Stefan Mikes
Gravel e-biker
- Region
- Europe
- City
- Mazovia, PL
I have to listen to the song first
P.S. That's right!
A "Galician Style" house is one once built and then "enhanced" with many extensions, each "from a different parish"
Swap Como 4.0 48T chainring with Vado 4.0 40T chainring
- Thread starter larrybike
- Start date
P.S. That's right!
A "Galician Style" house is one once built and then "enhanced" with many extensions, each "from a different parish"
Stefan Mikes
Gravel e-biker
- Region
- Europe
- City
- Mazovia, PL
@Sierratim: I tried to share the Dolly Parton's song on Facebook and it seems Mark Zuckerberg hates C&W
Lectric Bill
Member
- Region
- USA
- City
- San Francisco, CA
This thread is timely, as I'm looking to replace my Como 5.0's chainring due to wear.
I ride down some long hills as fast as I can to keep up with traffic and would like to increase the chainring to 52T.
Does anybody know if this size would interfere with the downtube or chain stay?
I ride down some long hills as fast as I can to keep up with traffic and would like to increase the chainring to 52T.
Does anybody know if this size would interfere with the downtube or chain stay?
Stefan Mikes
Gravel e-biker
- Region
- Europe
- City
- Mazovia, PL
Assume it will 
It is "Specialized" 
It is "Specialized" 
Sierratim
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
- City
- Nevada City, CA & Paradise Valley, AZ
Several have reported that it fits their Como/Vado frames though the clearance at the chain stay was ~2mm. One post reported no issues with frame flex. This clearance could change by model year and frame size since it isn't a machined surfaced, but the side of a deformed tube so YRMV.
Lectric Bill
Member
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- USA
- City
- San Francisco, CA
Thanks. I'll order and report back how it went.
Lectric Bill
Member
- Region
- USA
- City
- San Francisco, CA
The Deckas 52T chainring fits.
The point of interference is about 5 mm forward of the chain, where the down tube expands as it rises.
I had a couple surprises during the installation:
1) The Specialized ring would slip over my oversize pedals, but the Deckas would not. So, break out the pedal spanner.
2) The new chainring bolts are conventional in design and there was insufficient clearance between the plastic motor housing and the back of the chainring to fit my wrench into the slotted nut. So I had to remove the plastic housing around the motor. That worked so that I could torque the steel bolts to their recommended 12 Nm.
I chose the bolts here:
RocRide Bolts
I prefer the strength of steel fasteners and coated them with a waterproof grease to cut down on galvanic corrosion with the aluminum rings.
My test today showed that I could more easily keep cadence down a steep hill to my house, a hill where I want to go 40 mph in order to blend into traffic. This was the whole reason I did this little conversion, so... Success!
The point of interference is about 5 mm forward of the chain, where the down tube expands as it rises.
I had a couple surprises during the installation:
1) The Specialized ring would slip over my oversize pedals, but the Deckas would not. So, break out the pedal spanner.
2) The new chainring bolts are conventional in design and there was insufficient clearance between the plastic motor housing and the back of the chainring to fit my wrench into the slotted nut. So I had to remove the plastic housing around the motor. That worked so that I could torque the steel bolts to their recommended 12 Nm.
I chose the bolts here:
RocRide Bolts
I prefer the strength of steel fasteners and coated them with a waterproof grease to cut down on galvanic corrosion with the aluminum rings.
My test today showed that I could more easily keep cadence down a steep hill to my house, a hill where I want to go 40 mph in order to blend into traffic. This was the whole reason I did this little conversion, so... Success!
Art Deco
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
- City
- Selinsgrove Pennsylvania
Excellent. But I wouldn't want to go 40mph on a bike. I would be grabbing brakes. My wife mentioned looking at her speed going downhill in a 25mph zone when she hit 38 mph and said never again.
Lectric Bill
Member
- Region
- USA
- City
- San Francisco, CA
I understand.
I'm coming off 50 years of riding motorcycles.
Even so, forty mph on a 55 lb. bicycle is at the limit for me, because I feel the brakes, while good, just aren't designed to handle that kind momentum.
I always rode motorcycles with the best brakes I could find, preferably Brembos with sintered pads. Saved my bacon more than once.
Art Deco
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
- City
- Selinsgrove Pennsylvania
I'm not trying to offend, you know your safe zone. I'm coming from 50+ years of driving (some very fast) cars with 1 year of motorcycle complete with a broken leg and big ticket for my trouble.
Brakes, suspensions, tires, even frames have a limit, and even a high quality bike like your Specialized has a limit. IDK what that limit is on my Como and I don't care to find out.
Look! A Squirrel! As you know, road rash at 40 mph hurts.
