Do you have a burning tech question you'd like us to answer? Leave it in the comments below using the hashtag #AskGCNTech and we may answer it in a future episode of the Tech Clinic!
Should I buy a 2016 cervelo s5 ultegra with zipp wheels or a bmc team machine 2019 with alto wheel's and can I compete with newer race bike on it - tnks
dudes i really need to know what sort of clamp on front mech would work with like a gear cable attached(like no wrap around bottom bracket). i would be using a gear like 52 40 or 38.
make an episode about internal cable routing DIY e, like i could put holes in the handle bar, hole in the steerer tube, hole in the seatpost, and hole in the seattube... hole in the chainstay lol
It's when you commute by bike during winter that cleaning is really a problem. Cleaning whenever it is dirty means cleaning every day. And when you get home in the dark and you are already cold and soaked 'cos it was raining on the way home, the last thing you want to do is start cleaning your bike.
I don´t clean my bike after each ride - the whole bike, that is. I just make sure the important parts are clean and not getting worn by the grit: drivetrain, the braking surfaces and (if needed) the suspension fork stanchions. This doesn´t take that much time (if done regularly) and the rest - frame, wheels... can do quite well with less regular cleaning. Moreover: fenders! On a dedicated commuter bike, it is wise to have fenders, and even if you don´t have a special bike for commuting, you may install them on your "normal" bike just for the winter. With fenders, the bike often stays clean enough to pass for another day even if it´s a bit wet outside. :)
3:39 When I bought my road bike, it came with reflectors on the wheels. Safety feature, I thought. Then when descending at rather high speed (60km/h+) something hit my rear rim and banged on my leg, I still have a scar there. Stopping the bike, looking at what could have gone wrong. Everything seemed to be working great, so off I went. After a while I realiesed, there was something missing from my rear wheel. Yep, the reflector got loose during that high speed descend and is propably somewhere in the orbit right now, judging by the scar it left on my left calf when it flown off. EDIT: Now, imagine if it was the front wheel and the reflector hit my chin, eye, neck... that wouldn't have been good at all, at 60km/h+. Needless to say, I removed the still present front wheel reflector right after I lost the rear one.
YES! the bulky reflectors affect the balance of the wheel. If you still want the safety benefits without the huge ugly spoke reflectors, put small bits of reflective tape on the rim (not on the braking surface)
Appreciate you sharing that story. I'll be taking my reflectors off now. I'd debated doing it before because my tires happen to have reflective material all the way around both sides of the sidewall already, which seems to make the spoke-mounted reflectors redundant.
@@aaronboggs5799 I use white Kross gloves and high visibility yellow colour water bottle to keep myself visible from the side. I also use lights for front/rear visibility. See and be seen is the key to ride safely on the road. And you obviously do not want things flying of your bike while you're on it. :)
What about over-washing? That is, soap and water being pushed into nooks that wouldn't normally be soiled. Wheel bearings, bb, headsets, etc... Further, important grease and oils get broken down by soap, which ends up causing more damage than some dirt on the outside.
That's my view of it, washing is purely for cosmetic reasons. The only parts that need to be kept spotless is the inside of the bearings. Lots of water and degreaser increases the risk of degrading the bearing grease.
I wipe my chain down after every ride with a dry cloth just to remove any grime/dirt that may have accumulated on it, and clean and lube it about once a week depending on how much I've ridden. As for washing the bike, it all depends on what it looks like. If I've been riding on wet roads, it'll get washed. If the roads have been dry and the bike still looks fine, I'll wait to wash it. It may get a quick wipe along with the chain (different cloth of course) just because I like to keep it looking good.
Shouldn't need cleaning unless your house is very dusty. How often to re-lub will depend a lot on the type used and how fast its going to evaporate and or rub off. The important thing is to keep all the parts that make contact wet with lube. Longest lasting would thick oil or grease but quite messy and not for outdoor use.
