This is my primary bike that I do just about everything on, almost every day. It’s a blue Kona Dew-E e-bike that I got in July 2023. I try to record all maintenance and tweaks I make on it in the posts below. I’ve swapped the stock drivetrain (the mechanical part of it, anyway) and contact points. It’s running a Shimano STEPS E6100 motor.
- New CN-HG701-11 chain, pedal bearings are loose again, new front brake pads, and sealant top-up.
- Switched to small GP1 Evo grips, moved the brake levers around, replaced the front brake pads (at 2901 km), and bled the front brake.
- Replaced the old B+M [my:] E rear light with a seatpost mounted SON DC light.
- Increased saddle height and rotated brake levers downwards.
- Removed Rawland front rack and installed RIP Rack.
- Fixed lateral deviation in rear wheel and installed new derailleur hanger.
- Replaced chain, cassette, shifter, derailleur, and chainring with a Shimano CUES groupset.
- Switched to a waxed chain.
- Installed fenders.
- Removed sezied grease port screw on left pedal and replaced its bearings.
- Replaced bearings in right pedal.
- New bike day!
![A blue bike with the new waxed chain under a tree in some late afternoon light.](https://cdn.emilyhorsman.com/L1009301-16x9-768.webp)
Misc: Routine Maintenance
New chain, brake pads, and tire sealant! E-bikes go through consumables so fast.
![Looking down from beside the bike at the handlebars with inner bar ends, a phone mount, and small GP1 Evo grips. There's a large paper bag and hat in the basket.](https://cdn.emilyhorsman.com/DSCF1880-16x9-768.webp)
Cockpit Revamp and New Brake Pads on Egret
Refining contact points and doing some routine disc brake maintenance.
![My hand in a blue wool glove on a brake lever while riding. On the left is a mirror and on the right is a bell.](https://cdn.emilyhorsman.com/R0007620-16x9-768.webp)
Misc: Bike Fit Tweaks and Goings Ons
Experimenting with some saddle and brake lever adjustments; leash training Gus again; Sarah’s new paracord brake locks; and other miscellania.
![A close-up of the tubing on a RIP Rack in GSC Rainbow Chrome with rainbow sparkles glistening.](https://cdn.emilyhorsman.com/DSCF0483-16x9-768.webp)
Rainbow Chrome RIP Rack (Not a Review)
My Hardtack gets its Rawland rack back and my daily driver gets a RIP Rack in GSC Rainbow Chrome.
![A wheel in a truing stand with a person standing behind it with a tension meter.](https://cdn.emilyhorsman.com/DSCF5418-16x9-768.webp)
Wheel True and New Derailleur Hanger
Kat trued a bit of lateral wobble out of my rear wheel and I got a spare derailleur hanger.
![The drivetrain of a blue e-bike with a new Shimano CUES cassette, derailleur, and chainring.](https://cdn.emilyhorsman.com/DSCF5175-16x9-768.webp)
Shimano CUES Drivetrain Upgrade for Egret
Attempting to solve the chain retention and shifting issues on my e-bike with a new drivetrain. Now it’s got a narrow-wide chainring, a clutched rear derailleur, and the extra chainline increases the gap so the chain can’t get stuck.
![A pink rigid bike with black-and-tan tires standing up against a median filled with sand and ice plant.](https://cdn.emilyhorsman.com/DSCF0195-16x9-768.webp)
Quick Maintenance on the Hardtack and Egret
My beloved Tanglefoot Hardtack is coming back to me! Logging some maintenance records here.
![A blue Kona e-bike and purple vintage Trek in front of a view of the San Francisco Bay facing towards the East Bay, some time after the sun has set](https://cdn.emilyhorsman.com/banner-16x9-768.webp)
Thoughts After 2000km on an E-Bike
I’ve now put about 2000 km on my e-bike (~1250 miles) and want to write out my thoughts on e-biking compared to regular biking — the good, the bad, why I chose this one, and my political opinions on e-bikes that haven’t changed.
![A blue e-bike with black fenders resting on an oak tree beside a dirt path surrounded by other old oaks](https://cdn.emilyhorsman.com/fender-16x9-768.webp)
It’s Fall Y’all! 🎃💦 Time for Fenders
We’re getting into wet season so I begrudingly put fenders on my e-bike. Kona was a bit sly about the tire/fender clearance so I used a heat gun to open up the rear fender clearance a bit. It worked but it looks real bad.
![A Crankbrothers Stamp 7 left pedal in a bench vise beside a drill with a bolt extractor and grease port screw hanging on the bolt extractor](https://cdn.emilyhorsman.com/DSCF4597_16x9-768.webp)
Grease Port Bolt Extraction
My seized grease port screw was stopping me from replacing the bearings in my left pedal. But it came out with a bolt extractor drill bit!
![The front of a 1x crankset with the chain case fixing mounts visible](https://cdn.emilyhorsman.com/DSCF4552_16x9-768.webp)
1x Chain Retention Problems
My chain drops on the inboard side and gets real stuck between the motor and chainring. There’s a bunch of different solutions but none of them are perfect.
![A purple Crankbrothers Stamp 7 pedal mounted on a right crank arm of a bicycle.](https://cdn.emilyhorsman.com/DSCF3928_16x9-768.webp)
Crankbrothers Stamp 7 Play
My pedals have gotten pretty wiggly because the polymer igus bearings have worn out.