Ask the experts

[Gunder]

- I checked the old chain and with the park tool CC-3 I couldn't see even 0.75% wear. Now I know 12 speed chains can be bad at 0.5% wear so I put a new chain on anyway.

- Brand new cable and housing, and to be sure I checked for any kinks/pressure on the housing which I guess can be an issue with my frame. Nothing out of the ordinary.

- B screw had backed out some (even with thread locker on it).....so I corrected it and shifting did not improve. I know 12spd XT very sensitive to B screw adjustment.

- I opened the rear mech clutch to see if dirty/rusted/etc. Pretty much looks brand new. Moves smoothly. No sticky feeling. Clutch turned off the shifting is better, but not suddenly amazing. Clutch adjusted to various tensions and shifting still sucks.

- Hanger "looks" straight but maybe it's not? Mech does have battle wounds on it from a couple rock hits.

- Shifter going bad? As I said in a post earlier I did have an XT shifter go bad on me. Little spring would break inside and cause weird shifting. I guess this was a thing, but Shimano fixed it. Shifter is from late 2021.

Doubtful it’s the shifter if it’s that new.

If the shifts are consistently bad across the entire range then it’s most likely b screw and or cable tension is incorrect ( provided you have the right length chain). If it’s shifting bad in a part of the range then it’s most likely the hanger is out of alignment. With hangers only being $20 or so I never check them anymore. I just replace with a new one and test if I suspect it.

One last thing make sure the front ring is securely bolted on. If it’s loose it could causes issues as well.


New chain ring. Notice his thick the leading web us here.


Highly worn chain ring. Notice how thin the same web is.


Highly worn cassette

[Whiteroom_Guardian]

Shifts across the range weird, not just in one part of the range. The fact that is takes so much thumb force to shift maybe I did somehow botch the new cable and housing? I've tried fiddling with the cable tension and it's almost like adjusting at the mech and/or doing barrel adjustments really doesn't do much.

I guess I'll just try new cable/housing and UDH.

My bikes are never wall hanger dentist specials. I never heli tape them. They get fucking beat to shit......but I like em to actually shift.

[Gunder]

Shifts across the range weird, not just in one part of the range. The fact that is takes so much thumb force to shift maybe I did somehow botch the new cable and housing? I've tried fiddling with the cable tension and it's almost like adjusting at the mech and/or doing barrel adjustments really doesn't do much.

I guess I'll just try new cable/housing and UDH.

My bikes are never wall hanger dentist specials. I never heli tape them. They get fucking beat to shit......but I like em to actually shift.

Sounds like the housing is bad or it’s pinched somewhere

[east or bust]

38 grip 2 tuning... going on 3rd season with this fork. The first year I ran it way to stiff and it beat me up. Last year was pretty good but I want to do some more tinkering to see if I can really get it dialed.

I'm probably about 155lbs fully kitted.

2022 settings:
PSI: 80
LSR: 5
HSR: 4
LSC: 9
HSC: 7
Volume spacers: 1

My plan is to keep the PSI the same, remove the last volume spacer, keep HSC fully open (for some reason my fork only has 7 clicks), open on LSC a bit, keep LSR the same, and open up HSR a bit.

This is where I'll start:
PSI: 80
LSR: 5
HSR: 6
LSC: 12
HSC: 7
VS: 0

Does anybody see any red flags here?

[joetron]

Shifts across the range weird, not just in one part of the range. The fact that is takes so much thumb force to shift maybe I did somehow botch the new cable and housing? I've tried fiddling with the cable tension and it's almost like adjusting at the mech and/or doing barrel adjustments really doesn't do much.

I guess I'll just try new cable/housing and UDH.

My bikes are never wall hanger dentist specials. I never heli tape them. They get fucking beat to shit......but I like em to actually shift.

Post a picture of your derailleur. You say it has battle scratches? Given all the shit you’ve checked and gone through and it’s still behaving weird, I’d replace that thing if there are good sized scrapes on the outside of the parallelogram
Didn’t you just do cable and housing? Is your hanger aligned?


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[Cocximus]

Yes you can put a metal jar lid in the microwave. It needs sharp edges to spark and heat up. Flat aluminum foil is fine. Crinkled aluminum foil will be a show. My microwave comes with a metal rack.

