Some advice on repair/upgrading

johno-xtc

Hi there!

For the past year, i have been using a Giant XTC SE for commuting, as i put on some semi slick tyres and couldn't have asked for a more comfortable bike to ride.

But i sort of neglected it towards of the end of the first year as i was going away traveling, and it was then left in the garage for 4 months and now i realise it needs alot of work.

These are the problems

- Chain is rusted/seized up
- rear cassete needs replacing
- Chain rings need replacing
- Left brake lever is either busted or just needs to be bled, as it doesnt spring back and feels mushy
- New pedals and handlebar grips
- Gears need re-indexing
- Forks need servicing or replacing

Also, i am sure there may be other issues that a skilled bike mechanic may pick up on and advise me needs doing.

What sort of price range do you lot think is reasonable to get my bike back up to standard going by what i have said?

I have been looking at the sub ¶œ300 price bracket and to be honest not many bikes appeal to me, especially as i have been used to the giant, which has a great frame.

If i spent ¶œ300 on upgrades/repairs, could i get this bike back up to the sort of standard it was when i purchased it?

By the way i am in Inverness, if there are any skilled home mechanics who fancy helping me with this project.

John

robertyboberty

hey there, giant xtc's are nice bikes, got one myself.

eh, most of the things you said that are wrong with the bike can be fixed at home.

chain- crc, sram 9spd chain(or 8spd if you only have 8 gears on the back) can be fitted at home, uses a power link which requires no tools. might need a few links taken out but thats still a simple job with a chain tool.

cassette- is possible to do at home, check your freehub too as they can be subject to wear and tear also (feels like it takes longer than normal to "engage" when u pedal) would be best taking it to a bike shop and gettin it fixed, alpine bikes or the wee bike shop by pc world should be fine.

chainrings- need replacing if there "shark toothed" , best to change them anyways if your changing most of the drivetrain. get the same chainring sizes as you did before, remember though that shimano chainrings are alu i think and wear super quick. middleburn and raceface rings always get good reveiws.this can be done at home, fairly simple.

brake lever- if its a giant mph3 then its simple to bleed. you should have gotten a manual about them with the bike. easy peasy job with a bleed kit, you could fire it into a bike shop and have them check over the seals etc if you really wanted to. probably just air in the system though. they need dot 4 fluid i think, just make sure the fluid you put in is the same as whats already in it.

new pedals and grips- odi lock on grips, dmr v8's for wee feet, gusset slim jims for bigger. personal preference really.

reindexing gears- can be done at home, might be worth while investing in some new jockey wheels if the bike has done a lot of mileage. check bikemagic.com for how to's on it.

fork servicing- best to leave it to a shop.

just look about for offers or deals for stuff, chain reaction is always a good place to start. hope this helps!
cheers,
rab



<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by RSArick</i>

RobertyBoberty, LMAO at your name, it's well funny if you say it really quickly!
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote"></font id="quote"> bike: http://www.pinkbike.com/photo/1316524/

johno-xtc

Alright Rab, thanks for the reply.

I am pretty much aware most of this can be done at home, but to be honest i am abit of a diy knob jockey! i am one of these guys that is great with computers but when it comes to anything diy, i always screw it up!

I have been looking on ebay and a few cycle shops and i can see that buying any upgrades i need, is going to be quite good value for money but i am not too confident on making these upgrades myself.

best bet would be for me to take my bike down town and see what the cycle dealers say.

paulf2007

might be worth having a go, nobody ever learned anything without trying. What happens when your bike breaks out on the trail, do you call the AA or rely on mates, you'd get some stick off my lot if you couldn't fix it yourself

extreme__dude

<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by paulf2007</i>

might be worth having a go, nobody ever learned anything without trying. What happens when your bike breaks out on the trail, do you call the AA or rely on mates, you'd get some stick off my lot if you couldn't fix it yourself
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote"></font id="quote">

agreed. theres nothing worse than working in a bike shop and having people bringing in relatively good bikes and not knowing how to fix them!!

most of the things youve mentioned are relatively simple, however, you will need to get a few tools.

tools needed:
cassette lockring tool
chain rivet tool
spanner for your bleed nipple (most likely to be a 6 or an 8 mm)
brake fluid - i think theyre dot 4 or 5.1 (eithers fine) but you may wat to check its not mineral before going for it
15mm spanner for your pedals
as for your forks - depending on what they are - if theyre cheapy ones, replace them. if theyre half decent tftuned.com is your (rather expensive) friend
and finally a good set of allen keys.

all that and new forks could be done for under 300 i would imagine too which is a bonus! (depending on what forks you went for that is!)

<center>pinkbike</center>
<center>new frame [:D]</center>