Bike Climb Improvement Project 單車爬攀改善計劃

Riding uphill places a greater strain on the heart, which can be challenging for individuals like me with cardiovascular conditions. In my early days of road cycling, I got my first road bike, the Giant TCR SLR1, that came with Shimano Ultegra 6800 53/39T racing crankset. This made it quite tough for a beginner cyclist like me. Two years later, I used this bike for cycling tour around Taiwan and despite I had already switched to a bigger 32T cog, climbing the challenging slopes of Shouka and the North-Yilan Highway was still a struggle to me.

As a result, when I purchased my second road bike, the Giant TCR Advanced SL1, I specifically ordered a 50/34T crankset, which is better suited for climbing.

Although friends at the bike shop later help to swap out the 53/39T crankset with a 52/36T crankset from my TCR SLR1, the climbing performance still left something to be desired.

After moving to the UK, I only used the TCR SLR1 as most of the journey I took were gravel roads or roads with undesirable conditions (UK’er, you know it!). That was pretty Ok until you traversed those hilly country roads. Recently, the idea of switching to a 50/34T crankset popped up and one can’t ignore these kind of desire, after all.

騎乘斜坡對心臟的負荷較大，對於我這類有心血管疾病的人來說不是易事。早期對公路車認識不多，第一部購入的公路車 Giant TCR SLR1 是配備 Shimano Ultegra 6800 53/39T 的競賽 Crankset，令我這單車初哥騎得非常之吃力。還記得當年到台灣環島騎的亦是這部車，縱使已轉用了 32T 飛輪，攀爬壽卡及北宜公路的兩段路仍是苦不堪言，因此在我購入的第二部公路車 Giant TCR Advanced SL1 時就指定配上 50/34T crankset。

雖然往後單車店的朋友替我把 TCR SLR 更換了 52/36T crankset，爬坡表演仍是有點遜色。

到了英國後，因路面狀況較差及以行走 gravel 路面為主，我只騎乘 TCR SLR1，行走一般市區沒有甚麽問題，但一旦穿越郊區山路還是有點不暢快。早前忽然挑起了更換 50/34T crankset 的念頭，一日不做，内心的惡魔總不能平熄。

Buying Shimano Ultegra 6800 crankset which has been on the market for over a decade, can be a bit challenging. Even you manage to find it, it may cost around £200. Alternatively, you may get an used one from eBay or Facebook Market from £60 to £100, depending on component’s condition. Since I needed to retain the original 165mm Crank Arm, I could just buy the 50T and 34T Chainrings. However, given there was not much option available at that time and the price difference was insignificant, I ended up purchased the entire crankset.

As a side story, Shimano is currently working on a recall and replacement program for both their Ultegra 6800 Crankset as well as the older Dura-Ace 9100 Crankset. Exact details were not available at the time of writing and I might have to remove them again in the near future!

今天要購買這個已推出了十多年的 Ultegra 6800 crankset 有點困難，即使找到亦需約二佰英鎊，而易手市場如 ebay 或 Facebook Market 等則約六十至一百鎊不等，視乎個別零件狀况，由於我會保留原先的 165mm Crank Arm，實際只需購買 50T 及 34T Chainrings，但易手市場供應量不多，而且價錢亦不見得平宜很多，最後還是購入整組 crankset。

題外話，Shimano 現時正為這組 Ultegra 6800 Crankset 及 舊的 Dura-Ace 9100 Crankset 作全面回收及更換的安排，日後可能要再次拆下來！

The replacement work wasn’t too complicated. I took an easier route by only removed the two chainrings.

Simply loosen the four bolts on the backside, gently pushed the chainrings, and they should come off easily. The entire process should complete in less than ten minutes.

更換工序不算太複雜，懒一點的話可以跟我一樣只把兩片 chainrings 拆除。扭開背面四顆鏍絲，輕敲 chainrings，便可移除，整個過程不需十分鐘。

Before reinstalling, make sure to clean the crank arm, bolts, and other components thoroughly. Slowly put the two chainrings back to the crank arm.

重新安裝前先把 crank arm、鏍𢇁等清潔好，慢慢套入兩片 chainrings。

To prevent the bolts and nuts from getting stuck, which could hinder future maintenance, a coat of Anti-seizeure Compound was applied before tightening them.

為免鏍𢇁被卡着，防礙日後維修上的需要，緊記要為鏍絲及𢇁帽加上 Anti-seizure compound 才收緊。

As the 50T chainring was slightly smaller than the original 52T, in order to achieve agile and precise shifting, the Front Derailleur had to be lowered slightly while maintaining a consistent gap and parallel to the chainring. During the course of adjustment, I noticed that the original front derailleur cable had some rust spots, so I decided to replace it with a new one as well.

因 50T chainring 較原先的 52T 小一點，為了能快速及準確轉波，Front Derailleur 要降低一點，亦要保持與 chainring 間差不多平𧗾。在調整時發覺原廠的 front derailleur cable 亦有點銹漬，亦一拼換上新的一條。

Another side issue triggered by the smaller 50/34T chainrings was the existing chain would become too long, especially when using the inner chainring and smaller rear cogs. This could result in the bike chain excessively hugging the Rear Derailleur‘s Guide Pulley, potentially damaging the rear derailleur. In the case of my TCR SLR1, I needed to use Chain Tool to remove one Outer Link and Inner Link to accommodate the issue.

要留意 chainrings 圓週細了，單車鍊會變得過長，尤其是當使用內 chainring 及較小的後齒輪時，單車鍊會過份緊貼 Rear Derailleur 的 Guide Pulley，引致 rear derailleur 損毁。以我的 TCR SLR1 為例，需要用 Chain Tool 拆去一組 Outer link 及 Inner link。

To ensure the bike work as usual and gears shift properly, I decided to conduct a long distance live test in the Richmond Park nearby, With over 20 Km of ride and an elevation gain about 122 m, everything worked fine as expected and I considered the climb improvement work a success.

為確保單車的正常運作及能精準的𨍭換波段，决定騎到附近的 Richmond Park 來個長距離 live test，20 公里的路程，122 公尺的海拔提升，整體沒有甚麽問題，這個爬升改善計劃亦總算成功。

To replace both the external housing and inner shift cable, one must also remove the Handlebar Tape. As some damages to the tape were made in my last rear brake levers swapping exercise, it is time to put in a new set of handlebar tape. Additionally, those plastic bracket cover of the STI Shifters were a bit worn out and showed signs of mold, so why not replace them all together.

更換 shift cable 要拆開 Handlebar Tape，對上一次換 brake cable 時已拆過，早已有一點破爛，今次正好要更換，而 STI Shifters 的膠套也有些發霉，那不如順便來個更換。

Last but not least, a set of quality tools that suit these kind of works is a must!

其實要成功完成這些單車組件替換，適當的工具真不可缺少！