Brakes, suspensions, tires, even frames have a limit, and even a high quality bike like your Specialized has a limit. IDK what that limit is on my Como and I don't care to find out.
Look! A Squirrel! As you know, road rash at 40 mph hurts.
Lectric Bill
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- USA
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- San Francisco, CA
No offense taken.
I remained free of serious road rash, for I always wore ATGATT on motorcycles.
Not on bicycles, except for a probably inadequate helmet and gloves.
I never claimed to be fully rational.
Hunter Thompson closed "The Song of the Sausage Creature" with:
"That is the Curse of Speed which has plagued me all my life. I am a slave to it. On my tombstone they will carve, "IT NEVER GOT FAST ENOUGH FOR ME.""
Full Text Here
As someone who almost died when a poorly designed bicycle fork crown released the front fork/wheel, requiring 6 hours of surgery to repair a handle bar-crushed trachea, as well as causing 12 bone fractures, and lost teeth, I fully admit that, at age 77, my 40 mph downhill runs are (as we used to say in Texas) the opposite of smart.
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Art Deco
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
- City
- Selinsgrove Pennsylvania
There is some expression about passion beating reason or the whole human race would have died out long ago. Ride on.
Stefan Mikes
Gravel e-biker
- Region
- Europe
- City
- Mazovia, PL
Are these made of steel indeed Bill? And you used 12 Nm to tighten them? Good to know! I still suffer when I think how I pulled thread in as many as two aluminium bolts...
That applies for the silver ones only.
The chainringbolts in your fasterest red are made of aluminium.
Stefan Mikes
Gravel e-biker
- Region
- Europe
- City
- Mazovia, PL
I need some visual contrast
Lectric Bill
Member
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- USA
- City
- San Francisco, CA
Yes, they come in aluminum (black, blue, red) and steel (silver). The seller's page suggested 12 Nm for the steel ones. Felt right to me.
There's an common joke found on motorcycle/car forums: "My method is to tighten the bolt until it strips and then back out half a turn."
How do you find the bikes after you did the swop? Both you and the wife happy with the new gearing?
Reason i'm asking is i'm contemplating doing the same. I have the Vado 4.0 and the wife the Como 3.0 and we have the same issue. It's early days (we've only done 100km) on the bikes for us, but it's getting more clear to me we need to swop the front chainrings. We're doing mostly flat now, but we're going on a holiday tomorrow and will be doing plenty of hills on our excursions. I'm holding off to see how we (and the bikes) do on this gearing on the hills before I do the swop.
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Stefan Mikes
Gravel e-biker
- Region
- Europe
- City
- Mazovia, PL
I bought several bolt sets (silver) following your advice, thank you! A time will come when I replace my black Specialized chainring with one of the red Deckas
So I will put the red replacement rings and the steel bolts in the box with other spare parts
Lectric Bill
Member
- Region
- USA
- City
- San Francisco, CA
Updates on the 52T chainring replacement...
First, from the realm of "Really Stupid Stuff": I hit 44 mph down a long steep hill.
Second, I had gotten used to the pants guard on the Como and looked for something similar I could add to the 52T chainring.
I found nothing that was not a 5-bolt design.
So I ordered a cheap ($7) plastic one here:
52T Chainring Guard
It came with 5 small screws meant to fasten the guard to holes drilled in the 5-bolt chainring.
The Como's spider is, of course, a 4-bolt design.
So, from the toolbox of tried-and-true kludges, I did the obvious: use tie-wraps!
It works quite well, if I don't look down between my legs while pedaling.
The way the zip ties interface with the chainring make the circumference uneven in it's lateral dimension.
In other words, the dam thing wobbles in and out about 3/4".
But, hey, if I don't look down, or too closely at the finished project, everything's OK and my sense of a job-well-done remains, more or less, intact.
First, from the realm of "Really Stupid Stuff": I hit 44 mph down a long steep hill.
Second, I had gotten used to the pants guard on the Como and looked for something similar I could add to the 52T chainring.
I found nothing that was not a 5-bolt design.
So I ordered a cheap ($7) plastic one here:
52T Chainring Guard
It came with 5 small screws meant to fasten the guard to holes drilled in the 5-bolt chainring.
The Como's spider is, of course, a 4-bolt design.
So, from the toolbox of tried-and-true kludges, I did the obvious: use tie-wraps!
It works quite well, if I don't look down between my legs while pedaling.
The way the zip ties interface with the chainring make the circumference uneven in it's lateral dimension.
In other words, the dam thing wobbles in and out about 3/4".
But, hey, if I don't look down, or too closely at the finished project, everything's OK and my sense of a job-well-done remains, more or less, intact.
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