how to maintain your bike

dinesh2001

hi guys,
I want to look after my bike but have no clue where to begin. Are there any videos of what to do starting from the basics? I also need to get the tools, are there any lists of what tools I need? What should I look for when getting that pole for holding the bike up for doing maintenance please?

I think I need to start by taking the wheels off and trying to change the tube....

pblakeney

To change a tube, search Youtube.

navrig2

Search on here in the Workshop section then look for appropriate videos on YouTube.

joe_totale-2

Some good tips for cleaning your chain:

https://www.sheldonbrown.com/chainclean.html

molteni_man

joe_totale-2 said:

Some good tips for cleaning your chain:

https://www.sheldonbrown.com/chainclean.html

Ignore this dinesh. Not helpful at all. Stick to the other suggestions. The Park Tool ones on You Tube are usually really clear and really help.

pilot_pete

Clean your chain regularly and lubricate it with a descent chain lube. Ignore the spoof ShledonBrown chain cleaning page!

Old paintbrush, cleaned old takeaway plastic tub and some degreaser. Brush and ‘stipple’ the chain with the brush holding the tub of degreaser beneath. Bathe it well, then move on to the next section. Do the whole chain from the ‘inside’ - the bottom of the chain where it runs from chainring to ear derailleur. Then do the top of the chain from cassette to front chainring. Finally behind the chainring and then the cassette itself.

Clean it all off with a hosepipe on gentle spray. Wash the rest of the bike and then dry it all off. I use a pet dryer (like an industrial hairdryer that blows hot air under quite some pressure). This drives all the water out of the chain, sprockets and the rest of the bike. I then wipe the chain with a rag to ensure clean. Then use a lube sparingly.

That and changing inner tubes (if your bike runs them) are the two very basic maintenance jobs you need to master.

PP

shimanobottombracket

pblakeney said:

To change a tube, search Youtube.

Youtube how to true a wheel too! For anything else, google it. When astronauts detected an airleak on the International Space Station, they found the solution by googling "space craft leak" and "my space house losing air". It's surprising what one can learn on the internet. One example is the pros and cons of presta valves vs the normal ones. Or you can just ask here and hopefully someone will tell you. Rare tho.

shimanobottombracket

pilot_pete said:

Clean your chain regularly and lubricate it with a descent chain lube. Ignore the spoof ShledonBrown chain cleaning page!

PP

Gotta admit I did find it useful in the fact that it made me laugh. The full body hazmart suit lol! Even had to check if it really was spelled "ShledonBrown" and not "ChubbyBrown".

JessicaHunk

Can this blog give you some help?
https://trifoxbike.com/blogs/news/how-to-clean-and-maintain-your-own-bicycle

brundonbianchi

There are a lot of on line resources for basic bike maintenance. However, a fair few of them quite deliberately choose bits of kit / bikes that you’ve got no chance of actually finding, the reason is that the idiots that post those ‘helpful’ videos, just want subscribers / likes, in the vain hope that they might become super duper rich, insta famous mega stars. If you see a video using really strange combos of kit, move on. There are some genuinely helpful ones out there, they just need looking for.

johnnyfartpants

Just be careful not to get too much chain degreaser into an areas where bearings lurk! i.e. the bottom bracket (*when you're cleaning the chain rings) and the cassette area (bearings around the wheel hub and cassette freehub body could inadvertently be affected.

paulbox

Buy a chain cleaner machine thing! I’ve been cycling for almost 40 years, always cleaned my chain manually, bought the machine thing about 2 months ago and it has revolutionised my bike maintenance.

Cost about £18 from Amazon plus a big bottle of degreaser. Takes 5 minutes to effectively clean my chain now. Brilliant things!

Might buy a better quality one when this one falls to bits.

david37

sponge, bucket of hot soapy water, spray degreaser on the chain and cassette before you start, then work your way down with a sponge full of hot soapy water.

have one of those wshing up sponges with the scuffing side and use that on the chain by squeezing it over the chain and rotating the cranks.

Rinse off with hose.

add more degreaser to chain and leave. Use the chain songe and wipe off again rinse well with the hose.

leave to dry, add a smidge more oil and repeat every couple of rides or as conditions dictate.

15 mins nothing else to it. unless you have ocd in which case your drive train would be a credit to the inside of any operating theatre or space shipp assembly room.

like mine

elbowloh

Store your bike somewhere dry!

Charlie_Croker

elbowloh said:

Store your bike somewhere dry!

A very good point

I have a friend that didn’t use his bike for about six months, left outside and when he went to use it… rust rust rust it was hard to believe it was the same bike

mrb123

A few tips for cleaning:

Cut the top off an old water bottle to put degreaser in when you come to clean your bike. Use a small paintbrush to apply it to the chain. Doing in that way you won't need much and you won't be slopping it everywhere. Plus the bottle handily sits in the cage on your seat tube as you're using it.

Also, well worth getting one of the little chain keeper devices. Makes cleaning the drivetrain with wheels removed much easier.

You definitely want a workstand to put the bike in for cleaning. A good tip is to wipe/clean the sestpost before you clamp it in the stand so you don't risk scratching it of there's any dirt on there.

A bottle style brush is good for getting into nooks and crannies, hubs etc.

I've got a chain cleaner device but rarely use it. Painting on degreaser and then a good run through a wet sponge/cloth then rinse is usually sufficient.