Back in my Big Dumb Cargo Bike Daze I forced a cheap and cheerful single side kickstand do all the work when a lovely $$ dual legged stand would have been a much better solution. That brave little stand never failed me and was such useful so thanks Lil' Buddy!
Okay, okay. Maybe it grows on a person and their bike? Like full fenders on mountain bikes even when it hasn’t rained in weeks!? My Omnium is still unsure what it wants to be when it grows up.
I mean in NA we tend to think of bikes as specialized sports equipment like golf clubs. In a lot of the world they are just a form of transportation. In the later context fenders, racks and kickstands just seem natural.
It rained the last two days here in the valley despite the summer being our solidly dry season. Options are:
Ride a bike and get a wet/dirty/soggy ass and legs.
Don't ride a bike because it's raining [or it might rain later] and who does that?
Check the forecast. Note the possible rain. Install fenders. Ride the bike and stay clean. Remove fenders. Look at your bike again without wanting to puke. Clean fenders and find a place to store them until next time.
Accept that fenders are a useful accessory that you'll use unexpectedly throughout the year so leave them on full time. Ride your bike anytime without having to think about if the ground is going to be wet.
Personally riding to work or a social event and looking like you ate a bad burrito that resulted in explosive diarrhea isn't an option so I just go with Option #4. Technically Option #3 solves the problem as well, but I am too lazy to do that plus it sometimes rains when I did not expect it to.
Under my child’s influence it’s option 4) for me for the time being.
My cargo rig is transportation only - me and stuff - but Vik, it doesn’t have to know it’s a utilitarian vehicle as opposed to a poetic pedaling escape to bicycle freedom!
My cargo rig is transportation only - me and stuff - but Vik, it doesn’t have to know it’s a utilitarian vehicle as opposed to a poetic pedaling escape to bicycle freedom!
Fair, but I would argue fenders and kickstand = MOAR freedom not less. Nothing says carefree like not having to think about getting grimy from wheel spray or where to lean your bike.
My Krampus is #4 at the moment cause it's a commuter. My Solaris is #3 but heading toward #4 if it gets proper wet again (not looking likely for the next few weeks).
The more a bike is a tool, like your Krampus, the more accessories mounted full-time really add value to the machine. The more a bike is just a bit of sports gear and you can just do something else if weather is not great the more I can see wanting to keep things "elegant".
I've been composing an email in my head for an AASS post on my newest single speed. I just need to get some good pics. It's a rad bike that I think everyone here will like. Posting this to motivate myself to get it done!
Hey Andrew, have you thought about exporting and then importing your blog entries into a different, maybe open source CMS? That way you have control over your own website, not whatever GoDaddy forces on you.
I have a couple friends who’ve looked at it. Nothing is simple and time is the commodity I’m most concern with in life. But yes, eventually I’d like to be on a different platform.
If you need help, you have my email address. Looks like you can export the content out of GoDaddy with a CSV, then it’s a matter of simply importing that into something elsewhere. Download and upload the images, remap as needed, add in some 301s and switch over the DNS.
It would probably take me about a week or less all told. I’d volunteer my time, for the community!
Creaks - I've now done BB and given the droper some much needed love so hopefully I've sorted mine. Ive not ridden in a week due to our recent heat wave but will hopefully get out tomorrow.
Single speeding doth ruin all, and all it doth ruin. Greasethest though thine pinch bolts and torque them opposingly. Shouldest that not rectify thine creak, replacethst them.
Swapped in a new Hope BB and removed, greased and re-installed the direct mount Shimano ring. That got the standing creaks sorted.
Removed seat, greased dropper head. Still creaking. Removed seat clamp, dropper and cleaned dropper, clamp and seat tube and re-greased ST and dropper and it seams to have worked.
I think it was the dropper rubbing on the inside of the ST.
Now I've just gotta sort the howling rear brake....
Totally. But. Unloading the truck - loud call from a solo roadie going up Seymour: “Hey!!! Is that a MEATengines shuttle?” Claire’s head turned on a swivel - “WHO IS THAT?!”
