Cluster icing

On Fri, 12 Jan 2007 22:25:22 -0700, "bicycle6228" <tomdempster at

comcast dot net said:

We've had some challenging weather lately. Plenty of occasions of cluster
ice-up:
http://home.comcast.net/~tomdempster/temp/ClusterS.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~tomdempster/temp/CRS.jpg.
The only recourse I can find of any kind is to completely drench the drive
train in 5 to 30 weight oil. This only postpones the onset of the
impairment: After 5 to 8 miles in snow, the chain doesn't grip the cluster
adequately on any but the largest 3 cogs. With only a 46T large CR, my
cadence is often spun out. The drive train was pretty worn, so I changed it
all out: New chain, cluster and chain rings => no help. Anything on the bike
lower than the top tube gets inundated with slush, ice, salt and sand, so
there's no hope of a good chain wrap on the lower cogs without either
mechanical or chemical protection. Looking for any suggestions on how to
address this.
What do you folks in Edmonton do?

Dear Tom,

Maybe you need a bike without a chain?

"Look No Chain!" is the first article:

http://www.velovision.co.uk/mag/issue10/shaftdrive.pdf

These guys sell 'em:

http://www.dynamicbicycles.com/bikes/

Cheers,

Carl Fogel

7 speed internal hub wont have these problems.

bicycle6228 said:

We've had some challenging weather lately. Plenty of occasions of cluster
ice-up:
http://home.comcast.net/~tomdempster/temp/ClusterS.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~tomdempster/temp/CRS.jpg.
The only recourse I can find of any kind is to completely drench the drive
train in 5 to 30 weight oil. This only postpones the onset of the
impairment: After 5 to 8 miles in snow, the chain doesn't grip the cluster
adequately on any but the largest 3 cogs. With only a 46T large CR, my
cadence is often spun out. The drive train was pretty worn, so I changed it
all out: New chain, cluster and chain rings => no help. Anything on the bike
lower than the top tube gets inundated with slush, ice, salt and sand, so
there's no hope of a good chain wrap on the lower cogs without either
mechanical or chemical protection. Looking for any suggestions on how to
address this.
What do you folks in Edmonton do?

bicycle6228 said:

We've had some challenging weather lately. Plenty of occasions of cluster
ice-up:
http://home.comcast.net/~tomdempster/temp/ClusterS.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~tomdempster/temp/CRS.jpg.
The only recourse I can find of any kind is to completely drench the drive
train in 5 to 30 weight oil. This only postpones the onset of the
impairment: After 5 to 8 miles in snow, the chain doesn't grip the cluster
adequately on any but the largest 3 cogs. With only a 46T large CR, my
cadence is often spun out. The drive train was pretty worn, so I changed it
all out: New chain, cluster and chain rings => no help. Anything on the bike
lower than the top tube gets inundated with slush, ice, salt and sand, so
there's no hope of a good chain wrap on the lower cogs without either
mechanical or chemical protection. Looking for any suggestions on how to
address this.
What do you folks in Edmonton do?

Maybe a silly question, but do you have fenders? It's not clear to me
from those pictures but it doesn't look like it. I can't imagine how
you could be getting that much spray with fenders.

Get some, they're fabulous. Besides keeping you dry, they keep the
bike much cleaner, especially with a large mudflap on the front and a
rear that goes all the way down to the BB. If it's a tight-clearance
road bike, use a "reach around" bracket such as these:
http://www.unc.edu/~alanj/Fender%20mounting.htm

-yhg

bicycle6228 said:

We've had some challenging weather lately. Plenty of occasions of cluster
ice-up:
http://home.comcast.net/~tomdempster/temp/ClusterS.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~tomdempster/temp/CRS.jpg.
The only recourse I can find of any kind is to completely drench the drive
train in 5 to 30 weight oil. This only postpones the onset of the
impairment: After 5 to 8 miles in snow, the chain doesn't grip the cluster
adequately on any but the largest 3 cogs. With only a 46T large CR, my
cadence is often spun out. The drive train was pretty worn, so I changed it
all out: New chain, cluster and chain rings => no help. Anything on the bike
lower than the top tube gets inundated with slush, ice, salt and sand, so
there's no hope of a good chain wrap on the lower cogs without either
mechanical or chemical protection. Looking for any suggestions on how to
address this.
What do you folks in Edmonton do?

When it is not to hilly singlespeed.

Lou
--
Posted by news://news.nb.nu

bicycle6228 said:

We've had some challenging weather lately. Plenty of occasions of cluster
ice-up:
http://home.comcast.net/~tomdempster/temp/ClusterS.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~tomdempster/temp/CRS.jpg.
The only recourse I can find of any kind is to completely drench the drive
train in 5 to 30 weight oil. This only postpones the onset of the
impairment: After 5 to 8 miles in snow, the chain doesn't grip the cluster
adequately on any but the largest 3 cogs. With only a 46T large CR, my
cadence is often spun out. The drive train was pretty worn, so I changed it
all out: New chain, cluster and chain rings => no help. Anything on the bike
lower than the top tube gets inundated with slush, ice, salt and sand, so
there's no hope of a good chain wrap on the lower cogs without either
mechanical or chemical protection. Looking for any suggestions on how to
address this.
What do you folks in Edmonton do?

