[Omkar]

Big shoutout to libranof1987 for shooting these pictures & his coverage of the Bharat Mobility Global Expo. Thanks for sharing, man!

The Expo was about mobility, so of course there were some bicycle manufacturers also present with their products. Here's the Avon Cycles stand:


They had a separate section for their electric products. This is their two-wheeler and the three-wheeler:


The Lucifire Bikes stand:


This is the Kross Bikes stand:


Hero Motors also had their electric bicycles on display:


This is the Virtus Motors stand:


Lastly, this is the Gates Carbon Drive stand that manufactures bike chains and belts:

[FueledbyFury]

Guys, I'm reaching out to know whether any of you knows the below mentioned problem.
The bottom bracket of my bicycle makes a weird noise when it's in an inclination. I have changed the bottom bracket 6 months before due to this problem and It has reappeared again.


While closely observing the above picture, you can see some grove cuts in the bottom bracket. Is that the issue?


The sound is caused, when I give the rod a slight push to the inside. And when it's pulled out, it makes the other half of the sound like a tak-tak

[SavoyWalrus]

I don't know if this is the right thread. I'm in a conundrum of sorts. I have a Giant MTB, cycle around 40km each week, casual weekend rides, and want to do higher speeds and distance. Thinking of upgrading to a hybrid or road bike. What would be my options at around 40k? Are road bikes even worth it while cycling in and around Bangalore's pathetic roads?

[amol4184]

Originally Posted by FueledbyFury

Guys, I'm reaching out to know whether any of you knows the below mentioned problem.
The bottom bracket of my bicycle makes a weird noise when it's in an inclination. I have changed the bottom bracket 6 months before due to this problem and It has reappeared again.

Those grooves won't cause problems, well at least not the sound that you mention.
That is a square taper bottom bracket and the square spindle should not move even a millimeter in any direction. If you are able to push the spindle in and out that bottom bracket is shot. Its hard to say how but it could be a poor quality engineering with fault from factory or some parts wore out in 6 months or combination of both. Also almost 100% of the modern square taper BBs are sealed shut from factory and are not meant to be serviced. If some mechanic offers you to "repair" that BB, steer clear and simply install a new BB. Square tapers are really cheap BBs and last surprisingly long. Shimano (still) makes UN300 square taper BB, when you are replacing this BB go with Shimano and nothing else.
P.S. Shimano makes UN300 in 7 or 8 different variations. Looks like you need one with 122mm width.

[RiderZone]

The bicycle distribution system smiled on me yesterday, and I picked up a free Riverside 720 TR bike off the trash heap. Here is a link to the bike from Decathlon's website, it sells for around 500 Euros so nothing exotic, but it's in surprisingly good shape overall, with the tires looking almost unused.



It looks like the bike was thrown away because 2 spokes are broken on the rear wheel, and the person who owned the bike thought it not worth their time to fix it. I searched online and fixing spokes isn't a super easy thing, with the main problem being figuring out which replacement spokes to buy, and then how to ensure you've done the wheel truing as expected without a truing stand, which I don't have. I have basic experience of working on a bike and most of the tools, but don't have a spoke key.





Can someone here with experience fixing spokes or building wheels advise if it's worth me trying to fix this myself, or should I take it to an LBS? Here are the specs I can find on the wheel:


Name: Crosser CRX106
Size: 622x21, 700c 28 inch
It has a standard Shimano hub, but comes with hydraulic discs. Both the broken spokes are laced on the hub on the side where the disc is. I have included pictures of the broken spokes, they've sheared off at the nipples which are still threaded into the wheel. Thanks!

[Jeroen]

Originally Posted by RiderZone

Can someone here with experience fixing spokes or building wheels advise if it's worth me trying to fix this myself, or should I take it to an LBS? Here are the specs I can find on the wheel:

!

