Using a sharpened spoke, or pick to detect problematic bearing races is a great idea, but the record needle analogy only works because vinyl is making a comeback. There are still many young people who have never bought a physical CD, much less seen a vinyl record on a turntable. The analogy is fine for us old guys who still own lots of LPs!
Steve Andruski The Rockville Bike Hub
On Thu, Dec 20, 2018, 1:10 AM Cyclista Nicholas <cyclista@inventati.org wrote:
Oh, that lid one is really good, I'll have to use that.
Yeah the sharpened spokes! Exactly! I often tell participants the point on the spoke against the race in a cup or on a cone is like a record needle, if you can feel it catch along the race, the part is bad.
@Bob re: teaching wheel truing: We keep one spoke with a nipple attached laying at the base of each truing stand we have; after giving a tutorial, and before leaving a participant to fend for themselves for a little while, I show them the spoke and tell them that if they get confused about the direction of the thread, they can pick up the assembled spoke/nipple and play with it to check. It's a great tactile and visual aid.
cyclista Nicholas
On 2018-12-19 21:54, mist@strans.org wrote:
To add a couple thoughts...
We often use the 'lid on jar' example for explaining right hand and left hand threads. I find this to be very useful when teaching wheel truing, as I'll often say the spoke is like an upside down jar and the nipple is like the lid. Many people, before hearing/seeing this, will say/think that the spoke nipple is a left hand thread. I'll take the time to demonstrate with a spoke in my hand and put the nipple on, emphasizing it is a 'regular' right hand thread.
We use the sharpened spokes ('spokers') for many things also, like pointing at parts, showing ware lines on sprocket teeth, gently checking for pits in cups and reaming open freshly cut housing.
-Bob Giordano Free Cycles Missoula (community bike shop) Missoula Institute for Sustainable Transportation (our research, design and advocacy arm)
On Tue, Dec 18, 2018, 7:08 PM <wormsign@gmail.com wrote:
At times I ask what word they use to describe certain things. I often say “we call this...” then describe its function. Also using “like tightening a lid” for clockwise and vice-versa.
Loconte
On Fri, Dec 14, 2018 at 11:36 AM Cyclista Nicholas cyclista@inventati.org wrote:
Yes, definitely. Words are seriously magic. I remember just the other day I figured out that using the word "hinge" would dramatically fix an annoying inability I had in conveying a particular process to participants (I can't remember which process, just the word >_<!).
Something else I do is demonstrate along with the words, usually by pointing as I describe. At every workstand and throughout the shop we have a tool we call a pokey spoke (literally just a shortened, sharpened stainless spoke) that we use for a wide variety of pokey-oriented things, not the least of which is pointing to parts with extreme specificity. Pointing out the set limit screws, for instance, or the lock ring on the adjustable cup as distinct from the cup itself. It's easy to forget how baffling and disorienting these shapes and parts are for those not trained in what to look for. The spoke is superior to a finger because fingers are way fatter than a lot of the things that need pointing at.
I've trained myself to hunt for the right words at all times. I'd rather pause in a description than blurt out generalities and hope for the best. Typically I'll load someone up with a precise description coupled with pointing and usually also some articulation of the components in question, then leave the participant on autopilot (self-pilot!) while I move to the next person. More often than not, they've made various kinds of progress by the time I check back in with them. Any mistakes they've made are useful in further framing of the issue.
But yes, words are just as much a challenge as any mechanical system.
cyclista Nicholas
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