It's relaxing working on bikes, if you have the right tools. If you don't, it can quickly become the opposite of relaxing. On the other hand, there's something satisfying about trying to solve a problem...
Another day, another noise. Was it the seatpost shim? (No.) How to remove it to find out? The shim was bedded in, resisting every attempt coax it out with pliers, screwdrivers, and other questionable extraction tools. Nor did the seatpost clamp want to be used as a wrench. Then it struck me: my printer's gauge.
I used to be a typesetter, before desktop publishing came along and gave everybody the serif and sans-serif keys to the kingdom. This ruler was my going away present to myself. No mere memento, it has often come in handy, usually to guide an x-acto knife for little projects.
I slid it down through the groove in the shim, gave it a twist, then pulled up. It was the perfect size; both edges of the ruler head rested on the bottom of the shim.
If that hadn't worked, I suppose a hanger could've been sacrificed for the cause, or the pin spanner which became part of my
patent pending device might've done the trick, but I like that my old printer's friend now has an honorary place in my cycling toolbox.
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