A sure sign of Fall:  I nearly flattened a squirrel on my ride in to work this morning.  Squirrels have this infuriating habit of darting in front of you and suddenly reversing direction just when you least expect it.  I also had to brake for some deer in the park.  Good times.

Did some more work on the Rockhopper yesterday evening.  I cut the fork steerer down to size, installed the star nut, and put the headset together.  To cut the steerer, I started the cut with a tubing cutter, and finished it with a hacksaw.  The notch left by the tubing cutter helped guide the saw, and I also put a couple of hose clamps on either side of the cut.  The result was a pretty straight cut, which is saying something, because I’m really, really bad at making good cuts with a hand saw.  After cutting, I used a file to clean up the rough edges, and proceeded to attempt to install the star nut.  The first attempt went badly.  I threaded the bolt in a few turns, and used a mallet to bang the nut into the steerer.  It went in really crooked, and I couldn’t get it straightened out, so I decided to start over.  I scrounged up a 15″ length of old ground rod, and used it to bang the nut the rest of the way through the steerer until it came out the bottom of the fork crown.  Then I hit the Internet for ideas for how I might do this without a special tool.  I came up with the following, adapted from an old post I found on mtbr.com:

Start with a 11/16″ socket, or whatever size will fit inside the steerer tube with a little bit of clearance.  The longer the socket, the better.  Drop a small washer through the end of the socket, so it sits against the square hole where the driver normally goes.  Then, drop the star nut’s bolt through the washer so that it sticks out the square hole.  Add a few washers as spacers, and then thread the star nut tightly onto the bolt.  You want enough washers to keep the star nut’s prongs from touching the socket.  Then, drive the star nut into the steerer tube by tapping on the socket with a rubber mallet.  Hold the socket securely to keep the nut straight until the socket enters the tube.  Drive the nut into the tube around 1″ (2cm).

Using this method, I was able to get the nut into the steerer tube perfectly straight.  With that done, I was able to install the fork and stem.  Now I just need a new chain and some tubes, and I can put the bike together and see how it rides.

I ordered a new front fork for my ’93 Specialized Rockhopper last week and it arrived yesterday, so the next step of the rebuild was to drive the headset bearing ring onto the fork crown race.  I used a length of 1-1/4″ PVC as a driver.  I needed to ream out a bit of the inside of the pipe to get it to fit over the bearing ring.  I did this with a pipe reamer and a circular file.  Then, I greased the fork crown, set the fork on the edge of a 2×4, slipped the PVC over the steerer, and attempted to drive the bearing ring onto the crown.  Initially, I was unsuccessful..  the ring wouldn’t go on straight, and I couldn’t get it started.  Eventually I gave up for the night.  Before I went to bed, I stuck the fork in the freezer.  The next day I took the fork out, and heated the bearing ring up with a heat gun, and tried again.  This did the trick.  The heat expanded the ring just enough to make it seat on the cold fork crown.

There’s definitely something to be said for using the correct tools for the job.  I’m sure a bearing ring setting tool would have gotten the job done without any fuss.

Next step is to pick up a stem and some spacers.  Then I can test-fit things together and see where I’ll need to cut the steerer tube.  Getting closer!

This time of year always reminds me of that old Rod Stewart song.  I really should be back in school.

Steady drizzle for my ride to work this morning.  Whenever it rains this time of year, it’s always awkward figuring out what to wear.  The temperature this morning was in the mid 60s, which is too warm for a jacket.  I just end up sweating underneath it, which kind of negates its purpose of keeping me dry.  Shoe covers are another story; if it’s raining, they keep my feet dry in any temperature.  But to be effective, I need to wear rain pants to wick water over the tops of the shoe covers.  But the pants make my legs sweat more, and they’re more effective when used with a jacket, because the jacket covers my waist line and keeps water from seeping in through the waist band.  Today I ended up skipping the jacket and just going for a long sleeve jersey, hi-vis vest, rain paints, and shoe covers.  It wasn’t perfect, but it worked out.  We just need to get those morning temperatures down into the 40s, and then there won’t be any question how to dress for the rain.  🙂

