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What is it supposed to guard?
Many people think you're a dork if you don't quickly snatch those reflectors off, too. "Excess weight." Is the spoke guard in that category? Or is it part of the packing stuff for shipping? (I don't think I"ve got one.)
Queen of Dorkdom, here! (Of course, given the etymology of dork, that conjures up its own images.) True Freds have all that stuff.
It's supposed to guard the rear derailleur from shifting into the spokes. But that would only happen if the derailleur was badly out of adjustment (i.e. the "L" screw was too open). Sometimes the adjustment can get just a little bit off and you'll hear the edge of the jockey wheel cage just tick a spoke as the wheel turns. That's not a big deal. I guess the spoke guard is really supposed to protect idiots from themselves when they really screw up their derailleur adjustment.
Generally spoke guard don't do any harm unless they rattle and drive you crazy. They are just unnecessary. And would certainly not be found on a very high end bike.
the day that i brought my bike home, bf was taking "dork" thinks off my bike. cracked me up. now i see why he did it. he saved me from dorkdumbness.
Oh, horror! I have a dork disk!!!!
It's so incredibly tiny, i didn't even know I had one. Looks like it just clips on. I'll probably leave it and fret over it for weeks. It's only slightly larger than my granny gear. Is it a faux dork disk?
I did leave the reflectors on, on purpose. Nearly hit a kid riding across the road right in front of me one night. His spoke reflectors were the only thing I could see. Saved his (and my) butt. Figure I need all the reflecting I can get on my commute, and even added sticky reflector tape all over my fender and rack.
My dork disk eventually broke off on it's own.
Just got my bike back after having the cassette replaced.
My mechanic is an anal-retentive purist and thankfully took it upon himself to remove my unsightly, cracked dork-disc. :)
I don't have one at all on my LBS-built rear wheel - and I don't think there's one on my Trek. (My LBS probably took it off.) I've added reflectors to my bike that was too old to have 'em already. (When the bike's already 45 pounds, what's a little more?)
Wow Sue, that's a heavy bike!!! :eek:
Actually, I hadn't thought of that! Guess they go hand in hand, huh? :DQuote:
Originally Posted by tprevost
So let me get this straight, this dork disc is sort of like a maidenhead that only bike virgins have, and that BF's can't wait to remove?....
And Veronica- is my new Rambouillet going to have one, or is Rivendell too enlightened to install DorkDiscs on their new bikes?
OMG - so it is true I am a dork. I have one of those on my Trek bike and always wondered what it was for. My other road bike Im pleased to say doesnt have one so the upside is I only look dorky half of the time.:D
I just went on a hunt around the office and found 3 dork disks, on a Bianchi and 2 Treks. Funny thing is, none of the company web sites show dork disks on the bikes. Not at Trek, not at Bianchi, not at Kona). So the companies don't advertise their dork disks, they just quietly slip them in. Maybe their lawyers make them do it.
I found 2 different styles of dork disk: a clear plastic piece only 2 inches wide clipped to the spokes (looks very easy to destructively remove) and a wide black (plastic?) disk, much of which is behind the cassette. Those might be hard to remove without removing the cassette first, unless they break easily. The old 10-speed spoke guard would not come off without removing the freewheel, as the inner part was metal and fit tightly around the hub.
its a conspiracy i say! :eek: trying to make us look like dorks!
This thread is cracking me up! I will have to go look and see if Sasha has a dork disc on her when I get home. If so, I will ask DH to remove it--I'm sure he has a cassette tool in his pile of bike stuff. Certainly can't have my sweet Bianchi looking dorky:p
Yikes! I have a dork disk behind the cassette on my hybird Fuji Sagres -- the lowest end bike I have. Since I don't ride it much, I am not sure it's worth taking off. Hmmm. I better not tell my 12 year old daughter that it is a "dork" disk or she won't ride it for sure. :D