What's the last thing you did to your bike?

[cobbwheels]

Anything you did to your bike, replaced the tires, upgraded the pedals, changed the bike fit, installed a louder horn, fine-tuned shifter indexing, raised the seatpost 1mm, put stickers on the frame, touched up a scratch, put a scratch on the bike(!!!).

You can post them here in this thread!! Note, if you just bought a bike part but haven't installed it yet, you can't post it in this thread!

 

[Mr. Beanz]

Just installed a new cable couple weeks back. So after a break in period, I adjusted the barrel on the rear derailleur to fine tune the shifting.

 

[Mr. Beanz]

Just installed a new saddle. Terry gel fly titanium.

 

[Fourlegsgood2wheelsbad]

Raised saddle about 3mm . Wanted that perfect extension but it was just over the top. Could see the telltale wiggle of hips in video filmed by my spouse from behind while riding.

So dropped it back down 2mm. See how that goes, about where it has been since the original fitting I did for myself. It's only been 9 months on that bike , I ride 2 other bikes so taking a while to dial in everything. And after decades of not working on bikes I am surprised such a small amount affected my pedaling.

Nice saddle above there Mr Beanz . How hard or soft , shallow -deep is it when you compress with thumb?

 

[cobbwheels]

The last thing I did was installing my old TT saddle back and repairing and putting back the seatpost suspension. The saddle tilt angle looks quite extreme from this picture angle but the actual nose down tilt is negative 20 degrees which is still extreme.

This is the most extreme nose down saddle angle I ever tried. The last setting was -8 degrees nose tilt just yesterday but found myself getting pushed backward on the saddle when I tested it. So I tried to tilt the nose down even more to stop my butt from getting pushed backward but went too far while I was wrenching it. I've already tightened the bolts real good by the time I noticed the extreme nose down tilt. I was thinking of re-adjusting to less extreme tilt but thought why not test it first right? Who knows the whack job might actually turn up to be the perfect adjustment for me.

So I went for an 8 mile test ride and to my surprise, there is no discomfort at all, no additional pressure on my hands, and my back never felt that good on a road bike. I suppose the little pressure on my hands despite the extreme nose down saddle could be explained away by my adopted pedaling technique that is very heels down and mashing big gears and my body weight concentrated on my glutes and upper legs, else, that extreme nose down saddle would be quite uncomfortable to the arms and shoulders and cause the hands to go numb.

The best part of it, the mild butt discomfort I had with the previous -8 degrees adjustment went completely away with this setting. My butt is long longer sliding backward even if I'm hammering hard. Also the seatpost suspension seems to work better at this angle. I'm definitely feeling road bumps less.

My efficiency went up so well I did several personal bests on this test ride. It has been the most powerful and most comfortable I ever did in this bike. I'm going ahead and test this setup on a 60 to 70 mile ride this weekend and see how it goes.

 

[cobbwheels]

Close up of my old ISM TT saddle I put back to my bike and repaired seatpost suspension right below it. It's basically just like simple leaf spring with no moving parts. However, I modded spring right away when I bought it almost 3 years ago because the stock spring kept on bouncing and making me sea sick and made braking and the bike's handling more dangerous.

So I tied the ends of the spring with steel cable to act as adjustable preload and travel limiter which fixed all of the product's inherent design flaws. Few months ago, the steel cable preloader broke after nearly 3 years of use over many thousands of miles over very bumpy roads. I didn't fix it and tried a different seatpost suspension that is also dirt cheap like the Zoom seatpost. But the Zoom seatpost, although it came with preloader and damping was considerably less effective at providing isolation from road bumps. Then I tried a very soft and wide commuter saddle which provided very good isolation from road bumps but I couldn't get to my optimum saddle position due to limited adjustment on the rail and cause hand numbness.

So I installed my old saddle back and tried to repair the old seatpost suspension. This time, I simply preloaded and tied the ends of the spring with several double strands of twine straw rope for a total of 32 strands of straw rope, hoping it might actually last longer than the steel cable. One thing I immediately noticed, it's absolutely silent, lightweight, and butter smooth compared to the steel cable I used previously.

 

[cobbwheels]

Raised saddle about 3mm . Wanted that perfect extension but it was just over the top. Could see the telltale wiggle of hips in video filmed by my spouse from behind while riding.

So dropped it back down 2mm. See how that goes, about where it has been since the original fitting I did for myself. It's only been 9 months on that bike , I ride 2 other bikes so taking a while to dial in everything. And after decades of not working on bikes I am surprised such a small amount affected my pedaling.

Nice saddle above there Mr Beanz . How hard or soft , shallow -deep is it when you compress with thumb?

I can't tell the difference in saddle height feel unless I make adjustment of at least 10mm. I think it's due to pedaling technique. Some techniques more sensitive to little changes, just thinking.

 

[cobbwheels]

Just installed a new saddle. Terry gel fly titanium. View attachment 5765

Lovely saddle, heard so many satisfied users and some even left their Brooks saddle for it!

 

[Mr. Beanz]

Raised saddle about 3mm . Wanted that perfect extension but it was just over the top. Could see the telltale wiggle of hips in video filmed by my spouse from behind while riding.

So dropped it back down 2mm. See how that goes, about where it has been since the original fitting I did for myself. It's only been 9 months on that bike , I ride 2 other bikes so taking a while to dial in everything. And after decades of not working on bikes I am surprised such a small amount affected my pedaling.

Nice saddle above there Mr Beanz . How hard or soft , shallow -deep is it when you compress with thumb?

