Spring Service, Part One
I dropped-off Yellow Bike on the way home this afternoon. It’s been two years since I bought, stripped and rebuilt it, and it’s about time it had a professional laying on of the hands.
The wheels are a little out of true, the brakes are wearing funny and won’t stay centered, and there were a bunch of other little odds and ends.
I’m also having them take another crack at the seized headset. As you may recall, the previous owner never serviced the poor thing, then locked it in a trainer for a couple of years while he dripped sweat into everything. As a result, the quill is seized to the headset.
I have hopes for it, since a couple of weeks ago when I hit a bump with it pretty hard. After that, my ride position on it felt funny. Plus the bars no longer lined up with the Portland’s when I hung it up. It took a while to figure out, but the quill had dropped about an inch into the head tube.
If it can suddenly go in further, maybe it can come out too.
So Chris at Full Moon Vista is going to have a look at it.
Once Yellow Bike comes back, the Portland will go in for its spring service. I skipped it last year since it was still new and everything seemed fine. But it’s now got 6,300 miles and two Rochester winters on it, and its starting to show.
The rear brake caliper is sticky, the bearings in both wheelsets are feeling (and sounding) rough, and the headset and bottom bracket have never been serviced. One rear wheel still needs rebuilding, and I think the RD’s pulley cage is twisted a bit.
Meanwhile, it looks awfully strange with only one bike hanging in the corner of the living room.
