Jan 28, 2009
Whatchamacollars & Surly Big Dummy: Fitting Tip
A long time Xtracycler wrote to RootsRadicals recently asking for help on getting his Whatchamacollars (WMC) fitted over his Big Dummy uprights. We mention in the WMC instructions to use a liberal amount of grease on the contact faces for installation, and also suggest using a large flat head screwdriver to gently pry the bottom clamp open. The reason the WMC is such a tight fit on the Big Dummy is due to Surly’s use of a slightly larger upright tube diameter, roughly 1mm larger than the FreeRadical uprights.
Unfortunately, using the screwdriver method has the chance to mar the WMC faces and can cause scratching of the Big Dummy uprights when installing. We asked around to see if people have found a solution to this problem and Nick Sande, product control at Surly Bicycles, sent us these photos.
Using a nickle between the lower clamp you can screw in the bolt, start on the threaded side of the WMC, and slowly screw the bolt into the nickle. This allows the clamp to expand as you tighten, thus opening the clamp the extra millimeter or two. You can also use this technique with the upperclamp if fitting the V-racks into the WMC proves difficult. And we still suggest using grease to ensure a smooth installation.
Sorry, again, for the hassle, hope this fix works for you and your Big Dummy.
brilliant! same trick you use for installing handlebars in one-bolt quill type stems (remember those?) always fun to see coins with evidence of this trick turn up in one’s pocket–or hat, for you street performers. my big dummy says thanks, nick.
Man, you guys are big spenders. I found that a penny works just as well.
Nice one, David, nice! :D
If you have access to a lathe these are easily bored out to the proper size. The small end clamps to anything 7/8″ dia. that can be chucked in the lathe. I put slight tension on the big end pinch bolt before I bored the hole to the same size as my BD uprights. When the tension is released the bore is slightly oversized and slips on easily. I realize that this isn’t possible for everyone, but works well if you can manage it.
For the record, Big Dummy upright tubes have an outside diameter of 26.0mm.
[...] out the Xtracycle Blog for a useful tip on installing Watchamacolars on a Big Dummy. Since the tubing of the Surly Big Dummy is larger than the Xtracycle sub-frame the lower portion [...]