Nice and comfy. Though it has gel, I don't really notice it. Not overly squishy and doesn't compress too much. I was expecting it to be real soft seeing it looks thick. Glad it's not.

 

[Mr. Beanz]

Lovely saddle, heard so many satisfied users and some even left their Brooks saddle for it!

I remember back in 2005 ish. I bought a Terry fly (non gel). First ever. I started a 40 mile ride but kept going for a 100 miler because I was so comfortable.

This one not quite as nice feeling but that could be my lack of mileage right now with the rain and vacations.

I'll know in a month or so when I get my mileage back up.

 

[cobbwheels]

Nice and comfy. Though it has gel, I don't really notice it. Not overly squishy and doesn't compress too much. I was expecting it to be real soft seeing it looks thick. Glad it's not.

This is good to know. I never had a saddle with gel before and it's probably good to know I'm not missing anything as I probably can't afford them anyway.

The ISM saddle I use is a cheap $20 knock off of the real one. But it seems even the knock off is so good, I keep coming back to it after several saddles over time. It just couldn't handle our bad bumpy roads on its own but I've taken it for 60 miles over multiple laps in the smoothest roads in the city without causing discomfort even with non-padded shorts.

 

[Mr. Beanz]

This is good to know. I never had a saddle with gel before and it's probably good to know I'm not missing anything as I probably can't afford them anyway.

The ISM saddle I use is a cheap $20 knock off of the real one. But it seems even the knock off is so good, I keep coming back to it after several saddles over time. It just couldn't handle our bad bumpy roads on its own but I've taken it for 60 miles over multiple laps in the smoothest roads in the city without causing discomfort even with non-padded shorts.

The saddle I have been using is a Charge Spoon Saddle. $25-$35 on ebay.

I didn't believe a few others on another forum who said it was a nice ride. I bought a Spoon saddle and sure enough it was better than others I had been using.

I'm just hoping this expensive one is MUCH better after some breaking in.

 

[Mr. Beanz]

The Charge Spoon Saddle. A little firm but the fit and shape is great. $25. I got 3 of them.

 

[Fourlegsgood2wheelsbad]

I could look it up but since you are here, Mr Beanz do you have a weight spec on the saddle?
The new Terry Ti that is ...

 

[Mr. Beanz]

I could look it up but since you are here, Mr Beanz do you have a weight spec on the saddle?
The new Terry Ti that is ...

 

[cobbwheels]

The Charge Spoon Saddle. A little firm but the fit and shape is great. $25. I got 3 of them.

View attachment 5768

I found that to be true, it's the shape that matters, not so much the foam and the price of the saddle. I think the only purpose of the foam is to conform to the sit bones to increase contact area and hold that shape after a break in period.

 

[Mr. Beanz]

I found that to be true, it's the shape that matters, not so much the foam and the price of the saddle. I think the only purpose of the foam is to conform to the sit bones to increase contact area and hold that shape after a break in period.

The swoosh style really forms to my butt. Then the shell underneath starts to flex a bit making it more comfortable.

 

[cobbwheels]

The swoosh style really forms to my butt. Then the shell underneath starts to flex a bit making it more comfortable.

The shell on my knock off saddle is soft and flexy. I think the original would be firm and harder to flex. During the ride, it curves down a bit and will hold that shape for several minutes if I get off the saddle. I think it helps to keep my butt settled, instead of moving back and forth and cause problems with chaffing.

 

[Mr. Beanz]

The shell on my knock off saddle is soft and flexy. I think the original would be firm and harder to flex. During the ride, it curves down a bit and will hold that shape for several minutes if I get off the saddle. I think it helps to keep my butt settled, instead of moving back and forth and cause problems with chaffing.

Speaking of chaffing. I found using Mennen Speedstick is more effective than those high end sticks $8-$20.

A tub of Equate cream from Walmart $6 will last a really long time.

I've tried some expensive stuff and actually they suck.

Just bought a very small tube of Blue Steel for $25 to get free shipping.

Really disappointed. My cheap stuff works much better.

 

[cobbwheels]

Speaking of chaffing. I found using Mennen Speedstick is more effective than those high end sticks $8-$20.

A tub of Equate cream from Walmart $6 will last a really long time.

I've tried some expensive stuff and actually they suck.

Just bought a very small tube of Blue Steel for $25 to get free shipping.

Really disappointed. My cheap stuff works much better.

The only thing I use but mostly because it's the cheapest is coconut oil. Not even virgin coconut oil. I'm sure virgin coconut oil would be better but regular coconut oil works just as well.

Coconut oil would possess some of the features of cycling specific creams like anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial, but with no fragrances added. I've even used coconut oil in place of Betadine or Hydrogen Peroxide to treat wounds. I use one that is made for cooking/frying so it's edible and in my experience does not cause any skin irritations. The only disadvantage of coconut oil, is more easily removed by sweat but I've used it on summer centuries without problems. It doesn't actually gets taken all out on a very sweaty long ride, a small amount still remains.

Still, the best way to reduce chaffing is to have the right saddle shape for your butt and pedaling technique like you mentioned earlier, bike fit dialed in, and good isolation from road bumps (if the roads are bad in your area like ill-maintained pavement or gravel). The butt should be settled in good in the saddle when pedaling comfortably, without oscillating sideways or back and forth and thighs and crotch not rubbing any part of the saddle.

I don't actually use oil all the time on long rides. If the terrain is mostly flat and roads are good quality like just doing multiple laps in a rich neighborhood in the city for 60 miles, I don't put anything down there at all, not even padded shorts, just simple, loose quick dry shorts. If going outside the city with big climbs, I then go with oil with either padded or non-padded shorts.