JohnPowell said:

What are your opinions/thoughts on road headsets? I’m considering a Chris King (of course) as well as the Cane Creek 110. What about Hope headsets... read somewhere that they’re pretty good. Others I should think about?

This is for the All-City Mr. Pink I’m building up to be my backup roadie, sometimes commuter bike.

FSA knows how to copy knock off most successful designs.  Their headsets are solid and usually on the cheap end of the spectrum.

Generally, the online goto recommendation is towards serviceable headsets (like a Chris King)

But reality is that in 2019 headsets are "a set it and forget it" item, so any ok bearings will do great. Eventually depending on use, 5 to 10 years from now, you might want to just discard and replace for a new one.

Basically: What JP said.

That's what I was wondering. Is the King or Cane Creek 110 worth the $150 price tag or will I really notice a difference other than the "bling." It seems like they've mostly become reliable enough that a $50-70 unit would be perfectly reasonable.

Given the longevity and serviceability of a King, I guess I could also just get one of those used.

JohnPowell said:

That's what I was wondering. Is the King or Cane Creek 110 worth the $150 price tag or will I really notice a difference other than the "bling." It seems like they've mostly become reliable enough that a $50-70 unit would be perfectly reasonable.

Given the longevity and serviceability of a King, I guess I could also just get one of those used.

Don't get a used headset.

The King and Cane Creek 110 are the top of the line, if that is what you want, get them, they wont disappoint. Longevity and serviceability are baked in the price.

I'd be surprised, that if properly installed and brand new, you could tell the difference from a $30 headset.

also, related:
https://www.instagram.com/p/Bq-Qb8VDJjf/?utm_source=ig_share_sheet&igshid=1mv24y53h1ar6

King headsets are lifetime investments.  I have 1 a inch King headset that I bought in 2001 that spent ten years on my road frame and now resides on my cross bike (which is really a monster cross/hybrid/trail crushing beast of flexy bliss) aka the Slingshot

I just picked up a feedback sports bike stand from RedBeard (which is great by the way) and got a closer look at my derailleur pulleys for the first time in several weeks. Well, apparently all the mud and sand at HPCX, Supercross and Westwood ground my pulleys into oblivion. Wow. 

I’ve had to go several sets of brake pads, but hadn’t noticed the pulleys until now. Cyclocross is an expensive vice

For reference, this is what they are supposed to look like:

I was in a shop yesterday and saw that Continental has released a Grand Prix 5000 tire. From what I can tell, it looks just like the 4000 SII, but costs $10 more. 🤷🏼‍♂️

JohnPowell said:

I was in a shop yesterday and saw that Continental has released a Grand Prix 5000 tire. From what I can tell, it looks just like the 4000 SII, but costs $10 more. 🤷🏼‍♂️

So it's basically a 990 discount?

JohnPowell said:

I was in a shop yesterday and saw that Continental has released a Grand Prix 5000 tire. From what I can tell, it looks just like the 4000 SII, but costs $10 more. 🤷🏼‍♂️

It's a blacker , black 

Mark Taylor said:

JohnPowell said:

I was in a shop yesterday and saw that Continental has released a Grand Prix 5000 tire. From what I can tell, it looks just like the 4000 SII, but costs $10 more. 🤷🏼‍♂️

It's a blacker , black 

They're 1000 better! 
I think they also make a tubeless GP now, something Conti has stayed away from for a while now. 

Paid video, but here's GCN's "first ride" video about the 5000

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nDASVXBAw8U

After previous request for reconditions on wheel upgrades. A recommendation of power upgrade was made. I took the advice and purchased a quarq power crank. Curently, waiting for my ant dongle to begin indoor training. Since I adhor rainy and cold rides, I am sure this was the best decision to continue my winter training. Thank you guys for your advise. Please keep it coming!

Anyone have experience with the tongues of their cycling shoes not staying in place? The tongues in my Giro Factors slide off center until they're hanging on the insides of the feet with only half on top of the foot. They’re 4 years old and well used... maybe they’re just worn out. Any idea how to keep them in place?

Random-seeming comment.

I've installed tubeless tape in all my tubed clincher rims.  It's thinner and lighter than traditional clincher rim strips.  Thinner is good because it makes installing tires easier.  Lighter is better because lighter wheels accelerate better.  I also think that once installed properly, they will stay in place better than the stretch-on style, which means less chance of a sharp edge in the rim cutting the tube.  

The only drawback I can think of is that if you break a spoke on the road, you can't access the spoke nipple in case the stub of the spoke is impossible to get out of the nipple.  

I went with Pacenti and Stans initially, then saw that Silca was supposed to be lighter, and tried that on my Zipp race wheels.  Talking with Wilson at Redbeard, he told me that he believed Giant tubeless tape was the lightest on the market.  I don't know if it's the lightest on the market, but it's lighter than Silca, which was supposed to be lighter than Stans.  (you might ask how I know; I weighed the wheels both before and after rim strip installation)  I think the weight savings is in the range of 15g compared to light tubed rim strips, I'm sure it's more compared to heavier strips, like Tressefond Jantex, which is a cloth tape.  

