Tag: bike

Goose nearing 4k

On October 24, 2020

Earlier posts explain more about the bikes I have, Goose being the primary ride and Kermit the backup. There has been a few times where parts or tools were needed for Goose and I was so thankful to have Kermit.

When I first started cycling I assumed a department store may last up to 2000 miles. I had no idea what I was in for as I had never pedaled anything more than required.

I knew I had exceeded the 2,000 point and was a little surprised to see that my Garmin report shows I’m just one ride from 4,000 miles in a little over a year.

In those 4k miles I still have the original front tire in service and fortunately haven’t had to do any work on the front-end. The middle and back are another story. I’ve replaced the bottom bracket bearings twice and the last time I replaced the crank axle as well. On the rear end I’m still running a standard Bell tire from Walmart. It turns out these wear a lot better than the mountain bike tires in the rear. I did mention in another post that Goose had a cavity (broken spoke), but since those repairs, things have been pretty good.

I do have another mountain bike tire for the rear in the event winter gets dicey and I need better traction.

Bottom Bracket Education

By Jerry Schotz

On July 3, 2020

In Blog

I like to learn new things all the time and this bicycle bottom bracket issue has more to it than one may expect. I ride cheap bikes for exercise in contrast to the higher-end road and racing competitive bikes. There are many arguments to be found online on this topic, so I just do what works for me. I also like to tinker with things (electrical, technological, programmatic, and mechanical).

I have to say that I’ve put 10x more miles on my pedal-bikes than I put on my motorcycle each year (sort of sad for the motorcycle). If you don’t mind buying some tools and getting your hands dirty, working on these cheaper bikes isn’t too bad and not that expensive.

When I pulled the bottom bracket apart today I was greeted with several little pieces of metal falling out. Below you can see what kind of shape the drive-side bearing was in compared to how it looked when new. It was a mess. Of course, the axle is a little rough now as well, so I’ve placed an order for one of those ($9-12 depending on shipping).

To add to the complexity statement earlier, there are many variations of bottom brackets out there, and after some research I was able to identify my particular axle (3N). This Sheldon Brown site was super helpful.

Searching Amazon returns more than 20k results for “bottom bracket”, so having some understanding of what you need helps to narrow the results. I learned I have a 68mm shell (British standard), which also means the drive-side is left-hand threaded, and my axle is a Size: 3N, 32.0 x 52 x 36.0 x 120mm. Apparently, getting this too far off can mess with your chain alignment, which makes sense, so if you make alterations on the front, be prepared to adjust other places as well.

Anyway, it was a good day to learn and I’m just waiting on parts now. Reassembly should be fairly easy.

Goose has a cavity

By Jerry Schotz

On June 25, 2020

In Blog

My faithful bike Goose has a broken spoke.

Around the 3,000 mile point, I noticed the rear wheel getting a bit of a wobble which eventually began wearing on the brake and rim.

When I finally took the time to investigate and repair it, I discovered a spoke was broken at the hub.

So a new adventure begins… where do you find spokes and how do you replace one. For the spokes, Amazon of course. But even that was work because you have to know several things like the gauge of your spokes and the length in millimeters. Once you have that best guess, you need to find a supplier and like many things today, there are very few in this country.

After I place the order and watch some how-to videos, I go into disassembly mode, only to discover I need another special tool to take the rear wheel sprocket assembly apart. Fortunately, a company named Park Tool has some great videos and of course, had the tool I needed (and in the USA).

The tool is on order, the spokes arrived, now let’s hope I can get it all to work when I get to work on it again.

In the meantime, my backup bike, Kermit is back on the road and doing well.

December 2019 updates

By Jerry Schotz

On December 28, 2019

In Blog

There’s a fine line between wisdom and zeal. I ran 2 miles today. Slow, but a run nonetheless. It actually felt pretty good on the knees, this is where wisdom comes in. After being over zealous in September and making the decision to try a 6-mile run too soon after an injury which left me without running for three months I may have learned my lesson.

The desire to run longer and farther was there this morning, but the discipline of the last few months had me stop at two-miles and go for a bike ride to complete my workout.

Speaking of the bike(s), I’m learning more about the care-and-feeding of a bike and had to replace the bottom bracket bearing set on Goose after 1900 miles or so. Previously, I had not worked this extensively on a bicycle so it was new territory in parts and tools. The Internet is always helpful when learning new things so after learning about it I ordered the parts and tools. Things came together pretty well and I was able to get Goose back in action.

While Goose was down and out waiting for repair I purchased a cheap bike from Walmart I named Kermit (see Goose and Kermit below). It’s a long story, but I would have to agree with the majority of the Internet concerning the “Walmart bike” as they really don’t know how to assemble them well. Perhaps I’ll do a separate post about the department store bike experience.

Kermit helped bridge the gap while Goose was down and now I’m thankful to have a backup bike when necessary. You may be thinking, isn’t that expensive to have two bikes? Kermit was $110 and Goose was $170. My shoe expense was about $125 a quarter when I was running every day, so I didn’t see this as an outlandish expense. Perhaps I do rationalize and say these costs are quite a bit cheaper than my copay at the physicians office was starting to accumulate before I decided to take control of my health, so there are other ways to think about it. 🙂

So I’m back to riding Goose when the roads are decent and I’m full of gratitude to ride and run this much in December as it’s been a mild month here in the Midwest.

Damaged but not broken!

By Jerry Schotz

On August 8, 2019

In Blog

Abundant gratitude! I am so grateful that the X-Rays and exam concluded no major damage! Yes, I did some damage to tissue and muscle around the knee, but it is workable, so I have begun my quest for recovery.

Here it is, the recovery machine. I was able to ride it this morning and while a bit slow and a shorter distance, it felt great to be out there watching the sunrise and being in the fresh air. Onward into another day. Blessings!