A longish trip in 2019 going via Chiang Mai unexpectedly.
The day before departure cleaning & lubricating my chain I could hear a squeal coming from the rear wheel.
Oops a rear wheel bearing on the way out, it may not make it down & back I thought, so you'd better replace it before hand.
I rang a bike shop in Chiang Rai to check if they had any, but the reply was unsure until they saw the actual culprit bearing. It should be ok, but maybe not.
So a phone call to Piston Shop in Chiang Mai, resulted in a positive answer. Yes we can.
My original plan was a 3 day ride going down
Chiang Khong - Phrae
Phrae -Chumpae
Chumpae - Buriram.
I had gone down in two days last year year but it is a bit of a boring ride, so I thought whats the rush? Take your time & go down in 3 easý half day rides. You don't have to prove anything.
However the rear wheel bearing issue changed the route somewhat.
An early Chiang Khong departure@ 6,30am saw a fogged in ride for the first hour along the Mekong, and the fog was so thick you could not see the river. Confirmation that the cold season was incoming fast.
In Chiang Mai I hit the Piston Shop @ 10.30AM; loh and behold the lack of the correct wheel bearing necessitated a hunt around town for the right one. Grrh. A check of the front sprocket also indicated that Supersprox sprocket was just starting to wear & hook, at about 20-25%. 30,000 kms the sprocket been on, so no complaints.The rear Supersprox is still ok & the RK chain from the USA has a bit left in it yet - at least down to Buriram & back.
Eventually I got away from the PIston Shop @ 3,45 in a hurry& "under pressure" to clear the Lampang peak hour.
Arrival time in Phrae was 6.15pm with the Nam Thong hotel my place of stay
& the Krua Hom restaurant my dining venue for the evening.
to be continued..
The day before departure cleaning & lubricating my chain I could hear a squeal coming from the rear wheel.
Oops a rear wheel bearing on the way out, it may not make it down & back I thought, so you'd better replace it before hand.
I rang a bike shop in Chiang Rai to check if they had any, but the reply was unsure until they saw the actual culprit bearing. It should be ok, but maybe not.
So a phone call to Piston Shop in Chiang Mai, resulted in a positive answer. Yes we can.
My original plan was a 3 day ride going down
Chiang Khong - Phrae
Phrae -Chumpae
Chumpae - Buriram.
I had gone down in two days last year year but it is a bit of a boring ride, so I thought whats the rush? Take your time & go down in 3 easý half day rides. You don't have to prove anything.
However the rear wheel bearing issue changed the route somewhat.
An early Chiang Khong departure@ 6,30am saw a fogged in ride for the first hour along the Mekong, and the fog was so thick you could not see the river. Confirmation that the cold season was incoming fast.
In Chiang Mai I hit the Piston Shop @ 10.30AM; loh and behold the lack of the correct wheel bearing necessitated a hunt around town for the right one. Grrh. A check of the front sprocket also indicated that Supersprox sprocket was just starting to wear & hook, at about 20-25%. 30,000 kms the sprocket been on, so no complaints.The rear Supersprox is still ok & the RK chain from the USA has a bit left in it yet - at least down to Buriram & back.
Eventually I got away from the PIston Shop @ 3,45 in a hurry& "under pressure" to clear the Lampang peak hour.
Arrival time in Phrae was 6.15pm with the Nam Thong hotel my place of stay
& the Krua Hom restaurant my dining venue for the evening.
to be continued..