Boardman CX Owners Thread

Muzzledoctor

I've found that you can interchange most SRAM and Shimano parts and cables have never been an issue for me in the past. So yes, Shimano cables will be fine. I've been using something called Cable Magic lubricant which is truly excellent for smoother shifting and braking.

antsmithmk

New mech hanger ordered from Halfords. £18.

essex-commuter

koontz wrote:

Anyone know the band on size for the front mech on the cx team 2014 model, I think its 34.9mm but not sure thanks, have had enough of the micro one and can get on for £20.00 of ebay.

I've got a 34.9mm Ultegra that's 6 months old if you're interested. I've just changed my Boardman groupset to Campag.

Also got 105 shifters and a 105 rear mech.

koontz

Thanks but am happy with sram apex, just need the front mech and new cables and I'm set. Still have an anoying squeak now and again, think its the seat but not sure, it doesnt happen when standing on the pedals, so dont think its the bb.

heez29

Russvphoto wrote:

Hi Heez29,
Its a couple of months old although a 2012 model. I didn't take it back as I didn't trust the Halfords "mechanic" to do anything after I had to show hime how to fit a wheel on a customers bike!

Doesn't make any difference on timescale it's been supplied wrong. It should not have a star fangled nut there, should have an expander instead.

I'd suggest taking it to a different Halfords as those guys don't seem clued up as you've probably bought an ex-display or one that was damaged in transit (box dropped onto forks) and already had the forks replaced, hence the SFN.

With regards to steerers, all CX Teams should have a carbon steerer. IME it has never been alloy. Maybe the original Pro and definitely the new Comp were the only Alloy steerers.

And cables are cables... Only difference being is brake cables, road or MTB.

Viking2136

Viking2136 wrote:

Thanks Fret, took to the LBS again today - no difference - I dont think they have have a clue in line with my Halfords boys, im going to strip the lot at the weekend and have a look at it, thanks for the canti tip - back to reality and looking to keep it and get it sorted

Did it - took the lot down - lubed al that was showing and re-set all the gears in accordance with this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=92Cu_jneQFw

it now shifts like a silky smooth virgin - perfect - even got the discs set right as well now so all looking good - until this morning:

just been away for a week from work, left the bike in the shed, got on it this morning - silky gears and extreme stopping power, got about half way to work at the 12 mile point and started to hear a cracking/clicking noise coming from what i thought was the BB - OH NO!, carried on checking it for the rest of the way and I think Ive narrowed it to the rear cassette which seems to make the noise at low speed. It has no pattern and some time only makes the noise for 2 seconds and sometimes for ten! its not whilst under pressure and not whilst coasting. the rear cassette does have a small bit of play bi-lateraly - could this be the cause and will taking it off and lubing it fix it? I dont want to got and see the specials at halfords again!

tincaman

Viking2136 wrote:

Viking2136 wrote:

Thanks Fret, took to the LBS again today - no difference - I dont think they have have a clue in line with my Halfords boys, im going to strip the lot at the weekend and have a look at it, thanks for the canti tip - back to reality and looking to keep it and get it sorted

Did it - took the lot down - lubed al that was showing and re-set all the gears in accordance with this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=92Cu_jneQFw

it now shifts like a silky smooth virgin - perfect - even got the discs set right as well now so all looking good - until this morning:

just been away for a week from work, left the bike in the shed, got on it this morning - silky gears and extreme stopping power, got about half way to work at the 12 mile point and started to hear a cracking/clicking noise coming from what i thought was the BB - OH NO!, carried on checking it for the rest of the way and I think Ive narrowed it to the rear cassette which seems to make the noise at low speed. It has no pattern and some time only makes the noise for 2 seconds and sometimes for ten! its not whilst under pressure and not whilst coasting. the rear cassette does have a small bit of play bi-lateraly - could this be the cause and will taking it off and lubing it fix it? I dont want to got and see the specials at halfords again!

Get the back wheel off and check the cassette lockring, it could be loose

arthur_scrimshaw

tincaman wrote:

Viking2136 wrote:

Viking2136 wrote:

Thanks Fret, took to the LBS again today - no difference - I dont think they have have a clue in line with my Halfords boys, im going to strip the lot at the weekend and have a look at it, thanks for the canti tip - back to reality and looking to keep it and get it sorted

Did it - took the lot down - lubed al that was showing and re-set all the gears in accordance with this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=92Cu_jneQFw

it now shifts like a silky smooth virgin - perfect - even got the discs set right as well now so all looking good - until this morning:

just been away for a week from work, left the bike in the shed, got on it this morning - silky gears and extreme stopping power, got about half way to work at the 12 mile point and started to hear a cracking/clicking noise coming from what i thought was the BB - OH NO!, carried on checking it for the rest of the way and I think Ive narrowed it to the rear cassette which seems to make the noise at low speed. It has no pattern and some time only makes the noise for 2 seconds and sometimes for ten! its not whilst under pressure and not whilst coasting. the rear cassette does have a small bit of play bi-lateraly - could this be the cause and will taking it off and lubing it fix it? I dont want to got and see the specials at halfords again!

