TALES from the ROAD and the WORKSHOP GUY ANDREWS and ROHAN DUBASH with Photography by TAZ DARLING BIKE MECHANIC TALES from the ROAD and the WORKSHOP
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GUY ANDREWS and ROHAN DUBASH with photography by TAZ DARLING BIKE MECHANIC TALES FROM THE ROAD AND THE WORKSHOP GUY ANDREWS and ROHAN DUBASH with photography by TAZ DARLING BIKE MECHANIC TALES FROM THE ROAD AND THE WORKSHOP Boulder, Colorado Copyright © 2014 Guy Andrews and Rohan Dubash First published by Rouleur Books An imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing Plc he inspiration for us following mechan- another out. I’m sure I was left scratching my ics and team trucks around the world head on many occasions, but fooling Rohan This edition published by was a book called Bicycle Mechanics was impossible — he’s forgotten more about VeloPress by arrangement with Tin Workshop and Competition by Steve bicycles than most of us know. So, this book Bloomsbury Publishing Plc Snowling and Ken Evans. Published in 1985, is a collection of stories with some tips and All rights reserved. No part it was the bible for budding bike mechanics hints that we thought would be useful to ama- of this publication may be like Rohan Dubash and myself. I first met teur mechanics and road cycling enthusiasts reproduced in any form or by any means — graphic, electronic Rohan a decade or so later at Cycles Dauphin alike. It certainly isn’t comprehensive; there or mechanical, including on top of Box Hill in Surrey where we shared just wasn’t space. But if this proves popular, photocopying, recording, taping some workshop time together. We used to play a second edition will no doubt follow. or information storage and retrieval systems — without a game: Each day we’d take it in turns to bring We hope it inspires you to get the work- the prior permission in writing a different part from a bicycle component into stand out. of the publishers. While every the workshop; a spring, a bolt, a plastic shim effort has been made to ensure that the content of this book or an unusual washer. We’d try to catch one GUY ANDREWS is as technically accurate as possible, neither the author nor the publishers can accept responsibility for any injury or loss sustained as a result of the ON THE ROAD ············································ 5 use of this material. The Daily Grind ············································ 7 Bike Washing ············································· 25 A Cataloging-in-Publication Team Car ················································· 33 record for this book is available from the Library of Congress. The Truck ················································ 55 1 Team Garage ·············································· 67 ISBN 978-1-937715-18-2 Editor: Guy Andrews Copy editor: Claire Read Designer: Rob Johnston HARDWARE ·············································· 83 Assistant designer: Chris Martin Tools ····················································· 85 All photography © Taz Darling Workshop ··············································· 115 and Guy Andrews U.S. edition editor: 2 Ted Costantino VeloPress 3002 Sterling Circle, Suite 100 Boulder, CO 80301-2338 USA 303 440 0601 THE BIKE ··············································· 129 [email protected] Frame and Fork ·········································· 131 Distributed in the United States Bottom Bracket ··········································· 149 and Canada by Ingram Publisher Wheels ·················································· 165 Services Tires ···················································· 189 Brakes ·················································· 213 For information on purchasing 3 VeloPress books, please call Drivetrain ···············································223 800 811 4210 ext. 2138, or visit Contact Points ···········································235 www.velopress.com Cleaning and Lubrication ··································259 Made from wood grown in managed, sustainable forests. The logging and manufacturing processes conform to the environmental regulations of the country of origin. Printed and bound in China by C&C Offset Printing Ltd 14 15 16 / 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 ON THE ROAD 01 THE DAILY GRIND LE MÉTIER LA RUTINA DIARIA DAS TÄGLICHE SCHLEIFEN BEROEP CHAPTER 01 THE DAILY GRIND Long days and longer nights One pair of hands is here was a time when adjusting a bike mechanics about the tools of their trade, and all that is needed, and needed a lot of tools — even setting up a they will say that they only need a handful of the best-respected pair of brakes required hours of patience. simple ones to keep a modern racing bike on mechanics are T In the days before lucrative sponsorship the road. In fact, most days, the bikes just need the ones who take deals and huge annual budgets, bike teams a wash and some fresh bar tape — serious charge of a situation had to seek mechanics out as contractors. problems are rare. In Colnago’s