I have done the odd spoke replacement on a number of my bicycles. If you want a wheel that runs true and remains true, Imsuggest you leave it to an expert. Spoking a wheel is quite the art and requires a lot of experience. It looks very simple, but trust me, I'm plenty handy, but I can't true up a spoked wheel to save my life. Yours is missing two spokes already, so the rim is likely to be a bit bend. It takes a lot of skills to get that trued up in such a way it stays true.

So my spoke replacements are typically on the kiddie bicycles, where a bit of wobbly wheel doesn't matter. I posted a little while ago about the replacement of one of the spokes on our kiddy-cargo bike.

Rear wheels are more difficult than front wheels as the rear wheel is the drive wheel so it takes a lot more strain that the front.

Before you even consider to respoke a wheel you need to inspect the rim carefully. Over time the rim will start to show signs of wear and even little tear arou ds the spoke-threaded bushes.

I noticed a little wheel wobble on my proper bicycle the other day. Hardly noticeable, but when I checked I noticed a few tiny splits/tears in the rim. So I had the whole rim replaced and respoked. I bike about 5-7000 km annually and this rim did about 20000km. Its the second time I’m replacing it.

Jeroen

[shipnil]

Originally Posted by RiderZone

Can someone here with experience fixing spokes or building wheels advise if it's worth me trying to fix this myself, or should I take it to an LBS?

If this is your first time, I'd suggest to take help of LBS. Since you are in Germany, I understand it would be expensive, unlike India.

I fix broken spokes of my two bicycles on my own. I usually take the broken spoke and get the exact length spoke, can't vouch for the material used though. But in addition to spoke key, you'd few additional tools for opening the rear hub. Don't know if you have all of them.

As for truing, if you are a purist and want to achieve 100% true wheel, then you need the truing stand as well as the gauge with needle (don't know the name). I usually put the bike inverted, standing on handlebar and seat and then use the brake pad as reference point. I just try that rim stays all along at same distance from the chosen brake pad. I'd say I get about 95% true wheel. I can live with that.

[amitoj]

You can also look into trying out something called FiberFix spoke replacement. It does not require you to dismantle the hub, but you will have to adjust your aesthetic standards a bit. I used this during my Utah tour and I was quite happy with it.

Also, since you have disc brakes at the rear, you have some leeway in how true the wheel needs to be.

[ninjatalli]

Originally Posted by RiderZone

Can someone here with experience fixing spokes or building wheels advise if it's worth me trying to fix this myself, or should I take it to an LBS? Here are the specs I can find on the wheel:

It’s not an easy job and generally if a cycle with broken spokes has been ridden a bit, it leads to other spokes breaking soon. My advice - get the wheel changed. Look for used options online if you want to save money. You can retain the tube and tire as they seem in good condition.

[amol4184]

If the wheels are Decathlon branded too, they generally have exact spokes available. So one hard part of the process is already taken care of.
Since it was free you can experiment with the remaining exercise. Nothing to lose. Worst case you take it to the shop but you would have learnt something.

While a whole wheel build will need truing stand and lot of expertise I think changing two spokes and truing the wheel can be done at home by relying on chain stays as truing guide. Some great videos on this topic on YT.

Edit to say, the spokes on the rear wheel can be different length on DS and NDS. The length is determined by the hub diameter as well as actual rim depth, rim profile and dishing pattern (symmetric vs asymmetric).

[RiderZone]

Thanks for all your comments! I will take this to my LBS as the whole thing seems rather complex. Since this is a safety critical item and well beyond my usual wheelhouse, it would be stupid to mess around and mess it up. I would have liked to experiment and learn this type of repair as well, but I just don't have the bandwidth right now to spend too much time on it, plus the LBS should be able to verify the wheel for other damage and fix it up if it's worth it

[livyodream]

Why don't Decathlon cycles come with Shimano gearset?

My son wants a bigger bicycle, and he does not like the rotor type gear shifter.

