欧州自転車レース追っかけ日記

Suunto Spartan Sport

I have been using this watch for the last two months or so (I really don't remember when I bought it). It serves my purposes. Now I can check the time quickly while driving, biking, walking and riding a train.

It counts my steps (if I have it on me) automatically. I set (past tense form) my goal at 9,000 steps a day. On Sunday, 25 November I was busy doing stuff. I wanted to change the tire/wheel set on my MX-5 to the Winter set (finally!) that had been kept at my friends' apartment (they have a underground level storage which I don't).

In Luxembourg, some cities (populated areas) impose parking fees during weekdays. On Sunday, the parking is free anywhere. So I chose this Sunday. Now my MX-5 is ready for the cold weather ahead.

I had to walk a lot for this tire change event. I also walked a lot setting up the a small opening ceremony that would take place Monday, 26 November at my new workplace.

In the end, my Suunto Spartan Sport told me that I walked over 17,000 steps this Sunday. Almost twice as my daily target! Not bad!

I learned not too much about utilizing this watch but I did learn something about customizing the watch by logging into movescount.com. It is way easy to customize it by visiting this site on a personal computer (for me it is my MacBook) using a browser. I created two locations on the site using the map. These locations (waypoints if you use the Garmin term) can easily transferred to the watch.

My Spartan Sport can store up to 250 locations and 10 routes. I don't know how to create a route but I can vaguely guess. I guess I have to turn on the exercise function and take a log (for my case biking outdoors). This stored exercise can be transferred to my page on movescount.com. I will definitely try and see how it works.

When I got it, its "exercise" menu showed a whole bunch of different activity types. Some of them were totally useless to me. Now I learned that I can customize this menu by editing it on movescount.com (and then sync with the watch). Now I have only three activity types on my watch, cycling, indoor cycling and hiking. I will take a walk in the nearby woods to see how the watch records my move. Its GPS function (assisted GPS) can actually work well in the woods.

My Garmin Edge 800 refuses to keep the log when I ride under thick forage. Garmin Edge 800 is a real GPS logger (not assisted GPS) so when the perception of GPS signals from the satellites gets unstable, it gives up too soon.


A new beginning

So on Monday, 26 November I will wake up and start my day by going to the local post office and pick up the packages from Amazon. I will take a shower and then pack up my work gear and head to the new workplace for this ceremony. Some people are invited to get the preview of what is going to happen at my new workplace.

December 1st is the first day I officially start at the new place. I hope I do well. I don't want to fail. Let's see!

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [Suunto Spartan Sport and Movescount.com]の続きを読む

テーマ:愛車と日常 - ジャンル:車・バイク

1. 2018/11/26(月) 01:15:02|
2. Miscellaneous stuff
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Garmin Camper 660 LMT-D (Amazon Black Friday Deal?)

This item has been on my Wish List for some time. I want it (reasons have been repeatedly written in my past entries) but it is not a cheap gadget (suggested retail price is over €300 or so).

Today, I noticed a notification from Amazon Germany (on my Google Nexus 5X) saying that its price had been reduced. It did not say specifically that it was a Black Friday Deal or anything but the price was really reduced from its previous price (around €276) by over €60.

So I had to buy it (not that I was forced to do, though). So it is done! I need only one of its features, namely, the ability to see the route profile and its altitude (including the mountain passes it passes). So what happens to my beloved Garmin nüvi 2340? Maybe I look for some potential users among friends of mine.

Next Summer I will be traveling with my imaginary cat (by then "REAL", I hope) and using (or being guided by) this piece of electric (or electronic) gadget. My route choice would be much more easier with this as I don't have to worry about the possible totally unnecessary unpleasant drive over mountain passes.

TomTom app on iPad mini 2 (Wifi only) / Garmin GLO

I don't use it too often in fact almost never. The other day I used them (together) on my Mazda MX-5 because I have invented the way to fix my iPad mini 2 comfortably in front of Mazda Connect screen. It (this iPad mini 2) won't be the main GPS navigation device.

