Disadvantages of Riding Larger Frame Sized Bike than Reccomended Frame Sized Bike

Actually knowing if a bike frame is the correct size based on height is nearly impossible, they are best guesses. When looking at fitting a bike there are so many different things a fitter will look at.

First lets look at what changes on the bicycle when you change frame size:-

Top Tube (TT) - this is normally measured as a theoretical as this tube is not normally straight, see the below diagram. This determines how far you have to stretch on the frame
Head Tube (HT) -  this determines how long the steerer is, this is how far down the stem could be mounted as a minimum, but also usually means that they can be mounted higher as well, simply the longer this is the higher the bars tend to be.
Seat Tube (ST) - this determines how low you can get your saddle, and how high - the longer the seat tube the higher your saddle can be as a minimum, and the higher as a maximum.

So lets look at what all this means for you.
If you happen to have short legs and a longer torso/arms, this could mean that a larger frame could be better, as the length of all the tubes increases. To break it down. The top tube length will help as the reach will increase, and usually no one has short enough legs to need seat post all the way into the frame.

If you happen to have very long legs and a short torso, its actually more difficult to size and then fit. This is because you have a short reach, which means you need a smaller frame size, but you need to have all of the seat tube out of the frame, this in conjunction with a short head tube means you will have a larger saddle to bar drop (great for the pros, horrific for those not flexible enough, or used to it!).

Having a frame too small and large also has an effect on handling, a larger frame is more cumbersome but much more forgiving and much less twitchy. A smaller frame the opposite is true, much "flickable" and maneuverable, but with the downside of being twitchy.

This is before we even get into the micro adjustments like stem length, angle and position; saddle position and angle etc etc. Which all again have an effect on handling and comfort e.g. a long low stem makes the bike feel great at high speed, but like a bus at slow speed.

The key points for you as a rider, are the points of contact with the bike and ensuring they are in the correct position. This will affect the overall comfort of the bike. i.e. while a stretched-out, super-low position might be fast, for a prolonged period it can be uncomfortable. And the converse is also true, an upright comfortable position may suit, but this can be slow.  The aim here is to find the compromise of comfort, speed and handling.

  (I dont have any problems with reaching ground with my feet when I stop)

This is only important in so much as ensuring when standing over the top tube you can put both feet flat on the floor.


I cannot answer the physiological aspect in any detail, however my understanding is that, given a recovery day with little activity, your muscles will begin the first phase of healing [inflamation etc], this is also coupled with your legs being heavy with toxins from the previous days racing.

To avoid this, the healing part can be improved via active recovery - riding the bike. Everyone is different as to how much riding and how intense it has to be. I have heard Lemond, Fignon & Kelly et al state that experienced riders know what effort they have to do.

Regards intensity: Lemond talks of doing anaerobic efforts on recovery days to trigger testosterone production, the increased testosterone levels aid recovery. Of course some riders have been known to just use illegal testosterone patches.  Getting the amount of intense effort on recovery days is critical, do too much effort on your recovery day and you don't recover, you do more damage.

Regarding recovery ride time: this is about flushing out those toxins by getting more blood flow to damaged muscles, oxygen and nutrients in the blood help the muscle to recover more quickly. This is the easy very low effort part of the recovery ride.

The body becomes used to the effort and if you stop, it can seize up - become stiff; the above factors, intensity and ride time impact that.

With regards to the Mountains vs non Mountains stages, the type of effort is considerable different to flatter or rolling stages; you will use more watts on a long climb, there is less opportunity to coast or get dragged along in the slipstream, and, you use more fluids due to the higher effort and there being less of a cooling effect from the wind as you are going slower.
In the mountains, it can feel like doing weights as the cadence is lower and the effort higher - so the build up of toxins in the muscles is higher; the flatter stages involve more opportunity to spin-out for periods whereby its like a mini recovery ride within the stage.


Can a chain-lock be better against cutting than a U-lock?

As for the Kryptonite, cutting one side an bending is certainly possible, but in reality if you can cut one side, you use the same tools to cut the other. The tools needed to bend the link after cutting one side are almost certainly not portable, and why would you carry two tools when one will do.

In comparison to the D-lock--if you can cut though 18mm, you can cut through 20. It will make no difference. The main difference is a D-lock is susceptible to different tools to a chain. For real security - use both.

The reality is if they want it, it's theirs, and there's sweet nothing you can do about it.
The job of your lock is to make your bike less desirable than the one next to it. If you bike is a $10K dream machine, that's going to be a tough job--you will need so much heavy metal it will weight more than the cheapest supermarket hack, and take so long to secure the time saving you get riding it is lost at each end of the journey. If its a $100 hack, then any half decent lock will be good enough.

The best you can do in reality is "enough to satisfy your insurance company".


How do I improve my cycling at my age (77 years)

You are already doing quite a bit of training.

What might help is training on hills specifically, or when on the trainer, raising your front wheel to simulate being on an incline.


Sheldon Brown's gear calculator shows you speed at certain cadences (in multiples of 20 rpm) as a function of chainring size, cassette size, crank length and wheel size.

For what its worth, most people should be using a cadence in the 70-90 rpm, so you're on the lower end.


It's not required for the BB to function or the bearings to be located correctly or loaded correctly. It is only a shield against contamination, particularly from water that gets into the seattube at the seatpost opening. That said they're actually pretty important parts that do a lot to make the life of the BB what it should be.

I have no idea why yours might be missing. My guess would be a mistake when assembling or servicing the bike. Make sure it's not still in the BB shell. They pop on and off the cups easily so it could have gotten stuck in their. Sometimes you have to loosen the BB cable guide mounting screw for the BB sleeve to pass through.


Slick tires, like your conti's, have no problem in wet conditions. If the streets you ride in Boston in winter are just wet with occasional light slush you're fine with what you got.

You'll want knobby tires if you're regularly riding in something soft like dirt, mud, packed snow or very heavy slush. Slick tires are significantly more squirrely in those conditions. In that case, typical cross tires will be better.


What is this part of a bicycle trailer called, and where can I find a replacement?

Bicycle Trailer hinge part.

Yes the original is moulded in Plastic but quite easy to replace with a piece of metal.

take a piece of aluminum tube that fits either inside or outside your present tube. Drill a hole through the tube close to the end for the bolt to pass through. Put a bolt through the hole so the hole will not be distorted, then tap the end of the tube down so that it forms the shape that will allow it to hinge up and down without fouling on the  square tube frame of the trailer.
you will have to cut out the rivet that holds the plastic piece in place and replace it with a bolt, use Loktite to stop nut getting loose.

An alternative, use a piece of flat steel about 1.2mm thick and 20mm wide i guess 150-200 mm long. cut out the rivet that holds the plastic moulded part in place. fold the steel into a u shape so it fits around the outside of the damaged plastic part, mark where to drill holes so that the steel strap now holds the damaaged plastic into place and a new bolt goes through the steel and through where the old rivet was.
enjoy cycling again. P


My first thought was just to pile them all onto a roof rack. Even with a smallish car you should be able to get a platform rack that will take two trikes, one facing forward and one backward. Then stack the third (smallest) trike on top of the rear-facing trike. That will likely put the highest point of the trike more than a metre above the roof of the car, but that should be fine. I would run a strap from the trikes to the front bumper of the car, partly for security but also to remind you that they're there. There are a lot of stories of cyclists driving into garages with bikes on the roof (the bikes are often destroyed).

I couldn't find a picture of three trikes on a roof rack, so here's one with four trikes on a small car :)

I searched online for "recumbent trike car carrier". There's at least one company making a hitch rack that will take two trikes, the "Truckee". Add a roof rack and you should easily fit three trikes on even a smallish car.

A lot depends on how strong you are, as trikes are not particularly light and those carriers require you to life the trike some distance onto the car. With a roof rack you can (carefully) roll the trike up over the windscreen.

If you have a station wagon with split rear seats you can very likely fit a trike in there with the rear wheel poking through one of the folded down seats, but you'll probably have to pull the "bottom bracket" out of the trike to close the rear door, which is a bit of a hassle (but since that's where you adjust the trike for size, it's something that's designed to be easy-ish to do). If the car is slightly larger you can probably stack two trikes then roll them into the car this way. With something like a Suburb you could probably remove the rear row of seats and stack three trikes across the back on their sides.


38mm Front 60mm Rear Clinchers Pros and Cons

I wouldn't worry too much about crosswinds with 60mm depth. Unless you are a very light rider or live somewhere really windy!

Each wheelset handles crosswinds slightly different due to their shape/profile. So it's worth reading the reviews.

One thing to bare in mind is what kind of riding you do and how fast you ride:

If you ride in a bunch and shelter behind people you probably won't get much benefit. Lighter wheels rather than aero might be the way to go in order to accelerate out of corners and respond to surges.
If you ride alone or do a lot of time trials riding at 30kmh+ then you should benefit more from the aero aspect of such wheels. If you ride slower than this then the case for an aero wheelset will be less as drag is proportional to velocity squared.

They do look (and quite often sound) the business in my opinion. This is probably a significant factor for most people buying a set (it was for me) of aero wheels! I've since converted back to more regular rim depths as I'm not sure I got the benefit out of the aero-ness for the additional weight and cost. (I used to do quite a bit of TT and triathlon, nowadays I do more hills and ride in bunches much more often.)

It's a personal thing but I think different sized wheels look odd. Other than that, I can't really think of many downsides to mixing rim depths. You're obviously getting less aero enhancement from your front wheel, which is the point, and your front wheel does cut through the wind in front of you. That, and that it might be more expensive buying two wheels in different sizes than a matching wheelset.

It is generally thought to be true that you can get away with a deeper section wheel on the rear as that's where a lot of your weight is but I think typically deeper section than 60mm - I'm thinking of triathletes with a 1080 on the front and a disc wheel on the back.


