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Good service indeed, but the Fazua Facebook users group is full of people complaining that Fazua customer service is bad!
Personally I avoid the antisocial media as it’s not just like a (mental) plague but actually is one. I do hear, though, that cyberplaces such as Faecespuke are full of gharks & hoos intent only on creating large & stinking bogs of discontent, disaffection and mental dysentry. 🙂 Does anyone ever praise anything there, other than other crazed loons with dark intents and pockets full of condemnatory conspiracy claptraps?
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I have come across the odd complaint about Fazua-equipped bikes, although they all seem to turn out to be more to do with the installation of the Fazua gubbins in particular bikes rather than anything wrong with the Fazua stuff per se. There was a spate of complaints about the Boardman Fazua-eqipped bike, for example, that seemed to be down to poor wiring installation or other cack-handed actions of the bike manufacturer/builder rather than the Fazua gubbins itself.
The problem I had with the loose Fazua module in me Lapierre eXelius seems to have been one of those. Whoever installed the Fazua locking catch into the frame had overtightened the bolts, resulting in the catch body cracking. The bolts are supposed to be tightened to 2Nm but judging by the difficulty in unscrewing them, they’d been tightened as tight as the installer could manage.
IanMSpencer wrote:
The 10 spline tool is Shimano TL-LR11. Comes up in Google searches at a variety of prices, with unknown delivery charges, wouldn’t like to say what the real cost is.The least expensive option for this TL-LR11 seems to be Amazon at £23.95 – a rip-off for such a crude tool, which various reviews also allege has insufficient penetration of the splines with which to apply 40Nm torque without the danger of the tool mangling the lockring splines realising very easily. There’s another option costing only £60!
But thanks for identifying the tool designation/name.
The alternative is a BBB BTL-105 external 16-notch disc lockring intaller/remover. This costs £18.70, has plenty of grip i’ the notch, also removes 16-notch BBs, has plenty of depth to avoid wheel axles preventing tool-grip and takes a torque wrench square drive.
I’d give sjs cycles a ring.Me too. If they don’t have it, nobody will.
Although to be fair, torque wrenches are very much over-rated.
In what way are torque wrenches “overated”? Do you mean technically (i.e. they don’t actually apply the torque you set on them) or do you mean that setting a fastner to a more exact torque than “tight as it’ll go” is a waste of time as any tightness will do for any fastner? I think we should be told! 🙂
Those Tourney disc retaining lockrings will tighten with the 16-notch BB-tool as they have the same external diameter and notch-profile. Given the apparent absence of any tool in the market that’ll fit the 10-spline internal tool interface, I’m going to obtain a 16-notch tightening tool that has clearance for the hub axle poking out throughthe lockring, as well as a 1/2″ or 3/8″ square ‘ole for the torque wrench to fit in to.
I do have a 16-notch BB tool but, alas, it’s too shallow to reach the disc lockring notches as the wheel axle prevents it. Also, it has no way to attach a torque wrench.
I did e-mail SJS about a 10-spline tool to fit but, so far, no reply.
At my age life is too short for buying special gloop, special valves, special tape, special pump, special tyres, special topper-uppers and then getting covered in the gloop? Not to mention the cleaning out of the special gloop when it dries, the throwing away of the special gloop when it proves to be bloody useless and the very regular pumping of both tyres. Now, apparently, we have to listen to our tyres in case the special gloop has turned crusty.Mmm, now let me think …..
Perhaps you yourself have become ossified to a far greater degree than the tyre gloop ever is? I yam quite ancient myself but enjoy the invigorating effects of learning to use a new technology, especially if it provides a means to avoid having to deal with punctures when far from home with the olde joints getting a bit creak.
That ossification of the attitudes can soon morph into worserer conditions, tha knows! You may find yourself out on the bike with no idea of why you went or where you are!! Or even who you once were!!!
The engine (you) and its
The engine (you) and its condition make big differences over time. Being off the bike for 2 months will have a small effect but being off with a bad virus infection will make a much bigger difference. A virus can degrade many of your body’s functions moreso than just resting for too long.