....This is not in regards particularly to bicycles, but just notes on
operating mechanical equipment in snowy conditions:
--Be sure to coat moving parts well with lube, and then-
--store the equipment in cold temperatures. Ideally it should be stored
in the same cold temperatures it will be used in. To avoid suffering
with a sub-zero saddle, you can get a QR seatpost clamp and take the
seat inside at night.

If you store it indoors (in a heated environment), then when you first
take it outside the metal is warm and snow falls on it and melts and
sticks, and that lays down the initial layer of ice. If the metal is
cold to begin with, snow that hits it will blow right off without sticking.
~

bicycle6228 said:

We've had some challenging weather lately. Plenty of occasions of cluster
ice-up:
http://home.comcast.net/~tomdempster/temp/ClusterS.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~tomdempster/temp/CRS.jpg.
The only recourse I can find of any kind is to completely drench the drive
train in 5 to 30 weight oil. This only postpones the onset of the
impairment: After 5 to 8 miles in snow, the chain doesn't grip the cluster
adequately on any but the largest 3 cogs. With only a 46T large CR, my
cadence is often spun out. The drive train was pretty worn, so I changed it
all out: New chain, cluster and chain rings => no help. Anything on the bike
lower than the top tube gets inundated with slush, ice, salt and sand, so
there's no hope of a good chain wrap on the lower cogs without either
mechanical or chemical protection. Looking for any suggestions on how to
address this.
What do you folks in Edmonton do?

Fixed gear, the only solution.

Quoted message said:

bicycle6228 said:

We've had some challenging weather lately. Plenty of occasions of cluster
ice-up:
http://home.comcast.net/~tomdempster/temp/ClusterS.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~tomdempster/temp/CRS.jpg.
The only recourse I can find of any kind is to completely drench the drive
train in 5 to 30 weight oil. This only postpones the onset of the
impairment: After 5 to 8 miles in snow, the chain doesn't grip the cluster
adequately on any but the largest 3 cogs. With only a 46T large CR, my
cadence is often spun out. The drive train was pretty worn, so I changed it
all out: New chain, cluster and chain rings => no help. Anything on the bike
lower than the top tube gets inundated with slush, ice, salt and sand, so
there's no hope of a good chain wrap on the lower cogs without either
mechanical or chemical protection. Looking for any suggestions on how to
address this.
What do you folks in Edmonton do?

Maybe a silly question, but do you have fenders? It's not clear to me
from those pictures but it doesn't look like it. I can't imagine how
you could be getting that much spray with fenders.

Get some, they're fabulous. Besides keeping you dry, they keep the
bike much cleaner, especially with a large mudflap on the front and a
rear that goes all the way down to the BB. If it's a tight-clearance
road bike, use a "reach around" bracket such as these:
http://www.unc.edu/~alanj/Fender%20mounting.htm

-yhg

On Fri, 12 Jan 2007 22:25:22 -0700, "bicycle6228" <tomdempster at

comcast dot net may have said:

We've had some challenging weather lately. Plenty of occasions of cluster
ice-up:
http://home.comcast.net/~tomdempster/temp/ClusterS.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~tomdempster/temp/CRS.jpg.
The only recourse I can find of any kind is to completely drench the drive
train in 5 to 30 weight oil. This only postpones the onset of the
impairment: After 5 to 8 miles in snow, the chain doesn't grip the cluster
adequately on any but the largest 3 cogs. With only a 46T large CR, my
cadence is often spun out. [snip] Looking for any suggestions on how to
address this.
What do you folks in Edmonton do?

I'm not in Edmonton, but what I've seen in similar climes was the use
of a hub gear and a fully enclosed chain. The gear range is more
limited, but the resistance to problems may be worth it. Of course,
from a practical standpoint this probably means having a second (or
nth) bike just for slush/snow days, but such is life.

