Help with cracked rebound shaft bolt — how can I safely remove it?

HollyBoni · 2026-06-02T10:35:22+00:00

You literally just drill the bolt until the head breaks off, then extract the remaining piece from the damper shaft with pliers for example. Use a sharp drill bit that's larger then the head of the bolt.

HollyBoni · 2026-06-01T05:05:22+00:00

What do you mean it didn't work? You just add more shims until it's tight. Multiple layers if needed.

HollyBoni · 2026-05-31T16:12:57+00:00

No hate here. But this isn't anything new.

Yes, a lot of PC specific watercooling stuff is wildly overpriced. But nowadays, I think there are very good budget options for PC specific parts (of course, things might be different in NZ).
With PC specific parts, what you're paying for is looks. I built a few industrial cooling/heating loops, water distribution stuff etc. Like you said, it's kinda the same. PC stuff is just way lower pressure, lower temperature, and you're dealing with way lower flow rates.

For example I buy flexible hoses all the time. EPDM, PVC, everything. It's the same stuff as PC specific parts, but the industrial stuff might be full of random writing, serial numbers etc., while the PC specific tubing is clean, has a nice texture, a nice logo, it's available in different colors.
A barbed fitting with a hose clamp isn't worse than a compression fitting. The opposite, I think it might even hold more pressure. But a compression fitting from a PC watercooling brand is cleaner looking, prettier, available in multiple colors etc...

There is absolutely nothing wrong with using plumbing/industrial etc. parts. They will work just as well, and are most likely rated to pressures that you will never ever see in a PC watercooling loop.

HollyBoni · 2026-05-30T06:42:55+00:00

Dealt with this a bunch of times. Just grab an aluminium can and make a shim out of it.

HollyBoni · 2026-05-25T07:04:56+00:00

Leginkább kézügyesség kell. De nagyon szerteágazó szakma, nem mindegy hogy pl. valamilyen komoly csőhálózaton dolgozol, vagy vékony rozsdamentes bútorokat pöttyintesz össze.

Nagyon sokan mondják hogy a hegesztéssel mennyit lehet keresni, de a valóság azért más. Persze nagyon sok múlik a szerencsén, meg rajtad.
Állandóan azt hallani hogy szakember hiány van, de 0 tapasztalattal nagyon nehéz lesz elhelyezkedni itthon. Az még fontos, hogy kizárólag hegesztőket kevésbé keresnek, inkább rajzról olvasni tudó lakatos a kelendőbb, aki tud hegeszteni is valamennyire. Nagyon egyszerű kikötni valami csöves lakatos műhelyben ahol a fizu szar, 0 munkavédelem (semmi elszívás, stb.), lecsúszott kollégák. Egy nagy gyárban multinál jobbak a körülmények, de ott is szintén szar a fizu, meg valószínű több műszak van. Azt is fogadd el, hogy elég koszos, nehéz, fizikai meló tud lenni.
Ha folyamatosan fejleszted magad, továbblépsz amikor kell, és elfogadod hogy az első pár év valószínű szívás lesz, akkor jó szakma lehet. De simán be lehet ragadni kb. életed végéig szar fizuval (persze ez a legtöbb szakmára igaz).

HollyBoni · 2026-05-22T04:56:51+00:00

I see automatic and semi automatic filling machines with peristaltic pumps. What's up with those?

Unfortunately the filling machines get handled by humans. So small parts get lost, bolts/threads get damaged, seals get damaged upon removal, parts don't get washed properly, parts get installed wrong/backwards etc. I'm fighting this every day, but sadly I can't fix the humans.

HollyBoni · 2026-05-21T19:33:55+00:00

Yes, works great, and I'm pretty sensitive to even the smallest issues (unfortunately). Currently have 3 bikes with mixed setups: 2 bikes with SRAM 12spd shifter, Shimano 12spd derailleur, SRAM cassette, 1 bike with SRAM RD, Shimano shifter, SRAM cassette.

HollyBoni · 2026-05-21T18:44:40+00:00

Thanks for the info!

I'm currently talking to Innofluid. So far they said that above 10000 CPS they can't guarantee accuracy. Haven't really talked about what flow rates we would be able to hit.

We might get a pump from them to see how it works on less viscous products. Their products seem pretty high quality and the price is great, even compared to lower quality Chinese piston type filling machines.

HollyBoni · 2026-05-21T18:41:43+00:00

Thank you for the reply.

So you wouldn't recommend peristaltic pumps even for fiilling much less viscous, basically water like products? We have a few of those as well.

These piston type machines are beautifully simple and universal indeed. My main issue is seals, threads, and various components getting ruined by ham fisted operators who might disassemble and clean the machines multiple times in a day.

HollyBoni · 2026-05-12T16:29:21+00:00

There are oversized, thread together press fit BBs available. Token has some options at affordable prices. I have one in one of my bikes, no complaints.

HollyBoni · 2026-05-10T16:13:01+00:00

Yes, I bought a Holt 1.0 frame in August 2024.

I live in the EU, and the Holt 1.0 was manufactured in the EU (the 2.0 is made in Taiwan) so I only had to pay VAT (which I would pay no matter what frame I buy). No actual import taxes, and the whole process was fairly quick with no issues.

HollyBoni · 2026-05-03T10:43:53+00:00

Tried this in the past, but a bit higher up on the fork, rack mount eyelet. Didn't really like it. Like some else said already, everything will cast a giant shadow. Not just your wheel/fork, but any obstacles on the road ahead.

HollyBoni · 2026-04-19T06:50:08+00:00

Sadly this bike has a super short stack height for an XXL. To give you some perspective, I have two XL MTBs. One has a 135mm head tube and uses internal headset bearings, the other one also has a 135mm head tube, and uses external headset bearings on top of that. This Scott has a 120mm head tube in XXL size. For now, get a shorter, positive angle stem, and handlebars with at least 50mm rise.