The bike frame can have a large effect on how well the bike transmits your pedalling effort to the thrust from the rear tyre patch on to the road. Have a read of this for details:
The core point of the article is that a frame can be “tuned” to a rider – their weight, power output and riding style – such that a tuned frame will flex but return most of the energy that does the flexing to the road-thrust (forward propulsion) whilst an untuned frame will either flex and absorb the flex-energy or be too stiff, losing energy in bouncing the rider and bike up and down.
“Wheel sucking” is some sort
“Wheel sucking” is some sort of foolish Yank terminology denoting a “freeloader” (another foolish Yank term) that is “stealing” your effort by using you to push air out of the way. The terminology reflects the ridiculously over-competative winner-loser schtick of that benighted country.
In Britain it’s called “sitting on a wheel” and is a recognised method of cycling eficiently that costs the fellow in front nothing. And, being the co-operative fellows we proper cyclists are, the usual arrangement for fellows of more or less equal ability is to take turns on the front, as relative fitness or current condition dictates.
So, you won’t be surprised to hear, OP, that I find your post rather silly, not to say infantile, especially if you cut orf your nose to spite your face by clarting up your own bike such that you have to perform the tedious business of hosing it down all the time.
My advice is, stop sucking up Yank kulturekrap. 🙂
Cugel
I agree with the original post. I don’t think drivers know exactly what the hatching means, except for a vague idea that they shouldn’t be driving on it.There’s a road with hatching I have to use regularly, and I can virtually guarantee close passes every time I’m there.
It’s astonishing, isn’t it, that so many drivers don’t know what lots of road markings and signage mean. It’s astonishing that they can’t seem to control their cars. It’s astonishing that they can’t seem to grasp that many of their driving habits are illegal, inadvisable and highly dangerous. It’s astonishing that ….
This “issue” underlines the need for drivers to be much more vigorously tested before they get a license; and to be tested regularly thereafter. Ignorance and stupidity in such a domain (driving a high weight of metal at high speeds) is very dangerous, as the so-called “accident” statistics demonstrate.
But ignorance and stupidity seem all the fashion these days. Does no one take any responsibilty for anything anymore? Have the concepts of duty, cictizenship and even good manners disappeared forever?
Cugel
A bell is a total misnomer. The perceived purpose of a bell is to warn people who step out that you are there. The fact is you have an immediate choice with a bell…either use your hands to brake or use your hands to ring a bell.The safest way to ride in a pedestrian areas, for both cyclist and pedestrian, is to be prepared to brake….not ring a bell…
The purpose of a bell is not as you describe but rather to warn those ahead on a shared path or on a narrow pathless road that you’re there. It’s typically used when such persons have their back to you so can’t see you coming. It’s necessary because a bike is otherwise quiet.
On every ride I use my bell half a dozen times or more, generally from 50 yards back, which gives plenty of time to also brake. It’s good manners to brake a little so that you don’t pass like a Strava-striver and thus have time to say hello & thanks.
Why would you want to ring a bell at people on the pavement? If they step into the road in front of you, give a shout as you brake. Hopefully you won’t be riding so carelessly that you’ll be able to stop in time, even if it is their fault for not looking.
Cugel
madcarew wrote:
“Fun” – that tedious Yank notion wherein gormless grinners go about doing often foolish things whilst wearing garish clothing and hooting hysterically.
I prefer good old British “enjoyment”, which requires no hysterical hooting or other infantile cries; nor any of that posing where you show off the silly gew-gaw you just bought as some sort of badge indicating your status in the consumer-races.
But I am a sceptical old fart so may be dismissed out-of-hand by you young thrusters & strivers, as you go about the shops finding ways & means to scratch up the Strava greasy postings by a notch or two.
Cugel
What. A. Dick.
Lt Carew! Have you risen from your wee plot of land on the foreign soils to once more seek the glittery shiny things, in this consumer world full of such? I imagine that the jewelled one-eye of a temple god pales into insignificance when compared to, say, a stealth-black Dogmatic; or even a queer plastic hat with “Raphoss” written on it,
Well, I understand your feelings of embarressment, shame and reaction to those feelings, having realised perhaps that you too are just another consumer victim going about having vacuous fun by getting and displaying shiny things. I will be your whipping-Cugel, if it helps.