I've also gotten in the habit of writing my name, email address, spoke gauge and lengths and when I built the wheel on the tape.  Handy if lost, stolen, and when you need to work on the wheel.

JohnPowell said:

Anyone have experience with the tongues of their cycling shoes not staying in place? The tongues in my Giro Factors slide off center until they're hanging on the insides of the feet with only half on top of the foot. They’re 4 years old and well used... maybe they’re just worn out. Any idea how to keep them in place?

I assume they slide off toward the outside of the foot.  Is that correct?

What has changed, other than age?  Can you see that certain elements of the shoe have broken down?

Seems like there are a few things you might be able to do.  First, the inside of the tongue.  Maybe a little extra padding could fill up the space and prevent some sliding.  Maybe a bead of dried glue on the top of the tongue by the inside of the shoe; it might cause a little friction thus limiting movement.

added 12/19/18.

Was thinking about this on my ride.  Part of the issue could be your foot flexing at the arch inside your shoe.  If this happens, each time it flexes, the tongue might slide a teeny bit.  It could be a sign you need greater arch support.

Joshua Wilson said:

After previous request for reconditions on wheel upgrades. A recommendation of power upgrade was made. I took the advice and purchased a quarq power crank. Curently, waiting for my ant dongle to begin indoor training. Since I adhor rainy and cold rides, I am sure this was the best decision to continue my winter training. Thank you guys for your advise. Please keep it coming!

Buying a power meter is a great way to step up your training.  

Once you get it in action, you ought to learn how to use it properly.  The Allen/Coggan book Training and Racing with a Power Meter is probably the most complete guide.  

Way back in 2005, I wrote a booklet on how to use one for Competitive Cyclist.  Some of the info is a bit dated, but much of it still works as a good primer.

Remember to zero the offset on every ride.  for indoor riding, I'd do it both before you start riding (ideally after the bike has been in the room for 10 minutes) and after your warmup.

@mugwump you guys have an incredible wealth of knowledge. This message board is a tremendous help!

Just received my Ant+ dongle and have it all set on my computer. Plan to ride this evening in my gym. Pardon my ignorance...what is the offset and how do I zero it?

@Joshua Wilson I'm not sure if Zwift has it, but on most head units (wahoo/ garmin) there will be a "Calibrate" option. I know on Garmin, this means "Zero Offset". If i understand correctly, it sort of resets the power meter when you aren't putting any pressure on the pedals so it can better recognize when you are putting pressure on the pedals. Similar to taring a scale. It helps with accuracy. 

Joshua Wilson said:

@mugwump you guys have an incredible wealth of knowledge. This message board is a tremendous help!

Just received my Ant+ dongle and have it all set on my computer. Plan to ride this evening in my gym. Pardon my ignorance...what is the offset and how do I zero it?

It adjusts the calibration so that zero is really zero.  All power meters need it done; a bit more so for crank-based, though with improved firmware, crank-based Quarqs are much closer than they were, and better than some others.

Basically, temperature affects the strain gauges.  So, by going from outside to inside in winter will change the reading, not by much, but potentially enough that if you're going by power, the numbers will be off. By zeroing the offset you're making the meter more consistent in its readings.  It doesn't matter if the meter reads low or high, so long as it's doing so consistently.  Consistent and accurate is better than consistent, and as meters get better, so long as you're zeroing the offset, it can be both.

For indoor riding, I try to have my bike in the room where I'm riding 15 minutes before I get on the bike so the meter is at the room's temperature.  I zero the offset before I start riding.  Then if I'm doing specific intervals, I do it before I start them.

As to how to do it, every head unit has a calibration screen/button.  You go there, put your right arm at the 6 o'clock position, and then hit the button.  On the road, you can spin the Quarq cranks backwards four revolutions and that should do it, too.

Alternately, regardless of head unit, most power meters have an app, which can perform the offset and calibration, the app can also update firmware and other bits. Specially helpful is you plan to use it indoors.

For Quarq, you can download the iOS version here:
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/qalvin-ble/id1146834186?mt=8

Android here:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.quarq.qalvinble

-- of note, these applications connect to the power meter via bluetooth.

Opinions or experiences with alloy derailleur jockey wheels? I've heard that they can be noisy compared to the standard plastic variety. Any advantages?

JohnPowell said:

Opinions or experiences with alloy derailleur jockey wheels? I've heard that they can be noisy compared to the standard plastic variety. Any advantages?

I think if you go to the Watts In The Bank thread, you'll find several posts about the efficiency of various pulleys.  Haven't used alloy pulleys in a long time, don't remember about noise, but you can get them in pretty anodized colors.

Ok, it's gear ratio time - let's hear the old sage @wump to chime in...

https://www.velonews.com/2019/02/bikes-and-tech/first-ride-sram-reimagines-gear-range-with-red-etap-axs_483097

Beat me to it- Folks at Cycling Tips did a pretty good review.

https://cyclingtips.com/2019/02/sram-red-etap-axs-review/

The GCN overview is somehow more complete

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l--uZffTpfM

I’m looking forward to the SRAM force etap in April. Might finally be my turn to go electronic