The Washington bee., 1895-11-23
HINTS FOR oYoLIRs.
some Suggestions Regarding the Care Of
s tho wheel. Ass

some Suggestions Regarding the Care Of
-" the wheel. ass -
The most common cause for the
"buckling' Of steel rims and the crack
! ing Of wooden ones Is loose spokes
Spokes become loose without apparent
cause. Steel and wood may be never SO
well treated I'd manufacture, but they
cannot be made entirely irsensible to
natural laws. The best OF material in
wheel will shrink and expand under
changes OF weather. Again, steel spokes
even those made OF hardest piano wire
and cold swaged." which means drawn
out from the center and, buttened, will
stretch. and win with usage wear into
wood rims where they are fastened
When these things happen and spokes
are slack Of their proper tension wheel
is out Of true. After the recent changes
of weather every rider should 30 over
his spokes, testing their tension with his
fingers. A good way is to snap them as
you would harp strings, and notice
whether they give notes OF the same
key, or nearly the same. Especially is
such attention required on the part OF
those who keep their machines in a
warm room at home and let them stand
In disuse for weeks at a time.
Truing up wheel by tightening the
spokes is piece OF fine work, which, as
rule, should be given to master
hand. For those of mechanical bent,
who are willing to give the care and
patience, and prefer doing it themselves.
1t is advised that they proceed very
slowly. After drawing up the spoke,
which seems necessary, by turning the
nipple at the rim, try the wheel again,
and SO go on, retesting the wheel after
Tightening each spoke that Is indicated
by the pencil markings. Tighten very
little at q time. Usually half or three
quarter turn Of the nipple is about all
1t is safe to give. The nipples Of some
wheels are made with fiat sides, OF
shoulders, so that a small wrench or
pair Of pliers can be used for Tightening.
Where this is not the case, clamp or
key" specially made to fit the nipple
can be bought Of the maker.
Something that is not taught in
bicycle schools, and which comparatively
few riders have learned to use, is the
ankle motion. 1t is employed by keep
ing only the toes and ball of the foot
on the pedal, bending the foot at the in
step with every revolution, and follow
ing the pedal around, so as to keep
constant pressure on it, The pressure
will not be even in every position, but it
should be sufficient to help lift the pedal
through it's backward motion from the
bottom to the top of it's periphery. BY
using this ankle motion the muscles in
the calves will get more exercise, and
the muscles Of the thighs will be re-
lieved.
A pump that wheezes and does not
work properly has washer on the pis-
screw the top of the pump, and put
enough oil on the leather washer to
swell it.
1t pays to invest in foot pump for
home use, but on the road the small
hand pumps are most convenient.
Experienced repairers say that the
majority Of the jobs brought to them
can be attributed to the fact that the
owner has been riding with tires not
pr operly inflated. A heavy rider should
have much more air in his tires than |
lighter man, because the former causes |
them to f1atten more when riding. Tires
pumped very hard are less likely to |
puncture than those which present a
broad, soft surface Of contact with the
ground, because of being only partially
inflated. In wet weather, cyclists
should have much more care where
they ride than in dry weather. Rubber
cuts much easier when wet, and rainy
day punctures are plentiful.-New York
Times.