Cycling UK Forum

I've got a 4 year old pair Shimano sandals, where the outer layer of the uppers around the toe section on both sandals is beginning to crack and look like it will merrily fall apart somewhere out in the midst of nowhere. (All my own silly fault, stored too close to radiator over the winter.) The rest of the lightly-used sandals - perfectly fine.

No problem, I thought, fix that with duck tape ...

... only duck tape won't stick to the outers at all.

Can it be possible - is this finally something duck tape won't fix?

Slighly more seriously - if duck tape won't fix it, is there anything that will?

Thank you every one for the helpful advice: can't tell you how grateful I am to have some orientation on where to start.

I tried syklist's idea about the cable first - thanks for forewarning me about the cable fussiness, one to keep in mind for future reassurance.

Happy to report there was indeed some improvement after adjusting the cable: although it's not 100% ironed out, there's enough improvement to give me hope that it will be a matter of fractional adjustments and most importantly not losing patience with it or getting in touch with my inner klutz.

Got in from work tonight and as AndyA suggested, I checked out the adjusting rod as a rule-out - the rod was screwed in all the way and wasn't damaged. Will definitely keep that in mind as something to watch out for when I need to take the wheel out.

Thanks to pioneer too for suggesting experts: fingers crossed I won't need to bug them!

That is, in recent days it won't go from 2 (= normal) to 1 (= uphill) unless the bike is standing still.

This is my first time with the DualDrive, although I’ve had/fixed derailleur geared bikes for 20+ years. Any tips appreciated as I don't want to wade in and make things worse.

All other shifts on the Dual Drive are fine - including going from 1 back to 2 - whether the bike is freewheeling or stationary.

BUT if I try to shift from 2 into 1 when freewheeling, the gear doesn't engage, no matter how long I freewheel. When I start pedalling again, the hub gear slips - then catches - then repeats ... so I shift back into 2 on the precautionary principle.

Some background. It is a used bike but this change worked ok when I got it (and the bike had the usual worry-wort checkover first). There are no untoward grinding or metal-on-metal tinkling noises coming from the hub, freewheeling or pedalling, and nothing that feels wrong coming through the pedalling action.

At the handlebar end is a SRAM Rapidfire shifter that works without delays or catches. There are no visible kinks in the outer cable anywhere along the run.

At the hub end, the Clickbox gubbins is hooked up fine with the shifting rod. The cable indicator needle is lined up correctly in the Clickbox between the indicator lines, though to my derailleur-habituated eye there appears to be a LOT of slack when the gear shifter is in 1 - although I happily grant that I could be judging by the wrong criteria on this.

The SRAM manual/instructions are reasonably clear but not much help, I’ve found, in deciding between the differential diagnoses, which are:

The slack in the cable is excessive despite the indicator alignment

The cable is old and tired, just like its owner.

The shifting rod is screwed in the wrong amount one way or tother

Something Expensive inside the hub has just gone Horribly Wrong.


Grateful for any thoughts before I start infinitesimally tweaking tiny amounts of cable or squaring up to the Clickbox as a prelude to a fit of blind rage/big hammer ...

Thanks!

gsdavies wrote:Thanks for the suggestions - I know the Peldon Rose, great beer and I'd forgot that it was there

I hadn't thought about the Dengie either. Probably flat as a pancake and an easy ride.

GD

There's a teeny-tiny bulge in the middle of it, IIRC. It's also justifiably popular with motorbikers coming from a cafe in South Woodham Ferrers to sample its apparently famous 13 Bends - must be the road up to Bradwell.

And yes, it's was lovely when I went down/across/through it to visit the remains of the Roman fort at the end one weekend in the summer - and very popular, what with Southend Victoria CC having a race there. This would be at 9 am. But it was also incredibly dangerous - and not from the motorbikers, who were perfectly charming.

I was warned by two locals (on their bikes) who were flabbergasted that (a) there were lots of other people on bikes who weren't local and (b) we were out so very dangerously late, as the local boy racers were known for trying to drive you into the hedge. Once they got up, that is.

As a hardened London commuter of 25 years I thanked them politely and moved on, but I would just like to say they'd under-played the danger. After 10 am and off the Southend marshalled course, I lost count of the number of cars/vans that did, quite deliberately, try to drive me off the road and into the hedges, with one van doubling back and making several passes getting closer and faster each time. (Long story short: no, cops not interested). I think it's the only time I've ever been truly afraid on the bike, and that includes the time I bumbled into rush hour traffic in Paris and was chased by dogs in Portugal.

IIRC later during the summer a cyclist was found lying on the side of the road after a fatal accident on the road that runs North-to-South at the end of the peninsula.

Only way you'd get me back down there is in a Chieftain Tank with live ammo. The awful thing is, it's a lovely place and I hate giving in, or suggesting that other people don't even try. Is there anybody around from Southend Victoria CC who can offer a different view or who has more experience of the area?