A few maintenance questions...

Jamey

Having a brand new bike has made me want to make a real effort to look after it properly and overcome my general ineptitude with mechanical things.

I learnt a little bit with my previous bike but not enough so I want to go back to basics and start again. I've booked myself onto a two-day maintenance course at Downland Cycles but before that I'd like to ask a few questions.

1) Which parts of a bike will always wear out, even if properly looked after?

2) Which parts of a bike should last a lifetime if properly looked after?

3) What's the full list of jobs that I should be able to do myself in order to keep the bike working for years and years?

4) Are there any jobs that are necessary to keep the bike working but that you can't really do yourself at home?

5) Are there any jobs that you could do at home but it's usually just not worth it, and you might as well pay a pro to do it?

6) Are there any other questions I should be asking?

Cheers.

sub55

1 chain
2 non
3 everything
4 non
5 building a wheel

Bronzie

1) The things that wear fastest are tyres, brake pads, chain & gear cassette. Other moving parts will wear to a lesser extent and should last a few years if kept lubed / adjusted as necessary (bottom bracket, chainrings, hub bearings, headset, cables, mechs, shifters, rims)

2) The frame, handlebars, seatpin, stem. Maybe the saddle, although some are more durable than others.

3) Blimey, where to start!
- change tyres / tubes / puncture repairs
- lube / clean chain, cables etc
- replace chain
- replace gear cassette
- replace other moving parts as they wear (bottom bracket, chainrings, brake pads etc)
- re-true wheels
- can't think of any more at the minute!

4+5) No, but it helps a lot if you have the right tools. Changing a headset can be a problem without the tools and I prefer the LBS to do mine. Wheelbuilding requires skill and patience beyond my ability. Everything else is pretty straight-forward and needs basic tools to achieve.

6) No

ride_whenever

1: chain, cassette, chainrings, brake pads, tyres

2: none

3: basically you should build up the skills to be able to fully dissassemble the bike and then put it back together correctly. Indexing gears and truing wheels are two fairly complex but necessary ones.

4: bearing replacement in hubs is best left to shops, same for headset replacement

5: fork and shock servicing, wheel building, hub overhauls

6: make sure they go through gear indexing really slowly with you as there is a knack to it and it takes time

idaviesmoore

Jamey wrote:

1) Which parts of a bike will always wear out, even if properly looked after?

2) Which parts of a bike should last a lifetime if properly looked after?

Cheers.

These two are invalid points IMHO. Even if they made a groupset/handlebar/pedal/frameset that never wore out I'd still get bored and see something that:-

a. Looked nicer than what I was already using
b. I perceived would make me faster (see Dennis Norman's posting in Deep Section Carbon Rim thread )
c. My mate had and I wanted

and change it. :roll:

Component/frame makers know exactly what they're doing. I've got almost as many nearly new groupsets that I've swopped for something 'better', as my wife has shoes (No, really!)