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new bmx questions

ZHendo

Turbo Monkey
Oct 29, 2006
1,661
147
PNW
hey fellas,

i just got a stolen wrap for christmas, and i'm trying to get it set up. although i have only worked on mountain bikes in the past and have no experience setting up a bmx, i think i have done a pretty good job of getting everything set up. i do have a few questions though. firstly, dan's comp only sent the bike with one chain tensioner on the drive side. is this ok, or should i bug them to send me another? also, with the bikes, i have only ridden it for about 5 minutes, but the brakes won't stop me too well. the setup feels fine, the brake just won't grab a firm enough hold of the rim to stop the bike. will this issue fix itself as i ride a little more? i know with disc brakes you have a break in period, is it the same with u-brakes? finally, the frame has removable gyro tabs, and although i remove the screws holding them into the head tube, i can't get them to come off. is there a special thing i need to do to get them off without damaging anything? cheers guys.
-Zack
 

sb317

Monkey
Sep 6, 2005
338
0
North Carolina
You only need to run one tensioner. If you run the rear slammed in the stays you won't really need one at all. As far as the brakes, with the little experience I have, black rim= Kool Stop salmon pads, chrome rim= Kool Stop black pads. Also, before you do that, take some sandpaper and skuff up the pads you have and wipe the rim off to get any finger prints or grim from shipping off. That helps a good bit. As far as the tabs, I'm not sure why they won't come out if you took the screws out. Maybe there is a barb in the second hole and you just need to pull a little harder. Hope this helps. You also may want to get a linear cable if it didn't come with one. They seem to have a smoother pull.
 

ZHendo

Turbo Monkey
Oct 29, 2006
1,661
147
PNW
well, new problem, my bb is being annoying and has play and is making a little noise, i have no idea how to work with these kinds of bbs. the crank arm attaches to the spindle, but then the spindle becomes threaded and has a nut that tightens the bearings together (that's what it looks like at least). there is play and a nasty squeak/grind noise at one part in the turning of the crank. i think i'll just pull the whole damn thing apart, but will i need a crank puller?
 

ZHendo

Turbo Monkey
Oct 29, 2006
1,661
147
PNW
nope, it's weird, i wish it was splined like the above one, that would make everything much easier. instead, it is has a low number of notches (splines?), probably about 12 without me actually looking at it. so, the crank arm slips on to that, and then there is a gap between the back of the crank arm and the actual bottom bracket. this gap has a bunch of threads, and a relatively thin nut is threaded onto this part and tightened against the outside of the actual bb. it's hard to explain, i'll try to get pics today.
 

rollertoaster

Monkey
Aug 7, 2007
730
179
Douglassville , PA
My dk has the same kind of crank. Loosen the lock nut behind left side crank arm. then spin the plate behind it until your play goes away. then tighten the lock nut back up.
I really hate this style of BB. I'll be changing my crank out by the end of next week.
 

ZHendo

Turbo Monkey
Oct 29, 2006
1,661
147
PNW
sweet, i think i'll try that out tonight. i want to replace the wheels and cranks eventually, but i'm pretty happy with everything else. i was told that wheels should be priority so that i can get rid of the 33T front ring. i was also told that they will be the most noticeable upgrade.
 

ZHendo

Turbo Monkey
Oct 29, 2006
1,661
147
PNW
cranks are in working order now, but a much more annoying issue has arisen and i can't fix it. my headset creaks very loudly at every single pedal stroke. i just spent the last hour taking apart the headset, greasing everything, making sure everything fit together correctly, and tightening the headset to tons of different tightnesses. i tried all the way loose and completely tight so the fork could barely move, and the creak is still there. it's an integrated headset, so how do i deal with this? are the little black cups that are pressed into the frame not lined up? that's the only thing i can think of that could be causing the problem, but i don't have the tool to press them in. would this still cause the creaking regardless of how tight the headset was tightened down?
 

ZHendo

Turbo Monkey
Oct 29, 2006
1,661
147
PNW
hmm, sounds like i'm making a trip to the shop then. i've already greased the crap out of everything, i'll try the rubbing alcohol idea presented in the above thread, but otherwise, seems like i'm SOL. i'm pretty much convinced that the frame races or whatever they're called (i've been calling them cups) are improperly installed.