The Bicycle (Specialty) Tools Thread

[duneslider]

Have been on my 1x XT + 105 frankenstein on my gravel bike for almost a year now. So far so good. Derailleur has only taken one decent hit where the hanger sacrificed itself. No clutch to service. I am a bit more risk adverse vs my younger days so might not be as rough on equipment.

Curious how you are breaking the derailleurs? Traumatic? Just riding along and bam? Sticks and debris?

There is no question we are hard on the equipment. This is on an enduro bike, my son's tend to have the shortest life and he is the fastest/hardest on equipment. So, in no way am I saying I expect anything to last for 10 years but 3 derailleurs in 7 months is a lot. Last year was 2 that ended life early but it seems like I have to rebuild an XT derailleur after about a month of riding. This is Utah, so not really any mud and rain, just dust. The clutches are generally the problem and it requires a full tear apart and lube to get them working correctly. Most of the issues I am finding that trash bin them is the plastic piece in the middle is cracked, I find this when I do the tear down. The picture above is the first time I have had one break in half. In this case, we was on a casual ride with a kid and said it wasn't shifting very well (when cracked they flex a lot and don't shift well) and then he shifted and it snapped off.

I assume the damage comes from impact but that said, I have never had to replace his hanger, so he isn't hitting stuff so hard its breaking/seriously bending the hangers. I do throw the hanger straightener on there and it needs a minor tweak but really nothing that would make me think he was hitting it really hard.

Other than occasionally lubing the jockey wheels on the GX 12spd derailleurs I have never had to do anything to them. I much prefer the shifting of the Shimano 12spd, it is incredibly smooth but man maintenance is killing me. I am to the point I just keep several spares and swap them out and rebuild several at a time.
Picture from last night. Yes, we got some rain and it was hero dirt.

 

[Odd-job]

There is no question we are hard on the equipment. This is on an enduro bike, my son's tend to have the shortest life and he is the fastest/hardest on equipment. So, in no way am I saying I expect anything to last for 10 years but 3 derailleurs in 7 months is a lot. Last year was 2 that ended life early but it seems like I have to rebuild an XT derailleur after about a month of riding. This is Utah, so not really any mud and rain, just dust. The clutches are generally the problem and it requires a full tear apart and lube to get them working correctly. Most of the issues I am finding that trash bin them is the plastic piece in the middle is cracked, I find this when I do the tear down. The picture above is the first time I have had one break in half. In this case, we was on a casual ride with a kid and said it wasn't shifting very well (when cracked they flex a lot and don't shift well) and then he shifted and it snapped off.

I assume the damage comes from impact but that said, I have never had to replace his hanger, so he isn't hitting stuff so hard its breaking/seriously bending the hangers. I do throw the hanger straightener on there and it needs a minor tweak but really nothing that would make me think he was hitting it really hard.

Other than occasionally lubing the jockey wheels on the GX 12spd derailleurs I have never had to do anything to them. I much prefer the shifting of the Shimano 12spd, it is incredibly smooth but man maintenance is killing me. I am to the point I just keep several spares and swap them out and rebuild several at a time.
Picture from last night. Yes, we got some rain and it was hero dirt.

Ouch that sounds like an expensive derailleur habit. Take it chain length and b-gap are all within spec? With so much clutch maintenance I would almost consider going old school and running it without the clutch and dealing with the chain slap.

Derailleur breakages can be pretty freak from personal experience. I once snapped the metal arm on a road derailleur just pulling away from a stop light.

The new DI2 XT has a lot of plastic too IMHO. The spot where yours broke (B knuckle?) is much beefier though like double the girth of a DEORE 10 speed.

I tried taking a pic for you



Now because I am old I am trying to now remember when Shimano made those out of metal - I think circa XT/LX 9 speed?

 

[duneslider]

Yeah, chain length and b screw is correct. I do back off the clutch tension a little, or if it acts up during a ride we turn it off completely.

I may just try swapping him to sram and see what happens. I just don't have any super boost wheels with XD drivers but running sram on an xt cassette is probably not an issue.

 

[Damon L.]

I am running a SRAM cassette on an HG freehub on my fatbike. NX 12 speed. With XT derailleur and shifter.

 

[CallumRD1]

Previous generations of SRAM 12 speed were compatible with shimano drivetrains, but the current transmission (T-type) generation is not. It uses a larger roller diameter than prior generations.

