Need help with my gear and bike

[snowskyflake97]

Hello guys. I am very new to biking. I bought myself a bike and I didn't know they came along with stuff. Like on the left and right handles of my bike are signs I don't understand. What do they mean and how do I use them? Secondly, I have these things that I don't know how to use. They look like gloves but I don't know how to wear 'em. No one in my place knows how to handle stuff like this and if they ever know how to ride a bike they literally only know "RIDING A BIKE". Hahaha. Advanced Merry Christmas guys

 

[vickster]

The markings on the levers presumably correlate to the gears on the bike. Left is for the rings on the front by the pedals (usually two or three, the little one is for easier pedalling, big harder). The right hand one is for the cogs on the back wheel, usually 7, 8, 9 on basic bikes. Used in combination with the front rings, again the gears determine how hard or easy it is to pedal. On the flat, usually if three rings at the front, you want the middle one, and be around the muddle cog at the back. You want to avoid big front and rear or small front and rear as this stresses the chain

You don't know how to wear gloves?! But with cycling gloves, the padded bit goes next to your palms!

Just get out and ride your bike, practice with the gears. If you are having problems, and no cycling mates, take it to your local bike shop for help

Your pictures are way too dark to see anything much

 

[cyberknight]

imho i think those gloves are not cycling gloves at all but look like weight training gloves

 

[vickster]

Get proper gloves, part of the point is to protect your hands if you come off. Those won't

 

[biggs682]

@snowskyflake97 where are you based ?

if you are local to me feel free to drop me a message and i can hopefully show and explain them to you as the pictures are a bit dark , but they look like older style thumb shifters

 

[snowskyflake97]

The markings on the levers presumably correlate to the gears on the bike. Left is for the rings on the front by the pedals (usually two or three, the little one is for easier pedalling, big harder). The right hand one is for the cogs on the back wheel, usually 7, 8, 9 on basic bikes. Used in combination with the front rings, again the gears determine how hard or easy it is to pedal. On the flat, usually if three rings at the front, you want the middle one, and be around the muddle cog at the back. You want to avoid big front and rear or small front and rear as this stresses the chain

You don't know how to wear gloves?! But with cycling gloves, the padded bit goes next to your palms!

Just get out and ride your bike, practice with the gears. If you are having problems, and no cycling mates, take it to your local bike shop for help

Your pictures are way too dark to see anything much

thank you dear sir. Any suggestions where I can read more about how to cycle properly and stuff?

 

[cyberknight]

thank you dear sir. Any suggestions where I can read more about how to cycle properly and stuff?

Have you any friends who cycle ?
You could also look at ...
http://www.goskyride.com/
http://www.cyclingbuddy.com/
This book is very handy ....
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Cyclecraft-complete-enjoyable-cycling-children/dp/0117037400

 

[mjr]

Www.Sheldonbrown.com www.cyclingforTransport.com and probably more I can't think of just now. The omnipresent YouTube has lots of videos but there's bad advice online as well as good

 

[phil-b]

the glove thingies look like wrist guards to me and are more suited to skateboarders and stunt bikers (BMX free style)

 

[snowskyflake97]

@snowskyflake97 where are you based ?

if you are local to me feel free to drop me a message and i can hopefully show and explain them to you as the pictures are a bit dark , but they look like older style thumb shifters

Sorry I'm from the Philippines and I'm from a far flung province where nobody here bikes. I have no one to guide me and bike shops are in the city so I have to travel quite a bit. Thank you for the effort though

 

[snowskyflake97]

the glove thingies look like wrist guards to me and are more suited to skateboarders and stunt bikers (BMX free style)

Oh I see. Thank you sir. My friend told me to buy safety gear if I wanted so I bought a set along with kneepads and elbowpads and those came along and I had no idea how to deal with 'em thank you

 

[biggs682]

Sorry I'm from the Philippines and I'm from a far flung province where nobody here bikes. I have no one to guide me and bike shops are in the city so I have to travel quite a bit. Thank you for the effort though

ok fair enough

 

[Pat "5mph"]

thank you dear sir. Any suggestions where I can read more about how to cycle properly and stuff?

