I had a bit of time available to work on bikes this weekend so I did a few chores.
The Oiz came with a 160 mm rear brake rotor and 180 mm rotor in the front. I stupidly ordered two 180s with new pads before the Arch ride because I only checked the front. Finally got around to installing the 160 mm one I ordered later. In doing so, and trying to figure out why the new XT rotors looked so different (I was noticing the “Freeza” design), I found out the original came with SLX (RT70-S) rotors, which was not specified anywhere as a swap when I bought it. When you read “XT brakes” you tend to assume all-XT! Maybe it was a Covid related substitution, maybe a sneaky way to save on OEM spec*. Whatevs, the brakes had been working fine. The SLX rotors are also labeled “Icetech”, which is Shimano’s steel/aluminum sandwich used in their upper end groupsets, so maybe this is why I’ve never experienced any sort of brake fade with this bike. More likely it is that I am just not too demanding of my brakes. I bedded in the rotor, after forgetting to clean the rotor or the recently installed pads with alcohol. It was nevertheless a smooth process, no squeaking or other dramatics.
I’m finally getting around to cockpit adjustments for the new road bike. I ordered up, and installed, a cheap (and mismatching silver/al) 120mm Ritchey to replace the 100mm it came with. Will be interested in the feel since I’m a bit cramped when descending in the drops with the 100mm stem. I may need to raise the brake levers slightly back up the bars to move reach to the hooks backward a bit, since it is pretty good with the 100 mm stem. The new one has a 6 degree upward angle and the original one was 7 degrees. This works out to very minimal change in bar height so I may be looking to swap over the riser bar from the old road bike at some point.
The hardtail had been neglected after a wet ride a few months ago. The chain got a little stiff and my ministrations with triflow were not sufficient to completely free up all of the links. My bad. So on went a new 9 speed HG-93 (XT level) chain. Naturally I had to use a SRAM quicklink, since Shimano was using the breakaway replacement pins back then. Those are not very convenient and I’ve been using SRAM links for a long looong time on my 9 sp drivetrains**. While it was on the stand I checked the sealant. Still a lot of Stan’s left in the newish Ardents, but looked dirty so I replaced it. Starting to get the impression that the Delium tires are leakier than Maxxis products. I took the hardtail out for a ride and as per usual am still convinced the 3×9 XT is the pinnacle of MTB drivetrains.
I had noticed a rear flat on the road tire of the Frankencrosser which was preventing me from using it on my commute. Fixed a hole, it flatted again. Put it off for a day and went back to it. Second hole fixed, reinstalled, 10 min then…psst. This time it was my poor patch job. Opted for replacement tube.
Noticed the beach cruiser has a flat front tire after some nighttime activities. Could not find the hole right away and nothing in the tire. Hmm. New tube time. Seems like the first time I have had this wheel off in the decade I’ve owned it. Pretty good luck there!
*The bike came spec’d with a SLX level chain. That was made clear. I’ve been using XT replacements but at $33 versus $49 maybe I should be using the SLX ones. There was also an aluminum handle bar installed instead of the carbon one that was specified. This latter no doubt falls under their spec caveat that changes may be made.
**As I recall I also just went ahead and used SRAM chains on my Shimano drivetrains most of the time. They tended to be cheaper, had the quick link full approval and seemed to shift just fine.
Sun Dappled Forest 