--
My email address is antispammed; pull WEEDS if replying via e-mail.
Typoes are not a bug, they're a feature.
Words processed in a facility that contains nuts.

bicycle6228 said:

We've had some challenging weather lately. Plenty of occasions of cluster
ice-up:
http://home.comcast.net/~tomdempster/temp/ClusterS.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~tomdempster/temp/CRS.jpg.
The only recourse I can find of any kind is to completely drench the drive
train in 5 to 30 weight oil. This only postpones the onset of the
impairment: After 5 to 8 miles in snow, the chain doesn't grip the cluster
adequately on any but the largest 3 cogs. With only a 46T large CR, my
cadence is often spun out. The drive train was pretty worn, so I changed it
all out: New chain, cluster and chain rings => no help. Anything on the bike
lower than the top tube gets inundated with slush, ice, salt and sand, so
there's no hope of a good chain wrap on the lower cogs without either
mechanical or chemical protection. Looking for any suggestions on how to
address this.
What do you folks in Edmonton do?

http://cgi.ebay.com/Shimano-Front-Derailleur-Mud-Flap_W0QQitemZ280067720486QQihZ018QQcategoryZ42329QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
or

http://tinyurl.com/yyfqho

bicycle6228 said:

We've had some challenging weather lately. Plenty of occasions of cluster
ice-up:
http://home.comcast.net/~tomdempster/temp/ClusterS.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~tomdempster/temp/CRS.jpg.
The only recourse I can find of any kind is to completely drench the drive
train in 5 to 30 weight oil. This only postpones the onset of the
impairment: After 5 to 8 miles in snow, the chain doesn't grip the cluster
adequately on any but the largest 3 cogs. With only a 46T large CR, my
cadence is often spun out. The drive train was pretty worn, so I changed it
all out: New chain, cluster and chain rings => no help. Anything on the bike
lower than the top tube gets inundated with slush, ice, salt and sand, so
there's no hope of a good chain wrap on the lower cogs without either
mechanical or chemical protection. Looking for any suggestions on how to
address this.
What do you folks in Edmonton do?

Geez, and I thought _my_ bike was 'crusty'. Yecchh.
(No, I am not being helpful, just commiserating. No ideas)
--
Andrew Muzi
www.yellowjersey.org
Open every day since 1 April, 1971

Quoted message said:

bicycle6228 said:

We've had some challenging weather lately. Plenty of occasions of cluster
ice-up:
http://home.comcast.net/~tomdempster/temp/ClusterS.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~tomdempster/temp/CRS.jpg.
The only recourse I can find of any kind is to completely drench the drive
train in 5 to 30 weight oil. This only postpones the onset of the
impairment: After 5 to 8 miles in snow, the chain doesn't grip the cluster
adequately on any but the largest 3 cogs. With only a 46T large CR, my
cadence is often spun out. The drive train was pretty worn, so I changed it
all out: New chain, cluster and chain rings => no help. Anything on the bike
lower than the top tube gets inundated with slush, ice, salt and sand, so
there's no hope of a good chain wrap on the lower cogs without either
mechanical or chemical protection. Looking for any suggestions on how to
address this.
What do you folks in Edmonton do?

Quoted message said:

7 speed internal hub wont have these problems.

I just yesterday listened to a customer complaint of slush-saturated
Super Seven clickbox not shifting. But as you note at least the drive
chain will engage with a Seven.
(Still somewhat impressed with that ice-encrusted drive train photo)
--
Andrew Muzi
www.yellowjersey.org
Open every day since 1 April, 1971

bicycle6228 said:

We've had some challenging weather lately. Plenty of occasions of cluster
ice-up:
http://home.comcast.net/~tomdempster/temp/ClusterS.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~tomdempster/temp/CRS.jpg.
The only recourse I can find of any kind is to completely drench the drive
train in 5 to 30 weight oil. This only postpones the onset of the
impairment: After 5 to 8 miles in snow, the chain doesn't grip the cluster
adequately on any but the largest 3 cogs. With only a 46T large CR, my
cadence is often spun out. The drive train was pretty worn, so I changed it
all out: New chain, cluster and chain rings => no help. Anything on the bike
lower than the top tube gets inundated with slush, ice, salt and sand, so
there's no hope of a good chain wrap on the lower cogs without either
mechanical or chemical protection. Looking for any suggestions on how to
address this.

Learn to ski?

bicycle6228 said:

We've had some challenging weather lately. Plenty of occasions of cluster
ice-up:
http://home.comcast.net/~tomdempster/temp/ClusterS.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~tomdempster/temp/CRS.jpg.
The only recourse I can find of any kind is to completely drench the drive
train in 5 to 30 weight oil. This only postpones the onset of the
impairment: After 5 to 8 miles in snow, the chain doesn't grip the cluster
adequately on any but the largest 3 cogs. With only a 46T large CR, my
cadence is often spun out. The drive train was pretty worn, so I changed it
all out: New chain, cluster and chain rings => no help. Anything on the bike
lower than the top tube gets inundated with slush, ice, salt and sand, so
there's no hope of a good chain wrap on the lower cogs without either
mechanical or chemical protection. Looking for any suggestions on how to
address this.
What do you folks in Edmonton do?

Hi there.

I don't know about folks in Edmonton. Have you consider slathering
some silicone onto the drive train. That will help prevent ice build
up. Fenders really make a difference too.

