Why you need to be careful who repairs your bike.

[twobiker]

EGR filled with soot would be my suggestion. thats what did for ours at last MOT. worth sugesting as its not a expensive part.

On my Mondeo Tdci the EGR is quite dear so I took mine off and cleaned it out with a rag and a can of WD40, easy job 4 bolts 20 minutes,the mechanic at the garage I go to said with a Diesel every so often you should "drive it like you stole it" just to clear some of the sooty crap out of it.

 

[subaqua]

On my Mondeo Tdci the EGR is quite dear so I took mine off and cleaned it out with a rag and a can of WD40, easy job 4 bolts 20 minutes,the mechanic at the garage I go to said with a Diesel every so often you should "drive it like you stole it" just to clear some of the sooty crap out of it.

I had neither the time nor the inclination to change it and it was blocked solid . the garage said it must be a short journey commuting car , it is its wifeys, and to give it an italian tune up every so often.

 

[CopperCyclist]

I'm slowly learning the simple stuff. I now feel confident changine wheels, tyres, adjusting my disc brakes, indexing my gears, adjusting the chain stays etc. The next step for me is going to be replacing my chain, and I'm still torn between taking it to the LBS for them to do it, and biting the bullet and buying a chain and a chain tool and trying it myself...

 

[twobiker]

I had neither the time nor the inclination to change it and it was blocked solid . the garage said it must be a short journey commuting car , it is its wifeys, and to give it an italian tune up every so often.

Best to do it when its clear behind , the black smoke cloud is something else.

 

[Globalti]

I'm slowly learning the simple stuff. I now feel confident changine wheels, tyres, adjusting my disc brakes, indexing my gears, adjusting the chain stays etc. The next step for me is going to be replacing my chain, and I'm still torn between taking it to the LBS for them to do it, and biting the bullet and buying a chain and a chain tool and trying it myself...

Ah, na way-o! Every cyclist ought to own a chain tool as well as a track pump so buy one and split that chain. You will need to cut the new chain down to the same number of links as the old so you can practice on the first link if you want to try it first. The key to success is making sure the tool is bearing down cleanly on the end of the rivet and not the side plate.

 

[GrumpyGregry]

I'm slowly learning the simple stuff. I now feel confident changine wheels, tyres, adjusting my disc brakes, indexing my gears, adjusting the chain stays etc. The next step for me is going to be replacing my chain, and I'm still torn between taking it to the LBS for them to do it, and biting the bullet and buying a chain and a chain tool and trying it myself...

what globalti said...

...plus if your chain needs to be replaced you may be looking at a new cassette too depending on how much wear has take place. New chain plus old cassette can mean more skipping than a kangaroo's backside.

 

[Bicycle]

I picked up a new TDF from Halfrauds last week. I love the quality of the bike - but can only say that I wish the quality of the build / setup echoed this.

Alarms bells started ringing when the guy went to set the seat height and shouted at a colleague, "have you got a multi-tool". Maybe it's just me, but if a component is stamped '5NM' then you set it with a torque wrench; not a multi-tool.

I'm not defending the mechanic (who sounds poor) but in truth, for many components a torque wrench is a bit of a faff to use.

If it's a thing you've done up a trillion times (fan mounting bolt on 2cv or Dyane) then you do just get to feel how much hoof to give it.

Bicycles are different of course from cars or motorcycles of course, but apart from things like the allen bolt clamping a carbon seat post, I do just about everything by feel.

I have a personal hatred of multi-tools (and they can lack the leverage for things you really need to squish) but failure to use a torque wrench where it's recommended is not necessarily a sin.

The other stuff you mention makes the chap sound a rank amateur, but not that.

 

[CopperCyclist]

what globalti said...

...plus if your chain needs to be replaced you may be looking at a new cassette too depending on how much wear has take place. New chain plus old cassette can mean more skipping than a kangaroo's backside.

Nah, it's ok I've done my research, and have a chain wear indicator - I'm not even at 0.5% yet and plan to replace it the second I hit 0.75, in an attempt to keep the cassette functional for as long as possible. No shark fins on my cassette so far! I'm at 1300 miles on both chain and cassette since May - not really sure how many miles you expect to get out of a chain, but people are telling me it's normally only about 2000 tops...

I think when the time comes I'll give it a go and get the chain tool. If it goes wrong at least I have people to blame for persuading me now

 

[Globalti]

I clean my chain regularly, don't over-lubricate it and so far it's still good at 3500 miles.

 

[ColinJ]

I'm at 1300 miles on both chain and cassette since May - not really sure how many miles you expect to get out of a chain, but people are telling me it's normally only about 2000 tops...

It depends on how you look after it and what conditions you ride in. Clean chains can last a long time in dry conditions. Dirty neglected chains don't last long in winter when they get covered in corrosive salty grit.

It's the same thing with brake blocks. If you only ride on dry days, your brake blocks will last thousands of miles (unless you do lots of high-speed technical descents). If you ride on crappy winter days, you could get through a set in a few weeks.

I clean my chain regularly, don't over-lubricate it and so far it's still good at 3500 miles.

Exactly!

 

[CopperCyclist]

Over lubricating is bad? Damn, I've always made sure mine is well lubricated, assumed that'd be the best thing to do. I mean regular lubes rather than loads on it. Take it that's wrong then? As for conditions, I ride my bike in all weathers as I commute in it, and don't have another option even if I wanted one! The only weather I wouldn't take it out in is heavy snow - I'd take the mountain bike out instead

 

[mickle]

My new bikes came pretty well set up apart from a slightly slack headset but I certainly won't be taking it back for a "free service". What's the point? If anything needs adjusting, I adjust it. I wouldn't ride around on a bike with something going out of adjustment and wait for the shop to fix it!

Because if you don't give them an opportunity to check it over, and it suffers a failure later on they could quite reasonably claim that it's not covered by warranty. And they need to true the wheels.

 

[mickle]

I have a personal hatred of multi-tools ...

Then you're using the wrong one. Try one of these:

Or these:

The #1 tool in the box, easy to use, kind on the hands and a doddle to modulate torque with.

 

[subaqua]

Then you're using the wrong one. Try one of these:

Or these:

The #1 tool in the box, easy to use, kind on the hands and a doddle to modulate torque with.

i have some dribble on my keyboard now. that topeak one looks very nice

 

[ColinJ]

Over lubricating is bad? Damn, I've always made sure mine is well lubricated, assumed that'd be the best thing to do. I mean regular lubes rather than loads on it. Take it that's wrong then?

It's the inside of the chain that needs the lube most so let it soak in, and then wipe off the excess. It just sticks dirt to the chain if left on.

As for conditions, I ride my bike in all weathers as I commute in it, and don't have another option even if I wanted one! The only weather I wouldn't take it out in is heavy snow - I'd take the mountain bike out instead

I'm not saying don't ride in cruddy conditions - just make an effort to clean your bike regularly when you do.

I rode my bike on Christmas morning once and got it covered in salt and grit off the road. I didn't have time to clean it when I got home because I had to rush out for a Christmas meal. I went to clean the bike the next day and the chain was almost solid with rust and various other metal parts were already starting to corrode!