Whatever material that rim is, it's completely unfit for further use. The area around the spoke has completely pulled out from the rest of the rim. The rim's structural integrity is in doubt, plus it is also out of true.
In principle, there shouldn't be any objective issue running one alloy and one carbon rim, provided you changed the brake pads for the new alloy rim. The brake pads for carbon and aluminum rims are made of different materials. You may not see effective braking using a carbon pad on an aluminum rim. Otherwise, it's mainly an aesthetic drawback to have mismatched rims.
For your stated use case, alloy rims will provide better braking, especially in the wet, than carbon. Carbon rim brake rims are expensive and slightly higher-maintenance toys. There is nothing objectively and intrinsically wrong with liking expensive toys, however. Also, I don't believe this failure mode is common on quality aluminum or carbon rims. For carbon rim brake rims, the higher-maintenance bit mainly amounts to using different brake pads, plus you should probably be more conscientious about cleaning the rim surface after wet rides (remove grit, reduce wear), plus your braking in wet rides will be poorer, plus on extended descents (which not all of us do) you need to be conscientious about braking in pulses (don't drag the brakes, this can melt the resin in the rims after too long).
For the cassette, if you consistently changed your chain before it got too worn, the cassette is likely to still be quite usable. If it is worn, then you should recycle it, as it is likely to cause wear to a new chain. Generally, chain checkers are pretty cheap, and I do recommend that most cyclists get one. However, your local bike shop will generally check for you. The issue with cassette wear is that it is hard to assess visually unless the cassette is very obviously worn (and if it's that worn, it's too much too late, and a new chain would skip on the cassette anyway). Basically, if a new chain skips on the cassette, replace the cassette.
In general, it's often possible to acquire a new rim and rebuild the wheel. In addition, some wheel companies may offer a crash/damage discount on parts, even if the wheel is out of its warranty period or if the damage was clearly the user's fault. It doesn't hurt to ask Fulcrum, although they may not do this. (NB: this does look like a warranty case if you're still in warranty, and I'd suggest asking the store that sold you the bike about this if you think you might be in the warranty period.) Outside of replacing with OEM parts, you or your local bike shop could usually lace an aftermarket rims and spokes to the hub if you were not able or willing to source a replacement rim from Fulcrum (which might be relatively costly). However, some Fulcrum wheels use an unusual spoke arrangement where there are two drive-side spokes for every one on the non-drive. If there are 21 spokes on the rear hub, then standard aftermarket rims are not made in this drilling and you would need a Fulcrum replacement. For at least some Fulcrum wheels, there are no spoke holes in the rim bed, and a wheel builder may need to use special tools to insert the nipples. It's possible that your local bike store may be unable to handle this on their own. If either of those are the case, that might push you in favor of trying to source a replacement wheel or set of wheels, especially considering the rim brake market is probably relatively weak.


Ford Econovan

If this is your first long distance ride, then you should probably do a supported ride. Your friend /spouse in the van would carry spare tires, spare parts, a spare bike, medical supplies, and tools. And lunch or dinner as well as water. They can carry your tent and sleeping bags if you want to camp under the stars.

They'd help ferry you to the next motel if you bonk in the middle of the Arizona desert and give you shelter in a sudden thunderstorm or tornado. They can hit the antique shops or casinos between segments while you're pedaling away.

I can't think of a better (faster, safer) upgrade for a newbie long distance rider.


Can I run a 10 speed cassette on an 11 speed wheel, but also keep running 10 speed on a 10 speed wheel?

Use spacers on the 11 speed wheel to put a 10 speed cassette on.

See your hub manufacturer's page for details, but its normally a 1.8(5) mm spacer (which comes with the hub, but you can buy separately) and a 1mm spacer (sometimes; which you'll get with the cassette). See this page for a table of some common cases.


What should I look for in a new front wheel for my heavy body?

The things that will make a wheel more durable in this kind of service are:

Bigger tires – the bigger the tire the more space you have to cushion an impact, bigger tires also mean that the load is more distributed. Since the bigger tire gives you more support you can also run a somewhat lower pressure which means that there is more flex in the tire before the rim takes the impact.
The right tire pressure (especially since you may not want to change your tires). Too much pressure will make the tires hard and will transfer more of the impact to your wheels and the rest of the bike. Too little pressure means that you'll be getting pinch flats and impacts on the rims – also not good.
Proper spoke tension – the spokes support the wheel, making sure that they are tight enough and evenly tensioned will ensure that the wheel is getting as much support as possible.
Deeper rims – a deeper rim section will be stronger under impact. Wider will help with lateral loads. Going too wide will straighten the sidewalls of your tires and may actually reduce their effectiveness at cushioning impacts.
More spokes – hubs and rims for tandems can be made with 40 or even 48 spokes, if you're already running 36 spokes and they were properly tensioned I'd be inclined to go for more spokes when you build the next wheel.

I think the width of the rim is more about matching the rim to the tire (and lateral strength) than about radial impact strength. That said, 19 mm seems kind of narrow for a 50+ mm tire (at least based on this table of rim widths from Schwalbe). If you've got clearance on the bike for a wider tire, I'd go for at least a 23 or 25 mm rim just to have options.

Another source of good advice would be a wheel builder who specializes in durable wheels. In the US Peter White is a possibility.


What size are the replacement o rings in the prestacycle set?

Got mine from AliExpress 10X5X2.5mm O seal ring for US$2.
Tested it and it fix perfect.


Can I get a wheel dished without the bike?

Yes, a dished wheel can be built or re-dished without a frame handy.

In order to get the wheel to revolve, the rim must be equidistant between the insides of the stays/fork. The reason why most rear wheels/front wheels with disk brakes are dished is because the hub flanges aren't centered between the ends of the axle. This is to accommodate the width of a cassette on a rear wheel and the space taken up by a disk on a front wheel.

To accomplish the desired dish, a mechanic will lace a hub to a rim using spokes that will result in the correct rim placement. There are all sorts of calculators out there to correct for the offset from the hub flange. The spokes on opposite sides of the wheel will be at different tensions and lengths, as opposed to a dishless wheel which has spokes at the same tension and length on both sides. People commonly break spokes on the drive side of their rear wheel - this is because those spokes are generally at a higher tension than those opposite it. Ideally, a wheel is dishless so as to evenly distribute the stress on all spokes. To achieve this, there are many offset rims which compensate for some of the hub flange offset.

However, none of that will effect the disc or caliper function unless you've misplaced some shims reinstalling the disk or moved the caliper. If you have hydraulic brakes and pulled the brake lever without the wheel installed, the brake pads will probably just need to be pushed back into the caliper housing with something flat and blunt.


Damaged Carbon Steerer Tube, repair/replacement?

The standard line from the carbon repair shops is they don't do forks because new ones are a lot cheaper. My understanding is that safe steerer repairs are technically possible in a lot of cases, so if you want to go nuts or if the original is unique in some way you might be able to find someone to do it, but it's probably not worth it. I think in practical terms, the real problem is that a lot of the time if one part of a carbon fork is destroyed, the rest might be pretty well-loved also.
The usual approach is to measure the axle-to-crown and offset dimensions of the original and go shopping for something close. Among carbon rim brake road forks, there's not a lot of variance. A number of companies make what are essentially repair forks for this kind of situation.


Can and should I sell a bike without wheels?

What kind of discount should I be offering to compensate for the lack of wheels? If I still had the wheels, I'd be expecting to get £250 to £300, judging by completed eBay listings.

It depends on how much the wheels are worth as part of the bike, but it wouldn't be surprising if you weren't able to sell it at (bike with wheels) - (cost of wheels). I'd expect the price to be lower than  (bike with wheels) - (cost of wheels) by a decent amount (if you're able to sell it). A lot of buyers want a complete bike that they can take out, do a tiny bit of assembly (stick wheels in, bolt on handlebars, adjust seat and stuff) and go riding. Tracking down a wheelset is work that a lot of people won't put in, especially on a cheaper bike (this is more OK on higher end bikes, since a lot of people faff with wheelsets there and likely have one they want to use).

How should I explain the situation to potential buyers? I know the bike is legit and belongs to me, but they might think it's stolen. I also know that the frame was locked with a very sturdy lock, so the thieves will only have touched the wheels - but potential buyers might suspect the thieves damaged the frame.

Tell them the truth. The only believable lie I can think of is that you wanted to keep the wheelset for some other bike (but on a cheap wheelset, this isn't really believable). The other option is to get a cheap wheelset and put it in, though this may cut into profits. On the other hand, you might not be able to sell it without one.

Would I bring in more money by stripping the remaining components and selling them separately from the frameset? I've never removed a bottom bracket or handlebars, but I'm sure I could figure it out (and I like excuses to buy new tools). It's an aluminium frame from 2011 with carbon fork, 10-speed STI shifters, and mostly 105 components.

Depends on the bike and market. If you do take this route, I'd strip the crankset, derailleurs and shifter and sell them together or individually. Everything else should probably be sold as one unit, unless something is particularly valuable. Removing the BB and stuff out is probably a faff.

Is there a word to describe a wheel-less bike? For instance, if I were a buyer and wanted just a frame, I'd know to search for "frameset". Is there an analogous term?

Normally I see these listed as bike minus wheels. Maybe tag it as frameset and complete bike minus wheels. Look at comparable listings, but there isn't really an established term AFAIK.

Is eBay the best place for a fairly niche item like this? It's my go-to site for selling stuff, but is it really best in this case?

Depends on your market. Note that you do have to box and ship a bike.

Do I need to take extra care when boxing a wheel-less bike for delivery? Disclaimer: I have no experience of boxing a bike.

Not really. You need a cardboard bike box, which means you'd probably be taking it to a bike shop just cause they'll have a supply of packing materials and old bike boxes. They'll charge you a bit for the work (basically put the seat down, remove handlebars from stem and put it on the side, add padding) and possibly arrange for shipping pickup, but its probably about cost for doing it yourself unless you have bike boxes. You can easily find tutorials on how to box a bike like this one.


Bicycles Stack Exchange prohibits recommending products, but we can offer principles to use when shopping.

The key to choosing the right bicycle is matching the bike to the kind of riding you want to do. I apologize for the length of the post - this is a complicated topic.

Generally speaking, you can narrow your search to just a few bikes by:

Identifying the type of riding you want to do
Match a bike type to your need
Select a brand of bike
Filter for bike type and your price range

Matching a bike to your need
Starting with the beginning of the decision making process - you may have already thought all this out but I want to be thorough.

