The bike maintenance thread.
Discussion
Justin Cyder said:
I got in not a moment too soon. The fork was almost empty of oil & full of crud. New O-rings, a clean & refill & it feels like a new bike. Pleased with the outcome.
Can I send mine over to you? Got the ride in this morning before the rain but didn't get to clean it. So now 4 weeks of crud, knackered headset, rear derailleur indexing all over the place and shocks that probably need attention. Getting lazy.
TheLemming said:
I cleaned my road bike.... Does that count? :-)
When I say cleaned, I meant "came back in the pissing rain, sprayed it with muc off and let the rain do the rest"
Well played, Mine was wheeled in soaking and apart from GT85 on the moving bits left to drip dry.When I say cleaned, I meant "came back in the pissing rain, sprayed it with muc off and let the rain do the rest"
Proper soaking though, and met a few other cyclists out there.
airbrakes said:
and a proper marzocchi approved service would cost 5x what i paid for the forks!
Do you mean you got the forks for a few quid, or they do really need ultra-specialist servicing? I had some Marzocchi Bomber44 TST4 forks on my old hardtail, and after 3-4 years they stopped holding air. Had a right struggle finding anyone that would touch TST2-type forks, but Windwave Ltd did - i sent them to them, and about a week later got them back. Price was ~£60 (inc return postage) IIRC.I haven't done anything to my bike in ages!
My forks probably need a service, my shock is consistently inconsistent
I have two types of brakes fitted at the moment, a front Formula that has razor sharp bite from the tiniest movement of the lever but don't really ramp up and a rear Shimano that does nothing for half a lever pull then chimes in like deploying a parachute,
2nd and 3rd gear skip and I still haven't adjusted the front derailleur so if I'm being stupid I can shift the chain onto the bash ring, which isn't at all pleasant.
Oh and my cables have found a new home between the bottom cup of my headset and my fork crown and are eating through both at an alarming rate.
Had a couple of hours on Saturday to sort it, drove to Brechfa and went riding instead, such is life
My forks probably need a service, my shock is consistently inconsistent
I have two types of brakes fitted at the moment, a front Formula that has razor sharp bite from the tiniest movement of the lever but don't really ramp up and a rear Shimano that does nothing for half a lever pull then chimes in like deploying a parachute,
2nd and 3rd gear skip and I still haven't adjusted the front derailleur so if I'm being stupid I can shift the chain onto the bash ring, which isn't at all pleasant.
Oh and my cables have found a new home between the bottom cup of my headset and my fork crown and are eating through both at an alarming rate.
Had a couple of hours on Saturday to sort it, drove to Brechfa and went riding instead, such is life
airbrakes said:
I wouldnt mind giving my forks a proper service but they are waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay beyond my technical expertise to take apart, and a proper marzocchi approved service would cost 5x what i paid for the forks!
It's not necessarily the taking apart that's the problem. 
TBH, if you go online, there's plenty of "how to" videos and technical manuals. I had a bash with my boggo RockShox XC29s on the ahrdtail because I'd hit them so hard oil had splurged up both stanchions. It actually wasn't too big of a job to do a lower service.
Digga said:
airbrakes said:
I wouldnt mind giving my forks a proper service but they are waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay beyond my technical expertise to take apart, and a proper marzocchi approved service would cost 5x what i paid for the forks!
It's not necessarily the taking apart that's the problem. TBH, if you go online, there's plenty of "how to" videos and technical manuals. I had a bash with my boggo RockShox XC29s on the ahrdtail because I'd hit them so hard oil had splurged up both stanchions. It actually wasn't too big of a job to do a lower service.
airbrakes said:
Digga said:
airbrakes said:
I wouldnt mind giving my forks a proper service but they are waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay beyond my technical expertise to take apart, and a proper marzocchi approved service would cost 5x what i paid for the forks!
It's not necessarily the taking apart that's the problem. TBH, if you go online, there's plenty of "how to" videos and technical manuals. I had a bash with my boggo RockShox XC29s on the ahrdtail because I'd hit them so hard oil had splurged up both stanchions. It actually wasn't too big of a job to do a lower service.
FWIW, I've also had a set of Bombers I used to have in bits too and the basics are the same.
Today's ride cancelled due to complete lack of rear brakes.
The forecast had softened up from continuous rain to cloudy with showers, the housework was done, all was looking good. Then I saw the state I'd left my MTB in and decided it needed a clean-up and some appropriate lubrication before going out. So I started to clean it, and discovered that the rear brake was not working at all. So I spent three hours taking it all apart (not just the rear brake ) and cleaning it before reassembling it. Only by the time I'd finished, there were other things planned so it was a quick check on the workstand (it all appears to function as intended) and no riding for me today.