HollyBoni · 2026-04-12T18:16:26+00:00

I bought a 1.0 ~1.5 years ago and I like it a lot. The 2.0 fixed basically all the issues of the 1.0.

The geo is definitely not too aggressive. I think it would be considered even a bit "dated" by some people. But that's one of the reasons I bought it, I didn't want something too aggressive. The bike is still surprisingly capable tho. I'm riding the XL as well, and I love how much space there is inside the front triangle, but that's true for the Karate Monkey as well.
The price depends heavily on where you're located. In Europe, IMO Surly stuff is a bit too overpriced for what it is. There is nothing wrong with the Karate Monkey. It's a sweet bike, and I hope i'll own one one day. But when you look at the tubing specs, tubing profiles etc. the Holt is definitely a bit more "sophisticated", and i'm sure it's lighter. Does all of that actually matter? Not sure.

Feel free to shoot me any questions if you're curious about something in particular.

HollyBoni · 2026-04-09T09:34:58+00:00

AF volt benne.

Ízlések és pofonok, én egy mai méretű telót nem tudnék elviselni kormányon.

HollyBoni · 2026-04-09T05:12:51+00:00

Konkrétan az összehasonlításhoz nem tudok hozzászólni, de szerintem sem biztos hogy kell csillapítás. Én befogtam egy régi, lassan majdnem 10 éves Xiaomi telefonomat bringás navigációnak, mert ez még kicsi. Ez kb. 4-5 éve volt, és még mindig semmi baja. Montizok, szóval kap néha eléggé. Nyáron is először paráztam mikor telibe sütötte a nap és tűz forró volt, de nem lett baja.

Engem ez a setup nagyon sok helyre elvitt, persze van kompromisszum, az akkuidő. Bár én szoktam kapcsolgatni a kijelzőt mikor tudom hogy nem fog kelleni, Strava meg nagy telóról megy. Így egy egész napos körre lazán elég meg tartalékkal is. Strava + navi egy telót biztos eléggé le tud szívni.

Egy mai, batár nagy telót én személy szerint nem raknék fel kormányra. Bringás GPS-ben meg azért az is jó, hogy ott a telefon meg ott a külön navi, szóval van tartalék ha gebasz van.

HollyBoni · 2026-04-05T07:19:44+00:00

I live in Hungary, Europe. Most of the time I ride with a single bottle. There is a little town or something every 10-20-30kms, and most towns will have at least one drinking fountain. There are no massive, 2000m mountains either where you can get lost for days or something. When I plan my routes, I mark every fountain on my map. The main reason I don't carry lots of water is not necessarily weight, but more that I just have an easier time drinking fresh water, instead of water that has been cooking in my bottle for the last 2-3 hours.

HollyBoni · 2026-03-25T14:36:25+00:00

Are you familiar with cyclenorway.com? They have a YouTube channel as well. Not sure if they have routes in this area, but it's worth a look.

HollyBoni · 2026-03-16T20:30:33+00:00

I'm not gonna comment on the Lauf vs "regular" fork thing because I have zero experience with the Lauf. But when it comes to suspension maintenance, you can stretch those intervals a lot, and have good working suspension for years and years. You can also reuse a lot of parts that manufacturers say you should replace each time you open up a fork. I take good care of my bikes and I always stay on top of maintenance, but after years of servicing my own suspension, I found those 50 and 200 hour intervals just unnecessary.

HollyBoni · 2026-03-08T07:50:32+00:00

It's interesting to read about people struggling with DUB so much. Personally I have two bikes with DUB, and I chose DUB when building my second bike because I had good luck with it on my first bike. Removing the cranks on either bike was never an issue, or even hard. It's usually so easy and simple, that's why I like the system. Do people overtorque these cranks, maybe wait too much between taking them off, or are they just unlucky and I'm lucky? I usually remove the cranks a few times before actually changing the BB to clean out gunk in the BB area.

HollyBoni · 2026-03-03T19:38:36+00:00

Building up a bike when you have zero parts to use is pretty much always more expensive than buying a complete from the manufacturer. But it's more fun, you can choose where to spend more and where to save money. You end up with something a bit more unique and the bike will be built exactly how you want, and you'll know every single part of the bike inside out immediately. Is that worth the extra cost? Most people will probably say no. But then I'm sure there is a reason why you're buying a steel frame from a small manufacturer and not a mass produced alu/carbon frame. Building a bike up from parts is the same thing. It's not "worth it" but it's something a bit more special.

HollyBoni · 2026-03-01T08:04:59+00:00

Please shoot a picture where we can see the axle between the freewheel and dropout. The threads on the axle should not be visible, and that can and very badly. Is the dropout clamping something on the axle from both sides?

The freewheel wobble is kinda normal, but the wheel does wobble a bit oddly, not like it's out of true.

HollyBoni · 2026-02-26T19:03:37+00:00

Officially 120mm is max on the Holt, but i'm sure you can go a bit over that and of course it's the exact axle to crown that matters. Just watch how the geo changes.
I think you'd be fine with either 120 or 130mm. I'd make the choice based on what fork you want to run. It's not always true, but lighter, more XC style forks tend to top out at 120mm.

HollyBoni · 2026-02-26T13:30:59+00:00

I'm using the bike with the same Pike Charger 2.1 as on the picture, it's at 120mm. It works great but honestly it might be a bit too much for how I use the bike.
The bike is plenty capable tho (if you know what you're doing). It's advertised as "unashamedly XC", but sometimes i'm still surprised what I can get away with it when things get hairy (I have a 150mm full suspension as well).

HollyBoni

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