Indeed. People often ask me how my bike is in such good condition and why it never needs repairing and why I got the same brake and Gear cables for the past 5 years and they still look brand new. It's because I clean it after every single ride
@@ToThePointCT Im guessing that includes degreasing and relubing your chain and gears? I did the same thing all summer. Then recently a couple people told me that shimano does not recommend degreasing and relubing after every ride. It’s considered “overcleaning” and causing “unnecessary wear” which will potentially shorten the life of my components. That’s what brought me to this video. See if GCN had any thoughts on this. They didn’t...at least not in this video. But, I appreciate knowing it has worked well for you. 👍🏽
When driving in dirt or rain I wash my bike with: rain water from the barrel in our garden and a brush for carwash. Leaves no drying spots. After 4 or 5 times it gets a thorough clean with lukewarm water and soap. When it is dry again I treat my bike completely with an old cloth and polishing oil. It's so clean and shining afterwards! Love it.
@gcntech I took your advice on how to clean a bike in the bathroom. It's been several months now but it still scares my caregivers when they turn the corner and there's my pride and joy. Makes me laugh my head off every time, so thanks for the very good tip and the bonus laughs 😂👍🏻😁🙏🏻
On my first road bike I had 12-23 cassette. That was a standard at that time. I can't believe I was still able to climb steep hills. Well, maybe because I was much younger back then :)
#AskGCNTech: When I’m washing a bike with disc brakes, how do I avoid contaminating the brake pads? Or does it not matter if I get dirty, soapy water on them?
If you want reflectors on your wheels, there are adhesive strips that serve the same purpose. I have black ones that are nearly invisible in daylight on my aero Reynolds carbon rims, but become really well visible in white at night when you point a light at them. Also available in red and other colours.
I waxed my bike frame .it. Dirt comes off easy with a spray nozzle.then a quik soap. Dry off the bike air compressor. Lube chain. Then ready to roll. Usually less then 30. Looks brand new 🍺🍺
R.E: wheel reflectors - I use strips of matte finish retro reflective tape around my rims, barely notice it just looking at the bike in the day time. Snap on spoke reflectors are another subtle safety detail that means you can install them in seconds when you need them.
If my bike is looking grubby I'll give it a quick clean once a week. But generally I do a thorough clean, tyre pressure and brake check once every month. And do a full clear of the bike once every 6 months.
I don't use a dork disc but I did regret it once. Rear derailleur hanger was misaligned and I forgot to straighten it. I dropped the chain into the spokes at speed. Broke a spoke on expensive wheels and had to walk home.
I would say that removeing the dork disc is a must actualy , it colects a lot of dust betwen the cassete and itself and is realy hard to clean that space with a dork disc making the cassete and chain to wear out a bit quicker
Had a spoke reflector come loose mid-ride and started smacking against the seatstay on every spin. Took awhile to figure out that the new suddenly awful noise wasn't coming from the rider ahead of me.
I took the Dork Disk off my bike and rode it for many years being proud of my decision until the day a shift went bad and I bent every spoke on the drive side. I bought a full set of drive side spokes and a new Dork Disk. I was very proud that I rebuilt the wheel myself and proud of my decision to replace my Dork Disk. Either way is ok with me but I'll leave mine on.
Hose it down. Use cleaning tools. 5-10 minutes. Quicky tip..just worry about the chain and cassete. You can use wet wipes. A chain cleaner is cgeap and saves you tons of time.
I did just what Fabricio is asking about (and 6700 has been around for over ten years) and it was a brilliant move. I saved quite a bit of money going with 105 and the performance is flawless. Very happy transformation.
For bananas, before packing in your pocket or pouch use a knife to cut a slit at the base of the stem. Then, when you need to peel it, it's got a starting point that makes pulling the stem with your teeth much easier.
when you peel a banana, go to the bottom of the banana where there is that flat end and you can bite that in half easily, they you have an opening and you can peel it easily. or you could just eat the skin too
In California it is required by law the have all the reflectors ( front and rear wheels, pedals, front facing white, rear facing red) even during the daytime.