 

[Meursault74]

I got this "knock off" of the Park Tool spoke tension checker on Amazon (there's all different names of the same on there). Not sure I really needed it. After I used it today, I don't think I truly need it, but hey for 17 bucks I'm ok with having it. I don't think paying up for a Pro level one is worth it unless you're building wheels from scratch a lot.

Broken my share of random spokes over the years. Never had an issue replacing and truing things up. I Broke one last week on DS rear. Replaced it, trued up the wheel. Rode it ~100 miles, still true. Checked it with this gauge , spokes seem to be in tolerance and variance, so squeezing paired spokes and using the truing stand is still good enough.

 

[duneslider]

I got this "knock off" of the Park Tool spoke tension checker on Amazon (there's all different names of the same on there). Not sure I really needed it. After I used it today, I don't think I truly need it, but hey for 17 bucks I'm ok with having it. I don't think paying up for a Pro level one is worth it unless you're building wheels from scratch a lot.

Broken my share of random spokes over the years. Never had an issue replacing and truing things up. I Broke one last week on DS rear. Replaced it, trued up the wheel. Rode it ~100 miles, still true. Checked it with this gauge , spokes seem to be in tolerance and variance, so squeezing paired spokes and using the truing stand is still good enough.

All my comments on this are as an amateur hack and not a pro wheel builder. I have one of those chinese knock offs and I have used the park tool version. Both seemed to give similar results. I think if you are just a guy who maybe replaces an occasional spoke it probably isn't needed. I build a wheel every now and again and I think it is helpful to have one when building a wheel just to check consistency of all the spokes. No idea if the number it shows is accurate but I feel like it is repeatable and it will show if all the spokes on the side are close to the same tension. I can't do that with my fingers, I can tell if something is way off but that's it.

 

[Gebirgekind]

@duneslider, we just had a customer today that reminded me of your woes - "Is it normal for my son to break something on his bike every time he rides?" We all just nodded, "yup !" I see an equal amount of Shimano and Sram derailleur issues, though I've not seen an XT break in half yet, that's impressive! The Shimano clutches have been historically problematic but with good care and maintenance they seem to outlast Sram's version; it will be interesting to see how the newest generation of Shimanos fare with their new dual spring design.

If you're not familiar I'd recommend taking a look at Madrone derailleurs - they're certainly pricey but probably cheaper than buying a new XT or GX every few months (or weeks!). They're machined from actual metal, are fully rebuildable, modular for any drivetrain (easy to switch with just a cam replacement), provide an optional stiffener plate mount, plus come in sweet colors. Maybe a buy once cry once situation for you that could solve some of your concerns.

MTB Jab Derailleur Textured Gold (Limited Run)

Derailleurs That Deliver The Jab is a configurable cable actuated derailleur built for all types of 1x bikes. It is named after the iconic Jabberwocky trail here in Ashland, Oregon! Durable & Precise The Jab is precision machined from high quality materials like 6061 and 7075 aluminum and...

madronecycles.com

 

[duneslider]

@duneslider, we just had a customer today that reminded me of your woes - "Is it normal for my son to break something on his bike every time he rides?" We all just nodded, "yup !" I see an equal amount of Shimano and Sram derailleur issues, though I've not seen an XT break in half yet, that's impressive! The Shimano clutches have been historically problematic but with good care and maintenance they seem to outlast Sram's version; it will be interesting to see how the newest generation of Shimanos fare with their new dual spring design.

If you're not familiar I'd recommend taking a look at Madrone derailleurs - they're certainly pricey but probably cheaper than buying a new XT or GX every few months (or weeks!). They're machined from actual metal, are fully rebuildable, modular for any drivetrain (easy to switch with just a cam replacement), provide an optional stiffener plate mount, plus come in sweet colors. Maybe a buy once cry once situation for you that could solve some of your concerns.

MTB Jab Derailleur Textured Gold (Limited Run)

Derailleurs That Deliver The Jab is a configurable cable actuated derailleur built for all types of 1x bikes. It is named after the iconic Jabberwocky trail here in Ashland, Oregon! Durable & Precise The Jab is precision machined from high quality materials like 6061 and 7075 aluminum and...

madronecycles.com

I may consider using one. Have you actually used one though? I don't mind paying for something if it has value.