I'm going out tomorrow, whatever happens. Two days down this week and still no riding. But the first place I need to go when I get out is a bike shop - the chain is worn beyond 1% so I'll be lucky to avoid a new cassette too, this time.
The problem with the brakes? They are cable discs, and leaving the cable covered in crud, and the crud having got into the moving parts was preventing the return spring from releasing the brakes, and I think the cam bearings that apply the outboard pad to the disc were unable to apply sufficient force to stop the bike. Disc is cleaned, pads are sanded, bearings are cleaned and re-greased, cables are lubricated and running free, and the slab of peat that was fouling the front mech has been washed away.
Bad news, though, is that the frame has been worn by mud and grit on the tyres on the inside of the (non-drive side) chainstay. I was planning to fit a new cassette/chainrings/cables/brake pads after the winter, but the way the bike is looking it'll be cheaper in the long run to replace it with a new bike. (It's a 2008 GT Avalanche 3.0 running 8 speed Alivio gears and Tektro mechanical disc brakes)
Damn it. I promised myself I'd ride today.
The forecast had softened up from continuous rain to cloudy with showers, the housework was done, all was looking good. Then I saw the state I'd left my MTB in and decided it needed a clean-up and some appropriate lubrication before going out. So I started to clean it, and discovered that the rear brake was not working at all. So I spent three hours taking it all apart (not just the rear brake
) and cleaning it before reassembling it. Only by the time I'd finished, there were other things planned so it was a quick check on the workstand (it all appears to function as intended) and no riding for me today.I'm going out tomorrow, whatever happens. Two days down this week and still no riding. But the first place I need to go when I get out is a bike shop - the chain is worn beyond 1% so I'll be lucky to avoid a new cassette too, this time.
The problem with the brakes? They are cable discs, and leaving the cable covered in crud, and the crud having got into the moving parts was preventing the return spring from releasing the brakes, and I think the cam bearings that apply the outboard pad to the disc were unable to apply sufficient force to stop the bike. Disc is cleaned, pads are sanded, bearings are cleaned and re-greased, cables are lubricated and running free, and the slab of peat that was fouling the front mech has been washed away.
Bad news, though, is that the frame has been worn by mud and grit on the tyres on the inside of the (non-drive side) chainstay. I was planning to fit a new cassette/chainrings/cables/brake pads after the winter, but the way the bike is looking it'll be cheaper in the long run to replace it with a new bike. (It's a 2008 GT Avalanche 3.0 running 8 speed Alivio gears and Tektro mechanical disc brakes)
Damn it. I promised myself I'd ride today.
I have to confess to never having my front forks serviced.
I read somewhere that they should be serviced after every 100 hours of off-road use or summut. A rough calculation and I worked out that means I should get mine serviced about 2.5 times a year.
Mine are now 4 years old and have only ever get a clean with warm water (after almost every muddy ride to get the gunge off the stanchions). They did see a shock-pump once (cuz my mate had one and I don't).
I do think they could do with something though. I seem to get almost full travel during my road-commute (just a couple of hops off a few steps at the end of my garden and the usual road pot-holes). They also bottom-out in at least 6 places during a lap of my local trail.
Perhaps I have got used to them behaving as they do, and I don't realise that they are devoid of air or any rebound / damping control?
Apart from the forks, I do try to keep my bikes in good order. MTB gets a drive-train degrease and re-lube after every wet muddy winter ride (but probably only once a week during dry summer months), chain checked for wear monthly and replaced when needed (use a chain measuring tool). Usual re-packing of grease in all bearings (apart from the BB as it's a press-fit, I don't have the tools to remove so just leave it alone, checking for wear regularly).
I read somewhere that they should be serviced after every 100 hours of off-road use or summut. A rough calculation and I worked out that means I should get mine serviced about 2.5 times a year.
Mine are now 4 years old and have only ever get a clean with warm water (after almost every muddy ride to get the gunge off the stanchions). They did see a shock-pump once (cuz my mate had one and I don't).
I do think they could do with something though. I seem to get almost full travel during my road-commute (just a couple of hops off a few steps at the end of my garden and the usual road pot-holes). They also bottom-out in at least 6 places during a lap of my local trail.
Perhaps I have got used to them behaving as they do, and I don't realise that they are devoid of air or any rebound / damping control?
Apart from the forks, I do try to keep my bikes in good order. MTB gets a drive-train degrease and re-lube after every wet muddy winter ride (but probably only once a week during dry summer months), chain checked for wear monthly and replaced when needed (use a chain measuring tool). Usual re-packing of grease in all bearings (apart from the BB as it's a press-fit, I don't have the tools to remove so just leave it alone, checking for wear regularly).
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