But it’s never too late to grow up, tha knows! Or you could just go back to mouldering in your plot.
Cugel
I bought some last autumn and
I bought some last autumn and they’ve just done over the first one thousand miles. Hunt shod them with Schwalbe G1 30mm tubeless and they’re in a Trek Domane 400 winterbike with mudguards et al.
As working wheels the 4-season disc wheels do seem both resilient and surprisingly “fast”. They get ridden over some seriously bad roads, in club rides where one does not always manage to avoid the pothole and other scabby-tarmac hits. So far no sign of rim-warp, loose spoke or any other degradation. As another poster mentions, a multi-thousand mile test will confirm or deny their hardiness and suitability for the claimed four seasons (and awful British roads).
I do have some comments about their selling and after-sales service:
1 The dropouts on the Domane are 15mm front through axles with 12mm through axles at the back. This required the additional purchase of the required adaptors from Hunt. On the other hand, they included some redundant 6-bolt to spline disc mount adaptors and a pair of QR skewers that are reduntdant to me. I would rather that the wheel price included the axle parts required but not the other parts which are currently included in the single standard package for the wheelset.
2 When trying to mount an Ultegra 11-speed cassette on the Hunt 11-speed freehub, I found that the lockring had insufficient threads to achieve a secure hold (only about 3/4 of a thread). I complained to Hunt who said the problem was highly unusual but sent me a new freehub (free of charge) to try just in case I had a queer one. This had the same problem.
I eventually solved the problem by finding a non-Shimano lockring with a longer body, which is secure as there are more lockring threads to grab the internal threads of the Hunt freehub. I don’t know why the Shinamo lockring caused a problem. I measured the Hunt freehub dimensions against the standard 11-speed hub specification and they were correct to the 0.1mm. Other brands of 11-speed freehub I have do seem to have a tiny amount more of internal thread for the lockring, though. (Which makes them out-of-spec … but in a good way).
So far I would recommend Hunt 4-season wheels as high quality and very good value. I’m hoping this continues as the miles pile up this year.
Incidentally, I bought the Hunts to replace the Bontrager wheels that came with the Domane, on which I broke two spokes in the first year I had the bike; and could never quite get the wheels to run true thereafter. Compared to the Hunts, the Bontragers were also a bit leaden, even with Schwalbe Ones mounted rather than the dull Bontrager tyres that came with the bike/wheels.
Cugel.
hawkinspeter wrote:
@Wellsprop – I wasn’t expecting CAD, let alone CFD analysis. I was thinking more along the line of an old bit of plastic and scissors.
Very impressive work and don’t listen to Cugel – it’s fun to go faster whether that’s technical competence or improved fitness.
“Fun” – that tedious Yank notion wherein gormless grinners go about doing often foolish things whilst wearing garish clothing and hooting hysterically.
I prefer good old British “enjoyment”, which requires no hysterical hooting or other infantile cries; nor any of that posing where you show off the silly gew-gaw you just bought as some sort of badge indicating your status in the consumer-races.
But I am a sceptical old fart so may be dismissed out-of-hand by you young thrusters & strivers, as you go about the shops finding ways & means to scratch up the Strava greasy postings by a notch or two.
Cugel
wellsprop wrote:
I was only drawn to TT as I’m not interested in racing but I want something competitive (at least beating my own PR’s)! I plan to give the local TT’s a bash this season, the local club also runs weekly evening TT’s :)You aren’t beating your own PRs if the increase in speed is due soley to the technology “upgrades”. This is something I never grasp about TT lads – are you “competing against yourself” or actually in a race with others after all (more like an arms race than a fair fight, since it all seems to hinge on the technology)? I know, really – it’s the latter, innit.
In Japan they have keirin racing wherein the bikes are highly limited in any variation, tending to none, as the punters are interested in which bloke, not which bike, is the fastest. It was once like that in TTing, where everyone road a fixed wheel bog-standard thing. This makes sense to me.
You could ride a 1939 Rudge and improve your times …. by getting fitter. I thought that was the idea … but perhaps I am old and confused about these modern things. One suspects that TTing has become a buy-stuff fest like everything else these days. 🙂
Still, your buying has at least been relatively light on your wallet.