As surprising as it sounds, I have had very few issues with sram 12spd derailleurs (NX and GX). I had one about 6-7 years ago that had a clutch issue but it was brand new and was warrantied. I have replaced cogs pretty regularly but that is it. I have had a handful of issues with GX shifters but I would attribute that to being a maintenance issue.

The shimano stuff definitely seems to require much more maintenance than the sram, at least in my experience. I used to be a diehard shimano guy and still prefer shimano brakes.

As for kids breaking something. We were in Jackson Hole this weekend for enduro national championships (BME and Youth Enduro). My 11 year old smoked a back rim and tire during practice and then immediately after I got him setup on a new wheel he pinch flatted that tire. (DD maxxis tires with Tannus insert) Yes, he tends to smash everything on the trail, we are working on the whole you don't have to hit every rock thing. This led to the discovery that our Lezyne pump gauge is off by at least 5psi. Now I don't know what to trust. The most expensive pump I have seems to be wrong, the cheapest pump I own that I bought on a whim is stellar.

If you haven't used Lezyne Tubeless Pro Plugs, they are worth every penny. I have successfully used them many times now. Not sure if anyone else makes anything like them but I used them this weekend to fix a 1/4" gash in the tire and then a couple 1/8-3/16 pinches right at the bead. I have also used them for holes in the sidewall. I am yet to have one fail me before the tire is worn out.

Also, Reserve rim tape is the best I have used. DT swiss is pretty good. I am not a fan of Stan's or WTB tape. Mucoff is okay but seems thin to me. Someone just gave me a roll of E.Thirteen to try, anyone used that stuff? It looks pretty nice.

 

[308guru]

Those aren't terribly expensive and they do look pretty nice.

Hanger Alignment? What's that?

 

[308guru]

@duneslider, we just had a customer today that reminded me of your woes - "Is it normal for my son to break something on his bike every time he rides?" We all just nodded, "yup !" I see an equal amount of Shimano and Sram derailleur issues, though I've not seen an XT break in half yet, that's impressive! The Shimano clutches have been historically problematic but with good care and maintenance they seem to outlast Sram's version; it will be interesting to see how the newest generation of Shimanos fare with their new dual spring design.

If you're not familiar I'd recommend taking a look at Madrone derailleurs - they're certainly pricey but probably cheaper than buying a new XT or GX every few months (or weeks!). They're machined from actual metal, are fully rebuildable, modular for any drivetrain (easy to switch with just a cam replacement), provide an optional stiffener plate mount, plus come in sweet colors. Maybe a buy once cry once situation for you that could solve some of your concerns.

MTB Jab Derailleur Textured Gold (Limited Run)

Derailleurs That Deliver The Jab is a configurable cable actuated derailleur built for all types of 1x bikes. It is named after the iconic Jabberwocky trail here in Ashland, Oregon! Durable & Precise The Jab is precision machined from high quality materials like 6061 and 7075 aluminum and...

madronecycles.com

It's like the modern day Paul Powerglide.

 

[308guru]

Another day, another tool.
Needed to get some chunky sealant in and wanted to try something other than an injector.

Makerworld to the rescue again:

https://makerworld.com/en/models/1447405-tubeless-sealant-funnel?from=search#profileId-1507397

I always leave the last portion of the bead off, dumps some sealant in, and then finish installing the tire. Why hassle with putting it in through the valve stem?

 

[308guru]

I got this "knock off" of the Park Tool spoke tension checker on Amazon (there's all different names of the same on there). Not sure I really needed it. After I used it today, I don't think I truly need it, but hey for 17 bucks I'm ok with having it. I don't think paying up for a Pro level one is worth it unless you're building wheels from scratch a lot.

Broken my share of random spokes over the years. Never had an issue replacing and truing things up. I Broke one last week on DS rear. Replaced it, trued up the wheel. Rode it ~100 miles, still true. Checked it with this gauge , spokes seem to be in tolerance and variance, so squeezing paired spokes and using the truing stand is still good enough.

The real benefit of using a tensiometer is being able to get the spoke tension even throughout the wheel (or per side). The absolute value, while nice if it were spot on and correlated to spoke tension, is less important.

What I'm trying to say, is don't be concerned about purchasing a cheap tensiometer if it's repeatable.

