Maintaining and fixing your own bike
Posted: November 11, 2009 at 5:11 pm | Tags: how-to, repair
After I started riding a bike full time, I noticed many changes. Obviously my fitness increased from added daily exercise. One of the biggest things however was the money I saved without a car. No more insurance, gas, oil changes, expensive repairs, etc. Even though I did all my own auto repair and never needed to go to a shop, these things add up.
Bicycles however are not without some costs. They require regular maintenance just like a car and seem to require it more frequently. Thankfully, these tend to be inexpensive and even having the local bike shop do all of this for you is just a fraction of what you would pay for owning a car. If you are cheap like I am, even these costs will start to bug you. Thankfully, it is really easy to do many tasks yourself, saving you a trip to the bike stop and a few bucks in the process.
The first thing you will need are tools. Thankfully this does not require a large investment as an inexpensive multi-tool will allow you to perform nearly all simple tasks such as the adjusting of brakes or derailleurs . Multi-tools from Crank Brothers, Top Peak, and Park Tool will work great and are all around the $20 range. In addition, they are compact enough to throw in your backpack or saddle bag to take with you on a ride in case you need to perform an on-the-road repair.
Once you have the tools to do the work, you’ll need information on how to do the work itself. Before getting into bikes, I was an avid car enthusiast and consider myself to be pretty mechanically inclined. That said, working on bicycles was a new world completely. Not everything is intuitive, and the wide variety of different parts can be confusing when you are starting out. Two reference guides which are often used are the Park Tool Big Blue Book of Repair, and Zinn and the Art of Road Bike Maintenance. Now a good repair book is valuable, but to be honest, I’ve never purchased one. There are some fantastic resources on the internet which can give you nearly all the information you need.
The Bicycle Tutor is a site which contains videos of many common procedures. From adjusting brakes to replacing a bottom bracket, you can find a detailed guide on nearly everything here. Park Tool has a very handy Repair Help section with articles about various tasks. There’s a lot of overlap between the guides at The Bicycle Tutor, but having multiple explanations can be handy, and being able to print the guide you need is useful as well. And last but certainly not least, there is Sheldon Brown’s Technical Information page. There’s a reason he is often referred to as Saint Sheldon, this site is a gold mine of technical information, repair guides, references, and all sorts of tidbits of knowledge regarding bike operation.
With the right tools and knowledge, working on your bike can be an easy and rewarding task. Starting out can be a bit intimidating, I recommend beginning with small tasks. Learn to change a flat on your own, adjust your derailleurs and brakes, and replace brake pads. By performing these at home, you can save some coin while keeping your bike running tip top. Now go get dirty!
