Self - Service

[Nebulous]

Well I've looked at how much bike servicing costs, and I've read all the comments on here about how easy bikes are to repair, and so I've decided to do it myself.

The only snag though is that having made up my mind I'm already spending the money I'm going to save!

Seeing as Edinburgh Bicycle had a 15% off sale this weekend I've bought one of their bike workstands. I've also bought a Halfords bike tool kit on a 10% off reserve and collect.

So what do I do next?

My allez is about 8 months old and has done about 1500 miles. It has an unidentified creak, which doesn't bother me a great deal but doesn't seem to me like its coming from the botom bracket.

I'm thinking about changing the chain. Should I also take off the cassette and clean the freehub at the same time?

What about cables? I have had some problems with cables- mainly through my own fault, but they are working fine at the moment. At what point should I change the whole set?

I suppose what I am asking is - should I develop a regular maintenance schedule of replacing parts, or should I leave well alone unless I have problems?

Thanks -

James

 

[Herzog]

I suppose what I am asking is - should I develop a regular maintenance schedule of replacing parts, or should I leave well alone unless I have problems?

Thanks -

James

Hi James,

There is no point replacing something unless it is on the way out. This will be indicated by the part not functioning properly (the trick is to identify it before it fails, usually in the middle of nowhere!). A regular schedule of checking, and adjusting when needed, is a good idea, but there's no point replacing items strictly to a schedule (e.g., changing chain every 4000km whether it's necessary or not).

 

[wheres_my_beard]

Having a regular maintenance schedule is probably a good idea, and should help you be aware of parts that wear quicker than others and be mindful of how long parts have left before replacing. It may not be broken or getting out of shape now, but it's worth knowing in advance which parts are on the way out.

 

[qwiksilver]

If it ain't broke DON'T fix it .
Being inexperienced at bike maintanance you could do more harm than good, unlike cars all the parts of a bike are on display for you to see and anticipate issues that may arise but like motor vehicles the signs of impending issues can be recognised in using the thing and be kept to a minimum with regular looking after for example an un-oiled machine will not function as well or as long as a well oiled machine get the drift.... familiarise yourself with the bikes parts and how the look while its working good and try to keep them that way if for some reason something does fail then address the issue.

Qwik

 

[Cubist]

You need to check the chain wear, otherwise you won't know it needs changing until it slips and by that time it'll have worn the cassette with it. At 1500 miles I suspect it may need checking. If you don't want to shell out for a £10 wear indicator, use this method from bicycletutor


Measure the Chain
With your chain still on the bike, place the ruler’s ’0′ inch mark directly above the center of one of your chain pins. Now count 12 complete links. A complete link equals 1 inner and 1 outer. A rivet on a new chain should line up exactly with the 12 inch mark using this method.


Wear Indicators
According to Sheldon Brown, if the rivet is less than 1/16″ past the mark, your chain is ok. If it’s between 1/16″ and 1/8″ past the mark you’ll likely need a new chain, but your sprockets should be ok. If it’s more than 1/8″ past the mark, you’ll have to replace both the chain and rear sprockets.




Next. Your gear cables will benefit from being cleaned and lubed if not replaced. This too is a good place to start with your service as you'll learn how to index the gears and adjust the tension. Be aware that getting it bang on takes time and patience, but again, bicycletutor.com is your friend.




Brake cables will also benefit from lubing, and of course your blocks will benefit from cleaning and reshaping if not replacing.




While you've got the bike in the stand take the opportunity to get the seatpost out, re torque or tighten the saddle clamps and lube the post with a fine layer of grease. There are loads of "my seatpost is stuck" threads, and it's because they are never moved or lubed. Clean the threads of the seatpost clamp and lightly grease before you put it back on, these suffer from roadgrime and can seize themselves.




Check for play in the wheel bearings by rocking the wheels form side to side vertically. They shouldn't move. If they do you'll need to regrease and reset the bearings. This again is one of those "I wish I never started" jobs until you get it right, but you'll learn a serious amount of patience and subtlety in the process.




Check for play in the pedal spindles, and regrease if they are "user serviceable". Check for play in the bottom bracket and that the cranks are on properly and torqued up. Another good learning process would be to take the cranks off, remove the BB, clean and regrease before assembling it again.





Now you've got your bike fettling kit you're gonna get some use and satisfaction out of it. Finally go round the bike and check that all the bolts are tightened properly. By the time you have finished that little lot you should have eliminated the creak and learnt an awful lot in the process. Don't listen to the "oh I wouldn't touch that unless you're an expert" mob, they're just being a load of big Wendies.

 

[Globalti]

Bike creaks always seem to come from the BB. Check tightness of saddle clamp and rear QR.

 

[battered]

You don't need to clean the freewheel unless you want to. The cassete can stay on too. I have brake cable outers that I've had on the bike for 15 yrs with periodic greasing, and cables 5 or 10 years. If you grease them they last indefinitely, they don't have a hard life unless you let them corrode. Then they will quickly die.

 

[Nebulous]

Thanks guys - a lot of food for thought there, particularly from cubist.

I've done a fair bit of car maintenance in the past, so I'm not afraid to give it a go.

Checking chain wear looks like a good place to start then take it from there.

 

[Herzog]

Thanks guys - a lot of food for thought there, particularly from cubist.

I've done a fair bit of car maintenance in the past, so I'm not afraid to give it a go.

Checking chain wear looks like a good place to start then take it from there.

Bikes are not particularly complex machines, but having the right tools make every job a lot easier (and makes it less likely you will knacker anything).

A couple of useful websites:

Sheldon Brown

Park tools

 

[henshaw11]

>If you don't want to shell out for a £10 wear indicator, use this method from bicycletutor

You can get 'em for about a fiver from chainreaction or wiggle - best to get one with both 0.75 % and 1% measurement points - below 0.75 you should be able to just change the chain and keep the same cassette*, above that and you may as well keep riding it till the whole drivetrain (ie cassette, chain, chainrings - if worn, granny ring will almost certainly be ok) needs replacing, so long as it's still working together.

Putting a new chain on a worn cassette - ie one where the chain's got over 0.75% elongation, or thereabouts - just results in a skipping chain.