[J. Barron DeJong]

Yes you can put a metal jar lid in the microwave. It needs sharp edges to spark and heat up. Flat aluminum foil is fine. Crinkled aluminum foil will be a show. My microwave comes with a metal rack.

Didn’t believe you, but I guess we have microwave experts here too:


https://www.lakeland.co.uk/inspirati...rite%20dishes.


Stay safe with metal
Yes, metal is safe to be used in the microwave(hallelujah!) and can massively improve our microwaving experience, but that doesn’t mean we can start chucking all our metal utensils in willy-nilly.
The main concern people have when using metal in the microwave is sparks, so the question is, what causes sparks to fly in the microwave? The answer is shape. Thin and jagged edges can cause a build-up of electromagnetic energy, causing sparks and, in severe cases, fire. This can easily be avoided by only using smooth tin foil, as wrinkled foil has those pesky jagged edges, which is why you can safely use a spoon in the microwave, but not a fork.
Flat and thick sheets of metal, like the silicone-edged plates in the Lékué grill, are safe too, as they don’t create a build-up of electromagnetic energy.

[bagtagley]

WRG, my Gnarvana doesn’t shift right, never has. Goes away when I put on the Smash stays. Lent the Gnarvana stays to a buddy and he had the same issue. The hanger is straight. Not sure what the deal is. I can get it close enough that it doesn’t really bother me.


Just a thought.

[Vt-Freeheel]

I have a list of people who should stay on the MTBR Forums, mindless arguing is the norm or was when I used to read the forums in the 90s

[rideit]

Wow, my pre-conceived microwave notions have just been shattered. That's good, practical info, thanks.
(Full disclosure: I still won't on purpose )

[joetron]

38 grip 2 tuning... going on 3rd season with this fork. The first year I ran it way to stiff and it beat me up. Last year was pretty good but I want to do some more tinkering to see if I can really get it dialed.

I'm probably about 155lbs fully kitted.

2022 settings:
PSI: 80
LSR: 5
HSR: 4
LSC: 9
HSC: 7
Volume spacers: 1

My plan is to keep the PSI the same, remove the last volume spacer, keep HSC fully open (for some reason my fork only has 7 clicks), open on LSC a bit, keep LSR the same, and open up HSR a bit.

This is where I'll start:
PSI: 80
LSR: 5
HSR: 6
LSC: 12
HSC: 7
VS: 0

Does anybody see any red flags here?

These are clicks from closed?
I might try closing down LSR some more. Go 2 or 3 clicks from closed. Thats a lot of spring energy to control deep in the travel. If it’s returning fast you’re gonna feel it.


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[Lvovsky]

Anyone use egg beaters on their road bike? There is just enough of a difference in the cleat position on my road/mountain bikes to be annoying. Plus I like my mtb shoes better than my road shoes.

I have Crankbrothers Candy 1 on the road bike. Flat pedals on mnt.

[XXX-er]

It probably takes me an extra 3 minutes each time I lube my chain vs. using a drip lube. Except I’m doing it less often, I virtually never clean my chain (but when I do, it’s way, way quicker and easier), and my drivetrains are lasting forever.

(And let’s be honest, I’d be wasting time posting on here regardless.)

yabut you said taking a chain off dipping it in wax and putting it back on the bike is faster than not taking the chain off to do the hot wax and then putting the chain back on the bike

so now you say that was hyperbole ( AKA lying ) and you now wish to change your original statement,

becuz now it takes an extra 3 minutes

which probably mean an extra 20minutes

[jamal]

Yeah kinda takes me most of a day to wax a chain

fire up crock pot

wander off for awhile

wipe off, remove, clean off chain

hang to dry

go do something else

put chain in crock pot at some point

wander off

hang up chain to dry

finally reinstall chain hours later

which reminds me that i need to re-wax like 2-3 chains at some point soon.

[joetron]

Yeah kinda takes me most of a day to wax a chain

fire up crock pot

wander off for awhile

wipe off, remove, clean off chain

hang to dry

go do something else

put chain in crock pot at some point

wander off

hang up chain to dry

finally reinstall chain hours later

which reminds me that i need to re-wax like 2-3 chains at some point soon.

