Elliot's Bicycle Service & Tap Room

[Blompson]

Hi, Elliot. We haven't met but I greatly appreciate what you're doing and would like to help you repair some bikes out in the dust. I'll see you there, tools in hand (and let you decide whether or not that's innuendo).

[Elliot]

Hi, Elliot. We haven't met but I greatly appreciate what you're doing and would like to help you repair some bikes out in the dust. I'll see you there, tools in hand (and let you decide whether or not that's innuendo).

That will be wonderful! Shop hours are normally from 1 PM to 5 PM. Of course, if a technician wants to work different hours at my location, that would be fine with me. Customers will generally always show up.

I'm still on the fence about trying to organize a shift schedule on a dry-erase board. Odds are it would be a wasted effort, what with the prevailing concept of "Playa Time".
My dog-eared list shows a dozen people who have expressed interest in helping out to varying degrees, but I have been in contact with only a couple of them recently. So please check in if you are still on for helping repair bikes.

[Blompson]

I like the idea of helping extend your hours a little bit, especially later on in the week when there are more bikes in motion and the ones that have been there all week have had more stress placed upon them.

I'm going to write you into my little list of adresses to remember and I will absolutely see you out there.. probably first Sunday or Monday.

[Elliot]

Splendid!

[thirt33n]

Elliot-
I will be stopping by and make myself available for a shift at some point.
I can turn wrenches and such.

Looking forward to it!

Crux

[Sham]

I will do my best to support your bike service by bringing my broken bike pieces to your camp to fix!

[Sunbeam56]

I have a case of Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo wine to bring...
You handle the wrench, i'll be the wench

[mcgyver2k]

Hanging out in the shade and repairing some bikes sounds like a great way to spend the afternoon in a desert. Ill try to show up for one or more shifts.

[Elliot]

.
Sounds great, folks! Bring tools if you can (and try to keep control of them), but I should have some extra tools also.

There will be no sign-up sheet or schedule -- we are on Playa Time, except that regular repair hours are 1 p.m. to 5 p.m..

And when Sham shows up with all his Broken Stuff, we will pour some of Sunbeam's Livestock Wine in him, and he will become a mechan-hic too.

[Elliot]

HEADS UP! Information needed! Do you have a Beast or Dolomite? Then please grab a notepad and a pen, and write down the exact numbers of the tire size off the side of a tire. And post that information here.

I also need to know if the valve stem is a Schrader, such as on automobiles, and is made of black rubber, slightly tapered; or a Presta valve, which is made of metal, is very thin and straight and threaded, and has a round nut at the base of the stem.

Ordered inner-tubes today, but could not order tubes for Beasts, because there are several variations of "4 inch" tires, with both kind of valves. And my local Walmart does not carry these bikes for me to inspect.

The local bicycle store gave me a friendly price on my order of 80 inner-tubes.

[Elliot]

Purchased an extra set of tools yesterday, to serve as a Do-It-Yourself repair kit on a separate table. I figure I will set that table at the entrance to the shade, and leave the tools, and some inner-tubes, out 24/7. Others have tried this, and lost the tools. Thoughts? Ideas? Volunteer armed guards?

[Sunbeam56]

Paint the tools neon pink?

[Elliot]

Paint the tools neon pink?

Good idea. Anything to interfere with people's natural instinct to put useful items in their pockets.

[unjonharley]

Paint the tools neon pink?

Kept the same tape measure for 25 years in the shop.. Kept it where it would get over spray from the paint booth.. Its in on my work bench at home now..

[Elliot]

It has now been established that the Beast has a 26 x 4.0 tire, and the inner-tube valve stem is the Schrader (rubber) type. Thanks!

[unjonharley]

Elliot,

hope I am camped close to you.. If a person just want air.. Your greeters can send them my way.. I will have free desert air for them to pump.. It will be a double cylinder foot pump.. (chained to the van)

[Elliot]

Elliot,

hope I am camped close to you.. If a person just want air.. Your greeters can send them my way.. I will have free desert air for them to pump.. It will be a double cylinder foot pump.. (chained to the van)

Foot pumps are great!

[Captain Goddammit]

Last time my truck had a flat in BRC I just ran a hose from unjonharley's general direction. It was overinflated in seconds.

[gahb13]

I'm still putting some time aside to spend as mechanic/inner tube replacer at your location. Now to comp through this thread to see where that is.

[FIGJAM]

Between G&H on 5.

You can't miss it!!!

[BoyScoutGirl]

Between G&H on 5.

You can't miss it!!!

Look for the bus with eyeballs - photos on the first page of this thread.

[Elliot]

That's great, Guy!
Likely location, and tiny picture of bus, in my signature. Business hours 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. daily.

[Sunbeam56]

Gee-- do you like bacon tamalez?

[gahb13]

It has bacon in the name, so I'll say yes. Also you'll be hard pressed to find food I don't like.

[Major Krash]

Elliot travelling to BM2013

[Elliot]

Sue?

[Elliot]

That picture is not far off the truth! I am loading bicycles right now, and there are 43 of them. But most go inside Millicent.

Photo from 2007, on arrival back in Clearlake:

[spacetime]

Hey Elliot. I have a couple of bmx pegs I want to put on my cruiser. Loaded the bike tonight so will need to put the pegs on out there. Hope to swing by your spot to do so!

[Elliot]

Hey Elliot. I have a couple of bmx pegs I want to put on my cruiser. Loaded the bike tonight so will need to put the pegs on out there. Hope to swing by your spot to do so!

Uh? What are we talking about here? I know what BMX stands for (bicycle moto cross), but what kind of "pegs" are we dealing with, and where on the bicycle are they supposed to go, and what purpose are they supposed to serve?

If you mean "stunt pegs" which screw onto the ends of the rear axle and allow a passenger to ride along by standing on those pegs.... I am no fan of such stunt pegs. The weight of the passenger tends to bend the axle and/or deform the threads, and also to overload the wheel and break spokes.

In addition, on most cruisers, the axle is not long enough to install stunt pegs without removing the original nuts, which means that the original chain adjustment would be lost, assuming this is a single-speed bike, which most cruisers are. And chain adjustment is tricky business, which I do not undertake unless actually needed, or the wheel needs to come off for repair.

And everybody should keep in mind that all bicycle repair services on Playa are intended for unexpected breakdowns, not for any preparation work.

Hrrrrumph.

.................

While we are on the subject.... Many brand new single speed cruisers have excessively tight chains. So please check yours now. (I can only guess that the fault lies with the youngsters who assemble the bikes for minimum wage after school at the discount stores.)

And whenever working on the rear wheel of a bike with coaster brake (pedal-backward brake), make certain you reattach the torque arm on the left side. It MUST be attached to the frame, or serious damage to the wheel-hub will result.

[spacetime]

These are pegs to go on the back of the bike, so I can take on passengers across the playa. It is stuff I couldn't do as preparation, because the pegs aren't sold in most bike shops and I sent my bike is already out of my hands for hauling to BRC.

I believe the axle is long enough (looked at it with a bike guy last night) and so it appears it is a fairly minor operation to add this to the bike, but perhaps not. I did not realize pegs / someone on the back would damage the bike as much as you're saying. I'll have to look into that further.

Regardless, I wasn't trying to add load to your camp! I thought it would be a simple operation and a good reason to come by and say hello. No worries, I'll do more investigation on this and won't plan to come by your spot if I want to attach them out there.