Bike maintenance

will8

Morning,

I have had my bike 4 months now, so i am going to start to learn some maintenance on it.

Thought i would start with taking the chain and cassette off to give it a good clean. I know what tools i need and with the help of you tube i should be able to put it back together again,

Couple of Qs,

Is it best to get Park tools or some a the cheaper options, i know they do the same job, but 6 months down the line i dont want them the break.?

Once the chain is off is it best the add power link or can you just pop the rivit back.?

i am right in thinking to give the chain just put it a bootle with white spirit. is that te same with the cassette, well not in the bottle, but clean it with white spirit?

What else should i be learning to keep the bike in tip top.

Thanks.

rhialto

For the chain, definitely add a quick-link. I clean my chain every 2-3 rides and more often when it's muddy. With a quick-link, it's a 30 sec job to remove the chain. I then have two bottles, one filled with a solvent (white spirit should work), into which I drop the chain, seal it and shake it.

With the chain off, I clean the chainrings and the cassette with a stiff brush (I bought Pedro's cleaning kit that includes a cassette brush amongst others). I don't normally remove the cassette unless I need to access the hub or replace the cassette. When I finish that, I remove the chain from the bottle, lay it on an old towel and dry it off. You can then pour the degreaser into the second bottle, straining it to remove some of the dirt. I use a plastic coffee filter for that.

Next, I put the chain back on the bike and lube it. I read another comment recently that recommended chainsaw oil if you are going through a lot of lube, which I do, especially in the winter. I bought a 2 L container of chainsaw lube for about 8 euros. It looks like the FinishLine synthetic wet lube (green) and it claims to be biodegradable to boot!

Hope this helps.

blablablacksheep

for a quick chain clean get the park tool chain cleaner it works very well and gets a right ugly chain clean as anything very quickly.

world of difference tbh,

The main things i wish i was told about looking after bike was not when to service bike but what TO service and when in a timeline scale.

personally id buy a chain wear tool this will help you keep on top of the chain wear and tear as you dont notice it till its too late, (which i didnt notice untill i tried sticking a new chain onto my word drivetrain )

Also wheels if shimano need service quite a lot, i believe its around 6 months at least and pretty simple to do.

Then you got fork also to service maybe every 6 months which also means you can service your headset at the same time.

thats just a couple of things that i wish i knew about earlyer.

rhialto

Good advice from blacksheep. The chain wear tool is relatively inexpensive (I have the Park one) and if you use it and change your chain when it is .75% worn, you can avoid having to change the chainrings and cassette, which cost a lot more than the tool.

In addition to those things blacksheep mentioned (hubs and fork), all the bearings will need to be overhauled or replaced at some point. These are:
-frame pivot bearings
-bottom bracket
-headset
-wheel hubs

As for the timing, it depends on a number of factors like, how often you ride, in what conditions, how you clean your bike, the quality of components, and possibly some stuff that I can't think of right now. My experience might not be appropriate to your circumstances. For example, I overhaul my bottom bracket every 800 km or so. That's about 3 times a year for me. You may have a better sealed BB that might not require so much TLC.

As for the tools, yes, you will need some tools to do this work. For example, removing a freehub in order to overhaul the wheel hub will require some specialized bike tools (cassette tool, chainwip, large wrench). The Park Tools website has lots of tutorials on how to do the various jobs as well as lists of tools required.

Finally, blacksheep mentioned Shimano wheels need service quite a lot. I don't know about quite a lot, but I have overhauled numerous Shimano hubs and I would say while it may not be difficult, it's not a quick job. If you are going to do it (and hopefully you have wheels with cartridge bearings instead), be careful not to let the bearings fall out. Shimano hubs have loose bearings!

Have fun. It can be quite enjoyable to maintain your bike.

will8

Thanks for your advice fellas,

I own a park tool chain cleaner, which i use after every ride, a couple of times with washing liquid and lastly with the degreaser.
I thought taking the chain off and soaking it in white spirit every now and then will give it a really good clean.

