In December I found out that a lot of cranks from the mid-90s were recalled by Shimano, their manufacturer. A quick check and... yep, my bike had the "death cranks" that could break at any time. I contacted my bike shop and they said they weren't a Shimano authorized dealer. I asked them if they were thinking they might want be and they said yes, so I told them I would wait until they were a Shimano dealer for the crank replacement.
Three months later, Shimano finally set them up as a dealer. I was kind of hoping for two weeks or so. Who knew? Anyway, I finally got the bike back Saturday, and on Sunday I finished putting on some new modifications. Since the last time I commuted on this bike, these are the changes:
. Shimano replacement cranks
. Planet Bike Freddy Fenders
. Origin8 Space Bar
. Instead of grips I have the world's shortest handlebar tape job
. And a Trek bike computer I got for free from a friend
So this
Became this
Old flat bar
New Orgin8 Space Bar
I couldn't ride today because I had to take Mrs. Doohickie to the airport. So tomorrow will be my first commute on my new old bike.
6 comments:
Those bars look like they'll be much more comfortable.
That's my hope. In the short rides I've taken around the neighborhood they feel much better. I've seen them mentioned on different forums as being great for finger numbness caused by flat bars. The only way I could ride the bike before was if I was wearing my Ironman gloves.
The new bars look really cool!
"Ironman gloves"?!? Are you getting ready to join me on the dark side?
Nah...
The City Cyclist recommended them for people with wrist pain and finger numbness. And they're cheap. And they work.
So there's a recall on the 1994 Nishiki XRS? I just bought that today from craigs list. Does that mean I can go to Shimano and they can replace for me for free?
Yes, there was a recall on the cranks. Apparently they could fail without warning. More information is at the government recall notice and this thread on BikeForums. My cranks were replaced for free. Assuming that a local bike shop is a Shimano authorized dealer, it should only take a week or two to get the parts and put them on the bike. The recall is totally free, even after all this time.
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