 

[308guru]

If you haven't used Lezyne Tubeless Pro Plugs, they are worth every penny. I have successfully used them many times now. Not sure if anyone else makes anything like them but I used them this weekend to fix a 1/4" gash in the tire and then a couple 1/8-3/16 pinches right at the bead. I have also used them for holes in the sidewall. I am yet to have one fail me before the tire is worn out.

Also, Reserve rim tape is the best I have used. DT swiss is pretty good. I am not a fan of Stan's or WTB tape. Mucoff is okay but seems thin to me. Someone just gave me a roll of E.Thirteen to try, anyone used that stuff? It looks pretty nice.

The Lezyne plugs appear to be the same thing as commercially available tire plugs. What's your method to get all of the sealant off the surrounding area and prep the tire? It seems impossible to completely remove sealant.


I haven't used the Reserve tape but would definitely like to try it. Nobody around has it in stock and I don't buy Reserve wheels all that often where I could add some.

Stans tape is absolute trash, doesn't stretch at all, doesn't stick for ****....WTB is a little better but similar to Stan's. I've had decent luck with Teravail tape. Seems to have a little stretch allowing it to conform and sticks great. No matter what tape I use I always put a tube in it, inflate nice and high, and let it sit for a day. It does wonders for pushing the tape into place and helping the adhesive stick well.

Another thing I recently started doing was trimming the valve stem hole with an Xacto. Just punching the hole with something handy can lead to the tape starting to tear/split.

 

[duneslider]

The Lezyne plugs appear to be the same thing as commercially available tire plugs. What's your method to get all of the sealant off the surrounding area and prep the tire? It seems impossible to completely remove sealant.


I haven't used the Reserve tape but would definitely like to try it. Nobody around has it in stock and I don't buy Reserve wheels all that often where I could add some.

Stans tape is absolute trash, doesn't stretch at all, doesn't stick for ****....WTB is a little better but similar to Stan's. I've had decent luck with Teravail tape. Seems to have a little stretch allowing it to conform and sticks great. No matter what tape I use I always put a tube in it, inflate nice and high, and let it sit for a day. It does wonders for pushing the tape into place and helping the adhesive stick well.

Another thing I recently started doing was trimming the valve stem hole with an Xacto. Just punching the hole with something handy can lead to the tape starting to tear/split.

I haven't found tire plugs for automobiles that are the size of the Lezyne plugs, that doesn't mean they don't exist but the car ones seem much bigger to me. The sizes in the lezyne kit are great, if there are similar sizes available commercially, I am sure they would be great and cheaper but the box comes with the plugs and glue. I mean it works out to less than 3.50 each and comes with glue. I got them on sale when I got them and it was even less.

So, this weekend all 3 I did were in tires running Stans sealant. 2 of the patches I did, I didn't even remove the tire. I just popped the tire off the rim enough to give me access. I was camping (in a parking lot) and used a paper towel to wipe the area, then used a wet paper towel to clean the area, then used a microfiber to rub/dry, then let it sit for a few minutes to air dry, then sand the area with some sand paper, then put the glue on the tire and let it dry for a few minutes and then put the plug in. Pull it all tight and try to get it as attached as possible and then pop the tire back on the bead and air it up. When I am at home I typically have done a similar process but sometimes take the tire off all the way and use a Spring clamp to hold the patch on for a bit. I have also used regular tube glue on patches to patch tires from the inside before with pretty good results as well.

I buy the reserve tape on Amazon, I have never run reserve wheels. I put tires on a reserve set once for someone and thought the tape looked nice, so I bought some to try.

I usually try to cut the rim tape around the hole, or use a small round file to file the tape around the hole, the file is actually pretty effective. If I have to retape a rim in the field I just poke a hole and slam the stem in, seems to work fine but I have seen some bubbling near the stem holes when I have done this. I have also started doing a double wrap on the enduro bikes, the xc bikes still just get a single wrap of tape though.

I add sealant through the stem when I am giving wheels a refresh, no sense breaking a sealed bead just to add sealant.

 

[Meursault74]

The real benefit of using a tensiometer is being able to get the spoke tension even throughout the wheel (or per side). The absolute value, while nice if it were spot on and correlated to spoke tension, is less important.

What I'm trying to say, is don't be concerned about purchasing a cheap tensiometer if it's repeatable.

I'm aware of that. Thanks.

