, what you have to do is try to reach inside the lever with some type of thin pointy probe like an awl or pick and try to poke the frayed end of the cable to try to get the other end, the lead end (or the head of the cable), to start to come out of its holder in the lever. If you can do that you can then reach inside with a small needle nose pliers, grab the head and extract the cable.

I know you mentioned that a piece fell below the cam. You may need to invert the bike and/or wiggle or shake the bars, or poke or pull with your probe to get things lined up again. If it moved one way it can move back with the right amount of trial and error. And, then it'll take some patience and experimentation but you should be able to get the cable out.

Now, if you don't want to mess with it, you could also pay a shop mechanic to get it out. This isn't a rare problem so the right mechanic who has dealt with this before should be able to help you. However, it'll be more fun to get it out yourself, I'm sure,

Good luck,
Jim

Q&A: Old Tricycle?

QUESTION:
Help! I found you online and you seem like the expert I need. I bought this rather unique tricycle at a flea market, and am planning to restore it for my daughters (3 and 5 years old.) First off I'd love to identify it, it has what seems like Russian lettering but the decal is flaked off - it says "T. Mo...." The woman who sold it to me told me she thought it was from Hungary, but who knows...

Anyway, the bigger problem is the rims are all warped and they're steel so it might be hard to straighten them. Any ideas on where I can get replacements to fit? They are roughly 15" (38cm) high, and the front one, which sits in the fork, has an axle of about 2-3/8" (6cm). The rear ones are traversed by a single axle.

I'm in L.A., and my local bike shop (Helen's, usually very good) says they can neither replace nor repair them, so at the moment I'm stuck...

Any help would be greatly appreciated - many thanks

Jim

ANSWER:
Thanks for the pictures, Jim. I'm afraid I have no idea where the trike was made, but I think Hungary is as good a guess as any and might be correct. It's a rather simple trike and appears to have held up decently for awhile, though it's now a little tired. It could be an illusion, but this appears to be an awfully large trike for your daughters. If they're 3 to 5 years old, you don't want them perched up high on a seat like that. And you can see in the photos that even though the seat is all the way down, it's quite a reach from the seat to the pedals at the bottom of the stroke. I suspect that this trike was built for kids 10 years old and older. Again, photos can distort things, but a typical trike for a 3 to 5 year old will have quite small wheels. This lets the kids get on and off safely and lets them sit low so they're close to the ground and won't fall far - and also feel confident. A lower center of gravity is safer for them just like it is in any vehicle.

You ought to be able to find a new trike like this with a cool paint job and components your daughters will love for about $75, so that might be one way to go.

If I'm wrong and this trike you have fits the kids and you're determined to fix it up, I would recommend first checking it over carefully to make sure it's safe and sound. It's seen some use for sure. If the chain and sprockets are worn out you probably won't be able to find replacements unless you want to make your own, so that could be a deal breaker right there. Ditto for the bearing surfaces. If the crank or wheels are spinning on worn out or damaged bushings/bearings, there would be no point in trying to fix the bike up unless there's an easy way to put things right. Be sure to check the drivetrain carefully as the one on this bike is anything but standard so if it's slipping or clicking, crunching, etc. it might be the reason the bike was retired by the previous owners.

But, let's assume that all is well except for the bent wheels. That might be something you can fix. It depends on a few things. I think there are spokes with nipples in the wheels. If so, if you can turn the nipples, that would be a good start. If not, you could try liquid wrench on them for awhile until they become free and you can turn them. Then, since the rims are steel, you ought to be able to loosen all the spokes and then carefully check the rims to find the bends in them. You can then bend the rims back into shape, maybe with your hands, bending over your knee, maybe with a fixture you build out of wood on a workbench to slip the bent portion of the rim under so you can flex the rest of the wheel to straighten out the bent section, or what have you. Once the rims are reasonably round and straight again, you can retension the spokes and the wheels, though they won't be perfectly straight, should be at least reasonably round and true and tensioned, and capable of holding up for your kids to enjoy.

But, the first and most important part of all this is to make certain that this trike is the right size before going any farther. You don't want to risk your kids' safety and this looks like a trike made for big kids to me.

Hope this helps,
Jim

Q&A: Axle nut won't cooperate

QUESTION:
I found your awesome site through Google. I could use some advice!

My commuter bike finally died after years of service. I have a road bike, but it's not suited to the city streets where I ride. While pondering buying a new commuter bike, my neighbors threw out a 10 speed converted to a commuter - the problem with it was that it was rusty and the tires are in bad shape and cracked. I assumed the inner tubes would be the same. So I purchased new tubes and tires, and replaced the front ones. The rear wheel nut (on the right) is completely seized. I have tried moving it with an adjustable wrench, but it keeps slipping. I don't want to ruin the nut, and I put some oil on it with the hope it might seep inside and help me loosen it up a bit. Any advice? I was bummed out because I was looking forward to tuning it up and driving it in to work tomorrow.