Since I do not see a Shimano (click type shifter) in Decathlon, what are recommended brands under Value for money category (he is 8 YO and replacement cycle requirement will arise sooner that I anticipate)

[amol4184]

Originally Posted by livyodream

Why don't Decathlon cycles come with Shimano gearset?

My son wants a bigger bicycle, and he does not like the rotor type gear shifter.

Since I do not see a Shimano (click type shifter) in Decathlon, what are recommended brands under Value for money category (he is 8 YO and replacement cycle requirement will arise sooner that I anticipate)

Cost cutting. There are Deca bicycles with Shimano groupsets in the mid- high spectrum. It's hard to recommend without budget but if the bike comes with Microshift groupset those are good enough. Decathlon mixes Microshift stuff with Shimano all the time and it works well.

My RC100 came with thumb shifter from Microshift and it was quite good. The rest of the drive train was random in house brand of Decathlon. No issues with that either. Biggest pain point was the wheelset which was poor quality with frequent spoke breakage and rim going out of true.

[Mission_PGPX]

Good morning to all Cycling enthusiasts and community,
I have recently started to explore this sport and would need opinions from experts.

my background: In principle, i am a marathon runner, having all premium races including one 50k ultra under my belt consistent in running since over a decade now.

As a next challenge, I am planning to do one ironman 70.3 in 2025. I having been doing 60-80 km on my firefox hybrid at 22 kmph average, which is not enough for such premium race. I dont mind spending on good bike. I have in principle shortlisted 2 options based on my minimum requirements of shimano 105 groupset and good geometry:

a) Giant Propel Advance 2
b) Trek Emonda SL5

both above options are almost at same price range of 2.4 lacs.

one Alternate or rather upgraded full carbon option is Trek emonda SL6 pro di2 offered at

I have no experience of di2 or carbon wheels but those are included in SL6, which is offered at 3.2 lacs.
Now I am confused at is it worth upgrading to SL6 right from start since in principle i dont plan to ride those mega distance BRMs etc. my max bike leg even if I upgrade to full Ironman would be 180 km.

your valuable suggestions are welcome. If you can patch me up with a good deal it would be even sweeter.

stay fit, stay healthy!!

[amol4184]

Originally Posted by Mission_PGPX

a) Giant Propel Advance 2
b) Trek Emonda SL5

Both are great bikes and going either way wouldn't be a wrong decision. While both are race geo bikes, Emonda is still between endurance and proper race geometry. Propel on the other hand is an outright aggressive race + aero bike. The proper alternative to Propel would be Madone.

As far as the tubing goes, Trek claims Emonda has some aero tubes but Propel is a certified aero bike. In all circumstance except steep climbs, aero bikes will be faster even if they weigh more. If average speed on flats or moderate climbs is your prime concern, go for Propel and rip tiny (but useful) benefits of aero tubing. I have a heavy aero bike and it is without doubt faster than my other weight weeny bikes.

Re: mechanical v/s Di2. This is mostly "quality of life" or "nice to have" deal but not essential. Mechanical groupset won't hold you back. You don't have to worry about electronics or charging the battery. Replacement parts are cheaper etc. You don't need app to tune things.
With that said, shifting on Di2 is supremely smooth. On the flats while going fast its not very noticeable, but under load while downshifting the Di2 shows how magical it can be. On mechanical groupset (105/Ultegra) I can never shift as smoothly as Di2 no matter how well it is setup. It is nearly impossible to beat electronic wizardry with manual effort in my opinion.

Re: carbon wheels. Same as Di2. Alloy wheels wouldn't stop you from going fast. Pros: I find them more comfortable. In almost all cases they are lighter than alloy. With today's trend of deep, wide yet light wheels carbon has come up as de-facto material for road race bikes. Making 60mm deep alloy wheels will cause them to weigh more than 2kg. Carbon 60mm wheels are 1500 grams. For what it is worth, I had more alloy wheels go out of true than carbon.
What wheelset does Propel come with? If you can afford, Giant Propel + deep carbon aero wheels would be a fantastic combination.