Changing your brake pads on your mountain bike

The two videos attached, show the process, one with a Shimano system the other with a SRAM.

I created the two videos below to show you how it's done.  

Watch the video and read the instructions below carefully before starting the process on your own.  Do the work on your own bike and finish with a feeling of accomplishment. The process is pretty simple. Just take your time. 

So, you're ready to hit the trails, but before you do, it's essential to ensure your mountain bike's brakes are in top condition.

 I’ll walk you through the step-by-step process.

First things first, gather your tools and a set of compatible brake pads for your bike.

I’m using the TraxFactory Stomper Compound pads. These pads are high quality and made for numerous braking systems, including Magura, SRAM, Hayes, and Shimano. Check the website for the make and model of your brakes to ensure you get the right set of pads. 

Step 1: Gather Your Tools

Before we begin, make sure you have all your tools ready: new brake pads specific to your bike's brake system, Allen keys or screwdrivers, a rag or paper towel, rubbing alcohol or brake cleaner, a small brush, and pliers if needed.

Step 2: Remove the Wheel, this is optional depending upon how easy or hard it may be to get to your brake pads. 

I  will start by removing the wheel, in this case the front wheel for the example,  to give yourself more space to work. This step is not always necessary but can make the process easier.

Step 3: Remove the Old Brake Pads

Locate the brake pads and the retention mechanism. It could be a bolt or pin.

Use the appropriate tool to loosen and remove the retaining hardware.

Slide out the old brake pads from the brake caliper.

Step 4: Clean the Brake Caliper

The caliper may need to be pushed back, to allow the pads, now thicker being they are new.  Use a plastic tire lever to ease them back without damaging them. “Do not use a metal tool of any kind” or a screwdriver, as this could damage the caliper and piston(s). 

Keep the new pads clean and avoid touching them with your hands as the oils in your skin can contaminate the pads, not allowing them to perform their best.  Some type of rubber glove with help from the oils from your hand touching the new pads. 

-Clean the brake caliper thoroughly using rubbing alcohol and a small brush. Remove any dirt, oil, or debris that could affect braking performance.

During this entire time when the pads have been removed, DO NOT squeeze the brake lever on your handlebars! 

Step 5: Install the New Brake Pads

Take your new brake pads and insert them into the brake caliper.

Make sure to keep the spring attached to them, that is how the pads return to their position after applying. 

Ensure they are correctly positioned and align with the braking surface.

Reinstall the retaining bolt or pin to secure the new brake pads in place.

Step 6: Adjust if Necessary

Check the alignment of the brake pads with the rim or disc rotor.

Make any necessary adjustments using the adjustment screws on the brake caliper to ensure even contact.

To recenter the pads after installation, loosen the brake housing, then while applying the brake, tighten the housing bolts down. 

Let go of the brake lever and the pads should now be centered on the rotor. 

Step 7: Reinstall the Wheel

If you removed the wheel, securely reinstall it onto the bike.

Step 8: Test the Brakes

Squeeze the brake lever to test the brakes.

Spin the wheel and check for any rubbing or uneven braking.

Make further adjustments if necessary to optimize brake performance.

Step 9: Bedding-in Process (Optional but Recommended)

Optionally, go for a gentle ride, applying the brakes lightly to allow the new pads to bed into the rotor surface.

Step 10: Final Checks

Double-check all bolts and pins to ensure they are tightened securely.

Verify that the brake pads are clean and free from any contamination.

And there you have it! You've successfully changed the brake pads on your mountain bike. Now you're ready to hit the trails with confidence.

Follow these simple instructions for the other set of brake pads and you’re done.  

Make sure you do some research and find out the best pads, size shape and material to fit your brake system. 

RXL SL Carbon Fiber Mountain Bike Handlebar installation

RXL SL Carbon Fiber MTB Bars mounted on a 70mm stem, also from RXL SL. 

Tools needed are a torque wrench, along with 4mm and 5mm allen wrenches. 

Use a Fiber Grip paste between the two Carbon Fiber pieces to insure no slipping happens after installation. 

Canyon Lake Arizona on SwonderDirect Paddle board

 

Which is faster... a floor pump or an electric when inflating a SWONDER DIRECT SUP?

Which is faster... a floor pump or an electric when inflating a SWONDER DIRECT SUP? 

The SWONDER stand up paddle board is easy to inflate. I put the floor pump to the test against the electric pump, run off a 12 volt car connection.  

I have to admit I am a little surprised, but after the "workout" before a "workout". The best way to go is the electric pump to inflate. Save your energy for when you're out on the water.  

The pump is excellent for when you're not inflating it around your car's power source. 

If you were to hike a mile or two in, to where you would launch your board from, then of course bring the board in the provided backpack and use the floor pump to inflate. 

Drop me a comment on this blog post or my video on YouTube. 

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Time to organize the garage, AGAIN

With a lot of time now, I have begun to organize my garage again.  To get the bikes off the ground and up on the wall I am using the SteadyRack.  Easy to install and easy to use. They can be mounted in studs in wood walls or masonry. 