Graham

ANSWER:
Hi Graham,
Congrats on finding a "new" bike. Did you try tightening the left nut securely before trying to loosen the right nut? Sometimes you have to work back and forth like that, tightening one and trying the other and/or vice versa. If that doesn't work, you could try heating the nut, too, with a propane torch, or any flame. Heat will expand the metal and should help loosen the nut.

One of these steps should help you get it off. Have fun fixing up that bike!

Jim

NEWSWIRE: Shimano Dura-Ace Carbon Crank!

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Shimano Dura-Ace Receives Carbon Crank Option

IRVINE, CA: Shimano debuted a carbon-fiber laminate Dura Ace hollow crank at Eurobike 2007. While carbon cranks are not new to the market, Shimano opted to continue to study and develop different types of construction in an effort to create a well balanced use of the material that is not only light weight, but also exceptionally rigid. Using knowledge gained by years of successful manipulation of carbon fiber in cycling shoe soles, rims, and other components, those goals have been realized with the new Shimano Dura Ace carbon crank. Prototypes used by professionals in competition over the summer provided final real world confirmation.

The Dura Ace FC-7800C carbon crank uses an aluminum hollow-core base that resembles an aluminum Hollowtech II crank design. The difference is that the aluminum is significantly thinner because a carbon fiber laminate layer completes the construction to achieve the uncompromising Dura Ace level rigidity and strength at a weight lighter than all aluminum construction. The aluminum base ensures that the achieved stiffness is multi-dimensional for better performance in the field where cranks are stressed in more than one plane. At just 709 grams including bottom bracket, the carbon construction manages to save over 30 grams from the standard aluminum Dura Ace crank/bottom bracket assembly and actually increases rigidity by 10%!

The bottom bracket and left arm construction is the same design as the latest version of XTR allowing for a lighter bottom bracket assembly and more precise adjustment of the bearings. Pricing is still being finalized, however the crank will be available in Spring 2008 in 3 crank arm lengths and 2 chainring combinations.

Specifications:
*Hollowtech II construction
*Hollow carbon fiber laminate arm
*Gear combinations: 53/39, 52/39
*Lengths: 170, 172.5, 175
*709g including bottom bracket
*Available: Spring 2008
*MSRP: TBD

Q&A: Buying a bike!

QUESTION:
Just read your how to buy a bike tips and bike scenarios at http://www.jimlangley.net/crank/howtobuyabike1.html. They really helped me narrow down what I need, and were a fun read.

Now if only I could decide how much to spend!

Thanks again.
Darcy

ANSWER:
Thanks, Darcy. Glad my stories helped. Once you visit a shop and ride and see some bikes, it should become clearer how much to spend to get what you want. Keep in mind that you'll get the best value by buying the most you can afford at the outset. Sometimes people spend less thinking they can upgrade later, but it always costs more to upgrade than to just get what you really want on the bike you buy new.

Another consideration is that you may want some accessories like a bottle cage, lock, gloves, helmet, etc. When you buy a new bicycles some shops offer slight discounts on accessories with the sale or don't charge labor for installation or fitting. By taking advantage of these offers you can sweeten the deal.

Have fun picking out your new bicycle!
Jim

Q&A: Finding an affordable bike

QUESTION:
I bought a bike a month ago off a guy on craigslist and the frame turned out to be bent. Now I need a bike to get to school and I am looking for a good used road bike. Do you know someone trustworthy to buy one from?

Katie

ANSWER:
Hi Katie,
I'm sorry to hear that the bike you got on craigslist turned out to be bent. Sometimes you can straighten bent bikes good enough to get them at least rideable, but if it's really bad that's probably not an option. I'd be happy to take a look if you were ever down here.

If the bike can't be fixed maybe you could sell it again on craigslist but just for parts. You might get lucky and find someone who will buy it to use it to build another bike. You can tell people it's bent and that you're just selling it for parts.

And, on finding an affordable road bike for getting around, I don't know the Oakland/Berkeley area that well, but I would think that there's a large used bike market there. You might call some bike shops and ask if they carry used bikes or can recommend a place to get them. Shops are trustworthy and should know good sources, too. For example, we have the Bike Church here in Santa Cruz where you can go and work on bikes to earn a used bike. Maybe in Berkeley or Oakland there's a charitable bike organization like this. Or, maybe you can find a bike shop with used bikes.

You might try Goodwill stores, too. It's amazing what you can find in them if you get lucky. Fleamarkets, swap meets and yard sales are good sources, too. You just need to get out there on a Sat or Sun and hunt a bit. You might get lucky. Another way people find bikes is to ask everyone they know. Sometimes the perfect bike is sitting there collecting dust in a garage or house somewhere. To find it ask everyone you know if they have an old 10-speed you can have. Ask friends, your relatives, people you meet when you're out and about, ask your friends to ask, etc. Lots of people find bikes like this because there are lot of bikes like this out there. The people don't think they're worth anything and would be happy to get rid of them. You just have to remember to ask everyone and be a little creative to get the word out.

I hope one of these ideas pans out for you and you find a nice bike and I hope that person who sold you that bent bike gets the stomach flu ;-)
Jim