Bicycles are designed for different kind of riding styles. Bikes are like shoes; there is a different shoe for every activity.
Looking at one bike maker's website offers examples:

Mountain

Cross Country
Trail
Cross Country/Downhill

Road

Performance
Gravel
Cyclocross
Triathlon

Active

Fitness
Transportation
Comfort

What's the difference?
The different types of bikes are designed for a type of activity, most of the names are pretty descriptive. What's different about each type are things like:

Frame geometry: this will determine how the bike rides, handles, and the seating position
Tire size: generally narrow tires are faster and less comfortable, wider tires are slower and offer more comfort and/or more traction for off-road
Appropriate drive train / gearing for the task
Appropriate brakes for the task
Wheels to match the application

In the original post the type of bike mentioned is "sport/hybrid". This style of bike indicates that the bike

Will be used on streets or paths
The rider prefers a more upright seating position
Tires in the medium-wide to wide range for greater comfort
Focusing more on comfort than speed

If these qualities match the kind of riding you have in mind then you have selected the right bike type.

The original post mentions some specific parts. My thought is that some of the parts are "must have" (meet a riding need) and other parts are "nice to have"

Triple chain ring: this feels like a must have given the hills described
9 speed cassette: if you found a great deal on a used bike with a 7 speed cassette would walk away? 21 speeds will give you plenty of gear choices.
hydraulic disk brakes: nice to have. Any quality brake system will get you stopped on hills.
700C tires: for the riding style described the tire width seems more important than the wheel diameter. Do you want 40mm wide tires? Wider or thinner? If you find a great deal on a used bike with 26 inch tires is that a deal breaker?
Carbon fork: seems like a nice to have

Selecting a brand
Major bike makers are very competitive with each other in each type of bike and at each price point. Every now and then one maker introduces something that gives it an edge over another maker. Usually, it's only a perceived edge and not a measurable edge.
All that to say - in a given category and price point bikes are very similar.

The one large exception are bikes sold in department stores. Department store bikes are built to hit a very low price point and large compromises are made in quality of materials and workmanship to achieve a low retail price.

One way of narrowing your brand choice would be to look at parts availability and support.

Used Bikes
The original post indicates a desire to purchase a used bike.
Evaluating the condition of a used bike is easier than evaluating a car but it still takes some bike knowledge to do a good job of evaluation. Here is a link to a previous question on buying used bikes with some helpful answers.

Even if you are looking for a used bike, drop by your local bike shop. A good shop is interested in helping people learn about bikes. They should be happy to answer questions and let you test ride a few bikes. The test rides are critical to verifying that you are looking at the right type of bike.


Is there a gadget that will let me slide my seat forward more than my post allows?

No. Based on your question and your comments, there is not a product that does what you are seeking (get your hips over the bottom bracket). The reason being that no one rides that far forward.1 The old style Profile is probably your best bet for getting forward:

There are designs with a seat over the bottom bracket, even some that are made super-adjustable in that regard:

Even at that far forward, the hips are behind the bottom bracket:

With that in mind, a reason that most people don't ride that far forward is because moving yourself that far forward screws with the bicycle handling and puts you too far over the front wheel. Note that bikes that enable the most aero positions, like those pictured above, achieve the effect not by moving the saddle forward, but by moving the bottom bracket back.

Now, with all that lecturing done, I would say that if you are dedicated to this experiment, you can get close with the profile seatpost mentioned and an ISM saddle. The ISM is an anatomical design with two points and a gap between. A lot of riders slide forward on that saddle and hook their sitbones on the two points. This is opposed to traditional time trial saddles which just had more padding on the nose meaning that sliding forward just jams that thing into you perineum. Even better is if you can start with a bike with a steeper seat tube.

1That is a bit of hyperbole, perhaps someone rides that far forward.


How to ensure security of panniers when touring

I went on two bike tours in 2017 and 2018 around North America, for 3000+ miles each, and this is what I did to secure the panniers to the bicycle:

Nothing.

That said, I did take some precautions.

Whenever possible I locked the bike in a highly visible location, preferably with some security cameras pointing at it, and preferably visible inside the restaurant or shop.

Bicycle in sight outside Arby's, Altoona, IA, USA

On several occasions I decided not to stop at a place where I couldn't find a place to lock the bike where I could keep an eye on it or where there wasn't a camera pointed at it.

Once or twice I noticed someone showing much more than the normal curious interest in the bike, and all it took was for them to realize someone was watching them and they moved on.

I always brought the bike inside wherever I stayed at night, including directly into my hotel room.

Bicycle in hotel room, Niagara Falls, ON, CA

Most of the really valuable stuff (laptop, etc.) I had in the backpack strapped to the bike above the panniers. When I had to leave the bike, I was able to easily remove the backpack and take it with me. It also had a change of clothes and some other emergency stuff in case something did happen to the bike.

I never had anything stolen, though I admit I might have just been lucky.


For 1 by X, a medium cage has enough capacity (11-42 needs only 31).

Refer here for details of compatibility between different drive line equipment.

Using an 11 speed derailleur with a ratio of 1.1 vs 10 speed is 1.2, with a cable pull of 3.4mm, across 9 shifts, gives an error of 3mm. If you have have the derailleur perfect in the center, you are out by 1.5mm at the outer cogs, which is getting to be a little far out for my liking.  Many say it works, but I have seen no one report back after the chain, cassette and cables are no longer new and shiny and in perfect working order. However, I have also heard and suspect it to be true, that the M8000 provides a better 10 speed 11-42 setup than a 10 Speed derailleur.

Better alternates to the M8000 if you don't want to go to 11 speed are third party upgrades to your 10 speed derailleur, e.g.  Rad Cage, Goatlink, or both.

I looked at going 1x for my 3x10, and decided it was either go the whole hog and do it properly with 1x11 or stick with what I had.


Shimano Sora: switching cassette from 11-32 to 11-34

The Triban RC500 page says you have the short cage version derailleur.
The Shimano groupset line-up page for Sora shows the short cage derailleur (RD-R3000-SS) has a max sprocket size of 32, so a change to a larger range cassette is not feasible with the current derailleur.
If you replaced the derailleur with a long cage version (RD-R3000-GS), you could go to a 34 tooth sprocket.
You might not need a longer chain, but it’s generally recommended to replace the chain with the cassette, unless the chain has very little wear.
As for as possibility of making this change as an inexperienced mechanic, all the procedures are quite straightforward, and its possible to find very good guides and videos on how to do everything. Park Tool Repair Help is a particularly good source. However, to change the cassette you need a couple of special tools - a chain whip, a cassette lock ring tool and a large wrench. To change the chain you would need a chain breaker tool, and possibly quick link pliers.
If you choose to try to re-use your chain, do not install the cassette and then just see if the chain will go onto the new 34 tooth sprocket, if it’s too short it can cause damage. Break the chain and use the chain sizing procedure to see if it is long enough. If it is re-join using a quick-link connector. Make sure you get a quick link that is for 9 speed and for whichever brand of chain you have, Shimano, SRAM and KMC etc.


Should I worry about uneven disc brake pad wear?

Park Tool recommend the brake pads be at least 1mm thick. SRAM and Shimano have slightly different recommendation I think so look up the specs on your particular model of brakes.

I'd definitely be concerned by the asymmetrical wear. The squeaking when the bike is canted over is also indicative of an issue. I'd start by checking the front wheel hub for any play in the hub bearings. Make sure the wheel is installed correctly, then hold it off the ground, grab the tire/rib and push and pull side-side. You shouldn't be able to feel any movement between the wheel and fork.


How do I add pressure and adjust rebound on older mountain bike forks?

You can easilly find the manual just by googling the visible words from your photo "Marzocchi Bomber 2001", for example https://www.manualslib.com/manual/1728712/Marzocchi-Bomber-2001.html  Adjustments are on page 10 and in detail from page 24. A schematic picture is on page 14.

There are air and coil variants.
What you can adjust in the air ones is the air pressure and the oil level, which in turn determines the air volume.

However from the picture on page 32 it appears to me you have the coil variant and that by getting out the dust cap on the left crown (on the right in the photo) you will get to the coil preload adjustment (use the Allen key). A flat screwdriver should then suffice to adjust the rebound cartridge.

Make sure which exact variant you have. The picture tells a lot.


As far as I can see from your photo, the damage to your bike caused the paint to fleck but the underlying carbon fiber looks intact. Doing anything anything abrasive would risk damaging the fibers. If your bike is under warranty, I'd ask the manufacturer. If not, I'd carefully paint over the chips so as to seal it back up and prevent further damage (physical and UV) to the underlying carbon fiber.

If your bike is of recent make, the manufacturer or your local bike store (LBS) can get touch up paint in the right color. Again, you might want to inquire with the manufacturer what you need to do to maintain your frame warranty.

If you can't find the exact color through your LBS or the manufacturer, you can go to an auto parts shop and look at their array of touch up paints and get something near enough. This might be difficult as the chips are in an area where the color is fading to black.  A color that is too light will generally be less noticeable than one that is too dark.

While you're at the parts store, get some clear coat as well.  The little touchup paint bottles should cost about 3-8 Eurodollars each and come with their own little brushes.

Now, with metal frames and when you have an exact paint match, you want to sand down the metal so that you can remove any oxidation and lay down some primer. But you have a carbon frame, the damaged area is so small, and sanding may cause more fibers to abrade so I wouldn't risk sanding it.

Instead, I'd clean the area with some isopropyl alcohol and then apply the touch up paint very carefully. The area is so small that you likely won't need primer either but if you got some, it wouldn't hurt. Thin layers applied multiple times with time in between to dry is better than a blob of paint.

After the final layer had dried, apply the clear coat.

Ps. Don't use clear nail polish lacquer as it yellows under UV and age and is quite brittle. It's only designed to last a few weeks at most and then its removed and reapplied.


Both approaches may work if you are lucky. It depends whether you are willing to sacrifice the additional sealant if it does not or whether you are willing to sacrifice the sealant that is already there when cleaning the tyre.