Needed items to install the SteadyRack

Tape measure

Drill with 3/8” and 3/16” drill bits

Phillips screwdriver or bit

9/16” socket to tighten the bolts

Shimano MT200 Brake Pad Replacement with video

It’s not always low hydraulic fluid that lead to spongy brakes. Check your brake pads to see if they are worn and need to be replaced. 

After reinstalling the wheel, spin the wheel to see if the rotor is rubbing. 

To help center the rotor in the brake caliper, , squeeze the brake lever while using a 5 mm Allen key to loosen the brake caliper to the fork. Then tighten and let go of the lever, the adjustment should have helped center the rotor in the new brake pads you just installed. 

After this installation of the new pads , if your brakes are still spongy you might need to bleed or add brake fluid. 

2019 is going to be a great year

I am looking forward to the New Year. I have a bunch of projects I want to share on my blog as well as mountain bike races and running races. I am looking to increase my fitness level too. Of course it's not a New Year's resolution, yet this time of year the majority of everyone starts some kind of plan. 

Even with the holiday's this year, I have been able to keep my fitness level the same if not higher. 

I have a hard time getting motivated in the colder winter months to get out and run or bike. This year I have put on an extra layer, or two, and gotten out of the house way before the sun even thinks of rising. With some days, the overcast hangs around long enough, the sun is never seen, yet daylight appears eventually. 

I am looking forward to a great 2019 and look to share it all here in blogs or videos in the upcoming year. 

The UHWK point of view video camera

This sleek designed video camera easily attached to your helmet. Inside the box, it comes with a few straps and ways to mount on a helmet, including hockey and football. It can also be worn on a headband. The camera shoots in either 1080 at 30 frames per second OR 720 at 60 frames per second. It records in a .MOV file, which most video editing programs recognize. It also records sound, pretty much just of the wearer, so your voice can be heard. 

A simple slide of the on/off switch starts the recording. 

The internal battery can last about 100 minutes of recording and then needs to be recharged using the enclosed micro USB cord. 

The camera lens has a wide field of view at 150 degrees.

The Conquer Bicycle Wall Mount Repair Stand Bicycle Rack w/video

The Conquer Bicycle Wall Mount Repair Stand Bicycle Rack

I like the aspect of this wall mounted repair stand coming with two mounting plates. You can place them in different locations in your garage or do like I did and use an outdoor wash station. Very easy to use and gets both tires off the round when rotating to clean. Run the chain forward or backward to clean or lubricate. The hardware to attach either of the two mounting plates does NOT come with the rack.  Mount the rack to a sturdy post or stud inside your garage.  I used some left over lumber and made some measurements to create an outdoor wash station. After getting the mountain bike dirty on the trails, it makes for a quick wash and lubrication stand afterward. 

https://www.roadbikeoutlet.com/conquer-bicycle-wall-mount-repair-stand-bicycle-rack-rotating-head.html

Looking to do more on my blog with YouTube videos

As of now I have 99,500 or so some visits to my blog here.  Over on my YouTube channel I have 65 subscribers.  I am wanting to really focus a lot of attention on improving my blogs with videos while making them more regularly. I am looking for your help.  I am wanting to increase my subscribers on my YouTube channel.
Just like my blog, my videos focus on photography/videography, gear and techniques, and cycling, mountain biking, training, hiking and using a Traeger pellet grill. 

 2018 is going to be a great year, and I want you all to follow along. 

Scott Hacker YouTube Channel

Skylab's three-axis gimbal for smartphones

SkyLab's 3-Axis Stabilizing Gimbal for smartphones is the best in 2017! Your smartphone already captures video in up to 4K quality, so why not pair it with the smooth flow of the SkyLab 3-Axis Stabilizing Gimbal to capture professional quality video, using the three individual motors that work in real time to continuously balance and level your movement. Forget unwanted shakiness and jolting. The Three-Axis Stabilizing Gimbal has a little over 150 minutes of use on a single charge and comes with 2 sets of batteries. 

Check out this video I created, the end shows actual footage shot with the SkyLab gimbal using a Samsung S7. 

Charger the batteries in the enclosed charger with USB cable.  Also with firmware updates, use the same USB cable to update the gimbal using the port on the side of the unit. Use the  joystick on the handle for panning, tilting, and rolling. An easy set up, with simply attaching your smartphone in the spring loaded cradle. There is an enclosed counter weight in the case, for use with heavier smartphones, if needed. 

SkyLab also makes a version for the GoPro. 

Enclosed counter-weight

USE port for updating firmware in the handle

Joystick for panning, tilting and rolling 

Enclosed USB cable used for charging batteries as well as updating firmware

SkyLab 3-Axis Stabilizing Gimbal for Smartphones 

Mode One — Pitch Lock — Panning and Roll axis can move freely while Pitch axis is fixed.

Mode Two — Unlocked — Panning, Roll, and Pitch axis move freely and will trail the handles movement.

Mode Three — Locked — Panning, Roll, and Pitch axis are all locked in a fixed position. 

