Wednesday, July 1, 2015

Things To Know About Bicycle Tune Up

By Edna Booker


Winter months in Cincinnati OH has ended and the weather starts to calm down. This is the best time to start your day. This is the best day to enjoy the climate outside. So get your bike, check it out and change necessary things to get it back to its shape and get ready to roll. Whether you have family machines at home or purchased one, regular tuneups are necessary to keep your bicycle running for a long period of time.

If you bring your bike to a mechanic and do a full tuneup, it will cost you higher, but a worthwhile investment especially for those cyclists who have no tools or the time to do the maintenance. If you prefer to do the bicycle tune up of your own, then make sure that you have the right skills. Since it is easy and cheap to do some maintenance, it only takes an hour to complete the task for DIYer.

Dirt and dust are actually the number one enemy of bikes, so first look for a clean and open space. If you are using a pathway, it is best to sweep first. The tuneup often revolves around lube, cleaning and few adjustments. Cleaning is the easiest and important ways to keep your bike running for the years to come.

This is also considered as the heart of the bicycles. It is best to wipe it with clean cloth. If your chain is sticky with grease, dirty and rusty, you can use a spray from fine brushes or a degreaser from fluid and let it dry before adding grease to the chains again.

After the drive chain maintenance, it is now tome to move on the body structure of the bike. If you are a mountain biker and you often gets muddy, wash your bicycle with light mist. Always remember not to direct the stream water to the headset as well as the bottom bracket or hubs. This is because, it will only cause the bicycle to creak and rust in the long run.

One of the main causes of problems to any bicycle is lack of lubrication. If you do not check on lubrication on a monthly basis, metal rubs, bearings may grind and the bike will stop working well. If you also over lubricate your bicycle, it will also lead to similar issues. If you are biking on roads, it is better to add extra dry based lube on the chains.

So, before going out, check first the components of your bike especially the condition of the brakes. You also need to look at the pads and see possible wear or damage in the brake pads. If you see or notice some damage even the smallest one, make sure to replace it if possible. Also, if the brakes are making some grinding noise after making alignments, then you need to sand out.

Repairing and troubleshooting a bike may take longer than an hour and require you special tools. With issues such as loose headsets, clicking gears and misaligned wheels, it is better take it to an expert mechanic or you may use the manual to fix the problem. If you have no idea about it, then you may only destroy everything.

Lubricating, cleaning and adjusting specific areas of the bike can make it efficient and make your ride very enjoyable. Do not wait until your bicycle has aged before tuning it. A regular tuneup can make a difference in how long the external and internal parts last and how perfect your ride could be.




About the Author:



No comments:

Post a Comment