If there is some still some good amount of sealant inside, you can also use tubeless plugs (worms), but they are not permanent, although they can work for many months or perhaps even years, if you are lucky.

With the plugs you do not have to take the tyre off the rim and you can do the repair on the road.

After some time it is better to replace the plug with a patch from the inside. Do it when there is a good time and you have the tyre dry off the rim anyway. Some companies sell dedicated tubeless patches. They are the same as tube patches but are somewhat thicker or bigger but a tube patch can work as well depending on the size of the cut.

Some also sell big patches that are used at the outside of they tyre, but I have no experience with them and I would fear the uneven diameter it would cause.

Your hole looks pretty small and should theoretically be fixable by the sealant. Make sure you always shake the bottle well to allow any big particles to get into the tyre. Some sealants have such big particles that they even do not go well through a syringe and are better poured directly into the tyre. That is my experience with Joe's.


Does the price difference between a Brompton and a budget folding bicycle represent quality

Brompton is certainly a well known name in the bike industry. As such, I have faith in their ability to produce a quality folder.

The £129.99 bike uses a design which is sub-optimal for a folder, since a single failure point has the option for the bike to collapse into the folded or partly folded position. Which is not to say it will fail, only that it could, and there does not appear to be a safety.

In addition, the components on the bike appear to be the very basic type whih I would expect to see on a kid's bike, as far as quality.

Brompton may not have high end parts on this machine, but they appear to be at least ridable quality.

Whether the difference is worth it, is a personal decision, but I would not consider the £129.99 bike safe to ride for me or mine.


Seat Stay Replacement - Bridgestone MB-3

First "a welder" is possibly not the best choice if you have any alternative. If you can find a framebuilder, or a TIG specialist who deals with thin material that will be much better. If nothing else, you need to know that those frames are brazed together (you can see from the lugs in the picture), not welded, and if the welder tries to weld over the brazing the brass will boil off spraying metal everywhere.

The simple, brutal approach is just to cut the seatstay out of another bike and use that.

It's also tricky to weld thin bicycle tubing, so unless your welder has experience of thinner than 1mm tubes they're likely to make big, ugly welds and also damage the bike while discovering that. Blowing through the seat tube is likely to make the frame unusable, because even after you file the inside of the tube clean it's likely that the seatpost will either not go in, or won't clamp tightly.

That said, it can be done, but you really want a TIG/GTAW welder rather than MIG, and doing it with a stick welder is very, very difficult. I TIG weld my frames, and while I know people who MIG weld frames they do it full time and it usually takes an experienced welder a month or so (full time) to become competent at welding thin bicycle tubing.

The replacement seat stay is pretty easy to get. You can either buy a specific seat stay part from any frame parts supplier, or just use 4130 CroMo steel straight tubing that matches the thick part of the seatstay (probably 12mm x 0.9). If you told us what country you're in it might be possible to suggest suppliers.

You will want to recover and reuse the brake boss, and ideally also the rack mount at the top so remember when moving the bent tube that you're grinding the tube off the boss, not the other way round.


Is a 16 grams CO2 cartridge enough to inflate a 29" mountainbike

Yes. One 16 gram cartridge is enough to fill an average 29" tire. I just tested in my Schwalbe Rocket Ron 29x2.25, and from empty it gets to about 38 psi. I run tubeless, so normal pressure at my 110kg weight is around 35-38psi.

With a tubed setup, 38psi might be a touch low, but plenty to get you back in off the trail.


Hydraulic disc brakes not sticking after replacing pads and bedding in

Place a wooden ruler or a piece of paper folded 8 times instead of disk rotor to check brakes.
Then take your rotor and pads and thow them away to get new one.

When oil gets between rotor and pads, your pads get oiled and they will place oil onto new rotor.

Rotor itself can still contain some oil on it after washing, you will not be able to remove it. So old rotor will place oil onto new pads.

That is why you need to replace both.

The other way is to overheat your pads and rotor in open flame for about 10..15 minutes. Open fire will burn oil, but it is dangerous - pads may blow up and rotor may get screwed, so this is "i have no money" way


Rolling dismount: leg crosses over in front of you or behind?

Unless you have a Victorian ladies style frame, crossing your leg in front of you is a fine way to crash.


Use a 3x10 front derailleur on a 9sp setup

The cage width will be narrower and that can cause it to be finicky or impossible to adjust without rub anywhere. Usually it will be something along the lines of once the cable tension is right for it to shift smoothly, it will want to rub in either the highest gear or in mid ring, largest cog. Chainring spacing isn't strictly universal so it does depend on the crank.

Tweaking the cage can be a solution but not a guaranteed one. Just running a 10 speed chain on your 9 speed cassette is totally fine. Shifts great without any issue I've ever seen, and helps clear up any FD rub issues.

Be careful not to get snared by the minimum difference between middle and large ring FD spec. It's easy to do, particularly when putting a new FD on an older road triple. Numbers for all current Shimano derailers can be found here.


Parafin wax vs wet lube for bike chain lubrication?

I have been using paraffin wax this year on my "fast" road bike as a bit of an experiment. This was using the hot wax approach, where paraffin wax was melted (in a slow cooker) and a clean chain dipped in the hot wax.
Pros

Very clean drive train, even after 2000 km the cassette and rings sparkle. Straight paraffin (i.e., without bees wax) does not attract dirt. I rarely find myself cleaning the drive train as it just isn't needed.
Efficient - feels quite efficient when pedaling. Nothing earth shattering, just a positive feel. Perhaps this is confirmation bias, due to the Velonews research.  I haven't tried to quantify any differences yet.
Longer period of time between maintenance. Typically 400-600 km between needing to reapply.
Reapplication of hot wax can be quick 15 min - if you have the setup.
Lower wear rates.  My preliminary results have shown lower wear rates relative to wet lube, but I need more data before I can sign off on this. See ParkTool CC-2 chain checker incorrect readings for an example of how to measure chain wear rates  precisely measured in the field.

Cons

Time consuming to prepare a chain for first waxing (ALL LUBE must be removed).  This step is critical and time consuming (see below).
Chain runs a bit nosier, especially if cross chaining.
Chain must be removed from the bike to re-wax
More paraphernalia required (e.g., slow cooker, wax, gloves, solvents, jars)
You need to be organized. Wet lubes are easier, if you don't plan.

Typically, I have about 3 chains pre-waxed which I rotate once the wax has worn off.

Additional Details on Hot Waxing
When done right paraffin wax adheres to the metal and takes up the space between the rollers and inner links. Because the wax is solid at room temperature, this means the chain is running on a film of hard wax, which increase efficiency and reduces roller wear.  This only works if you prepare the chain correctly, otherwise the wax will not adhere and the wax will not remain between the rollers and inner plates/bushings (inner plates act as bushings in modern chains).
Initial Preparation
Probably the most critical step for a successful hot waxing is preparing the chain.  All lube must be stripped off. EVERYTHING. No residue, just bare metal.  This is actually more difficult than it first sounds. I typically follow this tutorial by Molten Speed Wax (although I haven't tried their wax yet). The mineral spirits do a good job of stripping out oils, but they do leave a residue.  Mineral spirits is therefore followed by rubbing alcohol (isopropanol) baths, which leaves bear metals.  After drying the chain is ready for a hot wax treatment. Regular bike degreasers will likely not be strong enough.
Solvents are expensive and potentially harmful to the environment so I  reuse my solvents, but moving them down the chain. I use about 6-7 sequential baths (4 mineral spirits, 3 alcohol).  Tedious! Afterwards solvents will need to be disposed/recycled at the proper facilities- not down the drain!!!

Example of the debris removed from a new chain after the first solvent bath.
Multiple Chains
Because of the tedium and work involved I tend to prepare batches of chains then rotate them on a bike.  This makes re-lubing as easy as swapping a chain. I also use master a link, which I tend to reuse a number of times before replacing.
Re-waxing
Re-waxing is as simple as wiping any dust or dirt off of the chain and re-inserting into hot wax again. Any remaining dirt tends to fall out of the chain as you mix the pot, settling on the bottom.  Afterwards you can cut out the dirty wax which settles to the bottom of the pot.  I typically keep my re-waxing wax separate from my first time wax which is pristine.
Known Unknowns
Right now I get good longevity in the dry, even better in the cold and dry (as the wax is harder), but I have no idea the longevity in the wet and muddy.  I remember the Velonews test showed good friction performance (the paraffin keeps out mud) but I am not sure anyone looked at longevity (i.e., how long before re-waxing).
Once I set my commuter up on a waxed chain I will have a better of how this may pan out.

UPDATE 1: Wear Rates
The wear rate of Paraffin treated chain is significantly lower (p < 0.001) with a wear rate about 40% of the wear rate measured while using oil.  In the figure below oil was used on the chain for the first 100 hours before switching to paraffin.  The slope of the regression lines indicates the wear rate, with the shaded region indicating the 95% confidence region for the regression line. Note that the measured wear drops slightly after switching to paraffin, my best guess is that the wax fills some of the space between the roller and pin, effectively reducing measured stretch.

UPDATE 2: Wet weather
Wet weather riding with a paraffin waxes chain is a mixed bag. The waxing doesn’t last as long as in dry weather due to the wet and grit wearing away the wax. Typically torrential down pour conditions on gravel tracks I get about four one way commutes (about 100 km) before I swap chains.  If it is light or misting rain I can get a week’s worth or more. To rewax the chain I wipe off the dirt off the chain with a wet rag, let the chain dry then throw it into the hot wax.
The one big plus is that the drivetrain remains relatively clean and can be polished in a couple minutes with a wet rag. Wet lubes would produce a nasty mess under the same conditions.
In the end there is no free lunch, there is always more  maintenance in winter.


Are you positive it's coming from the handlebar to stem interface? Creaking sounds are notoriously hard to diagnose. It's highly possible that the noise could be from the stem to steer tube interface or your headset or the spacers on your steer tube or topcap or another source, while it may sound like it's coming from your handlebars.

Also, be cautious with making things "as tight as I can make it" as you may risk over-tightening the part and risking more damage to your bike and/or components. If you are unfamiliar with how hard to tighten bolts, you should consult your owner's manual, the part manufacturers technical documents or simply take your bike into a reputable mechanic to properly tighten everything.