Waxing chains presents exciting multi-tasking opportunities!


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[rideit]

“I can’t go out with you tonight, John, I have to wash my hair. Sorry!”

[J. Barron DeJong]

yabut you said taking a chain off dipping it in wax and putting it back on the bike is faster than not taking the chain off to do the hot wax and then putting the chain back on the bike

so now you say that was hyperbole ( AKA lying ) and you now wish to change your original statement,

becuz now it takes an extra 3 minutes

which probably mean an extra 20minutes

I’m pretty confident I didn’t straight up lie anywhere, and don’t believe I’ve even used hyperbole.

I find it amusing that the people who haven’t tried hot waxing are very adamant that it must take boatloads of effort, while everyone who’s actually tried it is like ‘yeah, it’s pretty simple’, but you assume we’re just lying. Like, it really is quite simple, and it really does only take a few minutes of active time to do each time.

Regarding overall time savings:

For any given time I go to wax my chain, I’m probably spending about 3 more minutes actively doing something vs. if I just dripped on some lube instead.

But, I don’t need to wax my chain as often as I’d need to drip on lube to keep it running with low wear, so that’s some time savings.

And I barely ever need to clean the chain to keep it free of contamination, so that’s some time savings.

And if I do need to clean the chain (only after riding in the wet, which is rare for me) I just swish it around in hot water for 90 seconds total, which is much quicker than any other cleaning method, so that’s some time savings.

Added up, it’s less time overall to keep the chain running in an efficient/low wear condition vs. drip lube, for my riding, in my conditions.

And just for some context, I’m not a guy who keeps his bike spotless or anything. I’ve literally never washed my current mountain bike in the three years I’ve had it. But I will put in the effort to make sure I’m not replacing chains and cassettes unnecessarily.

If all you ever do is drip on some lube and never clean your chain it will absolutely be less time consuming. But the lifespan of your chain and cassette will also decrease drastically - not just a few percent. It can easily be only a small fraction of the lifespan compared to a hot waxed chain.

[J. Barron DeJong]

Everyone here is aware chains have quick links, right?

[buttahflake]

Dick Punch

[Gunder]

The quickest and best way I’ve found to clean a chain, cassette and sprockets is to just dump it all in an ultrasonic cleaner with some Dawn professional soap and water. 15-30 minutes later it will all look like new

I’m not a fan of the chain wax dip at all. Tried it and will never do it again. Imop there is way better lube options but I don’t give a rats ass to go down that rabbit hole.

[Andeh]

How big is that ultrasonic Gunder? 6L? I was actually just thinking about getting one yesterday. I know you can get away with like a 0.5L one for just a chain, but I figured why not get something big enough to clean a cassette too?

[J. Barron DeJong]

The quickest and best way I’ve found to clean a chain, cassette and sprockets is to just dump it all in an ultrasonic cleaner with some Dawn professional soap and water. 15-30 minutes later it will all look like new

I’m not a fan of the chain wax dip at all. Tried it and will never do it again. Imop there is way better lube options but I don’t give a rats ass to go down that rabbit hole.

You use Boeshield, right?

What dip wax formula did you try?

[hick]

The quickest and best way I’ve found to clean a chain, cassette and sprockets is to just dump it all in an ultrasonic cleaner with some Dawn professional soap and water. 15-30 minutes later it will all look like new

I’m not a fan of the chain wax dip at all. Tried it and will never do it again. Imop there is way better lube options but I don’t give a rats ass to go down that rabbit hole.

Fucking Gunder blowing this chain cleaning talk out of the water with a pic of his ultrasonic cleaner!!🤣 love it!!


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[Whiteroom_Guardian]

Seems like a good price.

https://www.amazon.com/Tek-Motion-Pr...540723&sr=8-13

[Gunder]

You use Boeshield, right?

What dip wax formula did you try?

I do use Boeshield. Buy it by the gallon as I also use it a lot with my machine tools.

I tested the Wend wax system. It was horrible. I like a thin liquid lube that will actually penetrate between the rollers and the pins they dries like a wax and that’s Boesheild for me.