The new Garmin Camper 660 LMT-D will be my main device. The onboard Mazda Connect navigation app will be the next device. So this iPad mini 2 with Garmin GLO will be the third choice.

The interface might have been changed since I last used it (over a year ago?). It has been improved, I guess.

I bought a magnet gadget (that sticks on the dashboard) along with the Garmin navigation device described above and this will be (I hope) the one that serves the purpose of fixing GLO somewhere where it won't tumble down or won't be in my way.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [Garmin (RV) Camper 660 LMT-D and TomTom app on iPad mini 2]の続きを読む

テーマ:カー用品 - ジャンル:車・バイク

1. 2018/11/23(金) 16:11:39|
2. GPS Navigation
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Ta da!

I think (because the pressure sensor weight scale that I am using cost only €11 and not the world most reliable weight scale) I weigh about 64.1 kg (totally naked) for the moment.

So I think I lost around 3 kg since a year ago and around 2 kg since September. At the end of September I began practicing Ketogenic diet.

At the same time while I was trying to go "keto", I began riding my bike more and more often.

Since losing weight was not my object (of practicing ketogenic diet), I did not reduce the amount of food I was getting but I think I am gradually eating less than before. I still eat a lot of meat, eggs and avocados without thinking for a second how much calories they have. I put very generous amount of olive oil on my salad.

Now I am thinking of really shedding some more weight (body fat) and getting close to 62 kg. To achieve this goal I know I have to eat less and burn more calories by riding my bike harder.

Why 62 kg? Because my favorite athlete (road racer) Carlos Sastre Candil, winner of 2018 Tour de France, weighed 62 kg during his active years as an athlete and his height is the same as mine.

It is Winter here in Luxembourg (like most of Northern Hemisphere) and it has been cold. For the moment (20:0) it is 3 degrees Celsius (38 F). Just staying calm like sitting in a chair requires burning more calories as the body tries to compensate for the loss of body heat. It is a good time to go on a diet, isn't it?

I weighed around 62 kg when I was 13 or 14 years old, I guess. I was as tall as I am now by then.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [Ketogenic diet (sort of) and my current weight]の続きを読む

テーマ:日記 - ジャンル:日記

1. 2018/11/20(火) 20:39:43|
2. Diary
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An imaginary cat

I would like to make a confession. It is supposed to be a confided confession so please don't tell anybody, don't spread the words and please keep it between you and me!

I am addicted to Amazon shopping! I now have an imaginary cat with me!

First, I made yet another purchase at Amazon (Germany). The ordered items include some items for my imaginary cat (more of it later), a Bluetooth keyboard (USA keys), a car cigarette plug DC-DC converter and other small things.

As you may already know that Mazda MX-5 (also known as Miata) ND has an almost hidden 12V DC socket under the dashboard (on the passenger's side if the driver sits on the left). Currently it is occupied by a plug that feeds my Garmin nüvi 2340.

My MX-5 does have extra USB ports on the dashboard but I learned that they supply up to 1 A (or 0.5 A, I don't know exactly) from each port. I noticed that my iPad mini 2 complained (most of the time the accessory was not recognized or something) when it was plugged in there or the charging was really slow when I plugged my Google Nexus 5X there. Later I learned that they were not 2 A capable.

And later I found a dedicated device that plugs into those two ports and replicates a single 2 A port (rather expensive).

To remedy the situation (during the extended car trip last summer), I used a converter that plugs into the OBD II connector and produces mini USB or micro USB power source. I could charge my phone or iPad using one of those converters.

Now I thought better of it and decided to shop for a 12 V DC cigarette socket that replicates a through socket and more USB (stronger) ports. This is a must item for any MX-5.

Anyway, I keep buying thins from Amazon Germany. This qualifies as an addiction.

So I purchased something that only cat owners would buy. I have an imaginary cat. This is a psychotic condition.

