Roadie Newbie

[Harryburgundy]

Boy...I'm going to have a lot of questions for you

Just a bought a road bike, last time I had one was 35 years ago :shock: so I am a bit in the dark.

Q number 1. How on earth do you centre Campagnolo Record side pull brakes (circa 199 Edit: Just seen the grubs screws which presumably adjust the spring tension.

2. Any particular bar tape to recommend...easy job?

3. The 8sp rear cassette I removed this morning seems basic...heavy steel cogs. When I popped into my LBS to see if he had any new ones and I explained what I had he said...yes, thats what you will get. Are there not lighter ones?

Sorry, real schoolboy questions

Cheers
Carl

 

[kaiser]

1. Best way to centre road brakes is to slacken the holding bolt grab the lever then tighten the bolt again.
2.The park tools guide to bar tape is probably the best there is.Tape wise whatever suits colourwise IMO, though the spesh and fizik stuff are comfy.
3.Steels fine from a wear aspect, you can get lighter but compromise longevity. If it was something you wanted to tackle maybe a marchisio cassette would be lighter. IMO alloy should be for racing only.

 

[Lysander]

For bar tape, I've gone back to good old plain Bike Ribbon Pro.....I prefer it to the puffy cork stuff

http://www.ukbikestore.co.uk/product/50 ... -tape.html

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Mode ... elID=27993

 

[hamster]

I'd agree on the steel cogs - trick Alu ones get torn to bits on no time, probably because you spend more time out of the saddle.

 

[David B]

3.Steels fine from a wear aspect, you can get lighter but compromise longevity. If it was something you wanted to tackle maybe a marchisio cassette would be lighter. IMO alloy should be for racing only.

SRAM make good steel road cassettes (the PG850); lots of machining/drilling to make the sprockets light, plus they are mounted on a "spider" style of carrier which reduces the amount of material further so cuts the overall weight down. 20 quid from Chain Reaction at present, so not too heavy on the wallet either.

David

 

[Harryburgundy]

Thanks chaps,
Stripping and cleaning.
I'll make do with the cassette I have then...seems nearly new.
Campag Record Crankset (circa 9 missing the extra long chainring bolt and spacer that goes behind the arm :x
Another newbie Q...why do the shoes have the little tabs under them?

 

[David B]

Thanks chaps,
Stripping and cleaning.
I'll make do with the cassette I have then...seems nearly new.
Campag Record Crankset (circa 9 missing the extra long chainring bolt and spacer that goes behind the arm :x
Another newbie Q...why do the shoes have the little tabs under them?

Hmm....if you're on Campag kit throughout, ignore what I said about the SRAM cassette as it wouldn't be compatible with your set-up. But Miche and BBB both still make Campag 8-speed cassettes if you do need a replacement some time soon.
Tabs on the shoes? If you mean brake shoes, I think it's just a device to help centre the wheels, put there for to aid pro mechanics when needing to change a wheel in a hurry (the thinking is that you just drop the wheel in the fork ends and fiddling about is kept to a minimum).

David

 

[Old Ned]

Thanks chaps,
Stripping and cleaning.
I'll make do with the cassette I have then...seems nearly new.
Campag Record Crankset (circa 9 missing the extra long chainring bolt and spacer that goes behind the arm :x
Another newbie Q...why do the shoes have the little tabs under them?

I think it's just a device to help centre the wheels, put there for to aid pro mechanics when needing to change a wheel in a hurry (the thinking is that you just drop the wheel in the fork ends and fiddling about is kept to a minimum).

David

Absolutely correct but they're totally unfunctional when actually braking. Light weight fanatics would remove them.

 

[dbmtb]

Boy...I'm going to have a lot of questions for you

Just a bought a road bike, last time I had one was 35 years ago :shock: so I am a bit in the dark.

Q number 1. How on earth do you centre Campagnolo Record side pull brakes (circa 199 Edit: Just seen the grubs screws which presumably adjust the spring tension.

2. Any particular bar tape to recommend...easy job?

3. The 8sp rear cassette I removed this morning seems basic...heavy steel cogs. When I popped into my LBS to see if he had any new ones and I explained what I had he said...yes, thats what you will get. Are there not lighter ones?

1) Correct. You can also just push them into place
2) Bar tape - easy when you've tried it lots of times. Not so if you haven't. Work outside in - and wrap outwards. Area round brake levers can be tricky and can't explain it without diagrams. Many good bar tapes to choose from. Personal favorite still Cinelli Cork - but it's easy to pull it too tight and split it.Otherwise Deda, Fizik and Specialized also good.
3) No. Campag made some in Ti but price was always outrageous. Not been in production since 96 IIRC. TA made some alloy ones too but they never caught on for reasons already mentioned. Marchisio... never widely available.

 

[dbmtb]

Campag Record Crankset (circa 9 missing the extra long chainring bolt and spacer that goes behind the arm :x

Bolt you are talking about is still available as a spare - buy the original. Nothing else will do. It's used on modern chainsets too.