The more speed you get, the more balanced you will be, so at the beginning give a hard pedal stroke to get quickly some speed. You can also practice in a slight downhill road, this gives you speed easier.

I recently taught a friend to ride a bicycle (30 years old!), and the solution was the slight downhill.

Another trick is to look far ahead (dont look at your front wheel) and stay upright, so you should put your saddle higher than you describe.

Good luck!


Yours looks like the one described in this blog post: https://handsonbike.blogspot.com/2013/11/avanti-inc-3-eccentric-bb-for-belt.html?m=1.
The writer was able to free it up by putting the bolt partway in and hammering it, so I would try that.  It’s the same principle as old quill style handlebar stems.


Shimano 105 front derailleur, Sugino crank and large chain ring, chain touches the derailleur cage

Solved it, it was the nut oriented incorrectly on the dura-ace downtube shifter.
Turning the inside nut so that its oriented correctly against the main tube, inside from the lever, and retightening the cable to remove all slack, and then setting limit screws again, I now have the shimano 105 derailleur with the Sugino  working correctly (non-indexed). Thanks for all your ideas.


Product recommendations are generally not the thing here. There is however a reputed 4-letter Swiss company that has been producing internally glazed aluminium water bottles especially for cycling, properly fitting in standard bottle cages for many decades now.

And since it is Swiss it will certainly go on for much longer. The problem however with internally glazed metal bottles is their relative fragility. cycling bottles tend to be dropped and hard contact with the ground damages the coating which makes the bottles expensive garbage.

Most modern plastic bottles no longer have that specific 'plasticky taste' that cycling bottles used to have and can be used without restriction. Also all companies produce recyclable ones and some are even biodegradable after some months when lost in the outdoors, if this helps to lighten your conscience.

Concerning cages: cages that have a certain flexibility and that are slightly tighter keep a much better hold of bottles on rough terrain. When pros ride on cobbles the team mechanics often stick strips of skateboard tape to the cages to give the bottles a better hold.


There are many different philosophies about how much maintenance a bicycle needs, and on what schedule or basis it should be performed.

As I prefer to never be worried about whether my bikes will fail under me on a ride, I am more meticulous than most.  I currently have 4 bikes, each with different function.

I service each bike when it's time to change the chain. I do that at 1000 miles ridden. I have yet to need more than chains, cables, and lubrication, and I've never had a more serous mechanical than a flat tire on a ride since I started this maintenance scheme.

Your question, though, is about how I keep track of that regime.  I've tried several things, including an Excel sheet, a Rails based web app I built, and just logging the miles on paper, but the problem with all of them is that they are dependent on me to remember to use them.

Given my chosen schedule, if I forget to log a day, or a week, of riding it's not going to hurt me.

But what I'd love to see is an iPhone/Android bike computer app with the ability to set more than 2 bikes, and to set maintenance reminders based on GPS miles logged for each bike. Perhaps with an "x distance or y time, whichever comes first" based reminder, with the mileage and timeframe user adjustable.

Haven't found it yet though. My bike computer will let me set a mileage reminder, but I'd need one on each bike.


Cannondale Trail SL 3 component upgrades

My understanding is that 5 speed is unique, 6/7/8 all share the same chain specs (unless its weird) and that 9 and 10 and 11 are all unique again.

You're probably best to keep everything in the 9 speed range, and perhaps enjoy some tech trickledown from the higher grades.

Your specific questions

A 10 speed deraileryeryer will probably work "okay" but the wire pull is different, so in the middle of the cassette should be fine, but as you approach the outsides it will progressively not go quite far enough.
You can use any 9 speed shimano shifter on a shimano 9 speed setup.
The crankset does not need the same number of teeth, but if you make it too big or too small, then the front mech may be too small to span all the chainrings.

2013 is not that long ago - for a bike part to be worn out in a couple years suggests that you're using it well, or mistreating it.   Care for your ride and it should last 10-20 years.


Options to reduce reach on a gravel bike

When riding on the hoods reducing the reach of bars is equivalent to using a shorter stem. Only when riding on the tops a shorter stem will lead to different steering compared to shorter reach bars.
A change of 2 cm to 3 cm will change steering. However, it is not so dramatic that you will hit the dirt right away. Especially on gravel bikes that typically have slack steering angles and tend to be quite stable.
Swapping a stem is a bit less work than swapping bars. Stems tend to be slightly cheaper as well. Neither is terribly expensive or much work. You might give it a try and see if you like it.
An alternative would be to lower the height of the bars, by moving the stem further down, and/or flipping it down. When you tilt your upper body at the saddle your shoulders move roughly on a circular path. The lower your upper body is the further your shoulder are forward.
Before starting to get your hex keys you might want too try if you feel to stretched out when you are down in the drops, holding the bars where you can brake.


What are the benefits of nickel-plated chains?

Nickel plated chains have this done for aesthetic purposes, and to provide corrosion resistance. They are also less susceptible to the chain binding itself up.

When two metallic surfaces create friction against each other, they create small areas of abrasion (Much like a plaque in your arteries). Over time, these increase to the point where the chain can kink in spots. Nickel helps to stave this off.

The wearing may be slightly higher than with a non coated chain, but the difference to the lifespan of the cogs (cassette) is negligible. Chains should be replaced around the 2500km mark on a regular basis, and cassettes anywhere from 5000-10000km depending on many factors. You'll go through 2-3 chains per cassette, and usually I replace my cassette with every 3rd chain no matter what.

Dust/dirt/mud and poor maintenance will do more harm and accelerate wear faster than any plating on the chain will.


Issue shifting from largest cog to second largest

I would honestly just take the cable off the and use your thumb to push the derailleur into the biggest gear while turning the peddles. do this over and over again. if it ever sticks then you know its your derailleur. if it does not stick you can move on and look into cable issues.....

hope this helps.


How to remove a threaded bottom bracket?

That is called the bottom bracket and houses the bearings through which the crank axle sits. You'll need a specialist tool to remove it (see the small notches) and there are several different types on the market. Something like this might do it though?


What is the maker and year of this frame with the serial number a2008112

You can easily identify the maker of this bike thanks to the gusset on the frame, it is a Mongoose.

The serial number starts with A, which tells you it was made in January (A : January, B : February, C : March, etc.).
Then the second character is a 2, which means it was made in 1982 (last number of the year).

So your bike is a 1982 Mongoose.
According to the manufacturing date, it can either be a Supergoose I or II, or a California Special, but I can't really tell with these picture. You would also need to know the frame material to help figuring this out.

If you need more info, hit that link : http://www.vintagemongoose.com/index.php


How do I tighten the loose chain given an enclosed Nexus rear hub?

There are two mechanisms for chain adjustment on non-derailleur bikes, either: the frame should have horizontal slots that the wheel axle fits into, and is secured with large nuts on the threaded axle ends. Chain tension is adjusted by moving the whole wheel within these slots; or the bottom bracket is mounted in a eccentric cylinder in a oversize bottom bracket shell.

Park Tool has a video on single speed chain installation and adjustment that you may find helpful to adjust the chain tension correctly.

As noted in comments, you should check that the chain is not worn out. (The pins and bushings wear and become slightly looser which causes the chain to elongate). A worn chain accelerates wear on the sprockets.


Bmx panther originally made in colarado i recall.


Do Seat Posts with Shock Absorbers Help?

Your bike probably does not have a suspension seat post.

They are great for smoothing out small bumps on rough roads, and help with people whose anatomy is not 'cycle hardened'. For less fit riders, you do not need to unload the seat by standing for small bumps, so can make a ride less tiring. They also help soften the blow where you misjudge a bump and its bigger than expected.

However, they also loose some pedalling efficiency due to the changing length of the seat-pedals, so few serious cyclists use them.

Most people love or hate them, not much middle ground. People who love them are usually casual cyclists. I have used one on a MTB hardtail, but ride often enough it makes little difference to me. My wife currently does because she rides rarely, and it helps smooth out the bumps on the hard packed MTB trails she rides.

Should you get one? Only if you ride with padded shorts and still want a bit more comfort. if you try one and like it, as you get more miles under you belt, you may find you don't need it, or even dislike it.  It could be worth holding off getting one for a while and giving time for your body to adapt to riding.


Does the USADA have the authority to strip Lance Armstrong of his Tour de France titles?

It's a bit muddy and will probably ultimately be decided by the lawyers, but...

According to the John Fahey, the president of WADA:

"I am confident and WADA is confident that the USADA acted within the WADA code, and that a court in Texas also decided not to interfere," Fahey said in a telephone interview. "They now have the right to apply a penalty that will be recognized by all WADA code countries around the world."

http://www.greenwichtime.com/sports/article/WADA-Armstrong-stance-raises-questions-on-charges-3811670.php

And according to the WADA Code, it is the responsibility of international organizations:

20.3.9 To vigorously pursue all potential anti-doping rule violations within its jurisdiction including investigation into whether  Athlete Support Personnel or other Persons may have been involved in each case of doping.

20.3.12 To cooperate with relevant national organizations and agencies and other  Anti-Doping Organizations.

http://www.wada-ama.org/Documents/World_Anti-Doping_Program/WADP-The-Code/WADA_Anti-Doping_CODE_2009_EN.pdf

So according to WADA, the USADA does have the right to impose penalties and the UCI is bound by the WADA Code to comply with their findings. They can, of course, appeal to The Court of Arbitration for Sport. And they almost certainly will.


How did my inner tube get folded in a Z inside the tire?

Most likely incorrect tube and tire combo. Check your tube range if it matches the size of your tire. Could also be that you seated the tire incorrectly.


Can I switch to a new type of bottom bracket?

my local bike shop said he didn't have the required piece

What? They can't order one? I'd be immediately suspicious and look for another local bike repair shop.
To make sure you order the correct bottom bracket for your crank it's best to look at the Shimano axle length code. The Analog has a Acera FC-M3000 crank. The Shimano square taper bottom bracket axle length code for this crank is 'LL113'. Looking through the Shimano MTB BB specs page we can find that a BB-UN300 has that length code for a 73mm BB shell. Now you know what to look for online (hint).

