Friday, June 4, 2021

Great learning experiences from MTB

Wheels of Happiness

Rizal Philippines
6.04.2021





There were a lot of things I learned from my incursion into MTB world

1.  While others are debating about use of rim brakes vs disc brakes I was busy understanding this:

     1.  Hydraulic brakes vs cable brakes,   For hydraulic brakes, use of mineral oil vs. DOT 5 (for                       SRAM avid models
     2.   Bleeding hydraulic brakes   (bottom bleeding, the hacks for bleeding   Substitute - syringes
     3.  Centering brakes  (in three directions)
     4.   Conversion from 160 to 180 mm;  the adapter kits 
     5.   4 piston vs 2 piston
           Which is better the 4 piston or bigger disc (180 mm nd 203 mm)
     6.   The icetech technology by Shimano; floating disc by Sagmit or 3 Pro
     7.   The one by two by and three by conversion.   Why two by is better
           How can you have two by without buying Deckas.?   All you need are 4 spacers
     8.   The disassembly of the free hub body to access the pawls
     9.  I missed this -  tightening the hub  with lock ring vs the cone.   (That is why I had difficulty 
          with xt hub of an MTB
    10.  Hacks for missing umbrella bolts of hydraulic brakes
    11.  Disassembly of  front hydraulic shocks.    The tools you need and the cleaning needed.  How
           can you prevent expensive repairs.    Why rubber hoses that can be cut can be used as rubber
           seals of the piston assembly.  (It is difficult to buy these small rings/kits)

2.  Canvassing or reading the  e commerce ads:

    1.   Access and/or buy from reliable platform.   Lazada is better;
    2.   Buy from Philippines store and avoid foreign stores.   Do not buy from sites without reviews
          comments, or none sold
   3     Do not access the viber number of the seller.  The e commerce platform will not return your
          payment if the transaction goes awry
   4.    VERIFY READ VERY WELL WHAT YOU ARE BUYING.  THERE ARE MANY MISLEADING ADS.  Sometime they are selling a bolt or a nut or sticker.  But the picture
advertises the whole bike or equipment
   5.  The prices are misleading.  Sometimes they post the price for the left part or right part but not
         the entire set you intend to buy.   You have to press the family color to know the exact price  
   6.  You have to canvass very well;  sometimes stores that are near one another can have massive
         price differences.
   7.  Do you really need the upgrades being pitched.  Sometimes you dont.  But their pitches are so
       good and being bombarded constantly that is why you succumb.  

3.  Know excactly the adventure that you want?   Road ride, trail ride or bikepacking

     Trail ride can be very dangerous and is not for every one.   Practice have conficence before going
     on trail ride

4.  Use your gears to the max when climbing.  That is why MTBS are preferred over RB because of wide range of gears at your disposal.   

5.  The one by or two by does not make your bike go faster.  You will have additional expenses but
      you get slower for dumping the high chain ring.    or the low low granny gear if you go purely
      one by.  You do not save a lot of weight by removing the derrailleur or the changer.   The cogs 
      which are larger have added weight.   




    

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