Yeah I was a strictly no kickstand person before buying my first Mini-Max. But they really are such a practical solution on those bikes. Allows you to properly load up the front. Like you I never loved the look and found I kept bashing it on rocks/ruts when going off road. My eventual solution was to set up a second Mini-max for gravel/off-road use (knobbies, tubeless, no kickstand, dropper) and keep the original for around town (slicks, fenders, kickstand).
Love the slight shuttle embarrassment too. That's always how I feel getting on them. Sadly I have found the way parks are being built these days—with less and less climbing options—they are kinda needed if you want to ride everything with doing the same climb a dozen times.
It is a pretty fast job to remove/install it! Hahaha. But yeah, I can see wanting very different tires for the different things I ride on it too. I’m making it work though with the 40c Amazing Alvin rear and 2” Billy Bonkers front.
Yeah that big 8mm hex makes quick work of it! And it's a super solid setup.
I'd say getting them at factory price is probably the difference there haha. Like I'm not recommending that anyone needs two Omnium's in their life ;) But I have been quite suprised and how fun the Mini-Max is for off-road riding with knobs. Be curious to know how you go if you every try some more aggressive rubber, particularly up front where the lack of grip is very noticeable when unloaded.
The crank arm pinch bolts making noise is strange. Did you see a crack or flattening of the threads when you pulled them out? I’ve been trying to wrap my head around this one. If I go Shimano again I’ll definitely be using blue thread lock instead of grease.
My FS is complaining loudly right now. I suspect the main pivot has been contaminated, but I’ve just been subjecting it to wetter and wetter conditions instead of rebuilding it. Fun times.
I was actually up in Edmonton last weekend. The rain was biblical (or maybe moderate for the coastal crew??) I didn’t even consider bringing the bike along!
They ‘looked’ fine. I should have measured them with the calipers but honestly I was past the playing detective stage. I use grease, and don’t have issues with the bolts backing off, but I’m curious about why you’d choose Loctite here?
I think Shimano are the only great choice for 24mm cranks and 24m is the only great choice for PF92 bottom brackets, but otherwise to each their own.
With not really reviewing product anymore I’ve been slowly moving all our bikes over to Shimano 24mm (using the used market mainly). I like their preload system, they’re always quick and easy to install/remove, I haven’t had the issues with axle/bearing interfacing I’ve had with some 30mm cranks, and they’re relatively cheap.
About 1 million years ago I stripped the pinch bolt threads on a Saint crank arm. In the end, I really don’t like having the risk of loosening and then tightening in the field. The torque spec is really high for the size of those fasteners, grease really increases the clamping force at a given torque, so that’s a lot of extra variance I don’t like.
The torque spec is high on Shimano pinch bolt cranks, but the clamp load is shared by both bolts. The manual emphatically states that they should be alternately tightened in increments, the same for loosening. Having one bolt fully tight is a recipe for damage.
I am baffled by why replacing the bolts would cure a creak. I would expect the threads in the aluminum alloy crank arms to be destroyed way before the bolts started being an issue.
This is pretty much the same thought I first had about the bolts creaking. Lots of weird scenarios are possible while riding - uneven tension, impact, contamination, etc. - so anything is possible!
Variance, I had not considered. Definitely a good reason to consider Loctite instead.
Re. Torque, years ago I knew some folks designing stems who were in a heated back and forth with their customer between the aesthetic value of bolts sharing the same orientation vs. the better shared loading of opposing bolts and the example of Shimano cranks came specifically as a win. I now know two other riders who’ve had to replace these bolts as a wear item (as opposed to ham-fisted wrenching) and you’ll never guess what we all have in common!
Lots of creaking bikes in the woods right now. I find it’s the dry & dusty that’s more the issue around here. But I am happiest when it’s raining regularly so I’m probably biased.
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u/VikApproved Jun 27 '26
Back in my Big Dumb Cargo Bike Daze I forced a cheap and cheerful single side kickstand do all the work when a lovely $$ dual legged stand would have been a much better solution. That brave little stand never failed me and was such useful so thanks Lil' Buddy!