Get the back wheel off and check the cassette lockring, it could be loose

Could be the rear wheel bearing as well.

fret

Or the rear wheel moving as the OEM skewers are rubbish. Took me ages to sort it.
Fit some MAVIC MTB ones. Job done.

This week in the sunny light (at 06:30) mornings I have been riding the Planet X to work.
Whilst no lighter than the Boardman it has highlighted what is possibly the only minor issue with the bike overall despite my many upgrades, even with 28mm tyres fitted.
BB flex. I can feel it, that's for sure. Like I say, not a major issue, but it's there.

Still, it's nice to get the lights off at last and I may even remove the mudguards and see what the CX Team is actually capable of on the road.

koontz

Ok got the sram apex front mech on no probs but cant suss out were the gear cables go in the shifters?, Im used to shimano which are easy I can see the brake cables go near the top but the gear cables??.

bigmul

heez29 wrote:

Russvphoto wrote:

Hi Heez29,
Its a couple of months old although a 2012 model. I didn't take it back as I didn't trust the Halfords "mechanic" to do anything after I had to show hime how to fit a wheel on a customers bike!

Doesn't make any difference on timescale it's been supplied wrong. It should not have a star fangled nut there, should have an expander instead.

I'd suggest taking it to a different Halfords as those guys don't seem clued up as you've probably bought an ex-display or one that was damaged in transit (box dropped onto forks) and already had the forks replaced, hence the SFN.

With regards to steerers, all CX Teams should have a carbon steerer. IME it has never been alloy. Maybe the original Pro and definitely the new Comp were the only Alloy steerers.

And cables are cables... Only difference being is brake cables, road or MTB.

I have a 2014 team and pretty sure I have a star but as well. Will try to get a PIC uploaded to confirm here.

fret

koontz wrote:

Ok got the sram apex front mech on no probs but cant suss out were the gear cables go in the shifters?, Im used to shimano which are easy I can see the brake cables go near the top but the gear cables??.

From the inside of the shifters near the bottom of the lever pivot, if that males sense? From memory it's a bit of a fiddle as one goes in easier than the other and you have to move the pulley/lever mech. a bit to do it.
Bit of a pig to fit on Red at least and as they are the same as Apex......................

newtonuk

Is it just me, or does the seatpost on Boardman bikes have a massive amount of offset or layback?

koontz

Yeah I have to move my saddle nearly all the way forward, but I think a shorter stem would help also.

fret

I've been thinking the same, even with an aftermarket seat stem. It does have a long top tube as well though.

newtonuk

fret wrote:

I've been thinking the same, even with an aftermarket seat stem. It does have a long top tube as well though.

Yeah, appreciate that, but just getting my "knee over pedal spindle" position has the saddle slammed forward on that seat post! When I'm there, the reach is okay for me thankfully.

evo456

Hi all,

new to the fold, have managed to read up quite a lot of the thread. Have manage to kit out my 2014 CX Comp, successfully converting it to Shimano 105 as I managed to source the parts at a good price, and hte standard Sora hoods were giving me a lot of discomfort.

Anyhow my freehub is making marble noises , but the the hub still bites and freewheel properly. Stripped the wheel down down, but cannot remove the freehub body as it uses a non-standard 11m hex socket. The bike is around 6 months old with less than 1,000 miles. I've tried to look up part 124100 in Halfords but that's come back with nothing. So I have 3 choices -

1) Return to halfords and ask them to sort it out under warranty as the part has failed way to early to be normal
2) New Wheel/hubset - recommendations welcomed. A decent set that can take knocks, not too fussed about weight as long as its not heavier than the OEM
3) DIY - source the 11mm allen key and replace it like with like freehub body....

Any advice appreciated.

arthur_scrimshaw

Hi - welcome to the fold. The bike is still under warranty so you really could/should take it back. The freehub is not really serviceable although I bought an 11mm allen key (Halfords don't do these but most 'proper' bike shops do) then it's easy to remove the freehub from the hub. The best you can do is carefully pick out the rubber seal, flush out the bearing to remove the dirt, then drip oil onto the bearing and replace the seal. I've done this, in fact I managed to get a light grease into the bearing. You can't order the part online but I understand if you go into Halfords they will order it for you.You're obviously mechanically able so you should be able to replace or lubricate the hub, but it really should be up to Halfords to sort it out at their expense?

evo456

Arthur- thanks for the reply. You're right I think I will take it back, sometimes I just wonder how effective it would be. We all hear stories about Halfords- but I've had first hand experience in the initial set-up and 6 week service from 2 different branches. I wouldn't mind eventually replacing the wheel set but feel it's far too early to be doing this.

fret

They must replace or repair the wheel, it's under warranty with them. Good luck as they will try to fob you off.

