WTHarper

2,186 reputation

1514

bio	website	velostrigiformes.tumblr.com
	location	Portland, ME
	age	26
visits	member for	1 year, 1 month
	seen	5 mins ago
stats	profile views	37

I'm fascinated with bicycles...with how they work, how they're built, how they're used, and what they have to offer. I'm pursuing an MS in Civil Engineering specifically to design and construct cycling infrastructure for transportation planning.

I have worked with several bike-share programs providing free access to bicycles for students, workers, and retirees. In addition, I volunteer as a bicycling safety advocate with local schools.

I appreciate lugged steel, leather saddles, Bridgestones, and pink bar tape.

My next big goal is a cross-country ride from Maine to California.

	2,186 reputation	bio	website	velostrigiformes.tumblr.com	visits	member for	1 year, 1 month
1514 badges		location	Portland, ME		seen	5 mins ago

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Feb 13	comment	What sort of bottom bracket does a Trek 1.5 2011 take? 9 times out of 10, modern square tapers are JIS and not ISO.
Feb 13	comment	Different Gear Type when there's no Front Derailleur? Ramps and pins shouldn't ever derail the chain off of a chainring. If they did, the chain would constantly drop off on doubles and triples and cause it to skip. Once you shift to a chainring, a well maintained drivetrain will stay on that chainring (regardless of whether the rings are ramped and pinned!)
Feb 11	comment	Lubricating screw/braze-on threads: Bike lube or polylube? Can you be more specific in what you mean by regular lube and poly lube? Brands would be helpful. (For most non-rotating threads, the lubricant does more to displace prevent water from penetrating the threads. Light oils will eventually get washed away, but denser grease and wax will stay put.)
Feb 11	comment	Employer Duty of Care for cyclist Keep in mind that there is a vast difference between legal and ethical obligation and, in the case of many businesses, the cost effectiveness of those decisions. They may just decide that it is too much of a liability and remove the bike racks altogether.
Feb 10	revised	How do I tell if my cog needs replacing? Changed term 'chainring' to the correct term 'cog.'
Feb 10	suggested	suggested edit on How do I tell if my cog needs replacing?
Feb 5	comment	What's best engine to motorize a road bike @Bohemian Have you considered just buying a scooter or a moped? In the long run it'd be safer, faster, and more reliable than a little 1/4 hp engine strapped to your rear tire.
Feb 5	comment	My chain appears to be squeaking when I ride it forward but not backwards If it's squeaking and it's coming from the drivetrain, it is probably the chain. What did you use as lube on the chain and the pulley bushings? Often cleaning a chain (and working degreaser into the links) will make a chain squeak more than before.
Feb 5	comment	Checking fixie for damage Make sure you recenter your chainring and check those chainring bolts.
Feb 4	comment	Deep vs shallow rims Another thing to look for is butted spokes (single, double, or triple) which will flex more than comparable straight gauge.
Feb 4	comment	Deep vs shallow rims Deep section rims are less compliant vertically (i.e. they don't squish when you hit a bump or pedal hard.) This is ideal-when combined with the aero profile-in time trials and other hard pedaling on asphalt. Deep section rims also shed mud easier than shallow section rims which is why many use them in cross. The drawback is that, because they don't flex, they are more likely to crack/bend. However, I don't think that the profile of the rim would be a sort of "night and day" comparison if it is built well.
Feb 4	comment	Deep vs shallow rims There is a lot more to a wheel than just rims. Hub selection and the number/type/quality of the spokes is also important - as is the construction of the wheel. If you're a heavy dude, you'll want the advice and skill of a professional wheel builder so you don't have to keep replacing wheels. (Also, Mavic and Velocity are, in my opinion, the best value-for-durability out there.)
Feb 1	comment	What's best engine to motorize a road bike For any diesel engine, expect to pay way more money than a comparable gasoline engine, regardless of size. For what you're looking for, a 2-stroke gasoline engine generates the most power-per-size (in terms of horsepower.) However, high quality 2-stroke engines are still not cheap (and the cheap ones aren't long in life.)
Feb 1	comment	Product selection help: wheelset for vintage(ish)steel roadbike That's a tough question to answer. The individual wheel components matter less than the quality of the build. Objectively speaking, Mavic makes fine rims and Shimano makes fine hubs - it's everything else that determines the actual value of the wheelset. (In terms of price, I know what to expect in America but not in the UK. Sorry.)
Feb 1	comment	Product selection help: wheelset for vintage(ish)steel roadbike Look at Velo Orange. They're affordable and aspire to vintage French design. Lots of unadorned aluminum and straightforward aesthetic.
Feb 1	comment	Can I run a wheel with a 130mm hub on a mountain bike with 135mm spacing? Here is an improved technique provided in another thread: bicycles.stackexchange.com/questions/10837/…
Jan 31	comment	Can I run a wheel with a 130mm hub on a mountain bike with 135mm spacing? Have you considered swaging your dropouts on the cross bike to fit a 135mm hub? If it is a steel frame that might be the most straightforward solution.
Jan 31	comment	Are velocity A23 rims suitable for building a wheelset for a 29er Mountain bike? One plus about the Synergy models is the off center rear rim (or front rim if you're running discs.) I recently procured a wheelset that not only has a 0-dish rear wheel but has nearly the same spoke length on the front and rear wheels (it's off by 1.5mm.)
Jan 31	comment	Are velocity A23 rims suitable for building a wheelset for a 29er Mountain bike? I've run Velocity Synergys for quite some time (4 years on my oldest pair) and they're phenomenal! They're the same width as the A23 and I've run 35mm-45mm tires without issue.
Jan 31	comment	Homemade bicycle degreaser liquids Gasoline is really really unsafe to use for lots of reasons! (atsdr.cdc.gov/mmg/mmg.asp?id=465&tid=83)