I bought a bumper sticker that says "Cat on Board" with a cute kitty face and two seat belt catcher security leash. I was also tempted to buy more for my 'imaginary' cat but stopped as they were not that cheap.

One of the items that went onto my wish list is this. It is a pet basket that doubles as a carrier. I also put the seat cover for pets onto my wish list.










Suunto Spartan Sport (watch)

Have I already told you about his watch here? I purchased from one of my colleagues a sport watch. As you have already guessed it (if not already), it is a Suunto Spartan Sport (not the more advanced "HR" version but just a basic one).

The previous owner had not plugged it into his PC or Mac for a long time or not at all, I presume. Because the moment I did that (two months ago?) the Mac app Sunntolink told me that a firmware update was available. It was something like a 1.8.** to 2.0.42 jump.

Since then, I have been regularly plugging it to my MacBook Pro Mid2010 to sync it. Today, I noticed that an update was available. It was 2.5.18. Yet another big jump considering the second number went from 0 to 5. I don't believe that I have missed any updates since I have regularly plugged it into my MacBook Pro and I let Suuntolink boot automatically when it recognizes the watch.

I wanted to know the details of the firmware change but they were not available (or at least not easily available). Is it a minor or major bug fix version or a major feature update? I don't know.

One thing I noticed is that the icon (a small icon that appears on the watch face that signifies the step counter) changed. Now there are two smaller foot prints there. Other than that I see no difference so far.

Here are some clipped screen shots during the update process.


This appeared first. It told me that an update was available.


(Updating process)


(Updating process)


(Updated successfully!)

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [An imaginary cat and Suunto Spartan Sport (watch)]の続きを読む

テーマ:猫のいる生活 - ジャンル:ペット

1. 2018/11/19(月) 15:19:44|
2. Cats
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Schwalve's spike tires

These (I bought two) were in the package (a huge box probably 90 cm x 90 cm? and over 40 cm in height) that I picked up this afternoon. I had to open the box and fold the box to put it in my car in the parking of the pick-up station. Way too big! I don't know why they used this huge box with a lot of paper as a stuffing material. Waste of resrouces!

Anyway, these tires look very mean with obtruding spikes. They also have a rotation direction. The air pressure specification says it should be inflated between 3.5 and 6.0 bar / 50 to 85 psi.

To gain more traction the air pressure should be close to 3.5 bar but it depends on the payload, too. I don't know what the weather in Luxembourg would be like this Winter but long term forecast seems to indicate only wet and cold weather just like always. I wish it snows a lot. I keep my fingers crossed. I want to use these mean tires in action.

Garmin Camper 660 LMT-D



I have been a long time Garmin navigation device user since 2005 (or 2004). For me Garmin devices are the only choice (not TomTom or others) because Garmin BaseCamp. It is a neat PC/Mac software (alas not Linux software!) that works without connecting to the Internet (in other words offline map software).

I plan my trips well ahead, especially for road cycling race events (like the Tour de France, Paris-Roubaix etc.) because if I did not, I would very likely be stuck in some road blocks or be challenged by narrow and steep mountain paths and lose time and money (not to mention energy).

My current main GPS navigation device is Garmin nüvi 2340 and I am happy with it. I think I have been using it since the one previous Garmin device was stolen from my car (a.k.a. Ford Ka) in Liège in 2012. I guess I bought this current one in 2012.

It is Garmin BaseCamp (or more narrowly the accumulated waypoints asset) that decides the value of a Garmin GPS navigation device.

by me.

A Garmin device is just a box with a screen on it. If I don't have those precious waypoints that I have accumulated over the years, I don't have anything. Those waypoints are 95 % (or so) related to cycling race events. I have tons of mountain peaks and passes that are frequently used by the Tour (de France). I have tons of climbs that are featured in those race events like de Ronde (van Vlaanderen), Amstel Gold Race, Liège-Bastogne-Liège and likes. I have tons of pavé (cobble stone) sections featured in Paris-Roubaix and likes.