I moved my saddle forward about 10mm yesterday and can't believe the difference it has made. Initially it made the front feel a bit twitchy, like I had a puncture and as it was pouring down I also put it down to the rain and greasy roads.
This morning it's drier and the whole bike is transformed and nicer to ride. I may even get a shorter stem to bring the bars closer as it now feels more like my XLS.

evo456

Thanks for the advice. In the end they are going to replace the faulty hub, a possible explanation was that perhaps it left the factory with not enough grease - but that was just a hypothesis so it'll be interesting to see if others get the same. Overall happy with how the on-duty manager dealt with situation after the 'bike hut' technician tried to go down the wear and tear route- so a great example of customer care and service at the forefront from a bricks and mortar store.

antsmithmk

Nearly 100 pages...?

koontz

Well managed to get the gear cable routed through the sram apex shifter, had to take some of the bar tape of to make sure the cable went in the outer cable, a lot harder than my shimano that just goes in the side but obviously with the sram you can have more options with were to put the outer cables, so now have new front mech fitted and new gear cable, just need to do the rear mech cable and Im sorted. So these wheels on wiggle and am tempted to get these but a bit pricey, and not sure of the weight difference.

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/kinesis-crossli ... -wheelset/

apreading

Slightly cheaper here: http://www.probikekit.co.uk/bicycle-whe ... wgodSj8AOw

If you use quidco you can get another £10 or so off.

I just got me a set from ProBikeKit with 10% off and £10 quidco - so about £225 all in.

About 1550g, I am guessing without skewers. The older version crosslights were apparently 300g lighter than the stock wheels and these are about 300g lighter than the old version so over half a kilo saved compared to the ones that came with the bike!

newtonuk

Only Campy available!

apreading

ah - I guess I got their Shimano set!

apreading

Still a bit cheaper than Wiggle here: http://www.fatbirds.co.uk/954929/produc ... #buyAnchor

Viking2136

Lord help me!!!!!

Found the noise - its coming from the free hub - think its water ingress, wasnt sure how to get the free hub off- made the grave mistake of going to Halfords - my god!

me - "can you take this free hub off for me Ill fix it just want it off" thinking I made the mistake of taking a care plan out!

reply - "we dont deal with them mate"

me - but its a boardman wheel from a bike you sold me 4 months ago"

reply - "we dont do free hubs"

me - "just take it off pleasssseeeee"

reply - "we dont know how and we dont have the tools"

me "good bye"

Letter to Halfords and Boardman to follow but back to the important stuff - how do i get the creaking free hub off?????

tincaman wrote:

Viking2136 wrote:

Viking2136 wrote:

Thanks Fret, took to the LBS again today - no difference - I dont think they have have a clue in line with my Halfords boys, im going to strip the lot at the weekend and have a look at it, thanks for the canti tip - back to reality and looking to keep it and get it sorted

Did it - took the lot down - lubed al that was showing and re-set all the gears in accordance with this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=92Cu_jneQFw

it now shifts like a silky smooth virgin - perfect - even got the discs set right as well now so all looking good - until this morning:

just been away for a week from work, left the bike in the shed, got on it this morning - silky gears and extreme stopping power, got about half way to work at the 12 mile point and started to hear a cracking/clicking noise coming from what i thought was the BB - OH NO!, carried on checking it for the rest of the way and I think Ive narrowed it to the rear cassette which seems to make the noise at low speed. It has no pattern and some time only makes the noise for 2 seconds and sometimes for ten! its not whilst under pressure and not whilst coasting. the rear cassette does have a small bit of play bi-lateraly - could this be the cause and will taking it off and lubing it fix it? I dont want to got and see the specials at halfords again!

Get the back wheel off and check the cassette lockring, it could be loose

koontz

Sounds like my halfords branch. It took them 3 bikes to get me a decent one and even then the end of both gear cable are shredded without cable ends hence why I'm replacing them . I even had a 6 weeks checkup were the 'mechanic' said everything was fine and he lubed the chain, thing is the chain was dirty and he just made it worse. Will never take bike to these guys again or indeed buy a bike of them. Its a real shame as I think the Boardman bikes are really good value for money.

Viking2136

Agreed mate, I did the same on the 6 week service - "yes mate its all done" got home and the head tube/steerer were so loose it had 3mm of play - it was fine before it was dropped off, chain was filthy and all cable were so tight that the SRAM would not change correctly - I has to re-set the whole lot - love the bike - hate the supplyer