day, you and have a calm and They were often hired hands from the bike needed a watchmaker’s attention to detail and considered approach. stores and workshops of a team’s native coun- an engineer’s workshop to carry out even the Post-crash, the try, sometimes ex-racers or framebuilders or most basic repair, so very few mechanics could race is chaotic and bicycle factory workers who got an annual cut it on the demanding professional circuit. confusing for the summer sabbatical to follow their dreams and Colnago’s repairs quickly built him a for- mechanics. Finding their heroes. With their tools, they would head midable reputation both in the workshop and your rider is one off to the Tour de France or the Giro d’Italia. at the races. His apprenticeship as a welder thing. Finding the bike It sounds great, and romantic. But it’s hard at Italian racing bike giant Gloria meant he can be even more of work, and the ultimate aim was always the could build frames, too. Soon many top stars a challenge. same — to keep the guys on the road. were calling on his services, even those with Good team mechanics can make a massive other bike sponsors. He always worked hard, difference in the outcome of a race. Today, often staying up all night in his tiny work- pros expect a perfectly prepared bike and a shop — once to build more than 10 pairs of host of high-tech solutions to make it comfort- wheels for a local team the night before a able and efficient. But the art of fixing bikes stage race. But Ernesto was more than just a was once a much more mysterious talent. laborer. He had a sickness, an addiction. His For example, prior to the 1955 Giro d’Italia, creativity and engineering talent meant that Fiorenzo Magni was frustrated and struggling his “Wizard” nickname was soon established with knee problems. Somewhat ambitiously, and his pride in his work rewarded. a young Ernesto Colnago persuaded Magni to let him take the bike in for repair. Colnago had noticed that Magni’s cranks were misaligned and running unevenly. He knew immediately that the cotter pins holding the crankset to the axle had to be accurately re-filed for the crank arms to line up perfectly, and he worked hard to perfect the crooked drivetrain. His atten- tion to detail was admirable. Magni’s knees recovered; Colnago was established. This type of repair was not unusual in the 1950s. Racing bikes of the era required a lot of fine-tuning, and good mechanics like Colnago were highly regarded. Wheels needed constant truing, brakes had to be set up on a daily basis, and gears were constantly on the point of breaking down. Ask any current team 9 BIKE MECHANIC ON THE ROAD Soigneurs with Mechanical talent from the four corners of the world spare wheels are spread all over a race’s parcours. ales of how the big names in cycling in Italy, but I was a mechanic. I didn’t go there Extreme events started out as mechanics are not unu- to learn to build frames, but actually learn to with demanding sual. Reputations are built from the prepare bikes for racers. I mean at the Giro conditions like T ground up, and the best technicians, d’Italia, these mechanics will prepare 10 bikes Paris–Roubaix can bike designers, and framebuilders have to overnight. I had to see how that is done. mean up to 20 extra work hard to break into the world of profes- “That is what I did at De Rosa, too — mechanics and sional mechanic. Today Yoshiaki Nagasawa preparing bikes for Eddy Merckx and Gianni team helpers out on is one of the most sought-after framebuilders Motta. But to be able to assemble bikes for the course. in the world. But in the 1970s he had to travel them properly, I needed to understand all to Italy and to professional racing to learn the geometries and construction of the frame his trade. itself. As for the method of building, I just “I started when I was at De Rosa,” he recalls. watched the old man [Ugo De Rosa] build “No wait, I had one year with Sante Pogliaghi frames every day. 10 CHAPTER 01 THE DAILY GRIND “I went to Italy in 1970, so I’m not sure but in Japan they all come up with these silly “I think one of the when I actually started building frames as brand names. De Rosa didn’t do any track coolest races to opposed to being a mechanic, but probably frames, but Pogliaghi did, so I referred to be at is the Tour of 1972 or ’73. I came back to Japan in ’76 and his experience. Flanders, or Paris– started building frames as a profession. The “Of course, the way De Rosa did his Roubaix, because presidents of Sugino and Nitto were in Milan frames has the most influence. For geom- of all the things with every year, and they took care of me when I etry, I follow Pogliaghi. But the lug shapes the bikes — the was starting out. and finishing are all from De Rosa. wheels, tubulars, “I knew that it would be impossible to “If I had to prepare frames for Eddy Merckx, and all the kit — and make a living being a mechanic, but I knew I made sure it was superbly done — even Ugo to see all the fans that I could do it by becoming a framebuilder couldn’t match it.