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I really like the original XT-Vbrake levers but I've had a couple kicking around for a few years because the top bushing had disintegrated.
Until the other day when I was installing some BBB jockey wheels and the thought occured that the spare plastic shims that come with them might be the perfect fit for the levers.
The ID of the 'C' spacers are a good fit on the metal pin of the levers but I needed to spend 5 mins whittling down the OD with a sharp knife to allow them to be pressed into the lever body, the 'step' on the base also needed to be trimmed off. It looks ugly I know but it doesn't matter that the OD is not smooth as only the ID is a moving bearing surface.
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Gave everything a good clean, used a bit of dry chain lube on the bearing surfaces, bit of blue loctite on the threads and reassembled - now the levers work like new again 8)
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twisty for Environment Minister
twisty for Environment Minister
My manifesto is to extend cycle to work schemes to cover refurbished bikes, and to review the funding process for government environmental projects to enforce more expertise and stakeholder engagement in early planning stages of projects and more efficient spending throughout delivery.
Just make sure that unicorn is ring fenced.
Stop the daily threads. It's okay - we get it now.
Kudos for writing it all down in Japanese.
I honestly thought putting the effort in to document and share this tip would be useful 🙁
Surely there are other people out there with XT V-brakes levers that would benefit from new top bushings?
Ignore the haters.
Don't think there are haters, but I doubt 1% of people on here still use v-brake levers on anything but a commuter bike, and even fewer of them use XT ones.
Not entirely sure what no_eyed_deer is complaining about, the OP has posted a few threads declaring his allegiance to retro stuff and his desire to recycle bits, but it's not particularly excessive.
I found it useful. I've got three bikes with xt v brake levers...
I have no strong feelings on the matter.
Thanks for posting. I've got some similar XT canti levers that could possibly do with the same "upgrade".
Not entirely sure what no_eyed_deer is complaining about, the OP has posted a few threads declaring his allegiance to retro stuff and his desire to recycle bits, but it's not particularly excessive.
Ahh, so it is Retrocidal, I was wondering what the beef was as I have not said anything against modern tech, I just like DIYing and getting the most out of what I have, etc.
I like a good "bodge" for older components and that's a good one.
hh, so it is Retrocidal, I was wondering what the beef was as I have not said anything against modern tech, I just like DIYing and getting the most out of what I have, etc
You do write a bit like a 12 year old too. Which is likely to invoke the sarcasm genes in many on here.
ou do write a bit like a 12 year old too. Which is likely to invoke the sarcasm genes in many on here.
The academies must be doing a bloody good job with the younger ones then - as 14 year olds+ are all full of txtspeak and don't know what a comma or apostrophe is, etc.
Sadly STW is not really the forum for this kind of thing any more*, while there are many of us on here who do bodge, fix, refurb and recycle this forum seems to have lost some of its original grass-roots feel over the years to be replaced by people who just throw money at their hobby and the latest new toy, not everyone, but the feel has changed over the years.
I remember epic posts about how to do a full strip and seal replacement on the 'new' RS Reba, and modding dampers, and rebuilding hub gears, and many other satisfying fixes and bodges involving as little money as possible and plenty of igenuity. Every now and then a decent contribution post pops up but I think the number of us who appreicate them is dwindling 🙁
If you want to get into some proper retro-grouch discussions there's plenty of people more than willing to discuss the finer points of servicing and shimming a 1992 Shimano freehub past it's twenty thousandth mile over on the CTC (sorry, Cycling UK) Forum, and to some degree on Retrobike and YACF, or one of the decent US forums, but they all talk funny...
Twisty, do you have a local bike recycle/refurb project local to you? I help to run one down here in Devon and from what I've see through your posts you'd probably love to get involved if you did have one near to you and have the spare time!
FWIW, you can also use use off the shelf plastic/igus/nylon flanged bushings on these (and other) levers, get the vernier out to check dimensions and then head to local bearing supplier, or buy online, normally cost <£2 to do a pair of levers, which while not as free and re-usey as your solution is cheap and most people don't realise just how fixable a lot of 'worn out' stuff is.
* I don't want this to come over as me slating the forum, it's a great place, with many characters and varied discussion, but I do think the feel has changed a bit over the years and as I've said before, STW is not representative of the majority of bike riders in the real world!
Twisty, do you have a local bike recycle/refurb project local to you? I help to run one down here in Devon and from what I've see through your posts you'd probably love to get involved if you did have one near to you and have the spare time!
I used to live next to West London cycle hub, which appeared to be a really good project. Unfortunately, I only found out about them just before I emigrated and donated my 'trove to them which they really appreciated. If I had found out about them earlier I would have been too busy rebuilding my house to donate any real time to them but I probably would have bought some stuff from them.
Ta for the tip about the flanged bushings, will remember that.