I've recently seen things to clamp bananas to your bike :) One of the advantages of indoor riding is gaving access to bananas. When I do 200km+ indoor ridrs, I have 8-10 of them next at hand :D
I think in the winter even if the bike looks clean its best to just rinse the bike over to get rid of the salt after every ride. But in the summer if the rest of the bike is clean, I give it a proper clean once the drive train needs it
I clean my bike once a week and I use distilled water. (Tap water is corrosive in our region) If it’s totally soaked in mud then I force myself to clean it the next day.
... I put my good/expensive Trek Domane 5.2 away in the winter/bad weather and ride my Trek 8.4 DS ... and I tend to ride gravel trails or paved trails (Rail-to-Trails), no road salt!!! I ride alot in South NJ and Delmarva ... lots of sand and salt ... there I gently "hand wash" the bike using a garden hose nozzle/sprinkler, after those rides ... NO POWER WASHERS!!!
When the dork disc question came up, you missed the chance to demonstrate setting the limit screws. If your limit screws are set properly, you don't need the dork disk.
Ollie, Ollie,Ollie. For someone who loves his attention to detail, especially when gaining watts, how can you leave that TV on the piss. Straighten the dam thing up 🤣 it’s playing havoc with my OCD.
I find the obsession with cleaning your bike just...weird. I'm fortunate to live in a temperate climate without treated roads, and I do not ride in the wet, so my bike stays in good shape, even after 1000km. I wipe it down when needed, and sponge off the dirt, as necessary. When you're using soap and surfactants, it removes grease; grease is what keeps chains/hubs/bearings working. While your bike may shine, the moving parts will be prematurely worn. FWIW, my current bike has more than 50,000 miles in it, and the only thing I've replaced is the rear wheel, tires, and chains. I bought it new in 2004, and the Ultegra group still hums.
I commute by bike and live i Sweden. You don't need to "wash" your bike every time as long as you just rinse the bike with water after each ride. I wash my commute bike once a week.
@GCNtech If you prefer a purist, obtrusive look but want to stay on the safe side, there are several companies who produce stickers in in lots of different colours that match your frame by day , but which reflect in darkness. Yes, they add some grams to your bike and maybe they reflect not as good as proper "cat eyes", but you can put them anywhere on your frame. E.g. reflective.berlin/ sell many different decals, stripes, stickers, rim patterns, mosaic patterns for a kind of custom concept decal all over the bike and and SPOKE stickers that wrap around the spokes and are available in in black, flame fade or rainbow. Creates some cool effects in the darkness and you are less likely to be overlooked.
Yes, that's the real reason. That and the UCI keeping tradition alive. Rear hydration is banned. They gain you 10 watts on 2 bottles. All teams would use them if allowed and they really aren't any more difficult to use if you have experience. Some people would pay 5,000 USD+ extra and above what they already have for those gains kinds of gains. It's a hack for me :D
Surely, the reason that riders don't put their bottle behind them is because the UCI says that the bottle must be on the seat or down tubes, must not be integrated with the frame and must be no less than 4cm or greater than 10cm in diameter?
#AskGCNTech Hi guys. I use tubeless tires and top up my sealant every 3 to 4 months. My question is how often should I remove the tire from the rim and clean the old, dried up, sealant out? Thanks!
Good queation. I have topped up mine once after 4 months. I ppan to do that another time before doing as you've said. It can't be good for rolling resistance. From what I've researched though, when yiu do it you only remove surface scabs. You keeo whatever dried in the tire to help keep the seal.