Can I use a different type of bottom bracket and will that require a change of cranks as well?

Yes and yes. The other choice for a threaded bottom bracket shell (sticking with Shimano) is a HollowTechII external bearings and a 'two-piece' 24mm axle crank. This would be considered an upgrade over the square taper type. You Can pick any Shimano MTB 3x9 HollowTech crank with the same chainring sizes and crank arm length as you have. As an example (product recommendations are off-topic here) the Alivio FC-MT210-3.

If I purchase a whole new crankset .. will that include the bottom bracket?

No. Batteries Bottom brackets sold separately. Shimano two-piece cranks will fit in both a threaded Hollowtech II and BB86/92 press-fit bottom bracket so they do not come with a bottom bracket.

Is this hard to install?

Not really and there are loads of guides online but you need several special tools. To get the square taper cranks off the bottom bracket you need a crank puller. To get the cartridge bottom bracket out of the frame shell you need a tool that fits in the cup splines (there are several variations) and a big wrench or socket driver. To mount HollowTech bottom bracket cups a special wrench is needed. Examples can be seen here. Strictly speaking you need a torque wrench to mount the left crank arm on a Hollowtech crank. You definitely need one to get crank arms mounted on a square taper.
Really, you should be able to get the bike store (or a different one) to order the correct bottom bracket for you. Switching to a Hollowtech crank will be relatively expensive even before the cost of tools. You might look for bicycle co-operatives in your area that will rent out tools or workshop space if you really want to do the upgrade yourself.


Will changing from a touring bike to a racing bike improve my energy level?

I think the times you're posting for the distances you're riding, especially on a touring bike are pretty reasonable. Professional athletes, or racers, will ride quicker, but for an amateur aiming for a century your times are fine. On a longer ride, you need more time for rest stops and food and nature breaks.

A road bike will make you a little quicker, especially when you're riding into a headwind. It will also make the time spent more comfortable because you have more options to vary your position.

Make sure you keep up your fluids, electrolytes and carbs. Sports drinks, energy gels, sports bars and glucose lollies can really help when you hit the wall, or 'bonk'. On long rides, you need to keep eating regularly, even if you don't feel hungry (sometimes even when you're sick of eating sugary foods). It's amazing the pick up you can get from eating some good fuel.

Keep riding, keep training and the distance and time on the bike will be more achievable and comfortable.


What to Look for In Gloves for Winter Commuting

You'll need gloves that allow you to still hold the bars and use the brakes and shifters. Standard mittens don't work well since you have to grab the brake with all your fingers.

Durable waterproof ski gloves with five fingers are one of the best options, especially those which come with a hand warmer pocket for extra warmth capability. Some folks prefer lobster style gloves since they are split and allow you to wrap two fingers around the bars and two on the brake on a flat bar setup. They still suffer a bit when using STI shifters, but they are usable.

Gloves that have a separate outer an inner layer are very helpful for longer duration riding as you can keep a set of dry liners handy to swap out if your hands sweat a lot, since moisture will transfer cold from the liner to your fingers. I've found this a lifesaver on long rides where my hands begin to freeze up. If using on commutes, it's nice to have separate liners for to and from trips, in case your liners don't dry through the day.

For extra cold conditions, a lot of people prefer to combine thinner gloves with pogies / bar mitts. These provide a lot of wind shielding as well as some insulation, enabling you to forgo super heavy gloves.  They are available for both drop bar and flat bar setups, but they are more optimal on flat bars.

Some popular brands of gloves to check out are:
45nrth - See Sturmfist gloves (some of the best deep winter cycling gear)
Pearl Izumi - See Pro Softshell Lobster Glove (one peice, makes layering hard)
Planet Bike - See Borealis Glove (lobster style, separate liner)
Swany - See X-change Gloves (some of the best ski gloves, also awesome for winter cycling)

Popular Pogies:
45nrth Cobrafist (Flat bar only)
Revelate Designs (flat bars and jones loop bar compatible models)
Dogwood Designs Pogies (Flat bar only)
Barmitts (Both Flag bar and drop bar models, simple neoprene design)
AMF Threadworms Moose Mitts (Drop bar and flat bar models available)


Repairing stripped threads on a nut type bottom bracket

The thread repair tool that is used in this sort of situation is called a die. The common size for crank nuts is M8x1.25.

However, too much material appears to be lost here for that approach to be reasonable. Crank nuts/bolts are one of the higher torque items on a bike, meaning you don't really have much leeway for severely damaged threads. Also, hardened steel threaded parts like this don't take as well to thread reformation as softer steel parts. Taps and dies have some capacity to shove material on damaged threads back into place, but here it's likely to break off instead.

You don't indicate whether you have a cartridge or cup and cone BB, but nutted BB spindles are almost always (maybe literally always?) found on cup and cone BBs. If so there's nothing stopping you from just replacing the spindle; basic cup and cone BBs generally let you do that freely since they tend to all use JIS spindles. You need the same length and, if applicable, offset. Pull the existing one and hopefully you'll find a code on it like the one in the picture. Match the new one with that. Shops don't tend to just have them anymore, since the common approach is now to just replace everything with cartridge, but they are still able to be ordered, and are cheap.


If you get a 3 x 10 STI shifter, the front (Sora) shifter will work fine. For the rear, you're going to need to replace it with a 10 speed Shimano road rear derailleur or a 7-9 speed Shimano rear derailleur due to the change in cable pull (7-9 speed and 10 speed road use the same cable pull in Shimano. 10 speed mountain does something else). Note that the bar ends spec'd on the Disc Trucker are Microshift BS-M10, which are specifically designed for 10 speed mountain cable pull. You can use the JTek Shiftmate 6 as an alternative to putting a 7-9 speed or 10 speed Road Shimano rear derailleur, but I'd recommend against it since its one more place the cable can be damaged, and it will cost more than buying a 9 speed Deore rear derailleur (which is what I'd do to save some cash rather than buying the 9 speed XT, unless you have it laying around or can get it for very cheap).

As for brakes, the Tektro RL520's are for linear pull (V-brakes / mountain disc brakes). This means that the Disc Trucker is outfitted with the Avid BB7 Mountain disc brake calipers. So, if you want to switch to STI brakes, you can either swap out the brake calipers for road brake calipers (e.g. Avid BB7 Road) or use a Travel Agent, which is a pulley that switches the cable pull between short and long pull brakes. These increase cable wear at the pulley so you have to check them every so often to see the cable is in good condition. Travel agents may be a bit cheaper (two of them should run about 50 USD), but I'd probably opt for the new calipers since it removes one failure point in your brake system (two brakes with rotors will probably run about 100 USD; less if you can find them without rotors). Hayes and Tektro/TRP make disc brakes with short pull (such as the Hayes Comp CX) which you can also use.


Who manufactures 590mm BSD (EA3 | 650A | 26 x 1 3/8) alloy touring rims?

All I see are a Sun Ringle CR-18 and a cheap steel rim from Wheel Master.  The CR-18 is definitely the stronger of those, it's a double-wall with eyelets.  If you're looking for durability, those are very good.


The LED group needs to be waterproof anyways, and it needs to withstand dirt that's thrown at it from the tire at quite some speed. Snow won't penetrate any further than water. Also, since the fender looks very plastic to me, it won't be attacked by the salt that your city may have used to clear the roads.
As such, I believe that your LED should be perfectly safe and won't be killed by any amount of snow that you choose to bike through.

Cables may be a different matter as blocks of snow can tear at them in ways that water can't. But as long as the cable to your rear light runs straight up in the middle of the fender, that shouldn't be an issue.


It looks like your new brake pads have pushed the right brake arm out moving the top of the arm down, touching the tire. You need the top of the brake arm to move up and give you some clearance.

Options

Get thinner brake pads
Cut the new brake pad down some so that it will be thinner
If there are any washers between the back of the brake pad and the brake arm remove them (I can't tell from the picture)

Hopefully all you need to do is remove some washers.


Restore faithfully to original condition, or soup it up?

First of all, welcome!  This has been a great place for me to get information I wouldn't find any other way, and I hope it's the same for you.
In keeping with Argenti Apparatus' observation about opinions, I'll try to stick to facts-based considerations.  First, you've already powder-coated the frame.  While that doesn't mean that any vintage value is destroyed, it certainly is diminished.  Second, a quick check showed a few of these for sale, although I'm not sure they're the same year.  Finally, you always have the option to revert to its original state in the future.  So, my suggestions:

Keep any original parts you have.
Build it up with whatever upgrades or customizations you may like.


Big tires are rubbing in certain conditions so how can I fix my rear wheel play issues?

Unfortunately 28mm nominal tire width can be too larger for many modern road bikes. Note that actual measured with depends on many factors including: internal rim width, tire construction, tire profile, tire age and wear, inflation pressure. As such, one combination of tires and wheels can work while another may fail if you have tight clearances.

It is also impossible to build a bicycle and wheel set without flex.  As such, there needs to be a minimum safe tire clearance. Just because the wheel spins freely in the stand does not mean there will be appropriate clearance for actually riding the bike, especially for heavier/stronger riders.  I would suggest assessing how much clearance is available with 25 mm tires (perhaps(typical max clearance on many road bikes).  If the clearance is already tight (e.g., less than 1 cm) then going up to 28 could be a stretch.

The more recent version of the tarmac (e.g., disc version) can clear 28 mm, but I doubt older rim brake versions can.  It is best to ask the Specialized Help Desk to get an official answer.

Question of Hub Play

All wheels, will have some side-to-side flex so it is unclear whether or not there is a problem with the hub. Typically, if the bearings have developed play the wheel moves side-to-side with a very light touch, if more force is required it is likely wheel flex.  5-7000 miles is not a lot of mileage, but this also depends on the conditions they were ridden under.


There are two ways to price a product - Cost Plus or Value Add. To survive, Cost+ must be less than VA or you can only sell your product for less than it costs to make. If C+ is less than VA, you an sell at any price point between them. Too close to VA, you encourage competition, to close to C+, you forgo profit. Something like a master link, I can't imagine someone thinking "I know, I make master links, sell the 10% cheaper and get rich" - the market is too small, and too brand loyal....... So the only competition to master links is not using one......

