Upside down to change flats?

I am a newbie bent rider just wondering how other people do it. My SWB bent
is quite awkward to balance properly using one hand while the other hand
guides the rear wheel into place after fixing flats. The other day I had my
first puncture .After a few unsucessful attempts to replace the rear wheel
while upright, I finally managed with the bent upside down, balanced on the
handlebars and seat.

Duh?

Kak61 wrote:

The other day I had my
first puncture .After a few unsucessful attempts to replace the rear wheel
while upright, I finally managed with the bent upside down, balanced on the
handlebars and seat.

I do it with it the bike right way up, but I've got a carrier rack to
grab to make life easier. You may not have, but if upside down works on
yours then what's the problem?

Pete.
--
Peter Clinch Medical Physics IT Officer
Tel 44 1382 660111 ext. 33637 Univ. of Dundee, Ninewells Hospital
Fax 44 1382 640177 Dundee DD1 9SY Scotland UK
net http://www.dundee.ac.uk/~pjclinch/

Ah! Get yourself a tadpole trike. On average, two out of three flats
will be on wheels that are only attached on one side...makes it very
easy to repair 'em without even taking the wheel of the bent! (Of
course, that third flat will be on the rear wheel which will require
an adjustable spanner to fix plus the know-how to work with a SRAM 3x8
hub.)

BentJay
GS GTO

See my tour journal at: http://aroundthelake.crazyguyonabike.com

Peter Clinch wrote in message ...
Kak61 wrote:

The other day I had my
first puncture .After a few unsucessful attempts to replace the rear wheel
while upright, I finally managed with the bent upside down, balanced on the
handlebars and seat.

I do it with it the bike right way up, but I've got a carrier rack to
grab to make life easier. You may not have, but if upside down works on
yours then what's the problem?

Pete.

I ride a Dragonflyer (out of production) tadpole trike. I have
fabricated small aluminum brackets, one for each of the front tires
and one for the rear tire. I use these in combination with a straight
aluminum rod to hold up the wheel for flat fixing. Basically a simple
'jack stand'. When I rode a diamond frame bike I would simply turn it
upside down.

BentJay wrote:
Ah! Get yourself a tadpole trike. On average, two out of three flats
will be on wheels that are only attached on one side...makes it very
easy to repair 'em without even taking the wheel of the bent! (Of
course, that third flat will be on the rear wheel which will require
an adjustable spanner to fix plus the know-how to work with a SRAM 3x8
hub.)

Not if you've got a Windcheetah, all three wheels have single sided
supports. And Burrows designs like the Ratcatcher bike has single sided
supports front and rear too. The 2 out of 3 rule will apply top a delta
as well as a typical tadpole, of course.

Pete.
--
Peter Clinch Medical Physics IT Officer
Tel 44 1382 660111 ext. 33637 Univ. of Dundee, Ninewells Hospital
Fax 44 1382 640177 Dundee DD1 9SY Scotland UK
net http://www.dundee.ac.uk/~pjclinch/

BentJay wrote:
Ah! Get yourself a tadpole trike. On average, two out of three flats
will be on wheels that are only attached on one side...makes it very
easy to repair 'em without even taking the wheel of the bent! (Of
course, that third flat will be on the rear wheel which will require
an adjustable spanner to fix plus the know-how to work with a SRAM 3x8
hub.)

If your trike has mudguards on the front wheels, thobut, these may well get
in the way. And a monoblade is of dubious value when changing the front
tube on many a low-racer, as the chain tends to occupy the space required by
ones hands. Bah!

--

Dave Larrington - http://www.legslarry.beerdrinkers.co.uk/
World Domination?
Just find a world that's into that kind of thing, then chain to the
floor and walk up and down on it in high heels. (Mr. Sunshine)

"Kak61" wrote in message ...
I am a newbie bent rider just wondering how other people do it. My SWB bent
is quite awkward to balance properly using one hand while the other hand
guides the rear wheel into place after fixing flats.

Changing the rear wheel on a Optima Baron is interesting. If you
hold the rear wheel off of the ground with the highest point on the
bike( the headrest), the center of gravity of the bike is still above
the line drawn between the headrest and the front tire contact, so the
bike inverts as you hold it (unless you have some loaded down
panniers, I suppose). I've found that a nearby tree, guardrail or
whatever can help by pinning the bike against it, but you might try
another technique if your seat allows it. I straddle the Baron facing
the back, grip the seat between my legs to keep it "upright" (pardon
my language) and use one hand to hold the rear derailleur out of the
way and bring the wheel up into the dropouts with the other hand. This
works on low racers with narrow seats, but I don't think it would work
on my P38-the seat, it is so big, I doubt that I could reach the back
wheel with the seat in the way.

good luck,

Edd

Kak61 wrote:
I am a newbie bent rider just wondering how other people do it. My SWB bent
is quite awkward to balance properly using one hand while the other hand
guides the rear wheel into place after fixing flats. The other day I had my
first puncture .After a few unsucessful attempts to replace the rear wheel
while upright, I finally managed with the bent upside down, balanced on the
handlebars and seat.


One of the reasons I used a two-legged ESGE stand on my Dutch Speedbike
kit (see www.amey.org.uk/bicycles) was that it makes it possible to
change either wheel (and adjust gears etc.) while the bike is upright on
its stand. Since the speedbike weighs several of the Briton's tons this
is a better prospect than having to turn it upside down!

Sadly, I am told the stands are no longer available.

Peter

Peter Amey wrote:


One of the reasons I used a two-legged ESGE stand on my Dutch
Speedbike kit (see www.amey.org.uk/bicycles) was that it makes
it possible to change either wheel (and adjust gears etc.)
while the bike is upright on its stand. Since the speedbike
weighs several of the Briton's tons this is a better prospect
than having to turn it upside down!

Sadly, I am told the stands are no longer available.

They're still listed in the Hostel Shoppe catalogue:

http://www.hostelshoppe.com/cgi-bin/...sory=983906737

--
"Bicycling is a healthy and manly pursuit with much
to recommend it, and, unlike other foolish crazes,
it has not died out." -- The Daily Telegraph (1877)

I am a newbie bent rider just wondering how other people do it.

Sometimes I turn my bike upside down, sometimes I don't. I guess
the deal is that right side up is fastest if everything goes
perfectly, upside down ends up faster if not so depending on how
lucky I feel (and have been) determines which I use.
Note that I have a Haluzak with USS and the bike balances
quite well on the seat post tops and front derailleur mount post
forming a tripod when upside down.

Since getting decent kevlar belt tires (and tubes I suppose)
on both wheels I have had far, far fewer flats. Glass
has been the big problem as small pieces relentlessly work
into the tire until the tube is nicked.