Garmin nüvi 2340 was the cheapest device I could get at that time of purchase. I did not (and don't) need any other fancy features like Bluetooth hands-free calling and such. I still consider my device a very trusty travel companion but I sometimes long for something that my nüvi does not have.

Route profiles! Traveling through France following the Tour, I get through mountains. I would like to avoid mountains if possible to save time and money (in terms of gas consumption). If I have extra time before starting off the routes, I would check their profile in the paper atlas. The fact is that I don't (have time).

This last summer I drove through a rather high mountain pass on my way to Mende. It could have been a nice drive but the weather was harsh (thunderbolts and pouring rain).

This is way I want one of those (Camper 660 or 770) Garmin devices meant primarily for big campers (RVs). They have topographical data on top of road map so the driver can check the profile of the route that she/he is about to set off.

They are not cheap but not too expensive. I saw ones (Camper 660 LMT-D) sold at the local Saturn (Germany based electric appliances chain store?) at €279. This price is not bad at all.

Amazon Germany offers almost the same price for a new device.


TomTom (iOS app) update

I noticed that TomTom Mobile Go has an update ready. The description says it is for a fix of a minor bug. It is not about renewing the map data but just update to the app.

I have been wondering for a quite while if the map update for my Mazda Connect navigation software map data is not ready. How often do they update the map data?

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [Schwalbe Active Winter K-Guard 42-355 18 x 1.60]の続きを読む

テーマ:自転車（スポーツ用） - ジャンル:スポーツ

1. 2018/11/16(金) 20:36:46|
2. Bikes and related things
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Wow! That was fast!

As always (when the ordered items are in stock, they ship the package very quickly and the package gets delivered also very swiftly.

I had a notice from DPD (transporter) in the mailbox (physical in other words the one physically standing in front of my humble residence). I will pick it up later.

Now (soon) I have a disc hub set (28H) with me so I can start fiddling with the 28H rims that I have already.

I will see if the current spoke length is long enough so I don't have to buy new spokes to test-build wheels. I don't have chemical compound (sort of locktite) with me so anything I do with the materials I have now will not be complete. I can still have fun with them.

Saris Axis 2 or 3, should I buy it?

I am thinking (or have been pondering on) about the possibility of having a trailer hitch installed on my Mazda MX-5.

The benefits will be enormous. To name a few,
1. I can open the boot lid even when the bike (or bikes) are on the bike rack.
2. I don't have to worry about the possible theft of the bike rack left unattended.
3. No worries of the rather soft (aluminium and plastic) material of MX-5 bend or damaged by the weight of the load.
4. I can also hook up the wheel on the rack.

... so that I can free the passenger's seat of any luggage during a trip (like 4 weeks of camping tour in France following the Tour de France).

... so that I can have a cat with me on the passenger's seat complete with his/her toilet on the floor.

Saris Axis 2 is a bike rack that hold up to 2 bikes and 3 is for 3 bikes. They cost around €160 to €170. First have to have the hitch installed on my MX-5 and this costs more than €1,000, I guess.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ
[Bike24 package and Saris Axis 2 or 3]の続きを読む

テーマ:自転車（スポーツ用） - ジャンル:スポーツ

1. 2018/11/16(金) 15:16:03|
2. Bikes and related things
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Why disc brakes are the future of the bike brake system?

It is totally my personal opinion and view on the matter.

I love my Ted Ciamillo's Negative Gravity rim brakes on my Cervélo RS (2009 model I think). Now he has moved from native U.S.A. to his wife's native country (I assume) Poland. Now he lives in my neighborhood (almost, at least in EU block)! This is exciting!

I got worried when his former site went down but I am relieved now that he is still going strong.

I even have his earlier work, Zero Gravity brakes. I got them really at a bargain price (on ebay). Actually, I did not want the calipers but the black original high profile pad holders (2 sets 4 fo them!) that were with them. At the time of this auction (a couple years ago) Mr. Ciamillo had dropped the high profile pad holders in favor of low profile pad (or shoe) holders as wider rims made their way to the main stream. New high profile shoe holders had been out of production for while.