Have experience with that :) If you buy a good quality ine they're fine. The good nes have ratings for tensile grip. Well worth 50USD for a quality cage to save 5-8 watts. Try Xlab :)
#askGCNtech After watching several riders nearly crash out of races trying to put on rain jackets while riding, it occurs to me that there is a need for some other way to put on a warm/dry layer. maybe a giant Buff. IDK but there is a whole in the tech here
With regards to reflectors you can get some very cool reflective stickers that go your trims. Weigh nothing, look good and keep you safe. Company RELECTR
I wash my bike every couple of weeks, but in winter I hose it of if the roads where wet or my bike is very dirty after a ride, seeing as i dont always have time to fully wash my bike
I need your experts advice. I've ridden nothing but tubular wheels because the handling is amazing and I feel lot more confident at high speed than a clincher tires after all the pinch flats I run into that's why I switched to tubular. .so I notice lot these wheels there selling on the market now are tubeless. I'm little skeptical buying clincher /tubeless. Do tubeless really out perform tubular? If there so great how come the professional cyclists don't use tubeless? What the advantage and disadvantages. Thanks
150-200 miles using a dry lube such as Muc Off ceramic C3. IlWet lube lasts less time because of accumulated gunk. Dry lube gets washed off n wet conditions.
I’m enjoying the bike so far ru-vid.comUgkxMesz3KOGEmwmvyKQfLfrRSUXLFzfVHZA My only real complaints are the brakes and the pedals. I feel like a bike designed for bigger people should have much larger pedals and more heavy duty brakes. I’ve only gotten two really good rides out of it, minimal downhill action, and the brakes feel like they’re already going out. A larger person has more momentum, so I think this wasn’t thought through very well. Also, I wear size 13-14 wide shoes. My feet cramp up on these pedals that are clearly made for smaller feet. Since I’m not a pro rider (and I don’t think many are who purchase this bike) I don’t think that the straps on the pedal are necessary at all. None of this takes away from the enjoyment I get from riding, however. I’ll just head to a bike shop to improve on a few things.
Re reflectors: keep in mind that some legal jurisdictions require reflectors and don't specify that they are needed only for riding after dark, meaning that a cop having a bad day could give you a ticket, even in broad daylight.
Haha i rarely wash my bike for the plain & simple reason that if it looks nice its more likely to get stolen & i can't be arsed as I'd rather be riding it. If the chain set eventually get to gumed up then i will pressure wash it & reoil. But I'm not a cyclist i just use my bike to get around whether that be to shops or jogle or c2c:) Ps my bike bike cost £40 on fb & has taken me 1000s of miles.
#AskGCNTech : What factors have influence on the chain I need to get? Like cassette / 1by 2by 3by / manufacturers / model / ... Are chains sorted to the model of the drivetrain like Dura ace / ultegra / 105....? What oil / materials should be used in different scenarios? how to properly clean without wasting to much time? When is my chain worn out? How to maintain the chain? Aluminium or steel chains? And a lot of more questions like... What oil should I use on my belt drive ... Or how should I use my chain riveting tool on the belt drive ;P
I just hate the fact that I've watched so much GCN contents, I get annoyed if I can't find a new video after finishing watching one of theirs... 😂 Upload soon GCN 😅
#askgcntech I’m assuming gravel bikes are used in cyclocross but what’s the stop someone from putting wider tires on a road bike and treating it as a gravel bike? Aren’t the frames basically the same?
#AskGCNTech Hi GCN, How should you clean your chain/drive train efficiently? Should I use a tool like the muc off chain cleaner or should I remove my chain completely for a deeper clean? Thanks!
Questions like how to eat a banana, should I remove my dork disc, is there advantage if I remove my reflectors in the wheel and how many times should I wash my bike.... is this really necessary GCN? I want some decent technical questions to learn about bike mechanics...not about eating bananas!!!
#AskGCNTech Looking at getting a new set of handlebars (changing from 44cm to 40cm width), toying with some carbon ones, is carbon worth the extra cost over the same aluminium ones & any pros/cons of the two? Thanks!
To add on to that. I am also looking at the same thing, my frame runs external cables, do I need to find external specific bars or not? Any brand recommendations?