The rebuild of my old Specialized Rockhopper continues.  Last week I stopped by my local Performance bike shop, and picked up a Cane Creek 1-1/8″ threadless headset for a little under $25.  It’s a perfect fit for the bike’s head tube.  This morning I pressed the headset cups into the frame, using the nut-and-bolt technique described at http://davesbikeblog.blogspot.com/2007/06/headset-removal-and-replacement.html.  I went to Home Depot and picked up a 5/8″ by 7″ hex head bolt, 5/8″ nut, 4 3/4″ flat washers (outside diameter 2″), and 2 5/8″ flat washers (outside diameter 1.5″).  7″ turned out to be the perfect length for the bolt, and the washers had to be at least 2″ O.D. to fit over the headset cups.  Be sure to get a bolt that’s threaded along its entire length — a lot of the bolts I saw at Home Depot only had about an inch of threading.

Pressing the headset cups into the frame wasn’t all that hard, but it wasn’t completely straightforward either.  I greased the cups and the inside of the head tube, and the top cup went in fairly easily.  The bottom cup went in a little crooked initially, started to bind, and I had to tap it back out a bit to get it straight.  I was then able to get it to fully seat.  No damage done, but if I were to do this again, I’d go a little more slowly and make sure the cup was straight the first time.

When doing this, it’s important not to use too much force when tightening the nut.  If the headset cup doesn’t seem to want to fully seat, back the nut off and make sure the cup is going in straight.  Don’t overtighten the nut or you risk damaging the cup or the frame.

Next up, I need to get a new fork, stem and spacers.  The Surly 1×1 looks like a good, solid fork for not a whole lot of money, so I think I’m going to go with that.

My first “good” bike was a ’93 Specialized Rockhopper, which saw lots of mountain biking action in the ’90s, but has been largely neglected ever since.  It has an old front suspension fork with a blown seal.  I’ve decided to fix the bike up and use it for winter commuting, and maybe some occasional single track.  I think with a little TLC, it’ll make a great third commuter bike.  The initial plan is to install a rigid front fork with threadless headset and stem, then possibly convert it to single speed.  I’ll also swap out the cantilever brakes for v-brakes, and replace the brake levers.  Among other things, the bike will need new tires, tubes, brake cables, and pedals.

I started out by removing the front fork and headset cups. The bike has a 1-1/8″ steerer tube.  Following instructions I found at http://davesbikeblog.blogspot.com/2007/06/headset-removal-and-replacement.html, I fashioned a cup removal tool out of 3/4″ copper pipe I had lying around.  1″ would have been a better fit, but I didn’t have any on hand.  With a little care, I was able to pop the headset cups out of the frame without too much trouble.  I put the frame in a repair stand, braced the head tube against my work bench (padded with a towel), inserted the makeshift removal tool in the tube, and pounded the cup out with a ball-peen hammer.  The frame is now ready for a new headset and fork.

Next step is to pick up a new threadless headset, and make sure it fits the frame.  I’ll buy the headset locally, so I can return it if it doesn’t fit.  Then I’ll buy a new fork and stem and put everything together.  I’m considering a Surly 1×1 fork.  Stay tuned.

I slogged up Ilchester Rd. again today.  It went a little more smoothly than last time.  Hill-climbing rule no. 1:  If you know you’re going to need the granny gear, shift into it while still seated, before it gets too hard to pedal.  If you wait ’till you’re standing up, your derailleur will pick that moment to dump the chain, and you’ll either fall off the bike, or nearly fall off the bike, looking really stupid in either case.

Ilchester Rd. is one of 3 hills in my area (along with Gun Rd. and College Ave.) that are so steep, that it feels like the front wheel is going to pop off the ground if I don’t lean forward to weight it.   It would probably help if I wasn’t riding with loaded panniers.  I’m trying to do Ilchester around once a week now.  I go up Ilchester, then right on Beechwood, and right on Bonnie Branch, back to the starting point.  It’s a nice loop that extends my morning ride while keeping me out of school traffic.  The initial goal is to be able to get up Ilchester in the granny without feeling winded.  Then we’ll see where it goes from there.