This is one thing. I am trying to covert my first generation Birdy with the Shimano V-brake system to a disc brake equipped bike. What drives me? What are the merits?

One thing is that the a disc brake system is free from rim sizes (almost). I can fit a set of 20-inch wheels on my Birdy if the Birdy and the wheels are equipped with disc brakes (calipers on the bike and rotors on the wheels). Birdy's frame (fork and rear suspension arms) can easily accommodate 20-inch wheels though the native wheel size is 18 inches. I don't know if it is possible to fit a set of 16-inch wheels on it as I have never seen this combination anywhere.

The second benefit is that I can do some dirty hacks to the wheels like wrapping the rim / tire with nylon cable ties around so that the tires work like studded tires on the icy or snowy roads.

Buying spike studded tires for 18-inch rims is not so complicated and they (tires) are not too expensive (Schwalbe has ones) but those cable ties are cheap. In fact I bought two of them. They will arrive probably next week.

I am also planning to buy one of these things for my Mazda MX-5 (ND). Although I have a dedicated wheel/tire set for Winter use, it is nice to have one of these in the boot all the time (all year around) in case of unexpected snowfall in high mountains. In 2010 (Was it? It was the stage where Andy Schleck won on top of Col du Galibier) I did have an occasion of having a snowfall in the middle of high Summer during the Tour de France. I was driving a Ford Ka at that time and I wanted to go on top of Col du Galibier. It snowed the previous day and the snow stayed there about two or three days.This was in the middle of freaking July! I could successfully climb without any snow chains but I could have used one of these if I had had them in the boot.




Bike 24 shopping

So as written above, I bought spike studded tires for my Birdy. 2011 was a snowy year. I enjoyed riding my bike (Cervélo) that year during the winter. I really really enjoyed it.

Will it snow much this winter?

I bought the hub set from Miche (I don't know which Taiwan manufacturer is the original equipment manufacturer). It is a 28H (spoke) disc brake hub set.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ

[What are the merits of disc brakes over rim brakes?]の続きを読む

テーマ:自転車（スポーツ用） - ジャンル:スポーツ

1. 2018/11/13(火) 12:12:15|
2. Bikes and related things
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Pet loss syndrome stricken / heartbroken

He (the 4 months old cat) was with me only 3 nights but you know.

I will give the doctor (the vet who took over the custody of the cat) a call Monday morning and ask if he has located and contacted the owner. I hope he will say something like, "No, it seems the owner has changed his address and phone number and seems to be unreachable".

I am more than happy to take the cat back. I know the chances are very slim but ...


Magnet pieces arrived!

Magnet pieces arrived in the mailbox (physical not the one on the Internet). I opened the package and found the pieces that I ordered. They seemed to be so small (20 pieces tightly stuck together as they are magnet pieces).

I put it inside the disc-brake caliper to see if it would work. It did. The force is strong with this magnet! This is not a quote from Obi-Wan Kenobi but from me.

Anyway, the original magnet pieces seemed to me that they were 7 mm in diameter and 1 mm in thickness. The ones I could locate on Amazon Germany were 6 mm in diameter and 1 mm in thickness.

It worked very well. in fact the magnetic force seemed stronger than the original ones. So now I have 19 spare magnet pieces in case of breakage.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [Pet loss syndrome stricken man and 20 sheets of magnet pieces]の続きを読む

テーマ:猫のいる生活 - ジャンル:ペット

1. 2018/11/10(土) 15:02:21|
2. Cats
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He has got a chip implant on him

I am back from Veterinarian Doctor's office. He (the cat) had a chip mplant on him and the Dr. scanned the neck area and could read out the info.

He (the doctor) took the custody of the cat. I had to leave him with the Doctor and say Goodbye to him.