I had a hardtail mountain bicycle that did not have the clearance for
2.0 in wide knobby tyres and fenders. I mounted the full rear fender
*OVER* the brake bridge and at the front side of the chainstay bridge
instead of the rear side as is normally done. To mount the front fender
higher I drilled a hole throught the top of the fender the same size as
the bottom of the fork where the crown race sits. I removed the fork
from the bike and removed the crown race. I put the fender onto the
fork and re-installed the crown race and then put the fork back on the
bike. This worked very well for a number of years. Adding mud flaps to
the fenders stopped a lot of spray from being thrown onto my shoes and
bike.

Peter

Quoted message said:

Maybe a silly question, but do you have fenders? It's not clear to me
from those pictures but it doesn't look like it. I can't imagine how
you could be getting that much spray with fenders.

Fenders are hit and miss in the snow. Depends on
the type of snow, but often you will find snow building
up under the fenders and trying to stop the wheels
from turning. If lucky you will still be able to
keep moving, but not always. In such circumstances
the only real solution is to remove the fenders.

Back in the old days when we used freewheels, they
would eventually just stop freewheeling. That doesn't
happen very often with the cassette hubs, thankfully.
If you find that you can only use one cog on the cassette
due to ice buildup--a common situation--you will
probably still be able to shift front chainrings until the cables
freeze in place. If you can't use any cogs due to ice
buildup there is still one recourse: pee on it.

Robert

Robert

In the snow & slush, I find the best option for me is singlespeed. My
next step from here is fixie, eliminating the need for brakes & a
freewheel. The freewheel & front brake on my SS have been holding up
mightily, however. If your area is not too hilly, I'd suggest this.
If you come up with a better plan, let us know.

Dan

P.S. I've been eying the internally shifting hubs, but am highly
skeptical. Anyone have any luck with those?

In article <[email hidden]>,

Sir Ridesalot said:

bicycle6228 said:

We've had some challenging weather lately. Plenty of occasions of cluster
ice-up:
http://home.comcast.net/~tomdempster/temp/ClusterS.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~tomdempster/temp/CRS.jpg.

Quoted message said:

I had a hardtail mountain bicycle that did not have the clearance for
2.0 in wide knobby tyres and fenders. I mounted the full rear fender
*OVER* the brake bridge and at the front side of the chainstay bridge
instead of the rear side as is normally done. To mount the front fender
higher I drilled a hole throught the top of the fender the same size as
the bottom of the fork where the crown race sits. I removed the fork
from the bike and removed the crown race. I put the fender onto the
fork and re-installed the crown race and then put the fork back on the
bike. This worked very well for a number of years. Adding mud flaps to
the fenders stopped a lot of spray from being thrown onto my shoes and
bike.

I just wanted to say that your crown race mounted fork was a work of
evil genius.

--
Ryan Cousineau [email hidden] http://www.wiredcola.com/
"I don't want kids who are thinking about going into mathematics
to think that they have to take drugs to succeed." -Paul Erdos

Quoted message said:

[email hidden] wrote:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Maybe a silly question, but do you have fenders? It's not clear to me
from those pictures but it doesn't look like it. I can't imagine how
you could be getting that much spray with fenders.

Fenders are hit and miss in the snow. Depends on
the type of snow, but often you will find snow building
up under the fenders and trying to stop the wheels
from turning. If lucky you will still be able to
keep moving, but not always. In such circumstances
the only real solution is to remove the fenders.

Agreed. This was especially a problem when using the bike as primary
transportation which entailed many extended stops with the bike left
outdoors. The snow/slush would build up inside the fender but would
still let me ride ok. But then I'd stop somewhere and the slush would
freeze solid. Come out later and find that the bike can't even be
pushed conveniently since the wheels won't turn at all. Having to
clean the snow out of the fenders at every stop made them more trouble
than they were worth. A spray shield on the rear rack and under the
downtube proved to be more useful.

bicycle6228 said:

We've had some challenging weather lately. Plenty of occasions of cluster
ice-up:
http://home.comcast.net/~tomdempster/temp/ClusterS.jpg
http://home.comcast.net/~tomdempster/temp/CRS.jpg.
The only recourse I can find of any kind is to completely drench the drive
train in 5 to 30 weight oil. This only postpones the onset of the
impairment: After 5 to 8 miles in snow, the chain doesn't grip the cluster
adequately on any but the largest 3 cogs.

I've had those symptoms. Full fenders *with* a mudflap extender on the
front fender took care of that. I suppose that a single cog in the back
would also help if you can avoid a chain tensioner.

--
Dave
dvt at psu dot edu

Everyone confesses that exertion which brings out all the powers of body
and mind is the best thing for us; but most people do all they can to
get rid of it, and as a general rule nobody does much more than
circumstances drive them to do. -Harriet Beecher Stowe, abolitionist and
novelist (1811-1896)