So I did this CLE speaking gig for the state bar, and they gave me a little Amazon card that I used to buy myself these uber-cheap Nashbar p-handle hex wrenches. https://tinyurl.com/y8rrfyuf (I got via Amazon for the same price). What a great set of wrenches. I don't know how I lived without these for so long, particularly with all the recessed brake lever bolts these days. All this time I've been using long or standard hex wrenches or hex multi wrenches like this: https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon....PL._SX425_.jpg

Speaking of brake levers, I decided to upgrade my commuter to hydraulic discs because with the new Cannondale warranty replacement frame, the cables for the rear disc run through housing from the lever to the caliper, and the cable bends and housing length added a lot of drag -- and the BB7 calipers were haunted by Frank's potergeist and would periodically drag, even though the return spring seemed adequate. The old Avids have notoriously wimpy return springs. I found some old stock 105 levers and calipers on super-sale from a domestic eBay seller. They're the superseded ST505s, which are kind of bulky levers, but I actually like the feel. I have them on my Norco as OE.

So, I put those on with the other mandatory upgrades, installed and filled the hydraulic hoses/levers/calipers (yet another adapter) and put in the gear cables. I shifted the RD, and the cable predictably loosened as the housing settled in and pulled into the lever with its little finned ferrule. But it kept settling. I peel back the hood, and as it turned out, the cable housing and ferrule had not seated but had been dislodged during some part of the process, and with all the shifting, I had managed to drag the housing and ferrule into the lever body where it broke a $.10 plastic internal cable guide. This: http://si.shimano.com/pdfs/ev/EV-ST-RS505-3902.pdf (part 5).

Crap man, it was designated as a wear item, so the part should be available.. Nope -- not from Shimano or my local shops. And the cable does not stay put through the lever without the guide, so I'm SOL unless I can find a replacement. The only place I could find was SJS in Somerset. I think I got their last one, and it only took a week via Royal Mail/USP. The price was not crazy, either -- even with postage. I threw it in last night, and it works like a charm. If I break that part again, I think I would have to get it from some re-seller in Japan or Germany. That's incredible for a lever that is maybe two years out of date and for an alleged wear item. This is now SOP with the constant product upgrades from Shimano. One pines away for the days when nothing worked that well, but it didn't change from year to year.

-- Jay Beattie.