A year ago I had a local job which was close enough for commuting by bicycle, however the local drivers are somewhat oblivious to cyclists during the week and after a couple close calls I bought myself some pedals with self contained dynamos and LEDs which flash as you move along. Trouble is, they aren't bright enough, and then that job was over and they weigh 10 ounces each. The old ones are resin, came with the bike, and weigh around 4-5 ounces each. You would think that resin pedals would totally suck and not last but you'd be wrong. I bought this Specialized bike at Costco in 1995. Still have the receipt somewhere. $209 and change. It's steel frame mountain bike with knobby tires and no suspension. I mostly rode it around the streets of my town, but also into the big park I lived beside in Santa Rosa. Some of the roads were smooth enough for this to work. Others were full of boulders and it was too difficult and dangerous to bother. With the knobby tires it worked well on dirt and gravel and I was able to go many places I couldn't on my 10 speed. And yes, I had a 10 speed. I'm just that old.
The fancy lighted pedals use the action of turning to power up the dynamo and charge capacitors which then blink the lights to make you more visible. On flatland its fine. Going up a hill? You can feel both the weight and the resistance as it charges. Why did I replace my good old pedals and not just buy a couple more lights? Optimism. My old pedals were feeling a little grindy when rotated slowly, too. That's sometimes a sign of damage to the ball bearings, usually rust. Yes, pedals have ball bearings inside them. And they need lubricant too. So I put them on the vice today, popped the weather caps, and adjusted the nut that tensions the bearings and the shaft. Loosened that nut a bit, which reduces the tension on the ball bearings and now they move far easier without actually being too loose, and this will make riding a lot easier. Rolling resistance is part of the reason I switched tires, after all. Once the chain is cleaned and lubed again, the tires are pumped up, and I have adjusted the front derailleur not to rub the chain, it should work great. Dad taught me to do these things. Cleaning, maintenance, adjustment, repair. Throwing stuff away out of ignorance is for lame people who want to be poor. He's restored various bicycles, and a bike is one of the few machines I feel completely comfortable messing with, mechanically. Everything on it makes sense.
It is too hot today for test riding, and too humid, but tomorrow morning I will take the bike out and ride it around the block, see if this helps.
If I still feel uncomfortable I may give further thought to swapping back to the straight handlebars and add the helper ends for hill climbing. I know that's for cheaters, but the current setup, which SHOULD be more ergonomic, feels cramped anytime I'm climbing a hill and makes my fingers numb, which means its NOT ergonomic after all. No more neck pain, at least. I may see about swapping back to my old seat too, since I know the new one is painful. I still have it. Perhaps I'll do some cable management as well. The big floppy loop could be contained with some zip ties.
That's the thing about bicycles. You have to ride them and try things before you find a setup that works best for you. And sometimes the new stuff is worse than the old. Just keep trying. Eventually you get things right, and hopefully nobody will steal it from you once you do. I have several locks, but those are easy to cut off. Better not to attract attention or park it somewhere stupid.
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