- Welcome to this week's Ask GCN Anything
mechanical special edition,
where we answer questions that you've sent in.
I'm gonna waste no time.
I'm gonna get straight to it.
First up is a question from Jim Watkinson.
Grease or copper slip on threads or seatposts?
Wow, great question Jim.
It totally depends on the material,
and also the part that you're fitting.
For instance, if you're fitting carbon fibre,
mostly you're gonna use carbon fibre grip.
Titanium, aluminium bolts, normally copper slip,
or anti-seize, that will help.
However, it's more in-depth than that.
And this video with Si explains what and where
you're gonna use each product.
- Fibre grip is another really easy one.
Use it on any carbon part
that requires clamping in place.
Even when carbon is being clamped in alloy.
So, think seatpost and frame,
and think stem and handlebars.
To use it, just apply it to one surface only.
So, post not frame,
and bars and not stem.
- Next up is this question from Cullen Cowap.
Cullen asks, how often should I
be cleaning my daily commuter?
Thanks for the message.
To be honest, there's no right answer,
but there is a wrong one.
The wrong answer is that you don't check it at all.
Personally, after my ride, I ride 70K to and from work.
That's a round trip, not each way.
At the end of the day, I check my tyres,
I check my brake pads,
just to make sure there's nothing lodged in there,
that the next morning when I wake up
is gonna prevent me from getting to work on time.
Otherwise I'd be in trouble.
However, at the end of the week,
normally on Saturday morning,
I check over the bike, I give it a degrease,
I clean it up, lube it, then I'm good to go again.
That takes around half an hour,
so it's half an hour of my time well spent.
To find out what you can do in that half an hour,
check it out with Si.
- Now I'm gonna turn my attention to the wheels.
Drop the front one out.
And then start by cleaning the frame,
and the front forks that you couldn't get to
whilst the wheel was in.
Pay particular attention as well
to the brake callipers.
And now, I turn my attention to the front wheel.
And make sure I thorough clean it.
I'm particularly careful about cleaning the sidewalls.
Blackwall tyres, it's not so much of a problem.
But if you've got a skinwall tyre,
your bike is never gonna look clean
if you've got dirty sidewalls.
So give it a proper going over.
- Alright.
It's time for the quickfire round.
I've gone aero.
I'm trying to break a record.
Here we go.
First up, Matthew Dawson.
How to put on new shoe cleats.
Simple Matthew, grab yourself a marker pen or a Sharpie.
Draw around the old cleat.
Remove the old cleat.
Put the new one on, using that marker pen as a template.
Do them up, job done.
Next up, Reza Prabowo.
Can I remove the front derailleur
of my Ultegra Di2 groupset,
and turn it into a one by setup?
Yes you can.
You'll need a narrow wide chainring on the front.
You will probably need to shorten your chain as well,
and possibly, and only possibly,
some sort of chain guide as well,
to make sure it stays on.
But, that's not essential.
Next up from Rod Leonard Atienza,
can I use WD40 as a lube for the chain?
Quite a beginner here.
I say no.
Si Richardson, he'll say yes.
Next up, Sledges hammer, Sledgehammer.
Ask GCN, should I buy a road bike?
Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes.
Go down to your local shop, tell them I sent you.
You'll get special service, guaranteed.
Now we've got The Nexus Gaming.
Can you use an 11 speed chain on a single speed bike,
or a fixed gear bike?
Good question.
Providing you're using a 332nd sprocket and chainring,
not a problem at all.
If you're using an eighth inch,
like a track or BMX sprocket, forget it.
Won't work.
Next up, and the final one.
Cheap carbon frame, or a top aluminium frame?
Go for the top aluminium frame.
It'll be a livelier ride.
Probably be lighter.
You're gonna get more bang for your buck.
There we are.
(sighs)
I tell you what, I think I broke some speed records there,
so I'm gonna slow it down a little bit.
Next up is a question from Bobby Dazzler.
Hell of a name that, Bobby.
How to get stripped Allen bolts out?
Great question.
Firstly, one of the most important things,
is to actually try and prevent this in the first place.
So get yourself some decent tools,
maybe a torque wrench.
The correct grease as well, or anti-seize,
and then you're halfway there.
Make sure you fit those parts correctly.
Obviously, in your case Bobby,
your bolts are stripped mate.
So, what we're gonna have to do,
is go over to Si, where he's got some great tips
to get those bolts out.
- Next up, we're gonna try a Torx key.
Now this is a little bit random I know,
but we've had loads of you suggesting it,
and I've also heard really good things about it.
Basically, a Torx key is a six pointed star,
as opposed to a hexagon.
And so, the slightly different shape
can mean that you get a little bit more purchase
with the bolt.
However, you are gonna need to increase the size
of the Torx key, relative to the Allen key.
So in this case, we've got a three mill Allen bolt,
a T-15 it would correspond to size wise.
So, you haver to use a slightly bigger size, the T-20.
And then, obviously it doesn't fit,
so you will need to whack it in there with a hammer.
- And finally, Solve Horpestad wants to know
how to fit internal cables.
Well Solve, we're gonna try and solve this for you.
I've known people who fish around for hours on end,
trying to get those cables out of the frame,
and just no luck at all.
Park Tool even make a special tool for this, the IR-1 tool.
Personally, I use this.
It's an old brake cable, outer brake cable even,
that I've expanded.
So I've sort of unravelled it a little bit,
and then I pick out the cables that way.
Hopefully that will solve your problem.
If not, Si Richardson, he's here again.
He's been very busy this episode.
And he's got some hacks for you
on how to get those cables out.
- Firstly then, the inner cable sheath.
Now you can likely pick these up
from your local bike shop.
And it is basically a little plastic tube
that is just bigger in diameter
than your inner cable.
And so with that in mind, you see that you can thread it
over your cable, and then
through the internal part of the frame,
before it pops out the other end.
Then, leaving that in place,
you can then remove the cable.
But then that, obviously, will be the guide for the new one.
- Well I hope that you enjoyed
today's mechanical special Ask GCN Anything.
Remember to leave your questions for us
in the comments down below,
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using the hashtag TORQUEBACK.
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