If you don't use a Master link, you need a special tool (chain breaker), and skills to use it. The tool is about 10x the price of a master link - so you could buy the tool and not have to buy a master link, or you could just buy the master link - 10 times if needed. Most of us buy a hand full of master links and just use them as needed till gone, the $25 price tag is forgotten a long before the next $25 top up is needed, but if we run out, that $25 is well remembered reassembling a chain with a tool - as money very well spent......

I own a tool, and would not be without it, but always use a master link.........


Can you change gear on your front dérailleur during a cyclo cross race?

It should not take 2-3 revolutions to shift modern chainrings. There are possibly a few things going on.

Your larger chainring does not have the pins and ramps required to shift quickly.

Sometimes cross sized rings don't have all the bells and whistles.

Your big chainring should have those features. If it doesn't get a new ring.
Race Face and Black Spire make 110BCD rings with pins and ramps in cross racing sizes.

The derailleur needs adjusting/replacing.

The derailleur cage needs to be positioned such that it is about 2-3mm above the big chainring. The cage also needs to be curved such that it closely matches the curvature
of the big ring. 46t is right at the size where a standard road derailluer has problems.
It should look something like this.

If you can't get the derailleur close on both top and bottom, you can either get a cross specific front derailleur, or grind the cage of your current derailleur to match the curvature of the big chainring.

Your shifting technique needs practice.

As someone who learned to shift before indexing, I have some habits that I only recently learned modern beginners often never learn. Even with indexed shifting, on the front you need to push the lever beyond the click until you hear the chain catch. This is something I was doing unconsciously since that's what friction shifting requires, a slight overshift and trim. Recently in helping a beginner learn to shift, I took a closer look at what I was doing and they weren't and realized that they let go of the lever as soon as it clicked, not as soon as the chain engaged the big ring. This makes a big difference in how fast the chain shifts.

They also needed to learn the subtleties of soft pedaling during the shift.

Modern chains and rings have gotten so good that in normal situations ( 39/52 on the road), you can often go a long time before these tricks become unconscious. Cross racing is tweaking the boundaries of what the shifting system can do for you and requires learning these old school techniques.


Replacing a rear wheel bicycle axle. How should I do it?

Generally speaking, you'll need to remove the cassette/freewheel/block in order to get access to both sides of the wheel.

Your photo shows no bearings - its not impossible they're still in the wheel?

Suggestion - Clean the whole wheel first. Dirty stuff makes any job harder.  That rim looks pretty bad.

There's a good chance you can transfer most of the nuts and spacers over, keeping the same order as in your photo.  Depending on wear of the cone's bearing surface, you might use the new or old one.

Clean out all the old grease/lube from the wheel's bearing races (the cups)  Use a solvent and those paper towels to make it clean.

Then put in some grease, and use it as a "mortar" to hold the bearings in place around the raceway.

Tools You need a cone spanner and a regular spanner, to tighten the cone against the locknut and hold it in position.  You will require grease for the bearings, and its always a good idea to fit new bearings while its all open.  The old ones might look okay but bearings are real cheap, $3-$10 a wheel.

Endgame is to have your hub assembled like this: - yours is 99% a freehub so will look like the lower photo.

Your axle broke because of the loading - notice how the ball bearings (red) are not very far out-board on the freewheel compared to the freehub?  This means the axle is under a continual bending stress near where it fractured.  There's a chance your new axle will do the same over time,  which is why freewheel designs are relegated to the cheap end nowdays and are gone from most bikes.

Still it'll be totally rideable with a new axle.


I'd ask Trek.[1]  Most likely you have a 20-tooth splined bottom bracket that the Park Tool BBT-22 would remove[2], but check first.  You'll also need to know what width the bottom bracket is (varies) and its threading (probably ISO).

You may be able to just replace the bearings and not the whole bracket.  If you want to go that route, you're best off pulling the bottom bracket out and taking the bearings to a bike shop.  Might be easier to just a whole new one, though; the races could be messed up if it is making "knackered-bearings" sounds.

You will also need a crank puller, like this one.[3]  And a metric ratchet set.

[1] http://www.trekbikes.com/faq/contact.php

[2] http://www.parktool.com/blog/repair-help/bottom-bracket-tool-selection

[3] http://www.parktool.com/product/universal-crank-puller-for-square-taper-and-splined-cranks-cwp-7


SRAM discs also come with lock rings. Standard lock rings get screwed on with an cassette tool. If you have a 15 mm thru axle on the front wheel, you will need an special lock ring, because the tool wont fit between axle and ring, and the right tool (probably an bottom bracket tool).
If your old discs are still in good shape you could use centerlock adapters. Lock rings and adapters are sometimes included in new wheel sets. Check that, so you don't buy them twice.


Diameter of valve hole in the inner wall of the rim

The area at the bottom of the valve stem where the stem joins the inner tube has a larger diameter than the stem itself, and hence requires a larger hole in the inner wall of the rim.


Hub grease, white grease, red grease or buy grease?

Use the Rivolta grease and you will be fine.
Most important is that it is dense enough, will last over time, stays fluid in low temperature and that it is somewhat water resistance. According to the pdf, the Rivolta will do all those things very good.


Changing the wheels will not change how you sit on the bike or the "fit".  This bike uses rim brakes and a smaller wheel will force you to modify them heavily if it all possible.  You can't wing this one and doing it right is way more expensive than this or a proper fitting bike is worth.

Hybrid bikes are made to be more for a upright seating position.  That is why you can't really get your seat higher than your handlebars.  They also tend to put the handle bars closer to the seat making for a shorter reach.  The wheel base may be shorter as well which makes them more twitchy.

The idea that you shouldn't be able to reach the ground seated is because while seated, your leg should almost fully extend on the down stroke.  This saves your joints while being more comfortable and efficient.

I have had to commute on my wife's hybrid bike while my mountain bike was in the shop for a few days, and yes, it is more twitchy so it is something that you have to get used to or find a bike that fits you better.  700C wheels also has some advantages over 24 inch that you are already enjoying but don't know it yet, but would notice on a downsize.


Flying Pigeon brake pads - change or not

Welp, you have 'stirrup' style brakes that pull radially against the rim and will have limited power compared to brakes that apply opposing forces to either side of the rim. There is a reason this design fell out of favor many decades ago.
You may be able to get better brake performance with the softest, stickiest pads you can find that fit, but the design really limits the performance you can expect.


Don't worry about square taper vs Octalink and finding a crank that will fit the bottom bracket you have in the bike, you are going to have replace the bottom bracket anyway. There are a couple of technical reasons, but you bracket is probably worn out in any case.

If you go with a three-piece crank (older style, cranks are separate from the axle which comes in the bottom bracket cartridge), it's typical to have to replace the BB with the crank, because different cranks require a different axle length to get the correct chainline. See this answer for longer explanation.

If you go with a newer two-piece design (axle is permanently attached to the drive side crank arm), you'll need a different style bottom bracket of course.

I'm guessing the Shimano FC-442 is a 9 speed rear triple crank. Shimano's current lineup only has 3x9 cranks in their Alivio, Acera and Altus groups. You could look for a used crank from a higher but older series (see this table on the Shimano Wikipedia page for and overview of mountain groupsets). You can also look for a crank/BB from manufacturers like FSA.

if you go for Shimano can use the Line Up web page to pick a current crank and select the appropriate bottom bracket.

Don't forget about selecting the correct chainring sizes and crank arm length. Your bike will have an ISO threaded bottom bracket shell; you'll need to know what width it is - either 68 or 73mm. Shimano MTB BBs should fit both but check this.

Remember you'll need to replace the chain and probably the cassette when you replace the crank.


My chain slips despite new parts and tuneup

I presume all the new drivetrain parts were replaced close enough together that they were all new or new-ish at the same time. If on the other hand just the chain was replaced, the cassette or rings were highly worn, you rode anyway for some time (say a few hundred miles), and then replaced those too, it's possible you could have put enough wear on the chain in that time to keep the problem going. You can measure the chain wear with a ruler to test this.

Misaligned rear derailer hangers and/or cable housing friction can both cause this and unfortunately can be missed by shops. If that were what's happening, shifting would be poor too.

In an extreme case, rear frame misalignment can cause this. You'd probably be able to see it though.

The other thing that can do this is issues with the ratcheting mechanism inside your freehub or freewheel, which can also go unserviced at shops. The common scenario is the lubrication at the pawls gets gummy or depleted, keeping them from popping up with adequate force to engage properly with the driver or drivering (arbitrary terms for whatever toothy bit the pawls mate with). Or a pawl or pawl spring can be broken or out of place, creating the same problem. Then sometimes as you pedal, just the tip of the pawls might be engaged with the teeth, which feels solid until it slips under load due to incomplete engagement. The sound and sensation is very similar to chain slippage.

If that is what's happening, one problem is hubs can't take too much of it before the pawls or driver get damaged and can never work right again.

You could diagnose this by subbing in another wheel to test, or by getting someone to watch the skipping as it happens and confirm its the freehub turning and not the chain slipping. With experience one can make pretty good educated guesses about what's happening inside a freehub body by manually back-spinning it with the cassette off. Sometimes you hear tinkling or crunching inside and it's less of a guess.

Fixing it depends entirely on what hub it is. Usually the first step would be get some lube inside and see what happens. Some hubs make it easy to take the whole thing apart, but many do not.


Do both riders on a tandem need to know how to ride a bike?

Sheldon Brown (of course) has a good page on riding tandem.  He doesn't get into details, but since the stoker's main job is to keep upright it doesn't demand a lot of bike handling skill.  Riding as stoker for the first time is similar to being passenger on a motorbike for the first time; the main thing to learn is not to lean or shift your weight.  All the bike-handling skill comes from the captain, and as the captain it's a good idea to become familiar with the handling of the tandem before you try riding with a stoker.  (Brown's page covers all this.)

In my experience the trickiest part of riding stoker is getting mounted; holding steady balance with both feet on the pedals as the captain mounts.  You might try having a pole or something similar for the stoker to put a hand on to help their balance.