What a sad ending to my one-sided (or two-sided) love story! I am heartbroken.

The Doctor suggested that I should adopt another cat through an organization that he likes. Should I try?

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [Sad news]の続きを読む

テーマ:猫のいる生活 - ジャンル:ペット

1. 2018/11/09(金) 10:15:20|
2. Cats
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Corrections

I was wrong. The cat was a boy who has a penis. I checked its sex and examined its genital again and found that it was a boy. Sorry.

It is Thursday and Tomorrow Friday I will take him to the local vet. I will ask a general check-up and see if this guy has a chip implantation.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [Corrections]の続きを読む

テーマ:猫のいる生活 - ジャンル:ペット

1. 2018/11/08(木) 23:48:52|
2. Cats
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Kidnapped!

This evening I came home from a meeting (with new colleagues et al) and parked my Mazda MX-5 at a parking (public) where I usually park. I got off the car and then saw a small cat running around. It was dark as it was after 19:00 (7:00 P.M.) in the evening.

I was wondering if the cat was friendly enough to come close. It was. It even allow me to stroke on its back (as this point I did not know whether it was a girl or boy). What was it doing here outside at this hour where the temperature was around 12 degrees Celsius and soon it would go down?

It lost its way home? Or was it a feral cat? It seemed to me that it was around 4 to 5 months old.

I ran back home (just one hundred meters away) and picked up the cat food pouch and a small plastic tray and then ran back to the small parking place.

It was still there. I gave it some food but it was not hungry. It was not fat but sufficiently fed. By this I doubted that it was totally a feral cat. It must be a local cat and lost its way home, I thought.

I waited for a while to see if it would disappear eventually to come home but it played around. It was so friendly.

So the natural thing for me to do next was to see if it was a girl or boy. It was she, a girl cat. I waited for another some time but she was still playing around.

At some point, she came close to the wider (more cars passing) road. A local woman came and she (woman) also was curious to see this small cat. She lived around the place near the parking where the cat was most likely from. She (woman) did not say anything but went away slowly and looked back many times to see the cat.

By now I decided to take her home (not the woman but the cat, OK?). I could not leave her there after seeing her play so closely to the dangerous street. I crossed the road and she followed me. Then I picked her up but she did not mind at all and stayed calm in my arms.

So now I am home with her. I officially kidnapped her. What shall I do? I might take her in a cat transporter bag (I have one) and ask people around to see if one of them have lost their baby cat. Should I do it? Or should I keep her indefinitely?

Anyway, I have to work Tomorrow. I will take her to work. Before driving to work, I will drop by a local store to buy her some stuff. More yummy food, toilet bowl and the cat sand and other small things.

Is this a crime? Should I take her first to the local animal rescue home to report the incident?

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ


[Kidnapping is a crime, indeed]の続きを読む

テーマ:猫のいる生活 - ジャンル:ペット

1. 2018/11/06(火) 20:41:31|
2. Cats
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The ailing pedal was OK so far

This morning I pedaled my way to the nearest train station to catch an early morning train. On my way to the station I was careful not to miss any signs of squeaking or stickiness from the left pedal, which was ailing and terminal situation (slowly dying). I did not hear any squeaking nor did I notice any stickiness. Of course I did not notice any stickiness of the rotation as the force of the pedaling foot (left) was strong enough to suppress any slight stickiness.

My left pedal will probably last for the next few months and then will sadly die suddenly. I will keep feeding some generous amount of grease to prolong its life.

I have already ordered the spare pedal set (identical model).

Amazon (Germany) purchases

Yesterday, I ordered some items from Amazon (Germany) and I believe one item is sent from somewhere (most likely from China) but the rest is from Germany (rapid delivery expected).

The only item separated from the rest is the 20 round flat magnets (one side adhesive tape) needed for the disc brake calipers.

In this order I have some special tools. A Hozan C-700 cheap copy which threads spokes. I don't know if it is any good but I hope it will suffice my need.