I've seen videos online where guys take hanging scales and set up a jig with a spoke and adjust the tension in the set up , get a reading on a hanging scale and adjust the spoke meter to calibrate it.

scale doesn't cost much either. I'd probably make mine out of 2x4 wood, as I don't have any welding skills/equipment.

But I don't think I'm going to check the calibration on mine now. If I ever started to build wheels from scratch, it might be worth it to know if the tension is correct for the rim.

 

[willf650]

I’m going to try this chain cleaner. I had 2 of the cheaper Park Tools cleaners over the years. The last one the plastic in it deformed after one use so the brushes would no longer spin. It was using their branded cleaner so it’s not like I was using aggressive solvents.


I do like the way this one closes compared to the Park Tools one. No metal clips to lose.

 

[Odd-job]

Am surprised you tubeless guys aren't using 3M Scotch Film Strapping Tape 8898. While I'm trying really hard not to overpay for tubeless tape I waste money on plenty of other bike stuff

 

[308guru]

Am surprised you tubeless guys aren't using 3M Scotch Film Strapping Tape 8898. While I'm trying really hard not to overpay for tubeless tape I waste money on plenty of other bike stuff

There are many tapes that are similar, but lack characteristics (stretch, adhesive, don't leave residue on rim, etc.) that make a tape good or better for taping rims. Tubless tapes also come slit in a variety of widths which off the shelf tapes do not.

 

[Odd-job]

There are many tapes that are similar, but lack characteristics (stretch, adhesive, don't leave residue on rim, etc.) that make a tape good or better for taping rims. Tubless tapes also come slit in a variety of widths which off the shelf tapes do not.

I have plenty experience with crappy tape. The 3m checks all of the above boxes IMHO except the multiple widths, but can be cut down with some effort. I have also realized the width is better to be oversized and can be less than perfect.

 

[Gebirgekind]

Am surprised you tubeless guys aren't using 3M Scotch Film Strapping Tape 8898. While I'm trying really hard not to overpay for tubeless tape I waste money on plenty of other bike stuff

I always thought Stan's tape was just rebranded 8898. I've used a roll of the 3M and it always seems to fail after a season or two, just like the Stan's. We use the Teravail professionally and it really holds up well. +1 for the Reserve and DT Swiss as well, Boyd sent me a roll with some rims once and it was also good stuff. Remember when we used to use Gorilla Tape on everything? Glad that's over .

 

[duneslider]

I have recently had to remove DT swiss tape and Reserve tape (broken spokes) and both were stuck very well but left zero adhesive on the rim. I swear the reserve tape could have been reapplied and still would have worked, if I hadn't have balled it up when I took it off.

Sounds like I need to look into the Teravail tape, the color turns me off though, too close to stans and makes me want to say bad words.

I have used tape not made for rims such as packing tape, or gorilla tape, and while you can make it work, it doesn't compare to quality rim tape and I am a cheap ***. I do keep gorilla tape in my travel kit for a just in case and I have successfully used gorilla tape to cover a hole in rim tape at a trail head parking lot and it saved the ride that day.

 

[Odd-job]

would be curious what tubeless sealant you guys are running too. After running Stans for years have noticed the ammonia based sealants tend to eat the tape adhesive more than others.

 

[Gebirgekind]

Big fan of Orange sealant. Stan’s also used to eat aluminum ******* until the wheels would fail - supposedly they changed the formula to correct that but I’ve seen the same with the tape adhesive eroding.

Orange leaves a nice coating on the tire that helps seal even when your sealant is low.

 

[308guru]

I've been using Stans regular. Haven't branched out much to try others. Sealants seem to be near and dear to many, some swear there's only one in the world that works...

It seems like they have all gotten stupid expensive.

 

[duneslider]

would be curious what tubeless sealant you guys are running too. After running Stans for years have noticed the ammonia based sealants tend to eat the tape adhesive more than others.

I use a lot of Stans and Orange, seem to have satisfactory results with both. I got a free bottle of Vittoria sealant once and it worked fine. I got some free WTB sealant once and it also did the job. Stans and Orange are easy for me to get locally, so that is mostly why I use it. I've been moving mostly back to stans lately just due to the fact that pretty much every single bike shop has some, so its easy to get anywhere if I happen to not have any, or not enough and need some in a pinch.

 

[qdvuu]

Orange for me for the past decade or more. No probs and it's easy to source.