In article <
[email protected]>,
[email protected] says...
> Thanks for all your helpful suggestions.
>
> 1) I have found an excellent source for parts and mechanical advice: Manny's Lowrider Bicycles in
> Venice, CA (where I live - lots of beach cruisers around here).
>
> 2) The derailleur is a Positron, and when I posted originally I thought that finding an old
> solid-core cable would be impossible (hence questions about spring-loaded derailleurs). Manny
> to the rescue... though as parts go the cable was pricier than XTR...
Supply and Demand marketing at it's finest
> 3) Picked up new bearings but not cones or cups. I assume I'd be wasting my time installing new
> bearings into old other stuff... but I'd be happy if someone could confirm that for me.... Do
> "new cones" mean a new axel, too?
You would have to inspect the cones to know if they are bad. The bearings may have gone bad without
damaging the cones. Replacing the axle is only necessary if it is bent or has bad threads. Remember
the only thing the axle is really doing is keeping the cones at a set distance apart and providing a
place to bolt the wheel to the frame. It never contacts the bearings (well, I hope not anyway!)
> 4) When I regreased the bearings I used Park Polylube. Is that sufficient? Is there anything more
> suitable?
Probably just fine.
> 5) Meanwhile, the old boat is beginning to ride pretty nicely, even with its shot bearings. This
> weekend I'm going to grease the headset and cranks. Anything I need to watch out for?
Same type of thing as the wheel bearings, but you might need some different tools. Headset and
crank bearings will be in cages holding them together. This should make working on them even
easier. Be sure to clean them well and get grease into the cages. A little too much grease is
better than too little!
> 6) Brakes: it seems to me that fore-aft sloppiness is just something I'm going to have to live
> with, due to the nature of the caliper design (i.e. when tightened to eliminate slop, the
> brake spring isn't strong enough to re-open the jaws). Any setup tips?
There are 2 nuts on the front side of the caliper. The inner one controls how tight the caliper arms
are to each other. You want to balance the slop to allow free movement of the arms in and out
without a lot of forward motion. Again, a smidge too loose is better than making them stick. The
outer nut is only there to "lock" the inner nut in place. You will probably need a 10mm thin wrench
to hold the inner nut while cinching the outer nut.
Centering this type of caliper is kind of a art too. Two schools of thought. A: Use two wrenches.
One on the back nut that holds the caliper to the frame and another "either" on the inner or outer
front nut. If you want to rotate the caliper clockwise, use the outer nut, if you want to rotate it
counterclockwise, use the inner nut. Then slowly turn both wrenches simultaneously. B: Use a drift
pin or even a heavy screwdriver and a light hammer. Position the drift pin over the spring just to
the side of the center bolt and ding it with the hammer till it moves. Kind of a hack, but it does
no damage to the spring and usually does the trick.
> Thanks!
>
--
Remove NOT from email address to reply. AntiSpam in action.