It doesn’t even get that cold in North Carolina, but it’s cold enough to make this tire impossible
to work with.
When working on a cold tire, bring it inside to let it warm up first.
A warm tire is a lot easier to manipulate.
Also applying alcohol to the bead will help it slip back on.
Afterwards, it evaporates like it was never there.
If your local trails are loaded with creek crossings, you know all about wet shoes.
To help dry them out in a hurry, place each shoe over a large hex wrench, and use a drill
to to spin them at 3500 RPM’s.
I’m mostly not serious about that.
Actually, news or magazine paper is a smarter choice.
Just stuff the shoe full of paper all the way down to the toe, and it’ll help draw
the moisture out.
This is a great use for junk mail, and it can still be recycled after the fact.
If you work on your own bike, you know how nice it is to have proper cable cutters, as
using other kinds of cutters can be less than ideal.
But in a pinch, you can get by with some electrical tape.
Wrap it really tightly around the brake or shift cable, and then make your cut.
Although you may have the same struggles in making a clean cut, you’ll at least be left
without a frayed end.
And I assume that if you’re using this hack, you probably don’t have any crimps for the
end.
So coat the end in a few layers of crazy glue to seal it off.
If you do have caps, it’s best to install them with a crimper to ensure they don’t
come loose.
To make do without one, you can use needle nose pliers or diagonal cutters to crush them
down in one spot.
Just try not to squeeze so hard where you actually cut the cap.
Biodegradable dog waste bags are a great addition to any pack.
You can use them on your hands during a greasy or sealanty repair, use them to pack out garbage,
or for dog land mines.
If dogs are allowed off-leash on your trails, you know how this stuff can seemingly live
on your tire for miles.
With a bag, you can get it all off and go about your merry way.
So poopy bags have many uses.
A good bike light will cost you a pretty penny, but a nice flashlight like this one is only
$10.
You can affix it to your helmet with mounting squares.
Just clean the surface, apply some squares, and use zip ties to secure the flashlight
in place.
As long as your light is cylindrical in shape, this hack should be pretty effective.
Although brightness varies greatly between consumer flashlights, they will generally
give you more lumens per dollar than a bike light, but of course you need to bring your
own mounting hardware.
A few years ago I showed you how to make a simple bike stand with 2x4’s.
Today, we’ll make something slightly more challenging with PVC.
You’ll need some PVC pipe and some plywood.
First measure from the ground up to your bike frame, and then subtract about an inch.
Use some masking tape to cut a slot out of the PVC, about three quarters of the way down.
A dremel or hand saw would probably be more effective than what I did.
If you’re trying to make this stand presentable, you can clean it up and paint it however you
like, and then fasten the PVC to the wood.
An end flange, if you can find one, will make this much easier, but toe nailing these 1”
drywall screws worked fine for me.
The stand works by placing your left crank arm in the pipe, with your pedal spindle in
the slot.
It’s quite secure, and pretty slick looking.
Although the PVC won’t scratch your crank, it can end up with some pain scuffs on it.
To remove your cassette, you need a cassette tool and a chain whip.
Whips come in various form factors, but always hold the cassette in place while wrenching
on the lock ring.
But you can use an old chain and some vice grips.
For extra points, you can clean the chain and reduce it’s length by about half, but
neither of these steps are essential.
All you need to do is wrap the chain around your cassette, and secure it with the vice
grips.
You can also use an actual vice, or anything else with good clamping force.
While this kind of clamping force is great for your homemade whip, it would absolutely
ruin a cylindrical object like a shock.
A strap wrench applies consistent force around an object to avoid crushing it, and indeed
it’s pretty essential for working on suspension.
But with a rag and vice, you can get by.
First double up the rag to make extra sure your part is protected.
Then wrap it around your part tightly and place it in the vice with the jaws wide open.
Now be very careful to clamp only the rag, not the part.
As you close the vice, pull the rag down to ensure the jaws can get purchase on the cloth,
and you should end up with something like this.
While this hack can get you out of a jam, it’s not worth scratching expensive parts
over a $10 tool.
So only use this when you have no other option.
This final hack come courtesy of Eric Porter, and it has to do with travel.
When you’re packing up your bike and gear to take on an airplane, put your filthy disgusting
shammy right on top of everything.
Any inspection that takes place, will be short lived.
Of course if you want to do just the opposite, put a dryer sheet in your bag to neutralize
the smell of all your sweaty riding gear.
And with that I hope you enjoyed yet another bike hacks video.
Many of these hacks were from you guys, and since the last video I’ve been hearting
suggestions that make it to my list.
Leave a hack below, and you could see it performed here next time.
First, consider watching all my old bike hacks videos to ensure it hasn’t been done before.
Thanks for watching, thanks for your hacks, and thanks for riding with me today.
I’ll see you next time.