Hey bike gurus -
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2005-08-01 6:27 PM |
New user 4 | Subject: Hey bike gurus - Pleeeez help a damsel in distress....to make a long story short, I spilled and my right brake lever is bent inwards. How the h*** do I fix it? I own Zenn & the Art of Road Bike Maintenance, but nothing this extensive is covered. Or should I take the easy route and take my baby to the LBS? FYI - Trek 1500 WSD. It's still ridable, just looks butt ugly. I wanna cry... (IMG_0964.JPG) Attachments ---------------- IMG_0964.JPG (45KB - 20 downloads) |
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2005-08-01 6:39 PM in reply to: #213206 |
Extreme Veteran 482 | Subject: RE: Hey bike gurus - Looks like it just slipped when you smacked it. A good reason to not overtighten them when they are installed. Too tight and it probably would have broken. You might be able to slowly twist it back into position but most likely it will need to be tightened back up again. You can try it and see if it is loose when it is straight again. It attaches with a "hose clamp" kind of device if that makes sense. Don't think you will be able to get at the bolt head to tighten it without pulling the cables. When you squeeze the break lever you may be able to see it if you look inside the guts from the front. Someone else on here will have to back me up on that one. If you do take it to the shop for a fix you might want to see if they can re-wrap your bars also. Looks like it is starting to come loosen up but if it isn't bothering you then I would leave it alone. Michael PS Don't sweat it...from the picture it just looks like it shifted. Edited by mmakbenton 2005-08-01 6:42 PM |
2005-08-01 6:45 PM in reply to: #213206 |
Extreme Veteran 389 Central Wisconsin | Subject: RE: Hey bike gurus - The brake lever uses a strap that pulls the brake tight to the handlebar. If you peel back the rubber hoods you should see the strap. If it isnt there peel the hoods up and that is the other place it should be. I would loosen the strap firts then twist it straight and then retighten the strap. You will need a hex wrench to do this. As was already suggested though, try rotating the brake straight by hand. |
2005-08-01 7:49 PM in reply to: #213206 |
Extreme Veteran 439 Germantown, MD | Subject: RE: Hey bike gurus - You're only option is really to break out a good, heavy hammer and whack it back into place. Should be as good as new. Might want to put a towel over it or something to avoid scuffing it up. Seriously, the above advice should work fine. |
2005-08-01 8:17 PM in reply to: #213206 |
New user 117 Alberta(think texas with snow.) | Subject: RE: Hey bike gurus - Well, the first problem is that its a Trek...... Even if it does look right after following above advice, I would take it in for a quick look over by the LBS. Wouldn't want my brake to misfire while screaming down a hill. |
2005-08-01 9:25 PM in reply to: #213206 |
Member 98 Austin, Texas | Subject: RE: Hey bike gurus - The above advice is correct but I thought I would clarify one thing. The bolt that tightens the STI lever to the handlebar is on the side of the shifter, not on the inside like a plain old brake lever. There is no need to pull any cables. If you look at the side of your shifter, you should see a small channel or indentation that goes under the rubber hood towards the handlebar. That channel will lead you to a 5 mm allen bolt. It's tough to see, but you peal up the rubber or just slide your allen wrench under the rubber and fiddle until you feel it seat in the bolt. Loosen the bolt, straighten the shifter, re-tighten, Bob's your uncle. It should take you about 30 seconds. No need for a trip to the LBS unless your shifter is seriously damaged, but I think you are probably fine. |
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2005-08-01 9:50 PM in reply to: #213206 |
Champion 6285 Beautiful Sonoma County | Subject: RE: Hey bike gurus - I'd take it to the LBS, not only to fix that, but to have them check out everything else on your bike as well. When I crashed, I only scraped up my shifters, so I didn't even think about it. But then two weeks later I took my baby in to have them install a computer, and just in the 10 minutes I was chatting with the guy he said "oh, and it looks like your back wheel needs a slight adjustment, did you crash recently?" Just my $.02, though. And, for the record, the slight adjustment only cost be about ten bucks, but knowing that my bike is OK is worth more than that. |
2005-08-01 9:54 PM in reply to: #213206 |
Champion 7704 Williamston, Michigan | Subject: RE: Hey bike gurus - I did the same thing on my trek 2000 wsd... I took it to the LBS...but basically you can jsut muscle it back over...no hammers required |
2005-08-01 11:34 PM in reply to: #213206 |
Member 98 Austin, Texas | Subject: RE: Hey bike gurus - I hope the guy above was joking about the hammer. I can't think of anytime when you would ever really need to use a hammer for anything on your bike. I put them in the same category as WD-40. |
2005-08-02 7:02 AM in reply to: #213206 |
Champion 6786 Two seat rocket plane | Subject: RE: Hey bike gurus - It's no big deal, but please don't hit it with a hammer, or just muscle it around. By doing either of the above, you risk damaging either your shifter or handlebar.The STI levers are not tightened down hairy-gorilla tight so that in the event of a crash they do exactly what yours has, shift around a little. That way they don't actually break. If you pull back the front of the rubber covering, you should see a slot on the outside of the of the STI assembly that allows access to the bolt that tightens the metal strap that holds the lever to the bar. At the bottom of this slot is a 5mm allen head bolt. You want to loosen it a little before rotating the lever back into place. You may need to re-wrap your handlebar tape as well. |
2005-08-02 7:53 AM in reply to: #213498 |
Extreme Veteran 482 | Subject: RE: Hey bike gurus - I guess I kind of dated myself when I assumed you would have to pull the cables out to tighten it. My last "road" bike had down tube shifters and since then I have only owned/worked on Tri bikes with bar-end shifters. Good to hear they finally redesigned that clamp setup...even if it has been 10 years! I have debated setting up my old steel Serotta with STI but kinda like the vintage old school setup so I have both extremes (new hightech/old classic) covered. By the way...to those of you that were doubting...the hammer comment looked like a joke. Michael |
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2005-08-02 8:05 AM in reply to: #213206 |
Veteran 249 Northeast | Subject: RE: Hey bike gurus - NEVER just "muscle it" back to it's original position!!! In doing this, you'll further damage the bar where the lever is attached, thereby weakening the bar in an area where the stresses are highest (e.g., when you're in the drops and powering). This is a *wonderful* way to weaken a handlebar and have a surprise, collarbone-breaking crash when you least expect it! On the outside side of the lever hood, you'll see a tiny little opening. This is where you insert a number 5 allen wrench to gain access to the bolt which tightens the lever clamp. Insert the allen, fiddle it around a bit until it engages the bolt, then loosen, re-position, and re-tighten. If there is no entry to the hood on the side as I indicated, then disengage the brake and pull the lever all the way to the bar (like you're braking) - look for the bolt head from the opening the lever makes with the hood. If it's too much, take it to your LBS. Good luck! |
2005-08-02 8:46 AM in reply to: #213288 |
Member 30 Jackson, MS | Subject: RE: Hey bike gurus - Hey, I love my Trek - didn't Lance ride a Trek too? |
2005-08-02 8:49 AM in reply to: #213206 |
New user 4 | Subject: RE: Hey bike gurus - THANKS everyone for your great advice! I think I'll just play it safe and take it in for a look. Being the novice that I am, I'll let the pro's handle it! |