Cugel.
Advertmen, eh!? They are
Advertmen, eh!? They are walking euphemisms for “persuasive liars with bags of poke-pigs done up in glamour”. Does anyone believe them? Well, millions apparently – if one goes by the efforts and money put into advertising. And the tremendous numbers of ridiculous gew-gaws consumed-then-binned by must-havers all over the place.
My own pet-bete-noire is the helmet advert, which not only emits probable lies about ventilation, aerodynicalness, fashionability and other irrelevant stuff (to the supposed function of a helmet) but never anything (especially anything checkable by the consumer or independent body) about how and to what degree it will reduce harm to the head, in what circumstances.
Basically helmets are advertised in the same way as the more ludicrous womens’ “fashion” shoes; and are just as dysfunctional – perhaps even dangerous to the health of the wearer, if the accident-related head damage differentials between wearers and the bare-headed of cycling accident statistics are perused. They fail in their supposed function, just like the high-heeled wobble-shoe in toe-mangler fit. But silly-billies think they “look good”. Ha!
Nor do cycling magazines or websites ever attempt to test the safety functions of helmets. They are concerned only to regurgitate the manufacturer’s PR blurb and pretty pics of the item atop some celebrity cyclist or other.
Cuh!
Cugel.
I have two Domane bikes: one
I have two Domane bikes: one set up as a light summer “racer” with calliper brakes and light HED wheels; the other set up as a winter bike with discs, a triple chainset (low gears) and mudguards.
Both are a joy to ride – stiif for power transfer and steering down bumpy bendy roads but very compliant when sailing over scab-road and other nasty surfaces.
Both have 28mm tyres on, although the disc version will take 32mm albeit mudguards then get a bit tight to fit. I have them both with short high rise stems, so that this with their already tall head tube has me quite upright, as I’m an old scrote now and can no longer adopt the racing position without neck & shoulder ache.
However, comfort can also be achieved in the racing position if your vulnerable part is a lower back rather than a stiff neck, since the racing position puts more weight through your hands and less through your spine. At 40 summick years old you should be supple enough to adopt a racing position. (I’m 68).
But if you like to ride more in touring or audax style, the Domane will suit. Different stems will allow a significant range of positions anyway; but you’ll always have it’s great power transfer allied with a lot of comfort, especially at the back end.
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Trek was guilty of selling good frames with decent groupsets but poor wheels, to meet a price point. With the £3000 105 version inclusive of fancy wheels I think they’ve gone to the other extreme. A £1600 pair of wheels on what should be a £2000 bike is a mismatch. £2000 for the same bike with much better wheels than the usual bottom-of-the-range Bontragers should be possible.
Just a month or three ago you could buy a Domane 400 CF framed bike with Sora and TRP HY/RB discs for £850 in the sales. It’s one of the Domanes I have and I was very happy to pay £1300 for it. An £850 price would be reasonable just for the frameset, especially if you flogged off the Sora, TRP brakes and Bontrager wheels but kept the good quality stem, seatpost and bars. You could get some very good groupset & wheels for £2150!
I put Shimano full hydraulic brakes on mine and it’s the best winter bike I’ve ever had (and I’ve had a few).
Cugel.
Unless you’re replacing very
Unless you’re replacing very heavy wheels indeed with very light ones, swapping wheels merely for weight-saving purposes is a waste of money. As another poster mentions, 270gms weight “saving” in wheels for a 100Kg bloke is meaningless.
However, there are other parameters to wheels that may mean buying more expensive ones gets you better wheels than you have. “Better” can be stiffer, stronger, more compliant or some other factors that are advantageous. Unless you’re a road racing fellow needing faster accelerating wheels or wheels that get you 10 yards up the road at the sprint because you spent a few watts less hauling them up hills, wheel parameters other than weight are much more important.
Personally I’d start by making sure the tyres are the best for your riding style, weight and so forth. Better tyres cost a fraction of better wheels and are likely to provide a far greater improvement – less rolling resistance, stickier on the road, less puncture-prone …..
Cugel