So the answer is no, the stoker doesn't really need to learn how to ride, in the sense of knowing bike-handling skills.  That said, the stoker does need to learn how to sit on the saddle without throwing the balance of the bike, and also to learn to turn the pedals at the same time - and in the same cadence - as the captain.  Again, from experience, synchronized pedalling is one of the hardest parts of riding tandem, especially if you're an experienced cyclist who tends to spin continuously.


What kind of rear wheel should I get for 10 speed Shimano Cassette? CS-4600 12-30

TLDR: All modern 700c road wheels with a freehub will take a 10 speed cassette.
There is a difference between 10 speed compatible and 11 speed compatible hubs. Road 11 speed drivetrains require a slightly wider freehub, 10 speed cassettes are mounted with a appropriate spacer.
There are older hubs with narrower freehubs that that are only compatible with 7 speed cassettes.
It’s strange that you are asking about fitting a wheel to a cassette. I’m suspicious that you have a ‘classic’ 10 speed with 5 gears on the hub and a double crank. (In more modern terminology ‘speeds’ refers to the number of  sprockets in the rear.) You cannot fit a modern freehub wheel into a frame designed for a 5 speed freewheel hub. Older frames have 120 or 126mm spacing, modern frames 130 or 135mm.


Equipping a commuter bike for a 5 mile city commute

Equipment/Accessories:

Fenders — keep you dry if it's rained recently.  I prefer the "full-coverage" kind with a mudflap, but anything that keeps you from getting a stripe up your back is probably sufficient.
Regular platform pedals (or even better: BMX style pedals) - clips or clipless and frequent stops don't go well together and might mean needing to lug shoes with you.
A basket or rack — better to put your stuff on the bike than on your back, and you're bound to need to carry something sometimes.
Some kind of minimal rain gear.  There's some cheap packable rain pants and rain jackets out there.  You might be able to make do with a rain jacket you already have.  Very preferable if the rain gear tries to be "breathable".  Check the weather for the day before you leave in the morning and leave at home.  Or maybe a packable rain cape...
Tires — smooth tires that try to be puncture resistant.
Water — bottle cage (or two) and water bottle (or two).  Might want one of those water bottles to be insulated so that you can have ice water on hot days. (I love my travel mug for a hot beverage in cold weather, and that works for cold beverages on hot days, too).  Don't necessarily need the water on the bike for every trip, but you should have a way to easily carry water on the bike.
Pant leg retention — Something to keep your pant leg from getting into the chain.  Some bikes have a cover for the chain...  You can get a velcro strap...  Or you can just roll your pant leg up or stuff your pant leg into your sock...
Sunglasses — Especially nice if you have some with swappable lenses, because sometimes you want light or clear lenses just to keep the wind and bugs out of your eyes.
Lights — forward white and rear red.  Blinking optional.  These could go on your helmet, be removable from the bike or permanently mounted on the bike...  Leave them home when you're not going to be riding at night.
Reflective stuff &mdash If you're concerned about night time visibility, look for retroreflective things. Reflective vests similar to what construction people use are common, cheap, and making your torso visible can be more helpful than making the lower bike parts visible.. Some reflective tape on various parts of the bike. The normal set of reflectors bikes usually come with. Reflective details on clothing, etc.

Bike:

Any bike you like the feel of riding. Properly fit. A hybrid (flat handlebars, wide-ish road tires) bike marketed as a commuter would probably be ideal, and they often come with everything.  However, any halfway decent bike would be fine for what you described, really.

If there's any risk of carpal tunnel or similar issues from your job and/or other hobbies, seriously consider a handlebar setup with multiple hand positions. (bar ends on the flat handlebars, bullhorn bars, drop bars, etc...)

Repair kit:

Unless you're particularly into bike repair, forget the on-bike pump and patch kit, carry enough cash for a bus or taxi instead.  And keep track of where the bike shops are (and establish a relationship with one or two). Most bike shops can fix a flat in a few minutes without needing to be scheduled ahead of time, and they'll probably only charge $5-$10 (plus the cost of the new tube, of course).

On the other hand: a pump can be mounted to the bike and doesn't weigh much, and a patch kit's pretty small. You'd need a tire lever or two (or multitool that includes them) also.  I do carry a pump, spare tube, patch kit and multitool with tire levers, but didn't when I was first bicycle commuting.  If you're using a bicycle with for short urban trips and are able and willing to use a secondary emergency transportation option (bus, taxi), flats should be very rare.  Changing a flat only takes a few minutes, so unless you get a flat right as the bus is coming it's probably still faster to change a flat than take a bus.  And it's reasonably easy...


How do I figure out what crankset replacement will fit my derailleur?

According to the Bikepro.com bottom bracket compatibility page, the M560 crank requires a 113mm x 68mm bottom bracket (113 mm is the spindle length), which is in agreement with your service manual (113 mm for a 47.5 chainline, or 118 for a 50 chainline).

The Shimano FC-TY301 crankset requires a BB-UN100 / BB-UN26 bottom bracket. The BB-UN100 only comes with a spindle length of 123 mm.

What this means is that you're using a bottom bracket with a spindle length of 113 mm with a crankset that was designed to be used with a bottom bracket that has a spindle of 123 mm. Since the entire crankset it basically shifted a whole centimeter towards the frame, this could be causing the problems that you are describing.

Usually you can get away with using a different bottom bracket with a slightly shorter or longer spindle, but it appears that in your case you require the correct bottom bracket to make everything work properly.


Dropout adjustment screw.  Here's a thread from the Bikeforums with some links and such to check:

http://www.bikeforums.net/archive/index.php/t-274077.html

Unfortunately they do not appear to be standard... You might try haunting more established shops to look through their old-parts boxes.
Most hardware stores carry a very wide variety of metric fasteners; you might be able to find a suitable screw there


That's not normal - any knock is also going to accelerate wear so you must fix it soon.

Did you loosen the stem bolts before tightening down the headclamp?
See [1].  The tightening order is the same for all materials, but the torques are vastly different. The torque range is usually 4-8 Nm for the head clamp for carbon forks, similar for stem clamps. You can use a special carbon grease to increase friction to that you succeed at low torques.  See [2]

Does it have a couple of years or more of wear on it?  Head clamps wear out.  Head clamps for carbon frames are remarkably skimpy things.

[1] http://www.artscyclery.com/learningcenter/tightenyourheadset.html

[2] Attaching a stem to a carbon steerer: how much torque?


What kind of bike should I get to accomodate me?

You really seem to have two questions:

1) As a heavier person, what should I look for when buying a bike?
This has been handled a couple of times here, but the core answer is to stick with middle of the market components. If you buy low end, the components are poorly made and will break easily. If you buy high end, they will likely be ultralight, and designed for lighter riders and will break easily.

Most bikes you will find in a reputable bike shop will be sufficient. In particular, I would look for wheelsets with traditional 3-cross spoke pattern - radial laced wheels will likely have more problems under heavy load. Something like a "hybrid" or a flat-bar road bike would work, as would a hard-tail mountain bike with slick tires if you are sticking primarily to roads a paved paths.

For more information look at these questions

How to find a mountain bike that can handle a heavier rider.
What should a big guy look for when buying a road bike?

2) As a heavier person, how can I get a decent bike for under $700?
We generally don't give recommendations for specific bikes and brands because that information goes out of date quickly. That said, I would second the comment by Daniel and recommend that you look for a used bike. You should be able to find an excellent used bike that would meet your needs as a beginner for around $500 and likely less.

Take a look at this previous question:

What should I look for when buying a used bike?

If you decide you really don't want to bother with finding a used bike, I would strongly suggest you go to your local bike shop, tell them the kind of riding you want to do, and tell them your budget. Take a couple test rides, and ride a bike a step or two above your budget to get a sense of what the trade-off in price will be.


FR-5, any Shimano one, basically any cassette lockring tool other than Campy (there's only 2 standards and Campy is much less common). You also need a chain whip. If you want to use a torque wrench then any that have 40nm or 30 ft-lb in their range will be fine, such as most common automotive ones. In that case you'll need a lockring tool with a square drive in back such as the ones made by Lifu or Pedros, or a 1" socket for the Park ones. Personally I only use torque wrenches on aluminum freehub bodies and even then it's a pretty minor concern. 40nm/30ft-lb is pretty tight. The best way I can describe it is as it's reaching full tightness, you'll typically feel one last firm click of the teeth of the lockring and cog engaging, such that it would be hard to imagine any unintended forces overcoming the thread preload and getting the teeth to disengage. That's tight enough.


Vantara GT 6061 aluminum bike front wheel replacement?

The simple answer is: any good bike store. You may not be able to get an exact match for the hub and rim GT used origigally, but you will be able to get a wheel that is functionally identical.

If you understand bicycle wheel standards, you could source a replacement wheel from an online store for little less cost, but if you do not, it's much easier to have a local bike store advise you.


DO NOT DO THIS!

You can't safely charge any battery using jumper leads from another battery. If the other battery matches the flat one, but is fully charged, the current will be so high that you will probably start a fire. You will definitely damage the flat battery, and probably both of them. Jumper leads work on cars by having enough resistance that the flat battery survives, but you should never leave them hooked up between two batteries in an attempt to charge one from the other. Car batteries are also designed to supply very high currents, so can accept high currents without too much damage. Bike batteries are not like that.

The main problem is that electric bikes, even really old ones, normally run at 36V, some older ones at 24V or 48V, but a single car battery is 12V. At best a car battery charger will do nothing for you. If your electric bike is old enough to have a series of lead-acid batteries (that work in a similar way to car batteries), a car battery charger might be able to charge those one at a time without damaging anything.

If your bike is a more modern one it will use lithium batteries and you won't be able to charge it at all with a car battery or battery charger. Unfortunately, if you open the battery case up and attempt to charge it, you could easily set the whole thing on fire. Look up some of the videos of hoverboard fires if you want to see what happens.

You really need to find the correct charger and use that. You can probably buy one from Walmart, but you may have to find the spare parts section on their website to do it.

I will edit this answer to be more useful if you can supply more details.