Mukluk Maintenance

The Ti Muk from this past Spring

 Maintenance. I have been maintaining people's bicycles for many years, so I usually don't get real excited about maintaining my own. I have been fulfilled in that area of life and I don't seek out a lot more of that sort of thing. So, when it comes to my own bikes and maintenance, sometimes I know what has to be done, but I tend to put it off until, well, it really has to be done! 

Maybe I'm not so different in that way, come to think of it. Anyway....

I knew that I might have some maintenance issues crop up when I was able to get the Ti Muk 2. Things like bearings and cables and housings, and chains, you know- Things that get used up. Well, over that past month I could hear the bottom bracket making some cries for help. As a mechanic, you hear things. Things most riders do not hear, and well, I knew the bottom bracket wasn't long for this world, but I put it off...

Then about a week ago,on the way home from work- POP-scrunch! That sound that says, "Hey knucklehead! I'm toast! replace me!". Well, that's how my bottom bracket talks to me. Your bottom bracket may say it in other ways.

Time to break out those wrenches!

So.....(sigh!), I had to come to grips with facts. My Mukluk was going to have to be parked until that bottom bracket problem was addressed. I had never looked at the Ti Muk's bottom bracket. Who knew what I might find? The previous owner, Sam, may have ridden this bike in conditions that were not good, or maybe he babied it. I don't have any idea. 

So, out came the wrenches and well, it went about as smoothly as I could have hoped in terms of this coming apart. Along the way I noted that the chain ring need replacement and the chain could use replacement as well. Great! Just add on to the pile, right? 

So, I inspected the drive side first and to my surprise, it felt like that cup had okay bearings. Hmm..... You cannot really tell without a load in place, but generally you can sort of tell if a bottom bracket bearing is bad, especially if it makes popping sounds. 

Ooooo! It looks like caramel! (With a side of coffee grounds)

So, the non-drive side cup did feel rough and it had this odd looking residue inside of it. Eeew! Not sure what the heck that is, but it doesn't matter. This bottom bracket cup is bad, and both are getting replaced. 

This Race Face crank set has the 24mm spindle, not the Cinch thing, so I can use any Shimano style threaded cup, which makes life easy from the standpoint of choices. But a bottom bracket, chain ring, and chain are going to cost me well over 100 bucks and I don't have that to spend right now. Got a new bumper on the truck, new appliances to wash and dry clothes, and now a loan for a new roof all within this past month. Life. It's a real thing and it affects things like getting new bottom brackets and such.

So, this project will be on hold for a bit. Stay tuned for a conclusion- hopefully sooner than later.