Comments on: MacGuyver bike tricks http://www.singletracks.com/blog/mtb-gear/macguyver-bike-tricks/ Mountain bike news, trails, travels, and dirt. Tue, 14 Feb 2012 01:39:34 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 By: jjonas http://www.singletracks.com/blog/mtb-gear/macguyver-bike-tricks/comment-page-1/#comment-16 jjonas Wed, 21 Feb 2007 17:04:14 +0000 http://www.singletracks.com/blog/?p=105#comment-16 What I've broken (or had to help fix) on the trail: 1. Seat bolt This happened to a friend on the Monarch Crest Trail. We were about half way down the trail and his seat came off. There was no way to fix the snapped bolt so we tried taping it back on with medical tape with no luck. The best option was for him to stand and hammer with the seat and seatpost completely off. 2. rear derailleur I've had to deal with this a couple of times due to different equipment failures. The first one was at the Book Cliffs in Fruita. We attempted to do the Edge Loop but got so stuck in the mud way up on the mountain that we had to turn around within a couple of miles of the downhill. We went back down the muddy road and when we wrapped back around to the Frontside trail, all the mud had solidified and my chain started binding. It didn't take long (well before the steep uphill to reach Zippity) for my rear derailleur to snap in two at one of the pivot points. I took off the derailleur and chain, lowered my seat, and pushed while sitting or jumped off and ran the bike up steep hills. All in all, it took much less time to cover the remaining 5 miles than I expected. The other time I lost the rear derailleur was on the Colorado Trail from Kenosha to Georgia Pass. We were on the climb up to Georgia Pass when one of the pivot pins fell out of the derailleur AND one of the pulleys snapped in two. It took a while to find the pin but I still only had one pulley. I decided to try and turn it into a singlespeed by shortening the chain, putting the good pulley in the upper position, 2nd chain ring, and middle cog in the rear. I figured it was worth a try...Surprisingly, it lasted not only for that ride but I rode it as a singlespeed for 4 months after that! I had a blast with the singlespeed! 3. Spokes Usually I just unscrew them and put them in my pack. Coming down one of the 14ers here in CO, I popped 3 spokes and snapped the front axel bolt. 4. Front axel The tube that the QR goes through snapped in two. I was initially nervous about continuing but I adjusted the QR so that it had the correct pressure on the bearings and it lasted for a few more rides until I could get a replacement. 5. Blown front shock seal This happened on an epic 50-mile ride with nearly 10K of climbing and we were only 5 miles into the ride! After so much planning, I wasn't about to turn around for a blown air shock. I started by pumping it up every 15 minutes or so until that got old and after that I just rode it lightly. Downhills were interesting but doable. What I’ve broken (or had to help fix) on the trail:

1. Seat bolt

This happened to a friend on the Monarch Crest Trail. We were about half way down the trail and his seat came off. There was no way to fix the snapped bolt so we tried taping it back on with medical tape with no luck. The best option was for him to stand and hammer with the seat and seatpost completely off.

2. rear derailleur

I’ve had to deal with this a couple of times due to different equipment failures. The first one was at the Book Cliffs in Fruita. We attempted to do the Edge Loop but got so stuck in the mud way up on the mountain that we had to turn around within a couple of miles of the downhill. We went back down the muddy road and when we wrapped back around to the Frontside trail, all the mud had solidified and my chain started binding. It didn’t take long (well before the steep uphill to reach Zippity) for my rear derailleur to snap in two at one of the pivot points. I took off the derailleur and chain, lowered my seat, and pushed while sitting or jumped off and ran the bike up steep hills. All in all, it took much less time to cover the remaining 5 miles than I expected.

The other time I lost the rear derailleur was on the Colorado Trail from Kenosha to Georgia Pass. We were on the climb up to Georgia Pass when one of the pivot pins fell out of the derailleur AND one of the pulleys snapped in two. It took a while to find the pin but I still only had one pulley. I decided to try and turn it into a singlespeed by shortening the chain, putting the good pulley in the upper position, 2nd chain ring, and middle cog in the rear. I figured it was worth a try…Surprisingly, it lasted not only for that ride but I rode it as a singlespeed for 4 months after that! I had a blast with the singlespeed!

3. Spokes

Usually I just unscrew them and put them in my pack. Coming down one of the 14ers here in CO, I popped 3 spokes and snapped the front axel bolt.

4. Front axel

The tube that the QR goes through snapped in two. I was initially nervous about continuing but I adjusted the QR so that it had the correct pressure on the bearings and it lasted for a few more rides until I could get a replacement.

5. Blown front shock seal

This happened on an epic 50-mile ride with nearly 10K of climbing and we were only 5 miles into the ride! After so much planning, I wasn’t about to turn around for a blown air shock. I started by pumping it up every 15 minutes or so until that got old and after that I just rode it lightly. Downhills were interesting but doable.

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