Neewer Drone Camera Filters

With an older drone I am using in my professional field, a photographer and videographer, the control of the camera is crucial for achieving the right shot. Sure, some the exposure control can be done in post production, but the main goal is to achieve it in the camera. Using neutral density filters and other filters in front of the lens help achieve that. I picked up a set of four filters, an ND 4, ND 8 and circular polarizer and lastly a UV filter to attach to my drones camera.  The set comes with an adapter to screw them into then slide over the front of the camera. They are 37mm filters.  They can be stacked, screwing them into each other with the threads they have on both sides of the filter, however this will cause vignetting, or the outside of the frame will be darkened.  I am still testing these out and will let you know what I find out, love and if I would recommend them.  The set comes with a wallet to store them in as well as a lens cleaner/pen with brush. 

I was not paid for this post, as well as I purchased the filters at full price. 

The Android MAX, lapel mic for recording sound

This is a quick over-view and look at the Android-MAX professional lavalier microphone. This high quality lavalier microphone is simple and easy to use. Plug it into the 3.5 mm headphone port on your android device, select a voice recording app and your ready to go. Place the device on “airplane mode” so phone calls or messages won’t disturb your recording. Not only can this lapel mic be used with android phones but with the enclosed Smart Conversion Adapter Cable can also work with iOS devices. The uni directional mic is attached to a cord that is 3 feet 9 inches long. This sound of this entire video was recorded with the Android MAX plugged into my smart phone, creating a WAV file.  The sound was matched up with the video in post production.  So what does this mean. Even those on a budget and not having an expensive lavalier microphone set, plugged directly into a camera can benefit. Using a DSLR to record sound is difficult, but now with this you can use this microphone with any camera set up. The sound in this video was recorded using the Android MAX and the video was captured in HD on either my smartphone or simple point and shoot camera, that has the ability to shoot video.  Better yet, forget about the crappy sound you get from your GoPro, use this mic along wth your smartphone, then sync the video from the camera up with the sound file from your smartphone. 

By the way, the mic comes with two noise dampening wind screens as well as two mic clips. 

Check out the Android-Max on Amazon USA here: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B017VQYLXW

Check out the Android-Max on the Microphones and More website here: http://www.msandm.biz/#!android-max/c13yc 

iPro-Max Professional Lavalier Microphone (for use with smartphones or Apple computers)

Using a DSLR to capture sound is difficult. As a lot of DSLR’s are not know for their quality sound recording. Some cameras don’t even allow for an external microphone to be plugged in to the. That is where the iPro-Max comes in to play and is very affordable. Using a lavalier microphone to capture an interview or a person in a video farther away from a shotgun mic mounted on the camera, is one of the best ways. Sound for any video is very crucial. You don't have a good video, unless it has great audio.
 How is the iPro-Max different?

First off, it uses something pretty much everyone has already, a smartphone, either being Apple iPhone or Android.  The voice recorder that came on my Samsung S5 was okay, but I searched around the Google Play store for a better app to record sound/voice. The small lapel mic is uni-directional, therefore capturing only the persons voice your are talking to or interviewing. It won’t pick up background noise. The microphone comes with two sponge windscreens and two clips, an upper clip for the mic head and a cord clip that can be used farther down the cord. 

It simply plugs directly into where your headset would be plugged in, using its 3.5mm stereo plug and for those with Samsung or other Android operating smartphones using the Smart Conversion Adaptor Cable. Place your phone in “airplane” mode so notifications or phone calls will interrupt your audio track being recorded. 

Depending upon the recording program you are using on your smartphone, simply download or send the file to your computer and insert the sound file into your video production. There you have it a very simple and efficient way to improve the sound quality of any video production. 

By the way, I have used it (without the Smart Conversion Adaptor Cable) plugged directly into my MacBook to record voice-overs and it works and sounds great. No echoey sound like using the built in microphone on the Mac. 

To find out more or order your own
head over to the link below.

iPro-Max Professional Lavalier Microphone

Run Streak Day 100!

I will let the video speak for this entry.




Check back as I upload more videos and reviews.

Thank you! 

GOMA Solid Suction Cup Mount

When using your GoPro, using different mounts help increase your production value by adding different angles you can mount the camera from. The GOMA Solid suction cup mount will definitely help in that department.  The mount can be used suction cupped to the hood of the car or attached to the windshield on the inside or outside.  As with any mount, outside on a moving car, make sure to attach a cable or wire to the housing incase it does fail you don’t go losing your camera. The mount has a powerful vacuum suction cup attached to a 360 degree articulated arm. 

 The stainless steel thumbscrews are easy to tighten down after the suction cup mount is in place.  The GOMA Solid mount comes with a microfiber pouch to keep the suction cup, arm and smaller parts together in one place when not using. The mount is usable with any of the GoPro editions, simply using the basic snap mount.  For those who do vlogs or video casts using their GoPro, this is a great mount for doing just so.  

A quick look at the LED's on the MIO Alpha chest strapless heart rate monitor

Here is a quick video showing how the MIO Alpha, chest strapless heart rate monitor,  LED's change color when  under, right on and over your target heart rate.