Alright, so with a brand new bike, used bike, whatever, what should I be doing after every ride, and what should I be doing regularly (eg. End of every season, every month, etc.)
Bike Care and Maintence.
- Thread starter max.broman
- Start date
Air in the tires, air in the shocks (if air shocks), and lube on the chain when it squeaks. Other than that, fix as necessary. If something wobbles or makes noise it needs adjustment.
do this after every ride, i know i do.
http://www.sheldonbrown.com/chainclean.html
http://www.sheldonbrown.com/chainclean.html
Make sure you snug everything with one of these.
The only other SERIOUS thing I would add is that you should replace your chain every oh... 40-50 hrs of riding. If you don't then when you DO have to replace it, you will also have to replace all your gears (Front chainrings and rear cassette).
I ride my bike to and from work almost every day of the week. I try to clean/lube the chain weekly, make sure tires are aired up every couple of days, clean my rims weekly, wipe the bike down a couple times a week. I also replace my cables and housing once a year. Even if they don't need it, it gives me peace of mind and I get an excuse to drink beer and work on the bike. Other than that if it's squeaky lube it, tighten it, or have it checked at the bike shop. Hope that helps.
Alright sweet. So I'll clean the bike once a week or more, especially the chain.
I clean my bike after every ride as soon as I get home. Takes me about 8 minutes. Just NEVER use a strong stream or pressure washer on joints where bearings are. You'll blow out all the grease. Use a hose open or with a very low pressure to rinse it off.
I start by rinsing the dirt off. Then I clean my chain first. I spin the crankset and squirt some soft crub along the chain, cassette, and crank rings. There are degreasers but I've cleaned my bike like this for 15 years and never had a problem using soft scrub. I use the second brush in the video, it's white and blue, to clean the chain back and forth putting pressure up into the links so the bristles get into the links. I clean all four sides of my chain moving the chain slowly and scrubbing all sides back and forth about six cranks to get it all. Then I press the same brush down into the teeth of the cassette so the bristles get into the teeth and the same for the crank. I just lift the chain off the crank and lay it on the frame where the bottom bracket is so I can spin the crank and clean the crank. I rinse that. Then I use the first brush in the vid black and blue, with a little dishwashing liquid and water and wash my hubs through the spokes.
Then I use a really cool brush I found to clean the smallest tiny crevices. See the vid to explain. You can buy it at ANY kitchen appliance parts supply store for about $5 bucks. It's like a huge pipe cleaner on a stick. It can get in an area the size of a pencil eraser. A little dishwashing liquid and water on it and it cleans the smallest nooks and crannys of your bike in between tires and forks etc. It even gets in between your disk brake rotors and your hub which is impossible to get to. When done, I use a soft bristle brush to clean the bike itself and my rims, tires and forks.
I dry my chain with a towel and relube it with Chain Lube. I don't use mountain bike lube because I clean my chain after every ride. I use motorcycle chain lube like pro motocrossers use on their dirt bikes. I like it better. But if you're not going to clean your bike after every ride, the motorcycle chain lube is wet and it will attract more dirt therefor you may want to buy a chain lube specifically made for bikes from your local bike shop. I just like the other stuff because my chain is super quiet when I ride.
Hope that helps you out buddy and check out the vid to see the brush I use for the small areas. As you can see in the vid my cranks, cassette, chain and the entire bike looks brand new but, I have had it for three seasons. Regular cleaning will do that.
VID BELOW!
I start by rinsing the dirt off. Then I clean my chain first. I spin the crankset and squirt some soft crub along the chain, cassette, and crank rings. There are degreasers but I've cleaned my bike like this for 15 years and never had a problem using soft scrub. I use the second brush in the video, it's white and blue, to clean the chain back and forth putting pressure up into the links so the bristles get into the links. I clean all four sides of my chain moving the chain slowly and scrubbing all sides back and forth about six cranks to get it all. Then I press the same brush down into the teeth of the cassette so the bristles get into the teeth and the same for the crank. I just lift the chain off the crank and lay it on the frame where the bottom bracket is so I can spin the crank and clean the crank. I rinse that. Then I use the first brush in the vid black and blue, with a little dishwashing liquid and water and wash my hubs through the spokes.
Then I use a really cool brush I found to clean the smallest tiny crevices. See the vid to explain. You can buy it at ANY kitchen appliance parts supply store for about $5 bucks. It's like a huge pipe cleaner on a stick. It can get in an area the size of a pencil eraser. A little dishwashing liquid and water on it and it cleans the smallest nooks and crannys of your bike in between tires and forks etc. It even gets in between your disk brake rotors and your hub which is impossible to get to. When done, I use a soft bristle brush to clean the bike itself and my rims, tires and forks.
I dry my chain with a towel and relube it with Chain Lube. I don't use mountain bike lube because I clean my chain after every ride. I use motorcycle chain lube like pro motocrossers use on their dirt bikes. I like it better. But if you're not going to clean your bike after every ride, the motorcycle chain lube is wet and it will attract more dirt therefor you may want to buy a chain lube specifically made for bikes from your local bike shop. I just like the other stuff because my chain is super quiet when I ride.
Hope that helps you out buddy and check out the vid to see the brush I use for the small areas. As you can see in the vid my cranks, cassette, chain and the entire bike looks brand new but, I have had it for three seasons. Regular cleaning will do that.
VID BELOW!
Thanks! That's exactly what I was looking for!
Who, ME?
Yeah. 