Introducing the Finish Line Fiber Grip for my Boardwalk TT!

Since I recently upgraded to bullhorns, the handlepost top clamp has been working overtime keeping my bullhorn in place! You can read about the upgrade here.

More pictures of the bullhorn handlebars below!

As you can see, the quick release clamp in the middle needs to be closed really tight to prevent the bullhorn from rotating downwards. However, I realised that even when it is super tight, (any tighter and I cannot close it!) the bullhorn will still creep downwards overtime, as I rest my weight on the barends.

This realisation came during the recent Tuas night ride, where the road can be rather bumpy along some stretches. With the bumps and the weight at the barends, there is a torque that will cause the bullhorn to rotate downwards.

To solve this problem, I went to get some Finish Line Fiber Grip. This gel is actually meant for carbon fibre parts, which cannot be clamped too tightly to prevent crushing the tube. Examples would be carbon fibre seatposts, handlebars, stems etc. How this gel works is that there are tiny plastic balls within the gel, that will deform and fill in the gaps between the surfaces when you clamp it. When you spread the gel, you can feel the gritty texture. This rough texture will help to increase the friction between surfaces, allowing the components to grip tightly even with lesser tightening torque.

Even though it is designed for carbon fibre parts, it can also be used for other materials, since the working principle can be applied to any surface.

 

Have not tested its effectiveness so far, but it seems to be pretty effective according to reviews! Hope it works and solves the issue!

One other curious thing to note is the rust on my 9 speed SRAM chain. There is 1 inner link that is totally rusted, and only realised it when the pedaling sound seemed different. The links in that area was stuck, and could not go around the rear derailleur pulleys properly, giving an unusual clicking sound.

Upon closer inspection, it was found that other links have some little signs of rust too. Quite surprised as I do regular maintenance and will keep the chain nicely lubed for smooth operation. I only put chain lube at the pins as that is where the friction is. This leaves the chain links uncovered, which may be why they are rusted.

The only link that is totally rusted!

Chain links that are supposed to rotate becomes stuck, while the handlebar that is supposed to be stuck ends up rotating! Need to ensure that only the proper parts rotate!