Grime TIME
Your questions answered
Up the creak
Q I've been making the most of the sun and getting out most evenings and putting the miles in on the weekend too. While I love not having to clean my bike after each ride, the fast, bumpy trails seem to be taking their toll and have left it with some irritating creaks. How do I get rid of them? Adam Morgan, via email
A While good weather means you don’t need to painstakingly scrub mud out of your bike’s every nook and cranny, you do still need to pay attention to the dust getting into them – and this is more than likely the source of some of those annoying noises. We’d start by giving the bike a really thorough wash. Gently hose off all the dust and then, with a clean rag, give it a buffing, concentrating on areas where lubricant is used (grease in the headset, BB and suspension pivots; lube on the chain and mech, etc).
If you’re a confident mechanic, it’s worth dropping the fork out of the frame and inspecting the headset. Pop the cups and bearings out, give them a clean and then regrease them before putting it all back together. Do the same with the BB. It’s a good idea to check all the pivots for wear and tear too, and ensure they’re tightened to the manufacturer’s specified torque setting. If there’s play in any of them, it could be time for a bearing swap.
Chainring bolts are another common cause of noise, so make sure they’re clean and tightened correctly. The same goes for stem bolts. Doing these things one at a time should help you narrow down where the noises are coming from. If, after all of this, things still aren’t quite right, get down to your local bike shop and let the experts take a look.
Clipping hell
Q I’m relatively new to clipless pedals and, although I get on with them for the most part, I struggle to clip out when my cranks
are in certain positions. The toe of my shoe hits the crank arm and I can’t twist my foot enough to get out of the pedal. How can I fix this? Steven Ashelworth, via email
A It may not be possible to eradicate this problem, but you should be able to lessen it with some smart cleat set-up, providing your cleats offer some form of lateral adjustment (ie. you can slide them from side to side on the bottom of the shoes). Start by marking your current cleat position, then loosen off the cleat bolts slightly. To widen your stance on the bike and give the front of the shoe more clearance as you twist your foot to unclip, slide the cleat over to the inside of the shoe. Tighten the cleat bolts back up, sit on the bike and try clipping in and out. You should now have a bit more room between your shoe and the crank arm, which will help when trying to unclip.
What’s the point?
Q I’ve noticed that some riders push their saddle forward and point the nose down. Why do they do this, and should I be doing it too?
Edward Staines, via email
A The more extreme positioning you mention shifts the rider’s weight forward and sits them over the BB, giving a more efficient seated climbing position, particularly on bikes with slack seat angles. It can make the cockpit feel cramped on shorter bikes, though, and makes pedalling less efficient on flatter trails. The important thing to remember with saddle position is that you should do what works best for you.