So I bought a frame off of ton off of these forums (great chap to deal with, frame came packaged in a box bigger than my house), a Chumba HX2 29er, and indeed most of the components for the bike have also been bought from other folk of off these here forums. Am determined to build it up myself. LBS is great (Danny's Import Bikes if anyone happens to be passing Oberwil in NW Switzerland), and has provided many bits I couldn't get off here.

Was most nervous about pressing in new haedaset cups after reading many threads of dire warnings on here and also all over the internet. Anyway, bought one of those cheapy long bolt with a nuts, big perspex washers and a metal bar at the top of off ebay, and it was great! The bottom cup was no problem, just took it slow and kept it all lined up, but bugger me I was fiddling with the top one for a good 40 minutes, getting increasingly nervous. I tried putting the cups int eh freezer but it made no difference, tried a hammer and wood (far to scared to really ****t it!) and in the end just persevered with a surprising amount of patience for me and eventualyl it lined up and went in straight. Phew!

Just got to chop the steerer on the new forks: any advice?

Most things are within my capabilities, even though at each stage I realise that I need another tool. Anybody know any ways I can tighten the lockring on a new cassettewithout buying a special tool and a chain whip?

Cheers folks!

Kev

Measuse twice/thrice cut once. Bit of insulating tape wrapped around to give a guide line. Nice sharp hacksaw blade.

Pipe cutter for about £10 from your local plumbing or DIY store for cutting the steerer

Don't know how else you would tighten the cassette. I got a Park Tool chain whip that has a pedal spanner at the other end, so 2 tools for the price of 1 and will last forever. The cassette tool you just have to fork out for

Cassette – you only need a chainwhip to remove it. You can try a pair of pliers (needle nose) to tighten it, but it'll never go as tight as it needs to be. Just buy the tool.

Cutting steerer – I use an old stem as a guide, with forks clamped in the Workmate. You can do it with a pipe cutter. Doesn't have to be perfectly horizontal so don't get too anxious about it. 🙂

ive tightened a cassette lockring with a pair of scissors before, you dont need them particularly tight. id get it nipped up at the bike shop just to be sure though…

ps. I can't believe Ton sold that Chumba already! I bet it's in good nick 🙂

Dez, a couple of superficial paint nicks but yes, very nice & is a perfect fit for the fat, tall man that I am. Ton fair powers through the frames!

Thanks all for advice re tools and cutting. Bizarely, a workman left a very nice hacksaw in my office last week so I shall be borrowing that. Will pop to said LBS for other bits. Going to have to strip and build more bikes now to justify all these tools. 😈 Ha, it's a vicious circle of purchases and excuses to wife! 😆

A quick aside, wheels are Halo freedom 29ers, fitted with racing ralph 2.2/2.4. just finished rim tape, tubes and tire fitting last night. My christ those are big wheels! 😯 can see why they are called 'wagon wheelers'. Fookin Huge! can't wait to crash through my local forest rolling over/through everything in my path! (although recent weather = trail bog so RR tires may a somewhat unfortuate choice!)

Kev

slowrider – Member
ive tightened a cassette lockring with a pair of scissors before, you dont need them particularly tight. id get it nipped up at the bike shop just to be sure though…

40Nm is pretty tight in my book. If you can get more than about 5Nm by bodging with a pair of scissors I'm impressed. The downside to not tightening the cassette up properly tight (if you are using an alloy freehub body or especially a single cog) is that the cassette can make quite impressive gouges into the freehub.

FWIW – get a cassette lockring tool. They are really cheap and will make the kit last longer.

Leave the steerer "too" long for a while & use extra spacers/spare stem to tighten the headset – then just remove em when the stem is clamped on (to prevent serious death on crashing, I cap mine off with an old tennis ball with a cross cut into it)

Lets you get it wrong 1st time with minimal penalty and you might just change your mind about bar heigh, stem clamp depth etc in future anyway

Definitley get a lockring tool, they're dirt cheap
Unless things are jammed, an old chain can be used as a whip (nailed onto a bit of wood if you're posh)

another vote for a cassette lock ring tool, they're cheap, and you'll use it all the time, nicely done on the headset BTW, it's very satisfying doing it yourself. Another tip for cutting the steerer; I use an old stem as a guide

cassette lockring tool is also useful for Shimano style disc rotors (make sure you get one that is recessed inside, so it will fit over the cones)

Another vote for pipe cutters.

Cutting steerer – I use an old stem as a guide,

Me too. Clamp it down and saw away!

Best way to decide how much steerer you need is to assembe the headset on the bike, fit the crown race to the forks, fit forks to bike and add top of headset, and some spacers (I ALWAYS fit 25mm worth of spacers just to be sure) and then your stem. Then make sure it's all togeter nice and snug and mark the top of the stem.

Then DOUBLE CHECK you've got it all right!!!

Then remove it all and cut the steerer 3mm below the mark you just made

Job done!

That said, BEFORE you cut, measure how much steerer you'll be left with after cutting. Personally, I would never cut a steerer to less than 200mm as it makes selling the forks on at a later date soooooo much easier: More people will want them!

Glad you're enjoying the build, keep it up, and pics when you've done please

😀

You can cut a steerer pretty well with nothing more than a hacksaw. Just start a small groove all the way round then work your way round gradually, sawing a bit as you go. Eventually you'll break through the metal somewhere and you can easily finish it off from there. I've done three this way with no problems.

Used an old stem once as a guide and ended up sawing into the stem. 😳

Personally, I would never cut a steerer to less than 200mm as it makes selling the forks on at a later date soooooo much easier

That's very good advice

Excellent stuff chaps, many thanks. Was wondering about chopping the steerer and how this would affect re-sale, so good 200mm advice.

As I am particularly inept with most things DIY/mechanical, each stage of this is a personal triumph. As is going slowly, as my main mistake in these activities previously is being a little rash. 😳 you should see some of my previous shelving attempts. 🙄

not looking forward to setting up the gears very much, can't we have a system as simple as hydraulic brakes now are?

anyhoo, tonight – steerer tube cutting and disk brake fitting (and putting a cassette lockring tool into action- dez/scaredy good tips on not needing chainwhip. i do have an old chain that I intended to use). Pics to follow!

Kev

Get yourself over to the Park Tools website, hey have some very good "how To" guides.

http://www.parktool.com/

yep, thanks nick, refer to it often. Also have a dog eared and oily copy of Zinn and the art of mtb maintenance in the cellar beside the bike crap. However, they are guides, and do rely on the user not being a complete imbicile. like me.

They are very useful though (except i find the text on the park tools website bloody small!).

Then you'll want to know how to get a star-fangled nut in straight… 😉

Ah f*ck. Thanks for mentioning that Dez… NOT! 😀

Thinking I am going to go with the 'put a screwdriver through it and give it a good ****t' approach should be OK. Though there are some frigging awful threads about those b@st@rds kicking about!

Will the screwdriver approach be OK? Any other favoured methods?

Kev

Er, put a bolt through it and hit the bolt otherwise you could knacker the threads.
I bought one a these – http://www.bikegoo.co.uk/product.php/197/ice_toolz_star_nut_installation_tool

Bikegoo great for the other bits you need too.

(my discount coupon please mr Bikegoo 🙂 )

steerer chopped, SFN hammered in (a couple of good whacks!), headset feeling buttery smooth.

Brakes are proving a right bugger to align however, and it appears I have the sticky lever/piston curse of Hayes strokers. And the bloody front mech I bought (bottom swing) interferes with the tires. Ah well, one step forwards….