I will be buying chain wear tool, to make sure the chain doesnt knacker the cassette, Wouldnt you bother with taking the cassette off to give a good clean. ?

As for the other things i should be having a look at (hubs and forks) i think is behond me,
I am good at taking thing apart, its the putting back together that i am crap at. LOL

I will have a look at some videos before i try any of that.

Wheels are Bontrager Rhythm Comp Disc wheel system, so not shimano

Tools i thought about getting first was, Chain whip, cassette lockring tool, chain wear tool and a chain breaker. I will have a look to see which power link i can use.

My bike if you are wondering
http://www.trekbikes.com/uk/en/bikes/mo ... /fuelex8e/

My riding is mainly XC, with some trips away to trails, so the bike doesnt get hammered.

blablablacksheep

^^ :shock:

you really really really need to hammer that bike dude :P

sweet ride.

On maters of fork service with your fork and given the cost of it, i suggest you dont DIY but instead use TF tuned or Mojo to service it when it does need doing, as this keeps it in warrenty while DIY doesnt i believe.

Cassette wise you dont need to remove it,

Only time to remove cassette is when the chain wears down and wear on cassette takes place(like mine did ), other than that no need to do much but remember when cleaning cassette, Change gear, otherwise you have a clean cassette....except 1 ring with ugly dirt. :roll:

Nice bike, enjoy it..

will8

you really really really need to hammer that bike dude :P

sweet ride.

Thanks Sheep, I have been far to busy at work to take it anywhere since i got it.. But currently working in scotland, so hopefully will take it to Glentress, but i have been around Blairadam Forest in Dunfermline which has been fun.Totally different to what i am use to, to be honest i didnt have the balls to do alot of the stuff around the forest, but i will.

For now then i will get a chain wear tool, then i might get the X- tools kit
to do the other services.

Thanks

blablablacksheep

A good idea is to buy tools when you need them as your bike wears out and things need to be changed and swaped.

Some tool kits are good and im sure others will let you know which ones are the "best/bomb" but sometimes they can contain a lot of things that you just dont need.

with your spec though those parts should last a long time so shouldnt worry too much atm

will8

Cheers fella, you have saved me a few quid.

Will

rhialto

Nice bike indeed!

Like blacksheep says, suspension service can be kind of tricky. An oil change for the fork is pretty straightforward and there are lots of tutorials but for a full service I used TFTuned for my shock and forks and they were really good. The only downside is that you have to remove the shock and forks, post them, wait a couple of days and then re-assemble when you get them back. It means you can't ride for a while.

X-Tools is fine. I have a couple of their tools. Also Pedro's, Park (of course) and Superstar, who have some good quality, inexpensive tools.

blablablacksheep

forgot to add.

check toolsnet and other Tool sites like screwfix as they tend to sell tools for which bikes use a reduced cost compared to typical bike shops..

good example torque wrenches are about 30% cheaper there

will8

Thanks

Deputy Dawg

blablablacksheep wrote:

A good idea is to buy tools when you need them as your bike wears out and things need to be changed and swaped.

Some tool kits are good and im sure others will let you know which ones are the "best/bomb" but sometimes they can contain a lot of things that you just dont need.

with your spec though those parts should last a long time so shouldnt worry too much atm

I disagree to an extent. Even though there are some tools I'll probably never use & a couple have been replaced for better quality, the sets are a very cost effective way of getting the basics in one shot.

As for the 'on bike' chain cleaning devises, I used to use one until I put a 'clean' chain into a bottle with some neat fenwicks & gave it a shake. The amount of gunk that came out from under the rollers was scary.

blablablacksheep

^^ i probally am incorrect in some ways but i find that the quality of the set tools tend to be lesser quality of tools bought seperate.

Though costs can be rahter more, i personally rather have a tool that isnt going to brake when i try using it.

Had a issue with a cassette lockring snapping when i tried to wrench it :shock: , parktool one was a lot better.

but there are some good sets though out there im sure