Multiple Questions! Wheels, casettes etc etc etc

chopperHarris

Loads of questions guys and gals so help please!

After a winter of commuting my Specialized Allez is starting to show signs of the abuse!

rear wheel was a bit grindy so thought i would clean the bearings etc at the weekend, and to my amazement i am a bearing down on one side (drive side) Also the wheel has a slight buckle from a couple of tumbles and general london road use, rear casette has done about 5k miles still looks ok but then im no expert!

My questions are as follows

Wheels - i can get some new bearings (cant find any on CRC?) and get the wheel straigtened but im wondering should i just purchase a new wheel set, they are the stock Specialized hubs with individual bearings instead of a sealed unit and i have to strip them regularly to keep them spinning well. if new what should i get, its only used for commuting so dont need anything to fancy.

Casette - how many miles should it do? Should it be replaced

Bike has done around 5k miles over three years and is still running all the original Tiagra parts that came with it,

should i look at replacing some of these now? everything works ok, gears are selected fine, its not as smooth as it was when i first got the bike but im worried that i have just got used to it not working as well as it should etc.

benpinnick

Cant advise you on wheels as I havent bought roadie ones for ages, but on the bearings, any LBS (even Halfords) should be able to sell you a pack of balls of the right size for around £1. Just take in a sample.

benpinnick

Also, is your cassette or rings showing signs of Shark teeth? This is where the teeth wear from the drive side towards the non drive, eventually creating sharp 'sharks teeth'. If there is obvious signs of this then its time for new cassette and chain. If not, then just a new chain for now.

chopperHarris

Ok will try the LBS at lunch time for some bearings to get me back on the road again.

As for the casette it looks worn but not knackered i change the chain regularly (about 1 a month at the moment due to the weather)

benpinnick

1 month! Holy crap. How many miles do you do? Sounds like your cassette is worn. Putting new chains on old cassettes = instant chain death.

chopperHarris

its more a case of the chain rusting and seizing up than stretching etc especially in the last couple of months with all the salt on the road, i chain scrub it weekly and lube up etc but it doesnt last long, im doing about 150 miles a week, 1 chain lasted me the whole summer so i think its just me being fussy more than the chain being knackered, probably a bit lazy as well TBH i would rather spend £12 or so on a new chain than spend 2 hours scrubbing the crap out of it

biondino

I dunno what you're doing to chains but they shouldn't rust or seize up regardless of the conditions. You might be overcleaning it and then not lubing it properly?

chopperHarris

the SRAM chain i put on just two weeks ago is showing signs of rust already, is cleaned using a finish line chain cleaner and lubed with finish line wet lube weekly, the last Shimano chain i used lasted 2 months before being rusty. as said perhaps im being picky but at 12 odd quid each i dont see the point in scrimping when it saves time/effort etc

benpinnick

Rust isnt really worth worrying about I reckon. All chains will rust unless you treat them with kid gloves. As rust is soft, a quick ride will get rid of it.