Old tyres seem to have shrunk over the years or maybe I have forgotten how tightly fitted they were to the rims. After a short fight with bending tyre levers the tyre eventually conceded. The old sealant (Stan’s) had disappeared over the years but left a small oily residue and an additional rubber coating over the tyre and the rim insert which I have tried cleaning with white spirit but it is slow and leaves a film behind. Instead I will try and find some old stock Stan’s rim tape with valve however the Joe’s No Flats alternative would do if needed.

The main problem I have in the re-commissioning is the space is not really set up for access and mainly used for storage so I have a bit of a task in reorganising everything as I have fitted a quart into a pint pot. I have the bike stand, more than a few tools and essential spares going back to 2002. Yes honestly 2002. I may have to reduce this substantially but I am guessing much of it is no longer used on a modern 3d printed electric mtb however my concern is the availability of spares going forward for my old frames.

I still have the frame from the 2002 Specialized mentioned in an old post somewhere on the site here as the last bike I will ever need however six frames later that could be destined to remain as wall art. I would like to just list and buy all the parts I need in one delivery but the lack of CRC means I have to hunt around and cross check details like the size of the Mavic rims (27mm it seems) in order to order the correct stuff.

This make take a while….

I need to start with some sort of plan but unfortunately it might be that some parts may be difficult to find. There is a problem with the tyres so I will remove the sealant and attempt to reseal with old sealant, it should last ten years right?

Following that I will look at the transmission which does not seem worn but something is not right. Brakes seem to work but maybe a re-bleed would be a good idea so I don’t discover hygroscopic problems on the first downhill section as there will obviously be a gate lying in wait. I am unsure if the fork will work but if the seals have not dried out I could drain and refill as a trial. If necessary I could replace with an upgraded model if the sizes are still available for steering and wheels but I will wait and see if this fork still works.

Wheel bearings will need checked after sitting so long and the bottom bracket might need more than a look and a bit of hope.

So that sounds like a start for now but I am sure I will find a few things along the way.

I am intending to resurrect this site if I can return to the saddle but first I need to carry out some bike maintenance which I may share here if I can remember how to fix things.

This was the unexpected answer to the question from the recently returned in-house physiologist. Last Thursday was the driest ride for some time but we only mustered a semi dirty half dozen which was the lowest turnout in several years. Continue reading →

Last week’s ride was not typical. Carl and I were early and headed out to check the trails before the ride at 7pm. This bit was typical. I had set up ready for a cold, frosty ride with lots of layers and a fat tyre on the front but it seemed slightly mild.

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I had missed loads of Tuesday rides due to broken wheels, broken frames and getting stuck working on something on a Tuesday afternoon. Continue reading →

Lots of newer rides this year are encountering the delights of Stanmer in winter and asking about the right kit and maintenance. Continue reading →

On Sunday Aron and myself headed to Kent to compete in the first round of the PORC DH race series. Neither of us has much experience racing and we’re certainly not downhillers. We don’t even own DH bikes, never mind race them. So turning up on our trail bikes we did feel a bit out of our depths. It turned out we weren’t the only ones on little bikes. Whilst the majority of the field was a sea of Santa Cruz V10s, Giant Glory’s, and Nukeproof Pulse’s all armed with +200mm of travel and built for the sole purpose of getting down a hill as quickly as possible. A few had arrived on short travel bikes and even a couple of hard-tails were present.
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