@MRGRUMPY53 Well, if I remember correctly (it's been some time), with the spacer I couldn't get the locknut to thread on, and without it the cassette was rubbing. It was one of my older sets at the tiime, didn't bother anymore and bought a new set Ultegra's .
#AskGCNTech -- Hi guys, I have an ultegra 11 Spd (R8000) mechanical groupset which I want to upgrade to electronic shifting sometime in the future. Can a SHIMANO drivetrain and disc brakes work with SRAM ETAP rear/front derailleur and shifters as it seems more cleaner to upgrade to ETAP rather than getting to different wiring issues with DI2
Never.pressure blast you.bike just a light spray if muddy. The bearing.seals don't like extreme pressure face on but at a right angle is wiser. I wax my chain and I swap.It to a fresh waxed chain.then.clean and re wax my alternating chain.500 km intervals of summer riding or about 3 to 4 weeks. I remove the cassette and deep clean it when.I do the chain and do a frame clean.wheels.off. the.spray and wipe cleaners are great in summer.
#AskGCNTech Hi Ollie and Alex, i have a bike with hydraulic disk brake should i wash my bike frequently cause i have heard many said that more wash means more chance for your ball bearings to get water in
I live in a part of the world with harsh winters so my bike will be stored away for the winter. Any tips for protecting my bike (while in the shed) from -10c? #AskGCNTech
Can you do a video on how tight or loose winter clothes should fit. I have a couple of new items and am unsure if they’re the tight fit or not. They feel ok to me, I just want the view of an expert #askGCNTech
Sure, tight (thermal) lycra is more comfortable, and more aero too. The amount of layering depends on how hard you ride: just look up some cyclocross videos and you see them in the worst weather just wearing long tights or if milder, only short bib shorts with long sleeved jerseys. The jackets from warming up are dumped before they start. But they go really deep and after three quarter or one hour their team awaits with hats, jackets, zip-on tights and recovery drinks. Long, hard shit days: see spring classics, rainy roubaix (snow in 1994), the drowned worlds at Harrogate 2019 or the recent rainy grand tour stages. Yet they may not have coffee stops but support cars and domestiques to swap spare clothes and still go harder and deeper than most of us. Most normal long rides, whether training rides, wet gravel races, ultra endurance races or mostly any average cyclist at 20-35 kph: Long winter bib shorts or some trail running tights over your bib shorts are great in really cold weather for longer rides, works for me on multi day bikepacking during October to February. Tight minimalist "pro" rain shells are only good if you're on the bike all day, the better ones have covered slots to reach through for your pockets. Yet some travel versions or even tight-fitting climbing jackets are light & tight enough not to flap around on the bike, but are more versatile (proper hood and large front chest pockets), e.g. if you're standing and watching a race after your ride or stroll around the town. You can fit your thermal hoodie underneath while standing, repairing, cook or camp out. On the bike, just roll the hood into the collar and zip up. But if that's not necessary, you can save 100-500 grams here. Tight, well fitting, wicking underwear is great for cold days, synthetic, silk, merino wool or blends, all are functional enough and don't thicken your layering too much so you're still comfortable while riding. Didn't need long underpants under long shell tights up to now (no Yukon Arctic Ultra yet), but would wear those over your bib tights or chamois pants so you won't get saddle sores. Gabba jackets or any softshell jerseys are better than rainproof hardshells, as you don't sweat that much underneath so you wouldn't overheat - or worse: suffer hypothermia during stops or even on the bike in high winds and/or deep temps. In changing temps I like windproof knee-lings or legs and sleeves (some days even non-windproof fabrics). After the first kilometres you roll them down and maybe pull them up if needed or stash them in the pockets. Try out thermal over booties or thermal winter (cyclocross) cleated boots, better sweaty and warm then spray soaked and frozen. Booties keep your shoes clean, too, btw. Funnily I only wear a casquette or thin wicking skull cap under the helmet, no aero covers or rain covers for rain, it just keeps me cool and ventilated in all but the worst conditions. But that's a very personal choice.