Hi and welcome!
As we don't know what type of bike or what terrain you ride we can only offer limited advice: ask any question in the beginners forum, you will get lots of answers, but note most of us are based in the UK, maybe the answers are not relevant to you.
You could start by watching you tube channels like this or this.

Oh I see. Thank you sir. My friend told me to buy safety gear if I wanted so I bought a set along with kneepads and elbowpads and those came along and I had no idea how to deal with 'em thank you

Those gloves are not suitable, they are not for ordinary cycling.
You really only need safety gear if you're into technical mountain biking or stunts.
Padded cycling gloves protect your hands in case of a fall, they also protect your hands from the cold.
Example. Example.
Shoes: you want closed toed shoes with a firm sole. Trainers will do to start you off.
A helmet may (or may not) help in case of falls at slow speed. In your country there may be a law that cyclists must wear a helmet.
Clothing should be tight fitting so that it does not get caught in the mechanism of the bike. You may want waterproofs/windproofs.
As you start riding your bike often, you will no doubt have lots of questions: just ask!

 

[shouldbeinbed]

Hi.

Can you ride a bike?

If not: The trick is learning to balance while moving and it may sound odd but you will balance better going a bit faster than too slow.
Your elbow pads might be useful while you learn balancing.

Your levers on the bars control the gears as vickster (a lady) says. The one with the - to + marking will be the front gears and the numbered one will be the rear cogs. While you get confident riding you are probably best leaving them both in the middle cogs or slightly easier pedalling : slightly nearer the - sign and No 3 or 2.

When you are more comfortable start changing and seeing what happens. Nearer the + and higher numbers are more for flat roads, downhill, going faster. Near the - and low numbers are for climbing hills, sticky mud etc.

You need to think.of the front and back gears together to get the best out of them and to save damaging the cogs and chain: don't have the front all the way to - and the rear on 6, 7, or the front all the way to + and the rear on 1,2 as the chain will be running \ or / at an angle rather than. | as straight as possible between the front and rear cogs.

It all comes wirh a little practice and then you will be changing without even thinking about it.

As well as som .proper gloves, you should also think about simple toolkit: a pump- check it is the right valve type for your wheels, some patches to fix a puncture, some tyre levers to take off your tyre and a bike multitool or some Allen keys & spanners to fix and tighten bits up.

You could also get some spare inner tubes (look on your tyre sidewall for the correct size e.g. 26 x 1.95 - the tubes may have a range of e.g. 26 x 1.75 to 2.25 - these would be fine for 26 x 1.95 ) as they are always useful to have.


Later maybe buy some cables and brake pads ready for when your brakes or gears need servicing or start to get poor - that will be a long time so not something you need to worry about right now.

Most bike maintenance is pretty easy and plenty of videos on YouTube or the Park Tools website and the tools/kit can be bought online. It's good to learn as you say you are a distance from the bike shops.

 

[snowskyflake97]

Hi and welcome!
As we don't know what type of bike or what terrain you ride we can only offer limited advice: ask any question in the beginners forum, you will get lots of answers, but note most of us are based in the UK, maybe the answers are not relevant to you.
You could start by watching you tube channels like this or this.

Those gloves are not suitable, they are not for ordinary cycling.
You really only need safety gear if you're into technical mountain biking or stunts.
Padded cycling gloves protect your hands in case of a fall, they also protect your hands from the cold.
Example. Example.
Shoes: you want closed toed shoes with a firm sole. Trainers will do to start you off.
A helmet may (or may not) help in case of falls at slow speed. In your country there may be a law that cyclists must wear a helmet.
Clothing should be tight fitting so that it does not get caught in the mechanism of the bike. You may want waterproofs/windproofs.
As you start riding your bike often, you will no doubt have lots of questions: just ask!

We have a lot of flat roads here but are not paved properly. So basically flat roads here feel offroad-ish. I am now working my way around town and I practice at night or early morning as two avoid accidents (I almost got hit twice yesterday because the first time I lost balance and on the second time I got cramps on my right foot). But somehow I am managing. Thank you for the help