I did not order spokes this time. I don't think I have time to thread any spokes or first calculate the length of spokes needed for wheels.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ

[Amazon (Germany) purchases and the ailing pedal]の続きを読む

テーマ:自転車（スポーツ用） - ジャンル:スポーツ

1. 2018/11/05(月) 16:38:06|
2. Bikes and related things
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Squeaky noises and stuck!

I bought these pedals from Amazon Germany because they were (seemingly) the cheapest set I could find a couple weeks ago.

Yesterday, I was on my way to work on my bike about 600 meters (around 1/3 miles) away from home when suddenly the left pedal began to scream and its movement got sticky.

I had to turn around and left the bike and then took a bus to work. No harm was done.

I looked into inside the pedals and found that they were really of cheap quality. I knew immediately after I got them that the pedal platforms were really shaky and so I assumed that they used no quality sealed bearings or anything close to quality stuff.

This was although not expected to happen this much soon!

Well, the reviews on these pedals at Amazon Germany were terrible anyway. They (customers) complained that they broke on them too soon or after one year or so. They (pedals) are bad!

What do you expect from a set of pedals with an extra folding function that costs under €10? Quality? NO WAY!

I greased them up and the left pedal now does not scream but the it occasionally (frequently) gets sticky. I guess the balls (or a ball) of the bearing (not a sealed but an open bearing) might have been damaged. I also imagine that those balls are hardly heat treated and waiting for quick wear.

I have to buy a spare set and change them when required. Which one should I buy? The same set or an expensive set?

Probably the same one (because they are dirt cheap) and later I might buy quality Japanese MKS (Mikashima) pedals from Japan.

P.S.
Repairing seems to be impossible as the bearing (or its balls) are not accessible in a normal way. The nut retaining the retainer (of the bearing balls) of sorts is hard fixed. The end of the threaded shaft seems to be hammered in to stop the nut from getting loose. It would require near destruction to gain access to the balls.


In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [One of the foldable pedals got squeaky!]の続きを読む

テーマ:自転車（スポーツ用） - ジャンル:スポーツ

1. 2018/11/04(日) 12:29:49|
2. Bikes and related things
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I bought this cheap (or cheapest) disc brake calipers (with discs) set on Amazon (Germany). They cost me around €16 or so. That was dirt cheap!

(That was a month ago and) Until Today I did not know how to change the pads on them.

Now I know exactly how to change them! Last night I was fondling with them with the hubs with discs on them. How should I install them on my Birdy? I was wondering. I dropped on of them on the wooden packet floor and it fell about 15 cm down. After that one of the pads did not come back to the original place but got stuck in the middle of the cavity so the disc won't come between the pads.

What did I do wrong? Now I had to remove the pads to see what happened. This was how I learned to replace the pads.

I did not know the structure of the calipers at all. They did not come with any kind of instructions whatsoever. I did not know how to maintain them. Neither did I know how to change the pads. I looked for some hints on YouTube but the calipers they (people explaining how) did not have the same model as I have.

So I had to wing it. I had to try all the visible screws to see if they gave me the signs. It was not so difficult to find out how to get access to the pads.

In the end, I found that pads are attached to the caliper by the magnetic force. Yes, there were two magnets (7 mm diameter by 1 mm thickness) were inside the caliper.

One of the magnets was broken and that was the reason the pads got stuck. I removed the broken magnet disc. Now I need one.

I looked for similar substitute on Amazon (Germany) and found a set of 50 magnets sold there. The measurement is 6 mm (diameter) by 1 mm (thickness). They all have some adhesive on one side. (Almost) Perfect!

They cost me around €14.

There is a set of 20 of them sold around €6. I will buy this set.

In Japanese: 続きをどうぞ [Something broke inside the cheap disc brake caliper!]の続きを読む

テーマ:自転車（スポーツ用） - ジャンル:スポーツ

1. 2018/11/03(土) 01:18:46|
2. Bikes and related things
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